Before the first announcement had even finished echoing, the second chime rang out—then the third, then the fourth…
"VIP No. 79 bids forty billion." Wanwan read aloud.In less than a minute, the price had already climbed to forty billion.
This price was by no means low; it had already entered the top ten highest bids in the history of Sun-Moon Auction House.
As soon as Wanwan's voice fell, golden text appeared on the soul guide screen:
"VIP Room No. 4 bids fifty billion."
Wanwan's voice rose with excitement, several spotlights shone on Room No. 4, and the live broadcast camera cut to it as well.
Before the crowd even had time to react, another golden text flashed:
"VIP Room No. 6 bids sixty billion."
Wanwan called out, her heart full of admiration—these big shots truly lived up to their name, raising the bid by ten billion at a time.
"Sixty-five billion."
A bidder in one of the VIP seats directly called out. He was an ordinary person, but also the head of the number-one real estate company in the Eastern region.
"VIP No. 23 bids sixty-five billion."
Another golden text appeared—VIP Room No. 7 bidding seventy billion.
Inside VIP Room No. 2:
"Eighty billion." Yun Ming looked straight at the auction stage and gave the price. Beside him, Feng Wuyu immediately understood, inputting the number on the soul guide screen.
"VIP Room No. 2 bids eighty billion."
At the sound of eighty billion, everyone in the VIP seats frowned, their hands hovering over the bidding buttons, hesitating, not daring to follow so lightly.
In VIP Room No. 4, Qian Gu Dongfeng hesitated for a moment before finally calling out a price:
"Ninety billion."
"VIP Room No. 4 bids ninety billion."
Even Wanwan's heart skipped a beat when she read the number.
Not to mention Sun-Moon Auction House—even across all other auction houses, in the past century, a bid over eighty billion had never appeared.
The last time was more than 150 years ago, when a one-hundred-thousand-year spirit bone had been sold for a sky-high price of 120 billion.
In this age where soul beasts had gone extinct and spirit bones had vanished, the rarity of a one-hundred-thousand-year spirit bone was self-evident. That it fetched such a price was only natural.
Inside VIP Room No. 5, Gu Ming and the Xu brothers, Xu Lin and Xu Chuan, were discussing whether to place a bid.
"Teacher, I think the price of the later pills will only be higher. We should secure the first one while we still can." Xu Lin suggested.
"Mm, I agree." Gu Ming nodded and signaled Xu Chuan to bid.
"VIP Room No. 5 bids one hundred billion."
Wanwan announced loudly. The hall erupted in uproar. That number shocked many people into silence.
The audience watching the livestream gaped. Upon hearing "one hundred billion," many swallowed hard—such wealth usually only appeared in their dreams.
The number held for more than a minute. Only when Wanwan inquired if there were higher offers did the bidding move again:
"VIP Room No. 7 bids one hundred and ten billion."
"Keep going." Qian Gu Dongfeng said coldly. He was determined to win the first longevity pill.
"VIP Room No. 4 bids one hundred and twenty billion."
Two minutes later:
"VIP Room No. 3 bids one hundred and thirty billion."
Wanwan's voice cracked with shock—the price had now tied the all-time auction record.
Everyone in the VIP seats couldn't help but look toward VIP Room No. 3, itching to know which great figure sat inside.
At one hundred and thirty billion, a few others in the VIP seats could still afford to follow, but they hesitated—what if the later price came down?
Inside Room No. 4, Qian Gu Dongfeng clenched his fist, also staring toward Room No. 3.
The VIP rooms were arranged side by side: Rooms 1 and 2 next to each other, 3 next to 1, 4 next to 2, and so on.
He glanced coldly in that direction but did not release his spiritual power to probe. As the Tower Master of the Spirit Transmission Tower, he had been placed in Room 4. That meant the people in the first three rooms had status and standing even higher in the eyes of the auction house.
It wasn't hard to guess: Shrek Academy's Yun Ming, Tang Sect's Unfeeling Douluo and Passionate Douluo, and the Hall of War God's Sea God Douluo, Chen Xinjie.
Though unwilling to admit it, he knew these four men from the three great powers had greater strength and influence than himself.
He reasoned that Tang Sect must be in Room 3. As for who was in Rooms 1 and 2, he wasn't sure.
Whether Chen Xinjie or Yun Ming, he had no intention of provoking them by probing with spiritual power. Especially Yun Ming, with whom the Spirit Transmission Tower had deep grudges—if he gave Yun Ming an excuse, the man might "invite" him to a duel. That was humiliation he did not want.
But reality differed from his guess.
Room 1 did not house Yun Ming or Chen Xinjie—it was Yun Ze and his group.
Chen Xinjie at this time was leading the Poseidon Legion on an expedition. As the commander, he could not possibly abandon his army to attend an auction.
Besides, the Chen family, while powerful in combat strength, was not among the wealthiest. There were at least a dozen families and sects with deeper coffers.
He knew even if he came, he likely couldn't win a bid. And he disdained stealing by force, so he simply did not attend.
As for Room 3—Qian Gu Dongfeng's guess was correct. It was Tang Sect's Passionate Douluo, Zang Xin.
Zang Xin appeared to be in his forties, tall, handsome, with deep, striking eyes. In truth, his age was far beyond that.
"Compared to wealth, my Tang Sect is not inferior to your Spirit Transmission Tower."
Zang Xin smiled faintly, glancing toward Room 4, as if locking eyes with Qian Gu Dongfeng.
Just as Qian Gu Dongfeng had guessed Room 3 must house either him or the Unfeeling Douluo, Zang Xin too had guessed Room 4 held Qian Gu Dongfeng.
Ordinary people might not know whether Shrek, Tang Sect, the Spirit Transmission Tower, or the War God Hall was strongest—but among themselves, the answer was clear.
The auction house certainly assigned the rooms based on strength. Could the Spirit Transmission Tower possibly outrank the Tang Sect?
"VIP Room No. 7 bids one hundred and forty billion!"
Wanwan shouted excitedly, trembling with exhilaration—the all-time auction record had been broken!
The bid shocked the entire hall once again. Even Zang Xin was momentarily stunned—he hadn't expected his offer to be surpassed so quickly.
Inside Room 1, Gu Yue Na chuckled to Yun Ze:
"Seems their desire for this Longevity Pill is greater than we thought. Do you think the price will break two hundred billion?"
Yun Ze didn't lift his head from his book. "It should be no problem."
Gu Yue Na laughed softly: "If these pills are worth so much, if you refine more, wouldn't we soon become the wealthiest power on the continent?"
"Rarity is what makes it precious. If there are too many, it won't fetch this price. Besides…" Yun Ze paused before continuing:
"The pill's hidden value far surpasses its monetary value. Having fewer is better than having more."
(End of Chapter)