Chapter 33: Grand and Powerful
Chapter 33: Grand and Powerful
The venue finally quieted down. Laughter and banter aside, everyone was not here to watch a comedy show. Although no one took this large stone seriously or paid it any mind, what if?
People were still quite hopeful that a miracle might appear.
The bigger the business, the more superstitious people tend to be. If this big stone really produced a Spirit Stone today, everyone would feel they were about to have good luck too.
If a top-tier treasure truly appeared, even if they felt envy or possibly jealousy, more than anything, it was a strange excitement.
The old man looked toward Ling Yi’s direction and smiled. “Young man, would you like to come on stage and experience it yourself?”
Ling Yi stood up smiling and nodded. “In that case, I won’t refuse your kind offer.”
Qin Jiuyue was stunned, thinking to herself, “You’re really going up there?”
This thing was definitely just a worthless rock!
“Ling Yi, items that have passed through the hands of so many famous experts and masters almost never yield anything. Don’t think those master titles were just picked up off the ground,” she couldn’t help but whisper a reminder.
“Don’t worry, I have good luck,” Ling Yi said, straightening his clothes as he walked toward the stage.
The old man wasn’t surprised. As an auctioneer, he liked this kind of interaction.
Because only when the atmosphere truly warmed up and everyone got excited would the following auctions go more smoothly.
Based on his years of experience, a heated-up venue could even see final bids about ten percent higher than usual!
So, the later auction items were the main event today!
If a worthless rock brought back along the way could serve as a warm-up, then its mission was accomplished.
Even if a Spirit Stone really appeared inside, that would be the buyer’s luck!
After Ling Yi went on stage, he looked at the cutting tools and communicated with the Enchantress in his mind. “Where do I cut?”
The Enchantress said, “Cut it straight through the middle!”
Whoa, that simple and brutal?
“Won’t it damage it?” Ling Yi asked.
“Do you want to slowly grind it into shape? Aren’t you afraid people will think you’re a monster?” the Enchantress mocked, then added, “Don’t worry, cut it through the middle. The Spirit Stone is on one side.”
A professional cutting master on stage looked at Ling Yi with a smile. “Young man, you say where to cut, and I’ll do it.”
Ling Yi nodded. “Master, thank you for your hard work. Cut it straight through the middle.”
The master: “…”
He looked at Ling Yi with a puzzled expression. If it was this simple and brutal, he didn’t even need to be on stage; any apprentice could do it.
The old man was also speechless, looking at Ling Yi. “Young man, you’ve probably never cut a Spirit Stone raw ore before, have you? This kind of thing requires opening a window first…”
Ling Yi glanced at him. “Does this stone need a window?”
Laughter came from below.
Ling Yi said, “Everyone’s time is precious. Let’s not waste any more. Listen to me, cut it through the middle. If there is one, consider me lucky. If not… we’ll move on to the next item.”
The old man gave a thumbs-up. “Young man, you know how to get things done!”
He then signaled the master to start cutting.
The master was somewhat unwilling. This simple, brutal task couldn’t showcase his superb cutting skills at all.
But there was no help for it; this was his job. He picked up the cutting tool, turned it on, and loudly addressed the audience below. “Please cover your ears!”
After saying that, he didn’t care whether people covered their ears or not and went straight to work!
Cutting it straight through the middle, what skill was needed anyway?
Just do it!
The cutting machine had its own dust prevention system, but a large amount of stone dust still sprayed out.
The old man casually waved a hand, and an invisible Domain Field immediately blocked all the flying debris.
Fourth-grade Golden Body!
Effortlessly forming barriers!
Ling Yi was momentarily stunned, only then realizing the old man was not simple.
People below also covered their ears. The noise was definitely way more intense than renovation racket.
Extremely stimulating.
Cutting such a large stone completely wasn’t actually easy.
But the master was awesome!
In less than five minutes, the big stone was cut straight through the middle.
