Auction, Incomplete Manuscript

As the number of bidders dwindled, this three-courtyard mansion was ultimately sold to a tiger-headed man for the high price of five hundred taels.

The subsequent items up for auction included not only houses, shops, and farmland, but also calligraphy, paintings, porcelain, and precious jade.

There were even various high-quality weapons and armor, powerful bows and crossbows, and even hidden weapons and poisons.

Even dancing girls of exceptional beauty from beyond the frontier made an appearance.

This incited many to bid frantically, driving the auction to its climax.

The atmosphere in the hall grew increasingly heated, with bidding voices rising one after another.

Lu Yuan, however, remained sitting quietly, eyes closed to conserve his energy.

He was, naturally, a normal man—a hot-blooded youth in the prime of his life.

It was simply not yet the time for him to indulge in pleasure.

Moreover, although he carried fifteen hundred taels in silver notes, it might not be enough.

At the very least, until he ensured he could secure that special technique, he could not afford to waste a single cent.

"Hehe... the grand finale has arrived!"

Finally, at the sound of the purple-robed man's laughter, Lu Yuan suddenly opened his eyes.

In the purple-robed man's hands sat a sandalwood box.

Inside the box lay a yellowed, thread-bound book.

The pages were somewhat tattered, as if they had been flipped through countless times.

"A remnant of the Profound-grade Vajra Technique. Although it only contains the first three volumes, it is a complete internal cultivation method, sufficient to support one in entering the ranks and even holds the potential to forge a Golden Skin!"

"Starting bid, five hundred taels; each increment must be no less than ten taels!"

Boom!

As the purple-robed man's voice fell, the crowd below erupted into an uproar.

Five hundred taels was enough to buy a three-courtyard mansion.

Furthermore, although this Vajra Technique was a genuine Profound-grade manual, it was merely a remnant of the first three volumes.

Most importantly, for the vast majority of martial artists present, what they lacked most was not an internal cultivation method to enter the ranks, but the innate talent and resources to do so.

Without sufficient talent and resources, they might not reach the level required to attempt the breakthrough into the ranks for years, or even decades.

Only great masters who had already reached the Transformation Realm were in urgent need of such internal arts to help them break into the ranks.

Therefore, there were not many people in the hall truly tempted by the Vajra Technique remnant.

The atmosphere was far less heated than when the mansion and the dancing girls were auctioned.

However, everyone knew that if someone did bid, it would likely be a great Transformation Realm master, or a true genius with excellent talent who was confident in breaking into the Transformation Realm in a short time.

Of course, there might also be wealthy individuals with money to burn who participated in the bidding simply for the sake of buying.

"Five hundred and ten taels!"

"Five hundred and twenty taels!"

"Eight hundred taels!"

After a brief silence, bidding voices finally rang out in the hall once more.

The price soared, quickly breaking through the thousand-tael mark.

It's a good thing I obtained the five hundred taels reward from the Zhou Family; otherwise, I might have truly come here for nothing!

Hearing that someone had already bid eleven hundred taels, Lu Yuan's gaze narrowed slightly.

What was worth rejoicing was that this final special technique was exactly the internal cultivation method he desperately needed.

Moreover, it was a Profound-grade technique capable of supporting his entry into the ranks; even if it was only a remnant of the first three volumes, he had to secure it.

Besides, the value of the remnant had already exceeded a thousand taels; if it were the complete version, it would be impossible to secure without several thousand taels.

At this moment, the bidding price had reached twelve hundred taels.

It could be said that this was truly the most astronomically priced item of the entire auction.

Consequently, the number of bidders grew smaller and smaller, until finally, only a dog-headed man and a cat-headed man remained, bidding against each other.

"Thirteen hundred taels!"

Following the dog-headed man's latest bid, the cat-headed man fell completely silent.

Clearly, this price had exceeded his limit.

"The remnant of the Profound-grade Vajra Technique—is there anyone else who wishes to bid?"

After a moment of silence, the purple-robed man scanned the crowd, asking with a look of anticipation.

"Thirteen hundred and ten taels!"

He was not disappointed; soon, a calm voice echoed through the venue once more.

