Heaven Dou Grand Auction House, Ten Thousand Year Ginseng King

Jun Yan had only taken a few steps into the Martial Soul Sacred Temple when a middle-aged deacon approached him.

"Young master, whom are you looking for?"

The deacon saw that although Jun Yan was young, he carried himself with an extraordinary bearing. He walked through the Martial Soul Sacred Temple with a calm expression, without so much as a glance at its splendor. The deacon immediately understood that the young man before him had an uncommon background and was probably a young master from some prominent family, so he adopted a very deferential manner.

"Is Bishop Fan Haige in the temple at the moment?" Jun Yan asked.

The man had not expected Jun Yan to ask for the head of the Martial Soul Sacred Temple as soon as he arrived. Quite surprised, he said, "The... the bishop?"

But he did not answer Jun Yan directly. Instead, he first asked cautiously, "May I ask who you are, young master?"

"Don't worry. I'm from Spirit City. My father is a good friend of Bishop Fan Haige."

As he spoke, Jun Yan took out his token again.

Only then did the man lower his guard. So he was a young master from Spirit City. No wonder he carried himself that way.

A young man from Spirit City whose father was a good friend of Bishop Fan Haige was obviously from a distinguished Spirit City family as well.

"You've come at an unfortunate time, young master. The bishop is not in the temple at the moment."

"Oh?" Jun Yan frowned, then asked, "Do you know when he'll be back? If it won't be too long, I can wait for him here."

The deacon shook his head. "I don't know about that."

Then he smiled and said, "But rather than waiting for him at the temple, I know a better place where you can wait for the bishop, young master."

"Where?" Jun Yan asked.

"The Heaven Dou Auction House."

"The Heaven Dou Auction House?"

"Yes. The Heaven Dou Auction House is the largest auction house in the Heaven Dou Empire. It has no shortage of rare treasures, and its auctions run twenty-four hours a day without interruption. Although the items in ordinary auctions are excellent, only a handful can be considered rare treasures. Only at the auction held once every six months are all the items treasures. It's even possible for a Soul Bone to appear. The bishop doesn't pay attention to ordinary auctions, but he almost always goes to have a look at the one held every six months."

"An auction held once every six months. Interesting!"

Jun Yan smiled and asked, "Could you take me to see the largest auction house in the Heaven Dou Empire?"

He had come to the Martial Soul Sacred Temple for two reasons: first, to visit his father's good friend and get acquainted with a high-ranking Spirit Hall official stationed in the empire; second, to find out where Dugu Bo lived so he could pay him a visit.

But since he had happened to arrive in time for the Heaven Dou Auction House's grand auction, he had no reason not to go and see it. He might even run into Fan Haige and Dugu Bo there.

The middle-aged deacon naturally would not refuse, or he would not have brought it up himself. He immediately nodded with a smile. "It would be my honor."

The two left the temple and walked along the broad avenue toward the city center.

Before long, they saw a domed building in the distance.

The building looked very unusual. It was round all over, like half a ball placed on the ground. There was no sign bearing its name, only a picture of an auction hammer.

"Young master, that is the Heaven Dou Grand Auction House," the middle-aged deacon said, pointing at the domed building in the distance.

Jun Yan waved his hand, indicating that there was no need for such courtesy. "My name is Jun Yan. Just call me by my name. May I ask your name, and what position you hold at the Martial Soul Sacred Temple?"

"My name is Ma Yu. I've only just become a first-class deacon."

A first-class deacon of the Martial Soul Sacred Temple was at the Soul King realm. But judging by his age, his talent was decent, though it could not be considered good.

Chatting as they went, the two arrived outside the grand auction house.

The auction house was at least five hundred meters across, and its highest point rose more than eighty meters.

The auction house's entrance was also semicircular and, like the rest of the building, was milky white. Four tall young women stood before it.

Each of the young women was youthful and pretty, with a well-proportioned figure. Although they could not be called peerless beauties, they were still very attractive.

They wore floor-length dresses that covered even their arms, leaving not a sliver of extra skin exposed. Yet the dresses clung closely to their bodies, fully outlining their graceful curves. Silver patterns were embroidered on the snowy white dresses, vaguely forming characters.

Ma Yu continued, "The auction held once every six months takes place in the evening. The truly wealthy people haven't arrived yet, and the bishop is no exception. But ordinary auctions run all the time. We can wait inside, and if you see anything you like, Young Master Jun Yan, you can buy it."

"Mm." Jun Yan nodded.

