Chapter 312: The Last Auction Item (Bonus Chapter 12 for Average Subscriptions)

Once the price climbed past eight thousand, the bidding slowed to a crawl. Even Xue Shuilong, who had thrown out counteroffers without a moment’s hesitation mere moments before, fell into a deep silence before reluctantly pushing the bid to eight thousand three hundred.

To the uninitiated, the true nature of the artifact remained a mystery, and such a price was already pushing the limits of reason; a cultivator from the Feng family tentatively raised it to eight thousand five hundred.

The minimum increment for the Wuji Staff was two hundred, and as Xue Shuilong finally brought the tally to eight thousand seven hundred, he spoke aloud, "Brother Feng, even if you purchase this Wuji Staff, you cannot wield it now. By the time you are capable, I fear it will no longer be worth this sum. This is the highest Xue will go. If Brother Feng wishes to bid higher, I shall gladly yield it to you."

"Since Brother Xue desires this treasure so earnestly, I shall not be the one to rob you of your affection," the Feng cultivator replied, a cold, humorless smile playing upon his lips. "Brother Xue, after you."

In the end, Xue Shuilong claimed the Wuji Staff for the price of eight thousand seven hundred spirit crystals.

"The Demon Binding Charm. This incantation is exceptionally potent against the vile and profane; it draws a prison upon the earth, ensnaring any foul creature within its bounds and blinding them utterly to the world outside." Before the woman, another yellowed tome materialized out of thin air. "Though its utility is modest in a duel between men, should you find yourself besieged by a horde of evils, this charm will surely prove its monumental worth!"

A Taoist could traverse any domain entirely solitary, relying solely on an arsenal of formidable supportive arts; when confronted by a deluge of monsters, the Demon Binding Charm allowed one to calmly divide the horde and destroy them piece by piece.

"Likewise, this charm, much like the Magic Shield, requires a rather peculiar method of cultivation."

"The starting bid is one thousand spirit crystals."

It was readily apparent that many wished to dip their toes into the waters of these unknown, wondrous treasures. By comparison, the ordinary artifacts on display seemed to pale into insignificance; after all, everyone knew their exact functions and precise values.

Unless a treasure reached the exalted rank of a Spirit Artifact—the sort that even a colossus like the Nanhua Sect would desperately covet—it could hardly command the attention of the entire room.

Thus, the collective gaze of the assembly converged strictly upon these strange, yet devastatingly powerful, novelties.

As far as the Hidden Heaven Pavilion was concerned, deception regarding the nature of their auction items was entirely out of the question; therefore, even if the descriptions of these wares were slightly embellished, they remained well within the bounds of acceptable truth.

Consequently, as the auction steadily progressed into its middle stages and ever more potent treasures were unveiled, the bidding war expanded beyond the players from Fang Qi’s establishment to include a swelling tide of cultivators who had never played Legend, nor even heard the name of the Origin Internet Club.

Fortunately, the cultivators were not about to lose their heads over the skill books meant for warriors. Amidst the sparse competition between the resident warrior players and the visiting martial artists, Fang Qi managed to secure his own Fire Sword Technique for five thousand spirit crystals.

By this time, the fervor consuming the grand hall had reached a fever pitch.

"The next item to be put forth for auction—Ice Roar!"

One had to remember that the vast majority of those present were Mages and Taoists.

The moment the words "Ice Roar" left her lips, the entire auction house erupted into a tumultuous din. The legion of Mages grew instantly ecstatic; after all, this was the ultimate technique of their path.

"This spell is capable of summoning a blizzard with immense speed to strike down your foes. Upon its casting, the winds and snow will instantly coalesce over a designated area, transforming into countless shards of ice that whip into a raging vortex. Within that biting, piercing hail, none can hope to escape!" The woman’s voice rose to a resonant, high-pitched pitch. "This magic requires not a single breath of chanting or incantation. Among all the elegant and concise spells known to me, I believe none can compare to it, for its might is estimated to be no less than that of a medium-scale regional spell!"

"Starting bid, eight thousand! Each counter-bid must not be less than five hundred!"

"Ten thousand!" Before her voice could even fade, Black Demon had already bellowed his offer.

