Nine Star Hegemon Body Art c1-2048
Page 48
Now that the auction had reached this point, there was no need for Yao Niqian to fan the flames of people’s passions. That would only cause people to feel disgusted.
Seeing that no one else was bidding, Yao Niqian started to count down. In the end, Wang Luyang’s high bid won the middle grade second tier Flesh Bone Restoration Pill.
“Everyone, don’t be in a hurry to leave. The show has yet to end.”
Seeing that everyone was already preparing to get up, Yao Niqian smiled and received a jade case from another maid.
Everyone’s expression became a bit strange. The auction this year truly was full of interesting surprises. What was this next treasure that was even more precious than that pill?
Opening the jade case, Yao Niqian revealed a medicinal pill that stunned everyone.
That was clearly the exact same pill as the Flesh Bone Restoration Pill from before! Didn’t they say that it was one of a kind? Were they purposely playing with them?
When Wang Luyang saw that pill, he immediately stood up. Everyone was expecting him to fly into a rage.
But what no one expected was that he only foolishly looked at it for a moment before laughing. “Haha, good, this time I didn’t come for nothing.”
Yao Niqian smiled and admiringly said, “Truly worthy of being an alchemist grandmaster. You can tell from that far away. Yes, this is also a Flesh Bone Restoration Pill. However, this one is not middle grade. Instead, it is high grade!”
“What?!”
“Yes, this is a high grade ancient pill. The middle grade pill is only useful in the Blood Condensation realm and below. But this precious high grade pill is effective even for Tendon Transformation experts,” Yao Niqian explained solemnly.
A storm erupted in the crowd. Tendon Transformation experts? That was the peak of the Phoenix Cry Empire!
“High grade Flesh Bone Restoration Pill. Starting bid: two hundred million.”
“Four hundred million!”
The first person to shout was actually Wang Luyang. Moreover, he immediately raised the bidding price, clearly not wishing to take it slowly and displaying his determination to obtain it.
Everyone sighed at how rich alchemists were.
“Five hundred million!”
Marquis Ying bid shortly after Wang Luyang. Everyone anticipated seeing the competition between the two of them.
“Brother Chu Yang, do you think Marquis Ying can beat Wang Luyang?” asked Xia Changfeng.
“This time, the medicinal pill is a must-have for Marquis Ying. Even if he has to spend his entire fortune, he will still bid,” sighed the crown prince.
“Why’s that?” Xia Changfeng was a bit puzzled. It didn’t seem that just a medicinal pill could be so coveted.
“Brother Xia must not know about this. A dozen years ago, Marquis Ying fought with an opponent, and in an effort to defeat him, he ended up losing a finger. Back then, he refused to seek treatment due to his pride. He wanted to use that event to motivate him to cultivate harder.
“So from that point onwards, he started to train crazily, eventually breaking through and entering the Tendon Transformation realm. But after entering the Tendon Transformation realm, he realized that training in the Tendon Transformation realm required you to temper your tendons to connect them to your marrow. Having lost a finger, he was missing a tendon. Thus, it has had an enormous impact on his cultivation.
“But due to how long his finger has been severed, there was no way to fix it. He has spent several years roaming throughout empires without finding a way to heal it.
“The reason he let Wang Luyang win last time was because that was just a middle grade Flesh Bone Restoration Pill. It was only useful to Blood Condensation cultivators. If he had used it, the chances of it helping him recover were extremely remote. Spending five hundred million on just a small chance really was a bit too much, thus he let it go.
“But now this high grade Flesh Bone Restoration Pill is practically godsent. So I can guarantee that he will obtain it. If that Wang Luyang refuses to give way, hehe….” Chu Yang coldly laughed and didn’t continue.
But it was extremely obvious that if Wang Luyang refused to be tactful, it would be exceedingly difficult for him to be able to leave the Phoenix Cry Empire.
Even if he was the ruler of an empire, that empire wasn’t comparable to the Phoenix Cry Empire. Marquis Ying wouldn’t mind killing someone for his treasures.
