The items were sold one by one without attracting much attention. Finally, the painting that had attracted Jiahe Ruo's attention was sold to someone from a noble family for forty-two taels of gold, almost one Yuanbao. The young man was very good at hiding his frustration. But luckily, he knew the woman who had bought the painting. At the very least, he was certain he could go admire it. In fact, he might even be good enough to seduce her and take it back for around the same price. Damn, if he was good enough, he might get it for free... All kinds of ideas popped in his mind. But this painting was just too important for him. Apparently no one had recognized the real painter behind it, not even the Major Hall. If they had been in the Imperial City, everyone would have and it could have been sold for several hundred Yuanbao.
For several months, Jiahe Ruo would try and befriend this woman. Although no romance emerged, a good friendship was born. As a matter of fact, that woman had also recognized the painter. He was indeed a very famous painter in the Imperial City but he was only known in very few circles. Sadly, Jiahe Ruo never recovered his painting, but he found a companion with whom he could share his love of art.
Then, many other items were auctioned off. Although some of the important people in the lodges bought a few items, Xue Rui and Cao Yun were not moved by anything at all. They were probably the people with the most money as they were alchemists. So no one was very surprised by the fact that they seemed picky. In fact, everyone was convinced that the huge battle would be for the True Essence pill. Indeed, almost everyone knew about this open secret already.
After two hours, the auction was almost over.
Then, the item everyone had been waiting for appeared on the stage. A small box was put on a pedestal. Even before opening it, a sweet fragrance filled the entire auction hall. No matter whether they were knowledgeable in alchemy or not, they all knew that this was a great pill with an impressive quality. And the Major Hall knew how to make a show of things. A beautiful woman slowly went toward the box and delicately opened it in front of everyone.
When the box was finally opened and the pill inside revealed, many people were incredulous. Inside the box, on a red silk sheet, there was a tiny pill with orange and brown colors moving on its surface. There was also a faint hue all around it that was the color of dying leaves. The alchemists immediately recognized the pill. But they had never seen one so vibrant and with so many lines.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this pill is a True Essence Autumn and Springs Reviving pill. As many know it is a 2-star Human pill that is able to soothe the mind. Although it couldn't heal an injured Soul Embryo, it might help a human soul endure. For someone who cultivates either their soul or mind, such a pill is a game changer. As such, we will start the auction with one Yuanbao."
"1 Yuanbao and five taels."
"1 Yuanbao and thirteen taels."
...
Only the noble families could afford this pill. If Cao Yun had not been the one who had refined it, he would have wanted to buy it too. Even for him, refining such a True Essence pill had been difficult. He had failed three times before succeeding. Of course, that meant that he had around twelve other Autumn and Springs Reviving pills in his spatial ring. Besides, he also had a few Pure ones among them. The difference between a Pure pill and a True Essence one was the difference between Heaven and Earth. Although it was only a 2-Human pill, a True Essence pill was almost as miraculous as a 1-star Heaven one.
Considering that the main point of this pill was to heal one's soul, Cao Yun was absolutely certain that Xue Rui would want to get it. At first, Cao Yun's plan had been to humiliate Xue Rui in order to distort his black flame even more. Now he was hesitant because he knew that some poor victim's soul would be used by him to stabilize himself. But then, he might have other ways...
For a few minutes, the price kept increasing. When it finally reached fifty Yuanbao, Xue Rui began to bid as well.
"Fifty-two Yuanbao."
Everyone was impressed. Even Cao Yun didn't think that this little alchemist had that much money. Maybe he had saved it over time, or maybe his master had given it to him. Right now, Cao Yun wasn't too sure as Cang Yin had not been able to report on his financial status. Moreover, Cao Yun didn't really care about his finances, even though it could be interesting to know about them.
"Sixty Yuanbao!"
No one but Cao Yun could outbid him with such a price. Of course, Qinghe Ming was convinced that Cao Yun was going to do so. However, it never came.
