Chapter 96 Starlight Auction House.
Night fell, and the Shrek group changed into ordinary clothes. Holding invitations to the Starlight Auction House, the twelve of them, led by Wang Yan, arrived once again.
To their surprise, the elegant auctioneer was waiting at the entrance. Dressed in a long black dress, she appeared even more noble and elegant under the night lights, her beautiful face radiating gentleness.
Wang Yan exchanged a glance with her and nodded slightly. "Hello, Auctioneer Qingya. We meet again."
Qingya said with a beaming smile, "Welcome, distinguished guests."
Wang Yan asked, "How did you know we would definitely come today?"
Qingya shook her head. She said, "I don't know, but my task is to receive all the distinguished guests well. Whether you come or not, I will wait here until the auction officially begins. Please follow me."
The auction house was the same as before. There was no publicity for today's top-tier auction. Led by Qingya, they walked in, quickly passing the area where they had participated in the auction last time.
As they walked to the end, two girls in long golden dresses approached. After bowing slightly to everyone, they exchanged a few words with Qingya. Then, at Qingya's instruction, one of the girls turned to face the wall and pressed it lightly.
Suddenly, layers of water-like ripples appeared on the thick wall. A beam of light swept down from top to bottom, and with a soft hum, the wall slowly opened to both sides, revealing a passage.
Unlike the opulent gold and jade outside, this passage was pure white. Not a cold white, but a special white with a soft, textured feel.
The floor, ceiling, and walls were all paved with a translucent white jade. Beneath the jade, there were faint, dark patterns, though their exact nature was unclear. Compared to the passage outside, it was clearly a more refined experience.
Soft white light emanated from above, below, left, and right, with lines formed by pale blue halos on either side of the ceiling.
Qingya explained softly, "This is our top-tier auction hall, Hall Number One. Only the most distinguished guests are invited here to participate in the bidding. I'm only here today because of the presence of these esteemed guests. Otherwise, with my auctioneer level, I wouldn't be qualified to enter."
Wang Yan said calmly, "Judging from Qingya's attire, it seems you've been upgraded!"
Qingya smiled slightly and said, "I also want to thank Teacher Wang and the students of your academy. It was because of the successful auction of the Soul-Devouring Carving Knife last time that I accumulated enough performance points to be promoted to Black-level auctioneer. Please come in, everyone." As she spoke, she slowly led the way. Inside, two more girls dressed in long gold dresses, who looked only eighteen or nineteen years old, came to greet them.
Huo Yuhao sighed repeatedly. He had approached Wu Xuan several times afterward for the Soul-Devouring Carving Knife, but each time Wu Xuan had casually brushed him off. Yesterday, when he went to see him again, he was even scolded and kicked out. Failing to obtain the Soul-Devouring Carving Knife was his biggest loss.
Not far inside, small doors began to appear on both sides. Qingya finally led them through Gate Seven.
It was a room of approximately two hundred square meters, decorated with extreme luxury. Precious woods, jade, and various priceless ornaments filled the space. The decor exuded extravagance, yet possessed a strange elegance that compelled one to acknowledge its refinement.
This was Room Seven in Auction Hall One of the Starlight Grand Auction House, its decor utterly luxurious.
The room was rectangular, with one long wall entirely white and translucent. That wall was the only one without any decoration.
The large sofa was made of an unknown animal hide, its long white fur exceptionally soft. Sitting on it offered a feeling of sinking into comfort, yet also provided excellent support.
The sofa could comfortably seat at least twenty people, and various drinks, wines, and food were laid out on the jade table.
Everyone settled into the comfortable sofa. Auctioneer Qingya and two young women in long gold dresses remained. Qingya stood to the side of the sofa, smiling, "Let me explain the rules of our top-tier auction to our distinguished guests."
As she spoke, she gestured to the two girls in long gold dresses.
One of the girls walked to the smooth wall and gently pressed it. Instantly, a soft halo of light shimmered across the entire wall. The light gradually intensified. The wall transformed into a giant screen.
Wang Yan exclaimed in surprise, "Huh! It's actually a soul tool!"
Qingya nodded, saying, "This is a light-guiding screen specially customized for our auction house in the Sun Moon Empire. It can transmit images through a special method. Its core array is not activated by soul power, but by a mineral from the Sun Moon Empire."
Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao suddenly stood up in shock. Activating a soul tool with a mineral was clearly beyond his understanding of soul tools.
