Chapter 56

“Huh!?” Zairen jumped up in shock, his throat involuntarily gulping. It had been a while since that rude lady had spoken to him. “M...Madam Sue?” He replied a bit nervously.

“You heard me, soy boy,” Madam Sue continued impatiently. She shook her head disappointedly. “Pfft. What kind of doctor are you? So useless. Can’t recognize something good when he sees it.”

Zairen absorbed that statement a bit numbly in his mind before responding. “...you know what it is? ...What is it? Why should I get it?”

“So many questions.” Madam Sue retorted back tersely. “Just get it!”

“...but… it’s so expensive,” Zairen meekly replied. “I don't even have enough spirit stones. And if I don’t know how to use it… it’ll be useless to me...”

“Why am I stuck with someone so dumb…” Madam Sue groaned. “It’s not even expensive. 125 low grade spirit stones, that’s peddler money! What are you, homeless? Go borrow from your senior.”

“...”

Zairen pursed his lips and turned silent, clearly reluctant.

Madam Sue sensed Zairen’s stubbornness and waited silently for a few moments. She inspected Zairen with narrowed eyes.

Finally, she let out an exasperated sigh.

“Fine! You wanted non-trash level arts for Alivia and Finn to practice, right? Better than the utter street garbage they are practicing right now?”

Zairen’s face tensed a little bit.

“I’ll pass some on to you for them then. A donation from a generous soul,” Madam Sue continued, ignoring Zairen’s annoyedness. “But you have to get the relic, right now.”

“Better arts than the Hell Dragon Fire Art and Great Golem Earth Art...?”

“Yes, dingus,” Madam Sue impatiently cut in once again. “Idiot, don’t you know, the strongest people have killed for my arts. I know the elite of the elite; they’re completely out of the realm of what you’re ever gonna get or see - what you gave Alivia and Finn are gutter trash in comparison. Yet, you're hesitating on this deal over a mere 125 spirit stones? Yes or no? What’s your answer? There’s not much more time to bid.”

“If you really will pass superior arts onto Alivia and Finn…” Zairen contemplated, bringing his hand to his chin. Alivia and Finn could really benefit from even higher level arts that could take them to their highest potential. Currently, although it was ridiculous to think about, it almost seemed that their current arts were a bit simple for them. Furthermore, it was still early in their cultivation so currently changing their paths wouldn’t adversely affect them that much.

“Fine! Deal!” He nodded his head.

“Alright, we’ll lower the asking price down to 100 low grade spirit stones. 100! It will not go lower than that!” Sohar’s booming voice continued to announce. Although he still outwardly appeared confident, one could tell he was getting a bit impatient. “Remember, this is an item from ancient times! Last call for anyone who wants to pick up this item! It may never go on sale again! Going once!”

Zairen stealthily walked up and lightly tapped on Jannie’s shoulder, getting his attention. “Senior Jannie.”

“Hm?” Jannie turned around and blinked his eyes, surprised to see Zairen. He became a bit curious. “Zairen? What is it?”

“Going twice!” Sohar shouted out again.

“I want to get this item,” Zairen explained. “But I don’t have enough spirit stones. Would you be willing to spot me?”

“...hm?” Hearing this, Jannie couldn’t help but be surprised.

He glanced back toward the dirty green box sitting un-appetizingly in the glass display box and blinked a couple times.

It looked… so ugly.

“You want this?” He pointed forward toward the box.

“Yep,” Zairen nodded calmly. “Can you spot me some spirit stones? I’ll return them later.”

Once again bringing his gaze toward the box, Jannie brought his hand to his chin and began to think.

Zairen wanted this… novelty ancient relic item? He almost thought he had heard him wrong. What use would he have for this item? Even though the price had been reduced, it wasn’t cheap!

100 low grade spirit stones… although for someone wealthy, that might not be much, but for a small school like Black Cloud School, an amount like that was make-or-break.

However, thinking back to the miraculous return of his spirit energy, he suddenly felt that Zairen was unfathomable and maybe could perceive more about it than anyone else. Maybe it was something special and only he knew!

He turned back toward Zairen with a confirming smile and thumbs up. “Of course, I’ve got you - go ahead and bid for it.” He chuckled and gave a little facetious bow. “How am I supposed to deny anything from my healer and savior?”

