Chapter 246: You're Courting Death
"Seven-Colored Divine Metal, starting price: one million peak-grade spirit stones!"
The old auctioneer spoke without flourish, offering neither explanation nor embellishment. He simply announced the price.
Everyone present was of exalted status, far beyond the common crowd. Their knowledge was vast, their eyes sharp. None here needed an introduction to such a treasure.
"One million, hm…?"
The maiden bit her lip lightly, her beautiful face tinged with hesitation.
She indeed possessed plenty of spirit stones. After all, countless young prodigies had perished at her hands, even two princes of the Golden Crow clan were among them. Their treasures had long since become hers.
The issue was not whether she could pay—it was whether she dared.
One million was merely the starting price. No one could guess how high the bidding might climb before the gavel fell.
If she spent recklessly on this piece of divine metal, would she still have enough to secure the Scarlet-Blood Spirit Fruit she so desperately needed?
Just as her hesitation deepened, the blue-robed youth at her side suddenly raised his voice:
"One million, three hundred thousand peak-grade spirit stones!"
The hall stirred at once.
Countless heads turned toward him. And when they saw that the bidder was someone who hadn't even received an invitation to sit inside, astonishment swept the crowd.
By all logic, a man able to casually take out more than a million peak-grade spirit stones should not have been excluded from the inner circle. Yet here he was—an outsider, seemingly insignificant, competing for a Holy level material.
"Who is this person? His cultivation doesn't seem weak—he should be at the Divine Power Realm. Likely a core disciple of some sect."
"Strange… he looks unfamiliar. Maybe he rushed here from a distant region."
"But look—none of them are beyond the Divine Power Realm, and there are no elders with them. Even if they win the Seven-Colored Divine Metal, they may not be able to hold it."
The blue-robed youth basked in the attention, smiling faintly. He relished the stares, the whispered speculations. In his chest swelled the exhilaration of command, as though the world itself were under his hand.
But just as he was convinced this treasure would soon fall into his grasp, a light, almost casual voice drifted from the front row:
"Two million peak-grade spirit stones."
"What?"
The blue-robed youth's expression froze. His brows furrowed deeply as he turned toward the source of that voice.
What he saw was a broad-shouldered figure, golden hair cascading like molten metal, each strand gleaming with divine radiance. He sat alone, untouched, for every seat near him had been left empty. None dared approach.
'The Golden Crow Clan!'
The maiden's heart sank heavily.
A sense of foreboding welled up inside her.
It wasn't the divine metal itself that unnerved her, but what it implied for the Scarlet-Blood Spirit Fruit.
Her enmity with the Golden Crow Clan ran far too deep.
If their prince was here, then when the Scarlet-Blood Fruit appeared, he would never allow her to claim it easily. Even if he had no use for it himself, he would drive the bidding sky-high just to spite her.
And then, their eyes met.
"So we meet again, Lu Qingxian."
The Golden Crow prince turned fully toward her, his gaze terrifying. His eyes were like comets tearing through the heavens, golden hair flaring wildly behind him. Seated there, he resembled a demonic god incarnate.
An unrestrained killing intent spread across the hall like a freezing gale.
In that instant, countless cultivators felt their blood run cold. It was as if the chill of death itself pressed against their throats, compelling them to flee.
Only the sacred protections of Yuyang City kept the bloodshed at bay. Anywhere else, the Golden Crow prince would have struck at her the moment their eyes locked.
"As long as I am here today, you will obtain nothing. A body forsaken by the heavens can never step into the Life and Death Realm. True, you can fight above your level, even slay those in the Life and Death Realm…"
The Golden Crow prince's golden eyes blazed.
"But I wonder—can you withstand the Divine Palace Realm?"
"Try me."
Lu Qingxian's voice was cool, steady. A glimmer of slyness flickered in her eyes as she glanced toward the Seven-Colored Divine Metal being auctioned.
"This divine metal—I am determined to claim it. Let's see if you can stop me!"
"Three million peak-grade spirit stones!"
"Four million peak-grade spirit stones!"
Before her words had even faded, the Golden Crow prince immediately followed, each bid increasing by a million.
It was madness.
The earlier low-grade Dao weapons had sold for no more than a few hundred thousand. Yet here these two traded bids as if they were tossing weapons out the window, every word they spoke the equivalent of sacrificing an entire Dao weapon—if not more.
"Seven million!"
"Eight million!"
"Ten million peak-grade spirit stones!"
The final shout fell like thunder.
The entire auction house plunged into silence.
In history, there had indeed been bids that crossed the threshold of ten million. But never—never—had such a price been offered for something so small.
A chunk of Holy level material, yes, but one no larger than a clenched fist. Not even enough to forge a true Sacred Weapon.
And yet—because of their struggle—it had soared to a price that could bankrupt an upper-ranked sect.
"Congratulations. The Seven-Colored Divine Metal belongs to you."
Lu Qingxian's lips curved in a faint, taunting smile. She spoke lightly, as though washing her hands of the matter.
"What…?"
The Golden Crow prince froze, then fury twisted across his face.
In that instant, even he—proud and aloof—realized he had been played.
She had never intended to buy it at all. Her so-called "unyielding determination" was nothing more than bait to drive him into her trap.
"You dare! You're courting death!"
The prince surged to his feet, golden hair flying wildly, divine pressure roaring outward like a tide of demonic power. He seemed less a man than a god reborn from the Abyss, his presence pressing down upon the hall until every spectator trembled in terror.
Ten million peak-grade spirit stones—though he was a prince, even for him such a sum was staggering. To squander it on a single chunk of Holy level material was beyond reckless.
Once word spread, the ridicule would follow him forever: the fool who paid ten million for a useless trinket.
"Perhaps you forget where you stand," Lu Qingxian's tone remained calm, unshaken before his wrath. "This is Yuyang City, domain of the Yin-Yang Holy Land. This is the Myriad Treasures Pavilion's auction hall. Do you dare make trouble here?"
"That's right!" the blue-robed youth stepped forward, puffing up with righteous indignation. "The Golden Crow Clan may be mighty, but this is human territory. Here, it is not your place to act with impunity!"
The prince's eyes narrowed, killing intent unrestrained.
"Today, I will kill you—and no one will stop me."
His gaze shifted, falling upon a tall, valiant man seated nearby.
"Brother Feng, this is your Yin-Yang Holy Land's ground. If I kill them here—will you intervene?"
The hall went utterly still.
The man—Feng Lie—was indeed a core disciple of the Yin-Yang Holy Land, a figure famed as the equal of many a Holy Son.
But now he could only give an awkward smile, shaking his head helplessly.
"Brother Jin, please… do as you wish."
His words dropped like stones into a pit.
Yes, he was strong. But in status? In lineage? He could not compare to the Golden Crow prince. To oppose him over a few strangers would be not only foolish—it would be suicidal.
And so, with those words, the prince's path was cleared.
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