"Sixty Yuanbao, going once. Sixty Yuanbao, going twice. Sold! Congratulations to Sir Xue."
On Xue Rui's face, there was a deep smirk directed at Cao Yun.
"It seems like you're too poor to even try to bid for such a precious treasure. Or maybe you're just too blind to recognize Mount Tai when it's right in front of you. Tsk..."
"Is flaunting your money so impressive? I have no need for such a pill. Unlike like my mind is not deficient. Besides, if I wanted a certain pill, I could simply refine it!"
"What?! You think you could refine a True Essence pill?! If I can't do it, then obviously you can't!"
"Oh, really?! And could you refine an Autumn and Springs Reviving pill with 98% medicinal essence and only 2% toxins?"
"Tsk... Refining an Autumn and Springs Reviving pill isn't that difficult but your numbers are simply ridiculous."
Before Xue Rui could add any other insult, Cao Yun took out such a pill from his spatial ring. He still didn't want anyone to know that all the True Essence pills around the kingdom recently were his doing. After all, soon everyone would learn that Guai Mo and Chen Guo was one and the same. However, he had other high quality pills in his spatial ring.
"You...!"
"Oh? You're not able to refine such a pill...?"
"Boast all you want, this True Essence pill is mine!"
Now that they saw the pill in Cao Yun's hands, all the alchemists understood why he had not bidden on the True Essence pill. Although it was more potent, the gain would probably not be worth sixty Yuanbao. Besides, if he had refined such a pill, he clearly had others as well. Even if their quality wasn't as high, they would still be incredible for a Human alchemist. This Autumn and Springs Reviving pill wasn't so easy to improve.
Since the pill had been sold, many were about to leave already, Xue Rui first.
"Esteemed guest, we have one final item. It is sadly not as exciting as this incredible pill, but it might still catch the eyes of some of you. We were forced to put it last because it just reached our Major Hall today and we had to appraise it to be sure of its quality."
In Cao Yun's sea of consciousness, Dian Mo could feel the killing intent of the young man. He was able to suppress it in the real world but it was quite apparent in his own mind and soul.
"That's more like it, boy. Instead of complicated plans, just kill this bastard."
Faced with Dian Mo's suggestion, Cao Yun seriously considered it for a moment, but he decided against it. He had to be smart and he couldn't give in to his raw emotions.
"I'm very tempted to do so. But I just have to wait a little bit. Besides, before the Major Hall gives him the pill, there is something I must do."
"Oh? I see... Good idea!"
A servant closed the box and took it away while another man placed a fir cone on the pedestal. This cone was the size of an adult's forearm. On its surface, there was a thin layer of ice and it was almost frozen inside. In fact, some of the scales seemed to literally be made of ice. However, all around the fir cone, the air was blurry as though the temperature was quite intense. This was the Eternal Frostfire Fir.
That Eternal Frostfire Fir was exactly the item Cao Yun needed for the pill he had in mind. Combined with the Hellish Dragon Fruit, this could have a great effect. It might even help Hongyu as well. This ingredient contained both a powerful Fire element and was lowering the temperature all around it. By using it in his pill, Cao Yun would be able to contain the extreme heat of the Hellish Dragon Fruit and it would be easier to mix it with other ingredients, namely the Universe Spanning Frost. Putting the two in contact without this Eternal Frostfire Fir would result in an explosion, no matter how great Cao Yun's control over the flames was.
"Although this item is not as useful as the Autumn and Springs Reviving pill, it is a great ingredient for alchemy. Our Major Hall spent a lot of time tracking this ingredient to add it to our auction. That is the reason why it appears as the last item after such a rare pill. The first price will also be 1 Yuanbao."
The first price surprised some people. But then, they thought more about it. Such an ingredient was indeed ranked 5-star Heaven. A pill might be more precious for some as even if they could buy the ingredients, they couldn't necessarily refine it, especially a True Essence one. But they had to admit that this ingredient was rare and valuable as well. Besides, the phenomena around it proved its great quality.
