Fantasy: Immortality Begins with Absorbing Demons

Chapter 276 The Auction

"What, you don't have enough monster meat to sell?" Han Yi asked back.

“This… even if you’re a martial arts master, you can eat your fill and still stuff yourself!” Zheng Xiangui burst into laughter upon hearing this.

"Fine, fine, since you don't want to go, then forget it..." He waved his hand, took out a large pork chop from under the cutting board, and put it in his mouth to chew.

He had initially observed that Yuwen Huaji's aura, movements, footwork, and blood circulation far surpassed those of ordinary martial artists, clearly indicating that he was a promising talent, which is why he decided to recruit him.

Old Zheng is, after all, a martial arts master who has opened up meridians. If the other party is unwilling, then so be it; he won't force them.

After all, he's just a Blood Refining stage expert. In this chaotic world, as long as there's a large supply of demon beast meat, it's like having four-legged toads—you can grab them by the handful...

…....

…....

In the center of the market, in front of a tall, brightly lit pavilion.

"Jiangyue Restaurant..."

By the light of the red lanterns, Han Yi examined the vermilion characters on the plaque.

"This should be it..."

He looked towards the entrance of the restaurant.

At the entrance of the restaurant stood a row of martial artists with swords at their waists, all dressed in gray-white close-fitting clothes, with the character 'Ying' embroidered on their chests; they were all members of the Ying family.

Seeing Han Yi walk towards the gate, one of the Ying family members, dressed as a steward, stepped forward and clasped his hands in greeting: "Are you here to attend the Ying family's auction?" "That's right," Han Yi replied calmly.

"Sir, may I ask if you have an invitation to the auction? If not, you will need to pay an entrance fee of ten taels of silver, which will be refunded after the auction," the steward's son said with a smile.

Han Yi took out ten taels of silver from his pocket and handed it to him.

"Sir, please come in. This is the second-floor lobby. Please find any empty seat." The steward's son bowed and gestured after putting away the silver.

"Okay." Han Yi paused, then asked, "If I want to auction off items, who should I contact?"

An auction, known as a "small auction," is held in the market every quarter. It is a way for Yingjiabao to demonstrate its control over the area and collect resources.

Han Yi's purpose in attending this auction was to sell the martial arts manual of Luan Biao, the "Azure Scale Sword," along with the matching soft sword, to replenish his funds.

He has now bought meat from Fatty Zheng several times, and the gold notes he has on him have been greatly reduced. He only has two gold notes left, which is two thousand taels of silver, enough for him to buy monster meat again.

"There is a manager in charge of all matters related to the auction in the lobby on the second floor. Just look for him."

"Thank you." Han Yi nodded in response and followed the directions to the second floor.

The second floor is a large hall, and in the four corners of the hall are several giant oil lamps with dozens of wicks converging to provide bright light.

"This is far too rudimentary..."

After arriving on the second floor, Han Yi couldn't help but feel speechless.

Although the name "auction" sounds impressive, it actually feels rather rudimentary upon closer inspection.

In the hall on the second floor, there were seventy or eighty chairs arranged horizontally and vertically. Judging from their style, they were probably the chairs that diners used to sit in the restaurant before, except that the tables had been removed and a few more chairs had been added. The auction stage, which was also where the storyteller usually sat, was the only difference that after the tables and chairs were removed, a red carpet was laid on the stage.

At this moment, nearly half of the seventy or eighty chairs in the hall were occupied by people, including martial artists in tight-fitting clothes and young masters in fine clothes.

Of course, most of them wore straw hats and were covered in black robes to hide their figures, making it impossible to tell whether they were men or women.

Meanwhile, on the main platform, a middle-aged man with a robust build and the appearance of a supervisor, wearing a black leather hat, was directing servants and helpers to clean up the area.

Han Yi approached, greeted him, and asked with clasped hands, "Brother, I wonder if your auction house accepts auction items?"

Upon hearing this, the manager looked at Han Yi. Judging from his skills, demeanor, and gait, he seemed to be a martial artist of considerable strength. He politely replied, "Auction items... we naturally accept them, but when auctioning here, we need to take a 5% cut of the auction price. Even if an item doesn't sell, we still need to take a cut... Furthermore, auction items must be of high quality and cannot be too ordinary..."

