Little Pink Starfish

King Kongshan habitually picked up a piece of spirit food, a cake adorned with spiritual fruits, and brought it to Ziche Shubai’s lips. His other hand held a plate underneath to catch any crumbs, his face filled with tenderness—he was just short of saying, “Ah~~.”
Ziche Shubai expressionlessly opened his mouth and ate it.

All the demons + the personal guards + the two maids: …We’re getting more and more confused! What exactly happened in such a short time?! Weren’t they ignoring each other? Now they’re all lovey-dovey?!
The three great Demon Kings: But… like this… maybe we won’t have to go to war?

Though the subordinates on both sides felt suffocated, they all made sure to uphold the dignity of their respective master or young lord. The demons did so out of fear, while the guards and maids did so out of respect.
But in the end, weren’t they all doing the same thing?

Yet they never expected something even more eye-searing to follow.
Yes, this happened after the auction had already begun.

---

Scene 1—

Auction Elder: “Everyone, please take a look. This source stone contains a rare treasure, formed with celestial phenomena, extremely scarce. Within it lies a cold current, an indispensable item for Qi Refiners cultivating ice-attribute techniques. The starting price is 500,000 low-grade spirit crystals—please place your bids!”

Qi Refiner A: “600,000!”
Qi Refiner B: “800,000!”
Qi Refiner C: “1.2 million!”
Qi Refiner D: “1.5 million!”

King Kongshan: “3 million.”

With overwhelming force, he sealed the deal in one strike.
After Luo Fox Demon King paid the sum, the source stone was brought over.

King Kongshan immediately held it up and presented it to Ziche Shubai, his voice dripping with gentleness: “This should be useful to you… Do you like it?”
Ziche Shubai flicked his sleeve and accepted it.
King Kongshan’s smile instantly deepened, as if his life’s wish had been fulfilled.

Scene 2—

Auction Elder: “Everyone, please take a look. This item is a Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Silkworm. If obtained by a Qi Refiner cultivating ice-attribute techniques, it can be refined into a powerful avatar. The starting price is 1 million mid-grade spirit crystals—please place your bids!”

Qi Refiner E: “1.5 million!”
Qi Refiner F: “3 million!”
Qi Refiner G: “5 million!”
Qi Refiner H: “8 million!”

King Kongshan: “18 million.”

The bid landed at an incredibly high price—raising it further would be unreasonable.
And so, he won it.

Luo Fox Demon King handed over the money, her lips twitching.
She turned her head and, sure enough, saw their king handing the treasure over to that pretty boy again. The pretty boy, without even blinking, flicked his sleeve and accepted it, without showing the slightest bit of gratitude… Men really are all [beep]?!

Scene 3—

Auction Elder: “Everyone, please take a look… BLABLABLA… Ice-attribute… The starting price is 3.2 million high-grade spirit crystals—please place your bids!”

Major Power A: “5 million.”
Major Power B: “10 million.”
Major Power C: “20 million.”
Major Power D: “35 million.”

King Kongshan: “50 million.”
Major Powers A, B, C, and D: “……”
Who is this idiot with too much money?!

King Kongshan, the foolish and rich, remained unbothered and, without a hint of distress, handed yet another ice-attribute treasure to Ziche Shubai.

Luo Fox Demon King was bleeding inside, while Golden Ape Demon King and Sky Wolf Demon King also felt their purses tighten.
After all, even though they were Demon Kings, they had countless mouths to feed. Unlike the humans, demons weren’t as skilled in various trades, so they didn’t have many spirit crystals!
And now, all this money had been blown away just to please someone—what a waste!
Worst of all, the one being pleased didn’t even smile!

Ziche Shubai: Is that my fault?
I was born with a stiff face—can’t help it.

---

Such scenes repeated again and again.
By the sixth time an ice-attribute treasure appeared, the three great Demon Kings were on the verge of passing out.
King Kongshan, however, remained unfazed, gazing at Ziche Shubai with deep affection. In his eyes, there was no trace of the others’ suffering—only that handsome face, exuding an aura of… a devoted wife trapped in a husband’s body.

Finally, just as Luo Fox Demon King felt their wallets were about to be completely drained, Ziche Shubai subtly signaled Qingtong.
Qingtong instantly understood and immediately placed a bid, crushing the competition. In no time, she secured six, seven, eight, nine ice-attribute treasures for her star lord, spending an astronomical amount of spirit crystals—without breaking a sweat.

The three Demon Kings, though relieved, suddenly felt an inexplicable sting to their pride.
It almost felt like… they had just been schooled.

Qingtong shot them a disdainful look: Bunch of country bumpkins! Not even a tenth as wealthy as our Star Lord! We can afford to sustain an entire planet just for him! Can you? Huh?!
Hmph!

