The Round-Robin Tournament and the Ranking Engraving Knife

Chapter 47: The Round-Robin Tournament and the Ranking Engraving Knife

The weather on the first day of the round-robin tournament wasn't great. The sky was leaden and gloomy, but at least it hadn't started raining.

Shrek Academy's group competed first. More than half of the seventy-six teams had come to watch. Shrek drew a one-on-one match, and after Xu Sanshi won three rounds in a row and forced his opponent to concede, the whole venue erupted in astonishment once again.

"What do you think of that position-swapping skill?" Xiao Hongchen leaned over and whispered to Huo Yuhao.

"It could be troublesome in a team battle." Huo Yuhao leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment. "For example, if I'm focused on providing Spiritual Detection to everyone, he could swap me right into the middle of the Shrek team. Even if I could protect myself, I wouldn't be able to focus on Spiritual Detection Sharing. But if I'm on the field, I might be able to predict the direction of his Soul Power flow."

"That's good," Xiao Hongchen said. "Just react quickly when the time comes."

After a few more groups had completed their first matches, it was their turn. Ma Rulong went up to draw a ball and picked the two-two-three format.

"Your luck's terrible, Big Brother Ma." Xiao Hongchen looked at the ball he held up. "A two-two-three format in the first round—you should go do something to turn your luck around."

"Is the two-two-three format bad for us?" Huo Yuhao asked curiously.

"Not exactly," Meng Hongchen said from the side. "It's just a bit of a hassle. Our opponents are more nervous than we are... My brother just wanted to take a jab at Big Brother Ma."

As Meng Hongchen had said, in the two-two-three format, a team only needed to win twice to avoid the three-on-three match. Their opponent this time was an obscure Soul Engineer academy from Star Luo.

In the first round, Mi Jia and Lin Xi teamed up and blasted their opponents off the stage. In the second round, Xiao Xiafeng and another main team member, Chen Fei, fought as a pair. Their opponents put up a desperate resistance, so it took a while, but they still wrapped up the match without a hitch.

During the match, Huo Yuhao spotted Wang Yan in the distance. He had already sent the Shrek competitors back to their hotel, and now he watched the Sun Moon main team onstage, his brow furrowed so tightly it nearly knotted.

The four main team members had barely revealed their true strength. Wang Yan must have found that deeply frustrating.

Meanwhile, Yu Rufeng was beaming. He put an arm around each of the returning team members. "Well done! You boys did great. Let's go check out the auction tonight and unwind."

"Teacher Yu, do we really need to go to a Soul Tool auction?" Lin Xi said, his shoulder held firmly under Yu Rufeng's arm. He could only turn his head to speak. "The Soul Tools sold in Star Luo City are nowhere near as good as the ones straight from Mingde Hall."

"Exactly. We're just going for the fun of it," Yu Rufeng said. "If we spot a Level 7 or higher Defensive Soul Tool, we can think of it as helping Mingde Hall buy it back. The reserve team members can broaden their horizons, too. Apart from Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen, none of these kids have ever been to a place like that."

Night had only just fallen over Star Luo City, but lights were already coming on across the city, one after another, as if vying with the stars.

The group arrived at a building that didn't look very large, and Huo Yuhao looked up at it curiously. The tournament had already opened his eyes to many things over the past few days.

A golden hammer hung on the sign above the entrance. Looking inside, he saw a red carpet stretching inward. The auction house was actually underground.

The main team members seemed to be visiting for the first time, too. After all, the previous tournament hadn't been held in Star Luo City, and the auction houses in the Heavenly Soul and Douluo empires couldn't compare with Star Luo's.

After they descended twenty meters, Yu Rufeng accepted a token from a staff member and gestured for everyone to follow the red-dressed young woman ahead.

They then passed through an old-fashioned wooden door. The instant they stepped inside, the scene before them changed completely, filling their vision with golden splendor.

A broad corridor stretched ahead, glittering with gold and jade. Its luxurious decor even surpassed that of the Star Emperor Hotel. As they continued deeper inside, the usher explained the auction's arrangements. When the group heard that tonight's lots included only Soul Tools below Level 6, the team members who'd apparently hoped to help Mingde Hall buy back a Level 7 Soul Tool looked a little disappointed.

"Please come in. This is Auction Hall Twelve." The usher swept her slender arm out gracefully, guiding them through the doorway.

As instructed, they put on masks and took seats in a row near the back. Huo Yuhao had never sat in such a comfortable chair before, and couldn't help murmuring in admiration.

At that moment, a woman in a purple dress stepped into the hall. She had elegant, lovely features. Walking up to the auctioneer's table, she bowed to everyone.