Then, the same burly men from before came on stage and separated the two cut halves, the cut surfaces facing the audience.
The mottled granite patterns appeared before everyone’s eyes.
Ling Yi pouted. “So it’s a bust? Wasted my one coin…”
The plump woman burst into loud laughter below.
The old man standing beside Ling Yi, however, frowned. With a serious expression, he walked over to one half of the stone, reached out, and pressed his hand against it. Then he turned back, looking at Ling Yi with a very strange expression.
His face looked odd, and his gaze at Ling Yi was extremely complex, full of confusion and bewilderment.
The plump woman shouted, “Old Lin, that’s enough! Stop acting. I’m still waiting for this little brother to call me ‘elder sister’ and apologize!”
Others joined in the teasing.
“Alright, Old Lin, stop the act. If you ever try the film industry, the Best Actor award would definitely be yours!”
“Move on to the next item!”
Old Lin took a deep breath, ignoring the jeers from the crowd below. He looked at the equally clueless cutting master and said gravely, “Come, make a vertical cut here.”
Cut again?
The cutting master and the audience below were equally speechless.
He thought, “Old Lin, even though you’re the chief, you can’t mess with people like this, right?”
“Treating me like a fool?”
But considering the consequences of offending Old Lin, the cutting master obediently followed the instruction and started cutting again.
This time, as soon as he cut halfway, a powerful surge of spiritual energy… rushed out from the cut crevice!
The entire auction hall fell dead silent!
Qin Jiuyue sat in her seat, staring blankly at the calm young man on stage.
It… really came out?
The plump woman’s mouth twitched, her eyes filled with disbelief.
No one could believe that such a worthless stone, which had passed through the hands of famous masters, actually yielded a Spirit Stone!
In terms of cultivation level, most people present weren’t very high.
But when it came to experience, each one was quite rich!
The spiritual energy bursting from the cut in the large stone allowed them to judge almost instantly—
What was encased inside… was a top-grade Spirit Stone!
How large it was… remained hard to say, but it was definitely invaluable!
Only then did people finally snap back to reality, realizing what they had missed.
Looking at the young man standing on the stage again, countless people felt a sour taste in their hearts.
Darn it, what kind of luck was this?
The cutting master finally got excited and showed his most professional side.
Without needing Old Lin, the little old man, to continue giving instructions, the moment the Spirit Stone was truly revealed, he began to carefully polish it bit by bit.
Throughout the whole process, no one urged him.
Time was indeed precious, but if they could personally witness a huge Supreme Spirit Stone being extracted, wasting some time was worth it.
For the next steps, Ling Yi only needed to watch.
The cutting master was even more careful and cautious than him, polishing gradually, then cutting, then polishing again.
About half an hour later, an entire Supreme Spirit Stone was finally completely cut out.
Seeing that football-sized, crystal clear Supreme Spirit Stone radiating with dense Spiritual Energy, everyone was shocked.
The entire scene was dead silent!
Old Lin stood on the stage, saying nothing for a long time.
After a while, he finally turned on the microphone, first looking at Ling Yi: “Young man, congratulations, you’ve struck it rich!”
Ling Yi had a bit of confusion in his eyes and murmured, “It really came out… it really came out…”
His reaction made many people below feel jealous while also feeling deep helplessness and envy.
What kind of fate was this?
One coin, buying a broken stone, actually cutting out a football-sized Supreme Spirit Stone!
Among the people present, many big bosses who specialized in the Spirit Stone business had never seen such a large Supreme Spirit Stone!
Old Lin turned back and looked at the crowd below, saying with emotion: “At this moment, I think no words are necessary. I can only say this young man’s luck is too good! Simply unbeatable! In my forty years of hosting auctions, including today’s… I’ve only seen a Supreme Spirit Stone this big five times in total.”
“Among them, the previous four, each Supreme Spirit Stone of this size, auctioned for over five billion…”
The crowd below erupted in uproar again.
