The auction house manager didn't give Tang San, a mere child, a hard time. He figured such an ingenious Hidden Weapon must be the latest masterpiece of some blacksmith master, and Tang San was only running errands for him.
"Child, I have two offers for your Godly Zhuge Crossbow."
"The first is a guaranteed 7,000 Gold Soul Coins, plus fifty percent of the proceeds from the auction."
"If you choose this one, I can pay you 5,000 Gold Soul Coins right now. Of course, if you have any more Godly Zhuge Crossbows, the Grand Auction House can buy them from you at this price."
"The second option has no guaranteed Gold Soul Coins, but you can receive as much as seventy percent of the auction proceeds."
The Grand Auction House manager had offered Tang San a very high guaranteed sum. Comparing the two options, only if the Godly Zhuge Crossbow sold for 25,000 Gold Soul Coins would the second offer bring Tang San more money than the first.
The manager wasn't sure how much the Godly Zhuge Crossbow would fetch at auction.
But with the mindset of striking first, he had gone ahead and offered Tang San such a high guaranteed sum.
Tang San was short on money, so he chose the first option without hesitation. The manager immediately handed him a yellow deposit card.
"Child, this yellow deposit card is a fourth-tier card. You can use it as proof of funds to enter the auction and participate in the bidding. It also comes with a credit limit of 5,000 Gold Soul Coins."
Tang San returned to Li Luo with the money. There happened to be an auction that day, so Li Luo, Tang San, and Xiao Wu decided to attend.
With Tang San's yellow-tier status, the three of them weren't hassled by the guards and entered the auction house with ease.
A staff member escorted the three to their designated yellow seats, where they waited for the auction to begin.
"Good afternoon, esteemed customers!"
The auction began as scheduled, and the host warmly greeted everyone who had come to attend.
"A warm welcome to all our esteemed customers here at the Gengxin City Grand Auction House!"
"We've prepared a splendid selection of items for you today."
"I hereby declare this auction open!"
"Our first item is Dragon Blood Grass. It's a medicinal herb that has been stained by the blood of a dragon-type Soul Beast. When made into medicine and consumed, it can boost stamina and explosive power. In addition, Soul Masters with dragon-type Martial Souls can improve their aptitude and talent by consuming it."
The host's claims were half true. The herb did boost stamina and explosive power, though the effect wasn't significant. Its most notable effect was as an aphrodisiac. As for the claim that it greatly benefited Soul Masters with dragon-type Martial Souls, that was nothing but hype. Everyone knew the truth, and no one believed it.
If Dragon Blood Grass really had such powerful effects, it would never have made it onto the market. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan would have snapped it up long ago.
"The starting bid is 1,000 Gold Soul Coins! Each bid must be at least 500 Gold Soul Coins higher."
The host announced Dragon Blood Grass's starting price.
"1,501 Gold Soul Coins." A buyer in the yellow seats was the first to raise the bid.
"I offer 2,002 Gold Soul Coins!"
Another bid came in.
Others followed suit. Hearing them bid against him, the first buyer grew anxious.
"2,503!"
He shouted, but there was uncertainty in his voice.
Spending 2,503 Gold Soul Coins on an aphrodisiac wasn't a good deal, but the buyer seemed desperate for the herb and reluctantly called out the high price.
After his voice fell, no one else bid. No one was foolish enough to pay 3,000 Gold Soul Coins for an herb that did nothing but serve as an aphrodisiac.
"2,503, going once!"
"2,503, going twice!"
"2,503, going three times!"
"Does anyone else want to bid? Three, two, one. Congratulations to this customer on winning the Dragon Blood Grass!"
The buyer who won the Dragon Blood Grass was an obese wealthy merchant. His excessive indulgence had left him impotent, so he was in desperate need of the herb and had been willing to spend 2,503 Gold Soul Coins to get it.
In fact, the people bidding against him were all staff members arranged by the auction house.
The bigger the shop, the more it could fleece its customers. The Grand Auction House had thoroughly investigated the buyer and knew his limit was 2,500 Gold Soul Coins. Once the price had reached this level, no one else continued bidding.
Of course, this was just a minor episode.
The auction continued, with all kinds of items on display.
A useless Soul Tool with a capacity of two cubic meters fetched an astronomical price, while a thousand-year-old piece of Whale Rubber was also put up for auction.
Since no one else knew of Whale Rubber's special uses and everyone regarded it as an aphrodisiac, Li Luo bought this piece, which had a five-thousand-year age, for just 2,500 Gold Soul Coins. It was quite the bargain.
The auction was in full swing, and most of the items were finished products forged in Gengxin City.
"Everyone, pay attention!"
The host spoke loudly into a megaphone.
"Next up is a pair of weapons for offense and defense, high-grade iron weapons forged by the master blacksmiths of Gengxin City."
"The first is called the Iron Mother Vajra Armor. It was made by the famous master blacksmith Si Long, a direct disciple of Divine Craftsman Lou Gao."
"This is a piece of defensive armor. It can withstand one full-power attack from a Soul Emperor and multiple attacks from a Soul King. Against a Soul Ancestor's attacks, it can defend almost without limit as long as no vital spot is struck."
"The starting bid is 10,000 Gold Soul Coins! Each bid must be at least 5,000 Gold Soul Coins higher."
When the buyers heard the name of Lou Gao, the Divine Craftsman of Gengxin City, they were initially delighted. But when they learned that the work wasn't his, but his disciple's, their excitement waned. Still, after the host described the armor, many people continued bidding.
Although such armor wasn't very useful to Battle Soul Masters and couldn't help them fight above their level,
and though the heavy armor wasn't very suitable for agility-type Soul Masters,
it was still quite valuable to auxiliary Soul Masters, who were at a disadvantage in agility, attack power, and defense.
"I bid 10,000!"
"20,000!"
"25,000!"
Many people joined the bidding. Most of the voices came from buyers in the black seats, which were generally reserved for nobles of the Heaven Dou Empire. Their cultivation talent was average, and they mostly dabbled in politics. They weren't short on money, but they had many enemies, so they had a great need for defensive armor.
"100,000!"
A distinguished guest in the red seats offered the high price of 100,000 Gold Soul Coins.
Li Luo followed the voice and saw that the buyer who had offered 100,000 Gold Soul Coins was a man dressed in a white robe and wearing a mask. Beside him was another person in white robes, with white hair and a mask as well. He appeared to be an elderly man, and he held a little girl in his arms. She wore a jade-green dress and a mask too.