"Good evening, honored guests. I'm Qing Ya, a Purple-level auctioneer from the Starlight Auction House. I'll be hosting tonight's auction."

Lot after lot came out, all Soul Tools between Levels 3 and 5. Each had its own clever features, but none caught the eye of the people from the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy. In contrast, someone in the front row across from them kept bidding high. Huo Yuhao couldn't resist using Spiritual Detection to check who it was—and discovered it was Wang Yan.

"Shrek's started taking Soul Tools seriously," Huo Yuhao told his teammates quietly. Under Spiritual Detection, the masks in the auction hall were as good as nonexistent.

"It's fine," Yu Rufeng said. "It would be strange if they hadn't seen this level of Soul Tool before, or couldn't make one. We've seen far too many."

It wasn't until the second-to-last lot that Qing Ya brought out a Level 4 Milk Bottle. Huo Yuhao already knew these charging Soul Tools well. He had used similar technology when he took the Level 1 Soul Engineer exam and made his own Spirit Slashing Blade.

"Can we let them buy it?" Huo Yuhao hesitated when Wang Yan looked ready to bid high again. Milk Bottles had considerable strategic value, and the Douluo Three Kingdoms all wanted them badly.

"Hmm... It wouldn't hurt much to let them buy it, but messing with their mood a little would be nice."

With that, Yu Rufeng raised his bidding paddle. "Twenty-eight thousand Gold Soul Coins."

Wang Yan had offered twenty-five thousand. Usually, raising the price straight to twenty-eight thousand Gold Soul Coins was already a hefty markup.

Wang Yan hesitated, then called out, "Thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins."

"That's enough." Yu Rufeng stopped bidding. "We made him pay five thousand extra. This thing isn't worth that much. They must have an unlimited credit guarantee from Shrek, and Shrek has already mastered the technology, so there's no point in seriously competing with them."

The auctioneer struck her gavel three times, and the Milk Bottle went to Shrek for ten thousand Gold Soul Coins above its actual value.

At last, the final lot was brought to the center. Under the lights, Qing Ya's face glowed. She was clearly excited. As she worked the audience into a fever with her increasingly animated voice, she placed her jade-white fingers on the red cloth covering the lot.

"Everyone, please take a look."

As Qing Ya's bell-like voice rang out, she whisked the red cloth off the lot.

The people from the Sun Moon Empire recognized the object at a glance—it was an engraving knife. It was small, about half a foot long and no thicker than a finger. The knife was ancient-looking and pitch-black, with unusual patterns carved into it. As it lay quietly on the display stand, it seemed to exude a heavy, gloomy aura.

Several team members immediately began whispering among themselves, while Qing Ya introduced the knife to the bidders. When she said it was a Ranking Engraving Knife, almost everyone's eyes lit up. Some were already shouting excitedly for her to start the auction at once.

But when she explained the background of this vicious knife, most of their enthusiasm was doused. Through Spiritual Detection, Huo Yuhao saw the reserve team member named He Caitou say something quietly to Wang Yan. The two of them then shook their heads.

"The Spirit-Devouring Engraving Knife has a starting price of one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins. Bids must increase by at least five thousand. Honored guests, you may begin bidding." Qing Ya smiled.

"Teacher Yu, Elder Ma, I want this. I'll help out in the lab more often when we get back and work hard to pay the school back. If it comes to it, I can sell grilled fish."

Huo Yuhao spoke up. He said several things in quick succession, hoping to get the two teachers to agree to buy the knife.

"Don't worry about the money. You don't have to pay the school back, either," Yu Rufeng said. "If Mingde Hall couldn't give an important student one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, it would be a joke. We've spent far more than that on Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen."

"But what do you want that knife for? You can't use it. Are you planning to collect it?"

Huo Yuhao answered confidently, "I'm not collecting it. I have a way to use it."

"You say you have a way... This isn't something to joke about, Yuhao."

"Teacher, he really can," Chi Qiu spoke up. Huo Yuhao glanced at her, a little surprised, but another thought popped into his mind: Qiu'er looks quite elegant in a white mask, too.

Chi Qiu winked at him, and Huo Yuhao finally understood. She knew who was inside his Sea of Consciousness.

Electrolux had specifically asked for this knife, of course.

When she had first sensed the attributes during the attribute-guiding process, Chi Qiu had felt the nature of Electrolux's power. The knife carried a similar quality, so she had guessed that the old man wanted it.

What was more, she sensed that the knife's material was somewhat like the material at the bottom of the Lake of Life, where the Silver Dragon King was recuperating.

"You little ones really are something. Can I trust you? What if something goes wrong?" Yu Rufeng asked, still uneasy.

"When I repair it, you and Elder Ma can stand beside me and protect me. If anything happens, just seal it immediately."