by Zhuang Bifan
Lin Li wasn't annoyed by Wilkinson and the other pharmacists' questions at all even though he wasn't their actual teacher. After all, wouldn't life be better for him if their abilities were higher?
Shortly after William left, the first floor got noisier. Those people waiting in the front hall started coming in. It seemed like the auction was starting soon. In just 15 minutes, the 2,000 seats in the main hall downstairs were all filled.
As this was a theater, the side of the guest rooms facing the stage was completely open. Lin Li looked around, and he could see everyone in the other guest rooms clearly.
Unlike the totally filled seats downstairs, the guest rooms were not even half filled. However, this didn't mean that William's auction would fail. It was because who could be a distinguished guest was dependent on their status, so there was no need to fill up the guest rooms for the sake of doing so. If the standards were put too low, the status of a 'distinguished guest' wouldn't be that valuable anymore, and some might even find it insulting.
Lin Li wasn't interested in the background of other guests, so he briefly scanned the surroundings and focused on the stage with closed curtains.
This wasn't the first time William had organized an auction at the Elven Theater. However, unless the king came, nobody was allowed to use that special guest room. Yet today, it was obvious that the one seated in that room wasn't the king, but a very young mage.
Due to spatial limitations, the people around couldn't really see Lin Li clearly. However, people who had interacted with Lin Li before, like Castellan Arathor of Roland City and Blacksmith Guild's President Garza, found him rather familiar. Yet, they wouldn't have guessed that the one William deemed as so important would be the President of the Guild of Magic which was established not more than a year ago.
The curtains of the stage were slowly drawn back. William smiled and strode to the center of the stage. He bowed to all the guests, and started with an opening speech. He didn't say much, though, just some words of thanks and welcome. After his speech, he left the stage to the chief auctioneer, and the auction officially commenced.
Meanwhile, as the organizer of this auction, William still returned to Lin Li's guest room. He knew that no matter how much power and potential the mysterious pharmaceutics organization behind the Tower of Dusk had, it was still established for no more than a year, after all. This auction that William had organized would be a great chance for the young President of the Tower of Dusk to get to know different people since many factions within and without the Breezy Plains had come.
William wouldn't waste any opportunity to build a closer relationship with the Tower of Dusk, so he came here right after making sure the auction could run smoothly.
Lin Li wasn't too bothered about this. With the Tower of Dusk's current abilities, the so-called medium or big factions couldn't threaten the Tower of Dusk at all. However, since William had already come, it didn't harm to listen to him.
William sat down beside Lin Li. Meanwhile, the first item had just been brought to the center of the stage. It was a rectangular box about half the height of a person. It seemed to be pretty old from its color and texture, and some patterns carved on it also seemed to be worn out. Looking at this rather shabby wooden box, those people seated downstairs who didn't have the auction book with them started to guess what might be inside this box.
The auctioneer didn't make everyone wait for long, as this was only a starting item which didn't deserve too much time wasted on it. Opening the box, the auctioneer stepped back, and a beam of light shone on the contents. The audience gasped.
In the open wooden box lay a set of dark gold Dragon Armor which shone with a peculiar light in the presence of the light. Without further introduction by the auctioneer, everyone in the audience recalled an incident from the distant past.
When the Dark Age just ended, the coalition made up of every repressed race started to split up the fruits of their victory. However, everyone thought that they contributed the most, and nobody could convince the others otherwise. Hence, everything was resolved by violence eventually.
After humans had gained control of large areas of Anril, people thought that the long awaited peace had finally arrived. However, war erupted among the human clans. While the period dominated by the High Elves was known as the Dark Age, this period of war after the Dark Age was known as the darkness before dawn.
Of course, that period wasn't totally useless. As the saying went, "a hero emerges from chaos." That war period was also when a lot of legendary heroes came into history. They had provided the bards with a lot of stories that were recited for over a thousand years.
