by Translator: Pokka; Author: 我本纯洁 (I Am Pure); Licensed From: Migu
"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.
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.
Chapter 185: I Am Overlord Xiang
That's right. Mo Mo had caused the disturbance under Xiang Shaoyun's order. Otherwise, he wouldn't have obtained the headband so easily. This headband was too important for him. He had to obtain it regardless of price. For him to actually get it so easily was quite a pleasant surprise.
At this time, the people who had bought something from the auction started lining up to complete the transaction. Xiang Shaoyun let others go first and was the last to walk over. He found that two other people were standing at the side. They were facing a different direction, not daring to look at him.
Xiang Shaoyun couldn't help but laugh before asking, "Young masters of Wen Clan, what are you doing standing here?"
"Hmph. They sure are gutsy to place bids without having the money to back it up. If it wasn't out of respect for Wen Clan, we would have killed them immediately," said someone coldly.
"We have only forgotten the money. Don't worry, my father will come with the spirit crystals soon!" Wen Jinrui replied gloomily.
"Haha, you don't even have a few thousand spirit crystals on you, and you dare to place bids here? This is enlightening to see!" Xiang Shaoyun roared with laughter.
He only planned to annoy the Wen Clan brothers for a bit. Little did he expect that they were so special, coming to the auction without enough spirit crystals on them. He felt really good when he saw them suffering like this.
The Wen Clan brothers couldn't even offer a retort. They could only glare at Xiang Shaoyun furiously, hoping that with their gazes alone they could pierce Xiang Shaoyun's heart 10,000 times.
Xiang Shaoyun proceeded to add salt to the wound and said, "Do you want me to pay for you? Just return me double of what I paid as interest later."
The brothers were so angry they nearly vomited blood. This person was truly hateful to be sneering at them like this.
Xiang Shaoyun ignored them and took out a large pile of spirit crystals to pay for the items he bought. He had spent over 10,000 spirit crystals in total. In the eyes of many people, that was a large sum of money. Even some King Realm cultivators were poorer than him. It caused the Wen Clan brothers to be filled with envy.
An auctioneer stepped forth and smiled, "How should I address this young master?"
Xiang Shaoyun replied, "I am Overlord Xiang."
"Overlord Xiang? What a fine name! What an ingenious name!" The auctioneer smiled. He paused for a bit and said, "This is a VIP card. In the future, whenever you participate in our auction, you will be entitled to a VIP room. We can also help search for all the items you need on your behalf. If the items you employ us to purchase are valuable enough, we can even give you a special discount on the fees!"
Hearing that filled the Wen Clan brothers with even more envy. The VIP card was not something anyone could get. Generally, the card was onl
y issued to people of powerful organizations and King Realm experts who had made their own name. Other people would not be able to get one so easily. The main reason this auctioneer offered Xiang Shaoyun the card was because they had already done an investigation on Xiang Shaoyun.
According to their investigation, Xiang Shaoyun had emperor-grade materials in his possession and had traded with the Cloud Margin Forging Pavilion before. That alone was enough to earn the respect of the auctioneer.
Moreover, when Xiang Shaoyun was placing his bids, he was completely calm, uncaring even. That was a temperament a regular person would never have. That was why this auctioneer had decided to offer him a VIP card.
Xiang Shaoyun was not surprised at all. He calmly accepted the card and said, "Thank you."
"Young Master Xiang, as a holder of our VIP card, you can now hire our men to work as your security." The auctioneer asked, "Are you interested—"
Xiang Shaoyun was now the owner of the icesnow fruit, the coldstar stone, and the headband. Each of those items were something many people coveted. The moment he left the auction house, he would be tailed. That was why the auctioneer asked if he wanted security.
Xiang Shaoyun spoke before the auctioneer finished, "Thank you for the offer, but I won't be needing the security service."
After saying that, he put away the items he bought and left with Mo Mo. The auctioneer blanked out slightly before thinking to himself, Looks like this young master's identity is not simple at all.
