Of course, regardless of what he felt deep down, Chen Xiao still enjoyed the attention.
"Young Master Chen, please make yourself comfortable," Lan Yueli said with a slight nod before turning and walking away.
"Huh?"
"What's going on? That's it?"
"She only said one sentence? Something doesn't add up... Where's Director Lan going?"
The young men seated in the front row looked puzzled. If Lan Yueli had come out just to greet Chen Xiao, it didn't make sense for her to simply exchange a few polite words and leave. That kind of formality was far below what they expected. Something else was clearly going on.
Their confusion only deepened as Lan Yueli walked past them, heading toward the rear rows, where Li Yun and Li Hua were seated.
With a soft smile, Lan Yueli stopped in front of them. "Young Master Li, it's a pleasure to see you again," she greeted warmly, then turned to Li Hua. "Hello, Miss Hua."
Li Hua was visibly stunned. She hadn't expected the dignified Supervisor of the Treasure Pavilion to approach them directly, let alone speak to them so familiarly. It was clear Lan Yueli and Li Yun already knew each other.
Her mind quickly pieced it together, Li Yun's identity as a pharmacist. But even then Li Yun was only a junior pharmacist who could only refine Bone Refining Potion… He was nowhere near a senior pharmacist level who refine a Marrow Cleansing Potion.
So why was Director Lan so polite with Li Yun?
"Director Lan," Li Yun greeted her with a polite smile.
"Young Master Li, Miss Hua, it's not suitable for you to be sitting all the way back here," Lan Yueli said warmly. "Please, come with me. I've prepared seats for you at the front."
"The front?" Li Yun asked, glancing toward the first row in surprise.
All eyes shifted toward them, the crowd curious and filled with speculation.
"Sister Hua, since Manager Lan personally invited us, we might as well go," Li Yun said with a light smile.
Li Hua hesitated. Her gaze drifted to Zhen Mayo, who was watching them from the front, her expression unreadable. After a moment, Li Hua nodded. "Alright."
Following Lan Yueli, the two of them walked forward. When they reached the front row, Lan Yueli herself arranged their seats, an honor few could dream of.
The reaction from the crowd was immediate.
"Wait a second… When did Li Hua become so important?"
"No, this doesn't make sense. Even back when her martial arts talent hadn't been crippled, I don't think she ever got such treatment from Director Lan."
"This is strange. Something's definitely going on."
Zhao Xiaotian and the others exchanged glances and whispered among themselves, suspicion and unease flickering in their eyes.
Zhen Mayo's expression darkened. Her sense of superiority, the smug confidence she'd carried, was quickly unraveling. Standing beside Li Hua, she couldn't help but feel a tinge of inferiority. No matter how flawlessly she played her role in front of others, deep down, she couldn't lie to herself. Even now, despite everything, Li Hua still outshone her.
Yet, everyone's attention remained fixed on Li Hua and Lan Yueli. No one suspected the truth, that the one Lan Yueli truly valued wasn't Li Hua at all. It was the young man quietly seated beside her, Li Yun.
"Young Master Li, Miss Hua, the auction will begin shortly," Lan Yueli said with a warm smile. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to let me know."
Li Yun gave a small chuckle and cleared his throat. His eyes swept across the room before he looked at Lan Yueli and replied with a grin, "Actually, Director Lan, I do have a small matter I'd like to discuss with you."
"Oh?" Lan Yueli's eyes lit up slightly.
At that moment, a ripple of disbelief ran through the crowd seated nearby. Several faces twisted in amusement and contempt.
"This guy actually thinks she's serious?" someone snorted under their breath. "Lan Yueli was just being polite. And he dares to make a request?"
"He wouldn't even be here if he weren't riding on Li Hua's coattails," Zhao Xiaotian sneered, taking the opportunity to vent his earlier frustration. Being called a mad dog by Li Yun had left a bitter taste in his mouth, and now he was quick to mock him.
"Brother Zhao," said the young man in red, narrowing his eyes, "You're talking about the guy next to Li Hua?"
Zhao Xiaotian nodded with a smug expression. "Yeah, that's Li Yun. He's the grandson of Li Zhen, the Li family's Third Elder. You must've heard of him, the infamous good-for-nothing. Born without elemental attributes. Completely unable to cultivate. And now look, somehow sitting up here in the first row with us. What a joke."
The young man in white laughed coldly. "Ah, I've heard of him. And now he thinks he can make a personal request to Lan Yueli? Unbelievable. The most important thing for a person is to know their place."
Despite the sneers and whispered insults, Li Yun remained composed. He didn't even glance in their direction. Instead, he looked at Lan Yueli and said calmly, "Director Lan, would you mind if we spoke privately? It's not ideal discussing this out here in the open."
"Of course, Young Master Li," Lan Yueli said without hesitation, her tone respectful as she turned and gestured for him to follow.
The crowd fell into stunned silence.
"…Huh?"
"…Did that really just happen?"
"Did Lan Yueli… actually agree to speak with him privately?"
"No way… Am I seeing things?"
Everyone watched in disbelief as Lan Yueli personally led Li Yun through the side door. It was a sight few would've believed if they hadn't witnessed it themselves.
Even Chen Xiao, who had remained aloof until now, furrowed his brows. His expression didn't change much, but his eyes betrayed his confusion. He couldn't understand it. Lan Yueli's demeanor toward Li Yun, it felt far warmer and more attentive than when she spoke to him.
Among all those present, only Li Hua had an inkling of what might be happening. She guessed that the Treasure Pavilion had discovered Li Yun's potential in potion refining and they might be supporting him right now. That way when Li Yun could refine high grade potions, he could pay them handsomely. It was an investment from their end.
