Qin Moyu handed over the wooden plaque.
The attendant's smile grew even warmer as he respectfully led Qin Moyu up the stairs to a private room.
The private room was large, accommodating about twenty people, and featured sandalwood benches, exquisite fruit platters, and steaming hot spiritual tea. It looked expensive, and Qin Moyu secretly clicked his tongue in amazement.
I never imagined that Ye Bai, who looks poor, is actually a hidden tycoon.
Refusing the servants' company, Qin Moyu sat on the sofa, took off his straw hat, and had a clear view of the scene below. However, he could not see the private rooms below, so he could directly bid if he wanted to participate in the auction.
On the fruit platter was a list of items to be auctioned. Qin Moyu flipped through it, looking at it from left to right, but couldn't figure out what was so special about the mysterious box that the villain and the protagonist were fighting over. It just looked like a broken box. Maybe this was fate.
However, an antique dagger on the list caught his eye. It wasn't that Qin Moyu knew how powerful the dagger was; he considered himself a superficial person, but he simply thought the dagger was particularly cool.
"I want it." Qin Moyu patted her own savings account and then looked at the starting price.
—Sorry to bother you.
Only after stepping outside did Qin Moyu truly realize the fact that, whether in his past life or this one, he was a poor man.
2. Chapter Two: The Clown in Disguise Was Actually Me
The auction was in full swing. The dagger that Qin Moyu liked was bought by someone from the south box. Qin Moyu completely lost interest and started eating grapes out of boredom.
As time passed, the third-to-last item to be auctioned, the mysterious box, finally appeared.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this box is no ordinary thing—even we at Tengwang Pavilion cannot discern its purpose, but the fact that it comes from the Abyss is enough to justify its presence here!" The auctioneer's words were astonishing, and the crowd below erupted in uproar.
It's not because even the Tengwang Pavilion couldn't figure out what the box was for, but because it came from the abyss!
The Abyss is a forbidden area on the continent. Legend has it that when the four states fought a great war, countless powerful beings perished on that land. Even a random spatula could be a magical treasure. So even though it's a matter of life and death, many people still flock there.
Qin Moyu also perked up and focused intently on finding the protagonist. According to the description in the book, the protagonist should be sitting below at this moment.
Unfortunately, the crowd below was filled with people dressed in black robes, and the few who weren't wearing black robes didn't match their ages or appearances. Qin Moyu could only pin her hopes on the upcoming auction.
"...So, the starting bid for this box is...five hundred high-grade spirit stones!"
The crowd erupted in uproar.
One high-grade spirit stone can be exchanged for ten mid-grade spirit stones or one hundred low-grade spirit stones. Five hundred high-grade spirit stones equal fifty thousand low-grade spirit stones, which is beyond the reach of most people. Instead of gambling so many spirit stones on a box with unknown uses, it's better to buy more life-saving weapons!
The auctioneer also felt the price was too high, but the seller insisted on using it as the reserve price, so there was nothing they could do. Fortunately, there was still a chance to salvage the situation: "Please be patient, everyone. The seller said that if anyone can produce something related to Jie Yuhuo, he is willing to exchange it for something else!"
Yu Huo, a flame unique to the Abyss, kills upon contact; even a trace of it will devour its host like a bone-corroding poison.
Countless people shook their heads and sighed after hearing this. If the Yu Huo fire were so easy to dispel, so many cultivators wouldn't die from it every year.
"Now, let's begin filming!"
As the auctioneer brought down the gavel, a voice came from the west box: "Six hundred high-grade spirit stones."
"Seven hundred high-grade spirit stones." East side room.
Bidding was incessant, but a closer look revealed that only people in the private rooms were bidding.
The bidding stopped at nine hundred high-grade spirit stones, and just when everyone thought the people in the south box were about to win the box—
"One thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Suddenly, a man in black robes in the lower seats raised a sign.
"One thousand one hundred high-grade spirit stones." West side room.
"One thousand two hundred high-grade spirit stones," the man in black robes retorted defiantly.
"One thousand fourteen hundred high-grade spirit stones." West side room.
"One thousand five hundred high-grade spirit stones." The man in black robes said.
The sounds from the west side of the van stopped, but after a while, another sound came out, this time it wasn't just a bid.
“Brother, leave room for maneuver in all things, so that we can meet again in the future. We don’t need to ruin our friendship over a box. Give me the box, and I guarantee that the Li family can find you anything you want. 1,600 high-grade spirit stones.”
The Li family of Dongzhou! The people below were surprised. It seemed that the Li family was determined to get the box, and was even willing to use their reputation to do the other party a favor.
Most of those sitting below were independent cultivators, like rootless duckweed. They knew the importance of not offending powerful families, and they all felt that with the Li family's name on their side, the man in black robes would not bid any further.
Unexpectedly—
"One thousand six hundred and twenty high-grade spirit stones." The man in black robes persisted, but it seemed he didn't have many spirit stones left.
"Brother, you should think this through. You may be able to buy the goods, but you won't be able to leave this city. It costs 1,650 high-grade spirit stones."
"One thousand six hundred and fifty-five high-grade spirit stones." The man in black robes remained unmoved.
"Two thousand high-grade spirit stones." The voice calling out from the west wing suddenly changed to a deep, hoarse male voice, and at the same time, a tall man with wicked eyes walked out.
"Young Master Mo Yuan!" someone exclaimed from below.
Countless people stood up, trying to get a clear look at Young Master Mo Yuan.
Qin Moyu's eyes lit up: Wow, as expected of a villain, this is so cool!
Now that the villain has appeared, the one bidding below is undoubtedly the protagonist.
The auctioneer gasped. He knew that even the most precious Earth-rank pills were expected to be capped at two thousand high-grade spirit stones, yet a box of unknown use was selling for this price!