The White Jade Token Part 3

The other party, however, quickly hurried away when Luo Qiu turned his head.

You Ye, seeing this, frowned. She walked past Luo Qiu, intending to follow, but Luo Qiu grabbed her arm. "No need. He means no harm."

As if finding the explanation hard to accept himself, Luo Qiu mused, "Lately, my senses in this regard have become increasingly acute."

You Ye simply said softly, "If the owner of the Club can't even discern people's hearts, then it would be unacceptable."

Luo Qiu subconsciously froze. He knew this was likely one of the peculiar abilities granted to him by the Club.

He didn't feel that being able to read minds was good or bad. Vaguely, Luo Qiu felt it wasn't something to be happy about.

Luo Qiu shook his head. "Let's take our seats... The catalog states that the Jade Token is among the last items to be auctioned. But it's my first time here, so it'll be good to broaden my horizons."

He then said with a curious smile, "I often hear about buyers spending fortunes at auctions, fighting each other. I wonder if I'll get a good look today."

In truth, the two were a very strange pair.

The woman was as ethereal as a figure from a painting, possessing a sort of magic that captivated the soul. The man, however, was an ordinary young man, easily overlooked. While he was quite handsome, so many people were handsome, and standing beside the woman, he appeared exceptionally plain.

Yet, the man walked ahead, with the dreamlike woman following at a leisurely pace. The pair eventually found a spot in a relatively secluded corner and sat down.

It was as if they didn't want to be disturbed.

Beauty is human nature. Because the stunningly beautiful You Ye attracted most of the gazes, few people noticed the elder with white hair and a youthful complexion, nor the young man with sharp eyebrows beside him.

"Master, I never imagined there would be such an otherworldly woman," the young man said, gazing at her with infatuation.

The elder, however, suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within them. He quickly formed a hand seal in front of his chest, then swiftly tapped the young man's forehead, letting out a low "Hah!"

"Master, I..." The young man was suddenly filled with a sense of dread.

The elder frowned. "Don't speak. Recite the Heart Sutra silently, guard your mind, and clear all your distracting thoughts! Don't let this Pink Skull corrupt your Dao heart."

The young man dared not disobey and quickly closed his eyes.

The elder's gaze was piercing. He looked past the young man towards that corner, his expression grave. "What potent Art of Charm... Who exactly is this woman? She has no essence, spirit, or vitality, like a wandering ghost, yet she's not a demon..."

Could she be from some unorthodox path?

The elder's mind raced through many possibilities. He had come here to obtain something. This item was rumored to have been lost for centuries, and the elder had stumbled upon it by chance. However, he couldn't be sure that others weren't here with the same objective.

The elder took a deep breath, formed hand seals again, then shaped his fingers into a sword gesture, quickly sweeping them across his eyes. He opened his eyes again and looked towards the corner.

This time, he met the woman's eyes.

Her sapphire-blue eyes were as deep as the ocean. In the mere instant of contact, the elder's spirit felt as though it were being swallowed by a massive vortex. His face turned pale, and his expression was one of great shock. He could only force himself to bite the tip of his tongue, managing to withdraw.

But he was already drenched in sweat, his heart pounding, his breath chaotic, as if he had just suffered a serious illness.

The elder quickly regained his composure, muttering incantations. Using his advanced Daoist techniques, he transmitted his voice, "This humble Taoist is Yang Taizi. May I ask who the esteemed friend is?"

"A cultivator from the East? Put away your pathetic vigilance and don't spoil my master's mood, or I'll dig up your mountain! Hmph!"

The woman's hum sounded like a great bell struck in the highest heavens, directly unsettling Yang Taizi's mind, almost causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood. If not for the deep foundation of his Pure Yang Skill, cultivated diligently for sixty to seventy years, he would have risked qi deviation at that moment.

But the terrifying spiritual pressure had vanished without a trace. Yang Taizi's face grew even more grim. While slowly regulating his breathing, he pondered when such a powerful individual had arrived nearby.

What was even more astonishing was that her tone suggested she was merely a servant.

The elder took a deep breath, picked up his phone, opened the Penguin app, logged into his QQ account, and began typing with his fingers as fast as lightning using the handwriting input method: "Fellow Daoists, have any of you heard of a woman, beautiful as an immortal, with blue eyes and black hair, whose spiritual power is exceptionally strong, and whose Art of Charm is incredibly potent? Urgent, awaiting replies online."

"She'll probably be back tonight... Don't cook..."

Luo Qiu replied to Ren Ziling's Nth text message and then looked up, confused. "You Ye, did you just say something? I thought I heard a strange sound, but I didn't catch it clearly."

"Mm, I didn't speak," You Ye replied with a slight smile.

"Oh?" Luo Qiu nodded.

At this moment, the auctioneer had already taken the stage and was speaking into the microphone. "Thank you all for attending. It is my honor that this auction will be conducted by me..."

After a lengthy introduction, the first item up for bidding was presented. Luo Qiu glanced at the price; the starting bid was thirty thousand.

