by Zhuang Bifan
Downstairs on the stage, William asked about the bid twice and held up his gravel again.
"8,000,000 gold coins!" exclaimed Arathor immediately.
"Good! 8,000,000 gold coins is the current bid for this treasure from the Elven Kingdom. Anyone wants to raise the price even higher…?" William announced with passion, but he was also secretly worried. Though it was good to see people competing for the bid, did Arathor even know what he was doing by competing with Mage Felic?
Lin Li scanned every one of Arathor's attendants not just to look at them, but, more importantly, to feel their energy waves. He could sense from Arathor's actions that it wasn't Arathor's own intention to bid for the branch. However, what kind of person would Arathor willingly serve as the castellan of Roland City?
"Mage Felic, Roland City will always be your loyal ally if you are willing to give this item to me." Arathor convinced Lin Li with sincerity.
"Who are you to be the ally of our Tower of Dusk! You are just a little castellan. Do you think you are so important?" Wilkinson couldn't help but mock him. Though he didn't sound polite, anyone who knew the Tower of Dusk would know that what he said was very true.
Arathor wasn't angry upon hearing Wilkinson's words. Instead, he was shocked that Wilkinson said "our Tower of Dusk" when he mentioned the Tower of Dusk. He had thought that the Tower of Dusk had recruited these pharmacists, but did it now mean that all these pharmacists belonged to the Tower of Dusk?
Lin Li was very surprised that Arathor had raised the bid to 8,000,000 gold coins. Could it be that the one behind Castellan Arathor had already known the secret to this branch? Although Roland City was prosperous, and the castellan had control of all taxes other than income tax paid to the Felan Kingdom, Lin Li knew that 8,000,000 was definitely not a small sum to Arathor. If he hadn't known something, Arathor wouldn't have agreed to pay so much for a branch.
With this question in mind, Lin Li examined Arathor's attendants more carefully, hoping to catch every bit of unusual energy wave. Downstairs, William had asked about the bid twice and raised up his gravel again, all ready to seal the deal with the third inquiry. Lin Li frowned unobservably at that moment.
Although Lin Li's Myth Potion had been auctioned at a whopping 10,000,000 gold coins, he would only get about 8,000,000 gold coins of income after deducting the transaction fee he needed to pay William. Hence, everyone thought that it was highly likely that Lin Li wouldn't be able to afford 8,000,000 gold coins. Nobody believed that Wilkinson and his companions would give all their earnings to the Tower of Dusk.
Maybe because of this speculation, the person behind Arathor felt that victory was already in his hands after Arathor had raised the bid to 8,000,000 gold coins. Thus, his emotions couldn't help but register a slight wave. As a Legendary-mage, Lin Li was very s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to magical energy, and managed to catch this wave. He fixed his attention on one of Arathor's attendants and finally spotted some clues.
Back at the Endless World, Lin Li had been a Hunter. One of the necessary skills that Hunters needed to learn was camouflage. Unlike the stealth movement skills of the assassins which emphasized hiding their identities and attacking their enemies stealthily, Hunters could change their appearance using the camouflage skill.
Chapter 552 - Elven Mage
Low-level camouflage could make magical beasts lose their target. This was known as dispelling aggro in the game. It was one of the best skills to use when trying to escape from a group of magical beasts. Medium-level camouflage could change one's appearance and behavior, and also make oneself appear to be the target, either in human or magical beast form. High-level camouflage was Lin Li's favorite. It could not only change one's appearance, but also change faction in the game, and even allowed the imitator to use some low-level skills that the person imitated had.
Although the above was referring to things in the Endless World game, Lin Li already knew that the Endless World was somewhat linked to Anril by now. For example, the appearance of the debris of the stars could prove this point. Now, Lin Li discovered traces of camouflage on one of Arathor's attendants after careful inspection.
Nothing in the world was perfect, and there were always two sides to things. Assassins could use their stealth movement skills to blend into the background. However, they could only move at very slow speeds to achieve that. Hunter's camouflage was also not undiscoverable. Lin Li had frequently used this skill back in the Endless World, and had unlocked the achievement "Camouflage Master" as a result. Hence, his understanding of this skill was much better than that of normal people in Anril.
