A Huge Sum

No one present objected. Instead, they looked around with burning eyes, and the air was thick with tension.

They were basically divided into two camps: the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire.

Emperor Xue Ye's gaze met the White Tiger Emperor's in midair. Their eyes conveyed only one message: they were determined to win!

"Mm, I need to announce something beforehand. These Closed Beta slots will only last for the duration of the Closed Beta, which may last only one or two months, or perhaps half a year to a year.

"Of course, the Closed Beta will be followed by the Public Beta. By then, it should be able to accommodate more users, and Closed Beta accounts will carry over without requiring additional payment.

"Furthermore, more username slots will be released during the Public Beta, so even if you fail to win a slot, you can wait for the Public Beta."

Li Ming conscientiously reminded them of this, lest they later feel that he had cheated them.

Yet upon hearing Li Ming's words, the Soul Masters present all had flickering eyes, seemingly pondering something.

Though some of the terms were unfamiliar and they did not understand their meanings, they could still infer what the Closed Beta and Public Beta represented from the overall context.

However, the fire in their eyes did not fade because of this.

At the very least, from what they had heard, the timing of the Public Beta was uncertain. It could come in as little as a month, or as late as a year.

What if it took a year?

If others got to use it a year earlier, that meant they would use it a year less. Factions of similar strength might be directly pulled apart by that single year.

How could they possibly accept that?

Thus, they remained determined to win. They needed to secure more slots for their respective factions.

"This auction will use Dream Coupons as its unit. One hundred Dream Coupons correspond to one hundred Gold Soul Coins.

"If you successfully win a bid, you must deliver the Gold Soul Coins to Banks within the Heaven Dou Empire or the Star Luo Empire within three days.

"Purple Heaven City has already reached cooperation agreements with both empires. In the future, if you wish to exchange Dream Coins or Gold Soul Coins, you may do so through Banks in various locations according to the established procedure."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Li Ming somewhat differently.

They could see that Li Ming's ambitions were immense.

Still, a thought inevitably arose in their hearts. If they could exchange currency between Dream Space and reality, they could exchange money for Dream Coupons in one place, then exchange those Dream Coupons for Gold Soul Coins elsewhere. That would be far more convenient, since transporting Gold Soul Coins was no easy task.

Of course, that depended on whether Dream Coupons were trustworthy enough. Otherwise, if they did this, who knew whether the Mysterious City Lord would simply run off with their money?

"Mm, this auction is about to begin.

"To save everyone's time, the nine hundred slots will be auctioned in groups of fifty, with a starting price of five hundred Dream Coupons.

"You may look at the buttons beside you. There are buttons for one hundred, five hundred, one thousand, three thousand, five thousand, and so on.

"If you wish to raise the bid, simply press a button to add that amount. I will know who made the bid.

"The number at the top represents your identification number."

Li Ming explained how to use the Auction Device.

Since this was Dream Space, recreating technology was far too easy.

The people present curiously examined the devices beside them. It was their first time seeing an auction conducted this way.

"Then this auction officially begins.

"The first group: fifty slots, starting price five hundred. You may bid."

As Li Ming's voice fell, a screen descended behind him, displaying identification numbers and prices.

[First Group (1/18): 50 Closed Beta Slots

Current Bidder: No. 23

Current Bid: 600 Dream Coupons

Confirmation Countdown: 10]

Li Ming smiled faintly and stepped aside. High technology really was convenient.

No one present was stupid. They immediately understood the screen's purpose.

The people present rapidly pressed their buttons.

Before long, the bid shot from 600 to 2,000.

Li Ming watched the constantly changing numbers, feeling exceptionally pleased.

The starting bid he had set was not high. Calculated out, each slot cost only ten gold coins, practically a bargain. Who present could not afford that?

Yet precisely because of that, the competition was extremely fierce.

Suddenly, the number jumped from 2,400 to 3,400.

Someone had pressed the one-thousand button.

And that did not dampen their enthusiasm. The price continued to soar.

It eventually reached 20,000. Only then did the pace of the increases noticeably slow, finally giving the countdown on the screen time to begin counting down.

Twenty thousand Dream Coupons were equivalent to twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins. It was neither a small sum nor an enormous one.

That came to only four hundred Gold Soul Coins per slot, something even high-level Soul Masters could easily afford.

Although the increases had slowed, the number still jumped now and then after a brief interval.

In the end, the first group's auction concluded at 25,500 Dream Coupons.

The second group immediately began auctioning.

Li Ming blinked. The money was not much, but it was not little either.

Which of the factions behind these people was not rolling in wealth?

A mere twenty-five thousand Gold Soul Coins was something any faction could bear.

Li Ming did not intend to become fat in one bite, either. After all, these were only Closed Beta slots.

He would squeeze as much money out of them as he could.

Afterward, he could continue squeezing them through other means.

Still, this money was rather important. It could be called Purple Heaven City's first fund for development.

Naturally, he could not withdraw this money. He could only deposit it with the two empires for the circulation of Dream Coupons.

Only through circulation could Dream Coupons truly become valuable.

Therefore, he would not touch this money much. Of course, it would also be difficult for him to get his hands on it.

Even he had to go to the exchange Banks in the two empires in reality if he wanted to exchange Dream Coupons for Gold Soul Coins.

Now that Dream Coupons had only just been issued, if he dared to exchange a large amount of Dream Coupons for Gold Soul Coins offline, he would very likely draw the attention of the two empires.

After all, he held real-time maps of both empires' military deployments. Though the two emperors were being so polite to him now, they probably wished nothing more than to get rid of him in private.

He did not believe they would not arrange for people to wait at the exchange Banks.

Therefore, only once Dream Coupons circulated widely enough—once everyone treated the exchange of Dream Coupons and Gold Soul Coins as normal—would he be able to exchange Dream Coupons for Gold Soul Coins.

There was no helping it. Since he was not strong enough, he had to be more cautious.

Still, seeing their bids rise higher and higher made him very happy. In a sense, this money belonged to him after all; he simply could not withdraw it yet.

Time slowly passed.

The competition for the later groups grew increasingly intense as the remaining slots dwindled.

The second group broke through thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins.

Up through the tenth group, the winning bids were all above thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins.

By the eleventh group, the auction price had already risen above forty thousand Gold Soul Coins.

The final group saw the fiercest competition, its price soaring to an astronomical sixty-one thousand Gold Soul Coins!

Li Ming looked at the total calculated by Satellite AI, and the corners of his mouth could not help but curl up.

Six hundred and eighty-seven thousand Gold Soul Coins!

That was an enormous sum!

Li Ming reappeared at the front of the stage, smiling broadly and in an excellent mood.

"I trust that everyone has obtained the result they wanted. This Auction now comes to an end.

"You must pay the full auction amount within three days.

"Anyone who exceeds the deadline will be placed on Purple Heaven City's blacklist, have their Closed Beta qualification revoked, and never receive another invitation.

"Furthermore, as Closed Beta users, you may freely choose a place in the Outer District as a foothold.

"In the future, when you enter Purple Heaven City, you will first appear at your foothold."

Li Ming spoke with a smile, announcing the end of the Auction while also warning everyone not to delay paying him his Gold Soul Coins.