Chapter 6 Auction
As soon as Bai Zhe finished speaking, the magnificent hall erupted in chaos, with the gods discussing amongst themselves, their eyes gleaming with greed and scheming.
Seeing this, Ophelia, the goddess of light, gently tapped the table to signal the gods to be quiet.
"Since the God of Existence is so generous, let the auction begin," Ophelia said. "This one-third share of faith will be divided into ten parts, and one part will be auctioned off at a time. You are free to bid, and the highest bidder wins."
After speaking, she looked at Bai Zhe and asked, "God of Existence, what unit of measurement do you wish to use for the auction?"
Bai Zhe answered without hesitation: "Ten thousand standard units of faith energy is the base price for one share of faith. Each increment must be no less than one thousand standard units."
One standard unit of faith energy is the sum of the faith power generated by a fanatic in a year. Ten thousand standard units are equivalent to the faith power of ten thousand fanatics in a year, which is no small amount.
The gods frowned slightly upon hearing the bid. This price exceeded their expectations. However, considering the immense benefits represented by that vast share of faith, they gritted their teeth and prepared to participate in the auction.
"The auction for the first share of faith begins!" Ophelia's voice echoed throughout the hall.
No sooner had the words been spoken than a deity began to offer a price:
"Eleven thousand standard units!"
"Twelve thousand!"
"Fifteen thousand!"
"Twenty thousand!"
...
Bidding erupted incessantly, driving prices sky-high. The gods, vying for a share of faith, pulled out all the stops, constantly raising the price.
However, during this fierce bidding, one god appeared particularly anxious: Cauchinus, the god of strategy and magic.
Just as Bai Zhe had predicted, Causinos did not have much faith energy in reserve.
Followers of the gods of wisdom, strategy, and magic are usually people with high intelligence and knowledge, such as scholars, mages, and wise men.
However, in this world where civilization had only recently emerged, the vast majority of people were ignorant, while intelligent and cultured individuals were a minority, and even among the intelligent, it was rare for them to become devout or fanatical believers. This resulted in Cauchinus having far fewer followers than other gods, and accumulating relatively less faith power.
Therefore, after the auction began, Cauchinus made several attempts to bid, but was quickly overwhelmed by the other gods and was simply unable to compete with the gods who had huge churches.
As Cauchinus watched his share of faith being snatched up by other gods, he was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
He desperately needs these shares of faith!
This is not only related to the growth of his divine power, but also to his status and voice among the gods.
If he fails to make a profit in this auction, he will be left far behind by the other gods and become a dispensable figure.
"No, I must obtain those shares of faith!" A resolute glint flashed in Cauchinus's eyes. "Even at the greatest cost, I will not hesitate!"
He turned to look at Bai Zhe, and made an important decision in his heart.
When the fifth share of faith was auctioned off to a god for a high price of 50,000 standard units, Cauchinus finally couldn't hold back any longer.
He stood up, interrupting the ongoing auction, and said loudly:
"Gentlemen, please pause for a moment!"
Upon hearing this, all the gods turned their gaze to Cauchinus.
Cauchinus walked up to Bai Zhe, bowed deeply, and said:
"Respected God of Existence, I am willing to exchange my lower-level divine status in spatial magic for the one-third share of faith you possess. I agree to the conditions you previously proposed."
These words caused an uproar in the audience.
None of the gods expected that Cauchinos would be so eager to obtain those shares of faith, even willing to exchange them for a lower-level divine status in spatial magic.
It's important to understand that a divine essence is the core of a god, the source of their divine duties and power. Losing a lower-level divine essence, while not necessarily causing the high-ranking god of "wisdom" to fall from grace, will at least slightly diminish his strength and render the mid-ranking god of "magic" incomplete.
Bai Zhe also looked at Cauchinus with some surprise, not expecting the god of wisdom to be so decisive.
However, this is exactly the result he wanted.
"Revered God of Wisdom, are you sure you want to do this?" Bai Zhe asked knowingly. "You should think carefully before exchanging a lower-level godhood for these believers."
Kocinos nodded without hesitation: "I've thought it through. Compared to those faith shares, the lower-level divine status of spatial magic is important, but not irreplaceable. These believers can quickly increase my faith power, which is very important to me."
"Alright!" Bai Zhe slammed his hand on the table and laughed loudly, "Since that's the case, then it's a deal!"
As he spoke, Bai Zhe stretched out his palm, and a ball of green light appeared in his palm. Countless human faces could be vaguely seen in the light; those were the soul imprints of the believers he had promised to Causinos.
Kocinos also extended his palm, and a dazzling crystal appeared in his palm. The crystal seemed to contain an endless starry sky and emitted mysterious spatial fluctuations. That was the lower-level godhood of spatial magic.
The two beams of light met and merged in the air.
Bai Zhe felt that he had gained some insights into the laws of space, while Cauchinus felt his divine power begin to grow rapidly, which was the power of faith brought by the new believers.
"Hahaha, great! Deal done!" Bai Zhe laughed loudly.
Cauchinus smiled with satisfaction. Although he had lost a lower-level godhood, he had gained the more valuable power of faith; this was a worthwhile trade!
The other gods, however, wore expressions of frustration and envy. They hadn't expected that Cauchinos would be so willing to go to such lengths, exchanging a lower-level godhood for those shares of faith.
If I had known they would also...
However, it's too late to say anything now. Those shares of faith already belong to Cauchinus.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the auction continues!" Bai Zhe's voice rang out again, "There are still five faith shares left, so hurry up and seize the opportunity!"
The subsequent auction was even more intense. All the gods were giving it their all, determined to claim the remaining share of faith.
Bai Zhe sat to the side, leisurely watching the gods bid, his heart filled with joy.
He not only obtained a lower-level divine status in spatial magic, but also gained a large amount of faith energy, which can be described as killing two birds with one stone.
As for the lost share of faith, he felt no remorse at all.
Because he believed that it wouldn't be long before he could obtain even greater faith power from other worlds!
"Hehehe, how much you lose, how much you gain... This is the wine of giving up, ah, no, it is the way of giving up... Hehehehe..."