Everyoneâs mouths went dry. Some had hoped beforehand that Lu Yun would auction off his weapons of warâor crystal cannons, as they were calledâbut no one had expected him to actually do it!
Here they were, ten of them on the auction block!
Apart from the Panorama Pavilion, the other twelve merchant guilds were at a loss as well. In their eyes, many things could be sold, such as cultivation methods and combat arts, but items like weapons of war should be off limits!
Unforeseen consequences would arise when these items freely circulated in the market, but Lu Yun didnât seem to care. Although he wasnât selling the most powerful crystal cannons in his inventory, these specimens still possessed great destructive power. Wasnât he worried at all that the cannons could end up aimed at Dusk Province if they fell into enemy hands?
âŚâŚ
Bids were called all over the venue, quickly pushing the set of ten cannons beyond five hundred billion with no signs of stopping. The heavenly courts were among the most avid participants. They were going to raise the price so high that not even peak factions could hope to pay for it!
Weapons of war were exclusive to the heavenly courts of the twenty-three facets, empowering them to exert dominance over the factions under their rule. They stood to lose the most with the cannons being auctioned off.
When the cannon reached nine hundred billion premium crystals, many immortals from peak factions gave up vying for the set.
âA trillion,â sounded a voice familiar to Lu Yunâs ears. Eyebrow arched, he turned to the floating summit belonging to the Fangyang Nobles. The bidder was Fangyang Xing!
The man had ascended to immortality from the void realm, but hadnât been able to undergo his tribulation while in the celestial master tomb. He represented the mysterious faction known as the Firmament Palace.
He was a stunning genius whoâd sensed the existence of the void realm thirty thousand years ago. Not even a pause had marked his footsteps before he set foot onto the path and ultimately lost his life at the hands of a black long-haired monster. After his death, heâd joined the Firmament Palace and become a yin divine spirit.
Upon his return to the world of immortals, he was much more powerful than when heâd been in the celestial master tomb. The power of heaven and earth in the venue followed his words as he spoke, forming the character zhao for trillion in the air.
âThe Fangyang Nobles sure are wealthy and arenât shy about it,â echoed a chilling voice. âIndeed worthy of a primordial noble clan! Two trillion!â
Bam!
A shockwave shattered the zhao hovering in the air as a man rose to his feet on another floating summit: Jiangchen Xie. Emerging in opposition to Fangyang Xing, he resembled evil incarnate with faint white flames flickering around him.
They were geniuses from the same era. Although there was a generation between them, Jiangchen Xie refused to bow his head before Fangyang Xing.
Back in the underworld, Jiangchen Xie had almost died from a shattered dao heart at Lu Yunâs hand. But under the guidance of the Venerated Sacrosanct Demon Sovereign, he was able to start anew and cultivate the Hadal Bone Method, ascending to immortality from the void realm and becoming one of the greatest geniuses in the world, and a worthy rival of Fangyang Xing.
This doubling of the price put a frown on Fangyang youthâs face, while the other guests sucked in sharp breaths. Itâd taken many rounds of bidding for the crystal cannons to be valued at a trillion crystals, but Jiangchen Xie had oh so casually added another trillion.
âWhy donât you let me have the cannons, senior brother Fangyang?â Jiangchen Xie smiled merrily at Fangyang Xing, his expression dripping with threatening spite.
âThatâll depend on how many crystals you have,â Fangyang Xing said with an impassive face. âThree trillion.â
Jiangchen Xie maintained his smile. âFour trillion.â
âFive.â Fangyang Xing clearly wasnât going to let a junior of his time walk all over him. As a member of the Firmament Palace, immortal crystals were nothing but a meaningless number to him. Yin spirits didnât need them for cultivation.
âSix trillion.â Jiangchen Xie frowned, surprised by Fangyang Xingâs stubbornness.
âSeven,â Fangyang Xing responded with the same deadpan look.
Immortals in the venue held their breath and waited for the clash between two geniuses from thirty thousand years ago to play out. However, no matter who won the bid, Lu Yun would be the greatest winner in the end.
âEight trillion,â Jiangchen Xie declared, a vein bulging on his forehead.
âJunior brother, you may have the cannons, since you like them so much,â Fangyang Xing said with a faint smile.
Jiangchen Xie responded with a grin of his own. âYou have my thanks, senior brother Fangyang.â
With a wave of his hand, he sent a storage treasure with eight trillion crystals to Wanfeng on the center island, seemingly very pleased with himself. In a quiet voice that just so happened to be audible to others, he murmured, âWith these ten precious babies, the Truespirit court will be able to manufacture similar weapons as well.â
He shot Fangyang Xing a gloating smirk.
Fangyang Xing scowled, his brows tightly knit together. It wouldnât be good for the Fangyangs if the Corpse Refiners learned the techniques to refine such crystal cannons as well.
âThe next lot.â Wanfeng suddenly lifted her hand. âAnother set of ten crystal cannons with a minimum price of fifty billion premium crystals.â
Stunned, Jiangchen Xie tasted blood at the back of his throat and demanded in disbelief, âAnother set? Since when did these things become common cabbages sold in the street?â
âWhile there are cabbages in the world of immortals, they will never reach the price of eight trillion premium crystals.â Wanfeng smiled. âThe bidding may begin.â
Jiangchen Xie turned green while Fangyang Xing frowned in bafflement, puzzling over what Lu Yunâs plan was. Anyone else wouldâve kept the cannons under tight lock and key, lest others reverse-engineer the refining techniques, but Lu Yun was putting them up for sale!
And after selling ten, he put another ten on the block!
Fangyang Xingâs thoughts were interrupted by a noisy din of bids. He refrained from participating this time, and the ten cannons ended up going to Lazuli Majorâs Mo Clan for nine hundred billion crystals.
Jiangchen Xieâs heart didnât know whether it should bleed or stop beating altogether. Heâd paid nearly ten times the price!
âNext lot, the third set of ten crystal cannons. The starting price is once again fifty billion crystals.â
Everyone lost their calm. What was Lu Yun thinking?! Werenât crystal cannons Lu Yunâs secret weapons? Was he trying to make them a household staple?!
âŚâŚ
âCanât help it, I need the immortal crystals...â Lu Yun seemed visibly troubled. âItâll take too long for me to go to the Endless Desert to find the Ancient Tree of Life, so my only option is to lure it here.
âImmortal crystals, o immortal crystals. How lovely are thy sparkle.â
etvolare's Thoughts
Yep, took a slight bit of liberty with the last line. Felt that it reflected his origins well.