King Kongshan watched as Qingtong handed over the new items to Ziche Shubai, and his expression instantly twisted. A flash of sinister intent flickered through his brows.
Damn it… damn it!
Everything that belongs to him should be given by me! That woman dares— Kill her! Kill kill kill!

Ziche Shubai was always highly attuned to the pervert’s mental state. The moment he saw that ominous dark aura behind him, he knew—the pervert was about to lose it again.
Look at those eyes—already turning red!
Crap, Qingtong is in danger!
I need to come up with a way to cure this pervert, fast!

In an instant, Ziche Shubai turned to meet King Kongshan’s gaze: That is my servant.
King Kongshan immediately caught onto the key point: Servant.
Ziche Shubai: Yes.
King Kongshan’s eyes softened: You don’t need servants. You have me…
Ziche Shubai: You want to be my servant?
King Kongshan: As long as I can stay by your side, I’ll do anything…

To the onlookers, the two of them locked eyes for a full three seconds.
Of course, they didn’t realize that an intense, silent conversation had taken place through their invisible wavelength.
They only thought—Shit, is this emotional development?! Are they about to fall for each other?!

Ziche Shubai turned his head back: Then behave.
In the last instant of their silent communication, he lightly patted the pervert’s hand.
It was like dropping cold water onto burning charcoal—sizzle! The ominous aura behind King Kongshan instantly dissipated.

King Kongshan held back: “…I’ll listen.”
Ziche Shubai was satisfied.

The spectators in the private room: Damn it, their bond really deepened—this is moving way too fast, isn’t it?!
But regardless of how unrealistic it seemed, both sides ultimately backed down.

Qingtong sighed: If our Star Lord really takes this person as a consort… Fine. If this is his wish… I-I will support him!
The guards: We will keep a close watch on him!

With an agreement (?), everything fell into place.
At least on the surface, the tension had eased, and harmony was restored.

Ziche Shubai then encountered a minor plot point—a hidden treasure at the auction, unrecognized by many, given a low price just as a filler item. Just as he was considering it, King Kongshan had already bought it and gifted it to him.

…Surprising. Where’s the protagonist?
Ziche Shubai frowned. Wasn’t a big clan’s young lady supposed to lend the protagonist money to buy this? Why hadn’t that happened?

Turns out, the protagonist, Gu Xing, was busy arguing with Shangguan Jue, his pig-headed face still swollen from a previous fight. Although a young lady did take notice of him, he failed to impress her enough.

And so—
By the time the hidden treasure appeared…

Gu Xing: This seems useful! But if I ask that playboy for money, will he humiliate me? Shouldn’t have hit him so hard earlier…
Shangguan Jue: Haha, come on, beg me! You dared to hit me—let’s see you grovel!

Next moment—

King Kongshan: “XX million.”
Auction Elder: “Sold!”

Gu Xing: What a shame…

—Back to the present.
Although Ziche Shubai’s face remained expressionless, his slight distraction couldn’t possibly escape his partner’s notice—→Even if his brain was broken.
King Kongshan’s gaze darkened slightly. He slowly leaned in, his voice low and gentle: “Yu’er, what are you thinking about?”

Ziche Shubai: “Nothing.”
Pervert, don’t have an episode! I was just recalling the plot— Wait, something’s wrong!
Yu’er?! What the hell is Yu’er?! Yu, your mother’s Yu!

King Kongshan’s voice became even softer: “We are so close… shouldn’t I call you something more intimate? If you don’t like this name, just tell me. I… will listen to you.”
Ziche Shubai, deadpan: “Call me ge.”

King Kongshan stiffened for a moment.
Suddenly, he felt like… that title sounded familiar.
Could it be… another piece of his missing memory?
No, Shangguan Yu was human, and he was a demon—how could that be?

At this moment, he couldn’t recall.
Sometimes, the difference between a demon who turns into a human and a human who turns into a demon was as vast as that between a yao-ren and a ren-yao—two entirely different things.

But King Kongshan didn’t dwell on it for long. Instead, he sweetly called out: “Gege…”

Ziche Shubai shuddered.
Damn it, it’s been so long since I’ve heard that—it gave me goosebumps all over!
…But.
Fine, I guess if I hear it more, I’ll get used to it.

Qingtong, who had long since resolved to accept her Star Lord’s embarrassingly low taste, had, with her superhuman hearing and unmatched focus, clearly caught that particular form of address.
In that instant, her face turned dark.
The hell—where’s your shame?! An old demon who’s lived for thousands of years, how do you have the nerve to call our Star Lord gege?! Our Star Lord is only sixteen, okay?!
But no matter how deep her resentment, there was no way to communicate it…

The auction concluded. Ziche Shubai was clung to by King Kongshan the entire time, from inside the venue all the way out.
But before returning to the battleship, he had to locate those two troublemakers.

Ziche Shubai: “Still haven’t found them?”
The guards: “We have failed!”