Shocking the Nine Heavens With My Sword-Chapter 646 - 623: Fire Stone (3/3)

This auction house was incomparably vast!

Zhou Heng felt it resembled a Beast Fighting Arena more than anything else, with the ordinary seats below nearly filled to capacity, a massive sea of heads, easily numbering tens of thousands. Starting from the second floor, there were private boxes, a total of five floors, but the number of people they could hold definitely couldn’t compare to the expansive cabin-like area below.

Zhou Heng was situated on the fourth floor, neither too high nor too low.

He scanned the crowd below and spotted Lian Jingxiang and Lian Youhao, but because the boxes were protected by a formation, it was impossible for those below to see through or penetrate with Divine Sense. The two members of the Lian Family were completely unaware that Zhou Heng was also present, as he looked down at them from above.

"Actually, this box is big enough for ten people!" Black Donkey sat spread-eagle in an armchair, looking quite rogue.

Zhou Heng laughed, "Then you can invite them up!"

"Ptui, that old dog looks down on a donkey, I would never agree to that!" Black Donkey immediately waved its hoof.

Zhou Heng hadn’t expected that holding a VIP card would get him invited into a box, nor had he known the box would be so spacious, otherwise, he wouldn’t have minded inviting Lian Jingxiang and her companion, especially since he had taken the Lian Family’s star ship to get here.

He always owed a favor to the Lian Family. ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

However, he had already told one lie, and now inviting the two from the Lian Family might make both parties uncomfortable.

But the box, compared to below, while a bit more spacious, didn’t have many other differences—it wasn’t like you couldn’t buy items from below! So be it.

The very top, the sixth floor, must have been where the Sublimation Realm experts sat. Zhou Heng, using the power of the Black Sword to enhance his Divine Sense, faintly sensed several profound and formidable auras. However, this sixth floor at most had eleven occupied rooms, most of which, conversely, were empty.

The empty ones could only remain so, as those positions represented a status not just anyone could occupy.

Even if Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was willing, who would dare to enter? Weren’t they afraid that those Sublimation Realm experts, in a fit of rage, might just end their lives?

However, staying in a box was, after all, a recognition of status. Soon, a beautiful maid came in, bringing fruits and fine wine, all of which were valuable and, in Xihai City, were unobtainable even with money.

Black Donkey eyed the maid’s skirt with interest and said, "Girl, I’ll give you an Immortal Stone if you take off your skirt!"

"You, you lecherous donkey!" The maid’s face turned crimson, almost slapping Black Donkey hard before shuffling away in embarrassment.

Black Donkey blinked its huge eyes, looking somewhat innocent.

Where was it being lecherous? It merely admired that skirt and was even willing to pay an Immortal Stone for it! For this miserly and cheap donkey, spending an Immortal Stone was already making its heart bleed.

Zhou Heng couldn’t help but burst into hearty laughter; right upon meeting, this donkey had asked the maid to take off her clothes—anyone would consider it a lecher! But immediately, he felt depressed because he was associated with Black Donkey. Being seen as a lecher too certainly did nothing for his own reputation!

"My reputation is going to be ruined because of you!" he sighed.

"Ptui! I am the Auspicious Omens of Heaven and Earth; to follow me is your fortune and under my influence, you’ll receive the heavens’ favor," Black Donkey’s face was thick beyond what ordinary people could match.

Amidst their conversation, the auction below finally began.

It really was much like the Beast Fighting Arena; the auction platform wasn’t at the base of the cabin, but at a central position, with auction items being brought up from below. Presiding over the auction was an old man in his sixties, with white hair and beard, appearing so old he looked like he could kick the bucket at any moment.

But someone immediately recognized the old man’s identity amidst quiet murmurs, and everyone soon came to know of him.

This was the Sublimation Sovereign, Li Mingdong!

Sublimation Sovereign!

Just these three words were enough to make everyone too nervous to sit straight – who would dare to act up?

"You probably all know who I am by now, so I won’t bother introducing myself!" Li Mingdong said with a slight smile, his voice not loud, yet clear and unobstructed, reaching every corner of the room as if he were speaking directly to each person.

"Today’s auction has many items, so I’ll cut to the chase and start the auction!" He tapped his finger on the auction table, and immediately the floor beside it opened up. A beautiful woman in white ascended from below, holding a jade plate in her hands with a pill bottle on it.

"Let’s start with something good!" Li Mingdong’s gaze shifted towards the sixth floor and slowly said, "This is a Soul Consolidating Pill. As for its effects, I assume the esteemed seniors here are well aware! I’ll just add that after thorough verification by our Pharmacy, this is a Top Grade Soul Consolidating Pill!"

Top, Top Grade!

Whizz!

Several powerful Divine Intents swept over instantly. Anyone touched by that Divine Intent, even the Sunshine Emperor, would feel utterly exposed, as if all their secrets were laid bare before these Divine Intents.

Not everyone knew what a Soul Consolidating Pill was, but seeing Sublimation Realm experts lose their composure at the mention of it was enough to guess that it must be extraordinarily precious.

But what they did not know was that the Sublimation Realm experts in the eleven boxes on the sixth floor had already communicated several times instantly, each trying to dissuade others from competing for this pill.

Strengthening the Divine Soul, keeping the Dharma Aspect unextinguished, this was life-saving!

