In the end, an old man bought the Buddha head for 134 million.
Gu Cheng watched with envy.
An almost useless Buddha head could sell for over a hundred million?
Then how much would my treasures fetch?
Forget everything else. Just the Golden Cup Longevity Fruit alone should rate at least three stars by the Crescent Hotel's standards, right?
And the Black Flood Dragon Heart would definitely get five stars if I brought it out!
Gu Cheng smugly calculated to himself.
The Buddha head was taken away.
Soon, the second lot appeared.
To everyone's surprise, it was a traditional wooden armchair.
Judging by its finish and wood, it seemed to be made of ordinary timber-just an everyday chair.
But everyone knew the Crescent Hotel would never put an ordinary chair up for auction.
Sure enough, the host began introducing the lot.
"This is a traditional armchair, made from ordinary timber with unremarkable craftsmanship."
"Rating: two stars."
"Observed effect: reading while seated in this chair allows you to achieve twice the results with half the effort."
"Test results: so far, all test subjects have remained in good health, with no discomfort."
"Starting bid: thirty million."
Gu Cheng tugged at Xie Yuchen again and asked, "This chair's effects are clearly better than that Buddha head's. How come it's also rated two stars? And why is there such a big difference in their starting bids?"
Xie Yuchen said, "The Buddha head received two stars partly because its effects are unknown, and partly by comparison with other similar supernatural objects. If its true effects are discovered someday, its rating will be adjusted accordingly."
"As for this chair, the effects it's demonstrated so far warrant two stars."
Understanding dawned on Gu Cheng. "Oh, so this chair is genuinely two-star, while the Buddha head's two-star rating is provisional. Is that it?"
Xie Yuchen said, "That's a fair way to put it!"
Gu Cheng nodded and looked at the armchair.
[Item name]: Erudition Chair [Item grade]: mid-grade magical artifact [Item ability]: Extensive knowledge and strong recall [Item description]: Sitting in this chair enhances comprehension and memory, allowing you to achieve twice the results with half the effort, no matter what you study.
Holy crap!
What a treasure!
Take this chair home, and wouldn't the family produce a top scholar?
Even if it wasn't used for reading, it would still be a treasure for learning anything else.
Sure enough, plenty of people shared his thoughts.
Someone in a private room on the second floor immediately called out eighty million!
That raised the starting bid by fifty million in one go.
Gu Cheng stared at the room in shock. "Fuck, do they not even think of money as money anymore?!"
Xie Yuchen said calmly, "What's so surprising about that? The great families care more about nurturing talented descendants than anything else. This chair is practically tailor-made for them. Of course they're going to fight over it."
With that, he raised his hand and said casually, "One hundred and fifty million."
Holy fucking shit!
Gu Cheng stared at him, wide-eyed.
With four hundred million at his disposal, Gu Cheng had thought he was somebody.
Surely he could take home a couple of treasures tonight!
But now...
He felt as though he were sitting on pins and needles!
The price shot upward.
One hundred and eighty million.
Two hundred million.
Two hundred and thirty million.
Two hundred and sixty million.
Almost all the bids came from guests in the second-floor private rooms.
Gu Cheng had gone numb.
Hu Bayi and the other two were dumbstruck as well.
Fatty Wang took out his phone to record the shocking scene, but the sharp-eyed Xie Yuchen immediately stopped him.
"No photography or video recording is allowed in the Crescent Hotel. You'll be thrown out!"
Embarrassed, Fatty Wang immediately put his phone away.
After a fierce bidding war,
the final price settled at 437 million.
Once the bids passed four hundred million, both their pace and their increments had slowed.
Apparently, everyone's money really didn't grow on trees.
Precious as the chair was, it wasn't priceless.
They still had their own estimates of its worth.
The third lot.
It was brought out on a tray, with a gold coin resting on white satin.
"This is a gold coin from the Tang Dynasty."
"Rating: two stars."
"Observed effect: unknown."
"Test results: we can confirm that it is a supernatural object, but despite ten years of research, we have yet to determine its effects."
"Starting bid: ten million."
"What, the Crescent Hotel sells supernatural objects with unknown effects too?"
Gu Cheng continued upholding his admirable habit of asking questions and seeking knowledge.
"Of course. Didn't you hear? The Crescent Hotel has already studied it for ten years. More research might still get them nowhere, so they might as well sell it and bring in some funds."
"But it's still a supernatural object. Even if they can't figure it out, surely they don't have to sell it?"
Xie Yuchen glanced at him. "That's because you don't understand the Crescent Hotel's resources. It was founded nearly two hundred years ago, and the supernatural objects it's collected are as numerous as the stars in the sky. To them, a supernatural object without value is garbage."
Gu Cheng said, "..."
So basically, this auction was just the Crescent Hotel clearing out its junk inventory?
And those of us attending were all garbage collectors?!
He looked at the gold coin.
[Item name]: Lucky Coin [Item grade]: supreme-grade magical artifact [Item ability]: Enhances luck [Item description]: A gold coin imbued with good fortune. Carrying it on your person enhances your luck.
Holy shit!
Gu Cheng almost cried out!
My fellow handsome readers, writing a book isn't easy, and mine isn't one of those formulaic tomb-raiding stories.
If you think it's decent, please send some flowers, ratings, and tips.
If you can't find it by searching the title, try searching for the author. Maybe the title was simply changed!