The owner of this dark gold Dragon Armor on the stage belonged to that dark period in history. He was Duke Hedrick, who had defeated the Ledin Kingdom countless times, and defended the Breezy Plains for the Felan Kingdom. Now, many libraries in Doland still hang an oil painting of Hedrick commanding in war. What he wore in those paintings was exactly this Twilight Dragon Armor.
Thus, although this Twilight Dragon Armor had disappeared for close to a thousand years after the death of Duke Hedrick, it still evoked memories of that period of history and legendary stories about its owner when it was shown in front of everyone.
Duke Hedrick was one of the many Legendary powerhouses loyal to the Felan Kingdom, and his abilities was about level-22. During that time, almost all Legendary powerhouses were overshadowed by the God of Mages Geresco. Duke Hedrick, however, was certainly an exception to the people in the Breezy Plains.
After a person had reached Legendary-realm, he was in some sense considered out of the realm of ordinary people. Hence, ordinary people were like ants in the eyes of Legendary powerhouses, and nobody would care about an ant's life or death. Though Hedrick was only a Sword Sage as a Legendary powerhouse, and his abilities couldn't match that of Legendary-realm mages, he still had a very long life.
Although the Sanctuary-realm seemed very distant, it was not impossible to reach if one was still alive. Hence, every Legendary powerhouse valued his life even more than an ordinary person despite their powerful abilities. Unless it was for irresolvable hatred, Legendary powerhouses rarely fought till their lives were threatened.
Chapter 539 - Bidding
Unfortunately, the Duke of Hedrick encountered Rodhart, the condemned Retribution Knight who almost destroyed the entire Breezy Plains. Rodhart made the level-22 Legendary Sword Sage seem insignificant even though the two of them were both powerful. Although Hedrick relied on the Twilight Dragon Armor to increase his strength by one level, he was still worlds apart from the level-25 Retribution Knight Rodhart.
Actually, Hedrick could have avoided the battle at first. Although he was no match for Retribution Knight Rodhart, he could've still escaped death easily. However, not only did he not shun the fight, he even voluntarily battled Rodhart despite knowing that he was no match for him. He did that all for the sake of buying some time before Prophet Willen of the Brilliance Shrine arrived.
The Twilight Dragon Armor, famous for its impeccable durability, unfortunately did not protect Hedrick from Rodhart's attack. In fact, no armor would be able to shield its wearer from the Eternal Frost Blade, regardless of how strong it might be. During that disaster in the Breezy Plains, Hedrick was not the only one at the Legendary-realm who had fallen. However, he was deeply remembered by everyone who still argued and discussed whether or not his sacrifice was worth it.
The material used for the Twilight Dragon Armor was not actually the scales of a real ancient dragon, but the body of a magical beast that descended from an ancient dragon. Dragons were amorous by nature, and there were plenty of them on the entire mainland. That magical beast was considered to be a pure-blood that had descended from the ancient dragon. Its firm and hard scales were not inferior to those of the dragons.
One of the most powerful attributes of the Twilight Dragon Armor was that it could amplify Combat Energy, and Hedrick could use the boost to increase his strength from level-2
2 to level-23. The difference of one level was actually very significant, for it was enough to multiply his Combat Energy several times. That alone was an irresistible temptation for a Warrior.
Hedrick died after being stabbed by Rodhart's sword. Ever since then, the Twilight Dragon Armor disappeared. Some said that Rodhart had absconded with the loot, while others said that Prophet Willen might have taken the armor away. There were also those who said that it might be hidden in the treasure vault of the Brilliance Shrine. In short, there were all sorts of speculations, and apart from the VIP guests who had obtained the auction catalog in advance, no one else had expected that the Twilight Dragon Armor, which had been missing for nearly a thousand years, would actually appear at this auction.
"I know that at the instant that the box was opened, there must have been lots of questions and doubts that arose within you guys. I can clearly answer everyone… Yes, this is Twilight Dragon Armor which had once been worn by Duke Hedrick, and had gone missing for nearly a thousand years," the auctioneer said to the audience.
