"No wonder she's the Demon Empress; her wealth is truly astounding."
In the Supreme VIP Room No. 1, Ning Rongrong marveled at the Demon Empress's bidding style.
When money wasn't enough, she threw in soul bones.
In Douluo Continent, what was the most valuable? Naturally, the treasures of the Blood River—soul bones.
For soul masters, soul bones were rare treasures, but for the Deep Sea Demonic Whale Clan, they were hardly significant.
Soul beasts possessed lifespans far surpassing humans.
Take the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King in the Demonic Whale Sea, for example. A single feeding could kill countless sea soul beasts.
Over 300,000 years, how many sea soul beasts had it slain? Who could say for sure?
Soul bones, one in ten thousand, were something the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King could collect effortlessly if it wished.
From the tone of their earlier conversation, the Demon Empress was well-versed in the human world and not ignorant of soul bones' value.
It was clear she had a habit of collecting soul bones and could produce a considerable number of them.
Ning Rongrong had also noticed earlier.
The soul tool ring on the Demon Empress's hand wasn't from Douluo Continent.
It most likely came from the Sun Moon Continent.
"How intriguing!"
What reason could have brought the Demon Empress and Lan Fozi all the way back from the Sun Moon Continent's seas? Perhaps the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King, injured, had summoned them.
Or maybe it had something to do with Di Tian. Perhaps Di Tian and the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King had some illicit connection.
"Well, what does that have to do with me?"
Ning Rongrong shifted her gaze back to the projection screen.
The final highlight of the auction was slowly placed on the display platform.
"A 72,000-year Deep Sea Demon Right Arm Bone."
Its estimated value was around 22 million gold soul coins.
Soul bones in the era of Douluo Dalu were not like those in Douluo Dalu II. Especially those over ten thousand years old—they were true treasures of the Blood River.
This one was 72,000 years old, no less!
As the auctioneer introduced it, the excitement over the Deep Sea Demon soul bone surged.
In the end, Golden Crocodile Douluo, the Second Worshiper of the Martial Soul Hall, secured the soul bone for 24 million gold soul coins.
For some reason, Tang San gave up halfway through the bidding.
Could he be planning to kill and seize the treasure?
It didn't matter either way.
The auction had concluded.
…
After completing the transactions for the auction items, Ning Yun returned to the Nine Treasures Chamber to find Ning Rongrong.
"Rongrong," Ning Yun hesitated, "that Tang San wishes to meet with Lou Gao."
"Just him alone?" Ning Rongrong asked curiously.
"He's accompanied by Tai Tan, and that Title Douluo from before is there too."
"And… Bo Saixi."
"If it comes to it, you should leave first!" Ning Yun said with concern.
The Nine Treasures Glazed Sect had conflicts with Sea God Island, whether from the Soul Master Tournament two and a half years ago or recent disputes over interests.
Ning Yun was worried that Bo Saixi might act dishonorably and target his little sister.
Tang San was also from the Clear Sky Sect, so the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect had to be cautious.
With Tang San and Bo Saixi together, they might, for some purpose, try to keep Rongrong and Lou Gao in Vast Sea City permanently.
With this in mind, Ning Yun gritted his teeth and said, "Father doesn't know when he'll arrive. Your and Master Lou Gao's lives are the most important."
"I think…"
"It's irrelevant," Ning Rongrong shrugged. "They're already at our door. If I, the Young Sect Master, act like a coward, wouldn't that be embarrassing?"
"Besides, I'm not without my own trump cards."
Since it was likely that the Demon Empress and Bo Saixi had crossed paths, one thing could be inferred.
Bo Saixi, Tang Chen, the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King, and the Demon Empress.
According to the information relayed to Vast Sea City, the four had clashed.
The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King was suspected to be injured, so Bo Saixi probably wasn't in great shape either.
Moreover, in Vast Sea City, besides herself, there were Golden Crocodile Douluo and the Demon Empress.
If Bo Saixi acted dishonorably, Ning Rongrong was confident she could ally with the Demon Empress and Golden Crocodile to deal with her.
Two and a half years ago, when Di Tian left, he gave Ning Rongrong a reverse scale.
With Di Tian's scale, aligning with the Demon Empress wouldn't be an issue. As for Golden Crocodile, it was even simpler.
For example: "Golden Crocodile Douluo, you wouldn't want Qian Renxue to…"
Wouldn't they all be on her side then?
Could they just stand by and watch?
With the amplification of the Nine Treasures Glazed Pagoda, two Limit Douluo at pseudo-demi-god level could reach demi-god level, or even near quasi-god, and with herself included, they might even keep Bo Saixi in Vast Sea City for good.
However, things hadn't reached that point yet, and Bo Saixi's Sea God above was quite troublesome.
For now, Ning Rongrong didn't want to reveal her hand.
Not long after, Ning Rongrong, accompanied by Lou Gao, Dugu Yan, Ning Yun, and Wang Quan Fugui, arrived at the hall where Tang San and his group were resting.
Ning Rongrong observed the rather handsome Tang San.
His refined demeanor and graceful movements gave an inexplicable sense of charm.
She had to admit, he did have a certain appeal.
As the protagonist of Douluo Dalu, she hadn't met Tang San many times.
"Long time no see, Tang San," Ning Rongrong spoke first.
Tang San nodded, saying little.
Ning Rongrong turned her gaze to Bo Saixi's graceful figure and said, "I didn't expect Her Excellency the Sea God to visit Vast Sea City. It truly brings honor to the Nine Treasures Chamber."
"Ning Young Sect Master's cleverness is something I've heard much about," Bo Saixi smiled. "My subordinates were well taken care of by you last time."
Bo Saixi seemed to say this deliberately.
Ning Rongrong narrowed her eyes. "Oh? Does Sea God Island plan to take action against a junior like me?"
"If you're willing to try, I guarantee that, except for you and me, no one else will be left alive."
"Senior Bo Saixi, do you dare?"
Instantly, the hall fell silent.
The atmosphere grew heavy with Ning Rongrong's words.
"Impressive!" Bo Saixi didn't respond directly to Ning Rongrong's challenge. "I'm here accompanying a junior to Vast Sea City, just to tour the land of Lord Sea God's faith. I don't have much intention of getting involved."
"You mean Tang San?"
Ning Rongrong glanced at Tang San, who remained silent, then looked back at Bo Saixi. "Tang San is from the Clear Sky Sect, isn't he? Since when did he get tied to Sea God Island?"
"Tang San is involved in Sea God Island's secrets, which I cannot share with Young Sect Master Ning."
"However, I hope Young Sect Master Ning can persuade Sect Master Ning to withdraw from Vast Sea City," Bo Saixi revealed her true intent.
"Unfortunately, that's impossible," Ning Rongrong shook her head. "We haven't interfered with your faith. We're just conducting free trade. Senior Bo Saixi, you can't expect us to leave just because we're following the rules in Vast Sea City, can you?"
"As expected…" Bo Saixi sighed. "Fine, I'm just here to say it."
"But your actions might anger Lord Sea God."
"So, think carefully about what you want to do!"
"Is that so…"
Ning Rongrong's eyes flickered.
Bo Saixi fell silent, leaving the floor to Tang San and his group.
The meeting between Tang San and Ning Rongrong officially began, with topics also involving Lou Gao, the Master of the Soul Tool Pavilion.