Ever since getting his spirit energy back from the medicine Zairen had prescribed him, he had felt an overwhelming feeling of gratitude. If he couldn’t repay him in some way, he would feel guilty. If Zairen had wanted something even five times as expensive, Jannie would have made sure to get it for him, even if he had to go into debt!

He glanced forward for a moment and nodded his head. This item was the cheapest put on auction, so far. If they pooled all of their spirit stones together, they would definitely be able to afford it.

“Thank you.” Zairen smiled gratefully in response, giving a small respectful bow. He felt happy to have a senior that was so kind and supportive.

“Going three times… the absolute last call for someone who may want this item! It’s an absolute steal! Just 100 low grade spirit stones!”

“100 low grade spirit stones!” Zairen shouted out. His voice was miraculously picked up and projected outward so that everyone could hear.

“Sold!” Sohar immediately shouted out, pouncing on the chance to get rid of the unpopular item. He pointed vaguely toward Zairen. “To the man in the back.”

“Hm?” Everyone looked backward toward the source of the voice.

Seeing it was someone from the laymen section, many raised their eyebrows in surprise, and others stood puzzled for a few moments, and then couldn’t help but giggle. What a poor gullible little fellow! Entranced by Sohar’s embellished sales pitches, he was picking up a useless item. Since he was from the laymen section, for him, it was probably a very hefty sum of money.

Some people from the upper sections turned their heads and scoffed. Damn rats, nibbling on the cheese that dangles just low enough for them to chew.

However, the moment quickly passed and everyone very quickly moved on. They were preoccupied with other things - the relic was the last item of the pre-auction, which meant the pre-auction had ended. This could only mean one thing… the real auction was about to start! Many people began to sit up straighter in their seats in anticipation.

Although the items in the pre-auction might’ve been mildly nice, they couldn’t compare in the slightest to the real auction. This was where the big ballers came to play. Although there were much fewer items, the items that were here would be on a completely different level from pre-auction levels! The pre-auction section consisted of simply leftovers from the actual auction.

As the Golden Rooster workers wheeled off the ancient relic box, Sohar walked to center stage, cleared his throat, and smiled. “Well, ladies and gentlemen, here it is. You waited so long… but now, we finally arrive at the heavily anticipated main event… the main auction of today’s Golden Rooster auction! Who’s excited?!”

The entire audience cheered in a thunderous chorus.

“Wait no longer! Let’s start the main event right away, shall we?!” Sohar spoke with a booming voice that echoed throughout the vast chamber, inciting everyone to excitement. “The first item, coming right up!”

The crowd buzzed with a palpable anticipation. Everyone began to sit up straighter in more attentive poses.

Finally, the Golden Rooster employees rolled out the display box once again, this time with an enormous crystal clear crystal ball inside. As they moved it around, they seemed to be much more careful with it, as if what was inside was much more precious than before.

Immediately, seeing the crystal ball, an appreciative gasp spread out throughout the crowd. Just by looking at even the projection, one could immediately tell its immeasurable power and treasure-status, just from the intimidating atmosphere it gave off. It already seemed to be on a different level than all the previous items.

“For this first item…” Sohar began, gesturing with his hands. Trailing off dramatically, he paused, and a sly knowing grin spread across his face.

“Well, to explain this item, I’ll have to tell you a story,” He began. “If you will, let me take you back to the year 3304, nearly three thousands years ago, the so-called ‘nascent age’ of our great country of Osiron.”

“Osiron had just been founded two decades years prior in 8282 by our dear founder Apollo Osiron and his loyal group of 8 proteges. But now, for the first time since the country’s establishment, the legendary 5th protege, the education coordinator Brinham Bonsoon, was faced with a problem. In the capital’s Osiron Academy, which had just recently been established, the torrent of new applications was getting too large; the fame of Apollo and his schools had finally built to a peak and students flocked to apply from all over. Eventually, it it got to a point that it was getting too strenuous and time-consuming for Brinham and his assistants to personally test each new applicant.”

“Thus, he personally spent a full year creating…” He paused, and then made a big flourish with his hands. “...the original three oblivion orbs.”

The crowd sucked in a breath, clearly enraptured by this story, and leaned in closer to listen. The entire auction house turned quiet, everyone focused on hearing what Sohar had to say.

