Only a thousand! The minimum increment!
Woosh!
The auction hall, which had just settled into a tense quiet, erupted into a wave of restrained commotion. Box Heaven Number Three struck again, and this time, they only added a thousand! It was clearly intentional!
The private room at Box Earth Number Three had just tried to intimidate the hall with a big jump, and Box Heaven Number Three casually countered with the smallest possible increment.
It was like saying, "Go ahead and raise it, I'll follow, but I'm not getting played for a sucker."
This kind of bid seemed gentle on the surface, but it was loaded with provocation and mockery.
Inside the Box Earth Number Three room,
Yu Xiaotang's face darkened instantly when she heard the bid.
It's her again! That black-robed woman!
So it really is personal, and in the most annoying way possible!
Yu Mingxi's brows furrowed deeply as he looked at Yu Xiaotang, "Junior Sister Yu, it seems this person is deliberately targeting you. Should we—"
Before Yu Xiaotang could respond, the bidding below erupted again!
The one-thousand increment from Box Heaven Number Three seemed to break some invisible deadlock!
Once someone dared to lead with the minimum increment, other competitors adding a thousand didn't look so cheap anymore!
"Forty-five thousand!"
"Forty-six thousand!"
The situation reversed instantly!
Yu Xiaotang's earlier attempt at a crushing, large-step bid was obliterated by Box Heaven Number Three's casual one-thousand raise.
Other room competitors seemed to find their cue and immediately jumped back into the fray.
Yu Xiaotang's face darkened even more. She wasn't stupid; she quickly understood the trick.
That black-robed woman wasn't just targeting her—she was giving other competitors a chance to re-enter.
Yu Mingxi's frown deepened. He said to Yu Xiaotang, "Junior Sister Yu, looks like… the situation's changed. The price's probably going to climb further."
Yu Xiaotang gritted her teeth, anger boiling inside, but she knew now wasn't the time to act rashly.
Forty-six thousand spirit stones… for this peak Golden Core beast corpse, it was still within a reasonable range.
Especially for her future plans, it was still worth fighting for.
She drew a deep breath, forcing herself calm, and said coldly,
"Continue! Forty-seven thousand!"
She could only match the increment of one thousand. Since the momentum had shifted, a large raise would just look foolish.
The bidding returned to a slow, back-and-forth tug-of-war between the rooms, one thousand at a time. The price gradually climbed to fifty-two thousand spirit stones.
At this point, some rooms started dropping out. Only Box Heaven Number Six and Box Earth Number Three remained.
"Fifty-three thousand!" Box Heaven Number Six raised again.
"Fifty-four thousand!" Yu Xiaotang followed without hesitation.
The hall went quiet again at that price.
Box Heaven Number Six's room stayed silent for a moment, apparently weighing their options.
In the end, they gave up.
As merchants, Wanbao Lou cared more about profit.
Paying fifty-four thousand top-grade spirit stones for a peak Golden Core corpse without the beast core didn't promise enough profit to justify further fighting.
"Fifty-four thousand top-grade spirit stones, sold!" Lao Ge's voice echoed across the hall.
Just as Yu Xiaotang thought victory was hers—
"Fifty-five thousand."
The voice came again from Box Heaven Number Three.
Yu Xiaotang felt a surge of anger, quickly followed by deep helplessness.
She had no idea what she'd done to offend this black-robed woman. They'd never even met before, right? The system could confirm that!
But anger and frustration didn't matter now. She forced herself to think clearly.
Wait a second…
During the last auction for the hand scroll, the opponent had used the same close-follow tactic, pushing the price up until she reported a high bid and then suddenly dropped out, leaving her to be the sucker.
So this time, if the opponent was using the same trick, why not turn it around and bait her instead?
This corpse was important, yes, but fifty-five thousand spirit stones were already near the top of what she and Yu Mingxi could afford. Any higher and it would be beyond their limit. Even if they gave up, letting the black-robed woman buy it at an outrageous price would still sting.
Buying materials far beyond their true value? That'd ruin their calm strategy.
She couldn't show weakness now.
With a flash of thought, Yu Xiaotang made her decision.
"Fifty-six thousand." Her voice remained calm, still carrying the aura of someone determined to win.
Fifty-six thousand… this price was already approaching, or even slightly exceeding, the fair market limit for a peak Golden Core corpse without its beast core.
Her raise seemed calm, but considering her prior moves and the price,
Xie Zhaolin's eyes flickered with understanding.
"Heh… trying to bait me into a trap? Raising it to lure me forward, then dropping out so I end up the sucker? Not a bad idea."
Too bad she wasn't interested in the corpse herself. Playing along with Yu Xiaotang here was enough to reveal her bottom line and intent.
At that thought, Xie Zhaolin didn't hesitate.
"Fifty-seven thousand."
Still just a one-thousand increment.
The hall's attention snapped back to Box Earth Number Three!
Everyone wanted to see if the VIP in Box Earth Number Three would follow.
Yu Xiaotang, seeing the counter, tensed for a moment, then a cold thrill of satisfaction swept through her.
Good! They're hooked!
She forced herself calm and called out,
"Fifty-eight thousand!"
After announcing it, Yu Xiaotang was ready.
If the opponent raised even a hundred more, she'd immediately let go!
Time for the black-robed woman to feel what it's like to be the sucker!
She even shifted slightly, glancing at Box Heaven Number Three with her peripheral vision, waiting for the trap to spring.
But—
One second, two seconds, three seconds…
Silence.
Box Heaven Number Three made no move.
Yu Xiaotang's confident, even scheming expression froze, then slowly shifted into disbelief and shock.
What's going on? Why didn't they follow? The price was high, but still within the acceptable range! Shouldn't they… have kept bidding?
A foreboding chill immediately crept over Yu Xiaotang.
Yu Mingxi's expression darkened too. He looked at Yu Xiaotang with clear disapproval and a hint of irritation, "Junior Sister Yu! Fifty-eight thousand top-grade spirit stones, this price already far exceeds what this corpse is worth! Even splitting it, it… isn't worth it!"
His meaning was clear: You've been reckless, and we've been made the suckers.
Yu Xiaotang opened her mouth but couldn't explain. She couldn't say she'd deliberately raised the price to bait someone and ended up trapped herself—that would just make her look even more foolish.
"Fifty-eight thousand top-grade spirit stones, final call!" Lao Ge's voice rang below.
"Sold!"
"Wait!"
A sudden shout cut through, and the hall fell silent.
Everyone's eyes turned instantly to Box Earth Number Three!