Xie Sanqian did not continue increasing his bid. He merely gave Xiang Shaoyun a vicious glare and committed him to his memory. Wen Jinrui was the one who suddenly took part: "1,600 low-grade spirit crystals from me!"

  Xiang Shaoyun gave Wen Jinrui a glance, and Wen Jinrui gave him the middle finger provocatively, greatly annoying Xiang Shaoyun.

  "1,700 low-grade spirit crystals," Xiang Shaoyun said.

  Wen Jinrui continued upping his bid, "1,700 low-grade spirit crystals."

  "1,900 low-grade spirit crystals."

  "2,000 low-grade spirit crystals."……

  The two increased their bids one after another, and when Xiang Shaoyun increased the bid to 2,500 low-grade spirit crystals, Wen Jinrui finally stopped.

  "Congratulations for getting the icesnow fruit!" Wen Jinrui sneered. He did not have any intention of getting the fruit in the first place. The only reason he joined the bidding war was to annoy Xiang Shaoyun and make him pay more.

  To the side, Wen Jinnuo chimed in, "He is stupid but rich, there's no helping it."

  Xiang Shaoyun glanced at the two and replied nonchalantly, "Yes, you're right. I have nothing else, but I have a lot of money."

  Those words caused the crowd to raise their eyebrows. Some concluded that he was someone who had recently become rich, while some concluded that he was probably a person with a powerful background.

  The auction proceeded with battle techniques, cultivation methods, and some damaged king-grade items. More and more people joined in on the bidding war. For them, these battle techniques and cultivation methods were more worth their money than the fruit earlier.

  On the other hand, Xiang Shaoyun showed no interest in the battle techniques and cultivation methods. However, he did not forget to instruct Mo Mo to give the Wen Clan brothers some trouble.

  He first told Mo Mo to bid for an incomplete king-grade battle technique. The Wen Clan did not miss the chance to mess with their bid and started bidding as well. But the moment they increased the bid to a point nobody else was bidding, Mo Mo stopped.

  The Wen Clan brothers were stunned. They never intended to buy this incomplete king-grade battle technique at all!

  Wen Jinnuo wiped his sweat and asked, "Big brother, what should we do? How can we even afford 3,800 low-grade spirit crystals?"

  Wen Jinrui had also broken out in cold sweat. He forced himself to calm down and said, "How about asking for father's help? For him, 3,800 low-grade spirit crystals are nothing!"

  "B-but without paying, they won't even let us leave!" Wen Jinnuo replied with a sullen face.

  They felt like they had raised a rock only to slam it on their own feet. Xiang Shaoyun saw the changes in their expressions from far away and smiled. "Trying to scheme against this young master? You are not enough."

  Time passed, and finally, they reached the end of the auction. It was finally time for the auction hall to take out the best treasures they had to auction. The first item was a complete king weapon, starting at 1,000 mid-grade spirit crystals, equivalent to 10,000 low-grade spirit crystals. Its price alone was enough to stop many people in their tracks.

  At this point, most of those who were still bidding were basically King Realm cultivators possessing a wealth normal people couldn't compare to. Apart from these Kings, the only ones still bidding were the representatives of the various organizations and clans. A king weapon was extremely attractive to them. Not only would a king weapon increase one's combat power, it was also a symbol of status.

  \r\r\r

  "Young master, are you not interested in the king weapon?" Mo Mo asked curiously when she saw Xiang Shaoyun had his eyes shut in rest.

  She was aware that Xiang Shaoyun could totally afford a king weapon. When she saw him doing nothing, her curiosity was piqued. Xiang Shaoyun replied, "A king weapon is only a tool. Without actual strength, not even a king weapon will do much for a person."

  Mo Mo savored those words for a bit before saying admiringly, "Young master is wise."

  "Um. So long as you stay loyal, king-grade battle techniques and cultivation methods will all be available to you. Don't worry," Xiang Shaoyun said, placating Mo Mo.

  To ensure a follower would stay loyal, one had to be sufficiently powerful and needed to provide the follower sufficient benefits for staying loyal. It was something a leader needed to know, and it wasn't a concept that everyone understood. Due to his background as the young master of a powerful sect, Xiang Shaoyun knew more about this than the regular person.

  When Mo Mo heard the promise, her heart nearly popped out. If there weren't so many people present, she would have hugged Xiang Shaoyun and planted a kiss on his face in her excitement.

  King-grade battle techniques and cultivation methods were things she would never be able to obtain on her own, but she longed greatly for them and wanted nothing more than to obtain one.

  Maybe I need to find a chance to seduce the young master, Mo Mo thought to herself.

  After two king weapons were auctioned off, a king medicine was put on auction. As the excitement of the crowd was already at an all-time high, the bidding war became even crazier.

