Chapter 10: The Star Luo Princess
As the bidding went back and forth, the other side grew increasingly hesitant. Yang Hao, however, remained steadfast, raising his bid without pause and making it clear he was determined to have the Spirit-Devouring Engraving Knife.
At last, when the price reached one million, the other bidder finally gave up, unwillingly.
Seeing that the other bidder had dropped out, the auctioneer could only regretfully begin the final call.
"One million Gold Soul Coins, going once!"
"One million Gold Soul Coins, going twice!"
"One million Gold Soul Coins, going three times!"
"Sold!"
"Bang!"
The auctioneer's hammer came down, and the Spirit-Devouring Engraving Knife belonged to Yang Hao.
"The next item is a Class 8 close-combat Soul Tool called the Tyrant Tiger Soul-Refining Blade. It has been fused with a ten-thousand-year-old Right Arm Soul Bone from a Tyrant Tiger Soul Beast, and its Soul Bone Skill, Tyrant Blade Slash, has been fixed into the weapon. It can increase the power of slash-type Soul Skills by fifty percent..."
As the auctioneer described the item, Yang Hao was surprised in the VIP box.
He recognized this thing. A few years from now, Dai Yueheng would buy it to use in the Soul Master Tournament.
The Tyrant Tiger Soul-Refining Blade had been made by Mingde Hall in the Sun Moon Empire, so its quality was guaranteed. He just hadn't expected it to appear in the Star Luo Empire already.
On his list, he had requested a Soul Tool fused with a Soul Bone for research. He hadn't expected the Starlight Auction House to come up with this one.
But Soul Tools fused with Soul Bones were rare to begin with. After all, anyone who got their hands on a Soul Bone would refine it at the first opportunity. Only an idiot would turn one into a Soul Tool.
Even the Soul Bone used in the Tyrant Tiger Soul-Refining Blade had been damaged and could no longer be refined, which was why it had been used as a material and fused into the Soul Tool.
It made sense that this item had turned up now.
"Six hundred thousand!"
As soon as the auctioneer announced the item, someone immediately placed a bid. The voice was familiar: it was the same person who had bid against Yang Hao for the Spirit-Devouring Engraving Knife.
Others joined in, and the price quickly reached one and a half million. Clearly, many people had their eyes on this Soul Tool, but that price was already their limit.
"One million six hundred thousand."
When no one else bid, Yang Hao finally raised his voice.
"It's that number nine again."
In the VIP box, Ma Xiaotao recognized the voice. It was the person who had competed with them for the knife.
"One million seven hundred thousand."
Dai Yueheng gritted his teeth and continued bidding.
The Tyrant Tiger Soul-Refining Blade suited him perfectly. He could use it in this Soul Master Tournament, and in the next tournament that they would lead as well. He had to get his hands on it.
"One million eight hundred thousand!"
Yang Hao bid again, still without the slightest hesitation, displaying his formidable wealth.
"One million nine hundred thousand!"
Dai Yueheng hesitated for a long while before gritting his teeth and bidding again. But in the next instant, his resolve was shaken by the other party's still-casual raise.
"Two million!"
"Yueheng, stay calm."
Wang Yan patted Dai Yueheng on the shoulder in comfort. Seeing the other bidder's deep pockets, he knew they couldn't compete.
"Rich bastard!"
Dai Yueheng couldn't help cursing. That rich bastard was infuriating!
"Aren't you the eldest son of the White Tiger Duke? How are you so poor?"
Ma Xiaotao asked in confusion. Why wasn't he bidding again?
Dai Yueheng glared at her without saying anything.
Although the White Tiger Duke Mansion was powerful, it had always been short on money. Most of its income went to his father for the army, and even as the eldest son, Dai Yueheng couldn't access much money.
While Dai Yueheng fumed, Yang Hao continued watching the other auction items and placing bids, especially on the Soul Bones. He spotted two familiar ones.
The Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone and the Golden Radiance Soul Bone. One was the one Huo Yuhao would acquire a few years later, and the other was the one Tang Wutong would get from the Treasure Gathering Pavilion.
"You haven't mentioned one fatal flaw of the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone: refining it requires the Ultimate Ice attribute. Otherwise, it'll backfire and could even cost you your life."
After confirming that it was the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone, Yang Hao spoke to the woman in the red dress who had been standing behind him. That was how it had been described in the original story, so he was sure it was right.
If he could confirm this, he would save a lot of money.
"Please wait a moment. I'll report this at once."
The woman in red's expression changed slightly. She hurried out, then returned not long afterward with a golden-haired young woman—the Star Luo princess, Xu Jiujiu, who had been keeping her eye on this Soul Bone.
The woman in red didn't enter. She closed the door and stood guard outside.
"May I ask how you learned of this fatal restriction on the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone? Many people have refined Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Rings, and I've never heard of any similar restriction."
Xu Jiujiu was puzzled. She had already sent someone to confirm it. The results hadn't come back yet, but given this man's financial means, he probably wouldn't lie to deceive them.