Spirit Stones and Supreme Spirit Stones were not on the same level.
The Spiritual Energy contained within them was also not on the same plane.
At this point, someone below couldn’t wait and asked, “Will you sell it for five billion? I’ll buy it!”
Immediately, someone else chimed in, laughing: “What a joke. Brother Lin said five billion, but that’s probably the price from ten years ago, right? Now, wanting to buy such a large Supreme Spirit Stone for five billion? Are you kidding? I bid seven billion!”
“If this young man is willing to sell, I’m willing to pay ten billion!”
Ling Yi was completely stunned.
Ten billion?
What did that mean?
One third-tier Crimson Wolf Crystal Core he had, with high purity, was worth about one million on the market.
Meeting a generous and wealthy buyer, at most, it might sell for around 1.2 to 1.3 million.
This football-sized Supreme Spirit Stone in front of him was actually worth ten thousand third-tier Crimson Wolf Crystal Cores?
Wasn’t that just too exaggerated?
Ling Yi wasn’t unaware that top-tier cultivation resources were expensive. Third-tier Crimson Wolf Crystal Cores could at most be used by Golden Body martial artists. Once reaching the fifth-tier Dao Enlightenment stage, using third-tier Demon Beast Crystal Cores would hardly have much significance.
It was like a drop in the bucket; even a hundred wouldn’t increase Spiritual Energy much.
But Spirit Stones were different, especially Supreme Spirit Stones. For high-level cultivators, they were simply essential.
Such a huge Supreme Spirit Stone, in the hands of a fifth-tier Daoist, was practically a sacred treasure for cultivation!
After calming down, Ling Yi then thought of another problem: this thing… was too hot to handle!
Not to mention what the Fantasy Treasures Auction House, which sold it for just one coin, might think, today’s matter definitely couldn’t be kept secret. Once it spread, countless people would surely set their sights on him!
He couldn’t help but ask the Enchantress in his mind: “This is a bit too big. What do you think I should do?”
“Sell it,” the Enchantress said without hesitation. “You can’t keep it.”
Ling Yi felt relieved.
Then the next problem he faced was: to whom should he sell it? And how?
If this thing was only worth a few hundred million, or even over a billion, he would have directly given a discount to President Qin.
After all, without Qin Jiuyue, he wouldn’t even have been able to enter this auction hall.
But something worth over ten billion was one thing—could President Qin even afford it? And if he sold it directly to her like this, it would probably draw a lot of hidden resentment towards Qin Jiuyue.
Ling Yi glanced in Qin Jiuyue’s direction and indeed saw her gently shake her head.
Even that Sister Zhao sat quietly there without making another sound.
Ling Yi looked at the little old man beside him and said with sincere earnestness, “Brother Lin, what do you think about this?”
The little old man was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, “Go ahead.”
Ling Yi said, “I’m so lucky!”
Laughter came from below. Although many people were extremely envious and jealous, they could only laugh at this moment.
This was someone else’s fortune; there really wasn’t much to say.
“For a while now, I’ve been having nothing but bad luck. I never expected to be so lucky today. And for this luck, I first want to thank President Qin, who brought me here, and also thank Sister Zhao!”
As Ling Yi spoke, he stood on the stage and bowed to the crowd below.
Qin Jiuyue and Sister Zhao both froze slightly, then smiles appeared on their faces.
“But I think the ones I should thank the most are the Fantasy Treasures Auction House!”
Ling Yi said with a serious expression: “Something auctioned for one coin is worth ten billion, but from your eyes, I only see congratulations for me, with not much regret or greed.”
The little old man laughed heartily: “Don’t put me on a pedestal; let me tell you, I regret it so much, my guts are green with regret, you know? Over ten billion, young man! If it were mine, I could retire right on the spot!”
The crowd below couldn’t help but laugh.
Ling Yi laughed too, then continued: “Since my luck came from the Fantasy Treasures Auction House, I think the best outcome is to hand it over to the Fantasy Treasures Auction House for auction.”