Lin Li didn't even move. He was able to find every trace of camouflage that attendant was using just from his experience with camouflage alone. As if pulling threads of silk off a silkworm cocoon, Lin Li peeled off the attendant's disguise to find his true identity bit by bit. Though this might sound rather troublesome, it was just a matter of scanning the person from head to toe for Lin Li to expose all the camouflage he was using.
However, Lin Li was shocked after seeing through the attendant's camouflage. This explained why Lin Li hadn't been able to see through his identity at the start—the true identity of Arathor's attendant was an Elf!
Lin Li suddenly recalled another thing about Castellan Arathor. It was back when Arathor had just become the castellan of Roland City.
Back then, Roland City which was now honored as a city of abundance had been in chaos. Arathor's father, the former castellan, had been assassinated in the Castellan Mansion. All his subordinates had been busy fighting for power and wealth. The entire Roland City had been in so much turmoil that there hadn't been any sign of it being a city of abundance. Meanwhile, outside Roland City, other factions had been eyeing it like wolves, all hoping to snatch this granary of the Breezy Plains into their own possession.
Everyone had thought that Roland City would inevitably fall, and would be pressed hard to recover to its glorious old days. The succeeding castellan, 20-year-old Arathor, hadn't been seen as capable enough to settle this mess in Roland City.
Thus, everyone had been waiting to see Arathor fail. The castellans of several neighboring cities had even bet on whether Arathor could secure his position for more than a month. However, much to everyone's surprise, Arathor had not only secured the position for more than a month, he had also secured it to the extent that almost nobody could bring him down.
Arathor had achieved this with the help of the Elves. An Elven Army had swept all rebels in Roland City clean in under 10 days. Nobody knew where this Elven Army had come from. Nobody knew why those arrogant Elves would help Arathor. They only knew that Arathor had firmly secured his position as the castellan of Roland City with the help of this Elven Army, even when nobody had thought he could do so.
Looking at this right now, Arathor had not only relied on the Elves to suppress the rebels, he never ceased the contact with the Elves even after securing the position of castellan. What surprised Lin Li more was not the identity of this attendant being an Elf, but the fact that he couldn't make out the magical waves on this Elf. It was evident that this Elf's magical abilities were rather strong.
However, it was impossible for Lin Li to give up on this piece of debris of the stars, Rebirth, just because of this. Lin Li's eyes met those of the attendant for a second, and he gently curved his lips, smiling with much interest. Since Lin Li already knew that an Elf was participating in the bid, it was now understandable why Arathor was competing for this branch with Lin Li.
Lin Li didn't answer Arathor directly, but raised the bid again. "9,000,000 gold coins!"
The crowd downstairs erupted into an uproar again. There had already been a record-breaking transaction of 10,000,000 gold coins just now. Could that record be broken again so quickly given that the bidding was already catching up to that price? This Mage Felic really didn't treat money like money. He had just earned 10,000,000 gold coins from auctioning off the Myth Potion. Now, he had spent it on this branch. William must have earned a lot
from all these transactions.
Not to mention 10,000,000 gold coins, Lin Li wouldn't flinch if he had to pay 20,000,000 or even 30,000,000 gold coins in order to prevent this piece of debris of the stars from landing into the hands of others. As someone who had owned the Stars of Fury and the seven pieces of debris of the stars, he knew very well how terrifying these weapons were. These were divine weapons that could even kill the Dragon of Destruction!
Arathor's face turned pale. He had heard from his daughter that this Mage Felic was very powerful. His attendant could kill an Ice Howler single-handedly. Mage Felic even defeated a Lich and the Humerus Wyrm that the Lich had summoned. Now, this Mage Felic was not only the owner of the Tower of Dusk, but also the President of the Guild of Magic in the Breezy Plains, and even obtained the support of a batch of high-level pharmacists. With all achievements and abilities, Mage Felic probably couldn't be bothered to care about a mere castellan like Arathor himself.
