Chapter 461 - 442: Those Are the Items Eldest Senior Brother Donated
The underground auction house.
Gilded pillars stood as the very height of luxury.
All around, robed buyers from every walk of life filled the seats. They wore all sorts of masks, giving them an air of mystery.
The staff had been skeptical at first, but that changed during the official asset verification when they saw the silver notes Lin Qingfeng was holding.
Only then did they respectfully lead the pair to the plush VIP seats in the front row.
Lin Qingfeng glanced down at the panel in the corner of his vision.
[Current Identity: Young Master of the Lin Mansion]
[Current Scene: Underground Auction]
[Asset Verification: Passed.]
[Lin Mansion Liquid Capital: 300,000 taels of silver]
’Three hundred thousand taels?’
Lin Qingfeng’s mouth twitched.
’These game developers are truly inhuman!’
’I have so many Spirit Stones, and all I get here is 300,000 taels of silver? Is this some kind of handout for a beggar?’
Su Ling’er was still immobilized by an invisible force, standing rigidly behind Lin Qingfeng.
Although her body couldn’t move, her eyes darted around frantically, sizing up her surroundings.
’This place... The aura here is so sinister. Just what I’d expect from a demonic sect’s trial!’
’These masked people are definitely no saints.’
’Is this the legendary underground black market?’
Su Ling’er was instantly on high alert.
’What could they possibly be selling in a den of vice like this, especially one set up as a trial by a demonic sect?’
’It’s probably either freshly flayed human skin, placentas cut straight from the womb, or perhaps exotic slave girls, bred and broken for sale!’
’So evil! So depraved!’
’Senior Brother must have brought me here to witness the world’s evils for myself, to make me understand how the corruption of the demonic path has seeped into the very marrow of society!’
DONG—!
The sound of a bronze gong echoed through the hall. The auctioneer was a skinny old man with a goatee. He stood on the high platform, beaming as he looked down at the guests.
"Esteemed guests, today’s first auction item is the ’Nightlight Glazed Cup,’ a tribute from the Western Regions! Shimmering with iridescent light, the starting bid is five hundred taels!"
Lin Qingfeng glanced at the so-called glazed cup. The craftsmanship looked decent, and it would indeed be a rarity in an ancient setting.
A system notification popped up at the right moment:
[Notice: Mundane items purchased within this instance have a chance to materialize in the user’s Sect Abode upon completion. (Applies to mundane items only.)]
Seeing this line of text, it all clicked for Lin Qingfeng.
’Anyway, I’m just spending a string of virtual data called "Lin Mansion." Isn’t this just a part of the game designed to give players the thrill of shopping? It’s free money, so I’d be a fool not to spend it. Anything I can take out of here is pure profit! Buy, buy, buy! I’m going on a spree first and will worry about everything else later!’
[Auction Item: Nightlight Glazed Cup]
[Acquire this item?]
[Yes/No]
Lin Qingfeng chose [Yes] without hesitation!
[Enter your bid]
At that moment, sporadic bids rang out from the regular seats in the back.
"Six hundred taels!"
"Eight hundred taels!"
"One thousand taels!"
The few masked figures in the front VIP seats just watched coldly, seemingly uninterested in such mundane trinkets. They were all conserving their energy for the main event later.
Lin Qingfeng raised his paddle, his voice flat. "Five thousand taels."
The boisterous hall instantly fell silent.
A few buyers in the back who had been bidding enthusiastically seemed as if they had been grabbed by the throat, their mouths hanging open.
’Five thousand taels? For a cup?’
’He’s crazy! That’s not how you bid at an auction! Can’t you follow the rules?!’
"Five thousand taels once! Five thousand taels twice! Sold!" The auctioneer’s smile was so wide it made his wrinkles bloom, and he slammed his gavel down.
Next, Lin Qingfeng officially entered shopping spree mode.
"East Sea Red Coral? Buy!"
"A pipa from a famous courtesan of a previous dynasty? Buy!"
"An unknown beast bone? Looks pretty unique. Buy!"
As soon as the auctioneer’s voice fell, Lin Qingfeng’s paddle would shoot up, and his bid would crush the entire room, leaving no chance for anyone else to compete.
"Ten thousand taels!"
"Twenty thousand taels!"
"Don’t bother bidding, I’ll take it. Thirty thousand taels!"
The atmosphere in the room gradually grew strange.
The buyers in the regular seats in the back had moved past their initial shock, and whispers began to break out among them.
"Where did this spendthrift come from? Is he just throwing away money like it’s paper?"
"Shh, look at his seat. It’s the VIP section. Probably some greenhorn from a rich family out to gain experience."
"He must be new, right? He’s blowing all his money on this stuff. I heard the three finale items are real Immortal relics. What’s he going to compete with then?"
Even the few big shots in the VIP section were giving him sidelong glances, their eyes showing confusion from behind their masks.
’Does he really not plan to compete with them for the later items? Or is he so wealthy that he just doesn’t care about this amount of money?’
As Su Ling’er watched her Senior Brother frantically bidding on this pile of junk, a different kind of storm was brewing in her heart.
’Senior Brother... he’s still the same as ever.’
’He always likes to buy strange, even useless things, just for the fun of it.’
’It was just like that time he spent tens of thousands of Spirit Stones just to hire the Sect Leader of the Apple Sect to record a bizarre blessing video for me, our little junior brother, and the others.’
’Back then, I didn’t understand. I just thought his actions were absurd.’
’But now, I see that this might be the very essence of his cultivation realm!’
’He treats money like dirt, for wealth squandered can always be regained!’
’By spending money like water in this demonic illusion, buying these mundane things that are worthless in others’ eyes, isn’t he silently mocking this greedy world of fame and fortune?’
