Auction (II)

The Miter Auction House was the largest auction house in Jia Ma Sacred City, as well as the entire Jia Ma Empire.

Though it could be said to stand adjacent to the Mite'er Family estate, the journey from the Mite'er Family to the Auction House was far from short.

The three of them walked at an unhurried pace, followed by the maid Qing'er and A Fei.

Two quarters of an hour later, Li Chenfeng raised his head and looked at the enormous building and distinctive emblem at the end of the street. A trace of surprise rose within him.

He shook his head and sighed inwardly.

"As expected of the richest family in the Jia Ma Empire. This scale alone is beyond comparison to the other two great families."

Although the Nalan Clan occupied a vast area and its interior was equally lavish, compared to the Mite'er Family, it seemed somewhat shabby.

Even with the Mite'er Family supporting it from behind, such wealth would likely be beyond their means. However, the three great families and the Jia Ma Imperial House had now vaguely formed an alliance, which was why no one dared set their sights on this Auction House, this place that could be called a den that devoured gold.

"Come on. Why are you staring from outside instead of going in? You've been here who knows how many times already. What's left to see? The auction is about to begin anyway, so let's see whether we can find what you need."

Li Chenfeng smiled faintly, scooped his younger sister into his left arm, took Yafei's soft hand in his right, and headed toward the Auction House entrance.

When Yafei saw her little hand being held so openly, a faint blush appeared on her lovely face. Still, she did not resist and followed Li Chenfeng through the doors of the Auction House.

At that moment, crowds surged before the Miter Auction House, making the area exceptionally crowded.

This auction was merely the regular monthly event, so not many people from prominent families had come. Most attendees were ordinary martial practitioners or members of minor families.

Naturally, Li Chenfeng and Yafei did not need to squeeze through the crowd like the others. They entered the Auction House directly through the VIP passage.

Four guards at the Da Dou Shi level stood watch at the entrance. Their sharp gazes swept in every direction, leaving the people nearby too intimidated to meet their eyes.

However, the moment they saw Li Chenfeng's group, they immediately bowed respectfully and allowed them through.

Some ordinary martial practitioners nearby who did not recognize them instantly grew indignant. Why could those people pass through while they had to keep shoving through this packed crowd?

However, the man who spoke was immediately clamped over the mouth by his companion, while the others looked at them as if they were idiots.

"Idiot, don't talk nonsense! If you want to die, don't drag me down with you!"

The young martial practitioner looked at his companion in confusion.

Seeing this, his companion had no choice but to explain, "Do you know who they are? They're the young master and young miss of one of the three great families of our Jia Ma Empire!"

"That little young master walking in front is the current young clan leader of the Nalan Clan, Nalan Chenfeng, known as the number one genius of the Jia Ma Empire!"

"And the young miss holding hands with the young clan leader is Miss Yafei, a direct descendant of the Mite'er Family!"

The young martial practitioner immediately understood. Either of those two possessed a status beyond anything he could imagine.

And with their status, they truly did not need to enter the Auction House like commoners such as themselves. After all, the Auction House belonged to their own family!

Li Chenfeng and the others paid no attention to what was happening outside. By then, they had already entered the Auction House.

Upon entering the auction hall, soft lighting poured down upon them. The clamor from outside seemed to have been completely sealed away. Though only a few meters separated the two places, they felt like entirely different worlds.

What appeared before them was an enormous hall that resembled a city of crystal.

Inside the hall, expressionless guards in full armor could be seen everywhere.

Each guard wore the emblem of the Mite'er Family on their chest. Clearly, they were the Mite'er Family's direct forces.

The instant Li Chenfeng and the others entered the hall, no fewer than twenty sharp gazes swept across them.

Once those gazes recognized the identities of the newcomers, they immediately withdrew.

Because of their strength, Li Chenfeng and the others could not sense those watchful eyes. Yet in that instant, Li Chenfeng felt the Dou Qi within his body tremble slightly, as if it were warning him of something.

Li Chenfeng was no stranger to such things, and he knew the reason behind them.

After all, this was the Auction House. Everyone who entered was under the surveillance of the Mite'er Family's experts.

Ignoring this, they followed the Auction House steward, who had hurried over to greet them, to the VIP room reserved exclusively for the Nalan Clan. The three sat on a set of genuine leather chairs, beside which stood a tea table laden with delicious pastries and rare fruits.

Other than the three of them, only Qing'er, the maid responsible for serving tea and water, was inside. Nalan Fei remained standing guard outside the VIP room.

By then, the hall below was already packed with people, and the deafening clamor surged toward the ceiling.

However, Li Chenfeng and the others in the VIP room could naturally hear none of it. The thick crystal window before them shut out all the noise outside.

Once the auction began, they could activate a switch from inside, allowing them to hear the sounds outside while their own voices could also be transmitted out.

As the auction began, the venue gradually quieted down, leaving only the auctioneer's voice and the calls of bid after bid from below.

Since this was merely a regular monthly auction, there was nothing that caught Li Chenfeng's eye. The reason he had come was for the final item of the auction.

It was a Qi-Gathering Powder refined by Gu He, who had successfully advanced to become a Sixth-grade Alchemist and was already known as the Pill King.

Li Chenfeng had now reached the peak of Ninth-stage Dou Qi. To become a true Dou Zhe, he needed to condense a Dou Qi Vortex within his body.

However, condensing a Dou Qi Vortex came with a considerable chance of failure. Upon failure, Ninth-stage Dou Qi would fall back to the eighth stage. If one was unlucky, it might take more than ten attempts before succeeding.

Repeatedly condensing it like this would cause one to miss the best period for cultivation, greatly damaging one's future prospects. As for Li Chenfeng, his requirement for himself was that he had to successfully condense the Dou Qi Cyclone in one attempt.

But even with Li Chenfeng's confidence, he did not dare make such a guarantee.

The Qi-Gathering Powder could allow someone at Ninth-stage Dou Qi to successfully condense a Dou Qi Vortex with a one hundred percent success rate, so naturally Li Chenfeng would not leave such an excellent Medicinal Pill unused.

Although the Qi-Gathering Powder was a Fourth-grade Medicinal Pill, obtaining one was not difficult with the Nalan Clan's strength. But acquiring a Qi-Gathering Powder personally refined by the Pill King Gu He was far from easy!