Elder Jia Ming of the Seven Lotus Stream Sect ended up as the winner of that bid, finally getting a much-deserved win after having his sect’s affairs and debt circumstances aired out earlier during the auction of the sea green jade ladle. Though even after winning the bid for the dew, the figure who had mocked their sect earlier by bringing up their debt to the Maple Leaf Manor, and the fact that they were so deep in debt that their outer sect disciples had to source their own robes, still managed to throw in another quip despite Elder Jia Ming’s win, saying that he and his sect had only won the bid because it wasn’t being traded in lesser dragon jade crystals or spirit stones, heavily implying that he wouldn’t have made it past the first round of bidding given their spirit stone circumstances and notable lack thereof.

Perhaps emboldened by the win, Elder Jia Ming offered a quip in return, unlike before, where all he could manage was a cold, tight-lipped mind your business. His retort this time carried considerably more flair.

"Elder Feng, you’re a secret admirer of this esteemed one’s sect, aren’t you? To know our debts so intimately... one almost wonders if you applied to join us and were turned away. Given our shared history, I could put in a word for you with the sect master. The position of envious gossip monger has remained vacant for quite a long time, and as it seems, we may have finally found its fated successor. What say you, Elder Feng? Care to fill the post? It comes with a lot of perks, though, as you know, given our present difficulties, personal items such as robes are things you will have to cover yourself."

Yang Qing got a good chuckle out of that, and so too did many others within the auction hall.

Yang Qing even felt a certain kinship with Elder Jia Ming of the Seven Lotus Stream Sect, given the overlaps in their situations. Both were lacking in spirit stones, and yet both had shown enough foolhardy resolve and desperation to get what they wanted at this auction despite their financial difficulties, using whatever they had of worth to win their bids. Yang Qing had used the Green Flame Tree’s sap, while Elder Jia Ming won his bid by offering two fully matured Floating Reedwood Trees at the low tier of the monarch grade.

And perhaps fearing that it would not be enough, or that he would be outdone, or maybe the lingering dread of the verbal lashing Elder Feng of the Jade Sand Dune Sect would deliver if he failed, Elder Jia Ming had even added the heartwood of a Thundervein Camphor of the same grade as the reedwood. He offered two of the listed items outright, and even pledged to have crown leaves of the Soaring Cloud Cypress brought over from his sect within the day if the two items still fell short.

Perhaps touched by the desperation Elder Jia Ming had shown in wanting the heart quenching mulberry dew, or perhaps out of sympathy given the hundreds of millions in debt his sect owed to the point they couldn’t hand out robes to new disciples, or perhaps there were simply those present who didn’t much care for Elder Feng, no countering bids were made for the dew and the elder ended up winning it without much fanfare.

Given Elder Jia Ming’s little feud with Elder Feng, Yang Qing had half expected the latter to counter with a bid of his own just as the former had thought the item was seconds away from becoming his. But no such thing happened, and Yang Qing strongly felt it was more likely because Elder Feng didn’t have the needed items, and less to do with any decision on his part to follow the trend of compassion and general sympathy toward Elder Jia Ming and simply let him have the dew.

"Seven Lotus Stream Sect," Yang Qing muttered in amusement, filing the name away to read about them later, as before today he hadn’t known they existed. As a sect he now felt a close affinity toward, given their kinship, he ought to rectify that. Given that it was a rank three sect, the information the Order had on them was likely to be substantive, though perhaps not to the level of knowing what their sect master’s favorite drink was or their more secretive private quirks. But deep enough, in all likelihood, to shed some light on the why behind that enormous debt hanging over them.

Enormous debts were exactly the type of thing that tugged at the snooping, curious heartstrings of the Flying Shadow Hawks. And maybe Mao Mao, though for her, it didn’t take much to get her curious about anything.

Maybe the position of gossip peak elder of the Seven Lotus Stream Sect should be handed to her instead, Yang Qing cheekily thought, chuckling to himself as he imagined Mao Yunru seated in a room filled with countless scrolls, an open one in hand, reading it with such seriousness that one would think she was contemplating some abstruse cultivation manual that demanded every ounce of her attention, when in truth said manual was richly detailed hot gossip about some clan she had never met but was as heavily invested in as Elder Feng was with the Seven Lotus Stream Sect.

As Yang Qing got lost in his mischievous thoughts about the Dao of Gossip and how Mao Yunru was likely to achieve immortality through that path if it truly existed, the atmosphere on the platform and the ground floor below was mellowing from its earlier tension into something far more relaxed. Even Li Gang seemed looser, his smile easier and his movements lighter and more casual.

