Bidding

"The Blood Essence consumption is a bit high?"

The crowd exchanged glances, but they weren't easily fooled.

If that were truly all there was to it, why the need to hide it?

"I say, Director Ge, this 'a bit high' you speak of, just how high is it specifically?"

Old Bloodrot stroked his beard, his tone laced with displeasure.

After all, he was the highest bidder so far. If something were truly wrong, he'd likely become a laughingstock of Cloud City.

Though others remained silent, the meaning in their eyes was clear: they needed an explanation today.

Faced with their pressure, Ge Xu knew he couldn't keep it a secret any longer and decided to be upfront.

"It's nothing major. If it's just for minimal activation, calculated based on the Blood Essence of a Spirit Conduit Realm martial artist, it can be maintained for about five minutes."

"Afterward, each Spirit Pattern activated will increase the Blood Essence consumption by another layer."

Hearing Ge Xu's words, the crowd erupted in an uproar.

Good heavens, is this what you call 'a bit high'?

This single limitation virtually disqualified all martial artists below the Spirit Conduit Realm.

Even Spirit Conduit Realm martial artists would have to carefully consider if their Blood Essence was sufficient.

"Heh, Director Ge Xu speaks so casually."

Facing their displeased gazes, Ge Xu remained unperturbed, spreading his hands.

"Compared to its special properties, what's so strange about a few minor flaws?"

"Even if you were to have it forged by the Demon Suppression Division, setting aside whether those fellows would even bother, just forging a single Spirit Artifact would cost several thousand taels, wouldn't it?"

"As for why I'm putting it up for auction, that's merely the owner's request."

He then looked at Old Bloodrot.

"Of course, if you all truly believe I've deceived you, then at the current highest bid, I'll personally purchase it. How about that?"

Although they still felt something was amiss, his words left the crowd unable to refute him.

After all, he had just stated that if they didn't want it, he would buy it himself.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Old Bloodrot's expression shifted. After a moment of calculation, he grinned and said.

"Heh heh, Director Ge Xu, why be bothered? We were just a little concerned earlier."

"Besides, now that the item is out, there's no reason to take it back. I think we should continue the auction."

This sudden change in attitude, as if he were a different person, immediately drew contemptuous glances from the crowd.

However, Old Bloodrot merely swept his gaze over them coldly, and the owners of those gazes immediately became as timid as quails. They then remembered that this old man was no pushover.

Not only was he vengeful, capable of wiping out an entire family at the slightest disagreement, but his Bloodrot Saber Technique was also honed to perfection. Even among the martial artists in Cloud City, his strength ranked among the very top.

And so, the auction resumed.

But compared to the frenzy before, the bids were noticeably calmer.

After several minutes of back-and-forth bidding, the price had barely surpassed six thousand taels.

This made Ge Xu's old face darken as if it could drip water.

He scanned his surroundings, trying to find those detestable individuals from earlier.

"Heh heh, Young Master Ling, look at that old guy's expression. He must be furious, haha."

Zhang Mu and the others looked excited. If it were any other time, they wouldn't dare offend these people.

"Well done."

Ling Yun nodded with satisfaction as he watched the auction return to normal.

While the methods were indeed less than honorable, they were highly effective.

Moreover, he wasn't someone who clung to rigid principles. If pushed too far, a "zero-yuan purchase" wasn't out of the question.

At this point, the auction prices began to slow down. When the price reached eight thousand taels, only two parties remained in the competition.

Besides Old Bloodrot, the other contender was an acquaintance: the owner of the Black Tiger Martial Hall, Xu Hu.

"Eight thousand four hundred taels!" Old Bloodrot's face twitched as he forced out the number.

This price was already close to his limit. After all, even commissioning a new Spirit Artifact from the Demon Suppression Division would only cost four to five thousand taels.

"Eight thousand five..." Xu Hu hesitated for a moment, his expression showing struggle, but he eventually sighed and slowly lowered his raised hand.

After all, he still had the martial hall to support. Unlike Old Bloodrot, he was alone and didn't have the burden of supporting a family.

It wasn't worth paying such a hefty price for a flawed, special Spirit Artifact.

The other major powers generally shared the same sentiment.

Seeing this, Old Bloodrot felt a sense of relief and then looked at Ge Xu with a hearty laugh.

"Haha, Ge Xu, what are you waiting for? Announce it quickly!"

"Don't tell me you think anyone dares to compete with me now?"

As he spoke, his sinister gaze swept around, looking utterly arrogant.

Although the martial hall masters present disliked his overbearing demeanor, they were short on cash and could only suppress their displeasure.

Ge Xu's expression was cold and silent, but his heart was bleeding.

It was all the fault of those damned guys!

Just as everyone thought the matter was settled, a calm voice broke the silence of the venue.

"Nine thousand taels."

As the words fell, everyone's gaze simultaneously shifted to a corner of the venue, wanting to know who dared to snatch the prize from under the tiger's nose at this moment.

Facing the myriad of complicated gazes, Ling Yun's expression remained calm, as if he hadn't been the one to speak.

At this moment, Old Bloodrot's expression also turned cold. He looked towards Ling Yun and said in a chilling tone, "Kid... do you know what you're doing?"

Seeing Old Bloodrot's anger, everyone couldn't help but cast sympathetic glances at Ling Yun.

In their opinion, offending the brutal Old Bloodrot for a Spirit Artifact was an incredibly unwise choice.

However, facing Old Bloodrot's threat, Ling Yun didn't even glance at him. He simply looked at Ge Xu.

"What? Am I not allowed to bid?"

Unlike Old Bloodrot's fury, Ge Xu, though outwardly composed, was inwardly laughing.

After silently praising Ling Yun, he coughed and said.

"Of course, you can. Anyone can bid freely at this auction."

He then rapped the bronze hammer in his hand.

"So, the current highest bid is nine thousand taels. Is there anyone willing to go higher?"

Although he said this, his eyes were actually fixed on Old Bloodrot.

The masters of the other martial halls, at this moment, were eager to stir up trouble, speaking sarcastically.

"Tsk tsk, some people were just boasting that no one dared to compete with them, but the slap in the face came so quickly."

"Heh, if it were me, I'd have already found a hole to crawl into."

"You guys speaking like that is really kicking someone when they're down! Who is he? Nine thousand taels of silver is nothing to him."

"..."

Old Bloodrot's face turned ashen. His icy gaze fixed on Ling Yun, as if he wanted to engrave his appearance into his memory.

He then closed his eyes and said, word by word, through gritted teeth.

"Nine! Thousand! One! Hundred! Taels!"

"Nine thousand five hundred taels," Ling Yun said expressionlessly.

"Whoosh!" Old Bloodrot completely ignored the taunts from others. He flashed and disappeared from his spot, having chosen to leave.

Ge Xu looked somewhat disappointed at this. He looked around the venue and asked several times. Seeing no one else respond, he could only reluctantly announce the end of the auction.

Soon, Ling Yun walked onto the stage.

He paid the money and received the item.

Then, without looking back, he left the auction house directly with Zhang Mu and the others.

Watching his retreating back, and then looking at the strange glances from those around him, Ge Xu shook his head with some regret.

"He's a good prospect, but unfortunately, his edge is too sharp."