Proud Sword Soaring Clouds

Ye Wen Ni murmured, "Didn’t they say thirty thousand?"

Ling Xiao chuckled. "When the atmosphere gets this heated, a last-minute price hike is hardly surprising."

"Forty-one thousand gold coins!" someone in the main hall shouted out.

"Fifty thousand!" From a private box, at a nod from his father, the handsome young man finally made his move.

"Sixty thousand!" With a nod from Yisha’s grandfather, Qin Kang called out triumphantly.

The voices in the main hall gradually died down. Everyone knew the real contenders were in the dozen or so private boxes on the second floor, which sometimes even housed members of the Royal Family. With a single word, they could raise the bid by tens of thousands. The crowd below held their breath, their gazes fixed nervously on the second floor.

"Eighty thousand." Apparently weary of bidding in ten-thousand increments, the well-dressed, handsome youth let a disdainful smirk play on his lips. Amidst the gasps of the crowd below, he jumped the price straight to eighty thousand gold coins.

In their private box, Ye Wen Ni sat nervously beside Ling Xiao, utterly shocked. ’I never imagined people in the Imperial Capital could be so wealthy,’ she thought. ’It’s as if they’re bidding in copper coins, not gold!’

Qin Kang looked hesitantly at Yisha’s grandfather. After all, he wasn’t a member of the Yisha Clan yet, so he couldn’t speak for them.

Yisha’s grandfather shook his head slightly. A Tier Five Magical Beast was good, but at this price, it was no longer worth it. He decisively backed out.

Qin Kang sat down, disappointed. He had wanted to show off his commanding presence in front of Yisha, but unfortunately, he couldn’t speak for the Yisha Clan. He brooded, ’One day, I will!’

Huangpu Cangsong’s clear and resonant voice rang out, "We have a bid of eighty thousand gold coins! Are there any higher bids? Perhaps some of you are not familiar with the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon, so allow me a brief introduction. The down of the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon can be made into luxurious down coats. Its meat, blood, bones, and marrow can all be used in medicine and are extremely valuable! Most importantly, it has four specific bones that are prime materials for forging a Third-tier Enchanted Sword, and they increase the success rate by five percent! Do I need to say more about its value?" With that, he glanced at the private boxes upstairs and continued, "Eighty thousand gold coins, going once!"

"One hundred thousand!" Suddenly, a gentle and melodious voice drifted from a private box on the east side. Many people instinctively turned to look in that direction. Though they couldn’t see who it was, everyone thought the same thing: ’That woman must be a peerless beauty.’

But when Ling Xiao heard this voice, he froze. The look on his face was priceless—’T... Teacher Shangguan?’

That’s right, Ling Xiao was very familiar with this voice. It belonged to his beautiful and caring teacher, Shangguan Yutong. He couldn’t help but wonder: ’Who is she, really? Why would she be in a place like this? And to bid one hundred thousand gold coins without a moment’s hesitation!’

"She’s so rich!" exclaimed Ye Wen Ni in admiration, not noticing Ling Xiao’s strange reaction. Although she and Ling Xiao also had a large sum of gold, the truth was, if not for the generosity of Rock Shenke from the Madman Mercenary Corps, they would still be relying on the money from selling the Magical Beast. And with Ling Xiao planning to buy medicinal herbs, it was debatable how much would even be left over.

Ling Xiao, however, suddenly remembered the Fine Willow Sword Teacher Shangguan had given him. It seemed to be crafted from the bone of some Magical Beast—it was neither metal nor iron, possessed incredible flexibility, and was unbreakable. ’Could it be... she’s buying this Tier Five Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon to forge an Enchanted Weapon?’

’But isn’t that price a bit too steep!’

The well-dressed, handsome young man frowned, wondering who the woman in the unseen private box was. He wasn’t your typical young noble who lost his head over a pretty face. Seeing what he took as a provocative bid, he raised a mocking eyebrow. With a smirk, he was about to speak when the middle-aged man behind him said calmly, "Let it go. We won’t contest it."

