Chapter 132: Chapter 130: A Special Invitation

The price instantly exploded.

Items that would have originally sold for a few hundred Contribution Points were being bid up into the thousands.

Han Feng’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

This was exactly why he hadn’t wanted to be too conspicuous.

The moment a price exceeded the meager profit margin he had calculated, he would withdraw without hesitation.

The results were obvious.

The few guys who had frantically jumped on the bandwagon spent a fortune to snatch away the auction items.

While the items they revealed did have value, after subtracting the terrifying premium they had paid, it was a complete and utter loss.

After a few rounds of this, everyone started to catch on.

It was true this kid had a keen eye.

But he was specifically targeting the "scraps"—items not worth much, but still a shame to pass up.

If you insisted on outbidding him, you’d just be losing money for the sake of showing off—purely making things difficult for yourself.

And so, no one bothered competing with Han Feng anymore.

The rhythm of the entire auction hall was now strangely under the control of a single person.

Everyone could only watch him.

Like someone picking out cabbage at a market, he would occasionally raise his hand and sweep one unremarkable "piece of junk" after another into his possession.

Gao Fei was laughing so hard his face was numb.

He excitedly mashed the calculator on his personal terminal, his fingers moving so fast they were practically sparking.

"Brother Feng!"

"Including that damaged Rune Board from just now, we’ve made a net profit of 7,800 points just by sitting here for a bit!"

7,800 points!

An ordinary C Level student might not be able to save that much even if they didn’t eat or drink for months.

But Han Feng had earned it effortlessly in less than an hour, just by sitting here and raising his hand a few times.

Watching from the side, Li Wei’s eye twitched uncontrollably.

He had followed Han Feng’s lead on two items and made a small profit of over a thousand points.

But to him, this amount of money was just a drop in the bucket.

However, the thrill of this surefire, risk-free profit was damnably addictive.

"Han Feng, you’re a real talent."

Li Wei said with heartfelt admiration. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"If anyone ever gambles against you in the future, their brain must have been kicked by a Demon Beast."

Just then, the noisy auction came to an abrupt halt.

The auctioneer on the stage wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, whispered a few words into his earpiece, and his expression became incredibly respectful.

The next second, two figures emerged from a side door.

They were two security guards in black suits, their bodies as burly as iron towers.

They emanated condensed Qi Blood fluctuations, their gazes icy.

They walked straight through the crowd, heading toward the back row where Han Feng was seated.

The surroundings fell instantly silent.

Everyone’s gaze converged on them, filled with doubt, speculation, and a hint of schadenfreude.

In a place like the Black Market, being approached by the organizers was never a good thing.

Either you had broken the rules and were about to be "invited" for a chat...

...or you had completely wrecked their business.

The lead security guard walked up to Han Feng, bowed slightly, and spoke in a surprisingly polite tone.

"Sir, could we invite you to the lounge for a cup of tea?"

"Our supervisor would like to see you."

"Alright."

Han Feng’s expression remained unchanged.

He patted Gao Fei’s tense shoulder and gave Li Wei a nod.

Then he stood up and followed the guards out.

Led by the security guards, Han Feng and Gao Fei arrived at an elegant tea room nearby.

A middle-aged man in a Tang suit was already waiting there.

The guard pointed to the middle-aged man and introduced him. "Sir, this is our supervisor."

With that, the guards silently withdrew and closed the door.

The middle-aged man immediately stood up, his face full of apologetic smiles, and clasped his hands in a gesture of respect toward Han Feng.

"Sir, my sincerest apologies for interrupting your enjoyment."

His next sentence caused Gao Fei’s brain to short-circuit on the spot.

"On behalf of the Black Market auction, I would like to sincerely invite you to become a special Appraiser for our ’Fog Plate’ sessions."

"An... an Appraiser?"

Gao Fei’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Yes."

The supervisor’s attitude became even more deferential, even a little fawning.

"If you are willing, you will be allowed to appraise all auction items in advance before each auction."

"For any high-value items you identify, you will receive ten percent of the net profit as compensation after they are successfully sold."

