Ye Qiu returned to his seat, grinning ear to ear.
Spending ten million to snag a peerless divine weapon, his mood could be summed up in one word—
Sweet!
Elder Longmei’s eyes turned red with envy. “Little brat, you should thank me for getting the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow.”
“How so?”
“If I hadn’t dragged you here, you’d still be ogling beauties at Shuimu University.”
“Hm, seems like there’s some truth to that, what do you want?”
Ye Qiu saw through him instantly—the old man was fishing for a reward.
Elder Longmei’s eyes widened. “Little brat, what do you take me for? Am I the type to chase petty gains?”
“Aren’t you?”
“Of course not,” Elder Longmei said with a righteous air. “I only go for big gains.”
Ye Qiu: “…”
“Little brat, this Great Xia Dragon Sparrow’s killing aura is too heavy, keeping it around’s no good. How about I reluctantly take it off your hands?”
“You want this knife?” Ye Qiu asked.
Elder Longmei rubbed his hands, chuckling. “Little brat, you’ve already got the Emperor Sword, this knife’s just extra, why not give it to me?”
“Dream on!”
Ye Qiu rolled his eyes, shutting him down.
“Damn, so stingy,” Elder Longmei grumbled. “I nearly died helping you, and you won’t even spare a knife.”
Ye Qiu countered, “Like you said, its killing aura’s too strong, if you keep it, you’ll just die faster.”
“This poor Daoist’s already on death’s door, early or late makes no difference.”
“If you’re already a dead man walking, what do you need the Dragon Sparrow for?”
“To slaughter pigs!”
Ye Qiu’s mouth twitched.
Elder Longmei added, “Dragon Tiger Mountain’s got plenty of pigs, I’ll take it back to butcher them.”
Like hell I’d believe you.
“Old man, I’ve got plans for this knife, pick something else,” Ye Qiu said.
“Fine, you little punk, too cheap to part with a knife, hmph, what’s so great about it? I’ll tell you, in front of the Celestial Master Sword, your Emperor Sword or Great Xia Dragon Sparrow are nothing but trash.”
“Have you found the Celestial Master Sword yet?”
Elder Longmei’s face flushed from the jab. “Once I get the Celestial Master Token, I’ll find the sword.”
Ye Qiu raised an eyebrow.
Could there be a link between the token and the sword?
Elder Longmei grinned slyly again. “Little brat, since you won’t give me the Dragon Sparrow, how about another condition?”
“Spit it out.”
“Take me to break my fast tonight!”
Ye Qiu’s face darkened instantly.
Just then, the host announced, “Next up, the third auction item, please bring it out.”
The third item was a blue-and-white porcelain vase.
Ye Qiu wasn’t interested and skipped bidding.
Soon, a collector snagged the vase.
Then came the fourth, fifth…
Over a dozen auctions passed, and Ye Qiu sat them all out.
He kept an eye on Zhang, who’d snapped up three items in a row, dropping over twenty million.
“Should I collect some interest?” Ye Qiu’s eyes flickered.
Elder Longmei caught his look. “Little brat, what mischief are you plotting now? I’m telling you, don’t stir up trouble.”
Before Ye Qiu could reply, the host’s voice boomed, “Next, we’re auctioning something quite unique.”
“How unique? I won’t tell you just yet.”
“Here’s a hint, it’s an antiquity, but whether you spot its value depends on your luck.”
The host waved, and staff carried up a wooden box.
Everyone’s eyes widened, eager to see the treasure.
The box opened, revealing a stone brick.
About three feet long, one foot wide, grayish-green, etched with dragon and phoenix patterns.
“I thought it’d be something amazing, it’s just a brick?”
“Looks like a Tang brick.”
“Tang bricks like that aren’t worth much.”
The crowd sighed in disappointment.
The host smiled, “I’m sure you’ve recognized it as a Tang brick, but let me tell you, this one’s special. It’s from a princess’s tomb, with exquisite carvings showcasing the Tang Dynasty’s golden age, a rare gem among bricks…”
“Let’s start the bidding.”
“Base price, one million, increments of at least ten thousand, begin.”
No one bid.
Clearly, no one cared for the Tang brick.
The host’s face grew awkward.
Then—
“Snap!”
Ye Qiu snapped his fingers. “Ten million!”
The room exploded.
“Ten million for a lousy brick, what a spendthrift!”
“I wouldn’t take that Tang brick for free!”
“Maybe there’s more to it.”
“Don’t forget, when this guy bought the Seven Kills Tablet for ten million, we all called him a fool, who’d have thought he’d pull a rare treasure from it?”
“Right, Old Chu said that knife’s worth four or five hundred million, he hit the jackpot.”
“This brick might be special too.”
Offhand remarks, but they landed hard.
Zhang overheard, eyed the brick, and mused, Could it hide a treasure too?
Why else would Ye Qiu bid ten million?
He hesitated, then said, “Ten million ten thousand.”
Cautious, he only added ten thousand.
Unsure if Ye Qiu was bluffing or if the brick held value.
“Twenty million!” Ye Qiu upped the ante.
Zhang’s eyelid twitched, now nearly convinced there was treasure, or Ye Qiu wouldn’t be so determined.
“Thirty million!” Zhang dropped caution.
“Forty million!” Ye Qiu shot back.
“Fifty million!”
In a blink, the brick’s price hit fifty million.
“Sixty million!” Ye Qiu pressed.
“Seventy million!” Zhang countered.
He’d missed the Seven Kills Tablet, he wasn’t losing this.
“Eighty million,” Ye Qiu added another ten.
“Ninety million,” Zhang shouted.
Hiss—
The crowd gasped.
No one expected a brick to skyrocket to ninety million, even the host looked stunned.
Zhang glared at Ye Qiu, taunting, Dare to raise it, I’ll keep going.
But Ye Qiu sighed, “I’m out of money.”
The host jumped in, “Ninety million first call, ninety million second call, ninety million third call.”
Thud!
“Congratulations, Young Master Zhang, you’ve won the Tang brick.”
Zhang couldn’t wait. “I’ll pay now, hurry up.”
Staff rushed over with the contract and card reader, Zhang paid swiftly, then dashed onstage, grabbed the hammer, and smashed the brick in a few swings.
Next second, his face turned livid.