The moment Xiang Shaoyun walked out the auction house with Mo Mo, he could sense several sharp gazes land on him. It was obvious these people were all looking at him like a lamb for slaughter. All of them wanted nothing more than to slaughter this fat lamb here.
However, not a single one of them dared to be the first to attack. After all, creating chaos in the city was prohibited. At this time, Xie Sanqian came rushing over on a flame wolf and blocked Xiang Shaoyun's path.
He pointed his spear at Xiang Shaoyun and shouted, "Hand over the coldstar stone!"
One had to admit that Xie Sanqian was truly too brazen. He was fearlessly committing robbery under broad daylight. But those who knew Xie Sanqian would know that he had always been a direct and straightforward person. Since he had the backing of a Cloud Margin Pavilion elder, not many people would offend him easily.
"Impudent!" Mo Mo stepped forth and berated. As a follower, she had to share Xiang Shaoyun's burden.
"Get out of my way!" Xie Sanqian shouted coldly.
Right after he shouted, his flame wolf pounced forward. The flame wolf was quick and violent, giving Mo Mo a sense of pressure she had never felt before. However, she had no reason to retreat. She drew out the tier-3 sword she had just gotten and stabbed forth, the power of her eighth-stage Transformation Realm erupting fully.
The flame wolf spat a clump of flame forward that collided with the sword energy, creating a loud explosion. Mo Mo was forced to retreat repeatedly and was nearly burnt by the flame.
Eighth-stage Great Demon! Mo Mo instantly cried out inwardly.
If the demonic beast wasn't at the same cultivation level as her, it wouldn't have been able to force her into retreat so easily. Before she could react, the flame wolf streaked forth again and clawed at her with its sharp claws. Mo Mo waved her sword around repeatedly yet wasn't able to deal any damage to the flame wolf. Instead, she was forced to roll away to avoid the incoming attack.
"Mo Mo, come back," Xiang Shaoyun said.
Xie Sanqian stopped the wolf from attacking and looked at Xiang Shaoyun coldly. "If you know what's good for you, hand over the coldstar stone. Or else, you won't be able to leave this place!"
Before Xiang Shaoyun could say anything, Ye Xuan's voice rang out, "I want the coldstar stone as well."
Xie Sanqian shot Ye Xuan a glance and said, "Ye Xuan, don’t come out and humiliate yourself!"
"Nobody is humiliating himself. A battle is all that is needed to reveal everything," answered Ye Xuan calmly.
"So you both want the coldstar stone? Anyone else?" Xiang Shaoyun asked as he gazed at the few others who were eying him from not far away. He was still as calm as ever.
Chapter 186: Challenging Xie Sanqian
When the people in the area saw Xiang Shaoyun's gaze, they began stirring.
"Is this kid challenging us?" someone said unhappily.
"Since he is challenging us, let us fulfill his wish. He has a lot of good stuff on him right now," said someone else.
Three people stepped forward, trying to surround Xiang Shaoyun.
Xie Sanqian stabbed his spear into the ground before shouting at the newcomers, "This has nothing to do with you. F*ck off!"
Ye Xuan also threw a sharp gaze at the newcomers, the pressure causing the newcomers to stop in their steps. Xie Sanqian and Ye Xuan were arrogant individuals. How could they allow someone else to take part?
The three newcomers hesitated slightly before retreating. In terms of strength and background, none of them could compare with the two before them. Thus, it would be wise for them to not offend the two.
Xiang Shaoyun smiled and said, "So are the two of you going to come at me together?"
"You think too highly of yourself. After I lop your head off your body, you will learn the consequence of disobeying me," said Xie Sanqian, who had a brash temperament. He then charged forward riding on his flame wolf.
He moved as fast as the wind and instantly arrived before Xiang Shaoyun. A spear stabbed forth and sent a flaming wolf pouncing on Xiang Shaoyun. Xie Sanqian was a fifth-stage Transformation Realm cultivator with outstanding combat prowess that enabled him to easily fight against those at the sixth or seventh stage of the Transformation Realm. This attack of his was enough to easily kill any fifth-stage Transformation Realm cultivator.