The auctioneer's firm assertion caused a huge uproar amongst the audience. The showstopper of the auction turned out to be the Twilight Dragon Armor which had been worn by Duke Hedrick, and had gone missing for nearly a thousand years. Apart from feeling astonished, everyone else was also feeling excited and curious.
"This is the Twilight Dragon Armor that the Grand Duke Hedrick had used before. Red scales from the ribs of a dragon were used for the b.r.e.a.s.tplate. The rest of the armor was made using the selected scales of the a.d.u.l.t Twilight Dragon magical beast…" The auctioneer paused for a while before continuing, "Bidding starts at 200,000 gold coins. The auction begins!"
"210,000 gold coins!"
As soon as the auctioneer finished speaking, a man who had thick brown beard began calling his bid eagerly below the stage. Everyone began to get riled up.
"It's the captain of the Angla Mercenary Regiment, comprised of 1000 mercenaries," William said nonchalantly to Lin Li. He kept the introduction brief because he felt that the captain was rather insignificant.
Lin Li only nodded after listening to what he said. In fact, he was equally uninterested in the Twilight Dragon Armor as he was in the captain. Although they were seated quite a distance away from the stage, Lin Li could see the texture of the Twilight Dragon Armor very clearly.
Although the first impression that most people would have of the Twilight Dragon Armor was that it was a highly durable and strong armor made of scales, the scales were not made of metal, and were, in fact, natural ones of the magical beast. The durability of the scales on various parts of the body was also different. Lin Li could tell that the scales on the armor were only of middle-grade quality, and that those on the b.r.e.a.s.tplate of the Twilight Dragon Armor were not the scales of a mature Crimson Dragon. After all, the magical beasts were only descendants of the dragons, and were not pure-blooded. If it had really been comparable to the massive dragon's scales, the designer wouldn't have opted to use the scales of a Crimson Dragon.
The only thing worth mentioning was the armor's ability to increase the wearer's Combat Energy. However, the effects would be more obvious if the armor was donned by a powerful Warrior. A level-9 Warrior would at most have his strength increased to level-10 after putting on the Twilight Dragon Armor. Only a Legendary Sword Sage like Hedrick would be able to unleash the potential of the Twilight Dragon Armor to the fullest and maximize its attributes.
Although plenty of skills had been lost during the Dark Age, the world had undergone development for over 1000 years; hence, the Twilight Dragon Armor might not be able to entice Legendary powerhouses. To put it simply, Lin Li felt that the Twilight Dragon Armor was more of a collectible that lacked practicality. Although it'd been a Legendary-level armor, it was now more suitable for level-15 to level-19 individuals.
After calling his bid, the bearded man returned to his seat and looked around continuously because he knew that it definitely wouldn't be that easy to purchase the Twilight Dragon Armor.
A redhead who was seated in the front row raised his hand, and calmly said, "250,000 gold coins."
250,000 gold coins was not a huge sum for those who could be granted entry to the auction. However, the bearded man's face grew sullen while he glanced at the eye-catching redhead from behind. After much consideration, he patted his knees dejectedly, and decided not to stand up to bid.
The redhead might not be too daunting to others, but the captain of the Angla mercenary regiment who was also from the Breezy Plains did not have the courage to stand up to the strongest force in the east of the Breezy Plains, the Wolf Brothers' Association, for fear of getting into a conflict.
The Wolf Brothers' Association was established by three brothers. The eldest brother, Quito, was a level-17 Warrior, while the second and third brothers were a level-15 Mage and level-16 Bandit, respectively. Although their force had only been established for over 10 years, they had already secured a footing in the east of the Breezy Plains.
Although all three of them were red-haired, that particular redhead was still recognizable from the back, and the bearded man could tell who he was. Unlike the other two brothers who were less unreasonable, Sarde could not tolerate anyone going against him. He was a level-16 Bandit who was good at ambushing and assassination. When the Wolf Brothers' Association had been just established, many of his opponents died under his dagger.
"270,000!"
Although the bearded man was afraid of the Wolf Brothers' Association, the Breezy Plains was huge, and there were plenty of other people who disregarded the Wolf Brothers even though the VIPs on the second floor remained silent.
