The Auction Begins

However, when Huyan Zhen, Sect Master of the Elephant Armor Sect, stepped into the venue, the atmosphere shifted abruptly.

This man was as burly as an iron tower, his body forged with immense strength, and the pressure of an eighty-ninth-level Soul Douluo radiated from him without restraint.

He swept a glance at the nameplates on the second-floor balcony seats, then looked up at the six private rooms on the third floor obscured by beaded curtains, his thick brows knitting together instantly.

"Hold on."

Huyan Zhen stopped at the foot of the stairs, his voice like rolling thunder. "My Elephant Armor Sect ranks at the head of the Lower Three Sects; by what right are we seated on the second floor? Are we of the Elephant Armor Sect not worthy of those six rooms on the third floor?"

As soon as he spoke, the other guests already seated on the second floor cast sidelong glances, and the clamor in the first-floor lobby fell silent.

Zhu Zhuqing's expression remained unchanged as she bowed slightly.

"Sect Master Huyan, the six rooms on the third floor have been reserved for Martial Soul Hall, the Heaven Dou Empire, the Star Luo Empire, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. The seating arrangements were notified in advance according to the invitations; there is no intent to slight you."

Huyan Zhen let out a cold snort. "According to the invitations? Those invitations were set by you! I must ask, isn't there still one vacant room? Does your Hundred Treasures Pavilion think the Elephant Armor Sect is easy to bully?"

As he spoke, his soul power surged, causing the floor to tremble slightly. Several guests on the first floor standing nearby were already turned pale by the pressure.

Zhu Zhuqing stood straight against the pressure, about to speak—

Suddenly, a terrifying, bone-chilling aura descended from the fourth floor with a boom!

The aura was as heavy as a collapsing mountain and as cold as ten-thousand-year glacial ice, laced with a murderous intent that made the soul tremble, locking onto Huyan Zhen with pinpoint accuracy.

The pressure of a ninety-seventh-level Douluo!

Huyan Zhen's expression changed drastically; he felt as if he were being stared at by an ancient Ice Dragon, and his soul power stagnated by thirty percent in that instant.

He looked up toward the fourth floor abruptly, a fine layer of cold sweat already seeping onto his forehead.

The pressure lasted only three breaths before receding like a tide, as if it had never appeared.

But everyone felt it clearly—it was a warning.

Zhu Zhuqing's expression remained as usual, as if nothing had happened, and she continued to smile slightly.

"Sect Master Huyan, tea and refreshments have been prepared in the second-floor balcony seats. Please."

Huyan Zhen's Adam's apple bobbed. Gone was his previous arrogance as he cupped his hands and said in a muffled voice:

"It was my rashness. Sorry to trouble you, Miss Zhu, for leading the way."

Huyan Zhen's face was livid, but he said nothing more.

With that, he followed the attendant to the second floor, behaving himself.

Representatives of the smaller families on the first floor looked at each other, and the thoughts of those who had wanted to stir up trouble were extinguished completely.

If even an eighty-ninth-level Soul Douluo had instantly conceded, it was better for them to stay in their place.

In the second-floor balcony seats, an elder of the Wind Sword Sect whispered to his companion:

"That aura just now... it was definitely a Douluo, and at least level ninety-six or higher. What exactly is the background of this Hundred Treasures Pavilion?"

His companion shook his head, his eyes full of wariness. "Don't ask too much. Just participate in the auction honestly."

Ye Guchen witnessed the whole thing. Although he knew the Elephant Armor Sect was acting under the instructions of Martial Soul Hall, he had already marked them for death because of it.

At this moment, a clear announcement came from outside the door—

"His Highness the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire and His Highness the Prince have arrived!"

Upon hearing this, everyone stood up, and the guests on the first floor rose in unison to pay their respects.

Two men walked in from outside.

The young man in the lead wore a moon-white python robe and a jade crown. His face was handsome and gentle, and a breeze-like smile played on his lips; it was Xue Qinghe, Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.

The Prince beside him was about fifty years old, dressed in a black gold-embroidered robe, with a graceful bearing and deep, sharp eyes.

Zhu Zhuqing stepped forward and performed a standard court bow.

"Zhu Zhuqing of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion welcomes His Highness the Crown Prince and His Highness the Prince. The third-floor room is prepared; please follow me."

Xue Qinghe looked at Zhu Zhuqing, his pupils shrinking slightly. "A twelve-year-old thirty-seventh-level Soul Elder!"

But on the surface, he maintained a kind appearance.

"Then I shall trouble you to lead the way."

It wasn't until they were seated that the two attendants behind Xue Qinghe transmitted their voices to him.

"Young Master, within this Hundred Treasures Pavilion, I sensed the auras of four Douluo. One belongs to Dugu Bo, and the other three are extremely powerful—likely not inferior to the fourth or fifth elders."

Hearing this, Xue Qinghe's expression remained normal as he replied via voice transmission.

"Proceed as usual. Do not create any unnecessary trouble."

However, the slight frown on her brow betrayed that she was not at peace.

"This is getting more and more interesting!"

Subsequently, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Salas, the Platinum Bishop of Martial Soul Hall, Yu Luomian of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and the representatives of the Star Luo Empire took their seats one after another.

No further unpleasant incidents occurred.

As the various factions took their seats one after another, the atmosphere within the Hundred Treasure Pavilion gradually settled into a stillness, like the calm before a storm.

