"The bidding rules are the same as before: a starting price of ten thousand Purple Elemental Crystals, with each increment no less than five thousand," Linglong smiled. She could already predict this fragmented map’s final price; it would definitely not exceed fifty thousand.

"Ten thousand!"

"Fifteen thousand."

"Twenty thousand."

"Thirty thousand." The effeminate voice drifted from VIP Room #7, laced with annoyance. This was clearly because of the nine-and-a-half-million bid earlier. His family only managed the Empire’s library; in terms of wealth, they were no match for the Kong Family, who were in charge of the imperial pharmacy. He was at the auction this time because Tang Yuan had insisted he acquire the final, grand finale item. He had brought more than enough Purple Elemental Crystals, but after being swindled by Kong Ye Ming, he had lost all confidence.

"Thirty-five thousand." Someone from another VIP room called out a price.

Mu Chen had intended to continue observing without getting involved, but just then, a tender and ethereal voice sounded in his mind.

"Daddy... there’s something really tasty on that beast hide."

Mu Chen froze, then his heart filled with joy. ’Xiaobai, you’re awake?’ he asked silently.

That’s right, the one speaking was none other than the Snow Qilin, Xiaobai, who had been sleeping for a week.

The Snow Qilin stirred in Mu Chen’s arms and gently poked its head out. Its golden pupils stared intently at the fragmented drawing. ’Mmm,’ it said telepathically, ’after I ate that silver thing the other day, I got really, really sleepy. I’m much better now, but... it feels like there’s something new inside me...’

"Uh... something new?" Mu Chen asked, confused.

The Snow Qilin gave its head a little shake. "Whatever it is, it’s something good for me. Daddy, that map... we have to get it! I can feel the same kind of energy on it as the dagger from that day."

Mu Chen was slightly taken aback. He felt that after this slumber, the Snow Qilin’s intelligence seemed to have grown a lot. Although its speech was still childish, it was using many words it didn’t know before with perfect accuracy.

But Mu Chen didn’t have time to ponder this. The Snow Qilin was a true Land Beast God. Although it had been reincarnated, it was still extremely sensitive to heavenly treasures and immense energy. Since it said there was something up with the map, it was definitely no ordinary item.

"Forty-five thousand."

The price had already been called up to forty-five thousand, and the bidder was Tang Yu again. However, no one else was raising the bid. Mu Chen glanced left and right, then called out, "Fifty thousand."

Linglong smiled faintly. The bidding had reached the price she’d had in mind. If it kept climbing, it would be an even bigger success than the Ice Soul Essence Pill from before.

Inside his VIP room, Tang Yu’s expression darkened. ’It seems Kong Ye Ming and that attendant are determined to fight me to the bitter end,’ he thought viciously. ’Heh, in that case, I’ll let you have it. After the auction is over, I’ll make you understand the consequences of crossing me.’

With that, Tang Yu announced slyly, "One hundred thousand! If you can bid another five thousand Purple Elemental Crystals on top of that, I’ll withdraw and let you have it."

Mu Chen replied without the slightest hesitation, "Much appreciated. One hundred and five thousand."

Mu Chen had no real concept of what Purple Elemental Crystals were worth. In his eyes, only power and the means to obtain it mattered. The number of Purple Elemental Crystals was of little concern to him. After all, he had over three million of them sitting unused in his ring, earned from selling two Profound Rank Battle Technique scrolls in Frost Cold Town.

Seeing Mu Chen raise the price without a second thought, Kong Ye Ming asked, "This scrap of a map is worth fifty thousand Purple Elemental Crystals at most, Mu Chen. It’s not really worth it."

Mu Chen laughed. "Like I said, I have a thing for collecting. When I see something, I can’t help myself..."

Kong Ye Ming gave a helpless laugh. "I forgot about that."

"VIP Room Number Two bids one hundred and five thousand Purple Elemental Crystals! Is there a higher bid?" Linglong’s charming face was wreathed in smiles. She never expected someone to actually spend over a hundred thousand on this tattered map. She honestly didn’t know whether to thank the guest in VIP Room #2 or curse them for having more money than sense.

The guests below were no longer surprised by the back-and-forth between VIP Rooms #2 and #7. At this point, they were just waiting to see what more attractive items would appear next. Even if they couldn’t afford them, it was still good to broaden their horizons.

Seeing that no one else was bidding, Linglong smiled and said, "Then this fragmented map is sold to the honored guest in VIP Room Number Two! The next item is a truly tempting one. It’s something many of you have long heard of, but have never had the chance to taste in your entire lives."

As she spoke, Linglong waved her slender hand, and another beautiful woman in a short red skirt walked up, pushing a red food trolley. On the trolley was a silver platter covered by a transparent glass cloche. Through the glass, one could faintly make out a slab of meat inside.

"What’s that?" the guests wondered aloud.

"It looks like a piece of meat," explained a guest who was sitting closer.

Hearing this, Linglong pursed her lips in a smile. "You’re all correct, it is indeed a piece of meat. But don’t you want to know what kind of Magical Beast it came from?" Without waiting for the crowd to respond, Linglong raised her voice, "I’m sure you’ve all heard of the ’Golden Meats,’ haven’t you?"