Xia Changfeng and Xia Baichi nodded. Alchemists were all exceedingly arrogant. Perhaps the competition between the two of them would extend past this auction.
Wang Luyang’s expression changed when he saw Marquis Ying bid against him so fiercely. He knew that Marquis Ying probably viewed this pill as a must-have. But getting him to give up instead was impossible.
With a high grade Flesh Bone Restoration Pill, his chances of figuring out the corresponding pill formula would skyrocket. And once he figured out the pill formula, his name would shake the heavens.
Furthermore, alchemists did not lack money. Of course, that was excluding beginners who failed their refinements so much that they often bankrupted themselves.
Just as Wang Luyang was about to bid again, Marquis Ying’s soft voice rang out, “Grandmaster Wang, this medicinal pill is of exceedingly great importance to me. Please yield to me. I can even give grandmaster several days to study it after I obtain it. Harming the relationship of our two empires for just a small medicinal pill really isn’t wise.”
This truly dazed the crowd. Marquis Ying was using both the carrot and the stick to force Wang Luyang to give up. It seemed this medicinal pill truly was exceptionally important to him.
Yao Niqian’s expression became a bit ugly though. This move was clearly disrupting the auction, but both Marquis Ying and Wang Luyang had high statuses and were their customers.
If she were to reprimand these two, not only would it not change anything, but the chances of them continuing to compete were no longer great.
Furthermore, punishing the two of them would definitely have a negative effect on the Huayun Pavilion’s reputation. Yao Niqian began to hate that feminine voice of Marquis Ying’s.
“Marquis Ying must be joking. This old man wants to compete, but unfortunately, I have no more money.” Wang Luyang laughed lightly.
The conclusion was a boring disappointment. Just what kind of person was Wang Luyang? No more money? This was clearly his way of giving the face to Marquis Ying and getting out of an awkward situation.
Although Yao Niqian was extremely angered, her face still maintained that perfect smile of hers. Now that the auction was nearing its end, she didn’t want to cause a huge fuss.
“Master Marquis Ying bids five hundred million. Are there any higher bids?”
“Five hundred million going once.”
“Five hundred million going twice.”
“Five hundred million going-“
Marquis Ying had already relaxed inside his private room. Hearing the helplessness in Yao Niqian’s voice, he coldly smiled. Indulging in this kind of feeling was his favorite.
But a lazy voice caused his expression to immediately change. Even the tea in his hand spilled out.
“Six hundred million.”
Chapter 62 End of the Auction
“Six hundred million.”
That voice was extremely young and lazy. Everyone turned their heads to look at the private room it had come from.
When they saw it was Long Chen’s private room, a strange expression appeared on several people.
Back when Long Chen had been about to obtain the Starfusing Grass, Marquis Ying had purposely said some things that had incited Xia Baichi to fight with him over it. Now from Long Chen’s words, it appeared he was looking for some revenge.
Several people were praising Long Chen inside. There were few people in the entire Phoenix Cry Empire who would dare compete with Marquis Ying.
Marquis Ying’s face darkened. He hadn’t expected that Long Chen who had b
een silent for so long would suddenly take this chance to look for trouble with him.
“Seven hundred million.”
But at this point, he couldn’t cower. That medicinal pill was something he absolutely had to obtain no matter the price.
Otherwise, with his status, there was no way that he would have thickened his face to plead with Wang Luyang. This medicinal pill was just that important to him.
A pleased smile appeared on Long Chen’s face. Now he could take revenge on Marquis Ying for what he had done to him just before. He couldn’t help but feel fresh and brighter inside.
He had always been using divine sense to pay attention to Xia Changfeng’s private room. Having learned from them that Marquis Ying treated this Flesh Bone Restoration Pill as a must-have, if he didn’t go get some vengeance, then he wouldn’t be Long Chen.
Although he knew offending Marquis Ying was unwise, he didn’t worry too much about that. First, he’d relieve some of his anger.