"How violent," Xiang Shaoyun sighed before he moved as well.
His body flickered and avoided the attack. He then reached out and grabbed the spear before dragging Xie Sanqian off the flame wolf. Xie Sanqian was caught by complete surprise, as he had not expected Xiang Shaoyun to have such strength. After all, his opponent was only a second-stage Transformation Realm cultivator but was demonstrating strength beyond the capabilities of even a fifth-stage Transformation Realm cultivator.
Xie Sanqian was pulled off the flame wolf, but thanks to his rich combat experience, he flipped his body and kicked at Xiang Shaoyun the moment he was pulled off. With the immediate follow up, Xiang Shaoyun was not given any chance to follow up the pull with an attack of his own. That was the difference between a Cloud Margin Pavilion disciple and a regular cultivator.
Xiang Shaoyun reacted speedily as well. He immediately released the spear and turned his arm into a shield and blocked the incoming kick. A regular second-stage Transformation Realm cultivator would have no way of blocking Xie Sanqian's kick, but for Xiang Shaoyun, blocking the kick was no trouble at all. He even followed up with a sudden attack of his own as his other hand shot up toward his opponent.
Star Destroying Finger!
The beam came abruptly, and with the distance between the two, Xie Sanqian was completely helpless, as he was yet to have the time to switch his posture.
Bang!
The finger attack blasted him away. The outer energy barrier on his body even cracked from the attack. Fortunately, he still had an armor protecting him. Otherwise, the attack would have seriously injured him. Even so, he was sent flying and tumbling on the ground, looking completely opposite of his regular heroic self.
"Bastard! Flame wolf, go! Swallow him alive!" Xie Sanqian shouted furiously. Since he started cultivating, he had never suffered a defeat in the hands of someone with a lower cultivation level. Today was a first, and the defeat was under the hands of someone who looked so ordinary.
He even concluded that his opponent must have hidden his real strength. Otherwise, he would not have suffered a defeat. The flame wolf pounced Xiang Shaoyun at Xie Sanqian's command. The eighth-stage Great Demon flame wolf was natural
ly mighty. It was extremely fast, and its attack was incomparably sharp.
The wolf opened its massive jaw, baring its terrifying fangs. In the past year, Xiang Shaoyun had gone through numerous battles and had killed a lot of demonic beasts as well. Thus, this was nothing for him.
"Scram!" Xiang Shaoyun roared at the flame wolf. Traces of tiger's roar accompanied the majestic sound wave and spread throughout the whole area.
The flame wolf had the sensation that a tiger king had appeared before it, and fear immediately covered its eyes. Xiang Shaoyun took the chance to surround his fist with a layer of lightning energy before sending a punch at the wolf.
Lightning Bolt Fist!
The fist shot forward with the power of an overbearing lightning bolt.
Bang! Bang!
Xiang Shaoyun started raining punches on the wolf, turning it into a punching bag. Even the thick skin of the wolf was torn by the beating as blood splashed everywhere.
"Howl!"
The wolf roared in pain as it whipped its tail at Xiang Shaoyun's shoulder, leaving a burning pain. The wolf took the chance and counterattacked, clawing at Xiang Shaoyun repeatedly with its flaming claws, pushing Xiang Shaoyun into retreat. An eighth-stage Great Demon would not be so easily defeated.
The wolf then spat a mouthful of flame from its mouth, sending a furious wave of flame that burned their surroundings. Using the Overlord's Nine Nether Steps, Xiang Shaoyun was able to barely avoid the flame attack before moving to the side of the wolf. There, both his fists shot forward.
Gold Helix Fist!
The fist energy then changed from purple to gold. The incredibly sharp energy transformed into a massive spiraling drill that blasted the flame wolf away. Right this moment, Xie Sanqian, who had gotten a short respite, arrived with an ambush.
Mo Mo wanted to stop the ambush, but she was forced to keep watch on Ye Xuan instead. In any case, she was confident that her young master would most certainly be able to deal with Xie Sanqian's ambush.