The reason Lu Yuan had waited until this moment to start bidding was that he knew the earlier, aggressive shouts would never truly secure the item.

It was better to save his breath and energy, waiting for the critical final moment to place his bid.

"Is there any higher offer?"

The smile on the purple-robed man's face grew even wider as he spoke again.

His gaze shifted directly toward the dog-headed man.

In fact, everyone's eyes fell upon the dog-headed man, waiting to see if he would continue to bid.

At this moment, the dog-headed man turned his gaze toward the goat-headed man who had suddenly appeared.

"One thousand three hundred and twenty taels!"

After placing his bid, the dog-headed man spoke directly to Lu Yuan: "Friend, this incomplete Vajra Technique is something I urgently need. I wonder if you could yield it to me? I will certainly reward you handsomely afterward!"

"My apologies, this is also something I require."

A thick, deep voice slowly spilled from Lu Yuan's lips.

"Friend, will you give me, Wang Qing, some face?"

The dog-headed man suddenly tore off the mask he was wearing and spoke to Lu Yuan once more.

"It's actually the young master of the Iron Palm Gang, Wang Qing!"

Someone could not help but exclaim aloud.

Although the Iron Palm Gang had only risen to prominence over the last month or so, its reputation was immense.

Not only had it nearly wiped out the entire Black Tiger Gang overnight, but it had also rapidly swallowed up more than half of the East District, now vaguely standing on equal footing with the Axe Gang and the Jukun Gang.

Many even felt that before long, Qinghe County would likely see the birth of a true third major gang.

At this moment, everyone turned their eyes back to Lu Yuan.

Wang Qing, the young master of the Iron Palm Gang, had voluntarily revealed his identity, clearly intending to force Lu Yuan to back down.

They all wanted to know whether Lu Yuan would cave in and withdraw from the auction, or if he would stand his ground and continue to bid.

"Friend, give me, Wang Qing, this face today, and in the future, if you have any trouble in Qinghe County, you can use my name. How about it?"

Wang Qing continued.

"One thousand three hundred and thirty taels!"

Lu Yuan merely glanced at Wang Qing before calling out his bid.

Back when he was only at the Dark Jin stage, he had not only slaughtered his way through the Black Tiger Gang but also single-handedly killed the third leader of the Black Cloud Stronghold, who was at the Hua Jin stage. Now that he was at the Hua Jin stage himself, why would he fear the young master of some Iron Palm Gang?

Even if the leader of the Iron Palm Gang himself came, he was determined to obtain this Vajra Technique!

"Where did this powerful newcomer come from?"

As Lu Yuan's voice fell, many looked at him with expressions of astonishment.

This goat-headed man was not only wealthy, but he actually dared to deny the young master of the Iron Palm Gang face.

Was he a reckless fool, or did he truly have the strength to back it up?

"Good, very good!"

Wang Qing's fists cracked as he clenched them, his eyes brimming with murderous intent.

Immediately, he turned and walked out.

Everyone knew that even if the goat-headed man won the incomplete Vajra Technique, if he lacked sufficient strength, he would likely not only lose his one thousand three hundred and thirty taels but his life as well.

The black market prohibited private fighting, but once outside, who would care if you lived or died?

"Congratulations to friend number three-two-nine for successfully winning this incomplete Vajra Technique!"

After a long silence, the purple-robed man struck his gavel, announcing the final ownership of the manual.

A beautiful attendant brought the sandalwood box containing the incomplete Vajra Technique directly to Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan handed the silver notes to the attendant, picked up the sandalwood box, and turned to leave quickly.

After exiting the black market, Lu Yuan had expected to be intercepted by Wang Qing, but to his surprise, he returned home safely without incident.

"Vajra Technique!"

Lighting a candle, Lu Yuan carefully took the incomplete manual out of the sandalwood box.

Without any hesitation, he impatiently flipped to the first page.

What met his eyes were several diagrams of human meridians, with red lines winding and twisting across them.

"The power of the Vajra begins in the skin and flesh, travels through the tendons and bones, and ends in the internal organs. The marrow becomes like molten gold, the blood like mercury..."