Though Sublimation Realm might not be the strongest in the Immortal Realm, how many there are in the Creation Realm? Sublimation Realm was impressive enough, being alive was a deterrent, capable of ensuring the prosperity of a family!

"Start bidding, the starting price is ten thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones!" Li Mingdong spoke calmly, his eyes also flashing a hint of eagerness—if not for his special status, he himself would have liked to participate in the bidding.

"Twelve thousand!"

"Fifteen thousand!"

"Nineteen thousand!"

In the sixth-floor private box, the bidding continued relentlessly. When these major figures vied with each other, did anyone else dare to compete with them even if they had a lot of Immortal Stones? Of course, if their families were powerful enough, they might give it a try, but this was only the first auction item of the day, and nobody wanted to start things off with too much aggression.

"Twenty-three thousand!"

"Twenty-four thousand!"

"Brother Huo, could you give this old man some face? Twenty-five thousand!"

"Hmph, why won’t you gentlemen give this old man a face? There might even be a second Soul Consolidating Pill later! Twenty-six thousand!"

"Brother Huo, why not wait for the second one? Twenty-seven thousand!"

"Twenty-eight thousand!"

"Twenty-nine thousand!"

"Thirty thousand!"

"..."

After someone called out forty thousand, no one else made an offer. Nobody’s Immortal Stones were blown in by the wind, especially Upper Grade Immortal Stones! Although the Soul Consolidating Pill was precious, it was still just a Seventh Grade Pill, and it wasn’t as if there were no other places to buy them!

The exorbitance lay in the words ’top quality,’ but to pay a price of forty thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones and above was too much.

The first auction item fetched such a high price that it seemed to ignite everyone’s enthusiasm. Thus, even though the next few items auctioned weren’t particularly significant, they still sold for quite high prices.

Zhou Heng, however, was quite displeased. Placing the Soul Consolidating Pill first would definitely affect its price! However, on second thought, forty thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones were quite a lot. He had spent just over nine hundred thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones on raw materials, which roughly equated to nine thousand Upper Grade Spirit Stones, and he had produced three pills in total!

At forty thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones per pill, he could gain a total of one hundred twenty thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones!

What a return, more than tenfold!

The key was that he hardly needed to expend any effort, as everything was handled by the Fire Divine Furnace; earning money was incredibly easy!

Alchemy indeed was lucrative!

But considering that in the hands of other pharmacists, Seventh Grade Pills only had a 20% Pill Success Rate, theoretically, the cost of a single Soul Consolidating Pill was fifteen thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones. Selling it as top quality for forty thousand was actually not expensive.

"...Next up is a stone!" Li Mingdong motioned with his hand, and a maid placed a tray on the auction platform, lifting the brocade that covered it to reveal a stone, about the size of a fist, bright red, with a rough exterior and sharp edges.

"This stone contains a very potent force of fire, and I’m not entirely sure what its specific use is. The starting price shall be set at five hundred Middle Grade Immortal Stones!"

He gestured invitingly for the audience to start bidding. Although five hundred Middle Grade Immortal Stones weren’t expensive, nobody was willing to spend recklessly. It took at least ten seconds after Li Mingdong’s voice faded before someone called out the starting price.

"Boy, quickly bid on this Fire Stone!" In his Dantian, the Fire Divine Furnace suddenly spoke very excitedly.

"Why?"

"This stone contains a trace of Exotic Fire from heaven and earth; I need it!" If the Pill Furnace had hands, it would definitely be grabbing Zhou Heng by the neck and spitting all over his face.

This Pill Furnace had previously mentioned that it liked to consume Exotic Fire. Given its excited state now, this was not merely a preference but a primal need, similar to how high-tier metals attracted Zhou Heng’s Gold Devouring Clan bloodline.

"Furnace, tell me truthfully, what exactly do you need the Exotic Fire for?" Zhou Heng asked. The Fire Divine Furnace was residing inside his Dantian, and if it suddenly emitted a burst of Exotic Fire, wouldn’t he be in trouble?

Meanwhile, Zhang Mingdong had already begun the countdown.

The Fire Divine Furnace, desperate, hurriedly said, "I am made of Sun Essence Gold; Exotic Fire can make me evolve! Moreover, if I consume this stone, I can help you out one additional time!"

"Only once?"

"Once is quite good already. There’s only so much Exotic Fire in this Fire Stone. After I’ve consumed it, there’ll only be enough left for one more strike!"

"Alright then!"

Zhou Heng understood; the predecessor of the Fire Divine Furnace was a piece of Sun Essence Gold, which had developed divine consciousness through constant refinement by flames. The Exotic Fire could indeed facilitate its evolution.

"One thousand!" he finally called out an offer just before Zhang Mingdong’s final gavel.

"One thousand five hundred!" The first bidder was annoyed since he had only intended to collect it, not necessarily to own it. But why did Zhou Heng have to make an offer at the very last moment before the final strike of the gavel? Was he playing with him?

"Two thousand!" Zhou Heng said casually.

"Three thousand!"

"Five thousand!"

After raising it to five thousand, the man stopped bidding. Driving the price of a mere stone so high, he had mostly vented his frustration.

Zhou Heng was also satisfied; acquiring the Fire Stone for five thousand Middle Grade Spirit Stones, enabling the Fire Divine Furnace to burst forth once, was a huge gain! (To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, you are welcome to vote and support on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)