He couldn't help but mock himself, thinking that it seemed difficult to see starting bids of millions or tens of millions. He heard that some high-end auctions abroad often had transactions exceeding one hundred million. Once his ability to traverse becomes stronger, he'd find time to experience it.

Luo Qiu was quite interested, listening to the announcer's eloquent descriptions of each item. He suddenly had an idea: he should probably study this field properly.

The Club conveniently provided him with appraisal abilities, but looking at the White Jade Token, these appraisals weren't without cost. If it meant shortening his lifespan to obtain information, he felt he'd be getting ripped off.

"Should I ask Zhang Qingrui to recommend some books suitable for beginners? We're classmates, it shouldn't be a problem, right?"

As he thought this and watched, the item they had come for finally appeared.

The projector on stage displayed photographs of the White Jade Token taken from various angles. Simultaneously, the auctioneer enthusiastically announced, "Next, we present lot number twenty-seven, provided by Gu Yue Zhai! We believe those who have paid attention already know some information about this Jade Token. Please look at the back of the token; we can faintly see the two characters 'Zigang' inscribed in seal script!"

The atmosphere in the venue seemed to rise, and the spotlights shone on the White Jade Token. Some guests generously began taking pictures.

The auctioneer smiled. "I'm sure everyone is familiar with such a mark! Now, I can confidently tell you that this White Jade Token you see before you is indeed from that great jade craftsman of the Ming Dynasty! The origin of this White Jade Token cannot be traced, but through the dating of the accompanying documents, we can guarantee it is five hundred years old..."

After presenting the appraisal certificate for the year and the material appraisal certificate for the token itself, the auctioneer immediately struck the gavel. "The White Jade Token starts at five hundred and fifty thousand, with each bid increasing by ten thousand... Five hundred and fifty thousand for the first time! Someone has already placed a bid! It's from table A66... a lady!"

Luo Qiu watched You Ye elegantly raise her number plate... Luo Qiu just watched and said nothing.

The money in his bank account consisted almost entirely of the New Year's money, red envelopes, and pocket money he had received over the years.

Even though the Club was incredibly wealthy, so much so that when Luo Qiu first encountered it, he was stunned by the sheer number of zeros to the left of the decimal point, that wealth was unusable, leaving him only able to sigh in admiration from afar.

Therefore, he still only had the money in his own bank account, which, at most, was a little over ten thousand.

"You Ye, could it be that you're actually a sugar mama?"

You Ye offered that same inscrutable smile. "What You Ye has, naturally, also belongs to Master."

Luo Qiu blinked, astonished. "Most men would probably love to hear that, right? But..."

He shook his head and continued, "...since you've already made a move, if possible, try to buy it back."

Luo Qiu wasn't one to dither. Since they were going through legitimate channels, buying it back directly wasn't out of the question.

He didn't see any issue with using You Ye's money.

You Ye had lived for over three hundred years, experiencing constant changes in eras, and with the Club behind her, accumulating extraordinary wealth wasn't hard to imagine.

It was the same principle.

As long as he had the desire, he too could accumulate vast wealth in the future.

Therefore, if he let the Jade Token be bought by someone else out of false modesty, it would actually be more troublesome—Luo Qiu fundamentally feared trouble.

"Five hundred and sixty thousand! A45 has bid five hundred and sixty thousand! Is there any higher? Five hundred and sixty thousand, going once!"

"Five hundred and seventy thousand! A66 has bid five hundred and seventy thousand!! Is there any more? Any higher?!"

"Five hundred and eighty thousand! A51, five hundred and eighty thousand, going once!"

Watching the auctioneer shout with abandon, You Ye seemed to grow impatient. She stood up directly and announced loudly, "No need to trouble yourselves, one million!"

This sum, in the eyes of the truly wealthy, wasn't really much.

But at this moment, as this dreamlike woman stood up, she captured almost all eyes in the room. The men's gazes couldn't be pulled away from her beautiful figure, to the point of being lost in a daze. As for the women, for the first time, they didn't feel disdain in their hearts, thinking this was a beauty that made one feel inadequate.

The old man in the corner, who had tried to raise his number plate several times, felt as if he were being crushed by a mountain. Cold sweat beaded on his brow, and his heart was even more shocked.

The old man knew that the charm emanating from this woman had captivated everyone. Only the auctioneer was completely unaffected. The mastery of this skill was truly controlled to the finest degree. Not only that, but he himself was constantly enduring immense mental pressure, his Dao heart nearing the brink of collapse.

"...One million, third and final call! Sold! This 'Zigang' Jade Token belongs to Miss A66!"

The hammer fell.

But in that very instant, a figure suddenly rushed out from the venue. He stormed onto the stage, snatched the Jade Token into his palm, and bolted towards a side safety exit.

The security guards finally seemed to snap out of their stupor. Gripping their batons, they hurried in pursuit.

Luo Qiu frowned. He saw that You Ye was angry...

But the person who had snatched the Jade Token was none other than the man in the black glasses he had noticed a couple of times before!