  That was a king medicine!

  It was something all King Realm cultivators longed for, and it was something very hard to obtain. Just having one appear here to be auctioned off was proof of the Cloud Margin Pavilion's wealth.

  After two king medicines were auctioned off, an item of extreme cold that drove all the Transformation Realm cultivators crazy appeared—a coldstar stone! The coldstar stone was a rare stone that would only appear at a location of extreme cold. Holding the stone in the hand would instantly turn a person into an ice statue. It was a supreme treasure for those cultivating the power of frost.

  "This is it!" Xiang Shaoyun's eyes lit up.

  The coldstar stone was capable of resisting the most extreme of flames. It would be the best tool one could have when approaching the earthcore fire. The starting price of this coldstar stone was 1,500 mid-grade spirit crystals. It was not cheap at all.

  "2,000 mid-grade spirit crystals. The stone belongs to me, Ye Xuan," said Ye Xuan who had been staying silent all the while.

  Apart from him, the many inner disciples of Cloud Margin Pavilion and even the personal disciples were starting to bid as well. Additionally, a few clans were also joining in the bidding. Everyone knew that with the coldstar stone, they would have a chance to approach the earthcore fire. With that, they would have a shot at subduing the earthcore fire.

  Thus, regardless of the price, everyone wanted to obtain the coldstar stone. After a while, the price reached 3,000 mid-grade spirit crystals. It was an extremely high price, but a lot of people were still bidding madly.

  "I offer 3,500 mid-grade spirit crystals," Li Yaxuan's voice rang out.

  Another voice rang out from a different VIP room, "3,600 mid-grade spirit crystals from me."

  Xie Sanqian placed his bid as well, "3,700 mid-grade spirit crystals from me."

  By this point, each increment was about 100 mid-grade spirit crystals. Nobody was madly raising the price in large increments anymore. After all, they were bidding with mid-grade spirit crystals, not low-grade spirit crystals. Not everyone would be able to wantonly spend mid-grade spirit crystals.

  When the price reached about 4,000 mid-grade spirit crystals, the number of bidders started dropping. The latest bid was placed by an unknown person from within a VIP room. His determination to obtain the stone was clear for all to see.

  That price forced even Xie Sanqian to give up on it. On the other hand, Ye Xuan was still bidding, causing many people to see him in a new light. Many here knew that the Ye Clan was only a tiny clan. When had they become so rich?

  They immediately concluded that Ye Xuan was most definitely hiding a big secret. When the price reached 4,500 mid-grade spirit crystals, Li Yaxuan was forced to stop as well. That price was already far beyond the coldstar stone's actual market price.

  Just as everyone slowly stopped bidding, a lazy voice suddenly rang out, "5,000 mid-grade spirit crystals."

  Chapter 184: The Headband From the Ancient Forbidden Grounds

  The new bidder was none other than Xiang Shaoyun. He had been waiting for everyone to be done bidding before he joined in. His timing was perfect. After he spoke, he attracted everyone's gaze. Everyone started wondering who this ordinary-looking man actually was for him to be so rich. They recalled how that man had said earlier that he had a lot of money. It would seem like he wasn't kidding at all when he had said that.

  "He must have made all those spirit crystals from selling the top-quality goldsteel stone," Wen Jinnuo said to his brother with an envious look.

  "Hmph. He can't stay cocky for long. Soon, everything he has will be ours," Wen Jinrui narrowed his eyes and said.

  Li Yaxuan, Xie Sanqian, and Ye Xuan were also starting to pay attention to Xiang Shaoyun. They could sense that Xiang Shaoyun did not feel particularly strong. On the other hand, the young woman by Xiang Shaoyun's side attracted more of their attention.

  A voice rang out from the VIP room, "5,100 mid-grade spirit crystals."

  Xiang Shaoyun replied without any hesitation, "6,000 mid-grade spirit crystals."

  His act of increasing the bid by 900 mid-grade spirit crystals in one go created an uproar.

  "Who exactly is that person? Is he stupid? Why is he raising the bid by such a large increment?"

  "I guess he is so rich he has no place to spend his spirit crystals. That is why he is using the spirit crystals so wastefully."

  "No, if he can get the coldstar stone and then the earthcore fire through these spirit crystals, it would be completely worth it. However, it won't be easy at all to get the earthcore fire."

  "Just keep watching. That kid might have a strong background for him to be acting so fearlessly."……

  Xiang Shaoyun did not care at all what these people thought of him. In his eyes, spirit crystals were merely a currency to be spent. After spending them, he could always earn more. As for the coldstar stone, it was extremely rare, and it might be the only one he could get for now. Thus, he could not miss out on it.

