Meanwhile, at another entrance to the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion, only a hundred or so people were lined up, and the queue was moving rather quickly.

That was the VIP entrance for the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion.

"I can’t believe we came this early, and there are still so many people ahead of us," Luo Cheng said, a little exasperated. "But it’s no big deal. We’ll just have to wait a bit."

Ye Xuan nodded and headed straight for the VIP entrance.

"Young Master Ye, we’re in the wrong line! It’s this way, not that way."

Luo Cheng quickly pulled Ye Xuan toward the queue of several thousand people.

"What?" Ye Xuan was stunned for a moment.

Luo Cheng explained awkwardly, "My family has been dealing with a lot lately, so my father wasn’t planning on attending the auction. We didn’t reserve a private room in advance, and by the time I went to get one, they were all sold out. I could only get a few standard passes."

A dark look crossed Ye Xuan’s face. These so-called standard passes were just for block seating in the auction hall. They were only slightly more spacious than the normal seats but were still considered general admission.

"Huh, isn’t that Luo Cheng from the Luo family? What’s he doing in that line?"

Just then, a voice tinged with mockery called out. Looking over, they saw a short young man in the VIP line who, upon noticing their situation, spoke with feigned surprise.

And though his tone was one of surprise, his expression was filled with contempt. It was obvious to everyone that he was being deliberately provocative.

Sure enough, as soon as he spoke, many people in the VIP line turned to look.

Upon seeing the queue Luo Cheng was in, many of them got a peculiar look on their faces.

’The Luo family is supposed to be one of the great families of the Imperial Capital. Have they really fallen so far they can’t even afford a private room? How pathetic.’

It wasn’t just the young masters of the great families and the imperial nobles who were staring; even the Martial Artists in Luo Cheng’s own line were looking on with odd expressions.

"Brother Luo, I heard your family was kicked to the curb by the Murong family and blacklisted by the Qin family. Rumor has it you’re living a miserable life. I didn’t want to believe such gossip, but now... sigh. It looks like the Luo family really has fallen on hard times."

Having successfully drawn everyone’s attention, the young man spoke again with dramatic flair and a look of deep pity.

Luo Cheng’s brow furrowed. He looked around, deliberately looking past the speaker. "Younger Brother Wang? Is that Younger Brother Wang Jie of the Wang family I hear? Why can I only hear a voice but see no one? Younger Brother Wang, where are you?"

Luo Cheng looked left and right. The short young man was standing right across from him in the other line, yet Luo Cheng acted as if he couldn’t see him, his gaze sweeping the area as he tried to locate the speaker.

His antics made everyone struggle to stifle their laughter.

The mocking smile on Wang Jie’s face vanished, replaced by a dark, ugly expression. "Brother Luo, I’m right in front of you. Are you blind or what?"

"Oh, oh! So Younger Brother Wang is over there! My apologies, it must be my eyes," Luo Cheng said, slapping his forehead. "You should really step forward when you talk to me, Younger Brother Wang. It’s hard to spot you when you’re squeezed into the middle of the crowd."

Wang Jie was indeed on the shorter side, though not so much that he’d be lost in a crowd. Luo Cheng was clearly saying this just to get under his skin.

The Wang family was a vassal to the Qin family, and Wang Jie and Luo Cheng had never seen eye to eye. Of course Luo Cheng knew that Wang Jie was deliberately trying to pick a fight.

Wang Jie’s face turned livid. He sneered, "Brother Luo, your eyes really are failing you. Didn’t I hear your Luo family managed to cozy up to the Artifact Refining Workshop? How did you end up in such a sorry state? Did the Workshop kick you out? If you’ve got nowhere else to go, just say the word. My Wang family happens to be looking for a vassal to handle menial tasks. For old times’ sake, I could consider letting the Luo family fill the role."

Wang Jie’s face was a mask of false sincerity.

"Haha, Wang Jie, you’re giving the Luo family too much credit. Letting them handle menial tasks for you? Wouldn’t that tarnish the Wang family’s good name?"

Just then, another sneer rang out. This one came from a young man holding a feather fan. With his indifferent gaze, he looked the very picture of a refined young gentleman.

"Ah, Brother Gu Yun. What can I do? I’m just too nice of a guy,"

Wang Jie said with a pretentious laugh. Gu Yun’s Gu family was also a vassal of the Qin family. With the Qin family now openly hostile toward the Luo family, their underlings were naturally eager to put on a good show.

Luo Cheng’s gaze turned cold. He knew perfectly well that Gu Yun and Wang Jie were singing a duet, deliberately trying to humiliate the Luo family to suck up to the Qin family.

He gave a cold laugh. "You two, I can’t be bothered to bicker with you. Your master isn’t even here, and you’re already barking so enthusiastically. What a pair of good dogs. I, Luo Cheng, have no time for lapdogs. Come back and talk to me when your master arrives."

Luo Cheng’s face was filled with disdain.

"Luo Cheng, who are you calling a lapdog?" Wang Jie’s eyes narrowed, his killing intent palpable.

"If the shoe fits, wear it. No need for me to repeat myself."

"Heh, Luo Cheng, you’re all talk. A guy queuing for the cheap seats dares to look down on us in the VIP line? You should take a look at your own standing. We’re doing you a favor by even speaking to you."

Gu Yun flicked his fan open and sneered.

