The Mittel Auction House.
The auction officially began. The venue was packed, with many strangers in attendance.
At the appointed time, all the lights went out, plunging the hall into silence. All eyes were fixed on the only remaining light: the auction stage.
Under the watchful gaze of countless eyes, Ya Fei, dressed in a red cheongsam, stepped onto the stage.
However, to the bewilderment of many, Ya Fei's attire was remarkably conservative. While she wore the familiar cheongsam, her black stockings and shapely legs were nowhere to be seen, much to the disappointment of many of the male otaku from Wutan City.
Ya Fei glanced around the hall, then turned her gaze towards the first-tier private room, offering a gentle smile as if in greeting.
Inside the room, Liu Yun understood immediately, flashing a bright smile. He then turned to Gu Xun'er, winking at her, his eyes seemingly saying, "See? My wife smiled at me."
Gu Xun'er, however, remained unmoved, not even glancing at him.
Xiao Yan gave a helpless wry smile. He had heard Xun'er say earlier that Liu Yun was actually younger than him, and now, seeing that "I'm proud to have a wife" expression on his face, he couldn't help but laugh. He thought to himself, "Children's world is so simple!"
At the same time, Ya Fei's voice rang out in the hall, charming and alluring.
"Hello everyone, I am Ya Fei, the chief auctioneer of the Utan City branch of the Mittel Auction House.
Ten days ago, our head, Mr. Liu Yun, took office. Since then, he has been determined to make the Utan City auction house better and stronger, and thus has launched many valuable items for auction."
Ya Fei's words made everyone present aware of the name Liu Yun, and also made everyone aware that the owner of the Mittel Auction House had changed.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm sure you've been looking forward to this for a long time. Now, please welcome our first item to the stage." Ya Fei's voice was firm and resolute.
"First item up for auction: a Grade 2 elixir, the Vein Protection Pill, crafted by Master Gu Ni. Its effects are self-evident, so Ya Fei need not elaborate. Starting price: 5,000 gold coins. Let's bid!" "
5,500!" No sooner had Ya Fei finished speaking than someone shouted out a price.
"6,000!" The bidding followed closely.
Then, the price in the room surged, reaching 8,500 gold coins in a short time.
"10,000 gold coins," said Jia Liebi, the patriarch of the Jia Lie family.
The room fell silent; no one else bid. Jia Liebi won the Vein Protection Pill for 10,000 gold coins.
At the same time, in a private room, Liu Yun heard the system's voice in his mind.
"Ding! Ya Fei has auctioned a Grade 2 elixir: the Vein Protection Pill. Congratulations, host, for triggering a 20x return and obtaining a Grade 5 elixir: the Vein Shaping and Bone Removal Pill." The Vein
Shaping and Bone Removal Pill: allows those severely injured to reshape their veins, and even has a chance to undergo a complete transformation, reaching a higher level.
Liu Yun was surprised, but remained outwardly calm, waiting for what would happen next.
Sure enough, as Ya Fei auctioned off, the system's voice echoed continuously in his mind.
"Ding, Ya Fei auctioned a Tier 1 Wood Attribute Magic Core. Congratulations, host, for triggering a 20x return and obtaining a Tier 4 Wood Attribute Magic Core."
"Ding, Ya Fei auctioned a Green Spirit Vine. Congratulations, host, for triggering a 20x return and obtaining a Ten-Thousand-Year Green Spirit Vine." "
Ding, Ya Fei auctioned a Yin Spirit Flower. Congratulations, host, for triggering a 20x return and obtaining a Yin God Flower."
"Ding, Ya Fei auctioned a Tier 1 Magic Core Inner Armor. Congratulations, host, for obtaining a 20x return and obtaining a Tier 4 Magic Core Inner Armor."
"Ding, Ya Fei auctioned a Tier 3 Magic Core Wind Attribute Sword. Congratulations, host, for obtaining a 20x return and obtaining a Tier 6 Magic Core Wind Attribute Sword."
"Ding, Ya Fei auctioned a Purple Spirit Body Shaping Flower. Congratulations, host, for obtaining a 20x return and obtaining Narcissus Jade Skin Grass."
Liu Yun's body trembled. Narcissus Jade Skin Grass? He was very familiar with that name. He quickly checked the details.