"Why?" The well-dressed youth clearly didn’t want to let the Tier Five Magical Beast go. "Father, this Tier Five Magical Beast is very important to us, too, especially for Grandfather..."

"Silence!" The middle-aged man, who had been the picture of calm, suddenly shot the young man a fierce glare, his expression severe. "Don’t you know that walls have ears? You are forbidden from ever mentioning this topic outside again!"

A flash of defiance flickered in the young man’s eyes, but he still bowed and said, "I understand, Father."

The middle-aged man waved his hand wearily. "As for your grandfather, your little schemes are useless. All you need to do is listen and obey."

The young man shuddered, and the color drained from his face, leaving it deathly pale. He then gave a respectful assent and sat back down.

Huangpu Cangsong was overjoyed today. He had never expected a Tier Five Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon to fetch the astronomical price of one hundred thousand gold coins. In his estimation, its value maxed out at fifty or sixty thousand.

His face flushed with excitement, he announced loudly, "One hundred thousand gold coins, going once! The mysterious lady in the upstairs box has made a generous bid. Are there any more?"

The entire hall fell silent. Everyone held their breath, not making a sound.

"One hundred thousand gold coins, going twice!" Huangpu Cangsong’s voice trembled, as if he’d summoned all his strength. The gavel struck the table with a crisp sound. "CRACK! One hundred thousand gold coins, going three times! Sold!"

A tidal wave of applause swept through the auction house. Such boldness from a buyer naturally commanded respect.

It was like prehistoric artifacts—in terms of practical value, they were worthless, yet they often fetched astronomical prices in the hundreds of thousands, or even millions. The value of many things lies not in the object itself, but in its broader implications.

Take this Tier Five Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon, for instance. If one could successfully use all the bones suitable for forging an Enchanted Sword, then its value would be another matter entirely. But not even a true master of forging Enchanted Weapons like Huangpu Cangsong would dare make such a claim. In the entire Lanyue Empire, who else could be so certain of success?

Ye Wen Ni wiped her smooth forehead and murmured, "Gods, some people are just unbelievably rich! To them, gold coins are like spare change!"

Though Ling Xiao had little interest in money, he knew that any family capable of dropping one hundred thousand gold coins on a Magical Beast was anything but ordinary. The Ling Family certainly didn’t have that kind of wealth. Even if they did, his father would have spent it all on equipping the army. This made Ling Xiao all the more curious about Teacher Shangguan, who could make such a purchase.

At that moment, a cunning smile appeared on Huangpu Cangsong’s old face. He took a sip from a drink a server handed him, cleared his throat, and said, "And now, for today’s final... treasure!"

"Huh? I thought there were only two Magical Beasts. Where did a third item come from?" someone asked doubtfully.

"If the Master says there’s another, there’s another! What’re you kicking up a fuss for?" someone retorted.

"Hey, the Master said ’treasure,’ not ’Magical Beast’!" another person pointed out.

The entire auction hall broke into a clamor. Clearly, everyone felt that attending today’s auction had been well worth their while. But after the high-priced sale of the Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon, much of the crowd’s enthusiasm had waned. So now everyone was wondering if this final item could possibly be more appealing than the previous two Magical Beasts.

The mysterious figure in the corner, clad in black with a wide-brimmed hat, let out a few strange chuckles. He muttered to himself, "Now this is more like it! A single Snow Mountain Lightning Falcon obviously wasn’t the main event! That cunning old fox Huangpu... still couldn’t fool me. Gahaha!"

In their private box, the well-dressed young man, who had been looking dejected, suddenly had his eyes light up. He looked at his father, who nodded. "This one," the middle-aged man said, "we must win at all costs!"

Ye Wen Ni grumbled, "And who said the Huangpu Clan’s auction house wasn’t cunning?"