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**
The hall fell silent for a moment.
"Hmph."
The bidder from earlier gave a cold snort, hesitated briefly, then gritted his teeth and said, "One eight-colored Tier 8 Pill!"
As soon as his words fell, a low murmur rippled through the grand hall. Clearly, many hadn't expected that just for a remnant map, this man would actually be willing to offer up an eight-colored pill.
Everyone knew that for Tier 8 Pills, every additional color represented an exponential increase in value. The further it went, the more exaggerated that growth became—especially beyond eight-colored. A single eight-colored pill was worth nearly nine seven-colored ones!
"Three!"
An old, calm voice sounded faintly—it was simple, but it carried weight. Yao Lao had finally spoken, directly raising the offer to three eight-colored Tier 8 Pills—an absolutely sky-high price!
He had just doubled the bid.
Hearing that, the previous bidder could only give up reluctantly, his expression full of frustration as he fell silent. Seeing that the man had stopped bidding, Xiao Yan secretly let out a breath of relief, but just as he was about to speak, Yao Lao's voice reached his ear.
"Don't celebrate too soon."
"It's not over yet," Wei Yang added, his eyes narrowing.
Sure enough—
"Five!"
A cold, sharp voice suddenly broke the air.
Hearing that, Xiao Yan's face twitched slightly as his gaze turned toward the source of the voice. Wei Yang also frowned and looked over. They saw a rather thin figure seated cross-legged on a wide stone chair.
Sensing their gazes, the cloaked man slowly turned his head. From the shadow beneath his hood, a pair of sinister, blade-like eyes glinted with cold light.
Buzz!
That gaze alone made the space around them tremble slightly, while at the same time, a strange pressure surged outward, enveloping both Wei Yang and Xiao Yan.
"Hmm?"
Wei Yang chuckled lightly.
Beneath his cloak, two dark suns suddenly flared to life. A scorching, oppressive heat rippled forth, instantly shattering the invisible pressure around them.
The thin figure grunted in pain, quickly retracting his gaze in alarm, not daring to look again. Just that fleeting glimpse of those twin black suns had nearly burned his eyes.
"He's got quite the arrogance," Xiao Yan said quietly, his eyes narrowing. "Brother Wei, what's his cultivation?"
"About the same as that Elder Bao Shan," Wei Yang replied casually. "A powerhouse with one foot already stepped into the Ban Sheng realm."
Hearing that, Xiao Yan smirked faintly and didn't take it to heart. He had thought it was someone stronger—turns out, just another peak Nine-Change expert.
"Eight!"
As Wei Yang and Xiao Yan exchanged words, Yao Lao once again spoke up. Though his tone remained calm and collected, beneath the shadow of his hood, his brows had furrowed slightly—his expression now rather grim.
Clearly, the price was starting to get ridiculous.
"Hehe, this friend here has offered eight eight-colored Tier 8 Pills. Is there anyone willing to go higher?" Elder Bao Shan said with a cheerful smile, glancing around the hall.
The hall went silent again, then all eyes subtly turned toward the thin, cloaked man who had been bidding earlier.
Feeling those gazes, the black-robed man let out a low, cold laugh, his tone chilling as he said, "One nine-colored Tier 8 Pill! If anyone can offer something higher, then the map is theirs."
"This guy's insane!"
The hall erupted again in shock.
No one had expected that the black-robed man would actually bring out a nine-colored Tier 8 Pill. Everyone knew that pills of that level were already nearing the realm of legendary Tier 9 Treasure Pills.
Across the entire continent, alchemists capable of refining such high-tier pills were extremely rare—each pill was a priceless treasure that couldn't be found even if one searched the world. Many in the hall couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath.
Wei Yang and his master-disciple duo's expressions darkened immediately. They also had a single nine-colored Tier 8 Pill—but just one.
It wasn't that they couldn't refine more. In fact, with Yao Lao's current ability, even Wei Yang himself had a fair chance of successfully refining one. But at the moment, they simply hadn't gathered enough materials.
After all, refining a nine-colored Tier 8 pill demanded materials of extreme rarity and precision — not something that could be casually thrown together.
Moreover, time was short. So during the rushed half-month of preparation, most of what they refined were pills below the eight-colored level.
As for the only nine-colored Tier 8 pill in their possession, that was obtained from the snowy white fat cat-like pill beast they had found in the ruins of the Dou Sheng. But to trade away that pill beast would be far too great a loss.
After all, that creature had survived countless years within the Dou Sheng's ruins, filled with spirituality. If properly nurtured, it could one day evolve into a Tier 9 Treasure Pill, or even a Mysterious Pill. By then, its value would skyrocket hundreds of times over.
Even a Dou Sheng powerhouse would find it hard to resist such temptation. Therefore, a potential pill beast of that caliber would never be traded away for something as trivial as a mere fragment of a map.
It simply wasn't worth it.
Besides, they hadn't even brought the creature along — it had been left back at the Falling Star Pavilion, where it served as the pet of the three little ones, who had been raising it all this time. At this moment, the faces of the three master and disciples all looked rather unpleasant.
A Dou Sheng, a Ban Sheng, and a One-Change Dou Zun — all three being master alchemists — yet they were suppressed in a bidding war by a mere Nine-Change Dou Zun. It was hard not to feel a sting of frustration.
Still, frustration or not, there was nothing they could do. Even if they had more resources on hand, continuing such a bidding war was meaningless. It simply wasn't worth it. Yao Lao's fingers lightly tapped against the stone armrest of his chair.
"Master, forget it," Wei Yang said softly, leaning back. "If we can't get it through normal means, then we'll just use another method."
If his memory served right, that thin figure's identity should be one of the Three He Demon Ghosts. Robbing someone like that caused him no moral burden at all. As for the claim that the three old demon could fight a Ban Sheng when working together?
What a joke.
Xiao Yan tugged gently at Yao Lao's sleeve, giving a small shake of his head.
Seeing this, Yao Lao slowly opened his hand, exhaled, and nodded. In a low voice that only his two disciples could hear, he said, "Then let it go. It's true — there's no need to keep competing like this. The cost is too great. Not worth it."
Although the three of them didn't currently have a nine-colored Tier 8 pill, if they really wanted to force it — scraping the bottom of their inventories — they could still put together something even more valuable.
But again, there was no need.
"I already know that old fellow's identity," Yao Lao said with a cold chuckle. "He's an old rival from back then. This time, I'll settle that old score."
Given Yao Lao's temperament, he had originally wanted to bring his two disciples out to broaden their horizons — maybe show off a bit — but he hadn't expected to lose face, and on the subject of pills, no less. Naturally, he wouldn't let this go.
Moreover, this final map fragment — he had no intention of giving it up. Since his opponent just so happened to be an old enemy from the past. There was nothing more to discuss. If it couldn't be obtained through proper means, then they would simply resort to improper ones.
After all, this wasn't the first time he and Xiao Yan had done something like this. Back in the Black-Corner Region, they'd used the same ambush tactic to seize the second fragment of the map. That was how Fan Lao's son had died.
It seemed this time, they'd be returning to their old trade once again. Conveniently, his disciple Wei Yang hadn't yet participated in such a "lesson" — this would be a good chance to let him get some hands-on experience.
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