Seeing the two walking straight toward the entrance, one of the young women hurried three steps forward to greet them. She bowed slightly and said, "Gentlemen, may I help you?"

Hearing this, Ma Yu stepped forward and took out a white card. "We're here to attend the auction."

As soon as the young woman saw the yellow card, she bowed and ushered them inside. "Please come in, honored guests."

Ma Yu turned back to Jun Yan. "Young Master Jun Yan, shall we go in?"

Unexpectedly, Jun Yan raised a hand to stop Ma Yu and turned to the young woman. "You need to verify bidding qualifications to participate in your auctions, don't you?"

The young woman was momentarily taken aback. The card in Ma Yu's hand was a bidding qualification card, and since the two were together, they only needed one.

But out of professional duty, she patiently explained to Jun Yan, "There is indeed a bidding qualification verification. It had to be introduced to prevent people from making malicious bids. However, your friend here is a guest of our auction house, so you don't need to have your qualifications verified."

Jun Yan nodded. "I know he has one, but I can't very well use his money, can I? Please help me verify my qualifications. By the way, are there any restrictions on tonight's auction?"

The young woman hurriedly said, "I'll take you there right away."

With that, she gestured for them to follow.

Jun Yan and Ma Yu followed her into the auction house.

The young woman walked ahead in short, quick steps, answering Jun Yan's earlier question as she went. "Tonight's auction is rather special, and all the items are top-grade treasures, so only buyers with deposits exceeding one million Gold Soul Coins may participate."

Inside, the auction house did not give an impression of gilded splendor. The floor was made of milky white marble, and the surrounding walls were decorated with various reliefs. The reliefs used few colors and looked clean, bright, and exceptionally elegant.

Besides the reliefs, there were display cases built against the walls, containing exhibits such as porcelain and armor.

Under the young woman's patient guidance, the two arrived at a room with a sign reading "Verification" hanging outside.

A table stood in the room, with an elderly man seated behind it. A badge reading "Verification Officer" hung on his chest.

The young woman said, "This is where qualifications are verified. You only need to show assets worth more than ten thousand Gold Soul Coins to obtain a white bidding qualification, which allows you to attend basically all ordinary auctions."

Jun Yan took a Gold Soul Coin stored-value card from his Soul Tool and handed it over. It had a balance of ten thousand Gold Soul Coins.

The verification officer took it and checked it. After confirming that everything was in order, he returned the stored-value card to Jun Yan and gave him a white card.

Taking the white card, Jun Yan said, "This card alone shouldn't be enough to attend tonight's auction, should it?"

The young woman nodded, a trace of regret on her face. "That's right."

Ma Yu hurriedly reminded him from the side, "Young Master Jun Yan, the bishop should be here by then. You can go with him."

Ma Yu naturally knew that a deposit of more than a million was required to attend the evening auction. But he only needed to bring Jun Yan to Bishop Fan Haige. Showing his face before the bishop and winning a little favor was the purpose of his trip.

"There's no need to trouble Bishop Fan Haige over such a small matter," Jun Yan said, waving a hand at Ma Yu.

Then he asked the verification officer, "Are you still accepting items for auction here?"

The verification officer shook his head. "The items for tonight's auction have already been prepared. As a rule, we aren't accepting any new ones."

Not accepting them as a rule meant they would accept them. Jun Yan understood that.

"Unless?" Jun Yan asked.

The verification officer replied, "Unless the item is exceptionally valuable and worth more than a million. The lowest starting price among the items prepared for tonight is over five hundred thousand."

"A million Gold Soul Coins?"

Jun Yan nodded thoughtfully, then took a jade box from the Hundred Flowers Bag and placed it on the table before the verification officer.

"What is this?" the verification officer asked, reaching to open the jade box.

To his surprise, Jun Yan pressed it down with one hand. "Wait. Can you recognize something worth more than a million Gold Soul Coins?"

"Of course I... can't." The verification officer had been about to bluff, but his professional standards made him shake his head.

He turned to the young woman and said, "Go and fetch the appraiser."

"Yes." The young woman nodded and left the room.

"Please take a seat and wait a moment, gentlemen. The appraiser will be here shortly."

Jun Yan took back the jade box and sat down on a nearby sofa with Ma Yu.

Before long, the young woman returned, bringing an appraiser dressed in black robes.

The appraiser looked somewhat excited. "Where's the treasure worth a million Gold Soul Coins? Where is it?"

The young woman looked a little helpless as she explained, "The appraiser refused to come at first, so I told him there was a treasure worth a million here. Only then did he come."

