Chapter 490: A Horse Grows Fat Only by Grazing at Night; The Grandmaster Backs Down!

Chapter 490: A Horse Grows Fat Only by Grazing at Night; The Grandmaster Backs Down!

Fifth Floor.

"Seven hundred!"

"Seven hundred fifty!"

"Eight hundred!"

"..."

Under Xia Wanjun's persuasive words, several young and beautiful couples began to bid fiercely.

Whenever the men hesitated, a glance at the pitiful and charming eyes of their companions spurred them to grit their teeth and raise their bids.

"One thousand taels!"

When this price was called out, the entire room fell silent.

The bidders also calmed down.

One thousand taels of gold was, for most, an astronomical sum.

At this moment,

"Women's money is always easier to earn!" Jiang Ning smiled, feeling a sense of satisfaction.

Compared to its original value, one thousand taels was a significant premium.

To have it sell for one thousand taels of gold exceeded his expectations, and he was content.

Below.

With the one thousand taels bid, no one dared to compete further.

Seeing this, Xia Wanjun did not waste any more time and announced the sale.

"The next item up for auction is the Seed Leaf!" Xia Wanjun cleared her throat and began.

Standing by the window, Jiang Ning also looked down at the Auction Stage.

A maid carrying a Redwood Tray walked from the back and placed it on the table in front of Xia Wanjun before slowly retreating.

"The Seed Leaf, I believe many of you are not very familiar with it!" Xia Wanjun continued.

"Xia Wanjun, stop beating around the bush, just introduce it!" someone called out from the audience.

Xia Wanjun smiled and said, "The Seed Leaf is an ancient treasure left over from the Ancient Era. It is a complete and undamaged ancient artifact that can still be used in this era. It is said to be a world within a single leaf, and a top-tier Seed Leaf can contain a small world."

"However, the one we are auctioning today is a one-vein Seed Leaf."

"Even so, a one-vein Seed Leaf can hold a pond-sized space, embodying the mystical effect of containing a vast universe within a tiny leaf."

Upon hearing Xia Wanjun's introduction, the audience below began to rub their hands in anticipation.

"Xia Wanjun, lift the red cloth and let us see it, then announce the starting price!"

Hearing this, Xia Wanjun lifted the red cloth covering the Seed Leaf.

In an instant,

A small, golden leaf, no larger than a fingernail, appeared in view.

"Hmm!" Jiang Ning murmured in surprise.

Because the golden leaf was not actually resting on the tray.

It was slightly suspended above the tray, with a barely perceptible gap between the Seed Leaf and the tray.

Then, he noticed that the golden leaf had no veins.

He recalled Xia Wanjun's words.

"A one-vein Seed Leaf! This must be the one-vein Seed Leaf Xia Wanjun mentioned!" he thought to himself.

Below.

Xia Wanjun's voice rang out at that moment.

"Seed Leaf, starting bid: three hundred taels of gold."

After speaking, she added,

"By the way, I forgot to mention, the Seed Leaf is a celestial treasure and can only be used by those with an Immortal Root. Please consider whether you qualify before bidding."

Upon hearing this,

Some in the audience who were about to speak closed their mouths.

An Immortal Root is one in ten thousand.

Even among those with exceptional martial arts skills, not all possessed an Immortal Root.

Without an Immortal Root, the Seed Leaf, no matter how extraordinary, would be unusable.

If it were unusable, it would only be a collector's item.

Few would be crazy enough to spend three hundred taels of gold on a collector's item.

And three hundred taels was just the starting bid.

Someone below immediately bid five hundred.

"Six hundred!" Jiang Ning called out.

His voice echoed through the room.

Instantly, several pairs of eyes turned toward the direction of Jiang Ning's voice.

They saw the window was already open, but his face remained obscured by the pearl curtain, making it difficult to see.

The audience fell silent for a moment after Jiang Ning's bid.

A few breaths later,

"Seven hundred!" a voice from a neighboring Vip box called out, sounding somewhat elderly.

Seeing this, the audience below quickly chose to remain silent.

Two unidentified Vips were competing; they saw no need to get involved.

"Eight hundred!" Jiang Ning said.

"Nine hundred!" the voice from the neighboring box responded.

Shortly after, another voice added, "Young man, are you sure you want to compete with me, Tu Ling?"

"Tu Ling, the Grandmaster??" the audience below erupted in shock.

Tu Ling?

The name instantly brought up information in Jiang Ning's mind.

Tu Ling, also known as Grandmaster Tu Ling.

He was not a duke, but a highly respected elder Grandmaster in Guangning Prefecture.

His story was quite legendary.

