Auction

"It's starting," Dugu Bo said, walking to the window to watch the stage where the lights were converging.

Qingxi moved her sofa directly in front of the window and sat down, with Dugu Yan following close behind. Dugu Yan even grabbed two roasted rabbits from the table, handing one to Qingxi while she gnawed on the other.

Watching the two of them acting so informal, Dugu Bo shook his head with a smile in his eyes.

If he didn't know Qingxi's true identity, he would have mistaken her for an ordinary child as well.

Downstairs, a man wearing colorful sunglasses and heavy hair gel clapped his hands slightly. "Let us welcome our first item today: a Merfolk girl from the West Sea."

The lights brightened, and a massive cage rose from the floor. A girl with golden hair and green eyes, draped in transparent mermaid silk and bare-chested, was curled up in the corner. She had a human upper body with fish gills for ears and a fish tail for her lower half. Fear flickered in her emerald eyes, and a metal collar around her neck made her look utterly pitiful.

The man's gaze wandered wickedly over the Merfolk's delicate curves before announcing the starting price. "As everyone knows, Merfolk are an extremely difficult type of sea spirit beast to capture. This one is over a thousand years old. The starting bid is ten thousand Gold Soul Coins, with a minimum increment of one hundred!"

"Ten thousand five hundred Gold Soul Coins."

"I bid twelve thousand! I haven't tasted a Merfolk yet," a man below laughed lewdly.

"Twelve thousand one hundred. Who would sleep with a Merfolk? You really have unique tastes, Wang Laoer. I just want the spirit ring."

"Twelve thousand three hundred..."

"They auction off demi-humans here too?" Qingxi frowned slightly.

"That's not even the half of it..." Dugu Yan muttered from the side.

"Young lady, you must not be deceived by her appearance," Dugu Bo interjected. "Merfolk are skilled at using their songs to lure prey, causing ships at sea to lose their way and fishermen to fall overboard. They are one of the sea spirit beasts that enjoy eating humans the most."

Qingxi nodded, lost in thought.

"Thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins," a lazy male voice rang out from the second floor.

"The second floor bids thirty thousand. Do I hear any higher?"

"That private room on the second floor... isn't that a prince?"

"I never imagined Prince Xue Yan enjoyed playing with these kinds of things..."

Whispers broke out below, but no one dared to raise the bid.

"Thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins, going once... going three times! Congratulations to our guest on the second floor for winning this exquisite Merfolk. We will have her delivered to your room shortly."

"Next is our second item: a thousand-year-old Blood Sun Ginseng. The starting price is twelve thousand Gold Soul Coins..."

"Thirteen thousand..."

"Thirty thousand!" Dugu Bo called out.

He had come to the auction house primarily to bid on rare medicinal herbs to plant in his garden.

The second and third floors remained silent; it seemed there was no one else interested besides Prince Xue Yan.

In the end, the item was undoubtedly won by Dugu Bo.

As the items were auctioned off one by one, they soon reached the finale. During the interim, people on the second and third floors continued to place bids.

Dugu Bo successfully acquired several more herbs, while Dugu Yan bid on a young human girl who, it was said, had been sold by her family to pay off debts.

As for Qingxi, she spent nearly all her money to purchase a hundred-pound block of refined iron.

"The next three items are the grand finale of the night. They are extremely precious, so don't blink," the man said, clapping his hands. Suddenly, fences made of mysterious iron rose around the auction stage, and three Spirit Douluo-level spirit masters descended from above to stand guard.

A tray rose, and the lights converged on a pale green porcelain bottle.

"What's with all the theatrics? What could it be?"

"I haven't heard any rumors! But judging by the setup, it shouldn't be simple." The people in the hall whispered to one another.

"Manager He, stop keeping us in suspense. Let's begin," a deep, raspy male voice echoed from the third floor, sending a chill through the room.

"That's someone from Spirit Hall," Dugu Bo said, glancing toward that room with a slight frown.

Qingxi's lips curled upward. She sat upright on her stool, watching the activity on the stage with a smile in her eyes. "It's starting."

