Is It Weird for a Guy to Apply to a Witch School?

Chapter 554: The [Transcendent Knowledge] Fragment, Heart of Cold Tide

After Xing Anlei left, the girl named Jiao Xiaoshuang enthusiastically began to guide me through the main exhibition area, introducing various pieces of information.

I also secretly gathered information about this girl named Jiao Xiaoshuang.

She was a senior sister quite a few years older than me.

Identity was truly a strange thing sometimes.

“This auction preview will last for two days. During this time, Teacher Little Han, you can learn about the auction items in various ways, including but not limited to introductions, demonstrations, and even temporary trials.”

“In addition, before entering the auction hall, you need to collect a bidding number plate that belongs to you. It will accompany all your subsequent bidding activities and can be used to access all external services of this hotel…”

Jiao Xiaoshuang did her best to explain to me, quickly completing the process of acquiring some important items for me.

Finally, she brought these items to me and handed me a small card with the number “001” written on it.

This must be my bidding number plate.

I initially thought it would be one of those large placards held in the hand, but it was just the size of a card.

“Is there any special meaning to this number?”

I asked casually.

“This number doesn’t have much practical meaning. It’s likely because you arrived relatively early, and you have good luck, honored guest,” Jiao Xiaoshuang quickly replied.

“I see.”

I didn’t dwell on it much, but this plate was not presented this way in the Appraisal Spell.

These numbers were also a symbol of status for this auction.

The three digits were the total number of these plates, which were basically all for receiving special guests.

If a guest was ordinary, or even a commoner—those wealthy people—they would receive a different plate.

And the service range enjoyed by that group of people was not as extensive as the service provided by the plate in my hand.

However, I didn’t mind these things.

They were all tacit ”hidden rules” anyway.

No one would question them, especially since I was already enjoying the most elite services of these hidden rules.

Why bother?

“Teacher Little Han, here is also a detailed guide for this auction. It contains detailed information on all the auction items, including the starting price, bidding rules, and other auction information. If you have any questions, you can ask me directly, and I will answer them carefully.”

“Mmm.”

I took the somewhat thick, exquisitely bound booklet, casually flipped through it, and then immediately used an Appraisal Spell to record all the information inside.

I also gained a general understanding of the auction items this time.

There were quite a few items that genuinely interested me, and I had thought that with my perspective, I would only be passively looking at the items in this auction.

The introductory items for this auction were priceless works of art, antiquities, and rare objects from the outside world.

Buying these items would mostly serve as decorations to enrich one’s cultural foundation.

Jiao Xiaoshuang introduced the information and auction price of each item to me.

I looked at the well-preserved ancient calligraphy and paintings, with estimated starting prices of several hundred thousand to several million.

Next to them were some jewelry and jade artifacts. I could even sense some gentle Transcendent Energy contained within a few of them.

The introduction stated that they could nourish the body and regulate health.

However, based on the information I acquired from the Appraisal, the gentle energy that entered the body was clearly noticeable, almost harmless to the human body, and the so-called nourishment was mostly a psychological effect.

Well… looking at these ”specially effective” ornaments, with a valuation of tens of millions, I could only think… that the rich sure were easy to make money from.

However, I wasn’t very interested in these items.

I was merely taking this opportunity to perform an Appraisal to obtain more information, especially on some ancient and rare artifacts.

Historical artifacts also had some reference value for past history.

After all, the history of a civilization could indeed reflect its rise, fall, and potential.

Although, after the Main World was invaded and occupied by Transcendent Races, it was destined to have no future for self-development.

Jiao Xiaoshuang naturally noticed that I wasn’t very interested in the initial auction items.

Although she didn’t know why I insisted on staying in front of every exhibit for a short while, she followed my pace and introduced them to me.

The content of the introduction wasn’t important.

She clearly understood her role at this moment: even if the guest wasn’t listening, being a background voice was still helpful.

These ordinary auction items were merely formalities prepared for guests with specific collection needs and for the wealthy nobles.

The main event was yet to come.