Gao Fei’s Adam’s apple bobbed hard, and he almost started drooling.

’This isn’t an interrogation.’

’This is a pie falling from the sky, and it’s made of solid gold!’

However, without even a moment’s pause to think, Han Feng shook his head.

"Thank you for the kind offer, but I’m used to working alone and don’t like being tied down."

The smile on the supervisor’s face instantly froze.

He had imagined countless possibilities, but he had never considered that such a golden opportunity—practically free money—would be rejected so decisively.

Ten percent of the net profit!

From a single auction, that would be tens of thousands of Contribution Points at the very least!

"Sir..."

"There’s no need to say more."

Han Feng cut him off.

"My decision won’t change."

’The offer is too good to be true, so good it’s dangerous.’

’Once I accept, it means I’ll be deeply tied to the massive power behind the Black Market, becoming a tool for them to accumulate wealth.’

’The path I want to walk is the Heaven-Reaching Sword Dao, not to become a vassal of some faction.’

’Besides, I have my system. I have plenty of ways to make money.’

’There’s no need to expose my biggest secret for this, and it’s certainly not worth attracting unknown risks.’

Seeing the determination in Han Feng’s eyes, the supervisor knew that further persuasion was useless, and a deep sense of regret washed over him.

He sighed and nodded.

"Very well, we respect your choice."

"However, according to the rules, guests with special Perception Talents are indeed no longer allowed to participate in the ’Fog Plate’ blind auctions."

"But you are welcome to go to the open auction hall next door."

He seemed to remember something, and changing the subject, he dropped a bombshell.

"As a way of expressing our apologies, I would like to ask if Mr. Han is interested in the crafting rights for the ’Tier Three Spirit Awakening Potion’ that will be the finale of our auction?"

"A Tier Three Spirit Awakening Potion?!"

Before Han Feng could even speak, Gao Fei, who was standing beside him, cried out in shock, his voice cracking.

The supervisor explained with a smile, "That’s right. This is a Spirit Awakening Potion made from the essence of a Tier Three Peak Demon Beast. We will be publicly auctioning the rights to craft it."

Gao Fei’s breathing instantly became ragged.

A Spirit Awakening Potion!

If a Body Tempering Realm Martial Artist consumes it while breaking through to the Meridian Passage Realm, there is a chance they can inherit a portion of that Tier Three Demon Beast’s bloodline Talent!

This was one of the few heaven-defying methods that allowed a Martial Artist to awaken a Talent later in life!

A single Tier Three Spirit Awakening Potion was a golden ticket to the upper echelons of the elite!

Gao Fei’s eyes were instantly filled with the flames of desire.

Han Feng, however, was as calm as a deep pool of water.

’Talent?’

’I was born with a Sword Bone and possess a system. My future potential is far beyond what a single Potion can offer.’

’Awakening an uncertain Talent with the help of an external object would only contaminate the pure foundation of my Sword Dao.’

"Thank you, but I don’t need it."

He shook his head decisively, his words carrying a cold, metallic quality.

Upon hearing this, a trace of surprise flashed in the supervisor’s eyes. In the end, he simply nodded, said no more, and turned to leave the tea room.

Only Han Feng and Gao Fei were left in the hallway.

Gao Fei remained frozen in place, his face a mask of disappointment and unwillingness, as if he had just missed out on a billion-dollar deal.

Han Feng walked over and clapped him firmly on the shoulder.

"Snap out of it. Don’t even think about it."

"Brother Feng... that’s a Tier Three Spirit Awakening Potion..."

Gao Fei’s voice was incredibly hoarse.

"It is."

Han Feng looked at him and got straight to the point.

"So, do you know what the starting bid for the crafting rights to that thing is?"

"It starts at a minimum of 100,000 Spirit Coins, with no upper limit."

"Do you have that much money?"

Gao Fei’s face fell instantly, and like a deflated ball, he hung his head in dejection.

"No."

"Then don’t waste your time thinking about it."

Han Feng advised him.

