At that very moment, Cheng Xiaofan, through his spatial powers, discovered that a secret room was set up behind the reception desk.
Within this secret room, a black safe was placed.
The safe was sealed with talismans around it, clearly intended to suppress whatever was inside.
Instantly, Cheng Xiaofan's gaze penetrated the safe, and he spotted a pair of snow-white dragon bone claws laid inside.
These dragon bone claws were even more exquisite than in the photographs, resembling a pair of delicate works of art.
With their ten fingers splayed, strong and resolute, flowing cloud and water patterns adorned them, exuding wisps of spiritual energy that enveloped the pair of dragon bone claws.
As Cheng Xiaofan's gaze also enveloped the dragon bone claws, they seemed to sense his presence, twitching and rattling within the safe with a violent clang.
Simultaneously, the dragon pearl on Cheng Xiaofan's chest pulsed incessantly, as if it were about to burst forth from his body.
*Bang! Bang! Bang!* The safe shook violently on the floor, roaring with noise.
Outside the secret room, four heavily armed SWAT officers stood guard.
Upon hearing the commotion from within the secret room, they rushed in. By then, Cheng Xiaofan had withdrawn his gaze from the secret room, and the safe immediately became calm.
"Huh, did I hear things? This safe seems fine!"
"But I heard noises from the safe too!"
"Forget it, maybe the higher-ups hyped up the dragon bone claws too much, causing us to be overly tense, leading to a collective delusion!"
"Let's go, we'll go out for a smoke and calm our nerves!"
The four SWAT officers discussed as they left the secret room.
...
"Master, wake up, the auction is about to officially begin!"
As soon as Cheng Xiaofan withdrew his spiritual consciousness from his spatial domain, he heard Li Mingxi's soft call in his ear.
"Oh, I know!"
As Cheng Xiaofan lazily opened his eyes, he realized he was resting his head in a woman's embrace. Startled, he jolted upright and exclaimed, "I... how did I end up like this?"
Li Mingxi smiled upon hearing him and explained, "Master, I saw you sliding down from the recliner while sleeping, so I helped you lie on me to make you more comfortable!"
Cheng Xiaofan broke out in a cold sweat upon hearing this, thinking to himself that he must never let his spiritual consciousness leave his body in public again.
If someone were to attack him, he wouldn't even have a chance to retaliate.
It was all because his desire to find out the whereabouts of the dragon bone claws was too urgent.
Fortunately, the person by his side was Li Mingxi, otherwise, something might have happened.
He really shouldn't be so careless!
"Mingxi, I'm truly sorry!" Cheng Xiaofan said to Li Mingxi, feeling embarrassed.
Li Mingxi smiled and replied, "Master, I am your disciple, and this is what I should do!"
"..." Heh!
So, having a beautiful female disciple came with such perks!
Cheng Xiaofan chuckled speechlessly.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please quiet down. The auction for the dragon bone claws has now officially commenced!"
At this moment, the auctioneer on stage announced loudly, "We have just played footage of the dragon bone claws on the screen for everyone, and also introduced their miraculous qualities."
"These dragon bone claws possess extremely potent demonic energy; it is absolutely difficult for anyone not a major figure in the martial world to subdue them and make them their own."
"It can be said that whoever possesses these dragon bone claws will undoubtedly become a generation's overlord among the cultivators of this ancient martial world, not someone to be trifled with."
"Possessing the dragon bone claws is not only a symbol of noble status but also allows one to continuously break through their cultivation realm."
The auctioneer spoke with full vigor and great persuasiveness. The cultivators present were all itching to get their hands on them, wishing they could rush to the stage and snatch the safe away.
"Now, I shall begin the bidding. The starting price is eighty billion!" the auctioneer shouted.
As soon as his voice fell, the hall fell into utter silence!
The starting price was eighty billion. This was simply too high!
Who could afford this?
"One hundred billion!" Yin Ruhua immediately shouted.
As soon as her voice died down, she couldn't help but stand up and look around, exuding an aura akin to Zhang Fei roaring and shattering Dangyang Bridge.
"One hundred and fifty billion!" Cheng Xiaofan called out.
After all, he had nearly four hundred billion in his bank accounts, most of which was ill-gotten gains. It was useless to keep it with him without spending it.
Cheng Xiaofan's bid elicited a wave of murmurs from the attendees.
There were indeed quite a few rich people in this day and age!
"One hundred and sixty billion!" an old man shouted.
Yin Ruhua slammed the table abruptly: "This auntie is not short of money, two hundred billion!"
The old man followed with a shout: "Two hundred and ten billion!"
Yin Ruhua's voice thundered like a bolt of lightning: "Three hundred billion!"
"You..." The old man's eyes widened instantly, looking at Yin Ruhua like an idiot, unsure of what to say for a moment.
Anything above three hundred billion, he couldn't afford a single cent more.
"Is there anyone else who dares to bid against this auntie?" Yin Ruhua stood tall and proud, looking down upon the surroundings with a triumphant smile, and asked loudly.
The cultivators present all looked ashen.
They had never dreamed that a pair of dragon bone claws, starting at eighty billion, would instantly skyrocket to three hundred billion.
This world was truly insane!
After all, for them, even a hundred billion was as difficult to obtain as ascending to heaven!
If they had known this would be the outcome, they shouldn't have come.
This was simply not a place they could afford to be in!
"Three hundred and fifty billion!" Cheng Xiaofan gritted his teeth, speaking with some heartache.
These dragon bone claws rightfully belonged to him, yet he had to spend a fortune to acquire them.
As soon as Cheng Xiaofan's bid fell, he drew Yin Tiejiu's most ferocious and venomous gaze, along with a furious roar: "Kid, are you deliberately trying to oppose me?"
"Three hundred and fifty billion, can you even afford it?"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Xiaofan smiled faintly and replied, "I'm not doing this for nothing; if I couldn't afford this money, why would I be bidding?"
"You..." Yin Tiejiu was so angry he almost gnashed his teeth to pieces.
He simply couldn't fathom where Cheng Xiaofan had obtained so much money.
Yin Tiejiu glanced at Li Mingxi, wondering if this beautiful woman had an extraordinary background and was providing him with the funds?
"Sister Ruhua, with our strength, what's the highest price we can bid?" Yin Tiejiu asked after taking a deep breath.
Yin Ruhua replied, "The highest is four hundred and ten billion, this is all the wealth of our Black Lions Gate!"
Yin Tiejiu's face turned dark, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "Immediately bid four hundred billion, I don't believe this kid has that much capital to compete with us!"
"Alright!"
Yin Ruhua responded and immediately shouted, "Four hundred billion!"
"Heavens, four hundred billion, the rich are indeed different!" Immediately, cries of astonishment erupted from the crowd.
Someone immediately inquired, "Who exactly is that woman? She's so rich?"
Someone nearby quickly replied, "Didn't you see the bald man sitting next to that woman? That's Yin Tiejiu, the notorious sect leader of the Black Lions Gate from the Great Northwest!"
"Honestly, that young man shouldn't be bidding against Yin Tiejiu. Offending Yin Tiejiu is a sure way to court death!"