From a beggar, he climbed the ranks to become a Third-Rank Grandmaster and one of the chief patrons of the Four Seasons Chamber of Commerce.

"One thousand!" Jiang Ning replied.

"Vip Room Five, one thousand taels. Is there a higher bid?" Xia Wanjun asked.

At the same time,

The face of Grandmaster Tu Ling in Vip Box Seven twitched.

A thousand gold pieces, he could afford it.

However, his savings had other uses, and he didn’t want to die old and poor just yet.

More important items awaited his bidding later.

This Seed Leaf was merely an appetizer.

But letting such a rare Seed Leaf slip away was truly a heartache.

This item was exceedingly rare; in all his years, he had only seen it go up for sale twice.

The first time, he was young and penniless.

Even though he knew he possessed an Immortal Root, he couldn’t afford the highly cost-effective Seed Leaf.

Its price and effects were completely mismatched due to its low suitability.

In the Ancient Era, it might have cost ten or a hundred times more to acquire.

For someone like him, who had an Immortal Root, the Seed Leaf was undoubtedly a great bargain.

He hesitated for a moment.

"Eleven hundred gold!" Tu Ling bid again.

Then he added, "Young man, know your limits! If you back down, I’ll personally visit you later and owe you a favor."

As he spoke, Tu Ling looked toward the Vip Room where Jiang Ning was.

From Jiang Ning’s voice, he could tell that Jiang Ning was very young.

A young voice meant a young age and a youthful body.

By offering a Grandmaster’s favor, he believed the Vip in the Fifth Private Box would give him some face.

After all, he had already revealed his identity.

A Third-Rank Grandmaster.

Plus, he promised a favor.

This two-pronged approach had worked for him many times before.

Meanwhile, below the Auction Stage.

"A Grandmaster’s favor!" someone whistled.

"Back down, and get a Grandmaster’s favor. This shows that Lord Tu is determined to get this item!" another person sighed.

"Indeed!" someone nodded in agreement.

"Does this mean Lord Tu has an Immortal Root?" another person asked.

"According to rumors, yes!"

"..."

Amidst the murmurs of the crowd, Jiang Ning heard Lord Tu’s words and sneered.

To promise a favor so easily, how reliable could such a favor be?

Lord Tu?

He was just an old Grandmaster whose Life Force had declined and who had no years left to live.

"Twelve hundred gold!" Jiang Ning bid without hesitation.

"Boy, are you really not giving this old man any face?" Lord Tu’s voice carried a hint of anger, and a powerful aura erupted.

The next moment, it instantly retreated.

He was shocked, sensing the ripples in the void around him.

"I was wrong!" he quickly apologized in the direction of Jiang Ning.

Then, he felt the ripples return to normal and breathed a sigh of relief.

"That young voice, could it belong to a Third-Rank Heavenly Master?" Lord Tu thought to himself.

Then he shook his head slowly, "It’s unlikely. The owner of that voice can’t be more than thirty, how could they be a Heavenly Master?"

"Perhaps they have a Heavenly Master with them!"

"Whoever this young noble is, to have a Heavenly Master in their retinue!"

Thinking this, Lord Tu shook his head again.

Whether it was the former or the latter, neither was someone he could afford to provoke.

The former was a true prodigy, and the latter had a background so formidable that they could have a Heavenly Master in their entourage.

On the other side, Jiang Ning stopped bidding.

Lord Tu’s compliance was expected.

Lord Tu was just an ordinary Grandmaster who hadn’t even reached the Second Blood Transformation.

His achievements in the Third Rank were average.

And now, being old, even if he had reached the Third Rank, his physical abilities had long declined from their peak, retaining at most sixty to seventy percent of his former strength.

In such a situation, how could an old and cunning man not know when to back down?

Below, the crowd looked at the direction where Lord Tu had fallen silent, puzzled.

They didn’t understand why the once confident Lord Tu had suddenly quieted down.

On the Auction Stage, Xia Wanjun smiled and glanced in the direction of Jiang Ning’s Vip Room.

"What a remarkable young man!"

She then withdrew her gaze and looked around the auction stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Fifth Vip Private Box has bid twelve hundred gold. Is there anyone who can offer more?"

After three breaths, seeing no one bid, Xia Wanjun began the countdown.

In the end, the Seed Leaf was successfully won by Jiang Ning.

Hearing the bell ring, signaling the end of the bidding, Jiang Ning sighed in relief.

Twelve hundred gold was a significant sum for him.

If the bidding had continued, he would have had to consider giving up.

The Sumeru Ring, though not perfect, was still usable.

It was just that its storage space was too small.

The Seed Leaf, on the other hand, was a truly invaluable item.

Its true value far exceeded a thousand or even ten thousand gold pieces.

