Chapter 115: Fierce Competition

“Exchange the gold coins for spirit stones; otherwise, there will never be a conclusion. Five thousand lower-grade spirit stones as the starting price, with each subsequent raise no less than one thousand. What do you all think?” Lin Xiaobao paused briefly before adding, “I believe with such terms, the Carefree Pavilion wouldn’t refuse, right?”

Only fools would refuse! Regardless of Lin Xiaobao’s intentions, Wen Hongcai could barely contain his urge to leap forward and embrace Lin Xiaobao with fervent kisses.

One hundred billion gold coins was indeed a staggering sum, but to the Carefree Pavilion, gold was merely a number. What they truly needed were cultivation materials, and spirit stones were paramount among them. The value of five thousand lower-grade spirit stones was no less than that of one hundred billion gold coins, if not greater.

Now that the nameless iron shard could no longer be withdrawn, selling it for spirit stones was a rather favorable choice. Amidst the stunned silence of the main auctioneer, Wen Hongcai stepped onto the stage and declared, “Since all parties are so eager to determine a victor, the Carefree Pavilion will humbly comply!”

One had to admit, Wen Hongcai was an excellent businessman. Even at this moment, he sought to distance the Carefree Pavilion from the bidding, making it clear that converting gold coins to spirit stones was merely to facilitate a fair competition among the three parties, rather than the Pavilion arbitrarily raising prices. This way, if anything unforeseen happened, no one could blame the Pavilion.

“I have no objection!” The Xuanyang Hall, having the home advantage regarding spirit stones, naturally feared no one.

“I agree!” The man in the black robe also appeared unafraid.

“Very well, then I shall make the opening bid!” Lin Xiaobao paused slightly before announcing, “Fifty thousand lower-grade spirit stones!”

The entire auction hall fell into a hush. Initially, many had assumed Lin Xiaobao withdrew from bidding due to insufficient funds. Now it was clear he was simply disdainful.

Though many in attendance did not grasp the precise value of fifty thousand lower-grade spirit stones, they understood it represented an enormous sum. Even some minor sects could scarcely accumulate such a quantity.

Even Wen Hongcai, who had just stepped down from hosting, felt a tremor run through him. At first, he had thought Lin Xiaobao lacked funds and withdrew accordingly—after all, Lin Xiaobao’s gold was provided by him. Now it was clear Lin Xiaobao lacked gold coins but was by no means short of spirit stones.

The three people in private room number one and the man in the black robe grew noticeably solemn. Lin Xiaobao’s opening bid revealed his wealth far surpassed theirs.

“Fifty-one thousand!” With the bidding now in spirit stones, the Xuanyang Hall bid cautiously, no longer recklessly raising prices as before. Even this bid was the result of careful consultation among the three, as their combined spirit stones totaled less than ten thousand. None had anticipated Lin Xiaobao would bid so aggressively.

At present, their sole aim was to acquire the nameless iron shard and then petition the Hall for spirit stones. This was already a gamble. If the shard proved a treasure, they stood to gain greatly. If it was worthless, the consequences would be dire. The three even regretted attending the auction at all.

“One hundred thousand!” No sooner had Xuanyang Hall’s bid been announced than the black-robed man countered with an astronomical figure.

Compared to this spirit stone-based sky-high bid, the previous gold coin bids paled in comparison.

“One hundred and ten thousand!” Lin Xiaobao grew more cautious, suddenly realizing his true rival was not Xuanyang Hall but this demonic cultivator in the black robe.

Having recently unearthed a spirit mine, Lin Xiaobao held a decisive advantage. Though it was a small mine, it represented an immense personal fortune. The increasingly long pauses from Xuanyang Hall and the black-robed man suggested the price was nearing their limit.

Lin Xiaobao himself was prepared to retreat if necessary. Innocent men bear no guilt, but possessing treasures invites envy and suspicion—he understood this principle fully. Bolstered by assurances from two elders, he was confident that once he secured the Chaos Mirror shard, he would promptly leave the Blood Victory Empire. As for where he would go next, for a lone wanderer like him, it mattered little.

To this day, Lin Xiaobao remained uncertain of the true nature of the Chaos Mirror, but from the elders’ unwavering determination, he was certain it was a formidable artifact. Based on his understanding of Elder Wu, although he could not say whether Wu could forge an immortal-grade weapon, supreme Daoist instruments were certainly not rare to him. The fact that the Chaos Mirror shard stirred such interest spoke volumes.

Meanwhile, the most conflicted was Wen Hongcai, the Pavilion Master of the Carefree Pavilion who updated the LaLa Literature platform at the fastest pace. He had prepared treasures for this auction, but now realized those offerings hadn’t even reached the stage, while the nameless iron shard’s value far exceeded his expectations.

On one hand, he wished the three parties would bid fiercely and push the price higher; on the other, he hoped they would cease competing soon. After all, if the three went all out, the two losing sides might take their frustrations out on the Carefree Pavilion.

The price had now soared to two hundred thousand lower-grade spirit stones—clearly beyond Wen Hongcai’s control.

“Two hundred and ten thousand!” Lin Xiaobao’s announcement came with evident difficulty. Should he win at this price, his remaining spirit stones would be few, yet he still bore the responsibility of rescuing Lin Tian. To rapidly enhance his cultivation, spirit stones were indispensable.

The auction hall again fell silent. The three people in private room one exchanged glances, none expecting such a sky-high price at the Carefree Pavilion’s auction. Two hundred and ten thousand lower-grade spirit stones could establish a small sect stronger than the Wind and Snow Pavilion.

Yet now, all three appeared powerless, quietly deciding to withdraw. After the auction, they planned to split up: one to follow Lin Xiaobao, another the black-robed man, and the third to rush back to Xuanyang Hall to report to the elders and await further instructions.

Beneath the black robe, the man’s throat subtly moved, signaling that this price had reached his limit. Before this, they had prepared thoroughly, even accounting for Xuanyang Hall’s reactions.

They had anticipated Xuanyang Hall sending only three mid-stage Daoist Embryos to the auction, but Lin Xiaobao was a wild card—he had appeared suddenly in private room number two with no prior information, relentlessly pursuing the Chaos Mirror shard. Judging by Lin Xiaobao’s demonstrated wealth, he came well-prepared. Though his affiliation was unknown, one thing was certain: Lin Xiaobao knew the origin of the Chaos Mirror shard.

More disturbing was that the black-robed man’s spiritual perception could not penetrate private room two, leaving him completely ignorant of what transpired within. This uncertainty caused him to hesitate in executing his pre-planned strategies.