"300,000!" Sarde continued to bid. He was not that silly to think that everyone was afraid of him, and that he could assert dominance over everyone here like he did in the east of the Breezy Plains. If he were to resort to other means to force others not to vie with him, he would probably end up angering William.
"Ladies and gentlemen, could you please show some sincerity? This is the Twilight Dragon Armor that had been used by Duke Hedrick. Please don't insult it by increasing your bids by such pathetic amounts. I call 400,000 gold coins!" one of the guests said, standing up while scanning the crowd. Although it seemed silly to call a bid of 400,000 gold coins, the bidder was rather shrewd.
In the VIP room upstairs, William witnessed the scene, and smilingly said to Lin Li, "That man is Rickermay, the largest grain merchant in Roland City. Although he is a little bit snobbish, he's got good judgment."
Indeed, 400,000 gold coins was a reasonable price for the Twilight Dragon Armor—any higher, and it would exceed the value of the armor. Anyone who called for a higher bid would either be desperate or just doing it out of spite. By calling a bid of 400,000, Rickermay was not only pleasing William, he also put himself in a risk-free position. It was no wonder that he was a businessman.
"420,000!"
Someone else called for a higher bid. However, William actually didn't have to introduce him this time, because Lin Li had just heard his voice yesterday.
Not knowing that Lin Li had already known Sienna beforehand, William started to introduce the latter to Lin Li enthusiastically.
"You don't have to introduce him. We know each other," Lin Li said smilingly.
"Oh?" William could tell from Lin Li's expression that he did not dislike Sienna. Suddenly curious, he began to recall that the Tower of Dusk was established at the same time that Sienna's mercenary regiment rose in Roland City, and could not help but wonder if the two of them were in close contact.
"450,000!" Sarde exclaimed while shifting his cold gaze away from Rickermay before staring at Sienna, who had just placed his bid, though not in a threatening manner. The strong would not have to be afraid of the powerful locals. Not to mention, Sienna was not any weaker than the Wolf Brothers' Association.
Rickermay wiped the cold sweat off of his head. Sarde's eyes which resembled that of a venomous snake made him feel a little frighten
ed. Although he was fortunate to have been invited to the auction, he was only a businessman, after all; hence, he was afraid of the ruthless Bandit.
Chapter 540 - The Blood Of Nature
Sienna smiled radiantly while staring at Sarde, and said, "500,000."
While William was still guessing at the relationship between the Tower of Dusk and Sienna, the first item of the auction had already been sold successfully. In the end, the Twilight Dragon Armor was sold for 500,000 gold coins.
After the fanfare and congratulations that sounded around Sienna had died down a little, the second item of the auction was brought onto the stage as a small wooden box was placed on the display.
Silence was restored, and everyone was looking forward to seeing the auctioneer open the box. The first item was the Twilight Dragon Armor, which had gone missing for over 1,000 years. What would be the second?
Everyone waited excitedly while waiting for the auctioneer to open the wooden box slowly. Inside it was a golden ring that was embellished with gems.
"This is the ring that the senior jeweler Mr. Joanne has specially created for this auction!" the auctioneer said loudly while showcasing the ring.
Perhaps the ring was not as shocking as the Twilight Dragon Armor, but everyone was still excited after hearing that it was created by Joanne. They shifted their gazes onto the ring that the auctioneer was holding while waiting for the auctioneer to introduce it in further detail.
Everyone in the Breezy Plains had heard about the jeweler Joanne before. Hence, everyone would cheer and rejoice over every piece of jewelry that he created. In addition to being a jeweler, he was also the successor of the Fasetti Family of the Northern Plains and a level-15 Archmage.
Although the Fasetti Family was not as formidable as the Malfa Family, which had a Legendary figure to support them, no one had dared to challenge their authority. The Fasetti Family mainly dealt in the pharmaceutical industry, while Joanne was the descendant of the founder of the Fasetti Family. He was currently the one who was the most likely to attain the level of a jewelry Master.
