"One thousand five hundred high-grade spirit stones."
Zuo Ao Ran stood by the window, watching the bids from the opposing private room. A venomous glint flashed in his eyes.
Those who dared to challenge him would not live to see the next dawn.
"Two thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Chu Ling Wei frowned slightly. Only her room and another private room remained in the bidding. The other party increased the spirit stones by a large margin each time, clearly intending to intimidate her.
"Three thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Zuo Ao Ran spoke again.
"Four thousand high-grade spirit stones."
This price had already far exceeded the market value of the Yin Soul Wood. However, Chu Ling Wei was wealthy and unafraid.
The people sitting in the main hall of the auction house gasped when they heard Chu Ling Wei directly bid another thousand high-grade spirit stones. Their gazes shifted to their private room.
They were immensely curious about who was sitting in that room.
The bid of ten thousand top-grade spirit stones had still left them reeling. Now, to bid this much for a single Yin Soul Wood, the occupants of this room were either powerful figures from major sects or members of reclusive families.
"Despicable."
Zuo Ao Ran slammed his palm on the table, wishing he could devour the person opposite him alive.
"Five thousand high-grade spirit stones."
"Six thousand high-grade spirit stones."
"Seven thousand high-grade spirit stones."
"Weiwei, bid ten thousand directly," Leng Xing Zhi said, glancing at the opposite private room. The person opposite them clearly needed this Yin Soul Wood, so no matter how much Weiwei bid, they would quickly match it.
Chu Ling Wei followed her senior brother's advice and directly announced, "Ten thousand high-grade spirit stones."
This was how auctions worked; if you wanted something, you bought it with your hard-earned money.
"Twenty thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Zuo Ao Ran was about to explode. A surge of anger rushed to his chest, almost causing him to spit blood.
Zuo Yi, standing behind Zuo Ao Ran, felt his heart tremble upon hearing the amount his master had bid. He desperately wanted to tell his master that they did not have that much money to squander.
Chu Ling Wei heard the other party's bid, and she could sense their determination from their tone.
"Thirty thousand high-grade spirit stones."
"Forty thousand high-grade spirit stones."
"..."
"Eighty thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Zuo Ao Ran stared intently at the people opposite. Strangely, he was no longer as agitated or angry. He saw no need to be angry with a dead man.
Chu Ling Wei felt she was going mad. Spending so much money on a single Yin Soul Wood seemed a little unwise.
"One hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Just as Chu Ling Wei was about to give up, Leng Xing Zhi suddenly spoke. For his junior sister, any amount of spirit stones was insignificant.
"Go, have someone watch outside. I want to know their whereabouts," Zuo Ao Ran said no more bids. His eyes had turned into vertical slits, his voice cold and hoarse.
"Yes."
Zuo Yi acknowledged and exited the room. His master was angry, and it was time for a slaughter.
"Senior Brother, forget it. While Yin Soul Wood is precious, it's not irreplaceable." Yin Soul Wood was rare, but if one searched hard enough, it could be found.
"We encountered it today, so we'll buy it," Leng Xing Zhi disagreed, sipping his spiritual tea and waiting for the opposing bid.
"Junior Sister, don't worry. These few spirit stones are nothing to Senior Brother," Nangong Luo said, smiling as he saw his junior sister's conflicted expression. Everyone in the Xuan Tian Continent knew how wealthy the Leng family was.
"They've stopped bidding."
Su Yan, not hearing any further bids from the opposite side, stepped forward. The people opposite seemed to have left. He narrowed his eyes slightly, "He won't give up easily." Not bidding now meant they intended to obtain it by other means.
A breath later, the sound of a successful bid echoed.
Ultimately, Chu Ling Wei purchased a Yin Soul Wood for one hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones.
As Chu Ling Wei saw the Yin Soul Wood delivered by the attendant, and then looked at the green eyes of the Phantom Cat, she said, "Don't get any ideas about this. Plant it on the White Jade Soil, and I want to cultivate some Yin Soul Wood myself."
One hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones. She couldn't afford to lose money.
"Okay."
The Phantom Cat thought of the large patch of White Jade Soil that had already grown in its spatial realm. Anything planted on it would regenerate. The Phantom Cat nodded vigorously; it also wanted more Yin Soul Wood.
"Let's go. Perhaps someone is waiting impatiently."
Nangong Luo led the way out of the private room and left the auction house via its secret teleportation array.
Because they had purchased so many items, the auction house had arranged for two Heaven Melting Realm experts and two Sky Transformation Realm experts to protect them. Nangong Luo had refused them all. With the genius of his Senior Brother here, he had no worries about safety.
The group sat on Nangong Luo's flying sword and headed out of the city.
Chu Ling Wei knew that as soon as they left the auction house, several pairs of eyes had begun to follow them.
"Which group should we deal with first?" Nangong Luo mused, somewhat perplexed. These people were truly overestimating themselves.
"Hmph, I'll go meet them."
Su Yan stood up and unleashed a Dao artifact, striking at the pursuers behind them and forcing them into view.
"People from the Human Origin Sect!" Su Yan recognized them. The person was not wearing the uniform of a Human Origin Sect disciple, but the puppet on his shoulder was the mark of the Human Origin Sect, known to all under heaven.
"Hand over the Yin Soul Wood, and we'll spare your lives." The Human Origin Sect cultivator looked at the young man before him. He was in the Heaven Melting Realm, no match for the puppet. A cruel smile appeared on his lips.
Su Yan gave the Human Origin Sect cultivator a chilling smile. He was not the only one on the Xuan Tian Continent who could use puppets; he could too.
Suddenly, a cold wind swept through the surroundings, and the sounds of infants laughing enveloped the area. The Human Origin Sect cultivator felt a chill crawl down his spine from the laughter, as if he had been plunged into icy water. He was not the only one experiencing this; other cultivators who had been tracking them felt it too.
How could this be? He was a Sky Transformation Realm expert, a survivor of countless battles, how could he be afraid? The Human Origin Sect cultivator became cautious, believing this must be some trick from an ancient formation.
"Kill him." The puppet on the Human Origin Sect cultivator's shoulder suddenly grew larger and charged at Su Yan.
Su Yan let out a cold laugh. His puppet was not as simple as it sounded.
The bone-chilling wind blew, and all those who had been tracking them found themselves unable to move.
"I didn't expect Third Senior Brother to be so formidable," Chu Ling Wei said, her eyes fixed on her third senior brother as he effortlessly trapped several groups of people. Moreover, he seemed to be using no external forces, only his spiritual energy to construct layers of confining formations. Watching Third Senior Brother's every move, it was precise, swift, and deadly, striking directly at the opponent's vital points without any wasted effort.
"Not bad," Nangong Luo shrugged. No one accepted as a direct disciple by the dean of the Cultivation Academy was ordinary.
"Weiwei, that person has appeared." At this moment, the small Phantom Cat leaped out of Chu Ling Wei's arms and dashed towards a shadowed area.