After a four-second session of deep, pious prayer and dedicated charms and spells and communion (begging) with the Grand Dao, Yang Qing brought his renewed (yet still slightly scarred) mind back to the present proceedings.
With Li Gang opening the floor to questions, a few cultivators stepped forward with inquiries, which he patiently and exhaustively addressed. The small number of questioners allowed him to be extensive in his replies. Or perhaps his earlier comnt about having bard-like qualities held so truth, and it was not just an attempt to lighten the mood with a few quips and jokes here and there.
With all manner of questions addressed, the level of excitent and anticipation within the room rose considerably. Even Yang Qing could feel the tips of his fingers tingle, and it beca even more pronounced when his eyes fell on a cauldron being carted over.
The impact the sea green jade ladle had when it was brought over was nothing compared to the cauldron. If one were to compare them by impact, that ladle felt more like a young boy excitedly bragging to his parents about the full swing of the sword he made with his wooden sword that was not even powerful enough to split a blade of grass. And yet, as good parents do, there was still a asure of pride, because while that swing lacked venom, it had perfect form and a toothy grin to go with it.
That was what the ladle's impact now felt like when set beside the cauldron.
The cauldron, on the other hand, felt like seeing a proper swordsman who had mastered the Sword Dao take a swing, and within that swing, you witnessed a strike capable of not only slicing a blade of grass cleanly in half but even the skies and the earth too. Wherever that strike passed, it severed cleanly.
Within Yang Qing's jade-green eyes was the reflection of ethereal gold mist wafting gently from an earth-bronze cauldron whose body had been molded and shaped to resemble a tortoise's shell. Perhaps that was why it carried a hardy, sturdy, stable aura.
It looked as though it could endure anything thrown at it. And by the looks of it, it seed it already had, for a deep crevice ran from its mouth all the way down to its base. Given how deep the crack was, one felt that if so effort were applied along its path, despite how sturdy the cauldron appeared, it might be possible to split it in half.
Still, perhaps because of that wide crack, everyone present could sense the stubborn spirit of the cauldron to hold on and keep its body together.
"You fought hard," Yang Qing said softly, in heartfelt admiration, as he raised his wine gourd to toast the cauldron.
A few sighs of admiration could be heard echoing within the auction house as the cauldron, with its wide crack, released a mixture of two misty glows intertwined with one another. One was ethereal gold, which seed the most dominant, and the other was a shadowy grey, like a lurker.
That grey ethereal light was concentrated at the edge of the crack and was the culprit behind the gazes of respect most within the audience felt when looking at the cauldron, more so those in the Palace Realm. This was because within the grey light lay a taboo power which, even though dormant and with no threatening effect, made every Palace Realm expert in that room feel an ingrained fear toward it. It did not matter whether they were in the first stage or the twelfth stage; every single Palace Realm expert in the room felt a chilling fear when their attention fell on that grey, lurky, ethereal light.
And the reason for that was that the light contained a taboo power that everyone present was familiar with. It was tribulation taboo power. Of course, what lay within that light were re dusty fingerprints it had left behind, so it had none of its threatening, calamitous power. But it still carried its fear-inducing, larger-than-life aura, which, within it, carried the ssage: I can end your life within seconds. And this one carried that ssage very strongly, because it carried the taboo aura of a Domain Tribulation.
Yang Qing may never have witnessed a Domain tribulation, since he was soone who assiduously liked to preserve his life and, as such, made a steadfast habit of avoiding anything that would put it at risk—assuming, of course, he had any opinion or free will in the matter.
As such, witnessing a Domain tribulation was sothing he would not dare do, even if told it would expand his horizons and grant him insights on his path. He would rather endure Yang Shitong's abuse than accept such an "opportunity."
So he had never seen one, and yet he knew instinctively, without a shadow of a doubt, that murky grey light, which looked like eerie moonlight parsing through heavy fog, was, without question, the byproduct of a Domain tribulation. And the other Palace Realm experts within the room seed to concur, if the slightly trembling pupils so of them had, the slightly bated breaths and tense postures were any indication.
Even Li Gang, despite wearing the perfect mask of composure with that gentlemanly smile and calm gaze, could not hide from Yang Qing's scrutiny. As a long-seasoned, diligent student of fear, Yang Qing could sniff it out in him.
Maybe he didn't notice it, but his lips tugged slightly when his gaze fell on Li Gang, and the other staff mber carrying the cauldron in a cradle that seed to barely be holding on, and seed all too relieved when he placed it on the podium. His pace returning to the shadows, though it seed normal, Yang Qing felt it had a slight briskness to it, almost as though he were trying to flee with composure.
As an expert at trying to save face and an equally seasoned expert in fleeing, Yang Qing trusted his instincts were right on the money with that guess.
His smile grew wider.
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