"Twelve thousand!" Daoist Master Xi Chi immediately raised the stakes.

"Why has Master started bidding again..." Beside her, Mo Xian wore a thoroughly miserable expression.

"A level thirty-five skill... heaven knows when we will ever be able to learn it..." Liu Ningyun also wondered if she ought to restrain Daoist Master Xi Chi right then and there.

"Father... should we..." A young boy of twelve or thirteen from the Haoran Sect had barely opened his mouth when the grey-robed cultivator beside him surged to his feet, shouting, "Fifteen thousand!"

"Sixteen thousand!" Tang Yuan of the Yuanheng Pavilion countered instantly.

It was obvious that almost no one had ever witnessed the ultimate technique of a Mage being unleashed in the world; whoever seized this book of Ice Roar would indifferently claim the title of the foremost Mage.

"Twenty thousand!" Xi Chenzhou was naturally unwilling to show any weakness.

"Twenty-five thousand!" A Mage clad in a moon-white robe bared his teeth in a ferocious grimace. "The throne of the number one Mage in the entire server belongs to me, Zhuge Bai!"

"The number one Mage?"

"What on earth is that?!"

The uninitiated cultivators in the hall exchanged bewildered glances.

Seated within the Feng family faction, a grim-faced middle-aged cultivator spoke coldly, "Can any of you discern the meaning behind their words?"

The crowd shook their heads in unison.

"Strange..." The Feng family cultivator's eyes flickered with uncertainty. "No matter how formidable this spell may be, what has it to do with being number one? What hidden secrets are buried within this city that I have yet to uncover?"

The astronomical price of twenty-five thousand spirit crystals ultimately exceeded the psychological limits of those confused outsiders, and in the end, Ice Roar was claimed by Zhuge Bai.

Immediately following this, the phantasmal projection shifted, morphing into a slender staff fashioned from the bone of some beast: "The next three items to be auctioned are treasures whose value is undoubtedly well-known to many of you present."

"The Bone Jade Staff! Magic two to six, attack six to twelve, a legendary weapon born from a certain realm of illusions." The woman furrowed her brow slightly. Though she had done some meager preparation beforehand, truth be told, she still felt a lack of confidence regarding such objects. She spoke, "This item is forged from the bone of a demonic dragon and possesses an immense inherent spiritual energy. Although our Pavilion is auctioning such a treasure for the very first time, I trust that many among you understand its worth! Starting bid, twenty thousand! Each rise must be at least one thousand!"

"Thirty thousand!" The bidding had scarcely begun when Black Demon added a full ten thousand to the baseline.

"Thirty-five thousand!" The Feng family cultivator threw himself into the fray once more.

"Forty thousand!" For Daoist Master Xi Chi, these illusory artifacts were so exceedingly precious that they had successfully arrested her full attention. Since she was bound to visit that place sooner or later, why not prepare for a rainy day and secure a treasure or two beforehand?

When the time came, would she not possess a far firmer footing there?

Of course, her disciples at this moment...

"It is over... I can no longer hold Master back..."

Mo Xian grumbled, "Junior Sister Liu, you are always the one who pleases Master the most. Why do you not persuade her..."

Left with no choice, Liu Ningyun braced herself and explained, "Master, your level is insufficient. Even if you purchase it, you will not be able to wield it..."

"What do you mean, insufficient level?" Daoist Master Xi Chi’s train of thought was on an entirely different track from her disciples. "My cultivation reached the late stage of the Divine Sea Realm long ago. I see that Black Demon’s cultivation is not even as high as mine, so how could I be insufficient? What do you girls know?"

Liu Ningyun was struck speechless.

Mo Xian felt a sudden wave of despair wash over her inner self: "Would someone please just outbid Master and drive the price down..."

As if heaven itself had answered her silent prayer, Tang Yuan of the Yuanheng Pavilion shouted, "Forty-five thousand!"

"Fifty thousand!" The Haoran Sect could no longer sit still.

"Sixty thousand!" Zhuge Bai of the White Dragon Mansion grit his teeth and added another ten thousand.

The very first one in the entire server; it would go to the highest bidder.

Upon reaching the threshold of sixty thousand, it was clear that many began to waver.