After that, the items that appeared became somewhat disorganized, ranging from Transcendent Materials to plant-based medicinal materials, Transcendent Potions, Alchemical Items, and so on.

Many of these items came directly from the Witch Academy, and quite a few were also rare goods even within the Witch Academy.

After all, this was an auction primarily aimed at Transcendent students, so they couldn’t possibly present inferior goods.

The items I had just seen were not extremely valuable.

If a guest was interested in them, they could even bid directly and negotiate with the Wan Shi Wu Club organizer or communicate directly with the seller.

If a deal was reached, the item might not even need to go through the auction process.

The subsequent auction items came from various Transcendent Academies, such as some Holy Light Artifacts from Holy Angel Academy, powerful Elf Magic Scrolls made from animal hides from Elf Academy, and even formidable-looking Holy Relics forged by Dwarves.

I even saw some Transcendent Dragon Blood Samples from Dragonblood Academy!

These auction items were varied and further broadened my horizons.

Similarly, with the aid of the Earth Vein Appraisal Spell, I gained a deeper understanding of the techniques and products derived from the power systems of other Academies.

I have to say that the number of attendees for this auction also far exceeded my expectations.

After all, the auction items alone encompassed so many Transcendent Academies.

Many students from those Academies would likely also attend.

Wouldn’t this place gather over a thousand people then?

But thinking about the size of this hotel… it wasn’t surprising, after all.

The attendees were here to participate in the auction, not to stay overnight.

The exhibition area after that led to a place that genuinely interested me, as the auction items displayed there were all Transcendent Items!

I had come into contact with the concept of Transcendent Items before.

They were items different from ordinary Alchemical Artifacts but possessed Transcendent effects.

They were miracles naturally formed by chance, using a specific item as an Anchor and conforming to a certain Ritual.

For example, the ”Heart of Ninglan” encountered during the Ninglan New City incident, which could macroscopically control Destiny.

Or the ”Tear of Frenzied Growth” encountered in the Small World, which was formed by the interference of the World Will and the Script, using that pendant as the material Anchor, adding [Transcendent Knowledge], and conforming to a certain Ritual, ultimately generating the shackles ”Earth Vein Chains” imposed on the Child of Destiny.

These were all Transcendent Items.

The effects and side effects of the two Transcendent Items I had encountered could be described as terrifying.

The former could control local Destiny and absorb flesh and blood, enough to suck a person dry.

The latter was Earth Vein insulating and directly severed the Earth Vein Chains.

The effect it had was shared, which was an act of selfless dedication.

I wasn’t sure if that counted as a side effect.

Furthermore, this Transcendent Item could not leave that world.

Once the Destiny of that world was severed, the entire Transcendent Item would be destroyed.

Otherwise… the ability of this Transcendent Item to sever the Earth Vein Chains would be a very useful ability.

But the auction items in the exhibition area I was currently in showed me that not every Transcendent Item was such a Transcendence-defying existence.

Some were merely items that had coincidentally been contaminated with a special Transcendent Energy, thus completing a transformation into a Transcendent Item under special circumstances or conditions.

Moreover… most of the Transcendent Items here existed in a form that was either single-use or had a limited number of uses.

Under my observation, the Appraisal Information for one of the Transcendent Items indicated that it was ”manually manufactured and interfered with.”

Sure enough, once the Ritual and requirements for the formation of some Transcendent Items were understood, they could be artificially manufactured again, but the success rate of this artificial manufacturing was extremely low, which was not surprising.

Noticing my interest in this area, Jiao Xiaoshuang also breathed a sigh of relief.

Interest was a good thing, as it facilitated better communication and introduction with the guest.

“This is the exhibition area for the Transcendent Items category of this auction preview. The Transcendent Item in front of you is named ‘Touch of Dim Light.’ Its body is a gemstone surface made of exquisite jade. The crimson traces permeating the cracks on it belong to the overall body of the Transcendent Item.”

“The ring band and the metal setting are additions made by the seller afterward to facilitate carrying. They are not part of the Transcendent Item’s original body and can be changed later without affecting the Transcendent Item’s effect.”

