Devouring Soul Emperor

The sudden appearance startled the horse. It neighed loudly, reared up, and brought its front hooves down toward Chu Qingyun.

Chu Qingyun snorted. He lightly slapped the horse’s side and used the momentum to dodge the attack.

New in town, Chu Qingyun didn’t want to cause trouble, so he struck the horse very lightly, not injuring it in the least.

"Kid, you dare get in my horse’s way? You’ve got some nerve!"

The rider was a young man with triangular eyes. He immediately raised his horsewhip and lashed out viciously at Chu Qingyun.

Chu Qingyun’s expression darkened. With a flicker of Primordial Power in his hand, he caught the whip.

He hadn’t expected the man to be so unreasonable. He was the one who had nearly trampled someone to death, yet he was still this arrogant and domineering.

"So you have some skill. A Martial Artist, no less. No wonder you dared to meddle," the man on the horse sneered.

"Second Young Master, we have urgent business. We should be on our way."

"Yes, Second Young Master. It wouldn’t do to be late for your meeting with Miss Qin."

Two men dressed as servants beside him urged him on anxiously.

They knew this young master of theirs all too well. He could find trouble even when there was none, so now that something had actually happened, he would surely raise a fuss that would never end.

The Second Young Master violently yanked his whip back. "Hmph. You’re lucky this time. Don’t let me see you again! Let’s go!"

With that, the men spurred their horses and galloped away, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Hong Hong! My sweet Hong Hong, thank goodness you’re alright! Thank you, sir! Quick, come and thank this gentleman!..."

The little girl’s mother rushed forward, gathering the child tightly in her arms, her speech an incoherent jumble of emotion.

"Why are those people so arrogant? Horse riding is forbidden in the city, yet they were openly galloping at such a speed," Chu Qingyun asked casually.

A wrinkled old man suddenly stepped forward, waving his hands nervously. "Keep your voice down, keep it down! Don’t speak carelessly. Those are people from the Zhao Family of Flame City! In Flame City, the Zhao Family can blot out the sky with a single hand. They don’t even respect the City Lord’s Mansion. Forget nearly killing someone—even if they did, what could be done? Could penniless, powerless commoners like us really go up against the Zhao Family?"

’The Zhao Family... the Zhao Clan!’

Chu Qingyun nodded. ’So the village chief’s rumors about the Zhao Family Castle were true. An incomparably powerful Zhao Clan really does exist.’

The young master leading the group hadn’t concealed his aura in the slightest. Chu Qingyun could see that he was a Fifth-level Martial Artist.

’For even a dandy like him to have the strength of a Fifth-level Martial Artist... this Zhao Family truly is formidable...’

Before long, Chu Qingyun arrived at Flame City’s Ten Thousand Treasures Tower.

The layout and arrangement of this Ten Thousand Treasures Tower were similar to the one in Qingshan City. It was just as magnificent; it seemed they were indeed from the same organization.

After entering the Ten Thousand Treasures Tower, an attendant quickly came to serve Chu Qingyun. "What can I help you with, sir?"

"Demon Cores. Ice-type Demon Cores."

"The Demon Cores are this way. Please follow me, sir."

The man led Chu Qingyun to the area where the Demon Cores were kept.

There stood several crystal cabinets, each over a meter tall. All the Demon Cores were displayed within them, each with a marked price and a brief description.

The Ten Thousand Treasures Tower was known for its fair dealings, but its prices were non-negotiable.

Tier Two Ice-type Demon Cores varied slightly in price depending on their origin, but they were generally around three hundred-some Upper Grade Primordial Stones, rarely exceeding four hundred.

"I’ll take this one."

"And this one."

"Both of these, I’ll take them."

Chu Qingyun walked around the crystal cabinets, planning to buy every single Tier Two Ice-type Demon Core he came across.

According to You Yun, resolving the Fire Poison from the Fiery Red Lotus required a large number of Ice-type Demon Cores. Since the prices were acceptable, he decided he might as well buy some extra.

With each one Chu Qingyun pointed out, the attendant behind him made a mark on the crystal cabinet so they could all be retrieved for payment at once. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Is that all of them...? Do you have any Tier Three Ice-type Demon Cores?"

The crystal cabinets had only contained a dozen or so Tier Two Ice-type Demon Cores, and Chu Qingyun had selected them all. He felt it wasn’t enough, so he inquired further.

A Tier Three Demon Core...

The attendant looked troubled. "Sir, a Tier Three Demon Beast can only be dealt with by a Martial Spirit Level expert. A Demon Core of that level certainly wouldn’t be displayed for public sale. Even if we did have one, it’s not something a minor employee like myself would know about."

Chu Qingyun nodded and said, "Please get all the ones I selected earlier for me."

Just then, a discordant voice came from behind him. "The ones you selected? What did you select? Bring them here for this young master to see."

Chu Qingyun turned his head and frowned.

It was none other than the very same Young Master Zhao from the Zhao Family, the one whose horse he’d stopped to save the child.

"This..."

The attendant looked conflicted. Young Master Zhao was clearly here to cause trouble, and he didn’t know what to do.

"’This’ what? Do you have any idea who this is? This is Young Master Zhao Hanyun! Now, hurry up and bring those things over for Young Master Zhao to inspect!" a middle-aged man behind the young master barked at the attendant.

After saying this, he turned back to Young Master Zhao with a fawning expression. "Young Master Zhao, the staff is inexperienced and ignorant. I apologize for the embarrassing display..."

Now that the steward had spoken, the attendant could only nod and retrieve the fourteen Tier Two Ice-type Demon Cores Chu Qingyun had selected.

"All Tier Two Demon Cores, and they’re all Ice-type..." Young Master Zhao looked at the cores and laughed.

’Buying Demon Cores with such a specific purpose... they must be for something important.’

’Heh heh. You brat, you dared to block my horse in the middle of the street. Today, I’ll show you the consequences of offending me in Flame City!’

"Steward Liu, this young master will take all fourteen of these Demon Cores. Put them on the Zhao Family’s tab," Zhao Hanyun said with a sneer.

"Of course, of course! No problem. Quick, wrap them up for Young Master Zhao."

Suddenly, a hand shot out, grabbing the attendant’s wrist and yanking the bag of Demon Cores away. "Young Master Zhao, have you never heard of ’first come, first served’? I chose these Demon Cores first. Ring them up."

"First come, first served? Rules? Kid, this is Flame City, and the Zhao Family *is* the law here! You’d better hand over those Demon Cores nice and easy, or else... you’re a dead man!"

Zhao Hanyun’s face was a mask of wild arrogance, his expression showing contempt for all.

"Steward Liu, can the Ten Thousand Treasures Tower not even guarantee its customers’ safety? Or are you telling me that you don’t follow the rules here either?" Chu Qingyun said, looking at Steward Liu.

"What are you talking about, ’rules’? Just because you say you chose them first, does that make it true? Who saw you? Liang, did you see anything?"

Steward Liu adopted a thoroughly unreasonable posture.

But with the young master of the Zhao Family standing right there, the attendant Liang, who had been assisting Chu Qingyun, could only lower his head and dare not say a word.

"You people... you truly have no shame!"

Chu Qingyun was speechless. These two were absolutely shameless.