"10,000,000 gold coins!" Arathor wouldn't want to become Mage Felic's enemy if it wasn't necessary due to certain circ.u.mstances. Even as the castellan of Roland City, he still often couldn't make his own decisions.
The entire hall was silent. How fast was it that the new lot had caught up with the record-breaking auction price of the previous one. More importantly, it seemed that the record of 10,000,000 gold coins could not be maintained much longer given how this auction was unfolding.
Damn it, was this lousy branch even worth it all? Was it because the crowd was too ignorant, or because these big shots were too stupid and rich? The audience all thought that they had learned something new that day. If they had known that these big shots were so easily tricked, they might've as well chopped some branch and auctioned it.
Those sitting downstairs were rather reputable people outside. However, they were surprised to see these people who didn't treat money like money. They had felt that although their power and influence weren't as great as those of the Malfa Family or Dark Blade, and their wealth didn't match that of the Glittergold Trade Union or Gilded Rose, the difference wasn't so big. It wasn't impossible for them to catch up or even overtake these powerful families with enough hard work and some luck.
However, those people downstairs felt this gap between themselves and the rich families widening after witnessing their bids. Their hopes were getting further away, and were eventually smashed. This was too upsetting. How much time and effort did they have to put in to earn 10,000,000 gold coins? How could these people just spend it all on a branch? It was understandable to spend it on the Myth Potion, but what was the use of the branch? Did they really think it came from the Tree of Eternity?
"Mage Felic, I know that you have just auctioned the Myth Potion that you've concocted, and it was bought by Mr Robbio from the Glittergold Trade Union at 10,000,000 gold coins. So, you have much more money than a mere castellan like me. However, I urge you to carefully consider if it's worth it to spend so much on something that pharmacists can only put in their herb farms. This 10,000,000 gold coins are enough to buy a lot of precious herbs and diversify the types of herbs in your herb farm. Why are you even fighting for this rather useless thing with me?" Arathor attempted to convince Lin Li politely after raising the bid to 10,000,000.
"11,000,000 gold coins!" Lin Li first raised the bid, then turned, smiled at Arathor, and said, "Castellan Arathor, why are you fighting with me since you've said it's rather useless? Have you forgotten that the first one to bid was me? You are the one who's competing with me."
The crowd downstairs erupted into a clamor. They couldn't believe that the record just created during today's auction hosted by the Time Consignment Store was renewed so fast. From 3,000,000 to 10,000,000, and still rising… How high would the new record reach? What was so special about this insignificant branch that so many people were crazy after it?
Arathor's face turned even paler. Meanwhile, his Elven companion seemed to be trying hard to suppress his anger. Though Roland City was honored as the city of abundance, Arathor's family wealth had been long gone after the chaos 20-plus years ago. Even after the reconstruction of the city afterwards, the acc.u.mulation of wealth was still very limited.
Arathor couldn't help but hesitate. Taking out 10,000,000 would already greatly affect Roland City. Though Roland City was owned by Arathor's family to a certain extent, this didn't mean that Arathor could play around with this city and its people at will.
More importantly, the responsibility Roland City held as the granary of the Breezy Plains was crucial. Any changes would greatly affect the entire Breezy Plains. If Arathor had done anything that harmed the interests of Roland City, its inhabitants, various factions in Roland City, castellans of neighboring cities, and even the royal family of Felan Kingdom wouldn't spare Arathor so easily.
Seeing Arathor's hesitation, the Elf beside him showed obvious signs of anxiety. This anxiety was worsened with every inquiry William made downstairs.
"11,000,000 gold coins! This treasure from the Elven Kingdom is now at 11,000,000 gold coins, bid by President Felic of the Tower of Dusk. Anyone with a higher bid?" William sounded rather excited.
Not to mention the crowd downstairs, even the guests in the guest rooms were stunned by Lin Li's bid. Although everyone knew that Lin Li had earned a large sum from the Myth Potion, it still took a lot of boldness to spend everything just like that.