"Golden Meats? Could it be...!!" Some people had already guessed.

Linglong chuckled. "That’s right! This is the famed Giant Wild Boar Meat, hailed as one of the Golden Meats! The seller consumed most of it themselves, so only a single pound is up for sale today. I won’t even go into its other properties—for its flavor alone, I imagine no one could possibly refuse it. The starting bid is ten thousand, with increments no less than five thousand Purple Elemental Crystals. Let the bidding begin!"

Mu Chen stared blankly at the slab of meat below. He rubbed his nose and asked, "This kind of thing can be auctioned off?"

The answer he received was...

"Holy crap! This young master has lived this long without ever tasting a Golden Meat! I bid two hundred thousand!"

Mu Chen: "..."

"You think you can get this meat for two hundred thousand? You’re dreaming! I bid four hundred thousand!" A guest shot to his feet and shouted.

"Six hundred thousand!"

"One million two hundred thousand!"

"..."

"Two million four hundred thousand!"

The price skyrocketed. Mu Chen watched the frenzied crowd, dumbfounded and in disbelief. He mumbled, "They’re insane, all of them. Is this meat really that valuable...?"

As Mu Chen muttered to himself, the price for the Giant Wild Boar Meat had already soared to five million. He finally understood the true meaning of ’Golden Meat is priceless.’ This was insane! By that logic, last night’s gathering had been an unimaginable luxury. That had been a whole giant wild boar weighing over a thousand pounds! If one pound was worth five million, then ten pounds would be fifty million, and a thousand pounds would be... five billion!

He still had an entire Giant Wild Boar in his ring. With that in mind, he was basically a walking treasury. What couldn’t he afford to buy?

"Five million going once! Five million going twice! Sold for five million! Congratulations to our honored guest in VIP Room #100! You will now have the chance to taste the ultimate delicacy of the Extreme Martial Continent—a meat that even I, Linglong, have never had the pleasure of eating." Internally, Linglong was ecstatic. ’Five million for a pound of Giant Wild Boar Meat seemed absurd, but she knew that if this piece were auctioned in a High-class Empire, people would willingly pay tens of millions for it!’

"What a pity! That guy is crazy, but I guess there’s a method to his madness." Kong Ye Ming sighed dejectedly, looking more grief-stricken than if he’d lost a family member.

Mu Chen’s mouth twitched. He said to Kong Ye Ming, "If I told you that last night I treated the students of the Demon Castle to an entire Giant Wild Boar, would you believe me?"

Kong Ye Ming shot Mu Chen a sidelong glance and said, "Who are you trying to fool? That’s Giant Wild Boar Meat we’re talking about. What you had was, at best, just regular wild boar meat."

Mu Chen rubbed his nose and gave a wry smile. "Alright, but after eating it, Emperor Xuan Yin, Elder Wu Changqing, Dean Di, and Instructor Ling Yun all said it was Giant Wild Boar Meat..."

"You..." Kong Ye Ming’s eyes widened as he stared at Mu Chen. His lips quivered for a moment before he erupted. "You wastrel! You absolute prodigal! How did I, Kong Ye Ming, ever get to know a rich, profligate fool like you?! What’s even more insane is that you served up Giant Wild Boar, and I wasn’t there to get my share!!! It’s a crime against heaven and earth!!"

Mu Chen felt his eye twitch. "Relax, I have another one. I can just give you some."

"How inhumane! What unspeakable cruelty! This is the most tragic story in history! Please, allow me a moment to compose a suitably tragic expression... You actually fed an entire Giant Wild Boar to other people... You beast! ...Wait a second!" Kong Ye Ming suddenly came to his senses. He swallowed hard. "What was that you just said?"

Mu Chen said, "I said... I still have another Giant Wild Boar."

"..." Kong Ye Ming’s mouth formed an ’O’. Then, an earth-shattering noise erupted from VIP Room #2.

Mu Chen exclaimed in shock, "Holy crap, don’t come near me! Stay away! Oh hell, go to hell! Thunderbolt Fist!"

"BOOM!"

"CRASH... BANG..."

A series of thuds followed, and everyone looked towards the trembling VIP Room #2. Inside the room, Kong Ye Ming was now slumped in a corner. Mu Chen took a deep breath. "That was close. He almost kissed my face. But the quality of this wall is really good, there aren’t even any cracks..."

...

Afterward, under Linglong’s alluring voice, item after item was successfully auctioned off. Not a single one failed to sell. Linglong was in a particularly good mood, and the atmosphere in the entire auction hall was electric. All in all, it was a win-win situation.

Because Kong Ye Ming was unconscious, Mu Chen was the only one left in VIP Room #2 watching the proceedings below. The Snow Qilin in his arms looked left and right, occasionally glancing at Kong Ye Ming slumped in the corner with a look of disdain in its eyes.

"Honored guests! With the sale of the previous item, we have finally reached the final stage of today’s auction—the grand finale! That’s right, guests who have attended our auctions before know that at the very end, we always present items that will shock the entire audience, and this time is no exception! As I said at the beginning, this finale’s items are treasures rarely seen even in Middle and Upper Class Empires. Now, allow us to present the first item. Please, look forward to it!"