The moment Xue Mingzhao spotted Li An walking out of the gates, she immediately pointed at him and introduced him loudly to the surrounding crowd. “Everyone, this is Li Buqi's father, Patriarch Li An of the Li family!”
The onlookers turned their heads in unison to look at him. Left with no choice, Li An forced a stiff smile and cupped his hands. “Greetings, everyone. I am Li An.”
Xue Mingzhao quickly took a few steps to stand by Li An's side. She raised her hand and pressed it down gently, and the noisy crowd instantly fell silent.
Li An: ???
Every single one of these children from prestigious families held an honorable status. Why were they all listening to this brat?
Xue Mingzhao sighed. Her voice, sincere and carrying a hint of grievance, echoed across the area. “To tell you the truth, our Grand Primordium Sect is truly living in tight straits right now.
“To promote the revival of spiritual energy across the entire Eastern Territory, our sect has emptied out almost all the resources in our storehouses.
“Earlier, the City Lord intended to allocate spirit stones from the Dongcang Heavenly Capital to support us, but my master flatly refused.
“Master said that he would rather have the Grand Primordium Sect bear all the losses himself than take resources that should be shared with all the cultivators of the Eastern Territory.
“Even when my Third Senior Brother was severely injured by a demon beast while investigating a spirit vein, he never uttered a single word of complaint to the outside world.”
As soon as these words were spoken, a collective sigh rippled through the crowd below.
Everyone had already heard about the depletion of spiritual energy in the Eastern Territory and how the Grand Primordium Sect was exhausting its own resources to revive the world.
However, none of them expected the sect to go to such lengths. They would rather let their own disciple suffer from severe injuries without medicine than accept a large amount of aid from the City Lord. Respect involuntarily welled up in everyone's hearts.
Taking advantage of the crowd's emotional state, Xue Mingzhao pointed at Li An beside her once more and raised her voice. “Fortunately, we have finally found a ray of hope today—and that is Patriarch Li!
“Out of deep love for his son, the moment Uncle Li heard that my Third Senior Brother was severely injured, he handed over medicinal pills without a second thought for me to take back to heal my senior brother.
“He even said he would donate a large amount of resources to help the Grand Primordium Sect through this difficult time.
“With Uncle Li's timely assistance, our Grand Primordium Sect will finally be able to pull through for a while!”
A forced smile tugged at the corner of Li An's mouth. He braced himself and chimed in, “Buqi is my son. This is only my duty.”
Xue Mingzhao smoothly glanced at the storage bag in his hand. “Thank you for your trouble, Uncle Li. I assume the spirit stones and pills you prepared are inside this bag?”
Li An instinctively pulled the storage bag behind his back, causing the onlookers' gazes to instantly turn suspicious.
He hurriedly tried to cover it up. “The items in this bag are incomplete. I've already ordered the servants to count a large batch of resources inside the residence. They should be on their way out now. Let's wait a moment.”
Xue Mingzhao didn't expose him and went along with his excuse, nodding. “Then we shall wait a moment.”
Just as she finished speaking, a cultivator in the crowd stepped forward and cupped his hands. “The Grand Primordium Sect toils for the sake of the entire Eastern Territory. My Su family will offer five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones to contribute our humble share!”
Xue Mingzhao looked pleasantly surprised and said gratefully, “Thank you for your generosity, Fellow Daoist Su! The Grand Primordium Sect will remember this kindness!”
With someone leading the way, the other children of the prestigious families quickly followed suit.
A young girl in a pink dress handed over a storage bag. “The Dugu family donates six hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones.”
A young man in black followed closely behind. “The Liu family, five hundred thousand.”
A youth in red stepped forward and shouted, “The Situ family, eight hundred thousand!”
Xue Mingzhao noted down each one and declared in a clear voice, “I will never forget your helping hands today! Once I return to the sect, I will immediately erect a monument of merit at the gates of the Grand Primordium Sect. The names of all donors will be permanently engraved upon it—ordered by the donation amount, down to the last copper coin!”
