"One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins! Anyone else willing to raise the bid?"
Seeing someone offer the enormous sum of one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins outright, the host instantly became excited.
Although the man in the white robe wore a mask, he was seated in the red section, which already showed that his status was far from ordinary.
Many people had also guessed the white-robed man's identity through his mask. They were willing to do him a favor and refrained from bidding against the middle-aged man.
Of course, the most important reason was that the middle-aged man had offered a sky-high price. The others felt there was no need to waste so much money competing for protective gear that could withstand a full-power attack from a Soul Emperor, despite being intended for a Soul Ancestor.
But the middle-aged man didn't care about a mere one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins. He had come to Gengxin City specifically for this armor.
The only reason he'd offered such a high price was to do Lou Gao, the teacher of the inner armor's creator, a favor.
"One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, once!"
"One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, twice!"
"One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, three times!"
"Anyone else want to raise the bid?"
No one responded.
"Congratulations to this buyer for winning the Iron Mother Vajra Armor!"
The host called out loudly.
After the Iron Mother Vajra Armor had been auctioned off, the host said mysteriously,
"Actually, besides the Iron Mother Vajra Armor, we have another final auction item."
As he spoke, the host stepped aside, revealing the Godly Zhuge Crossbow on the auction platform.
"This item is called the Godly Zhuge Crossbow. It's an offensive weapon crafted by an unnamed Grandmaster, and it can kill a Soul Master of the Soul Ancestor rank outright. Moreover..."
The host paused. Rather than immediately continuing, he waited to see how the buyers would react.
There was no denying that he was a professional. He waited only a moment before the buyers' seats erupted into an uproar.
"Godly Zhuge Crossbow? What kind of weapon is that? It can kill a Soul Ancestor outright?"
"I'm more concerned about whether this Godly Zhuge Crossbow is easy to use. If ordinary people can't use it properly, like that Iron Mother Vajra Armor earlier, it'll be pretty useless."
"Kill a Soul Ancestor? Sounds like some kind of crossbow. Does the user need great arm strength?"
"Can it be used more than once?"
One question after another was thrown at the host, who was very pleased with the response.
"Stop keeping us in suspense and tell us already!" someone urged.
Seeing that the effect was about right, the host continued.
"I understand everyone's questions. Now I'll answer them one by one."
"First of all, the Godly Zhuge Crossbow isn't an ordinary weapon. Its creator calls it a Hidden Weapon."
"A Hidden Weapon?" The buyers had clearly never heard the term before and didn't understand it.
"The Godly Zhuge Crossbow is different from other weapons. There's no threshold to using it—as long as you can lift it. It weighs only fifteen kilograms, a weight that even an auxiliary-type Soul Master at level thirty can lift with ease."
"Moreover, the Godly Zhuge Crossbow is very simple to use. It requires no special practice; you only need to aim."
"Its effective range is a full fifty meters!"
Tang San had told the auction house all of this, and the auction house had tested it as well.
As soon as the host finished speaking, the buyers' seats erupted into an even greater uproar, and the crowd's excitement reached its peak.
The host seized on the heated atmosphere and announced that the auction was officially underway.
"The starting price for the Godly Zhuge Crossbow is ten thousand Gold Soul Coins. Each bid must be raised by at least five thousand Gold Soul Coins."
"Fifteen thousand!"
"Twenty-five thousand!"
"One hundred and twenty thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight!"
The man in the white robe rose to his feet and called out an astonishingly high price.
"Ahem, I, Ning, want this Godly Zhuge Crossbow. I ask everyone to give the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect some consideration."
The white-robed man was none other than the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Ning Fengzhi.
After hearing the host's explanation of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, he had been so excited that he'd wanted to buy it immediately and hold it in his hands.
Ning Fengzhi stood up and removed his mask. As soon as he did, the white-haired elder beside him rose as well and took off his own mask. He was Sword Douluo Chen Xin, a Titled Douluo of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
He had come to back Ning Fengzhi up.
Seeing Ning Fengzhi reveal his identity and openly declare that he wanted to buy the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, the others stopped bidding.
"One hundred and twenty thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight, once!"
"One hundred and twenty thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight, twice!"
"One hundred and twenty thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight, three times!"
"Bang!" The hammer fell, sealing the deal.
"Congratulations to Sect Master Ning on winning the Godly Zhuge Crossbow!"
The auction ended successfully, and Tang San went backstage to collect his share of the proceeds.
"Little brother, your Godly Zhuge Crossbow was a huge hit! It sold for the astonishing price of one hundred and twenty thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight!"
"This is your share. Please take it!"
The auction house manager took out a purple stored-value card containing sixty thousand, four hundred and forty-four Gold Soul Coins.
"Pardon me, little brother, but do you have any more Godly Zhuge Crossbows like this? Or could you make more?"
The manager looked at Tang San with such longing that it was as if he were looking at a money tree.
Tang San understood the principle that rare things were precious. It was true that the Godly Zhuge Crossbow was easy for him to make, and the cost was less than one hundred Gold Soul Coins.
But this item had just sold for a full one hundred and twenty thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight Gold Soul Coins. Tang San saw how much profit there was in it.
So Tang San promptly refused.
"I'm sorry. This is an exceptionally well-crafted Hidden Weapon, and it isn't easy to make."
Disappointment appeared on the manager's face.
"But..."
Tang San changed tack, and the manager's expression shifted again as he waited for Tang San to continue.
But just then, an unexpected guest arrived.
"Little brother, are you the seller of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow?"
The newcomer was Ning Fengzhi.
Ning Fengzhi had many connections. After learning from the host that the seller of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow was at the Grand Auction House, he had hurried over in high spirits—and happened to find Tang San.
Li Luo and Xiao Wu were also beside Tang San. When Xiao Wu saw Chen Xin standing next to Ning Fengzhi, fear rose in her heart, and she began to tremble all over.
Li Luo naturally noticed that Xiao Wu was acting strangely. He gently patted her, signaling that she needn't be afraid.
After Li Luo reassured her, Xiao Wu really did calm down. She cautiously sized up Chen Xin and saw that he hadn't discovered her identity as a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
In fact, after Li Luo used the Prism Ball to capture Xiao Wu, her Martial Soul had evolved, and her Soul Beast aura had been perfectly concealed.
Only if Chen Xin examined Xiao Wu very closely might he detect the slightest trace of a Soul Beast's aura.
But it was obvious that Chen Xin hadn't discovered her identity.
He did notice Xiao Wu watching him, though. Chen Xin looked over and saw a little girl as adorable as his own granddaughter, so he smiled at her to show his goodwill.