The fourteen words that appeared on the jade tablet plunged the entire auction house into silence!
Got money? Then bid. No money? Get lost. Stop posturing, you pauper!
This… this… who in the world is in booth seventeen in row two? How dare they say such a thing to the esteemed first heir of the Yangg Family!
"I… I'm not seeing things, am I?"
"To talk to the Yangg Family's first heir like that is the same as targeting the entire Yangg Family. Could it be someone from the other three Great Families?"
"Even if it is, they wouldn't be this audacious, would they? The first heir is equivalent to an Imperial Prince, second to only one person and above all others. Insulting him is like insulting the entire Yangg Family..."
Seeing the words, everyone attending the auction stared with wide eyes, utterly dumbfounded and so shocked they couldn't tell which way was up.
"Damn it! How dare he call me a pauper! Fine. Just fine. I'll see to it that he's a dead man!" Seeing the words appear, Yangg Jun nearly went mad with rage. He ground his teeth with a CRUNCH as waves of True Qi surged from his body.
He had thought that revealing his name would scare the other party into backing down. He never imagined he'd be called a pauper in the next instant. He slammed his hand on the private booth's table, and the powerful Palm Force instantly blasted it to smithereens!
Who was he, Yangg Jun? He was the first heir of the Yangg Family, one of the Four Great Families, and the future Clan Leader. His status was revered, his talent was exceptional, and he was the de facto leader of the younger generation. He controlled a majority of his family's power and had access to nearly seventy percent of the Yangg Family's finances. While his wealth might not rival an entire country's, few in Luoshui City could compare!
How could he not be furious when a man of his standing was called a pauper?
'He's a dead man anyway, so there's no point in competing with him anymore! I'm better off saving my money for the Fiery Flame Axe. Hmph, as soon as he steps out of this auction house, that Stem Lotus will be mine regardless!'
Though burning with fury, Yangg Jun managed to restrain himself. He sat back down on his stool and stopped bidding.
Nie Yun and his companion paid Yangg Jun's fury no mind. 'He was the one who dared to reveal his name; wasn't he just asking to be insulted? In any case, the booth isn't mine, and this isn't my real face. I'm not afraid of him investigating at all!'
Since Yangg Jun placed no more bids, Nie Yun successfully won the Stem Lotus. A short while later, someone from the auction house delivered the medicinal material. Nie Yun accepted it, casually placed it into his Dantian, and turned his attention back to the auction floor.
After the Stem Lotus, another round of unremarkable items were auctioned off. Nie Yun couldn't be bothered to bid on any of them. Finally, after more than an hour, the atmosphere in the auction house heated up once more. The auction for the highest-grade weapon of the event, the Fiery Flame Axe, had begun!
Currently, the highest-grade weapons in Luoshui City were merely Noble Top Grade. The sudden appearance of a Marquis Top Grade weapon made its value self-evident!
For the sake of this weapon, the other three Great Families and even the City Lord's Mansion had sent representatives. They had all remained hidden in their private booths, but now that the auction for it had started, they all focused their attention, terrified someone else might snatch it away.
"...This Fiery Flame Axe was forged from Golden Heroic Cold Iron and weighs eighty-nine jin! If you possess profound strength, you could defeat any opponent with a single swing, even without using any techniques! The starting bid is 250,000 taels of silver!"
The auctioneer pulled the black cloth off the Fiery Flame Axe and began his introduction with a smile.
A Marquis Top Grade treasure was considered a notable item even in the entire Divine Wind Empire. It now lay sideways on a weapon rack, emitting a sinister, cold glint.
"250,000 taels of silver? That expensive?"
"That's not expensive at all. This is a Marquis Top Grade weapon! Forget the materials, the Artifact Refiner's craftsmanship alone is worth a hundred thousand taels!"
"I know that, but 250,000 taels is the starting bid, not the final price. Who knows how high this axe will go?"
"However high it goes, it has nothing to do with us. We're just here for the show anyway..."
Hearing the starting bid of 250,000, the crowd in the stands all gasped.
A starting bid of 250,000—such a terrifying price could probably only be sustained by the Four Great Families!
"260,000!"
"270,000!"
"280,000!"
...
