One auction item after another was sold, and the auction was drawing to a close.
"The next item is one of today's final two auction lots, and one of the two grand finale treasures carefully prepared for this auction."
Hearing Master Huang's introduction, everyone's breathing involuntarily grew rapid.
As the black cloth was lifted, everyone gasped when they saw what lay beneath it.
"How could there be a Storage Bag? Damn it, what if I didn't bring enough money?"
"This auction really has one surprise after another. Even something as rare as a Storage Bag has appeared."
"Alas, of all times for a Storage Bag to appear, it had to be when I was poorest. What a pity."
Watching the crowd's endless cries of surprise, Ye Yun could not help growing nervous. Just how much could this Storage Bag sell for?
"That's right, it is a Storage Bag. The space inside this Storage Bag is roughly one zhang wide. It is more than sufficient for storing valuable items and carrying them with you. And I believe everyone here knows just how rarely Storage Bags are seen, so I will not waste any more words. Let the bidding begin! The starting price for this Storage Bag is ten thousand taels of gold. You may begin!" Master Huang slowly announced the starting price of the Storage Bag.
Upon hearing the starting price, everyone in the auction hall was stunned, Ye Yun included.
The entire auction hall fell silent. Once Ye Yun recovered his senses and saw that no one was bidding, he could not help worrying that the item might fail to sell.
"I bid twenty thousand taels of gold!" someone in a private room on the second floor called out.
That bid broke the deadlock in the auction hall, and more people began to make offers.
"I bid thirty-two thousand taels of gold!"
"I bid forty-five thousand taels of gold! I hope everyone will give me some face."
"How much is your face worth? I bid fifty-eight thousand taels of gold!"
From the very first bid, the price of the Storage Bag soared all the way up, reaching one hundred thousand taels of gold in no time.
Ordinarily, a Storage Bag of this size would have more or less reached its ceiling at that price.
Yet at this auction, Master Huang had barely called the bid of one hundred thousand taels of gold once before someone raised it to one hundred and ten thousand taels of gold.
"One hundred and twenty-five thousand taels of gold, first call!"
"One hundred and twenty-five thousand taels of gold, second call! Is there really no one else bidding? This is an exceedingly rare Storage Bag!"
"Very well. One hundred and twenty-five thousand taels of gold, third call! Congratulations to this honored guest for successfully obtaining the Storage Bag."
In the end, after a fierce struggle, the Storage Bag still fell into the hands of the very first bidder.
Seeing the Storage Bag sell for one hundred and twenty-five thousand taels of gold, Ye Yun was so excited he almost cried out. Even after the commission was deducted, he would still receive around one hundred and ten thousand taels of gold.
As they watched the Storage Bag fall into someone else's hands, everyone felt regret, but they also could not help anticipating what the final auction item would be. To serve as the final grand finale, it had to be even more precious than the Storage Bag.
Under everyone's expectant gazes, the final auction item was slowly brought forth by a maid.
Master Huang looked at the crowd below. Rather than speaking immediately, he first removed the black cloth covering it, revealing something like a book beneath. Only then did he slowly say, "The final auction item, as you can see, is a martial art manual. Its origins are far from ordinary. It was the unique martial art of Gale Saber Duelist Nie Yuan, a Core Elixir Realm martial artist renowned throughout the Great Chu Dynasty two hundred years ago: the Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique. Nie Yuan earned the title of Gale Saber Duelist precisely through this martial art. The Quasi-Ultimate Martial Art, Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique, has a starting price of fifty thousand taels of gold. Bidding begins now!"
A Core Elixir Realm martial artist!
Gale Saber Duelist Nie Yuan!
A Quasi-Ultimate Martial Art!
Every one of Master Huang's words shook everyone present.
At this moment, aside from those who had received the news beforehand, everyone else was dumbfounded by this revelation.