How much had this Tower of Dusk developed since its founding less than a year ago? Given that this young President was willing to spend so much, it could at least show that the wealth he possessed wasn't just the 10,000,000 he had earned just now. If not, he wouldn't have spent everything he had just earned on a branch of unknown origin. After all, 10,000,000 was so important to a newly established faction!
"So young!" Prince Hilary shook his head and sighed. It seemed like this genius lad who Englos admired so much wasn't all that perfect. In this world, geniuses weren't so rare. Talented people often faced the same problem. That was, certain flaws were also magnified just as their talents in certain aspects were magnified. Due to this reason, many geniuses couldn't develop to their full potential before being overcome by this problem.
Hilary's biggest hobby was to collect all kinds of strange objects and investigate forgotten skills. He was well-known in Anril because of this. Although he believed that he could afford to spend 10,000,000 gold coins, he definitely wouldn't spend it all on an insignificant branch.
Judging from the current circ.u.mstances, this genius lad that Englos admired had fallen into a fight over reputation—a mistake young people often committed. If not, any rational person wouldn't have made such a decision. Hilary suddenly felt bored, and dispelled the idea to visit the Tower of Dusk in Doland. This genius lad most likely couldn't escape his eventual downfall.
Robbio of the Glittergold Trade Union, however, had another thought in mind. Since his boss Hoffman admired this Mage Felic so much, couldn't he seek this chance to forge a closer relationship with Mage Felic by lending him some money? After all, the Glittergold Trade Union could lend its money to anyone. It was too much that Glittergold was attending this auction anyway, since its competing bidders' money was most likely lying in the gold reserves of the Glittergold Trade Union!
"11,000,000 gold coins! Anyone with a higher bid? 11,000,000 gold coins going twice!" William's voice had covered the noises of the crowd.
The deal would be sealed when William struck down with his gravel after the asking for the third time. Arathor wasn't willing to risk Roland City's future on this bid. However, the Elf standing behind him could hide no longer. After William's second inquiry, he stood forward and shouted, "12,000,000 gold coins!"
Chapter 553 - Gamble
"15,000,000 gold coins!"
Before Arathor and the Elf could even communicate, Lin Li had already chased up to them and placed his bid without hesitation.
As soon as he placed his bid, the miscellaneous noises ceased, and there was a sudden explosive sound that seemed like it wa
s going to break the roof instead. It was just like a volcano that had erupted after staying dormant for a long time. No one bothered about William and the rules of the auction, for the bid was shocking enough to make everyone lose their mind.
15,000,000 gold coins! Damn it, he actually wants to pay so much just for this broken branch, and that without hesitation! Is there something wrong with this Mage Felic's brain!? Those people had already become jaded after hearing the sky-high bids, but the new bid of 15,000,000 was already beyond what they could accept.
Damn, if I had those 15,000,000 gold coins, I would rather use them to buy better magic equipment and solicit stronger subordinates. This money is enough to double my abilities and strength. That madman Felic's Tower of Dusk has only been established for a year, and he should be in need of a large amount of funds now. Yet, he wants to spend all of the money that he had just earned on some useless tree branch.
Lots of people thought the same, and they all felt that they would rather invest their money in their own forces in his place.
In fact, all of them had seen big money before. After all, they also owned powerful forces which dominated their respective fields. Their combined assets were definitely more than 10,000,000 gold coins. However, owning 10,000,000 gold coins was not the same as spending 10,000,000 gold coins. 10,000,000 gold coins could be put to various uses, yet Lin Li spent it all on a tree branch that was definitely not worth that much money even if it were taken from the Tree of Eternity.
What would the mages of the Tower of Dusk think if they were to find out? Anyway, if I were them, I would definitely kick him out of the damn Guild of Magic. I doubt the Tower of Dusk can last long with such a selfish President. It's only a matter of time before they disband.
Almost all the people in the audience were agitated. Although Lin Li had nothing to do with them, they were really anxious. Indeed, the lives of everyone were different.