Qingya, adept at reading people, naturally noticed their shock and quickly explained with a smile, "However, you don't need to worry too much. The energy fluctuations emitted by this ore are very weak. It can't power offensive or defensive soul tools. It can only provide energy for some very weak soul tools."
Although Qingya provided a reasonable explanation, the astonishment in everyone's hearts did not completely disappear.
Perhaps the Sun Moon Empire had not yet found a way to replace soul power in driving offensive soul tools. But this light guide screen had already shown them the Sun Moon Empire's leading position in soul tools.
The light guide screen gradually became clearer. Some patterns appeared on both sides, while in the center was an auction stage-like area. The auction stage did not look large, but it was very clear on the light guide screen.
Just then, suddenly, the entire room was submerged in a layer of gold. Everyone subconsciously turned their gaze to the soul guide screen opposite the sofa.
A soft, not dazzling golden light emanated, blocking everyone's vision, and a faint golden light also emanated from every corner of the room, instantly adding a touch of nobility to the originally warm and comfortable atmosphere.
Qingya said, "Distinguished guests, our auction is about to begin."
The golden light on the soul-guided screen gradually faded, and a melodious voice rang out, "Welcome to the Starlight Auction House's top-tier auction. Today, we will present nine precious items for your enjoyment. The items will be displayed in ascending order of value. We hope you will enjoy them."
The soul-guided screen became clear again, and the platform was now shrouded in a faint white light. In the center of the platform stood a young woman in a long red dress.
"Greetings, distinguished guests. I am today's auctioneer, Jiu Jiu. It is my honor to host this top-tier auction. Your time is precious, so our auction will now begin. Now, please appreciate today's first item."
As she spoke, she smiled sweetly and performed a complex yet very elegant curtsy, gesturing with her right hand. Instantly, the scene shifted, and the entire soul-guided screen on the wall displayed an item.
Upon seeing this person, Dai Yueheng stood up almost reflexively. "Why is this Auctioneer Jiu Jiu performing Star Luo Empire court etiquette?"
Qingya glanced at Dai Yueheng with some surprise and said, "This distinguished guest has a good eye. Auctioneer Jiujiu is the chief auctioneer of our Star Luo Auction House, and also the only gold-level auctioneer. However, she only wears her gold auction robes when an item worth over a hundred million gold coins appears at the auction. Furthermore, Auctioneer Jiujiu is also the youngest sister of the current emperor. She has stated that in the auction house, her identity is simply that of an auctioneer. That's why we don't address her as Your Highness."
The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, all feeling a sense of disbelief. While they had all guessed that the Star Light Auction House had a powerful background, they hadn't expected it to be this deep.
What did it mean for a princess to serve as an auctioneer? It meant that the Star Light Auction House itself probably belonged to the Star Luo Empire's royal family.
However, while still surprised, everyone was already captivated by the number one item on display. Princess Jiujiu's voice followed.
"The Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade. A level eight close-combat soul tool. Its materials are extremely precious, including a right arm bone from a ten-thousand-year-old Tyrant Tiger soul beast. It solidifies the soul bone skill 'Tyrant Blade Slash.' It also amplifies the attack power of similar soul skills by fifty percent."
"Please note, distinguished guests, that every attack using this precious close-combat soul tool will be accompanied by the 'Tyrant Blade Slash' effect. This effect can be stacked with any similar attack soul skill. Furthermore, through the guidance of a sophisticated core array and the energy contained within the soul bone itself, the soul power consumed by 'Tyrant Blade Slash' is only one-third of the normal amount."
"Finally, this Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade comes from the Mingde Hall of the Sun Moon Empire. I think the name 'Mingde Hall' is enough to demonstrate its quality. A seven-ring Soul Saint can use this blade; with it, a Soul Saint challenging a Soul Douluo beyond their level will become possible. Five minutes for viewing."
As soon as Princess Jiu Jiu finished her introduction, gasps rippled through the room. This was only the first item up for auction!
Level 8 soul tools are the highest-level soul tools that the Douluo Three Kingdoms can produce, and they are impossible to put up for auction. Only soul masters of the Sun Moon Empire have the ability to put them up for auction, let alone one from the Mingde Hall.
Even the well-informed Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochen were astonished. Level 8 soul tools were extremely rare in the auctions they had attended before, and this was only the first item up for auction! How could they not be surprised? Don't be fooled by the fact that this Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade is a melee soul tool. In fact, for high-level soul masters, melee soul tools are even more important than ranged or fixed soul tools, and are easier to coordinate with their abilities.
Everyone stood up and walked to the screen to carefully examine this level 8 soul tool sword.
