Invincible Soul Emperor

Chapter 182: Chapter 182: The Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass Acquired

In the end, no one else bid, and Li Zongrui obtained the ten Soul-Enhancing Pills for three thousand low-grade Spirit Stones.

When the maid brought the jade box to Li Zongrui, the remorse he had felt earlier was instantly replaced by a beaming smile.

Watching everything clearly from his private box, Ye Qingchen couldn’t help but shake his head. Li Zongrui was as profligate as ever. However, without Li Zongrui, his ten Soul-Enhancing Pills probably wouldn’t have fetched such a high price.

I should really thank him properly. I wonder what kind of expression Li Zongrui will have when he finds out these ten Soul-Enhancing Pills were concocted by me.

But in any case, Ye Qingchen had gotten the Spirit Stones he needed, Li Zongrui had obtained the Soul-Enhancing Pills he coveted, and Qin Yue had successfully energized the entire venue. It was a happy outcome for everyone.

The auction proceeded smoothly from there. With the successful sale of the first item, the subsequent lots became even more sought-after, with several selling for far more than their expected prices.

Ye Qingchen wasn’t interested in the earlier items. He was waiting for the fifth lot: the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass!

When the auction for the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass began, Ye Qingchen once again found himself marveling at Qin Yue’s thoughtfulness. After the fervor over the first four items, the atmosphere had cooled considerably by the time the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass was presented.

Since Qin Yue knew Ye Qingchen wanted the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass, she only gave it a brief, one-sentence introduction without going into detail. She then announced, ”Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass, with a starting bid of two hundred low-grade Spirit Stones!”

After Qin Yue spoke, the auction hall fell silent. Although the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass was incredibly precious, not many people had a use for it, so such a reaction was to be expected.

When Li Zongrui heard the starting bid was two hundred low-grade Spirit Stones, he began to gloat inwardly. He figured that even though Ye Qingchen had gotten lucky enough to get into a private box, he definitely couldn’t afford to produce that many Spirit Stones. Even his father, despite how much he doted on Ye Qingchen, would never give him so many Spirit Stones for no reason. Li Zongrui could already picture the frustrated expression on Ye Qingchen’s face as he missed out on the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass due to his lack of funds.

Ye Qingchen didn’t rush to call out a bid. He had some understanding of how to manipulate people’s minds, so he waited. After a moment, Qin Yue, seemingly worried he might miss his chance, cast an almost imperceptible glance toward his private box.

Ye Qingchen was waiting for this exact opportunity. Just as everyone began to think the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass would fail to sell, he would suddenly raise the bid to intimidate anyone hoping to snag a bargain.

So, Ye Qingchen called out directly, ”Four hundred low-grade Spirit Stones!”

The moment he spoke, a stir went through the audience below.

”Damn, I was hoping to snag a deal. This guy doubled the price in one go! Too rich for my blood, too rich for my blood!” sighed a middle-aged man who looked like an Alchemist.

A younger man, also dressed as an Alchemist, consoled him, ”Third Uncle, just forget about getting a bargain. Didn’t you see the bid came from a private box on the second floor? Tickets to this auction are nearly impossible to get. The people in those boxes are incredibly distinguished; we can’t afford to offend them.”

Their words more or less represented the thoughts of everyone present. So, after Ye Qingchen called out his price, surprisingly, not a single person raised the bid.

Qin Yue was pleased to see this outcome and brought the hammer down quickly.

In the end, Ye Qingchen spent a mere four hundred low-grade Spirit Stones to obtain the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass he had so desperately wanted, which was a massive bargain.

Li Zongrui, who had been watching Ye Qingchen’s private box, still couldn’t understand how Ye Qingchen had so many Spirit Stones. Furthermore, judging by the confidence in his bid, Ye Qingchen likely had even more Spirit Stones prepared!

Li Zongrui couldn’t wrap his head around it. How could Ye Qingchen, who was supposed to be some poor kid from a small town, have so many Spirit Stones? And how did he get into a second-floor private box?

Perhaps if Li Zongrui knew that Ye Qingchen’s Spirit Stones had been kindly sponsored by none other than himself, he would regret ever finding out.

Ye Qingchen sat upright in his private box. Soon, someone delivered the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass. He inspected it and saw a full twelve stalks of Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass. What a huge windfall!

After deducting the cost of the Thousand-Year Peony Heart Grass, Ye Qingchen was left with two thousand six hundred low-grade Spirit Stones, enough to continue bidding on other desirable treasures. The reason he had so many low-grade Spirit Stones left was that Qin Yue had given instructions to waive his auction handling fee.

Ye Qingchen then went back to browsing the screen, searching for other treasures that interested him.

The auction continued, and it had to be said that Qin Yue’s talent was there for all to see. Under her guidance, the atmosphere of the auction reached one high point after another.

As the auction neared its end, the final three featured items were presented. One of them, in particular, had caught Ye Qingchen’s interest.

A maid walked solemnly toward Qin Yue, carrying a tray. Qin Yue carefully took the tray and placed it on the table before her. The venue quieted down, waiting for Qin Yue to introduce this auction item.

The reason everyone was so curious was that the description for this item on the Formation list was very brief: ”From an ancient battlefield!”

Although its function and effectiveness were not disclosed, the ”ancient battlefield” moniker alone was enough to capture everyone’s attention.

Under the expectant gaze of the crowd, Qin Yue then uncovered the tray and began her introduction, ”This is a piece of jade from an ancient battlefield. It is quite strange; we have conducted several appraisals but have not been able to determine its function. However, I’m sure everyone understands that an item from an ancient battlefield is bound to have extraordinary qualities. Therefore, this jade has a starting price of two thousand low-grade Spirit Stones!”

After Qin Yue finished speaking, the crowd below fell silent.

The ”ancient battlefield” moniker was certainly impressive. However, since not even the Rising Sun Pavilion could determine the jade’s function, no one present was arrogant enough to think they were more knowledgeable than its many experts.

So, after Qin Yue finished speaking, a long silence followed with no bids. Just as even she was beginning to think the jade would fail to sell, a voice called out from Ye Qingchen’s private box, ”I bid two thousand one hundred Spirit Stones.”

Qin Yue frowned. She never would have imagined that Ye Qingchen would actually bid on such a costly item of unknown value.

Could he have discovered something?