At least that was what Li Hua could conclude from her own. She or anyone from Li Family or even the Treasure Pavilion had no idea Li Yun already had the status of Senior Pharmacist with him being able to refine Marrow Cleansing Pills.
Lan Yueli personally led Li Yun to the private crystal room located above the auction hall. Inside, Pavilion Master Guan Long was already present, his gaze fixed on the scene below. When he saw Lan Yueli enter with Li Yun, he showed no sign of displeasure, instead, a calm smile formed on his face.
"Young Master Li, this is Pavilion Master Guan Long, the one in charge of our Treasure Pavilion," Lan Yueli introduced politely.
Guan Long stepped forward with a warm smile. "Young Master Li, I've heard much about you. Now that I finally meet you in person, I must say, you truly live up to your reputation. Young, talented, and full of promise."
Li Yun was momentarily surprised upon hearing the introduction, but the expression passed quickly. Within seconds, he had regained his composure.
Guan Long silently took note of this. The fact that Li Yun barely flinched upon meeting the master of the Treasure Pavilion impressed him. In Azure Wind City, there were very few young cultivators who could stay composed in his presence. In that brief moment, Li Yun's status in his mind rose significantly.
"Li Yun greets Pavilion Master Guan." Li Yun bowed respectfully but not overly so.
"There's no need to stand on ceremony, Young Master Li," Guan Long said with a wave of his hand. "Let's keep things casual."
Lan Yueli turned to Li Yun. "Young Master Li, earlier you said you had something to discuss?"
"Yes." Li Yun nodded, his eyes becoming serious. "I've come to attend the auction today, but I may not have enough gold coins on hand…"
Though he had sold many excellent-grade and even a few perfect-grade bone refining potions to the Treasure Pavilion in the past, he had yet to auction off any marrow cleansing potions. At present, he carried just over twenty thousand gold coins, not nearly enough to secure what he hoped to bid on.
Before he could say more, Lan Yueli exchanged a glance with Guan Long and smiled reassuringly. "Young Master Li, you're a VIP guest of the Treasure Pavilion. You don't need to worry about your coin pouch. Even if you fall short during a bid, we will cover the difference. There's no issue."
So long as the shortfall wasn't excessive, within twenty thousand gold coins, they were more than happy to extend that courtesy to Li Yun.
But Li Yun shook his head with a faint smile. "Director Lan, you've misunderstood me. I have no intention of borrowing from the Treasure Pavilion. Rather, I'd like to place a few potions up for auction before the bidding begins."
"Oh?" Lan Yueli was clearly caught off guard by Li Yun's unexpected proposal.
Guan Long, too, looked mildly surprised. Just moments ago, he'd assumed, like Lan Yueli, that Li Yun intended to borrow gold coins for the auction.
"Young Master Li… do you have a sizable stock of excellent and perfect-grade Bone Refining Potions?" Lan Yueli asked, her eyes flashing with curiosity. "Our Treasure Pavilion has worked with you several times already. You're familiar with our pricing structure. If you'd like to sell them, we can purchase them directly. As for putting them in the auction…"
Her tone shifted, and a hint of hesitation appeared on her face.
High-grade Bone Refining Potions, while valuable, weren't suitable for auctioning. That sort of transaction was better handled behind the scenes.
But Li Yun gently shook his head. "Director Lan, you're mistaken again. I agree, it wouldn't be appropriate to auction Bone Refining Potions. I'm not referring to those." A confident smile touched his lips. "What I'd like to put up for auction are Marrow Cleansing Potions."
"What?"
"Marrow Cleansing Potions?" Even Lan Yueli's normally calm composure wavered. Her body tensed slightly as surprise washed over her.
Until now, Li Yun had never sold a single Marrow Cleansing Potion through the Treasure Pavilion.
"Yes," Li Yun confirmed with a nod. "And not just any, these are excellent-grade Marrow Cleansing Potions. I believe such a product would be more than worthy of the auction stage."
Though he hadn't yet managed to refine a perfect-grade version, Li Yun was confident in the value of his current stock. And excellent-grade was already enough to cause a stir.
"Excellent-grade Marrow Cleansing Potions can definitely be auctioned," Lan Yueli replied, a flicker of excitement dancing in her eyes. "However… the current auction lineup has already been finalized..."
Everything had been arranged. Schedules were locked. To suddenly add something now, regardless of its value, was technically against the rules.
"It's fine. Special items deserve special treatment," Guan Long interrupted with a relaxed wave of his hand before Lan Yueli could finish. "Go ahead and make the arrangements."
"Thank you, Pavilion Master," Li Yun said, bowing slightly in gratitude.
He had understood that making a last-minute entry into the auction might be difficult. It was a long shot, but worth trying. If it didn't work out, so be it. But now that Guan Long himself had granted permission, Li Yun was more than pleased.
"I'll get it done immediately," Lan Yueli responded swiftly. Her gaze turned sharp and focused. "Young Master Li, how many bottles are we talking about?"
"Let me check…" Li Yun opened the small satchel slung at his side and quickly inspected its contents. After a moment, he looked up. "Twenty bottles. That should be enough for now."
In truth, he had over fifty bottles in total, fruits of his relentless effort over the past month while he strove toward refining perfect-grade potions. But there was no need to reveal everything at once.
He believed that within a few more days, or at most a week, he'd succeed in refining a perfect-grade Marrow Cleansing Potion.
"Twenty bottles?" Lan Yueli repeated, eyes gleaming with amazement.
She hadn't expected Li Yun to possess such a large quantity of high-quality potions. Twenty bottles of excellent-grade Marrow Cleansing Potion wasn't just valuable, it was rare. If these potions had been common, they wouldn't have warranted a late-stage inclusion in the auction at all.