"How about this?" Han Yi was getting impatient and interrupted, handing over the Azure Scale Sword Technique along with the soft sword.

“This is…” The supervisor did not get angry, but instead flipped through the pages and glanced at the book.

Then, his expression changed slightly: "This is the Azure Scale Sword Technique of Luan Biao, the ruthless man who committed heinous crimes!"

Luan Biao, known as "Azure Scale Sword," is a notorious figure in the Anyan City area. Of course, this reputation is infamous, as he is always on the wanted list. However, due to his ruthlessness, cunning, and the swiftness and cunning of his soft sword, he is able to evade the law.

"Then Luan Biao, is it...?" The supervisor looked up and asked tentatively.

Luan Biao's martial arts skills and weapons all appeared here, so his fate was predictable.

"Then you don't need to worry about it. Whether it can be put on auction or not?" Han Yi said impatiently.

"Yes, yes, absolutely no problem!" After learning that Luan Biao had died at the hands of the man in front of him, the manager became much more respectful. "Sir, the Azure Scale Sword Technique is a top-quality martial art for the Blood Refining stage, and with a matching soft sword, I'll set the starting bid at five hundred taels for you. How about that?"

Five hundred taels, according to Han Yi's purchasing power in his previous life, is roughly equivalent to 500,000 RMB.

This price is considered high for a martial arts manual at the Blood Refining stage. The Ying family is likely willing to pay such a high price because of Luan Biao's reputation and the soft sword that comes with it for training.

"Okay." Han Yi nodded calmly.

"Sir, please have a private room on the second floor!" The manager handed Han Yi a white token marked with a number. "Please use this token to collect your money after the auction."

Then, Han Yi was led by a servant to the private seating area. This private seating area consisted of the front row seats in the hall, with warm yellow cushions on the chairs to keep their bottoms warm. There was a screen separating the chairs, and a small table next to each chair with snacks such as melon seeds, nuts, and hot tea.

Han Yi casually found a private seat on the side, sat down, and waited.

Sipping hot tea and cracking melon seeds, we waited for about 15 minutes before the auction began.

People continued to come up to the second floor, and eventually all the chairs in the lobby were filled, with not a single empty seat.

Soon, the manager led several servants to the stage, clasped his hands in greeting to the crowd in the hall, and said, "I am Ying Xu, and I am hosting this auction. I did not expect that such a small auction, which is held once every three months, would attract so many people. I would like to thank you all for your presence."

He started by being very polite for a long time...

"As for what Supervisor Ying said, everyone knows the prestige of Ying Family Fort. We absolutely must support them at this event!" "Exactly!"

Any martial artist who wanted to take revenge on the powerful family immediately responded.

"Alright, the first item for today's auction is..." Ying Xu stopped being polite, clapped his hands, and a servant came up carrying a copper tray.

A red cloth was placed on the copper plate, and a secret manual was placed on the red cloth.

"Esteemed guests, today's first item for auction is the Thirty-Six Forms of the Lesser Heavenly Cycle Floating Light Sword Technique. It can be cultivated to the Blood Refining stage, and it is said that when it is mastered, the sword moves like floating light, with the effect of fleeting shadows... Starting bid: one hundred and fifty taels of silver!"

Ying Xu began his introduction, praising the sword technique with eloquent and flowery language.

Although this was Han Yi's first time attending such an auction, even if he hadn't eaten pork, he had at least seen pigs run.

He knew that at auctions, regardless of whether it was a large or small lot, the first item to be auctioned, even if it wasn't the best item, was at least of medium to high quality, and was usually a fine piece.

It has to be something really good, something that makes your heart flutter at first glance, but the price can't be set too high. That way, you can stir up the emotions of the buyers in the room and pave the way for the next items to be auctioned.

Selling the first item for a good price is considered a good omen.

A martial arts manual that can be practiced to the Blood Refining stage would cost at least one hundred taels of silver. Martial arts manuals for training weapons are clearly superior to those for fist and foot techniques, so one hundred and fifty taels of silver is indeed not expensive.

Therefore, the people in the hall quickly began to bid one after another.

"One hundred and sixty taels!" a man wearing a fox mask bid.

"Two hundred taels!"

"Two hundred and fifty taels!"

......

In the end, the book of the Thirty-Six Styles of the Lesser Heavenly Cycle Floating Light Sword Technique was bought by an old man wearing a black gold-coin-shaped horse-shaped jacket. It seems that he was probably going to take it home to complete the family's inheritance.

