Hearing Qin Yi's "again," Xue Qiao'er felt something was off. She said, "Qin Yi, don't overthink it. I'm here to talk to you about joining the Order Hall!"
"I'm not overthinking it, I'm just asking!" Qin Yi spread his hands.
Then, he said with some helplessness, "Team Leader Xue, about joining your Order Hall, didn't I explain it clearly to you in Heilong City that day? I don't..."
However, before he could finish, Xue Qiao'er interrupted, "It was you who told Team Leader Fang earlier that you wanted to join the Order Hall, and then Team Leader Fang and I rushed to Heilong City specifically for that reason!"
"When we arrived in Heilong City, even at the cafe, we were chatting well. What happened later that made you suddenly change your mind?"
"This, I..."
Qin Yi didn't know how to answer.
Because, in this way, he was indeed a little in the wrong! After all, it was his own decision to change his mind at the last minute!
But, Qin Yi didn't want to either. Wasn't it because his two senior sisters, Lan Baizhi and Ren Shuman, wouldn't allow it, saying that the Order Hall wasn't worthy of him!
Xue Qiao'er saw Qin Yi's hesitation and asked again, "Did you change your mind because of those two women?"
"Who exactly are they to you that you listen to them so much?"
It was obvious that she was referring to Lan Baizhi and Ren Shuman.
Qin Yi felt a bit embarrassed, pondering how to respond.
Just then, Ming Xuanyuan saw Xue Qiao'er arrive. He immediately abandoned the person he was talking to and walked over quickly. "Team Leader Xue, I didn't expect you to be here. This is truly an honor for our Miaobao Pavilion!"
He was extremely polite to Xue Qiao'er.
Of course, Ming Xuanyuan's politeness to Xue Qiao'er was not because of her strength, but entirely because of her identity!
Afterward, seeing Xue Qiao'er, other martial artists present, knowing she was from the Order Hall and a team leader, all came forward to greet her.
Luo Dexuan and the Zhuge family head were no exception!
For a moment, Xue Qiao'er was busy responding to everyone and had no time to pay attention to Qin Yi.
Qin Yi took this opportunity to slip away and let out a sigh of relief.
Everyone had actually helped him out of the awkward situation.
Not long after, at noon, the Miaobao Pavilion's auction began.
Ming Xuanyuan walked onto the temporary stage, gave some empty pleasantries, and then announced the official start of the auction.
As the auction began, the people from Miaobao Pavilion brought out the items one by one onto the stage. Qin Yi and the other attendees stood below the stage, bidding if they liked something, with the highest bidder winning.
Although Miaobao Pavilion had announced that they had found a five-thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum, and everyone had come almost entirely for the Ganoderma, Miaobao Pavilion had made such a grand setup and built a stage specifically for it, so they wouldn't just auction off the Ganoderma.
Therefore, at the beginning, Ming Xuanyuan first presented a few other items.
Qin Yi was completely uninterested in any of them. He stood with his arms crossed, remaining silent.
At some point, Xue Qiao'er returned to Qin Yi's side and said, "Qin Yi, you're here for that five-thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum, aren't you?"
Qin Yi stared at the stage, not looking at Xue Qiao'er, and retorted, "Aren't you?"
Xue Qiao'er, like him, hadn't bid on any of the previous items.
It was clear that she, too, had come for the Ganoderma!
In fact, most people at the scene had come for that five-thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum!
"If you join the Order Hall, the Order Hall can provide you with any cultivation resources you need. You wouldn't have to buy or find them yourself!" Xue Qiao'er said indifferently, also watching the stage.
Qin Yi listened and couldn't help but admire her.
She was truly dedicated, trying to recruit him for the Order Hall at all times!
If it weren't for his two senior sisters' disapproval, he might have agreed.
Qin Yi could only say, "Team Leader Xue, let's not talk about this for now. We'll discuss it after the auction."
"Alright, we'll talk after it's over." Xue Qiao'er readily agreed.
Luo Dexuan, the Zhuge family head, and others nearby saw Qin Yi and Xue Qiao'er standing together and constantly interacting, and they all secretly speculated about their relationship.
Later, after more than half an hour had passed and the first few items had been auctioned off, Ming Xuanyuan finally announced that the grand finale of the auction, the five-thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum, was about to be presented!
Instantly, whether it was Qin Yi, Xue Qiao'er, or anyone else, they all stared intently at the stage, and no one spoke.
After a moment, Xiang You carried a tray onto the stage. The tray was covered with a red cloth.
Ming Xuanyuan took the tray, lifted the red cloth, revealing a box about a meter long and half a meter wide.
Then, in front of everyone, Ming Xuanyuan slowly opened the box.
Below, everyone watched Ming Xuanyuan's movements intently, their eyes full of anticipation. Some people with less self-control even stopped breathing.
A moment later, as Ming Xuanyuan opened the lid of the box, a red light instantly burst forth, and a Ganoderma lucidum, red as fire and larger than a bear's paw, was exposed to everyone's eyes.
Furthermore, as the box opened, a thick and incredibly pure spiritual energy of heaven and earth overflowed. Qin Yi and the others standing below the stage all clearly felt it with every breath they took!
In an instant, many people stared at the Ganoderma lucidum in the box, their eyes glazed over, and their breathing became rapid.
Even Xue Qiao'er's emotions became somewhat unsettled.
Qin Yi looked at the Ganoderma lucidum in the box, his eyes narrowing slightly. At this moment, he finally understood why he hadn't been able to detect the Ganoderma when he released his senses earlier!
It wasn't because Miaobao Pavilion hadn't placed the Ganoderma nearby, but entirely because the box containing the Ganoderma was made of special materials that blocked his senses.
That was why he couldn't feel it!
Qin Yi, like everyone else, looked intently at the Ganoderma in the box. He quickly determined that the Ganoderma in the box was at most a thousand years old, far from being five thousand years old!
The five-thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum was indeed an exaggeration by Miaobao Pavilion!
However, Qin Yi scanned the crowd and found that, except for himself, no one else seemed to have noticed the problem with the Ganoderma's age!
Ming Xuanyuan, Xiang Zuo, and Xiang You looked at the reactions and expressions of everyone, exchanged glances, and saw satisfaction in each other's pupils.
Immediately, Ming Xuanyuan deliberately closed the box again and said, "Everyone has seen it, right? This Ganoderma lucidum is indeed a five-thousand-year-old super Ganoderma lucidum. It took our Miaobao Pavilion a lot of effort and was very difficult to find and pick!"
"What a five-thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum represents, its uses... I believe everyone present knows, so I won't elaborate further!"
"Now, I'll just say two things: the starting bid for this Ganoderma lucidum is one billion, and each increment is no less than ten million!"
"You may now make your bids!"