Chapter 81: The Auction (Continued)

“Fire Qilin Grass?!” Lu Zhe exclaimed in surprise at the words.

Though the old physician did not react as strongly as Lu Zhe, his brows did twitch slightly. He then spoke in a low, indifferent voice, “Indeed. Even such rare herbs can be found here. It seems the chances of encountering an ‘Ice Spirit Flower’ are not low in this place.”

Fire Qilin Grass was ranked among the Four Cauldron herbs—a rather rare medicinal plant that mainly grew in hot regions, especially near volcanic craters. Because it was so difficult to harvest, its market price was generally quite high. A mature Fire Qilin Grass could fetch between thirty to eighty thousand gold coins, so the auctioneer’s starting price of thirty thousand was quite reasonable.

As expected, once the auctioneer announced the name and effects of the herb, bidding in the hall soared like a blaze at noon. In no time at all, the price of the Fire Qilin Grass was driven up to seventy thousand gold coins—helped along, of course, by a few accomplices planted to stir up the bidding.

Observing the frenzied bidding below the stage, a smile slowly curled at the corners of the auctioneer’s lips, and the heavy burden in her heart eased; at least she would not have to go hungry this month.

“Eighty thousand gold coins!” a man dressed in an alchemist’s robe called out loudly.

Lu Zhe turned to look at him and saw a man of about forty, clad in the same style of alchemist’s garb as himself—probably an alchemist from another country. Yet on this man’s chest hung a silver badge with three cauldrons, signifying his rank as a Three-Cauldron Silver Alchemist.

The old physician kept his eyes closed and said nothing. When he heard that no one was willing to raise the bid after the alchemist offered eighty thousand, he opened his eyes to glance at the Fire Qilin Grass on the tray, smiled faintly, and then closed his eyes again.

Lu Zhe turned back to the stage. After a moment’s hesitation, the auctioneer, seeing no further bids, brought down the gavel with a resounding thud and proclaimed, “Eighty thousand gold coins, sold!”

“That Fire Qilin Grass contains impurities,” the old physician suddenly said, eyes still shut, in a flat tone.

Lu Zhe was taken aback and glanced at the old man, who took a slow, deep breath and continued, “If the impurities are not removed and it is recklessly refined, the chance of a cauldron explosion is not low.”

Lu Zhe quickly looked over at the alchemist who had just bought the Fire Qilin Grass. The man was smiling, clearly believing he had landed a bargain. Lu Zhe could only feel a sincere sense of pity for him and silently prayed that the cauldron would not explode during refinement.

Withdrawing his gaze, Lu Zhe continued to watch the stage. The female auctioneer, having sold the Fire Qilin Grass, was beaming even more radiantly as she pressed on with the auction.

The next few herbs brought up for auction were not what Lu Zhe sought. Left with nothing to do, Lu Zhe suddenly wondered how the old physician had detected the impurities in the Fire Qilin Grass. After all, the presence of impurities in an herb was rarely visible to the naked eye—they did not manifest externally, and even if there were outward signs, unscrupulous merchants would conceal them. If complaints were later raised, these sellers would argue their case vigorously, showing no fear. So how had the old physician seen through it, especially from such a distance?

The thought only deepened Lu Zhe’s admiration for the old man.

The auction continued. The female auctioneer managed to sell off five Four-Cauldron pills in succession, each time pushing the price above one hundred thousand gold coins. Clearly, she was no amateur.

Suddenly, the auctioneer whispered a few words into the ear of her attendant, who nodded slightly and retreated backstage. Moments later, she returned carrying a silver tray, once again covered with a red cloth.

The auctioneer glanced at the tray with a sly smile, like a cunning old fox. Then, with a graceful hand, she whipped away the red cloth and announced in a clear voice, “Five-Cauldron herb—Dragonbone Ganoderma! Starting bid, eighty thousand gold coins!”