Those present were all shrewd veterans, well aware that the true main event had yet to begin.

The casual guests and representatives of minor families on the first floor whispered amongst themselves, while the sect representatives in the second-floor private boxes harbored their own agendas, occasionally casting glances toward the third floor where the beaded curtains hung low, their eyes filled with awe and curiosity.

As for the private room on the fourth floor, which had remained silent from the very beginning, it became an enigma that no one dared to openly discuss.

Amidst this subtle tension, the hundreds of moonstones embedded in the dome of the Hundred Treasure Pavilion lit up simultaneously, pouring down a radiance as soft as moonlight.

The gentle glow cascaded down, shrouding the entire auction house in a clear brilliance; the twelve crystal chandeliers at the top of the first-floor hall rotated slowly, refracting thousands of light fragments that eventually converged into a single beam, striking the center of the auction stage with precision.

A person had appeared on the stage, though no one had noticed when.

It was a youth, appearing to be no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in a dark cyan robe with cloud patterns embroidered in silver thread on the cuffs, and a warm, lustrous white jade pendant tied at his waist.

His features were handsome, though not the sort of striking beauty that one would never forget; what truly made it impossible to look away were his eyes.

Like a sheathed precious sword, they lacked the restlessness and arrogance typical of a youth, instead revealing a composure that seemed to have weathered the trials of the world.

He stood there casually, a faint, elusive smile playing on his lips, as if the people sitting below were not the power brokers of the Seven Great Sects and two great empires, but merely a group of ordinary tea drinkers.

"Everyone."

Ye Guchen spoke, his voice not loud, yet it reached the ears of everyone present with such clarity that it felt as if he were speaking right beside them.

This display of precise control over his soul power alone caused the great figures in the third-floor private rooms to raise their brows slightly.

"I am Ye Guchen, the proprietor of the Hundred Treasure Pavilion. Today is the first auction held by the Hundred Treasure Pavilion, and I thank you all for gracing us with your presence."

As he spoke, he cupped his hands in a gesture neither servile nor overbearing, his demeanor far too composed for a youth facing the titans of the soul master world.

"I shall spare you the pleasantries; you have come here for treasures, not to listen to my rambling."

Ye Guchen smiled slightly and beckoned with his hand. The curtain behind him slowly drew back, and a white jade pedestal rose from the floor.

Resting quietly on the pedestal was a jet-black wooden box with fine golden silk patterns faintly visible on its surface; it was carved from thousand-year-old sinking wood, making the box itself a treasure of significant value.

A slight commotion rippled through the crowd below.

Packaging it in a box of sinking wood? What kind of grade must the item inside be?

Ye Guchen reached out to open the box, and a crisp, medicinal fragrance instantly permeated the air. The guests on the first floor who were closest took a deep breath, only to feel the soul power within their bodies stir faintly.

Inside the box, ten thumb-sized pills were arranged neatly. They were semi-transparent and ink-blue, with flowing light rotating on their surfaces as if they had sealed a deep ocean within.

Under the illumination of the moonstones, one could see silver, hair-thin veins inside each pill, resembling natural meridians that pulsed with a faint, rhythmic light.

"This item is called the Mystic Water Pill."

Ye Guchen's voice remained flat, as if he were introducing something entirely mundane, yet every word he uttered thereafter struck like a giant boulder cast into a calm lake.

"Although the auction list provided to you already contains a brief introduction, please allow me to elaborate."

"The Mystic Water Pill is an auxiliary-type medicinal pill. Its properties are mild and easily absorbed. For a soul master below level 20, consuming one will increase their soul power by at least one level."

People in the audience were already sitting up straight.

"Furthermore, the Mystic Water Pill possesses the effect of cleansing the marrow and renewing the bones—it clears impurities from the body, nourishes the meridians, and permanently enhances a soul master's talent. After consumption, an ordinary soul master's Innate Soul Power is effectively increased by one level permanently."

Once these words were spoken, the entire Hundred Treasure Pavilion seemed to hit a pause button, followed by an explosive roar of clamor.

"What?!"

Even though they had already read the introduction, hearing Ye Guchen state it on the spot still delivered a massive shock.

"Permanently increasing Innate Soul Power? Isn't that defying the heavens and changing one's fate!"

"Are you joking? How could such a pill exist in this world!"

In a second-floor private box, an elder of the Wind Sword Sect stood up abruptly, his eyes locked onto the ten ink-blue pills, his breathing becoming heavy.

Many factions were not actually interested in the offensive Soul Tool items being auctioned later.

After all, in the era of Dou II, ten thousand years later, when Soul Tool technology was highly developed, there were still many who looked down upon offensive Soul Tools.

The medicinal pills on the list were the true purpose of their visit.

His companion pulled him by the sleeve, forcing him to sit back down, but the hand he used to grip the armrest had turned white at the knuckles.

Ye Guchen ignored the commotion below and continued:

"Clearing meridians and optimizing one's constitution are merely secondary effects. There is one more thing to tell you—the Mystic Water Pill can be consumed multiple times with no limit on the number of doses, though the subsequent efficacy will gradually diminish."

If his previous statement was a boulder hitting the water, this was a tsunami.

No limit on the number of doses.

What did this mean? It meant that as long as one had enough Mystic Water Pills, a soul master with mediocre aptitude could theoretically be force-fed into becoming a genius!