Narcissus Jade Skin Grass: Mild in nature, can be taken directly. It nourishes tendons and bones, clears the meridians, and makes the skin smoother. It can also improve the aptitude of those with poor aptitude. (For use only at the Battle Qi stage.)
The atmosphere in the auction hall was at its peak, with everyone frantically bidding, even families from the capital were bidding.
"The eighth item, a fourth-grade pill: Qi Gathering Powder, starting price: one million gold coins."
Ya Fei's voice rang out, and the auction hall fell silent.
What did one million gold coins mean? Could the three major families of Wutan City afford one million gold coins each? Perhaps, but it would instantly cripple their finances.
Qi Gathering Powder was simply not something people in a small city like Wutan City could afford, so the scene quieted down.
But just then, someone in the private room called out a bid—it was someone from the capital.
"One million one hundred thousand!"
The starting price had already stunned everyone. People in the room thought it would fail to sell, but someone actually bid?
While everyone was still in shock, what happened next completely overturned everyone's worldview.
"One million two hundred thousand!" someone in another private room shouted.
However, this was not the final result. Another round of bidding ensued, and finally, the price of the Qi Gathering Powder was set at two million three hundred thousand.
"Ding, Ya Fei has auctioned a fourth-grade pill: Qi Gathering Powder. Congratulations, host, you have received a 20x return and obtained a sixth-grade pill: Qi Gathering Pill."
This return was not beyond Liu Yun's expectations. The extraordinary nature of the Qi Gathering Pill was absolutely unimaginable for ordinary people.
Although the Qi Gathering Powder nominally condensed 100% of the Battle Qi vortex, that was only for ordinary people. For someone like Liu Yun, whose Battle Qi had been compressed multiple times, it was impossible to achieve 100% success.
Furthermore, the Qi Gathering Pill could improve the quality of the Battle Qi vortex—a truly extraordinary blessing.
The auction continued, and the next item, "Mid-Level Profound-Rank Battle Skill: Wind Chasing Slash," sold for one million five hundred thousand.
"Ding! Ya Fei has auctioned 'Mid-Rank Profound-Level Battle Skill: Wind Chasing Slash.' Congratulations, host, you have received a 20x return and obtained 'Mid-Rank Earth-Level Battle Skill: Forward Slash.'"
Finally, the grand finale of the auction was revealed—the real highlight of the day.
"The tenth item, a high-level Profound-Level cultivation technique: Wind Sweep Technique, starting price: five million gold coins," Ya Fei announced.
Silence. Utter silence. The entire hall was almost deathly quiet. Everything they had witnessed today had shattered the hearts of the people of Wutan City.
"Six million! This Wind Sweep Technique, my Yunlan Sect wants it!" A young female voice rang out from the top-floor private room.
Liu Yun was astonished. Of course, he wasn't surprised by the Yunlan Sect's bid. The Yunlan Sect was incredibly wealthy; they could easily afford six million, let alone sixty million.
What surprised him was that the Yunlan Sect was actually in the room next to his, and that childish female voice made Liu Yun think of many things. If he wasn't mistaken…
He looked at Xiao Yan and saw that he also looked dazed, which made Liu Yun chuckle to himself. He thought to himself, "Kid, you're in trouble!"
However, Nalan Yanran probably wasn't here to annul the engagement this time. She was probably using the auction as an excuse to observe Xiao Yan.
Thinking about his own slow progress in fighting skills, Liu Yun felt that he still needed to work harder. As for how to work harder, he hadn't figured it out yet. In short, he wasn't interested in these young girls unless it was seduction.
"What's going on? Why hasn't anyone bid yet?" Liu Yun muttered.
"They're all scared off by the name of the Yunlan Sect, Brother Liu Yun. Your Mitel Auction House has really lost a lot this time!" Gu Xun'er said, emphasizing the words "Brother Liu Yun."
Liu Yun chuckled, unconcerned. It was impossible for him to have lost money. You think I lost money? Actually, I made a fortune!
In the end, no one bid, and Yunlan Sect bought "Wind Sweep Technique" for six million.
"Ding, Ya Fei auctioned 'Advanced Profound Rank Technique: Wind Sweep Technique'. Congratulations to the host for triggering a 20x return and obtaining 'Advanced Earth Rank Technique: Free and Easy Wind Control Technique'."