VIP Booth Guests
After speaking, Ling Yun placed the case she was handed onto the pedestal in front of her and opened it to the excited crowd.
Due to boredom, Xue Bai had turned on the sound-canceling array long ago and missed Ling Yun's vivid speech. But seeing the crowd look crazy and Ling Yun's own excitement, even Xue Bai was slightly curious about what was inside.
Adding onto the fact that Xue Bai still hadn't looked at the jade slip that listed all of the items that were being auctioned, Xue Bai was completely in the dark about what was in the case.
Earlier, Xiao'er made a good point about the surprise factor that convinced him not to look at the Jade Slips' contents. After all, they had come here to have fun, not for business. Getting surprised at the things being sold seemed to be a great way to enjoy the day.
Back to the stage, as soon as Ling Yun opened the case, a burst of Soul Qi flowed out into the crowd, surprising everyone.
(Note: Soul Qi is a different type of Spiritual Qi that is helpful only for the Soul. Even though Spiritual Qi is also helpful for the Soul, Soul Qi, since it can only help the Soul, is more than twice as effective as Spiritual Qi for the Soul.]
Everyone who felt the burst of Soul Qi immediately felt enlightened, as if they had gained 100 IQ points. Their minds cleared up, and they were able to figure out key problems they had earlier when they were cultivating their Martial Techniques.
Seeing everyone's completive looks, Ling Yun's face was full of smiles. Though releasing this wave of Soul Qi would lower the essence of the Natural Treasure, it would also give everyone in the audience a free sample of what they were buying, therefore increasing the price.
The problem with most rare items, like the Spirit Cleansing Fruit, in auctions was the fear of buying something that didn't work or was a dud. But now that everyone felt the effects, the price would surely skyrocket.
"I am sure that everyone knows the value of the Spirit Cleansing Fruit, so there won't be a starting bid. You can all begin to bid!" Ling Yun announced, giving the crowd the floor.
After Ling Yun announced the start of the bid, the crowd immediately shouted dozens of different amounts for the Spirit Cleansing Fruit. And within seconds, the price had already gone up to 1000 Spirit Stones, more than double the last most expensive item.
Xue Bai, in the VIP booth, was even slightly tempted to bid for the fruit. Currently, both of his parents were at the Peak of the Houtian Great Realm and were only one step away from advancing into the Xiantain Great Realm.
However, that one last step was a problem to countless cultivators all throughout the Baishen Plane. To advance into the Xiantain Great Realm, one had to do two things, first, sense your soul and, finally, awaken it.
But the soul was an illusory and intangible thing. Without proper guidance or high-level treasures to help, it was almost impossible to sense it yourself.
Even if you knew where your soul was and how to look for it, sensing it was still hard.
It was like trying to navigate through a maze blind while you had the map in your head. Even if you knew where to go and the correct path, getting to the goal was still difficult.
And even after sensing it, one would only be classified as a Half-Step Xiantian Great Realm cultivator, and that still wasn't a true Xiantian Great Realm cultivator. Only when one awakened their soul would they truly be called a Xiantain Great Realm cultivator.
Xue Feng and Li Rou were currently still at the Peak of the Domain Lord Realm, unable to sense their souls. If Xue Bai could get the Spirit Cleansing Fruit, it would be able to help the two of them finally advance to the Realm of their dreams.
Thinking that far ahead, Xue Bai decided he would win the Spirit Cleansing Fruit. But since the bidding war had yet to pick up, he was in no rush to bid.
"1500 Spirit Stones!" Suddenly a bidder that wasn't sitting in the crowd yelled out a bid. It was Huang Wei.
Hearing the astronomical number come from the Young Marquis, the attendants in the crowd were disheartened. They could neither contend with Huang Wei financially nor survive the wrath of the clan behind him.
In Huang Wei's booth, he and Old Chen were conversing about the Spirit Cleansing Fruit.
"Hey, Old Chen, do you think we have a chance at winning this thing? Father gave me almost 3 thousand Spirit Stones just for this thing alone." Huang Wei asked casually as he swirled the wine in his cup.
"I only know as much as you do, Young Master Huang. Though Master gave us most of the annual earnings from the clan, surely the other heirs in the booths like us are in the same situation." Old Chen said his thoughts.
