104: Chapter 104 Oh! So this person likes leopard print.

This beast-eared girl, only at the Qi Refining Realm, was useless except for her Face and wild nature.

Especially in terms of intelligence, she was mostly animalistic; compared to the attentive and understanding concubines at home, she was quite lacking.

"Just this?" Xiao Ye spoke indifferently, his tone lacking much enthusiasm.

His standards were high now; a pretty Face alone wasn't enough to move him.

"You don't like this one?" Qianbao paused for a moment before quickly saying, "There are more coming! We caught quite a few this time."

"Let's see." Xiao Ye leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and turned his gaze back to the stage.

Qianbao tactfully shut his mouth, but muttered to himself: This lord really has high standards.

If he doesn't even care for a cat-eared girl, he probably only has eyes for the grand finale.

Next, beastmen were brought out one by one, all kinds of them—Fox Clan, Wolf Clan, Deer Clan, Rabbit Clan... Xiao Ye was truly having his eyes opened, as if he had stepped into some otherworldly zoo.

He watched with his own eyes as a Cultivator eagerly bid on a Pig-headed Person. That weight, that barrel waist, and especially those two rows of suffocating "pecs" on the chest—it was practically a walking mountain of flesh.

Yet that Cultivator had a look of pure satisfaction on his Face, as if he had found a treasure.

"Holy crap..." Xiao Ye's mouth twitched—even he, a pervert, thought the other guy was a pervert.

That's some seriously heavy taste.

"Next, this is one of tonight's grand finales, and the final beastman—" The host's voice suddenly spiked, as if he'd been injected with chicken blood. "Everyone, look!"

As the words fell, a massive iron cage was slowly pushed onto the stage.

In a corner of the cage, a blonde beastman wearing leopard-print leather curled up.

Though she was filthy, her exquisite features were hard to hide—a high bridge of the nose, deep eye sockets, a classic mixed-race beauty's Face.

Atop her head, a pair of furry leopard ears drooped limply, looking so pitiful that one couldn't help but want to reach out and rub them.

"Holy crap—a leopard-eared girl?" Xiao Ye's eyes lit up instantly, like a light bulb being switched on.

Immediately after, the System popped up information—

[Name: Hua Duoduo]

[Cultivation: Core Formation Stage - Ninth Level]

[Age: 36]

[Race: Flower Shadow Leopard]

[Rating: 91]

Ninety-one points? Core Formation Stage - Ninth Level? And a leopard-eared girl?

He sat bolt upright, his gaze fixed on the figure curled in the corner of the iron cage, his mouth slowly curling into a progressively perverted smile.

Beside him, Qianbao saw that he was finally interested and realized: Oh! So he likes leopard print!

So he immediately leaned in and lowered his voice, looking like he was claiming credit. "Fellow Daoist Xiao, this one is the best of the batch. A Golden Core 1st Layer Flower Shadow Leopard, naturally gifted in speed and no slouch in combat power. If she weren't so difficult to tame, we really wouldn't be willing to sell her."

"Golden Core 1st Layer?" Xiao Ye sneered inwardly while remaining expressionless.

She was clearly at the Core Formation Stage - Ninth Level; this leopard was hiding her strength. It seemed she was a clever little leopard who knew how to hide her light to save her life.

On the stage, Hua Duoduo seemed to sense something and snapped her head up.

Those golden vertical pupils pierced through the crowd, accurately locking onto Xiao Ye.

Their eyes met.

She bared her teeth, revealing two sharp little canines, and let out a low growl from her throat as if to say—What are you looking at? Look again and I'll scratch you!

Xiao Ye laughed. This little leopard was quite fierce. He liked it.

He wondered what position she liked to sleep in—curled up, Face down, or on her back? He'd have to try them all.

"Thirty thousand Spirit Stones, starting bid!" The host declared with a strike of the gavel.

"Forty thousand!"

"Fifty thousand!" The price soared, quickly reaching one hundred thousand Spirit Stones.

This price was already quite high; aside from the major powers, the bidding from other Loose Cultivators had noticeably thinned out.

"One hundred and fifty thousand." Xiao Ye raised the bid by fifty thousand as soon as he spoke. His tone was calm, but everyone could hear the determination that he was set on winning.

In an instant, the entire auction house went silent.

"Holy crap, who is this? A fifty-thousand increase just like that?"

"Isn't that the new Emperor of Daqian, Xiao Ye?"

Someone recognized him, and whispers broke out. But the competition didn't end there—

"One hundred and fifty-one thousand!" A voice came from a VIP room, belonging to the Third Prince of the Wusu Kingdom.

"One hundred and sixty thousand." Xiao Ye didn't even blink. He hadn't expected anyone to dare follow after he bid.

"One hundred and sixty-one thousand."

Xiao Ye's brow finally furrowed.

What did this Third Prince of the Wusu Kingdom want? To cause trouble or to drive up the price?

The representatives of several major powers nearby also noticed something was wrong and frowned.

Was this Third Prince tired of living?

Just then, Qianbao stood up. His voice wasn't loud, but it reached every corner of the venue clearly: "This is an auction hall of the Zitian Merchant Alliance. I hope everyone bids calmly and does not make a mistake."

His tone was gentle, but everyone could hear the warning within.

The venue fell into a brief silence.

Everyone's gaze shifted back and forth between Xiao Ye and the Third Prince of the Wusu Kingdom, a subtle tension filling the air.

Was this Zitian Merchant Alliance Branch President backing Xiao Ye up?

Or was he simply upholding the auction house's rules?

Regardless, with those words, anyone else wanting to bid would have to think twice.

Xiao Ye leaned back, crossed his legs, glanced smilingly in the direction of the Wusu Kingdom's Third Prince, and slowly called out a new price—

"Two hundred thousand."

The whole place went silent again. This time, no more sound came from the VIP room of the Wusu Kingdom's Third Prince.

The Third Prince's Face was ashen, his fists clenched, but he didn't dare open his mouth again.

Because just now, a Divine Sense had locked onto his VIP room—cold, sharp, and carrying undisguised killing intent.

Xiao Ye withdrew his Divine Sense, took a sip of his tea, and curled his lips slightly.

A mere Third Prince dared to compete with him? Playing a couple of rounds was giving him Face.

If he didn't know his place, then he couldn't blame Xiao Ye for being ruthless.

After this little interlude, the auction continued. But no one dared to raise the price.

This leopard-eared girl ended up with the surname Xiao after all.

"Next is the final grand finale of this auction—the nascent soul fruit. Starting price, two hundred thousand Spirit Stones!"

Before the host could even finish, the venue erupted. Noise rose from all sides like a stirred-up hornet's nest. The price skyrocketed, hitting three hundred and fifty thousand in the blink of an eye.

It was clear that most people tonight had come for this fruit.

A single nascent soul fruit offered the chance to create a Nascent Soul Old Ancestor—what power could resist such a temptation?

Those with a Nascent Soul expert were first-rate powers in this region;

Those without could only settle for being second-rate, their words lacking weight.

So, this wasn't just a fruit; it was a ticket to becoming a first-rate power.