  "This young master has just offered 6,000 mid-grade spirit crystals. Any other bids?" asked the auctioneer in excitement. He was only expecting to auction the coldstar stone off for about 4,500 mid-grade spirit crystals. Surprisingly, a whale had appeared today.

  "7,000 mid-grade spirit crystals. If you can offer more, I will give up," said the person in the VIP room after a short silence.

  "Sure. 7,100 mid-grade spirit crystals. Thank you," Xiang Shaoyun smiled.

  After listening to Xiang Shaoyun's final offer, everyone heaved a sigh of relief and thought that the fellow was still normal after all. If Xiang Shaoyun had insisted on increasing the price by another 1,000 mid-grade spirit crystals, they would most likely have gone crazy on his behalf.

  Xiang Shaoyun had successfully won the bid, but the actual trade would only be made after the end of the auction.

  \r\r\r

  Heh, this trip is worth it after all, Xiang Shaoyun thought joyfully.

  "Alright. Let us move on to our final item," announced the auctioneer before signaling the employees to bring out an item. The moment the item appeared, the Nether Soul Domain in Xiang Shaoyun's head suddenly reacted. It grew so excited it nearly charged out of his head.

  What is that? Xiang Shaoyun immediately turned solemn.

  The auctioneer then removed the black cloth covering the item, revealing an item enclosed within a crystal case. It was a crude looking headband with the shape of a coiling dragon. On the hoop, pieces similar to dragon scales could be seen. Two roaring dragon heads connected the two ends of the headband. The dragons, seeming incredibly lively, looked like they were fighting over a pearl.

  Something seemed to be missing from the pearl in between the two dragon heads, which was most likely the most important part of the headband. Without it, the headband looked incredibly normal, like an average ornament. Everyone was confused when they saw the headband that had lost the power it should have had.

  "This is an item obtained from the Ancient Forbidden Grounds. Although it looks completely worthless now, is anyone interested at all to figure out if there is any secret hidden within it?" asked the auctioneer.

  Some of the people were moved when they heard the statement. The Ancient Forbidden Grounds was an extremely dangerous place that only those at the peak of King Realm and beyond could enter. Would an item from that place be an ordinary item? Everyone would be curious, and all of them now wanted a chance to properly study the headband.

  At this time, the auctioneer spoke again, "Of course, you don't have to be afraid of this investment being a loss. The headband is at least a king equipment, and wearing it will protect your head against the attack of king weapons. Alright then. The starting bid is 5,000 mid-grade spirit crystals. Each increment can be no lower than 500 mid-grade spirit crystals."

  This time, nobody impatiently placed a bid immediately after the auctioneer finished his introduction. They all knew the item would definitely not be an ordinary item. The Cloud Margin Pavilion had most likely studied it extensively. They had probably found nothing if they were actually putting something this valuable up for auction.

  Nobody here was an idiot. Thus, they were hesitating. Even after a long while, nobody was saying anything. The auctioneer grew somewhat nervous seeing that.

  "This is an ancient headband. Are none of you interested? Perhaps a great secret is hidden within. If you miss out on it, you won't get a second chance," said the auctioneer.

  Someone said, "If it is really something good, why would the Cloud Margin Pavilion auction it off? I reckon it is probably worthless."

  With someone taking the lead, others started echoing the same sentiment.

  "Yeah. A starting bid of 5,000 mid-grade spirit crystals for something like this is too much. How about 3,000 mid-grade spirit crystals? If that is the price, I don't mind paying it. Consider it a research fee."

  "That's right. This item has definitely been proven to be useless. It doesn't matter how tough it is if it is completely out of energy. How can something like that even protect one's head? That is clearly a lie."

  "Even if the Cloud Margin Pavilion can't figure out this thing's secret, it doesn't mean nobody can. But that price is too expensive."

  "Forget it, let's leave. Can't believe I waited so long just for something like this."……

  Some of them started leaving. The auctioneer smiled bitterly, not knowing what to say anymore. After all, he himself was aware that despite the item's origin, after losing its function, it was now useless.

  At this time, Xiang Shaoyun said indifferently, "I offer 5,000 mid-grade spirit crystals. I don't mind using it purely as a head ornament. It does look quite trendy, after all."

  The auctioneer nearly staggered and fell to the ground. Spending 5,000 mid-grade spirit crystals for a head ornament? Those were some really boastful words. The people still remaining in the auction hall looked at Xiang Shaoyun with complicated expressions. Some were envious, some were sneering, some were full of hate……but none were fighting over the headband with him.

  The auctioneer heaved a sigh of relief for being able to auction off the final item. If he failed to auction it off, he would be the one to shoulder the blame. The instant Xiang Shaoyun heard the confirmation that his bid was successful, he heaved a breath of relief and thought, Luckily I got Mo Mo to taunt the crowd for a bit. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to get this thing so easily.