Jun Yan handed the jade box to the appraiser. "Be careful. Don't damage it."

The appraiser carefully accepted the jade box, placed it on the table, and only then slowly opened it.

At once, a refreshing fragrance wafted from the jade box. Inside lay a ginseng root more than a foot long.

The ginseng was golden yellow all over and shaped like a person, with a clearly defined head, body, and legs.

"Th-this is... a Ten Thousand Year Ginseng King!"

The appraiser was so astonished that he stammered.

Jun Yan nodded. "That's right. Is it worth a million Gold Soul Coins?"

Jun Yan had obtained the ginseng king from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. It was one of the better medicinal herbs there.

The appraiser pondered for a moment before saying with certainty, "A Ten Thousand Year Ginseng King is rare to begin with, and this one has retained its complete shape and been very well preserved. It should be worth one and a half million Gold Soul Coins. Of course, if someone takes a particular liking to it, it should sell for another two hundred thousand."

"Well? If I add this to tonight's auction, will I qualify?"

"Enough, more than enough," the appraiser said repeatedly, as if afraid Jun Yan would change his mind.

The appraiser held the jade box containing the ginseng king and refused to let go. He said to Jun Yan, "I'll take you to complete the formalities right away!"

"Let's go!" Jun Yan stood up and followed the appraiser out of the verification room with Ma Yu.

The formalities were not complicated. All he needed to do was set up an account with the auction house linked to his Gold Soul Coin stored-value card.

Through this account, Jun Yan could receive the proceeds from auctioned items after the service fee was deducted, and he could also place bids, provided they did not exceed the amount in the account. If they did, Jun Yan would have to make up the difference in Gold Soul Coins.

Jun Yan was then given a black identity token, signifying that he was a black-tier VIP.

The auction center was located on the second floor of the auction house, and no fewer than eight staircases led up to it from the lobby.

A circular platform stood in the center, surrounded by rows of seats arranged in radiating rings.

The seats were divided into five main sections. The three rows closest to the platform were red, followed outward by black, purple, yellow, and white. They were arranged according to the bidders' different levels.

With his status as a black-tier VIP, Jun Yan could only sit in the black section. Of course, if he could prove that he was a person of status, he could become a red-tier VIP directly.

Before they went to the auction center, the young hostess handed each of them a mask.

At an auction, people inevitably snatched up things others had their eyes on. To avoid the trouble this caused, the auction house had its customers put on masks before entering.

Ma Yu accepted his and put it on, but Jun Yan waved his hand and refused. First, he was not afraid of offending anyone; second, he had come looking for someone, and if he wore a mask, others would not recognize him.

As soon as Jun Yan entered the hall, he drew the attention of the people inside. After all, it was rare to see someone enter the auction house without a mask.

The auction house's auctions ran without interruption, but the items on the platform were all too ordinary. At least, none caught Jun Yan's eye. Ma Yu, however, made a bid during this time and acquired a decent Soul Tool worth tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coins.

At last, just as Jun Yan was growing drowsy, night fell.

The auction house's hostesses entered the auction center and began carefully asking the customers in the white, yellow, and purple sections to leave.

The Heaven Dou Grand Auction House already had powerful backing, and every night it held a two-hour auction of top-grade items open only to customers with deposits of one million.

Thus, the customers whose deposits were insufficient were easy to deal with. They soon left the auction center one after another, leaving only the customers in the black and red VIP sections.

Then some customers began to enter. All were richly dressed and carried themselves with grace and dignity. Some wore masks, while others did not.

Curiously, however, those who did not wear masks all sat in the red VIP section.

In the vast black VIP section, Jun Yan was the only one without a mask.

People in the red section ahead turned from time to time to look at Jun Yan, then turned back and whispered a few words to their companions.

Jun Yan felt nothing in particular about it, but Ma Yu looked rather ill at ease beside him. Of the people who turned to look, everyone he recognized was a major figure in Heaven Dou City. Though there were a few he did not recognize, he knew they had to be major figures from elsewhere.

Suddenly, someone in the red section stood up and walked toward Jun Yan, finally plopping down in the seat beside him.

"It's me." As he spoke, the newcomer removed his mask.

After seeing his face clearly, Ma Yu immediately cried out in surprise, "Dugu Bo!"

Jun Yan, however, smiled faintly and asked, "In Heaven Dou City, does even a Soul Douluo like Brother Dugu have to cover his face in public?"

I couldn't be bothered to split the chapters, so I combined two into one.