“You already know what these orbs could do. You’ve heard from your teachers in classes! Ever since then, there have been generic imitations of them created all over, called spirit affinity crystal balls. Yet, these three original oblivion orbs were special. Able to instantly divine any spirit affinity and purity in an instant, even if the participant tried to hide it, but not only that… able to be the centerpiece of an elite class formation, capable of defending off entire armies, and even create illusory formations! But that wasn’t even the most legendary feature! Legend says…”

He looked around and gave a sly smile. “They were even able to divine fate! Yes, that’s right, they could tell you your fate!”

The crowd gasped loudly. Although many of them knew about this legend, it still was amazing to hear it out loud. The lore surrounding these stories was rich and engaging.

“As you all know, there have been multiple legends regarding this fact. I won’t get into them, but let’s just say… these three crystal balls guided many heroes to greatness.”

He smiled mysteriously. “And now, for the kicker. Believe it or not, this,” Sohar tapped the glass display box containing the crystal ball, “descendent oblivion orb here is masterfully crafted by the craftsman Haka, with its base constructed from a fist-size fragment of one of those original three oblivion orbs. That’s right, you heard correctly! It’s constructed from a fragment of one of those three fantastical legendary original oblivion orbs!”

Everyone in the crowd had a dramatic reaction, many exclaiming out in disbelief. Many people in the sitting sections stood up at attention and stared awestruck at that crystal ball.

Everyone had heard the legends of Brinham Bonsoon, and his creations. They were the basis of countless nursery rhymes taught to children all throughout the country, and virtually everyone had at least a passing knowledge of the legends. This crystal ball here… was made of a fragment of one of those original mythical oblivion orbs? Did that mean it could divine fate?

Many couldn’t shake off a feeling of disbelief. How was this possible? After so much time, how could those mythical orbs have survived?

“Can this descendent oblivion orb divine fate?” Sohar asked the question on everyone's minds. “We don’t know for sure. But… don’t you want to find out for yourself? As for whether you disbelieve this descendent oblivion orb actually contains a fragment of one of those original three oblivion orbs or not, you have our Golden Rooster guarantee. We’ve invited countless experts to give us their opinions, and they reached an unanimously positive decision! Other than the issue of whether it is able to divine fate, it is able to function as the base of a high class formation, and functions as an ordinary divining crystal orb extremely well.”

“Ok!” Sohar showed his classic smile and clapped his hands together once again. He was enjoying hearing the low buzz of excitement constantly emanating from the crowd. “For Haka’s descendent oblivion orb, we’ll start the bidding at 1,000 low-grade spirit stones, or in other terms, 20 high grade spirit stones. Can we get 20 high grade spirit stones?”

Now that the prices had skyrocketed, they no longer used low or medium grade spirit stones as the main currency exchange, but high grade. Medium grade spirit stones were worth five times as much as low grade, and high grade were worth ten times as much as medium grade.

“20 high grade spirit stones!” A man in the front section of the room shouted out immediately.

“40!”

“80!”

“120!”

“150!”

“180!”

The bidding war raged on as competitive bidders kept outbidding each other. Finally, the bid reached 350 high grade spirit stones, equivalent to 17,500 low grade spirit stones!

Suddenly, a calm and young-sounding yet assertive voice rose above the other bidders.

“1000 high grade spirit stones.”

This domineering voice having rang out, the bidding immediately stopped, and the entire room turned silent, everyone immediately turning toward the source of the voice.

“Master of wind Louron!” People couldn’t help but mumble out in surprise, including some students at Black Cloud School.

Sure enough, everyone was looking toward the very front of the room, where the aloof, long silver haired, purple-robed youth was smiling ever so slightly, all the while casually raising his hand in greeting.

“Ha… well that’s over.” Horace mumbled. “No one can outbid master of wind Louron, his damned head advisor father, and his fancy Purple Bridge Academy.”

Sure enough, no one else rose to challenge.

1000 high grade spirit stones… that was the equivalent of 50,000 low grade spirit stones! That was an absurd amount!

“Going once, going twice, going three times, sold! To the young master of wind Louron up in front!” Sohar grinned from ear to ear while making exaggerated gestures.

The Golden Rooster employees quickly rolled the descendent oblivion orb off of the stage into the back once again.

There was some vague muttering as some people whispered gossip into each other’s ears. However, Louron didn’t seem to hear any of them and was unphased.

