The Journey of Immortal Cultivation

Chapter 1074 - 587: Money Is Not the Problem, the Problem Is... (2)

Time passed by second by second. Qi Zai’s figure finally appeared at the doorway.

His face was as cold as frost, which only thawed upon seeing Ning Xiaoxian. He said in a deep voice, "Successfully accomplished the mission!"

As he entered the room, a strong smell of blood assaulted them.

Ning Xiaoxian’s long eyebrows furrowed, a hint of killing aura leaked from the corner of her eye: "Was there indeed a kidnapping attempt on the way?" Spirit Stone was more important to her than ever before; those who tried to rob this money were essentially demanding her life! For enemies, is there any need to be polite?

Qi Zai, having just experienced bloodshed, spoke with a ruthless and bloody tone: "The attackers had some skills. Shortly after we left Ningyuan Hall, they started fighting. I killed three, other Hidden Guards killed seven, but two of our brothers were injured. Later, the City Defense Patrol arrived, and the opponent continued to entangle. We split into four groups and scattered in different directions, I’m not sure how those brothers are doing now."

The bravery of the Hidden Stream Demons was renowned throughout the world. Any force daring to attack Hidden Stream’s forces must be formidable too. Who could it be; Jishi Building, Yin Jiu You, or Juan Niang’s allies? Her enemies had a clear aim: to rob if they could, or to delay until the City Defense Patrol arrived, and have everyone taken back to the City Defense Station for interrogation. This would undoubtedly delay Qi Zai in delivering the money.

It’s known that when the Hidden Stream demons fight, they demand a clear outcome before stopping. The opponent might be exploiting this point to invite Qi Zai and others for tea at the City Defense Station. Luckily, this young lad had followed her for a long time and learned to be more cunning, even understanding to divide forces to confuse the enemy. Though, she believed more that this was due to Qingluan’s guidance beside him.

She hesitated for less than two seconds before putting this problem aside. Problems needed to be solved one by one, and her biggest problem now wasn’t those malevolent people outside Bai Yujing.

The Central Capital branch’s shipment volume has always been the leader across Ningyuan Hall, accounting for over one-third of the total annual income. Manager Yang was personally appointed by Ning Yu to oversee this most important branch, which attests to his extraordinary capabilities. Forget everything else; he managed to gather the funds in such a short time, certainly, a talent.

Qi Zai brought her over two million Spirit Stones, utilizing all funds that the Central Capital branch of Ningyuan Hall could gather and mobilize.

His speed was initially rapid, but the enemies on the halfway delayed him significantly. By the time he returned, the mid-session break of the auction was just about to end.

At this moment, Bai Yujing was already bustling more than the afternoon vegetable market in Huaxia at five or six o’clock.

What can be done in two hours? The answer was soon to be revealed.

Among everyone’s curiosity, anxiety, regret, impatience, and even schadenfreude, the previous auctioneer reentered the hall. After an hour’s rest, he now looked radiant. To host the auction of a Divine Artifact in this lifetime was to reach a pinnacle within this career field.

Stepping into the spotlight and being watched by everyone, he filled his voice with balance and announced loudly: "The auction for the Nanming Lihuo Sword begins now, with a starting bid of—three million Spirit Stones!"

This price was generally acceptable to everyone. Actually, for this Divine Artifact, the starting price didn’t matter much anymore.

The venue fell into a strange silence for a moment.

The veterans in the auction hall were unwilling to make the first move.

The auctioneer remained patient, softly speaking a couple of words, prompting someone to flip the sign: "Three and a half million!"

The crowd burst into a laugh! Does this price do justice to the term Divine Artifact?

Indeed, this price ignited the public’s anger. Without waiting for the auctioneer to fan the emotions, the Black Stone Plates outside each box started flashing red light, as did many VIPs in hall floors, some wealthy ones having arrived late and squeezed into the hall as there were no empty boxes available—they had not the slightest less financial power!

"Four and a half million Spirit Stones!"

"Six hundred seventy thousand!"

"Seven hundred ninety thousand!"

...

On the seventeenth floor of the Star-picking Tower, every floor was flashing red lights, akin to bat eyes in the dark night. Instantly, the auctioneer regretted not having seven or eight more mouths. Being experienced himself, he immediately changed strategy, disregarding the countless red flashes, only looking for the highest price to shout.

Meanwhile, outside many boxes, the Black Stone Plates were still pitch black, and the people inside seemed quite calm:

"For now, hold off on action, as the price of the Divine Artifact won’t just stop here."

"Those bidding now are just sporadic forces, not worth fearing."

Someone opened their eyes and glanced indifferently: "The current price isn’t even a million Spirit Stones. Hmm, close eyes and rest a little longer."

Ning Xiaoxian maintained a spectator’s stance, not bidding. As the saying goes, good wine sinks to the bottom of the jar; crudely put, early fat doesn’t count as fat, later fat would crash the bed. Those ahead are rigidly haggling, merely drawing bricks to attract jade, just for fun.

But now the upward momentum was so fierce, was her less than three million Spirit Stones enough?

She furrowed her brows and said to Steward Wu: "Since the ten thousand jin of Spiritual Tea sold to Heavenly Residence has been stored, please give me the payment first?"

This amount was over six hundred thousand Spirit Stones, which could solve her urgent predicament.

This doesn’t conform to rules, but outside of law, there’s human sentiment, not to mention Heavenly Residence’s open-door business? After pondering, Steward Wu said, "I’ll handle it." Then rose to leave.

#####

Bai Yujing Star-picking Tower seventh floor.

After a round of bidding flare-ups, the price in the venue finally started to stabilize. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you’re welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast recommendation tickets, monthly tickets; your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)