"With the last item finding its fated home, I would like to thank you all on behalf of the Vast Blue Merchant Company for not only taking the time to grace us with your presence, but for making this a fruitful and truly memorable auction," he said, the crowd nodding and smiling along, with some exchanging telling looks at certain things Li Gang had said.

"To the successful buyers, the sellers, and everyone present here with us today," he continued, warmly sweeping his gaze across the auction house, from the ground floor to the different levels of the gallery seating, "I thank you all for entrusting us with your business. All of this would not be possible without you. The Vast Blue would not be here without you. It is you who are the lifeblood of what the Vast Blue is and will ever be. So thank you, truly, for your patronage and your continued support."

Smiling with considerably more sincerity this time, Li Gang cupped his fists and bowed to the crowd for almost two minutes before finally raising his head.

"Thank you," he repeated once more, in an almost slow whisper, though his voice remained clear and reached every corner of the auction house.

"I would also like to thank my colleagues, both those presently here and those not," he said, glancing to the back left, bowing slightly, then doing the same to the right, where the staff members of the Vast Blue reciprocated the gesture.

Yang Qing smacked his lips in admiration at the display from both sides. Given the warm and harmonious front they presented, one wouldn’t believe there was infighting among them for the throne of the Vast Blue, or that some would not hesitate to dispose of the other if the right circumstances presented themselves.

After thanking his colleagues, Li Gang thanked the founders, displaying grateful humility at being trusted with the task of hosting the day’s event, before rounding off his gratitude by thanking appraisers Chen Yu of the Jade Leaf Academy and Mo Guang of the Gold Earth Bank, who nodded and cupped their fists in return.

"And with that, I would like to declare the auction closed," Li Gang announced, cupping his fists and bowing slightly as he smiled at the crowd, who reciprocated the gesture, Yang Qing included.

"For those not in a hurry, feel free to enjoy your stay. We have courtyards freely available for the next four days. For those looking to leave immediately, our flying ferries are available to transport you at no cost, and for those who leave later, the same offer stands.

Should there be any other matters or arrangements you require assistance with, myself and the rest of the staff are at your disposal," Li Gang warmly offered. "Please enjoy," he finished, nodding to various staff members who, at the cue, emerged with trays filled with gourds, pots of wine, and kettles of tea.

Down below, as if by some spell, the seats moved and rectangular tables and cushions appeared around them. Along with that, deep orange paper screen panels rose from the ground, forming partitions around the cushions, tables, and chairs, creating what looked like private booths, as indeed they had become. The room transformed from an auction house with seats arranged in orderly rows into something resembling a teahouse or restaurant, private partitions filling every corner. The paper screens bore painted motifs of elegant birds, fish, mountains, and rivers, while the roofing of those partitions was comprised entirely of dawn cloud leaves whose hue cast a warm amber glow across the entire hall, even more pronounced than before. It was as though autumn and dawn had arrived at the same time.

Perhaps because they had experienced it before or had known of it beforehand, those below didn’t seem particularly surprised by the transformation, even when their seats moved with them still on them. The guests moved around with considerably more leisure this time, some grouping up in twos, threes, fours, or larger, drifting into those partitions, which seemed to adjust accordingly to the number of people who entered, retaining their original size for one or two and enlarging subtly when the number exceeded that.

Yang Qing’s eyes widened in amazement as he watched the transformation below, a part of him urging him to go down and experience it, but he ultimately decided against it when his eyes fell on his outer robe. It was the gallery seating for him today, but next time, under a different outer robe, he might just go down there and drag along Yi Jie, Feng Xin, and the others for the experience.

"If it will still be here," Yang Qing suddenly said, sighing as his gaze settled on Li Gang and the other staff members as they smiled and busied themselves, interacting with one another and the guests.

"How many faces will remain in the end, I wonder," Yang Qing murmured, looking on in sympathy and concern. Whether it be kingdoms, empires, or clans, change in regime, especially one born out of passive necessity rather than choice, never happened smoothly. It was almost always paved with blood and death. Even spirit beasts and regular animals were not immune to it. An invading male will kill off all offspring upon dispatching the father and start a line of his own, while invading plants will strangle native species to enrich themselves.

How much more ruthless would it be for beings of astronomical ability with a penchant for snatching and dominating others when their power allowed for it?