’Look at those people, their faces red and necks thick with envy over so-called treasures.’
’Only Senior Brother remains as calm as a light cloud and a gentle breeze, doing as he pleases.’
’This is true freedom, true ease!’
’And...’
Su Ling’er’s eyes grew moist as she gazed at Lin Qingfeng’s tall, straight back.
’Senior Brother clearly has such immense wealth and could live a carefree life. Yet, he chose this most difficult path... the path of infiltrating a demonic sect, of feeding the demon with his very own flesh.’
’Is this the legendary "When successful, one should benefit all under heaven"?’
’Even in this false illusion, even if he can only buy useless, inanimate objects, Senior Brother is still using this method to tell me: Don’t be blinded by worldly things, and don’t let greed corrupt your heart.’
Just as Lin Qingfeng was getting into the swing of his shopping spree and Su Ling’er was getting moved by her own wild assumptions, the atmosphere at the auction stage suddenly shifted.
Two burly men carefully carried a tray onto the stage. The red cloth was whisked away, revealing a fist-sized stone.
𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺
"Everyone!" The auctioneer’s voice suddenly jumped an octave. "This is an ’Energy-Storing Memory Stone’! It is rumored to be an ancient Immortal relic, containing a world within itself! It can record sound, color, light, and shadow—a priceless treasure! The starting bid is fifty thousand taels!"
The entire hall erupted in an uproar.
The previously listless buyers instantly grew agitated, and even a few mysterious figures who had been resting with their eyes closed in the corners sat up straight.
Anything associated with the word "Immortal" was a heaven-sent opportunity!
’Lin Qingfeng, however, couldn’t give a damn. A Memory Stone was nothing rare, and besides, it wasn’t a "mundane item," so he couldn’t take it with him anyway.’
’But hey, if I’m gonna buy, I’m gonna BUY. Who cares if I can take it with me or not? Gotta get that shopping high first!’
’That being the case, I have to have it!’
[Acquire this item?]
[Yes/No]
[Enter your bid]
"Sixty thousand taels!" Lin Qingfeng confidently raised his paddle.
"Seventy thousand taels!" Someone in the corner immediately followed.
"Eighty thousand!" Lin Qingfeng didn’t even blink.
"One hundred thousand!"
"One hundred twenty thousand!"
The price skyrocketed, quickly breaking the two hundred and twenty thousand mark.
Lin Qingfeng was about to raise his paddle and call out another bid, but his hand froze in mid-air.
The balance displayed in his vision read: [Insufficient Funds for Next Bid].
Lin Qingfeng: "..."
’I had way too much fun buying all that junk—the coral, the pipa, the beast bone... It all just adds up! Damn it, how can money disappear so fast?! I want to file a complaint! I haven’t bought enough yet!’
"Two hundred and twenty thousand taels! Anyone going higher?" the auctioneer asked, excitedly brandishing his gavel, his gaze fixed eagerly on Lin Qingfeng.
Lin Qingfeng tried to find the damn top-up portal.
’Where’s the cash shop?’
’Where’s the first-purchase bonus pack?’
’I’d even take a "watch an ad for silver taels" option!’
But the interface remained unresponsive.
"Two hundred and twenty thousand taels, third time! Sold!"
The gavel fell.
The Memory Stone was claimed by a black-robed figure.
Lin Qingfeng slumped limply into his chair. Perhaps for this reason, the character he was playing in the trial also felt a dull ache in his chest.
’This damn cinematic game! Why didn’t they design a proper top-up channel?! How is a whale like me supposed to whale? How am I supposed to get my kicks and just dominate everyone?!’
’Damn it! God damn it all!’
Before Lin Qingfeng could recover, the auction had reached its end.
"And now, for tonight’s grand finale treasures!"
The auctioneer waved his hand mysteriously, and three trays covered with red velvet cloths were brought out.
As the cloths were whipped away, three items glittered brilliantly under the lights.
A magical sword, gleaming with a cold light.
A jade die, warm and lustrously translucent.
A yellowed ancient scroll painting.
Lin Qingfeng’s pupils contracted sharply.
These three items—he’d recognize them even if they were turned to ash!
They were precisely the three most valuable treasures among the ten he had chosen to donate to Nabo Garden a few years ago through that "donation option"!
The sword was just for show, something he’d bought casually. The die was a Magical Artifact he’d won as a souvenir from an opponent in a gambling den. And the painting was none other than "Autumn in the North," a piece he’d commissioned from Qian Buyu!
’The system had valued it at at least two hundred Spirit Stones!’
They were supposed to be in a display case at Nabo Garden for all to admire, but here they were, appearing brazenly at this underground auction!
’This is outrageous! Didn’t they even bother to disguise them? Damn it all!’
The auctioneer, his face flushed, pointed at the painting, spittle flying from his mouth. "Everyone, look! This is an authentic work by the previous dynasty’s Sage of Painting, Qiu Ying, titled ’Autumn in the North’! Legend says it came from the collection of a certain fallen noble family, with a clear line of provenance, making it incomparably precious! There are even rumors that this painting was created by an Immortal’s own hand and contains a treasure map he left behind. To obtain it is to glimpse the path to eternal life!"
"Starting bid, eighty thousand taels!"
BOOM!
The entire hall instantly exploded with noise.
The two words "Immortal’s Relic" were enough to drive everyone present into a frenzy.
And behind Lin Qingfeng, Su Ling’er felt a rush of hot blood to her head. Though her body couldn’t move, she could feel her greatsword was already thirsting for battle!
’That’s... Isn’t that the stuff Senior Brother donated to Nabo Garden?!’
’Why is it here?!’