There was a detailed description at the top of the screen: the Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade is four feet six inches long, with the widest part of the back of the blade being an inch, resembling a horse-slaying saber. The hilt extends to the guard, showing some bone-like features. The handguard was very wide and shaped like a tiger's head. Undoubtedly, the core magic array of this soul tool was located here. The tiger's head was entirely crystalline yellow, like a special gemstone.
Even though it was just an image, everyone still felt a fierce aura emanating from it.
From the name alone, it was clear that this Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade was most suitable for Dai Yueheng, who possessed the White Tiger Martial Soul.
Wang Yan exclaimed, "As expected of a product from Mingde Hall, truly extraordinary."
Wu Xuan silently picked up the juice on the table and took a small sip. He didn't care much for these offensive soul tools; he might be a little interested in defensive ones.
In this era, even the strongest soul tools couldn't surpass those of a Limit Douluo.
"Viewing time is over. Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade, starting price 600,000 gold soul coins. Each bid must increase by at least 5,000 gold soul coins. All of you are experts, so I don't think I need to say much more. The auction begins. If no one raises the bid within one minute, the auction is complete."
Princess Jiu Jiu's voice rang out again.
The screen changed, turning a pale white, and the previous image of the Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade faded into the background. A huge number, 600,000, appeared on the screen.
"650,000," Dai Yueheng said immediately. This Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade was perfect for him; it was practically tailor-made.
He turned to Wang Yan and said, "Teacher Wang, I'll buy this blade myself. The academy doesn't need to help me."
Wang Yan nodded. Inner Academy disciples weren't short of money, and Dai Yueheng, being the eldest son of the White Tiger Duke's mansion, was even less so. He didn't need the academy's support.
As soon as he made his offer, the golden-robed maid immediately performed a simple operation on the soul guidance screen, and the huge number on the screen changed to 650,000.
This level eight soul tool could be used by a Soul Saint, and Dai Yueheng would break through to Soul Saint in a few years. With this level eight soul tool, he would be able to fight even a Soul Douluo. No wonder he was tempted.
After Dai Yueheng made his offer, the number of gold soul coins on the screen skyrocketed, quickly breaking through the million mark.
However, after breaking through the million, the growth rate slowed down.
Qingya said, "Distinguished guests, after careful analysis by our auction house, the material value of this Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade, without considering the craftsmanship of the Soul Master, is approximately 600,000 gold soul coins. This is the source of our starting price. Its actual value is conservatively estimated to be over 1.3 million gold soul coins. The Tyrant Tiger Soul Bone itself has a slight flaw; it was damaged before being made into a Soul Tool, which is a major reason why its value is affected.
However, the eighth-level Soul Master has already eliminated this flaw during its creation. If the Soul Bone were intact, the blade's power might be slightly higher, but its value would at least double. Personally, I think the Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade offers excellent value for money."
How many of those attending this top-tier auction are fools? As Princess Jiujiu said, they are all experts; everyone knows its true value. The starting price offered by the auction house is definitely not high. But the possibility of finding a bargain at a low price is also virtually zero.
Dai Yueheng finally made up his mind and bid 1.56 million gold soul coins for the Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade.
The price remained unchanged for one minute. The auction ended. The golden light in the entire room suddenly changed like fireworks, indicating the success of the bid.
Judging from Dai Yueheng's pained expression, he had obviously suffered a huge loss.
Princess Jiujiu, dressed in a red dress, reappeared on the screen, smiling and bowing slightly, saying, "Thank you for your support of this auction, esteemed guest who just won the Tyrant Tiger Soul Refining Blade. Now, we will begin the second item. Although they are disposable items, they are very rare, and it is quite difficult to collect this set. Please take a look, esteemed guests."
The soul guidance screen changed again, this time dividing the entire wall screen into twelve areas. The items in each area were somewhat similar in appearance.
They were all cylindrical, with one end conical and the other cylindrical flat. The shapes were the same. The only difference was the color. They seemed to be forged from different metals.
"Fixed-load soul guidance shells." Huo Yuhao blurted out, his voice filled with shock.
Princess Jiujiu's voice echoed in the room, "These twelve fixed-position soul-guided cannonballs are also produced by Mingde Hall. We collected them with great difficulty. Each one has a different effect. They are of standard size. If used properly, these twelve fixed-position soul-guided cannonballs are enough to threaten the lives of Soul Masters at the Soul Douluo level."
At Huo Yuhao's urging, Wang Yan finally bought them for 655,000 gold soul coins.
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(End of this chapter)