"Let’s go. We’re heading to the open auction hall. I still haven’t found the Spirit Plants I need."

Gao Fei let out a long sigh. He knew it was just wishful thinking and could only nod listlessly.

"Alright."

After that, the two headed straight for the other destination on their trip: the bidding hall.

「Ten minutes later.」

Han Feng had changed his attire and was now wearing a mask painted with a comical smiling face.

They followed the flow of people toward a massive space in the deepest part of the air-raid shelter.

The moment they stepped inside, a wave of noise and heat washed over them.

The area had been converted into a huge, circular hall, like a chaotic stock exchange.

In the center of the hall were rings of trading counters.

On the giant virtual screen above, countless item listings and frantically jumping prices scrolled by.

Countless people were crowded under the screen or in front of the counters, shouting out their bids at the top of their lungs.

"See that?"

Gao Fei pointed at the screen, his spirits considerably lifted.

"That’s the bidding board. All the auction items are up there. It refreshes every five minutes, and the highest bidder wins!"

Dazzled by the sight, Han Feng went straight to a self-service terminal next to a counter and searched for the keyword "native Spirit Plant".

Soon, a dozen or so listings popped up.

[Tier Two Spirit Plant · Red Flame Fruit, Starting Bid: 300 Spirit Coins]

[Tier One Upper Grade Spirit Plant · Concentration Flower, Starting Bid: 150 Spirit Coins]

...

Seeing the uniform unit of "Spirit Coins" after each item, Han Feng frowned slightly.

He then searched for "Spirit Coins," and an auction item he could understand finally appeared on the screen.

[Item: 200 Spirit Coins]

[Current Price: 30,000 Contribution Points]

[Time Remaining: 03:15]

Gao Fei leaned over and clicked his tongue. "The price is pretty fair. In the Black Market, the closing price for 200 Spirit Coins usually fluctuates between thirty to forty thousand Contribution Points."

Han Feng glanced at his account balance.

Excluding what he needed for his cultivation, he had about one hundred ten to one hundred twenty thousand in disposable funds, which could be exchanged for roughly six hundred Spirit Coins.

He looked at the number 30,000 on the screen and, without further hesitation, directly entered his bid on the terminal.

"32,000."

Submission successful.

He looked up at the giant screen. At almost the same instant, the price on the [200 Spirit Coins] auction listing jumped up.

[Current Price: 32,000 Contribution Points]

This number was insignificant in the sea of information.

Gao Fei leaned in and reminded him in a low voice, "Brother Feng, hold steady. Don’t rush to raise the bid. The last thirty seconds are when the titans clash. It’s all about keeping your nerve!"

Han Feng nodded, his gaze calmly fixed on the countdown timer on the screen.

Time ticked by, second by second.

When the countdown entered the final ten seconds, the price began to flicker wildly as the numbers soared!

[32,500]

[33,000]

[33,800]

Bid after bid refreshed rapidly. It was clear many people had their eyes on this batch of Hard Currency.

"Now!"

Gao Fei hissed, his eyes wide, even more nervous than Han Feng himself.

Han Feng’s finger was already hovering over the terminal screen.

The instant the price jumped to "34,500," he unhesitatingly entered a new bid.

"35,000!"

On the screen, the countdown hit zero.

A bright red "Sold" notice appeared and froze firmly next to the price.

Success!

"Nice!"

Gao Fei slapped his thigh and rubbed his hands together excitedly.

"Got it for thirty-five thousand! No loss on this one! That’s definitely the lowest price recently!"

Han Feng went to the counter to complete the transaction, and a cool metal box was soon in his hands.

Opening the box revealed two hundred silvery-white coins neatly arranged inside.

The front of the coins bore the double helix emblem of the Gaia Alliance, while the back was engraved with an exquisite Spirit Plant pattern. The Spiritual Power contained within was clearly perceptible.

This was the Hard Currency that could be used to purchase High Level resources throughout the entire Alliance.

Han Feng didn’t stop. He immediately returned to the terminal and began searching for the next batch of Spirit Coins up for auction.