In the audience, those with any knowledge of the trade were all abuzz with excitement. Although Dragonbone Ganoderma was classified as a Five-Cauldron Bronze herb, it was an essential ingredient for refining the Five-Cauldron Silver pill, Dragon Force Elixir, which meant its price was much higher than other herbs of its class. On the market, Dragonbone Ganoderma typically sold for one hundred to one hundred and twenty thousand gold coins, so the starting price of eighty thousand here had many alchemists champing at the bit, eager to bid.

“Eighty-five thousand!” Before the auctioneer’s words had even faded, someone impatiently called out a bid.

“I bid ninety thousand!”

“One hundred thousand!”

“One hundred and ten thousand!”

The bidding climbed higher and higher, like the midday sun. In just a short while, the price of the Dragonbone Ganoderma had been driven up from eighty thousand to one hundred and thirty thousand gold coins. It was said that alchemists were wealthy, and this was no exaggeration—after all, just one hundred gold coins could feed an ordinary family for half a year, yet here, tens of thousands changed hands without blinking.

Lu Zhe glanced at the old physician, who remained unmoved, eyes closed, occasionally scratching his nose or an itch, apparently unbothered by the frenzied bidding in the hall.

Lu Zhe shook his head in exasperation and continued watching the stage.

The auction did not drag on much longer before a bold voice rang out, “I bid two hundred thousand!” causing a second uproar in the hall. Moments later, Lu Zhe heard murmured discussions behind him, though this bid still could not eclipse the old physician’s earlier “three hundred thousand,” which remained the most stunning bid of the day.

“Two hundred thousand, once! Two hundred thousand, twice! Two hundred thousand, three times—sold!” the auctioneer cried out, dropping the gavel when she was sure there were no higher bids.

The audience buzzed with whispered speculation—had the winner lost or gained? Everyone had their own opinions, but none dared speak aloud.

After auctioning off the rare Dragonbone Ganoderma, the auctioneer took a deep breath as her attendant quickly went backstage and retrieved another tray—again covered with a red cloth—which was set beside her.

The auctioneer glanced at the tray, smiled, and swept off the red cloth, calling out, “Ice Spirit Flower! Five-Cauldron Silver herb! Starting bid, one hundred and fifty thousand gold coins!”

The moment her words fell, Lu Zhe was stunned. He sat up straight, peered at the herb in the tray, and was about to wake the old physician beside him. But as he turned, he saw that the old man was already sitting up, brows furrowed, staring intently at the Ice Spirit Flower. After a moment, the old man nodded and said, “It is genuine, flawless. A fine specimen.”

“One hundred and eighty thousand gold coins!” Just as Lu Zhe was about to urge the old man to bid, a voice interrupted him.

Lu Zhe and the old physician looked in unison toward the bidder, who sat not far behind Lu Zhe. This figure was completely shrouded in a black cloak, making it impossible to discern any features.

The cloaked figure seemed to sense their scrutiny and glanced briefly in their direction before turning back to fix his gaze on the Ice Spirit Flower.

For some reason, when the man looked his way, Lu Zhe felt a sudden chill creep over him, cold and eerie, making him shudder involuntarily.

Lu Zhe glanced at the old physician, who was frowning with a grave look in his eyes as he watched the cloaked man. After a moment, the old man’s brows relaxed and he turned away, no longer paying him heed.

“Master, who do you think he is?” Lu Zhe leaned back in his chair and asked quietly.

The old physician, apparently unconcerned by the man’s chilling presence, replied indifferently, “A hidden dragon among men. Looks like he’s prepared to seize the item by force if he can’t win it by bid.”

“Master, what do you mean?” Lu Zhe asked, puzzled.

The old man looked at Lu Zhe and said flatly, “He’s a Spirit King—a formidable one, likely not below the third star.”

“What? A Spirit King?!” Lu Zhe exclaimed in shock.

(That’s all for today’s update. If the repairs are finished tomorrow morning, there will be more chapters. Please stay tuned! And one more thing—please, I beg for your recommendations and bookmarks! A friend of mine who’s also a novice has already passed a hundred bookmarks, while I have only a dozen. Please, show me some support!)