"Haha, Brother Gu is right! As dignified scions of noble families, we have no reason to stoop to the level of some broke loser," Wang Jie added, laughing boisterously.

Rage burned in Luo Cheng’s chest as a wave of humiliation washed over him.

Just as he was about to retort, Ye Xuan suddenly frowned. "Who keeps farting around here? The stench is unbearable. Doesn’t the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion have any rules against this?"

As soon as he said this, the entire crowd roared with laughter.

The Martial Artists in the general admission line laughed the loudest. When Wang Jie and his friend had used the term "broke loser," they had insulted every single one of them.

But since Wang Jie and his friends were scions of great families, the crowd could only swallow their anger and stay silent.

"And who the hell are you, punk? Does this look like a place where you get to speak?" Gu Yun snapped his fan shut, a murderous glint in his eyes.

"Oh for God’s sake, who the hell farted again? This one’s even worse!"

Ye Xuan cried out, pinching his nose.

Another wave of uproarious laughter swept through the crowd.

"Punk, you’re courting death!" Gu Yun roared, flying into a rage.

Ye Xuan glanced at him. "I was wondering where that awful smell was coming from. So it was you talking. What family are you from? Did you eat shit for breakfast or something?"

"Oh, that’s right." Ye Xuan suddenly slapped his forehead. "I heard the Qin family keeps a few dogs. You must be one of them. It’s only natural for a dog to eat shit. My mistake, I shouldn’t have blamed you."

Gu Yun’s face was livid, his eyes bloodshot. "Punk, don’t get arrogant just because we’re at the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion. Believe it or not, I can make sure you never walk out of this place."

Ye Xuan calling him a dog over and over again had pushed him to the brink of fury.

"The lapdog’s about to bite! Oh, I’m so scared," Ye Xuan said with mock terror.

"Haha!" The crowd erupted in laughter once again.

"What’s going on here?"

Just then, a Heaven-Reaching Pavilion patrol noticed the commotion and came over, shouting coldly.

Today was the day of the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion’s grand annual auction; they couldn’t afford to have any trouble break out.

"You’re just in time. We are VIP guests of your Heaven-Reaching Pavilion, and these two have been verbally insulting us. I demand that you arrest them immediately!"

Gu Yun said, brandishing a Heaven-Reaching Pavilion VIP token.

"That’s right! These two have been insulting us right here in public. Isn’t your Heaven-Reaching Pavilion going to give us an explanation for this?" Wang Jie chimed in, also producing a VIP token.

The guards immediately turned their attention to Ye Xuan and Luo Cheng.

Ye Xuan waved his hands, a look of pure innocence on his face. "Officers, please don’t listen to their baseless accusations. I may be a lot of things, but I would never, ever insult anyone."

Gu Yun sneered. "Punk, you were running your mouth pretty freely just a moment ago. Why won’t you admit it now? Lost your nerve?"

Ye Xuan shook his head. "Why should I admit to something I didn’t do? You claim I insulted you. Fine. What, exactly, did I say?"

"You called us dogs just now! Have you forgotten already?" Wang Jie roared.

The moment the words left his mouth, the crowd erupted in laughter again, making Wang Jie so furious it looked as if his face might start bleeding.

"Oh, that." Ye Xuan slapped his forehead. "Sirs, I did say that. But it wasn’t an insult. They really are the Qin family’s dogs. If they aren’t dogs, what are they? The masters of the Qin family? Tell you what, if you dare to claim that you are the masters of the Qin family and the Qin family are *your* dogs, I’ll apologize immediately."

"You..."

Wang Jie was rendered speechless. As a member of a family subservient to the Qin family, how could he dare say something like that? It would be suicide.

Ye Xuan immediately continued, "Sirs, you all saw it. This is clearly not an insult; I’m simply stating facts. Otherwise, why wouldn’t they dare to say it? Watch me. ’The Qin family is my dog.’ See how easily that rolls off the tongue? Luo Cheng, you give it a try."

"The Qin family is my dog," Luo Cheng immediately chimed in with a cold smile.

"Everyone, look! We dare to say it, but they don’t. If that’s not a sign of a guilty conscience, what is?"

Everyone present stared at Ye Xuan and Luo Cheng, utterly dumbfounded, cold sweat beading on their foreheads. They were all thinking the same thing: ’What in the world are these two clowns up to?’

’You two are the only ones who would dare say something like that. The Luo family has already had a complete falling out with the Qin family; it’s a fight to the death. It costs you nothing to say it. But if any other family dared to utter those words, wouldn’t they just be asking to be destroyed?’

"Are you people at the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion just going to stand by and watch your guests get insulted? If you don’t arrest these two and give us a satisfactory explanation today, we will not let this matter rest!"

Gu Yun and Wang Jie were inwardly terrified. They had caused the Qin family to lose face so spectacularly in public. If word of this got back to the Qin family, they would both face severe punishment.

Seeing the VIP tokens in their hands, the patrol captain turned to Ye Xuan and Luo Cheng, frowning. "You two, come with us."

"On what grounds?" Ye Xuan’s gaze turned cold. "Have you even investigated what happened? You’re just going to take us away based on their word alone? Or is it because they’re VIPs and we’re just regular customers?"

"Sir, I must ask you to cooperate with our investigation."

The patrol captain’s tone immediately hardened.