After all, a virtual item was merely a virtual item; its utility was indirect. Whether it was for slaying foes, hunting treasures, or simply maintaining an aura of lofty superiority within the game, none of these things offered the immediate, straightforward strength provided by a skill book. Therefore, once this peak was scaled, whether it was the Black Demon who had previously squandered tens of thousands of gold pieces without a blink, or outsiders like Daoist Master Xi Chi who harbored doubts and were unwilling to abandon an unverified advantage, all of them began to lower their banners and muffle their drums.

At this juncture, only the Yuanheng Pavilion added a mere one thousand.

The gold-robed cultivator who had previously purchased the Magic Shield likewise raised the bid by a thousand.

It was plain to see that the various factions—Black Demon, Yuanheng Pavilion, and the Panjiao Mansion—had already begun to hold hurried consultations among themselves.

In the end, the Yuanheng Pavilion offered one final thousand, bringing the price to sixty-three thousand, after which no one else contested. The first Bone Jade Staff of the entire server fell into the hands of the Yuanheng Pavilion.

The second server-wide book of Summon Divine Beast that followed immediately after was claimed by Xue Shuilong of the White Dragon Mansion for the princely sum of seventy thousand.

The assembly had collectively assumed that, aside from the Spirit Artifacts, this would be the most exhilarating climax of the auction. Yet, they were about to discover just how egregiously mistaken they were.

Finally, among all the virtual treasures derived from the game of Legend, only a single item remained: the Temptation of Light.

"The item we are about to put forth for auction next," the woman let out a soft, melodious laugh, and two short fangs subtly peeked out from beneath her crimson lips, imparting an indescribable allure to her countenance, which was as exquisite as a flawless jade carving, "may well be the finest offering of this entire event, for even my own heart has been stirred by it."

"Next, let us invite Miss Xi Yue of the Panjiao Mansion to assist me in conducting a small demonstration." Following her command, several cultivators came forward, wheeling a massive iron cage into the center of the hall. Enclosed within the bars was a giant eagle, well over a meter in length, its entire plumage gleaming with the cold luster of refined iron.

This great eagle possessed a wild, untamed arrogance; even confined within the cage, its feral nature remained entirely exposed.

On the other side, as Xi Yue stepped onto the stage, a black vulture half the height of a man flew down to join her, affectionately nuzzling against her fine hair.

"This giant eagle is an Iron-Feathered Eagle, brought specially from the beast pens by our Hidden Heaven Pavilion for this auction; its strength is roughly equivalent to a cultivator of the True Lake Realm," the woman introduced. "Meanwhile, the Witch Vulture beside Miss Xi Yue possesses a strength that resides merely at the mid-stage of the Spiritual River Realm."

The woman smiled radiantly and said, "Would everyone care to guess what might transpire should we set these two beasts against one another?"

"What else could possibly transpire? Is it implyed that a beast of the Spiritual River Realm can actually withstand the assault of a True Lake Realm creature?"

"Could there be a spell akin to a magical shield, yet capable of being cast upon another, enabling this Spirit River realm beast to withstand a blow from a True Lake realm monster?"

The woman chuckled softly, serenely swinging open the iron cage door while simultaneously unraveling the restrictive wards bound to it.

At that exact moment, the Black Vulture swooped down, landing right before the iron enclosure.

Two beasts locked in conflict, a narrow path where neither could yield; the colossal Iron-Feathered Eagle let out a piercing shriek, lunging with ferocious intensity toward the mere Spirit River realm Black Vulture!

Yet in the very next breath, the aura of the Black Vulture surged explosively, every single dark feather standing practically on end as its right wing lashed out with a violent sweep!

Boom!

It was as though the massive claw of a primordial behemoth had come crashing down with savage fury!

The immense Iron-Feathered Eagle barely had time to react before its entire frame was struck as if by a charging locomotive, its steel-and-iron plumage shattering inch by inch! Blood sprayed from its beak and nostrils as it collapsed to the earth, twitching a few times before falling utterly still.

"How is this possible?!"

Every cultivator who witnessed this spectacle rose involuntarily from their seats, their minds howling in sheer disbelief.

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