Of course, her main reason for coming in person was to get a closer look at him. If she could speak with him and learn about the power behind him, all the better.
"Soul Rings use Martial Souls as their vessels. With a Martial Soul acting as a buffer, their effect on a Soul Master's body is naturally much smaller.
"But refining a Soul Bone fuses it directly with the body, so its impact is much greater.
"Ordinary attributes aren't much of a problem, but Ultimate Attributes are different. Ice and fire, especially, are hostile to the flesh and blood. They can do serious harm to the body."
After sizing up the golden-haired young woman, Yang Hao gave his answer.
He had a few guesses about her identity. She was certainly a member of the royal family, and might even be Princess Jiujiu. Her age seemed about right, too.
As for the explanation, he had come up with it himself, but the reasoning had to be sound.
"I see."
Xu Jiujiu nodded in understanding. His explanation made sense.
Just then, the auctioneer announced the fatal restriction and lowered the starting price to one million Gold Soul Coins. It seemed they had confirmed the information, and many people interested in the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone immediately gave up.
Ultimate Attributes were already exceedingly rare, and this one was restricted to the ice attribute in particular.
No one in the world had ever been known to possess the Ultimate Ice attribute. Whoever bought the Soul Bone would be able to do nothing with it but keep it as a collector's item.
And with the bidding starting at one million, it was enough to make most people shy away.
Still, there were always people willing to charge headlong into trouble. The Shrek Team, which had competed with Yang Hao several times, was one such example.
"Are they shills you hired?"
When that box bid against him yet again, Yang Hao looked at Xu Jiujiu suspiciously.
"Please don't misunderstand. The Star Luo royal family would never resort to such a dishonorable tactic, especially with a friend.
"That box seems to belong to the Shrek main team and Reserve Team members. They're not people we can order around."
Xu Jiujiu explained that she was in charge of this auction. All they had done was promote it widely to draw in more bidders.
Besides, they had put so many items up for sale this time. Naturally, they had to get a good price for them.
No one did business at a loss.
"Shrek, huh?"
Yang Hao understood. That explained it. He promptly raised his bid again.
He was determined to get that Soul Bone. If the Child of Luck, Huo Yuhao, ever became his enemy, he could use the Ice Explosion Technique in the Soul Bone to counter him.
"Miss Yuhuan, the total value of your auction sales has already exceeded thirty million."
Xu Jiujiu reminded him. He still had a batch of shields and swords of that quality, and she had to get her hands on them.
"Five thousand shields, at ten thousand Gold Soul Coins each. Ten thousand swords, at three thousand Gold Soul Coins each."
Yang Hao took out a large Storage Soul Tool and handed it over. He had been working overtime on these for the past month, barely getting any sleep. In the end, he had made ten thousand swords and five thousand shields.
"Can you mass-produce close-combat Soul Tools like these?"
Xu Jiujiu took the Storage Soul Tool and asked curiously.
She had no objections to his prices. They were within her budget.
Though the swords weighed only ten kilograms, they used even more Black-Veined Iron for their blades, and forging a sword was considerably more difficult than forging a spear.
The shields were even more expensive. The hundred kilograms of high-purity Iron Essence alone cost four or five thousand Gold Soul Coins. High-purity Iron Essence like that was often unavailable at any price, let alone in large quantities.
It was a fair deal, and this amount of Gold Soul Coins was nothing to the empire.
But she was more interested in the power behind him. They had examined his spears, swords, and shields. Aside from the astonishing purity of the materials, the Black-Veined Iron and Iron Essence had been fused together perfectly, becoming one.
Such forging skill was priceless. She had to find a way to win it over.
"Judging by your bearing and clothes, you're no ordinary person, are you?"
Yang Hao didn't answer. Instead, he asked her a question. It was time to lay his cards on the table.
"I've been discourteous!"
Only then did Xu Jiujiu realize that she hadn't introduced herself. She stood and gave a courtly curtsy. "My name is Jiujiu. I am a princess of the empire, and His Majesty is my elder brother."
"So you're a princess, Your Highness. Please forgive my discourtesy."
Yang Hao stood and nodded slightly. Inwardly, he thought, Just as I suspected. It really is Princess Jiujiu.
Chapter 11: A Ripple in Fate
"Your Highness, there's no need to test me. Our family isn't from the Star Luo Empire; we're from the Heaven Dou Empire. But the Heaven Dou Empire is rather hostile to the Soul Engineer system, so our family has had to consider expanding abroad.
"We have two choices: your country and the Dou Ling Empire. I've come to Star Luo City on behalf of my family to test the waters."
Yang Hao gave the story he had prepared in advance, bluffing with complete candor. This was the persona he had decided to adopt.
"The Heaven Dou Empire really isn't suited to developing the Soul Engineer system."
Xu Jiujiu said she understood. She knew a little about the situation there. The empire was indeed very hostile to Soul Engineers, and didn't have a single Soul Engineer academy.
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