He didn’t believe that Marquis Ying would actually go overboard against him for such a thing. With the alchemist guild behind him as a support, he had the confidence to provoke Marquis Ying.
“Eight hundred million.”
The Huayun Pavilion didn’t send any warnings to him despite his high bids. Yao Niqian was actually excited inside; however, she hid her emotions extremely well.
“Master Long Chen bids eight hundred million. Are there any higher bids? If not, then this high grade Flesh Bone Restoration Pill will be handed to him,” announced Yao Niqian.
“Wait a moment, I doubt that Long Chen actually has that much money. He’s just making empty bids.”
Marquis Ying’s feminine voice now held a trace of anger. Although he had suppressed it, people could still hear the fury in his voice.
“Is Marquis Ying questioning our integrity?” Yao Niqian’s smile immediately receded and she angrily said, “Young master Long Chen is grandmaster Yun Qi’s student. Everyone in the Phoenix Cry Empire knows this. Before the auction, grandmaster Yun Qi transferred all his credit to young master Long Chen. Does Marquis Ying still think that young master Long Chen is making empty bids?”
Yao Niqian’s words were rather blunt and impolite. Obviously, Marquis Ying had truly angered her by breaking the rules.
Now that she had the opportunity, she would naturally relieve some of her anger. She was a woman, and a woman knew how to hold grudges. Once you angered a woman, they would no longer be soft and gentle anymore.
Everyone gasped when they learned that grandmaster Yun Qi had transferred his credit to Long Chen.
That meant Long Chen had the true support of the entire alchemist guild. That kind of guarantee meant Long Chen could buy anything he wanted. Who dared to say he had no money?
But even Long Chen was dazed. How come he hadn’t known about this? But he quickly realized that Marquis Ying’s actions had angered the Huayun Pavilion. They were supporting him in order to give Marquis Ying a slap in the face.
Marquis Ying’s expression was extremely ugly now. If what Yao Niqian had said was true, then he really wouldn’t be able to compete against Long Chen in terms of financial resources.
“One billion.”
Marquis Ying pushed down his anger and raised the bid by a whole two hundred million. A billion gold coins! Just to buy a second tier medicinal pill! That was definitely unprecedented.
With Marquis Ying’s financial ability, a billion gold coins were already several years worth of savings.
“Brother Long, how about you don’t bid again? It’s already quite frightening.” Shou Hou was quietly shivering.
Back when Long Chen had bid, they had all been completely shocked. A simple opening of his mouth was equivalent to a hundred million gold… Even if it wasn’t their money, it was still breathtaking.
But Long Chen only smiled slightly. He was highly suspicious that Marquis Ying was the one who had stolen his cultivation ability. Now it was just him getting back some interest.
“One billion five hundred million.”
Immediately after Shou Hou finished, Long Chen raised the bid, almost scaring Shou Hou to the point of fainting.
Marquis Ying had just raised the price by two hundred million all at once. But now Long Chen was even more vicious, directly raising the price by half a billion! He was clearly using Yun Qi’s money to suppress Marquis Ying.
The crowd was completely silent. Even Wang Luyang was flabbergasted. That price had long since exceeded his expectations.
Although he only had a middle grade Flesh Bone Recovery Pill and it was inferior to the high grade pill, there was still a large chance of him being able to figure out the pill formula from studying it. Therefore, he had also given up at this time.
Crack. The teacup in Marquis Ying’s hand was crushed, and even the tea that splashed onto his body was completely unnoticed by him.
Blue veins were pulsing on his forehead. If he didn’t know that the Huayun Pavilion had a powerful backer, he would have already charged out to go kill Long Chen.
“Long Chen, you want to obtain this pill that badly?” Marquis Ying asked coldly.
Long Chen laughed. He could tell that Marquis Ying had spat these words out through clenched teeth. In other words, he was exceptionally enraged, probably even more enraged than Long Chen had been when trying to obtain the Starfusing Grass.