Sure enough, as soon as the starting bid was announced, three private booths immediately began to compete. Although they were vying for it, the price didn't jump by an outrageous amount, increasing steadily by ten thousand at a time.
These three booths were row one, number four, which had previously competed with Nie Yun for the Stem Lotus; row one, number eight; and row one, number eleven.
To be honest, only people of high status and standing could reserve a booth in the first row. With the three competing bidders all located there and the price climbing ever higher, everyone else could only look on helplessly.
Seeing the price climb in a back-and-forth struggle, Nie Yun didn't make a bid. 'In an auction, all that matters is the final hammer blow. There's no need to show my hand from the start and make others jealous.'
"Row one, booth eleven: 500,000!"
The price rose steadily, and in a short time, it reached the staggering sum of 500,000!
At this price, it seemed booth eight in row one had run out of funds and fell completely silent. The only ones still contending were booth four and booth eleven, both in the first row.
"Row one, booth four: 600,000!"
Just when the crowd thought 500,000 was the limit, booth four in row one suddenly called out a price that drove everyone mad!
"Young Master, 600,000 is the most liquid capital our family can deploy. If we go over that, our family will certainly be put in a difficult position..."
Inside the private booth, Yangg Lin broke out in a cold sweat when he saw the price his young master had bid.
"I know, I don't need you to teach me!" Yangg Jun snorted, his eyes as sharp as a hawk's as he stared at the Fiery Flame Axe on the auction stage. "I failed to get the Stem Lotus, so I am determined to have this Fiery Flame Axe. Let's see who can possibly snatch it from my grasp!"
"Row one, booth eleven: 650,000!"
The words had barely faded when booth eleven in row one added another heart-stopping amount.
"650,000? Damn it! The people in booth eleven in row one and booth seventeen in row two must all die!" After roaring, Yangg Jun whipped his head around. "Raise it to 700,000 for me!"
"700,000? Young Master..." Hearing this price, Yangg Lin lost his composure. "If we spend that much, the family will definitely face a financial crisis..."
"Don't worry about it! Just make the bid! I'll figure out the rest!" Yangg Jun roared.
"Yes!" Seeing his young master's insistence, Yangg Lin had no choice but to shake his head and enter the string of characters.
"Row one, booth four: 700,000!"
When this bid appeared on the auction hall's jade tablet, the entire venue immediately fell silent. Everyone's gaze focused on booth eleven in row one, the competitor.
"The Fiery Flame Axe is yours. We're out of money!"
After nearly a minute of silence, a line of text appeared in the space corresponding to booth eleven in row one.
"Haha! You dare compete with me? I've said it before, in all of Luoshui City, no one can outbid me! I am the true leader of Luoshui City's younger generation!"
Seeing his opponent concede, Yangg Jun laughed heartily and stood up, an indescribable feeling of satisfaction swelling in his heart.
The frustration from losing the Stem Lotus earlier was instantly alleviated.
"Indeed. The Fiery Flame Axe is a Marquis Top Grade weapon. If you successfully complete its Refinement, Young Master, you'll be able to fight even against someone at the Qi Sea Sixth Layer Gang Formation Realm. No one in the younger generation will be your match anymore!"
"That's a given. The Young Master is already exceptionally talented. With such a powerful weapon in hand, he'll have no one to fear in Luoshui City!"
Seeing booth eleven in row one take the initiative to concede, Yangg Lin and his companion also breathed a sigh of relief, a flash of excitement in their eyes.
The grade of a Marquis Top Grade weapon was simply too high; there were only a few such items in all of Luoshui City. With a weapon of this caliber, combined with the Young Master's strength at the Qi Sea Fifth Layer Body Emergence Realm, even the average Elders of the Four Great Families would no longer be his match in terms of pure combat power!
He would truly have nothing to fear!
"As soon as this Fiery Flame Axe is delivered, I'll find a way to begin its Refinement. Once I succeed, I'll kill the person in booth seventeen of row two. He dared to steal the Stem Lotus that belonged to me. I will make him pay the price for it..."
A vicious glint flashed in his eyes as Yangg Jun roared. But before his shout could even end, the silent jade tablet suddenly flickered with light, and a new line of text appeared!
"Row two, booth seventeen: 1,000,000!"