Profound Heaven Soul Sovereign

He also knew that Director Wu had done this purely to make a gesture for Ye Xuan’s benefit.

"Move." Shao Jun and his men looked ferocious as they dragged Huang Zhong’s group away amidst their miserable screams.

If it hadn’t been for Huang Zhong, they never would have gotten into this mess. Huang Zhong and his men were in for a world of hurt in the imperial prison.

Afterwards, Commander Jia and the others chatted for a little while longer before taking their leave.

The respect Ye Xuan had shown the Celestial Dragon Guard today delighted Commander Jia, who treated Ye Xuan with utmost deference.

As Ye Xuan watched Commander Jia and his men depart, he looked down at the contract in his hand and couldn’t help but crack a faint smile.

He hadn’t expected that just by asking, he could obtain a marketplace storefront that every major family in the Sky Empire coveted.

But he also knew his successful shakedown had been a case of borrowing another’s prestige—it was all thanks to Master Lu Li’s reputation.

"Master Xuli, let’s go pay Master Lu Li a visit."

Ye Xuan wasn’t the type to accept a favor and not acknowledge it. A visit to Master Lu Li was definitely in order.

Xuli was overjoyed as well. ’Truth be told,’ he thought, ’even though Master Lu Li is my master, as an in-name disciple, I rarely get to see him.’ He was thrilled at the prospect of an audience.

"Haha, Master Xuan Ye! I knew you’d come! Quick, quick, tell me about these two materials. What’s the deal with them? I have a feeling that substituting in Cloud Flame Stone would be an improvement, no?"

For the past two days, Master Lu Li had been engrossed in the blueprints and concepts from Ye Xuan. The more he studied them, the more he marveled at the design and material selection.

The moment he saw Ye Xuan, he lit up, grabbing him and peppering him with questions, insisting on a deep discussion.

Ye Xuan had no choice but to start explaining. Master Lu Li interjected with questions from time to time, and it was a full half-hour before the topic was finally put to rest.

"Master."

Master Xuli finally spoke up from the side.

His master’s earlier behavior had left Xuli utterly stunned. He had never seen anyone debate so heatedly with his master. And from the looks of it, Master Xuan Ye had been the one leading the discussion.

Now, Xuli finally understood why his master held Master Xuan Ye in such high esteem.

"Oh, oh, Xuli! You’re here too." Lu Li slapped his forehead as if just noticing him, then immediately turned back to Ye Xuan. "By the way, Master Xuan Ye, I heard from Xuli yesterday that you had a bit of a conflict with the City Construction Department and the Celestial Dragon Guard. Has that been resolved?"

"It’s long since been resolved," Ye Xuan said with a slight smile. "I was actually coming to tell you about it. It’s all thanks to Master Xuli’s help this time."

"Mm. Xuli, you handled this matter very well. I am quite pleased." Lu Li stroked his beard, speaking with satisfaction. "By the way, when you have the time, you should interact more with your Senior Brother Li Xu and the others. For us Artifact Refiners, our craft must always come first."

"Yes, thank you for your guidance, Master!" Xuli trembled with excitement, tears welling up in his eyes.

In all these years, it was the first time he had ever heard his master praise him.

The three chatted for a little while, during which Ye Xuan mentioned the storefront he had managed to extort.

Before Ye Xuan could finish, Lu Li waved a hand dismissively, feigning magnanimity. "Master Xuan Ye, surely you don’t intend to offer me a cut? I truly have no interest in such things. Besides, I doubt you couldn’t have handled the City Construction Department and the Celestial Dragon Guard on your own."

Ye Xuan had almost believed the old man was genuinely generous, but in the blink of an eye, his true colors showed. Stroking his beard, his eyes gleaming greedily, Lu Li said with a sly grin, "Of course, if you insist on thanking me, I suppose I can reluctantly accept. I don’t want any *things*, you know. Just share, say, eight or ten of your profound Artifact Refining techniques with me, and we’ll call it even..."

"Hey, hey, kid, don’t tell me you don’t have any! I know you’re holding out on me. If eight or ten is too much, then three or five will be fine!"

Master Lu Li’s shameless display left the ever-adoring Xuli dumbfounded and speechless.

Ye Xuan was utterly speechless as well.

’If this old codger went into business,’ Ye Xuan thought, ’he’d be even more cunning than Master Xuli.’

Xuli left after a short while, but Lu Li insisted Ye Xuan stay longer.

The two continued chatting about Artifact Refining for a while until Master Lu Li suddenly remembered something. "By the way, didn’t you mention last time that you needed a Profound Soldier? I was originally going to find some materials so we could forge one together, but I haven’t been able to find anything suitable. However, there’s a major auction in the Imperial Capital in seven days. If you have the time, you might want to check it out. You can sometimes find rare materials at the auctions here."

"An auction?"

"That’s right." Master Lu Li nodded. "Here in the Imperial Capital, there’s an auction every quarter and a major one once a year. This year’s major auction is in seven days."