"2 Yuanbao."
With no hesitation at all, Xue Rui began to bid. And immediately, everyone turned toward him. He had just spent more than anyone else in the entire auction with a single bidding. And now, he wanted to bid again. Since he had not bought a single item in the entire auction until then, it was clear to everyone that he had come specifically for the previous pill. Indeed, no one knew about this last item.
"2 Yuanbao, going once."
"4 Yuanbao."
Finally, Cao Yun was forced to outbid Xue Rui. And suddenly, all the heads turned toward his balcony. After his own humiliation, Xue Rui was happy that this Guai Mo was trying to bid against him. Soon, his face would be slapped so hard it would make people forget about that little exchange.
"It seems like you truly want this Eternal Frostfire Fir. Let's see if your money can match your mouth!"
With a smirk on his face, Xue Rui kept on bidding.
"5 Yuanbao."
"6 Yuanbao."
...
They kept outbidding one another. No one else was trying to buy the Eternal Frostfire Fir apart from them. As the price was rising, many were wondering how rich the Xue family really was. After all, Xue Rui had just bought a True Essence pill for sixty Yuanbao. As a comparison, the Xiliang Mines which were the most prosperous mines in the Hongchen Kingdom were able to produce less than five thousand Yuanbao a year. With the benefits of the Xiliang Mines, it would be possible to buy less than a hundred of those pills at that price. No one could take out that amount of money so easily.
While he was bidding for the ingredient, Cao Yun wrote down some messages. Then, he tasked a servant to send them to Qinghe Ming. He wasn't asking to manipulate the auction. No, he was just asking to get the Autumn and Springs Reviving pill to him before delivering it to Xue Rui. Usually, it wouldn't be done, but Cao Yun was literally the owner of the pill until it was formally sold. Technically, Xue Rui had not given the money yet. And Qinghe Ming was sure that Cao Yun wasn't going to destroy the pill.
"39 Yuanbao, going once. 39 Yuanbao, going twice."
"40 Yuanbao."
"40 Yuanbao, going once. 40 Yuanbao, going twice."
Everyone looked at Xue Rui's balcony. If he decided to bid again, he would have spent a hundred Yuanbao, this was a big sum that most people had never seen in their entire life. In fact, it was dubious whether or not he had that kind of money. Most likely, he would have to use the funds of his own family to do such a foolish thing.
"45 Yuanbao!"
Once again, everyone turned toward Xue Rui. Jiahe Ruo was dismayed. He had never realized how much of a fool Xue Rui was. It was clear to everyone that he had bid in order to spit in Cao Yun's face. It had been clear for him from the start that Guai Mo had been playing with him. In fact, many others had the same idea. They all thought he was just trying to push Xue Rui to spend as much as he could.
"46 Yuanbao. I didn't know that 'Brother' Xue wanted this Eternal Frostfire Fir so bad..."
Cao Yun's intonation on the word 'Brother' would have been sensed as an insult by the most oblivious man on the planet.
"50 Yuanbao. Guai Mo, It seems like you're not as poor as I imagined... But do you truly have the capacity to pay?"
"55 Yuanbao. Xue Rui, unlike you I won't use my family's money to pay. Maybe your alchemy is not good enough for that, but I earned everything. You can ask the Major Hall since they sold my pills for me."
Apart from his True Essen pills, the Major Hall had indeed sold other pills, but the revenue hadn't gone too such heights yet. Of course, the Major Hall would not make it public. But since Qinghe Ming stayed silent, it proved that Guai Mo did have that much money.
"You...! 60 Yuanbao!"
Xue Rui had really gone all out once more. What he didn't know was that he had already given this amount to Cao Yun, minus the Major Hall's expenses. So he had no problem raising the bar.
"80 Yuanbao!"