One by one, the auction items found new owners. Some were vast quantities of Amethysts, others were piles of Soul Golden Beads, and some were divine artifacts. Even a Soul Leech appeared! It could only be refined by someone who had cultivated the Death Rule to the Seven-Star Fiend level, and then only with a stroke of luck.
Of course, the items didn't simply grow more valuable as the auction went on. Cheap and precious lots were interspersed. Aside from the Sovereign's Might reserved for the finale, no one knew what the next item would be. That was how the auction wrung the most wealth possible from its participants.
The next item might be something you desperately needed, leaving you no choice but to grit your teeth and buy it. Otherwise, you had no idea how long you'd have to wait to get your hands on it.
Some items were things Hodan had never seen or even heard of. The thirtieth lot, for instance, was a special magic stone—the Blood-Sucking Stone!
This kind of magic stone could be set into a weapon using a special method, then carved with a corresponding magic array. Once the weapon wounded an enemy, its wielder could continuously recover stamina and heal injuries during battle. It was a rare and invaluable weapon for large-scale, prolonged battles.
The stone sold for twenty trillion Inkstones. Hodan had bid on it a few times, but eventually gave up. He didn't have much need for it. Besides, peak experts generally wouldn't let themselves get surrounded. If they couldn't win, they'd run; with enough strength, they could break out of any predicament.
And in a one-on-one fight, the weapon's advantage wasn't all that significant. An enemy who could force you to use such a weapon wouldn't be a fool. The