"As everyone knows, the inheritance of a spirit usually favors the parent with the stronger bloodline. However, as time passes, bloodlines gradually thin, making it difficult to achieve the glory of the past. The first treasure we are auctioning today is an Evolution Pill capable of stimulating spirit bloodlines and breaking through bloodline shackles!" the host announced with great passion.

Everyone fell silent, looking at each other in disbelief, unable to trust what they had just heard.

A scoff came from the second floor. Prince Xue Yan, with a beauty on each arm, laughed. "Everyone knows that is practically impossible. Does your auction house not verify your goods before trying to sell them?"

"Exactly! This is nothing but a pipe dream..."

The commoners below began to murmur.

"The effects of this pill are truly unique. There is only one in the world, so we cannot verify its efficacy, but I believe the intuition of a spirit will not be wrong." Manager He didn't believe it either, but he pressed on.

This was something the Duke had specifically ordered him to sell for a high price.

He stepped forward and unsealed the porcelain bottle. A faint, ethereal fragrance spread through the air. For a moment, the spirits of everyone in the hall stirred, and some of the weaker beast spirits even manifested directly.

"There is no starting price for this item. It goes to the highest bidder."

"I bid five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!" a wealthy merchant shouted from the hall.

"Fifty million!" A refined voice rang out from the third floor. Ning Fengzhi looked through the carved window, his eyes burning as he stared at the green medicine below.

He parted his thin lips and repeated, "Although I do not know if this is genuine, my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is willing to bid fifty million Gold Soul Coins. I hope everyone here will show me some respect."

He was willing to gamble fifty million on the chance that this item was real.

"It's actually the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect..." For a moment, the vast majority of those present abandoned their intentions.

Even if they were highly interested in this treasure, they still had to show some respect to the sect that possessed the continent's number one support-type martial soul.

"Fengzhi..." Bone Douluo stood to the side, wanting to say something but hesitating.

"Uncle Bone, if this item is genuine, perhaps Rongrong will be able to break through the limitations of her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul and recreate the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. She is a genius of our clan, and this is the hope for our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to reach even greater heights." Ning Fengzhi's gaze was burning with intensity.

"Seventy million." At this moment, another voice rang out.

Dugu Yan's eyes lit up. "It's the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family."

"This medicinal pill..." Dugu Bo looked at the green medicine bottle, then, thinking of its efficacy, his gaze involuntarily fell upon the young woman beside him.

"The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family? They are participating in today's auction as well?" Ning Fengzhi frowned slightly.

"Nephew Fengzhi, it's not that your uncle wants to compete with you, but good things are something everyone wants to obtain." A deep, resonant male voice echoed from the opposite private box.

"It's Yu Luomian." Bone Douluo furrowed his brows.

"One hundred million." Ning Fengzhi spoke calmly; if the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had nothing else, they certainly had money.

He did not believe Yu Luomian could keep up.

"Interesting, even the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family has come..." Inside a pitch-black private box, a man elegantly swirled the wine in his glass, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes as he nodded toward Ghost Douluo, who stood to the side clad in black armor.

Ghost Douluo nodded in understanding and spoke, "Two hundred million Gold Soul Coins, plus a promise from my Spirit Hall: as long as it does not endanger Spirit Hall, we are willing to do one thing for the seller unconditionally."

"What..." The scene erupted in an uproar.

"This..." A flash of surprise crossed Ning Fengzhi's eyes. He could certainly afford two hundred million, but an unconditional promise to do something for the other party...

What if the other party demanded the destruction of the Heaven Dou Empire?

"Fengzhi..." Bone Douluo pressed down on Ning Fengzhi's shoulder and shook his head.

Such a promise was one they could not afford to give.

"A fine Spirit Hall, truly overbearing!!" Yu Luomian was so angry he crushed the cup in his hand, stood up, and smashed the table beside him with a single palm strike.

Qingxi frowned slightly. She pulled a few copper coins from her bosom and tossed them onto the sofa. After repeating this several times, she raised her eyes to look at the Spirit Hall's private box on the third floor.

"A bit interesting."

She closed her eyes, her divine sense enveloping the entire auction house. She saw the golden-haired youth sitting in the main seat within the dark private box.