"Big Brother, you're back!"
A girl came out. She looked adorable, her eyes a light grassy green. Her clothing was primarily green with dark-colored accents at the edges. She was a bit shorter than Yan, about the same height as Mingtian.
"Little Wan, come here. Let me introduce you. This is my new friend I met today, the one who helped me win in the Soul Duel—Mingtian!"
"Mingtian, this is my younger sister, Yan Qingwan."
As Yan spoke, he patted Mingtian on the shoulder. Mingtian looked at Yan Qingwan a little awkwardly, suddenly reminded of his own little sister, Mingxue.
"What's wrong, Mingtian?"
"Nothing, Brother Yan. I just suddenly thought of my little sister."
"Oh? You have a sister too?"
"Yeah. Her name is Mingxue. But I can't find her anymore."
Sensing Mingtian's sadness, Yan comforted him:
"What happened? Did she get lost? Don't worry. Can you remember what she looks like? Our Yanling Auction House has small branches in other places. We can help you look for her."
"Thank you, Brother Yan."
"Don't be too sad, Mingtian. Since you're my brother's friend, you're also my friend. We'll all be here for you."
"Thank you!"
"My sister is five this year. In another month, she'll be six and able to awaken her Martial Soul."
"I'm looking forward to Little Wan's awakening."
"Our father is Yan Wei. He's usually busy and doesn't really take care of us, so you probably won't see him."
"Come on, I'll have the servants prepare a room for you."
Yan's enthusiasm took Mingtian by surprise. He suddenly felt a warm, homely comfort.
"Brother Yan, you're so kind to me. By the way, what about your mother?"
As they talked while walking, Yan suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"My mother... she passed away after giving birth to Qingwan. She was killed by an evil soul master!"
After speaking, Yan's whole demeanor turned cold, anger radiating from him.
Mingtian froze; the warmth he'd just felt vanished instantly, leaving him pale and cold.
Were the people from the Holy Spirit Sect the ones who did it? If so, wouldn't he be Yan's enemy?
He had just found what felt like a close friend, and now realized they might be on opposing sides. From heaven to hell in one breath.
Should he... confess?
"...I'm sorry..."
"It's alright, Mingtian. You didn't know. Sorry if I scared you just now. Was my aura too intense? Why do you look so pale? Did you get an internal injury during the fight earlier?"
Yan asked with concern.
Mingtian didn't know how to respond. The sorry he had just said wasn't about injuries, but the words caught in his throat.
He simply nodded.
"I'm a bit tired. Maybe I did get a little hurt during the battle."
"In that case, go rest. We'll meet again tomorrow."
"Huh?"
"Tomorrow... Let's see each other tomorrow then."
"I almost forgot—Mingtian, haha, your name is hilarious. Mingtian meeting again tomorrow."
"By the way, which 'Ming' is it?"
"It's the one from 'chirping birds' (鸣)."
"Ah, I see. Alright then, I'm off. Get some good rest."
Yan waved and left. Only after Yan had disappeared from sight did Mingtian let out a deep breath.
What now? Well... he'd just take it one step at a time.
Mingtian, full of heavy thoughts, stayed the night at Yan's house and fell into a deep sleep.
The Next Day...
Mingtian woke up slowly. Looking around the simple room, he recalled that he was in Yan's house. So much had happened yesterday.
From now on, he'd have to be extremely careful living here—never revealing his abilities, Martial Soul, or identity. He'd stay until he saved enough money, and then quietly leave. That was his plan.
After washing up, Mingtian stepped outside. Yan's house was quite grand. The servants were all busily working.
"Eh? Mingtian, you're awake?"
A cheerful voice called out again—it was Yan Qingwan.
"Hello, Miss Yan."
Mingtian said, a bit shyly.
"I'm younger than you, why are you calling me 'Miss'? Since you're my brother's friend, that makes you my friend too. Just call me Little Wan like he does."
"Come on, let's go eat. Big Brother told me to come get you."
Yan Qingwan grabbed Mingtian's hand and ran toward the dining area. Mingtian grew even more embarrassed. After all, he was only six, and aside from his sister and a few peers, he hadn't interacted much with others.
At the dining area, Yan was already waiting with a smile.
"There you are, Mingtian. Eat up. After breakfast, I'll take you to our family's auction house. Let's see if we can find anything interesting."
"Big Brother, I want to go too!"
"Sure, Little Wan can come along."
"Auction house?"
"Yep. Our family runs one. But that doesn't mean all the items are ours. We just provide the venue and security. Many sellers who don't want to show their faces hire us to sell things for them. There are also travelers passing through Tianling City, or people selling items they can't offload in inner cities. We earn our fees through commissions and protection services."
"Sometimes we even buy tricky or unsellable items ourselves. Today, we'll go see if we get lucky."
Yan explained, and Mingtian nodded. After a hearty breakfast, the three of them headed toward Yanling Auction House.
The Yanling Auction House was bustling. Aside from locals, there were many wandering soul masters.
Most of them kept their faces hidden and were heavily disguised.
"Why'd you drag me here? Is there something you're investigating?"
Asked Poison Soul Death to Meng Qianji.
Meng Qianji had pulled him over first thing in the morning.
"Just looking around. Who knows, maybe I'll find something good."
"Huh?"
Meng Qianji suddenly sensed something—and spotted Mingtian among the crowd, walking with Yan.
"Isn't that the kid from yesterday...?"
"Looks like we came to the right place. Let's go. Don't worry, I won't spend your money."
"You still haven't paid back the 3,000 gold soul coins from last time."
Poison Soul Death muttered sourly.
The two blended into the common seating area, while Yan, as the host, went straight to the VIP section.
"Everyone, please quiet down. The morning auction at Yanling Auction House is now officially starting!"
"This is a Soul Saint-level expert our family hired—quite rare even in Tianling City. If it weren't for him, a lot of our items would've been stolen already. His name is He Chen, his Martial Soul is the Sky Blazing Halberd, and he has seventy-two levels of soul power. He's a commoner from a small village in Fasno Province of Tian Dou City. It's impressive that a Soul Saint came from such a place. In fact, I heard they even renamed their village Saint Soul Village in his honor. So arrogant and laughable. What, if someone there became a god, would they rename it God Soul Village?"
"That is kind of funny. Who knows, maybe they really will produce a god someday."
"A god, huh? With our talent, maybe it's not impossible. Anyway, enough of that. The auction's starting."