"Eh, has it started?"
At Zhai Que'er's request, Fire Refining and Zheng Bo were supposed to offer advice at the auction and distinguish genuine treasures from fakes. But they were currently engrossed in the work of analyzing and dismantling magical artifacts, their enthusiasm blazing hotter and hotter as they entered their stride. For the moment, neither wanted to leave.
Zhai Que'er exchanged a glance with Yu Ci and smiled. "It's fine. You two stay here. We'll just survey the situation during the first round; we don't plan to make a move yet."
"That'd be great..."
Fire Refining blurted it out, then hastily shut his mouth. Zhai Que'er took no offense, fanning herself as she headed inside with a smile.
To reach the auction hall, they first had to pass through the appraisal area. It was somewhat more spacious than the outside, and no longer laid out in the style of a Myriad Treasure Shelf. Instead, rows of counters filled the space, with over thirty treasure appraisers working among them. Long lines of cultivators stood before nearly every counter.
A tiered screening system was still in place here.
For an item to enter the auction hall from here, it had to pass through at least three pairs of hands and withstand the appraisers' most exacting scrutiny. The overwhelming majority of so-called "treasures" were rejected at the first stage; only by securing over a hundred advance-purchase guarantees could they make it to the auction.
Yu Ci and Zhai Que'er had originally been strolling through the place, taking in the sights, when Yu Ci received a message from Ghost Loathing, who was in the central area.
Ghost Loathing was currently using the Myriad Treasure Shelf artifact and the surveillance formations to monitor the details of each venue. If he spotted any artifact worth