The moment these words left her mouth, several disciples from the prestigious families who had been watching from the back row could no longer sit still.
Ordered by the donation amount?
Wouldn't that mean the entire Eastern Territory would know whose family ranked first and whose ranked last?
Moreover, the monument of merit would be erected right at the sect's main gate. Whenever the City Lord came to visit, he would see it the moment he looked up.
This wasn't just a monument of merit; this was clearly a leaderboard for the prestigious families of the Eastern Territory!
Donating less would at most place them lower on the list, but if they didn't contribute a single coin, they would lose all face once word got out.
For a moment, bids rose one after another as everyone wanted to push their rankings forward.
Xue Mingzhao pulled out a pen and paper with a beaming smile. She noted down the names while calling out the amounts, writing at lightning speed. All the while, she kept showering them with praises like “magnanimous,” “generous,” and “true style of a great family.” The sound of her pen gliding across the paper was crisper than spirit stones clinking into a bag.
The bids continued to ring out in succession, each donor terrified of falling behind.
“Our Zhang family, seven hundred thousand.”
“The Zhou family, eight hundred thousand.”
A crisp, arrogant female voice suddenly cut in. “A bunch of prestigious families donating such a measly amount, and you actually have the face to speak up? I, Yue Ling'er, on behalf of the Yue family, donate one million high-grade spirit stones!”
The crowd erupted into a clamor. This eldest young lady of the Yue family was simply too extravagant.
She had offered one million high-grade spirit stones without even blinking.
Xue Mingzhao was secretly ecstatic. Good heavens, a massive fortune out of thin air! What a pleasant surprise!
Another cool female voice followed immediately after. “My Chi family will offer two million high-grade spirit stones.”
Xue Mingzhao raised an eyebrow. There was something even more exciting?
Yue Ling'er squinted at Chi Ying, her tone provocative. “Oh, isn't this the eldest young lady of the Chi family? Why aren't you cultivating instead of coming out here to join the commotion?”
Chi Ying retorted calmly, “Everyone in the Eastern Territory has received the grace of the Grand Primordium Sect, so of course my Chi family can donate. Is only Yue Ling'er allowed to act while others are unworthy? You are being far too overbearing.”
Yue Ling'er chuckled. “My one million is my own pocket money. Your two million is no small sum. Did you ask for your sister's permission? Don't end up unable to pay and embarrass yourself.”
Chi Ying's expression shifted slightly, but she quickly regained her composure. Her voice remained steady as she replied, “I can make the decision for a mere two million myself. There is no need for you to worry.”
Yue Ling'er let out a light laugh. “Then I will offer two million and one high-grade spirit stones.”
Chi Ying's face darkened. “Are you deliberately adding one more coin just to spite me?”
Yue Ling'er covered her mouth and giggled. “Yes, you.”
Fuming, Chi Ying snapped, “My Chi family will offer two and a half million!”
“Two and a half million and one,” Yue Ling'er replied without even blinking.
“Three million!” Chi Ying's voice carried a hint of gritted teeth.
“Three million and one.” Yue Ling'er smiled even more brightly. “Second Young Lady Chi, I advise you to think carefully before you keep bidding. Don't compare your Chi family's public funds to my personal treasury.”
Chi Ying's face turned completely dark. Yue Ling'er was the only eldest young lady of the Yue family's direct lineage, and the resources of the entire Yue family were showered upon her alone.
Let alone three million high-grade spirit stones, she could afford to double that amount without even knitting her brows.
Chi Ying was different. She had an older sister above her who ran the family affairs. Having impulsively bid three million this time, she didn't even know how she would explain it when she returned.
Yue Ling'er was clearly well aware of this, which was why her smile was exceptionally punchable.
Inside Xue Mingzhao's dantian, the Chaos Spiritual Root bounced up and down in excitement. Fight! Fight!
Xue Mingzhao watched the spectacle with great interest, silently applauding Yue Ling'er in her heart. This young lady was practically a one-woman hype squad, single-handedly turning a donation drive into a full-blown auction.
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