The one who received him was a graceful woman whose every smile and frown radiated mature charm.
"Sir, do you have a treasure to put up for auction? You're so thoroughly wrapped up. Don't worry, our auction house guarantees your absolute safety. Whatever treasure you have, you can put it up for auction with complete peace of mind."
That was one of the reasons Mu Chen had deliberately come to Ming Capital to auction it: security.
An auction house of this caliber would strictly protect the seller's information and ensure their safety.
Still, when you were away from home, you couldn't trust others too easily.
Mu Chen didn't remove his cloak. Instead, he took out the box, carefully protected by layer upon layer of wrapping. Fortunately, with Old Tang's help, the Soul Bone's aura hadn't leaked out.
His voice had been altered with Soul Power, making it impossible to recognize his original voice.
"I want to auction a Soul Bone."
At the words "Soul Bone," the woman's smile grew even brighter. "You've come to exactly the right place, sir! Our auction house will definitely get you a price you'll be satisfied with!"
She looked at Mu Chen with a smiling gaze. "May I ask how many years old the Soul Bone you want to auction is?"
"Ten thousand."
Mu Chen merely uttered the two words calmly, but they made the woman's smile freeze on her face.
A Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone was already beyond the level she could handle.
She immediately headed deeper into the auction house.
A few minutes later, an elderly man came out.
Though his face looked old, his back was ramrod straight.
"Greetings. I'm the manager of this auction house. I'll be handling your lot."
Mu Chen could tell that the old man was undoubtedly a powerful expert.
He couldn't sense any fluctuations of Soul Power from the man, yet the old man still exerted a pressure on him.
There could only be one explanation: the man's cultivation was far above his own.
Mu Chen's Soul Power was currently at level forty-three. At a conservative estimate, the old man before him was at least a Soul Saint.
He nodded, still keeping his composure. "Then I'll trouble you to take a look, sir."
Mu Chen nudged the box forward.
The old man took the box and opened it.
The pressure of the Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone poured out, but it didn't affect the old man in the slightest.
This confirmed Mu Chen's suspicions: the old man's strength truly was unfathomable.
The old man picked up the Soul Bone and examined it for a moment, then nodded in satisfaction.
"Esteemed guest, please come to a private box. We'll auction your Soul Bone at tonight's event. May I ask what kind of Soul Beast it came from?"
"The Deep Sea Flood Dragon."
The Deep Sea Flood Dragon was a Soul Beast of excellent quality, a subspecies of dragon.
A glint flashed in the old man's eyes.
"Excellent. I'll make sure you get a good price!"
Valuable lots were eligible for temporary inclusion in that evening's auction lineup.
With a staff member guiding him, Mu Chen went to a private box to rest and wait.
The box was in a fairly good location, and through its floor-to-ceiling window, he could see the auction stage below.
Since evening hadn't arrived yet, Mu Chen sat cross-legged on the sofa and began cultivating through meditation to pass the time.
Cultivation was an excellent way to pass the time. Before long, dusk arrived.
With a bang, all the lights in the hall went out, plunging it into brief darkness.
Mu Chen opened his eyes and watched the auction stage below with interest.
The lights came on again.
This time, however, they were focused on the auction stage.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to tonight's auction! I'm your auctioneer, Bai Ci!"
A graceful figure in a purple qipao appeared onstage. Her melodious voice quickly stirred up the atmosphere.
That was exactly the kind of atmosphere an auction needed.
Only by bringing out the distinguished guests' enthusiasm could the auction house increase their desire to buy and get better prices for the lots.
Mu Chen watched the stage quietly. If anything caught his interest, he could bid on it.
Though he didn't have much money on him, the cost could be deducted from the proceeds of the Soul Bone auction.
According to the auction house's conservative estimate, his excellent-quality Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone could fetch at least 1.5 million Gold Soul Coins.
So the auction house had given him a spending limit of 1.35 million, which he could use to bid on whatever he liked.
"Next up is the first lot of tonight's auction."
Bai Ci clapped her hands, and a maid came up carrying a wooden tray.
A delicate box sat on top of the tray.
Bai Ci picked up the small box and opened it.
A delicate bracelet appeared inside.
The first lot at an auction was usually quite good.
"For a Soul Master, a Storage Soul Tool is extremely useful. One with enough space can bring a Soul Master all sorts of conveniences."
A Storage Soul Tool was indeed very useful to a Soul Master. However, they weren't cheap, and were generally used more by mid- and high-ranking Soul Masters.
"This one has a capacity of twenty cubic meters. The opening bid is 350,000 Gold Soul Coins, and each bid must increase by at least 10,000. The auction begins!"
The distinguished guests weren't very interested in this lot. After all, this was Ming Capital, where it wasn't difficult to buy a Storage Soul Tool.
Mu Chen happened to need one, so he decided to see if he could snag it at a bargain.
After a round of bidding, the price had only reached 450,000 Gold Soul Coins.
Just then, Mu Chen used the Soul Tool screen inside the box to enter his bid.
"500,000 Gold Soul Coins! The distinguished guest in Box Eight has bid 500,000! Any higher bids?"
The crowd hadn't been very enthusiastic to begin with, so Mu Chen's sudden jump to 500,000 put a stop to the bidding.
"500,000 Gold Soul Coins, once!"
"500,000 Gold Soul Coins, twice!"
"500,000 Gold Soul Coins, three times!"
At last, the small hammer in Bai Ci's hand came down. "Sold! Let's congratulate the distinguished guest in Box Eight on winning this Storage Soul Tool Bracelet!"
It cost 500,000. He hadn't exactly snagged a bargain, but he hadn't lost out either. After all, Mu Chen was unfamiliar with the place, and finding one to buy himself would have been a hassle.
After the first lot was sold, the second was brought up.
Mu Chen wasn't interested in the lots that followed, so he closed his eyes and rested, waiting for the auction of his Soul Bone.
He sat cross-legged on the sofa and began circulating the Mysterious Heaven Skill as he meditated.
Time passed second by second as one lot after another was sold.
The auction gradually drew to a close.
"Ladies and gentlemen, up next is the final lot of tonight's auction!"
This auction wasn't particularly large, and, as expected, Mu Chen's Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone had become the star lot.
A tray covered with red cloth was brought up.
"For a Soul Master, when their Soul Power hasn't yet reached a bottleneck, there's something that can increase their Soul Power and grant them a new Soul Skill."
Bai Ci's words instantly caught the distinguished guests' interest.
Increasing Soul Power and granting a Soul Skill—she had practically given away the answer.