Ye Yun's heart was also churning like rivers and seas. A Quasi-Ultimate Martial Art was exactly what its name implied: stronger than ordinary high-grade martial arts, yet still a step short of an Ultimate Martial Art. Even so, this was a martial art that even the Purple Extreme Sect possessed only in small numbers, and only those who had made tremendous contributions to the sect had a chance to learn it.
Unfortunately, he could not look through this martial art manual to determine how compatible it was with him. If their compatibility were high, Ye Yun might not be able to sit still; he would buy it even if he had to spend every coin on him.
Ye Yun guessed that the Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique would not be highly compatible with him, because this martial art was not inclined toward yin-cold attributes.
Though Ye Yun did not intend to make a move, the honored guests in the second-floor private rooms could no longer remain seated. They had come here precisely because they had received news of this martial art beforehand.
"I bid one hundred thousand taels of gold. I am determined to obtain this martial art!" The Zhou Family's Second Elder, who had remained silent for so long, finally spoke again.
But the instant the Zhou Family's Second Elder finished speaking, Duan Qingxue of the Duan Family spoke up.
"Old ghost Zhou, aren't you afraid your boast will burst like a blown-up hide? This old lady bids one hundred and twenty thousand taels of gold!"
"That's right, that old ghost Zhou is truly shameless. My Emerald Palace bids one hundred and fifty thousand taels of gold!"
The speaker was an executive elder of the Emerald Palace.
The Emerald Palace was renowned for its saber techniques to begin with. With the Quasi-Ultimate Martial Art, the Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique, appearing here, there was no reason for the Emerald Palace not to show up.
As the Emerald Palace entered the fray, the Earthfire Sect, the Flowing Cloud Sect, and Ye Yun's Purple Extreme Sect—among the Eight Great Sects of the Great Chu Dynasty—also joined the competition one after another.
The price of the Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique then rose at lightning speed, as if it had sprouted wings, rapidly climbing to three hundred thousand taels of gold.
Inside the Zhou Family's private room on the second floor, the Zhou Family's Second Elder frowned tightly as he watched the price of the Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique.
"Uncle, it seems our Zhou Family is fated to miss out on this martial art this time. Four of the Eight Great Sects have appeared. Compared with their financial power, we are still far behind," the man behind the Zhou Family's Second Elder said.
Hearing this, the Zhou Family's Second Elder pondered for a moment before saying, "I will bid once more. If I still cannot secure it, our Zhou Family will give up this time."
Afterward, the Zhou Family's Second Elder called out his final bid.
"My Zhou Family bids three hundred and ten thousand taels of gold!"
Regrettably, the moment that price was called, it was surpassed once more by the Emerald Palace.
Gradually, several Lineages and small sects withdrew from the competition, leaving the four great sects to bid against one another.
"Four hundred and fifteen thousand taels of gold, first call!"
"Four hundred and fifteen thousand taels of gold, second call!"
"Four hundred and fifteen thousand taels of gold, third call! Congratulations to the honored guest of the Emerald Palace for obtaining this martial art."
After several rounds of fierce competition among the four great sects, the Emerald Palace ultimately obtained this Quasi-Ultimate Martial Art, the Gale Falling Leaves Saber Technique.
"Thank you all, honored guests, for your support! Today's auction has now come to a successful conclusion. Guests who auctioned items may proceed to the room beside us and use your vouchers to collect your auction proceeds. Other honored guests may leave at your leisure. Finally, thank you once again for coming!" Master Huang offered his words of thanks to the crowd, and today's auction came to an end.
As a new author, I sometimes truly do not know whether the novel I write is any good. Sometimes I fall into a vicious cycle and completely lose inspiration. Here, I hope that if any fellow readers notice something lacking while reading, you can point it out. If you have thoughts about the direction of the next plot developments, you may share them as well. I will read every comment, but aside from a few regular readers who give me recommendation votes every day, there is nothing else. It leaves me not even knowing whether anyone is reading my novel. I have said so much and made a fool of myself before everyone. Thank you all! Please come read the novel I wrote!
(End of this chapter)
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