The little old man looked at Ling Yi, his eyes showing more appreciation, but he reminded: “Young man, this Supreme Spirit Stone is now your private property. If you have any worries, there’s no need. The Fantasy Treasures Auction House has stood in the auction world for so many years, and everyone shows such respect and support because we rely on two words: credibility.”
“If you call out a price on-site, no matter who buys it, it has nothing to do with Fantasy Treasures. But if you want Fantasy Treasures to sell it for you, there’s a ten percent commission fee. Are you sure you want to place it with Fantasy Treasures for auction?”
Ling Yi nodded: “I’m sure.”
The little old man smiled and gently nodded: “At such a young age, to have such courage. If someone like you doesn’t have a boundless future, then Heaven is blind! Alright, on behalf of the Fantasy Treasures Auction House, I thank you. From now on, you are Fantasy Treasures’ most esteemed client!”
“Also, I have one more request,” Ling Yi looked at the little old man.
The little old man nodded: “Go ahead.”
“There are many children in our Great Qin with great talent but average conditions, who can’t afford cultivation resources. So I want to entrust the Fantasy Treasures Auction House to establish a foundation, managed by Fantasy Treasures Auction House.”
“I personally will contribute one billion to this foundation. It will be used to encourage those talented children who can’t afford to cultivate.”
“Also, from the auction proceeds, I will take out five billion…”
Ling Yi looked at the little old man and said seriously: “To donate to the Military Headquarters for purchasing cultivation resources for the military.”
“Our Great Qin’s military has it too hard. They often have to organize themselves to hunt Demon Beasts to obtain cultivation resources. Those soldiers who protect our home and country should spend more time on cultivation.”
“The stronger they become, the safer we will be.”
“Besides these, the rest I’ll keep for myself…”
Ling Yi said, smiling a bit sheepishly: “After all, I’m quite poor too; I need to improve my life a bit…”
No one laughed at his last sentence. Everyone looked at the young man on the stage with stunned expressions.
The entire auction venue was deadly silent!
The next moment, the plump Sister Zhao stretched out her two Doraemon-like hands and started clapping vigorously—
“My dear brother, you’re awesome!”
Whoosh!
The entire venue instantly erupted with incredibly warm applause.
Besides “awesome,” they couldn’t think of another word to describe the young, handsome man on the stage.
They were merchants; they also sought profit; they all had various flaws. But none of this stopped them from deeply loving their motherland, just like Ling Yi!
Ling Yi did something they completely couldn’t do, so he deserved this long-lasting, enthusiastic applause.
What was wrong with the auction venue?
Couldn’t one love their country at an auction?
Who made that rule?
As the applause stopped, Sister Zhao stood up, shouting loudly in her booming voice: “I’m not as generous as my dear brother. For the foundation, I’ll contribute fifty million. My brother is right; geniuses shouldn’t be buried. Training talent for Great Qin is accumulating merit for ourselves! For the Military Headquarters, I’ll give another fifty million! We do business with the Military Headquarters; it’s all about volume anyway. The stronger Great Qin’s military power, the more secure we feel!”
“I’ll give ten million for the foundation, twenty million for the Military Headquarters!”
“I’ll give for the foundation…”
“I’ll give for the Military Headquarters…”
Old Lin stood on the stage, both moved and speechless. Bosses, this is a serious, high-end, classy… auction where you’re supposed to fight tooth and nail, not a donation rally!
He couldn’t help but glance at Ling Yi beside him. Darn it, kid, you’re stealing the show way too much!
But Old Lin understood even more clearly that after this incident spread, the Fantasy Treasures Auction House would instantly surpass all other auction houses and become the most awesome one in Great Qin!
Without exception!
Even if this made those big shots from the Academic Faction unhappy… forget it, whatever. We have backing too!
Who cares!
If you’re not convinced, let’s clash and see who hurts more.