Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Wang Heyang dropped to his knees and kowtowed so hard that he cracked the stone tiles with his foreheawd.

The woman planted her foot on his face and looked down coldly. Her bright red lips parted as she said evenly, “I don’t think you even know my name, so listen carefully.

“My name is Qian Qiusui, and I am the owner of Yunding. Either you pay me, or you get lost!”

Boom!

With a resounding crack, she kicked him several zhang through the air and into a wall, shattering it. She didn’t even glance back as she turned to leave.

Just before stepping away, however, her eyes flicked toward the floor below. That boy is interesting.

Downstairs, Li Guanqi sat with his head lowered, shock written across his face.

When the woman appeared in Wang Heyang’s room, she had immediately sensed his divine consciousness and pinpointed where it came from. The pressure she exerted on him was overwhelming. He couldn’t even probe her aura to gauge her cultivation. His sliver of divine consciousness was like a tiny boat tossed about on her vast, unending sea.

“One hundred thousand, calling once! Any higher offers?”

Wang Heyang struggled to his feet and shouted in a panic, “Someone, come here! I’ll pay! Hurry!”The administrator who had been waiting outside his door all along waddled in. He lowered his voice and said, “Young Master Wang, your purchases just now totaled ninety thousand spirit stones.”

The man’s protruding belly stretched his robes, his eyes narrowing into slits.

Wang Heyang scowled furiously. “How could it be that much?!”

He had deliberately inflated the bidding, confident he could cover the ten percent penalty. What he didn’t realize was that this was exactly what Li Guanqi wanted. He wanted the penalty to hurt.

“One hundred thousand, second call! Remember, this is a spirit cauldron worth at least one hundred and thirty thousand on the open market. Is no one else bidding?”

Han Qiu was growing anxious because one hundred thousand meant they were selling it at a loss.

The administrator smiled at Wang Heyang in silence, making no move to hurry him.

Wang Heyang wavered between swallowing the penalty and competing for the cauldron. At last, he flung a storage pouch at the administrator and barked, “Take it, just take it!

“One hundred and ten thousand!”

Han Qiu’s eyes lit up. She announced quickly, “Guest number two hundred and fifty bids one hundred and ten thousand! Do we have another bid?”

Enraged, Wang Heyang snarled, “Can she stop calling out number two hundred and fifty?! Can’t I change my number?!”

Having counted the spirit stones, the administrator smiled. “I’m sorry, Young Master Wang. Once assigned, numbers cannot be changed.”

Li Guanqi raised his card and said, One hundred and fifty thousand.”

Even as he spoke, his heart tightened. He had only two hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones. If the bidding exceeded that, he would have to give up.

Wang Heyang was making his own calculations too. If the final item was truly exceptional, its base price might start at two hundred thousand, and with so many factions present, the bidding could easily soar to four hundred thousand.

He needed spirit stones to buy time, but his supply was running low.

Wang Heyang clenched his teeth and cried out, “One hundred and eighty thousand!”

Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes and replied calmly, “Two hundred thousand.”

This time, he added only twenty thousand, probing Wang Heyang’s limit.

Sure enough, Wang Heyang hesitated for longer before answering.

Onstage, Han Qiu’s cheeks flushed with excitement. “Guest one hundred and eighty-eight bids two hundred thousand spirit stones!”

Wang Heyang’s gaze grew icy. His conflict was written all over his face. With his dwindling funds, he wasn’t sure he could still vie for the final item. If he kept burning through spirit stones now, he would have no leverage later.

In the end, he gritted his teeth and shouted, “Two hundred and ten thousand!”

Li Guanqi did not even wait for Han Qiu to respond. He raised his card and said flatly, “Two hundred and fifty thousand.”

Wang Heyang slammed both fists on the windowsill. “Damn it!”

That last jump of fifty thousand broke him. He still had another five hundred thousand spirit stones in reserve, but he dared not spend them. If he failed to secure the final item, Sixth Elder Lu Yu would kill him.

Han Qiu continued to call out passionately for more offers, but no one in the crowd below made any.

Li Guanqi clenched his fists tightly beneath his sleeves until Han Qiu struck her hammer down.

“Congratulations to guest number one hundred and eighty-eight! This blue crystal cauldron is yours for two hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones.”

Li Guanqi exhaled in relief. Above, he could hear curses and things being knocked over.

Wang Heyang slumped into his chair, eyes blazing with venom. “That bastard! I’ll hunt him down!”

Next to Li Guanqi, Ye Feng leaned back in his chair and said, “That was exciting! Hahaha! You’re amazing, Boss!”

Cao Yan smiled silently.

In truth, the cauldron was worth far more than the price. The array carved within it gave it immense value, though no one seemed to recognize it.

Before long, a servant came forward and bowed. “Honored guests, would you prefer to complete the handover now, or after the auction?”

Li Guanqi thought for a moment, then rose to his feet and said, “Let’s do it now.”

He was led into a quiet room where, moments later, the administrator knocked lightly and entered with the cauldron.

Li Guanqi handed over the prepared spirit stones. The plump administrator counted them carefully, then grinned. “All accounted for. Please, take your item. If you wish to continue bidding, exit this room and turn right to return to the hall.”

Li Guanqi nodded slightly beneath his hooded cloak.

The administrator glanced briefly at Li Guanqi’s pair of wrinkled hands, then departed without suspicion.

Li Guanqi chuckled inwardly. His disguise was holding up well enough.

When he returned to the first floor, he found Cao Yan and Ye Feng staring wide-eyed. The moment they saw him, Cao Yan turned, drew a deep breath, and said, “Eldest Brother, it’s… Longevity Grass!”

Li Guanqi stiffened and snapped his head toward the stage.

He spotted a blade of emerald green spirit grass, radiating with thick life force and filling the space with a faint fragrance.

The hall stirred as a thin, white-haired old man stepped onto the stage.

He scanned the hall with his murky eyes, radiating a subtle but terrifying aura.

Thin and frail in appearance, his murky eyes swept across the crowd, yet the aura he radiated was sharp and oppressive.

The message was clear: a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator stood guard.

The thought of stealing the treasure vanished from many hearts at once.

Li Guanqi gave a small, resigned shrug. “The Longevity Grass… too bad we’re broke.”

Still, he stayed. There was tension in the air, hostile undercurrents threading through the crowd. He wanted to see just who would emerge holding the Longevity Grass in the end.