“Alright, onto the second item…”

“This third item…”

“This next item…”

Sohar continued to auction off three more incredibly luxurious items, each also rich in history just like the descendent oblivion orb, including an interdimensional ring with five square meters of space, a battleaxe with the destructive potential high enough to match earthquakes, and a very high level movement speed cultivation skill. Not a single one sold for less than 500 high grade spirit stones.

Zairen was captivated by the items and their rich, extensive histories, but even more by their incredibly excessive prices! It was ridiculous. Surrounded by such riches, he couldn’t help but subconsciously develop a desire make some money as well and make the Black Cloud School rich! Now that he owed money to Jannie, he needed a way to earn more himself!

The gold he had earned at the Bindan Arena wouldn’t be that useful here. Mostly only non-cultivators used the gold, silver, copper currency system.

Finally, the Golden Rooster employees rolled in the display box once more, this time with a small, fancy, decorated jade bottle inside.

“Finally… the last item for auction…” Sohar smiled once more, his passionate energy seemingly not having faded even a bit throughout the entire auction. “Is a very recent addition, and may have been the draw that caused many of you to come to our Golden Rooster tonight! I will let you know first-hand, the hype is no joke! This stuff is the real deal!”

Everyone unconsciously leaned forward following Sohar’s words. Everyone had heard the announcements, and knew exactly what Sohar was talking about.

This was what most people had came for!

‘Hm?’ Zairen furrowed his brows and looked around curiously, seeing that everyone was focused. He was a bit out of the loop.

“Put on auction by the one and only Captain Janor herself, and personally examined and confirmed by the legendary Apothecary Shen, I present to you…” Sohar paused for a moment and smiled, savoring the moment.

“...!”

Zairen’s eyes shot open in surprise. Captain Janor?

He turned toward Finn and Alivia, who were equally surprised to hear that name, and shared a moment of mutual surprise with them. On the way, he caught eye of Jannie, who seemed to be shaking in excitement, his face red and his hands trembling.

The house started to buzz with anticipation.

“I present to you… the most unbelievable miracle drug you’ve ever seen in your life!” Sohar continued, his voice dramatically heightening.

“It’s one thing to just say that. However, I should let you know that what we’re dealing with here is no joke, a never-seen-before product!” He paused and laughed. “It seems like many of you are incredulous! Allow me to explain!”

Many people tapped their feet impatiently, waiting to hear what was so special about it.

Zairen suddenly froze and put his hand behind his neck. Staring at the small jade bottle in the display box, he suddenly had a moment of incredulity.

Wait… was this… what he thought it was?

“This pill was crafted by a mysterious small cloaked traveler, likely currently present in this very city! Just so that no one confuses this person for just some random nobody, I’ll let you know what Apothecary Shen said about him.” Sohar continued, the corners of his mouth angling up knowingly. “She said that... he must be some ‘unfathomable wise old master.’”

Gasps exuded out from all over the massive auction house. A small outcry of people shouted out loud. The vast majority of people looked at each other, as if trying to confirm that they had heard what they had heard. Many people covered their mouths in disbelief.

Hearing this, Zairen’s beliefs were confirmed. Suddenly feeling embarrassed, he put his hand over his face.

Alivia and Finn, suddenly having moments of realization as well, looked over to Zairen with their mouths open.

“It’s true,” Sohar smiled knowingly. “Many of you may be shocked, knowing Apothecary Shen’s reputation and skill. The same proud head of medicine who declared that even the famed apothecaries and doctors of history were all trash… inexplicably said, after inspecting this pill, that the creator must be some ‘unfathomable old master.’”

“As for the pill’s qualities, that warrant such a statement…” Sohar continued to gesture with his hands. He paused and then chuckled. Suddenly, he turned toward the side and gestured toward the side of the stage with a flourish. “I’ll let someone who has first-hand experience explain.”

Everyone looked over to where Sohar was pointing.

Whoosh. The curtain pulled.

Tap. Tap.

At that moment, it was like a gentle breeze had blown across everyone’s faces, followed by two clean, crisp heel taps.

The room suddenly turned silent. Gliding in from the side of the stage, there was a beautiful pitch-black haired woman wearing a long, thin, flowing black dress. An alluring smile flowed naturally on her face, as if she was blessed by the gods themselves.

A moment later…

“Captain Janor!!!”

A massive uproar began from the crowd, row after row of people standing up cheering and clapping, creating a thunderous sound. It was quite the sight, seeing tens of thousands of people nearly simultaneously stand up at once.