Ye Xuan was intrigued.

Auctions were the best places to find treasures.

Often, when Martial Artists obtained particularly rare treasures, they wouldn’t sell them right away. They would wait for an auction to put them on the block.

Once an item went to auction, its value could multiply. Even after the house took its commission, the final payout would far exceed that of a direct sale.

"I’ll go check it out if I have the chance."

Ye Xuan nodded. He was genuinely curious to see what kind of treasures would appear at a major imperial auction.

By the time he left the Artifact Refining Workshop, it was already afternoon.

Ye Xuan made his way toward the Luo family’s estate.

He was only halfway there when a middle-aged man blocked his path.

The man wore a brocade robe, and his Profound Power was so restrained it exuded a dangerous aura. He appeared to be a Tier Six Third Layer Martial Venerable.

"Master Xuan Ye? I am Qu Aoyun. My master requests your presence at Tingxuan Tower."

The middle-aged man said this flatly. Though he used the word "request," his tone held no respect.

Ye Xuan frowned. "Your master? Who is he? And why does he want to see me?"

"My apologies. As a subordinate, I dare not speak freely of my master’s affairs. I can only guarantee that my master’s status will not dishonor you," the man said flatly, a hint of arrogance in his expression.

"I’m not interested in these mysterious games."

Ye Xuan sneered and turned to leave.

With a flicker of movement, the middle-aged man was once again blocking Ye Xuan’s path.

Ye Xuan looked up and scoffed. "What, is this how your master told you to ’request’ my presence? An onlooker might think you were trying to kidnap me in broad daylight. You have three breaths to get out of my way. Otherwise, I’ll summon the Celestial Dragon Guard and see just how bad the security in this Imperial Capital really is."

The man’s gaze hardened. "Sir, please don’t make this difficult for me," he said in a low voice.

"If your master truly has business with me, he can come himself. What’s the point of all this skulking about? Move," Ye Xuan ordered coldly.

The man’s eyes flickered, but he finally stepped aside and watched Ye Xuan’s figure disappear into the distance.

With a grim expression, the man then entered a nearby restaurant and went straight to a private room on the third floor.

Inside the room, an old man with an extraordinary presence sat quietly, his eyes as sharp and piercing as a hawk’s.

The middle-aged man knelt on one knee, his face tinged with fear. "Supreme Elder Crazy Battle, your subordinate has failed. Please, Supreme Elder, administer your punishment."

This was none other than Crazy Battle, who had tracked Ye Xuan all the way to the Imperial Capital of the Sky Empire.

Upon arriving in the Imperial Capital, Crazy Battle had immediately sought out the Qu family, who were affiliated with the Profound Mystery Sect. He ordered them to halt all their own activities and dedicate all their resources to finding two young men.

Crazy Battle was convinced that his son’s murderer, who had vanished in the vicinity, had almost certainly fled into the Sky Empire’s Imperial Capital.

It was the only place one might find a way to remove the Nether Heart Seed.

In the Sky Empire’s Imperial Capital, the Qu family was an established clan, much like the Luo family. However, Crazy Battle’s own background with the Profound Mystery Sect afforded him enormous advantages.

Before long, a flood of information poured in.

They found no news of a blond youth, but a report that someone had bought soul essence stones in the underground black market immediately reached Crazy Battle’s ears.

Although the buyer’s build, hair, and appearance didn’t match his target’s description, Crazy Battle’s sharp intuition told him this was the man he was looking for.

Thrilled by the lead, he immediately ordered the Qu family to track the man down.

Unfortunately, after that single appearance in the black market, the person vanished without a trace. Furthermore, Slaughter Venerable Yinyiu, who had followed the man out of the city, had been killed just outside the walls.

When Crazy Battle heard this, he became almost certain that this was the man who had murdered his son.

Slaughter Venerable Yinyiu was a renowned Tier Six Second Layer Martial Venerable in the Imperial Capital, his strength nearly identical to that of his own son, Gale. If this man could kill Yinyiu, he could certainly kill Gale.

And so, Crazy Battle mobilized all available resources in a frantic search for this man.

To Crazy Battle’s fury, however, no matter how hard he looked, the man seemed to have vanished like a fish in the vast ocean.

He had finally found a lead, only for it to go cold, which sent him into a thundering rage.

The members of the Qu family, meanwhile, were terrified by Crazy Battle’s wrath.

But as a Supreme Elder of the Profound Mystery Sect, Crazy Battle was also cunning. He quickly realized that this method of searching was futile.

The Imperial Capital of the Sky Empire was so vast that even the imperial family would find it like looking for a needle in a haystack. What hope did a mere elder of the Profound Mystery Sect have?

Ye Xuan’s repeated changes in appearance finally clued Crazy Battle in: the person he was hunting likely possessed powerful disguise abilities.

So he immediately changed his strategy. Discarding all previous leads, he began searching specifically for powerful experts who had only recently appeared in the Imperial Capital and were clearly not locals.