I listened carefully as Jiao Xiaoshuang introduced its effect.

She even opened the display glass case and took it out, demonstrating it right in front of me!

“The effect of this Transcendent Item is that when placed on the second joint of the right middle finger, pressing it with the thumb will emit a dim light. The light is not very strong, but sustaining this state will continuously augment the wearer’s recovery and wound healing ability. The effect is very noticeable for minor injuries, but the effect is diminished for severe injuries.”

“And the cost of using it is the continuous consumption of physical strength, leading to the accumulation of fatigue. Moreover, rest cannot alleviate the fatigue during use. Of course, according to multiple professional tests, this rapid recovery might also cause a decline in vitality, meaning a reduction in lifespan. However, this reduction is very minuscule. Recovering a scar or a wound would consume about ten seconds of lifespan for a young person, and this is a recoverable consumption.”

“A bit useless,” I commented.

After all, the effect of this Transcendent Item wasn’t even comparable to a Flesh and Blood Healing Spell, or even a lower-level Healing Spell.

“Yes, the effects and side effects of Transcendent Items are uncontrollable. Many Transcendent Items even have unclarified side effects, or sometimes even exhibit noticeable side effects while the intended effect remains unclear.”

“But people still flock to them, is that right?”

I asked curiously.

“Yes.”

After all, I knew that the use of Transcendent Items basically had no consumption.

One only needed to pay the cost to ”trade” for the effect.

Therefore, the threshold for using Transcendent Items was very low.

Ordinary people could use them, which was highly coveted by the wealthy ordinary people who attended.

This was mastering Transcendent power!

I wandered around the Transcendent Item exhibition area for a long time.

Jiao Xiaoshuang thought I was just interested in these items.

In fact, what truly interested me were the stories behind the formation of these Transcendent Items.

Every Transcendent Item originated from a chance encounter, and humans were one of the biggest factors that facilitated their formation.

For example, the first item I saw, the ”Touch of Dim Light.”

It originally belonged to a former explorer of the Main World.

The cracks on the ring surface were caused by an accidental bump, and the crimson substance was actually that person’s blood.

The explorer’s blood was stained on his thumb during the last moment of his life, and it seeped into the cracks.

However, ordinary human blood did not possess any Transcendent effect.

It was not a Transcendent Material refined in the Transcendent domain either.

Its existence primarily played the role of a ”part of the Ritual.”

Therefore, this Transcendent Item could be destroyed by simply removing the bloodstain completely, thus destroying the ritual balance of the entire Transcendent Item.

Single-use Transcendent Items were also similar.

Only, due to the unexpected nature of their formation, each resulting effect or side effect would consume a part of the ritual’s composition, ultimately causing it to lose the characteristics of a Transcendent Item.

It was clear that the single-use Transcendent Items in this preview were not available for trial use.

Similarly, reusable Transcendent Items with dangerous side effects were also not recommended for trial use.

If a guest insisted on trying, they needed to sign a Disclaimer Contract before use, and they would also be liable for any resulting losses.

Just as I was about to finish gathering the information on these Transcendent Items, I was attracted by a display stand in another area.

It was simply too special.

The arrangement of the entire venue seemed to center around it, and the huge display stand held a very small item.

“What is that on the largest stand? Is that also a Transcendent Item?”

I turned my head and asked.

As I asked, I subconsciously used the Earth Vein Appraisal Spell.

Information about that item quickly presented itself to me.

But when I saw the name of the item, I was momentarily frozen in shock.

Because it was called the ”Heart of Cold Tide”!

“This item is also one of the auction items for this auction. It is the centerpiece exhibit of this preview and the final auction item of the entire event. This exhibit is named the Heart of Cold Tide. Would you like me to introduce the details of this exhibit to you?”

“Mmm, yes.”

I looked up at the Heart of Cold Tide, which resembled an ice crystal gem, and couldn’t help but walk toward it.

So… a fragment of that shattered [Transcendent Knowledge] was here.