“Well, actually this thing is pretty much useless to me,” said Long Chen indifferently.
“Then, you’re purposely making an enemy of me?” Marquis Ying raged.
“You can’t put it that way. I have several reasons for wanting to obtain this thing. Reason number one is that it’s an ancient pill. Even if I have to pay a high price for it, it’s still worth it. If I bring it back to my teacher, he also wouldn’t scold me. In fact, he might even praise me.
“Reason number two is that you pissed me off just now. My temperament is a bit strange. I can take anything, but I can’t take a loss like that.
“Reason number three is that just like you, my father is also one of the three great pillars of this Phoenix Cry Empire. He spends his days guarding the barbarian border, fighting against enemies constantly, completing heroic contributions. But my family became penniless, unable to even keep a dozen servants.
“But you, Marquis Ying, who are on the same level as my father, spends his days lazing about in the imperial palace, actually has this much money.
“So I was curious just how big the difference between us was. Just how rich is senior Marquis Ying; just how many times more money does he have than my Long family?” said Long Chen with a smile.
The majority of the people present were members of the Phoenix Cry Empire. Although Long Chen had been laughing as he said those things, everyone could hear his resentment.
“So you want to fight with me to the end?” Marquis Ying asked lightly as he looked down at his broken teacup, killing intent surfacing in his eyes.
“Not really. Maybe if you increase the price again you’ll win; or maybe if some people are able to tactfully display their own apologies, then my Long family will consider it and withdraw from this competition,” said Long Chen.
“Hahaha, fine, a tiger father truly has a tiger son. The younger generation truly does surpass the old one. I admit defeat today. Allow me to shamelessly make one last bid – one billion five hundred and one million,” laughed Marquis Ying.
Everyone was stupefied, never expecting that Long Chen would actually be able to force Marquis Ying to bow his head. Marquis Ying’s admittance of defeat already said everything.
Long Chen smiled slightly. It appeared he had already reached Marquis Ying’s bottom line. His adding of a paltry one million obviously meant that if Long Chen were to make another bid, he would give up.
But if he did give up, he would not hold back from taking extreme measures. Long Chen knew when to quit while he was ahead, and so he didn’t increase the bid again.
Today already counted as his victory. An expe
rt on the same level as his father was pushed into defeat by him. Moreover, he had also managed to release some of his anger in this grand setting.
But his actual strength still wasn’t enough. He couldn’t force Marquis Ying too far, otherwise, if Marquis Ying was truly angered, he would make him disappear without leaving behind a single trace. Even the alchemist guild wouldn’t be able to investigate it.
And even if they did investigate at that time, he would already be dead, so there was no point. Revenge had to be taken one step at a time.
Yao Niqian had returned to her smiling self. Seeing that no one else was competing, she began to count down.
Finally, Marquis Ying had his wish fulfilled and obtained the Flesh Bone Restoration Pill.
Confetti suddenly started to rain down and music began to play. A dozen colorful young maidens danced gracefully.
Yao Niqian gave a gracious thanks to everyone for participating. This time’s Huayun Pavilion’s auction had finally ended. The guests slowly started to leave.
Long Chen wasn’t in a rush. He waited until most of the crowd had left before exiting his private room.
But as soon as he walked out, he ended up running into several people. Those people were precisely Xia Changfeng, Chu Yang, and Xia Baichi.
“Long Chen, don’t think you can be arrogant just because of Yun Qi’s support. The Empress Dowager has already decided to give the third princess to my brother. In the future, she will be brother’s woman, so a lowly peasant like you should stop having any intentions about her,” sneered Xia Baichi.
“Oh, aren’t you that woman who was sharing a bed with your master? Now that your master has left, don’t you need to go attend to him?” Before Long Chen even had a chance to say anything, Shou Hou had already retorted.
Having muddled along with Long Chen for so long, he had become much more confident. He wouldn’t be able to feel at peace without causing a bit of trouble.
Xia Baichi’s expression changed; Shou Hou’s words were a vicious slap in the face for her.