"Then Old Chen, what about the people in the VIP Booths above us?" Huang Wei spoke as he looked upwards at Xue Bai's booth.
"Young Master, we neither know of the identities of the people up there nor the limit of their wallets. We can only hope that the Spirit Stones Master gave us is enough." Old Chen said seriously.
"Then Old Chen, how about we let one of the VIPs win, then follow them outside? If they are a big shot, we can give them a polite greeting and try to build connections. But if not…." Huang Wei spoke as he swiped his hand across his neck.
"No, Young Master Huang, we can't do that!" Old Chen immediately denied the suggestion.
What Huang Wei planned to do was nothing short of suicide. Not only did every owner of a VIP membership card have a huge background, but even if they didn't kill the owner of one would provoke not only Golden Hall Auction House but Li Rou, who backed it.
"Why do you look so scared, Old Chen? As long as we do it cleanly and don't leave a trace, what can Duchess Li do but swallow the injustice." Huang Wei persuaded in a relaxed manner.
"Young Master, no matter what, the Duchess is a Peak Stage Domain Lord Realm Cultivator. We can't afford to provoke a powerhouse of that level." Old Chen, at this point, wanted to shed tears.
His Young Master seemed to be overwhelmed with greed to the point of madness. Not only did he want to kill someone with a prestigious background, but he also wanted to offend a Peak Stage Domain Lord Realm cultivator.
"Old Chen, don't worry, I'm no fool. I know which people I can target and which I can't. If it's something I'm not confident in going after, I will try and build a relationship. But if they don't have a powerful background or strength, then we do the second plan." Huang Wei explained his thought process, trying to calm his butler down.
Old Chen did relax a little from Huang Wei's words, but he still had a feeling that his Young Master was going to kill someone today.
As the two conversed, the bid of the Spirit Cleansing Fruit had increased another 200 Spirit Stones from 1500 to 1700 courtesy of Li Mei and another heir in a booth.
Seeing that his voice was forgotten, Huang Wei threw out another sky-high bid and directly raised the price by another 200 Spirit Stones.
The bidding war between the teenage heirs in private booths until 2500 Spirit Stones, where one of the people in the VIP Booths didn't bother waiting anymore.
And with a deep, resounding, and booming voice, a man shouted, "3200 Spirit Stones!"
Though no one in the Auction Houses recognized the voice, from the aura behind it, they knew that man wasn't weak.
While the crowd and the guests in the private booths were trying to decipher who the man was, Ling Yun was smiling from ear to ear.
"We have a guest in one of our VIP Booths, bidding 3200 Spirit Stones. Anyone else would like to beat it?" Ling Yun spoke.
"Humph, Luo Kun, this Spirit Cleansing Fruit is mine! So don't think that just because your older brother became a Law Enforcement Elder at Wushen Academy, I won't dare to go against you anymore. 3350 Spirit Stones!" As if not wanting to be left out, another voice bid and upped the price by another 150 Spirit Stones.
"Hahaha! It's good that you still have your spine, Feng Wei! I thought you lost it after the last time I beat you! However, this Spirit Cleansing Fruit is mine. Anyone who dares to fight with me for this is my enemy. 3500 Spirit Stones!" The man named Li Kun joyfully laughed as he bid once more.
After hearing the argument between the two, the crowd finally managed to figure out who the two were.
"So it's the Head of the Core disciples of the Soaring Sword Sect and the number 1 ranked student from the Heaven Ranking List from Wushen Academy. No wonder they are allowed in the VIP Booths."
"But did Luo Kun just say that he managed to beat Feng Wei?"
"Shhh! Ignore that part. If you want to die, don't bring the rest of us down with you. Feng Wei is still a Law Engraving Realm cultivator. No matter what, he can kill almost everyone in this building."
Even Xue Bai was slightly surprised by their appearance in Snowy Wind City. But after thinking about it, it seemed to be reasonable. To be someone of their positions in the Three Great Sects, they would at least need a Low Black Grade Martial Vein. And obviously, Luo Kun and Feng Wei both certainly had one as the leaders of the younger generation from their respective Sects.
And presumably, after hearing that Golden Hall Auction House would be auctioning off a Spirit Cleansing Fruit, they most likely dropped everything to attend the auction.
Even if they weren't at the Peak of the Houtian Great Realm, using a Spirit Cleansing Fruit would still be of value for their struggles in the future when they were.