But even so, if the price had continued to rise, the cost would have been too high for him.

Twelve hundred gold pieces could bring him nearly ten thousand Essence Points.

In addition, the resources he could purchase would greatly reduce the time needed for his body to recover from the weakness caused by the blood transformation.

For example, after his first blood transformation, his body was extremely weak after regenerating new blood. Without the two 500-year-old blood ginseng roots and one 300-year-old blood ginseng root as supplements, it would have taken a very long time for his body to fully recover. It might have taken ten to fifteen days.

However, with those two 500-year-old blood ginseng roots and one 300-year-old blood ginseng root, his body recovered completely in just two to three days, returning to its peak condition.

The increase in Essence Points was also quite noticeable.

Money was undoubtedly very important to him, especially after he began the blood transformation process. The importance of wealth became even more apparent.

Therefore, even though he valued the Seed Leaf, if the price was driven too high, he didn't want to continue competing. The current price was within his acceptable range.

A moment later.

Jiang Ning, holding the Seed Leaf delivered by a maid from the Ten Thousand Blossoms Tower, couldn't help but examine it closely. It was about the size of an ordinary leaf, as light as a feather. When he touched it, it seemed to have no substance, and the sensation was barely noticeable. He could feel a thin layer of air between himself and the Seed Leaf, making it impossible to truly touch its substance.

After a thorough examination, he held it in his palm without using the usual method of blood recognition. Instead, he directly activated the Weapon Refinement Technique.

The Weapon Refinement Technique was said to be able to refine any weapon in the world.

After a few breaths, he opened his palm, revealing several faint golden lines in his palm. Then, with a thought, those golden lines transferred to his arm.

"Quite convenient!" Jiang Ning smiled.

He then closed his eyes and instantly saw the internal space. It was a hazy, whitish area about the size of a basketball court.

"Pretty good!" he nodded in satisfaction.

This much space was more than enough for him.

He then transferred all the contents from his two Sumeru Rings into the Seed Leaf. The Seed Leaf then transformed into a golden line floating in his palm.

"Keep these safe!" Jiang Ning tossed the Sumeru Rings to Lvyi for safekeeping.

He then refocused on the auction. He had already secured everything he needed. Although there were still many other valuable items on the auction block that caught his eye, his current wealth had more important uses. Martial arts cultivation was the foundation and the most crucial priority. The major medicinal herbs that could increase Essence Points and speed up his recovery from weakness only required Heavenly Treasures of significant age. These items were not worth buying at the auction.

Time passed as one item after another was auctioned off, with prices fluctuating. Soon, it was time for the three items he had consigned: the Desire-Severing Scripture, the Green Wave Sword Scripture, and the Blood Jade.

These three items were the 21st, 20th, and 19th auction items, respectively. After Xia Wanjun's introduction, the audience below began to buzz with discussion. The death of Xiao Qiushui had already spread throughout the major powers. The new Heavenly Master of Dongling County had died mysteriously on the night of the Master Feast, and no one knew who had killed him.

Such a significant event naturally drew the attention of the major powers. Among those who could participate in the Ten Thousand Blossoms Tower auction, there were also members of these major factions.

When the Desire-Severing Scripture was presented, it didn't attract much attention because this high-level cultivation technique wasn't particularly famous. The final selling price was just over 1,100 gold taels.

However, when the Green Wave Sword Scripture was unveiled, it instantly caused a stir. The Green Wave Sword Scripture was the most renowned high-level sword technique of the Moonlight Sword Palace, and it wasn't just any high-level technique. Even among high-level martial arts, this sword technique stood out. It directly pointed to the essence of sword intent and could guide practitioners to understand the profound mysteries of sword intent.

Many people instantly realized that the Green Wave Sword Scripture might be the item consigned by the person who killed Xiao Qiushui. However, given the strict confidentiality policies of the Ten Thousand Blossoms Tower, they knew it was impossible to obtain any information about the consignor.

As the bidding for the Green Wave Sword Scripture began, the price soared. It eventually stabilized at 2,000 gold taels but ultimately sold for an astonishing 2,060 gold taels.

For a high-level martial art, this premium on the final selling price was quite significant. The prices of martial arts were relatively transparent, with little fluctuation.

When this price was announced, Jiang Ning was astounded. It meant he had become suddenly wealthy. The combined value of the Desire-Severing Scripture and the Green Wave Sword Scripture was nearly 4,000 gold taels. The saying "No one gets rich without a stroke of luck" rang true once again.

All the hard work and effort he had put in over the years couldn't compare to the wealth he gained from a single raid on the Moonlight Sword Palace. (End of Chapter)

Chapter end