Immediately following up, Ying Xu took advantage of the momentum and brought out several more items for auction, including armor, hidden weapons and poisons, and precious swords.

Perhaps influenced by rumors of a fight, the bidding remained fierce.

But seeing Han Yi yawning repeatedly, it was true that at such a small auction, there was basically nothing that could help a martial artist.

He sat there purely to broaden his horizons and gain some knowledge.

So he started observing his surroundings, since he had nothing better to do anyway.

To his right was the old man who had bought the Thirty-Six Forms of the Lesser Heavenly Cycle Floating Light Sword Technique. Although separated by a screen, he could vaguely see that the old man was beaming and talking to the person next to him. To his left was a thin young man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks, who was very short. He had two black leather pouches tied around his waist, which were bulging and it was unclear what they contained.

The thin young man sat there silently, not buying a single thing. Han Yi had a feeling that he was secretly observing something.

"Next... is a very famous martial arts manual..."

On stage, Ying Xu paused for a moment, keeping everyone in suspense.

Then, he raised his voice: "The Azure Scale Sword Technique, along with the accompanying sword for training, starting bid: five hundred taels of silver!"

"The Azure Scale Sword? Is it that person's Azure Scale Sword?"

As soon as he finished speaking, someone in the audience immediately asked a question.

"Indeed, this is the 'Azure Scale Sword,' Luan Biao's main martial art. Its momentum is like water, rippling and surging, like a dragon within the sword!"

Ying Xu went straight for the moon with his boast. Han Yi was speechless. This Jade Scale Sword was a sword technique that combined poison with the flexible and retractable nature of a soft sword to achieve unexpected and entangled combat. If you said it was like a cunning venomous snake, that would be more like it, but to say it was like a dragon... that was far too misleading.

But after Ying Xu finished speaking, the people in the hall started discussing it like beans exploding.

"'Azure Scale Sword Technique'? Isn't that Luan Biao's famous martial art?"

"I heard that this guy disappeared after massacring all twenty-eight people in Leshou Manor. How did he reappear? Is he short of money and selling secret manuals?"

"Sell my ass! He was definitely ripped off!"

Luan Biao was a relatively well-known martial artist below the rank of martial arts master, though notorious for it.

"Five hundred and twenty taels of silver. This sword technique has a bad reputation. I, Wang, will take it to save everyone from trouble." A person's reputation precedes them. Although everyone cursed him, they were still quite envious of the sword technique that had enabled him to create such a great reputation, and they all opened their pockets to compete for it.

"Get lost! I was here first, five hundred and fifty taels!"

"Six hundred taels!"

…....

The thin, weasel-faced young man to Han Yi's left also lit up with excitement and joy upon hearing the name "Azure Scale Sword" Luan Biao.

"Eight hundred taels!"

At this moment, the old man wearing a gold and silver horse-shaped jacket to Han Yi's right made another move, raising the price by two hundred taels.

The hall fell silent instantly.

The Azure Scale Sword Technique, along with its accompanying soft sword, while somewhat impressive, was only worth around six hundred taels of silver at most. The current price… was simply too high, so no one else bid. Han Yi, upon hearing this price, was overjoyed. More fat sheep, no, more wealthy people!

That eight hundred taels of silver is enough to buy ten catties of meat from Fatty Zheng. If you're frugal and eat sparingly, it can last for three to five days.

He glanced at the old man behind the screen and felt that the gold ingots embroidered on the old man's black mandarin jacket were particularly tempting.

Money may seem unimportant, but it can stump even the bravest heroes!

Judging from this old man's appearance, his strength isn't that great, yet he carries so much gold and silver treasure. If I were to make a move...

No, no!

Han Yi quickly composed himself and shook his head. He wasn't the kind of person who would kill and rob indiscriminately.

If he does this, what difference will there be between him and Luan Biao, the Azure Scale Swordsman who was killed by him?

As the saying goes, if you walk by the river long enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet. If he becomes obsessed with this way of making quick money, sooner or later he will end up like Luan Biao, capsizing in a ditch.

He pondered for a moment, his gaze inadvertently sweeping to his left, only to find that the young man with the pointed mouth and monkey-like face had gotten up and left at some point.

That's normal. The auction is basically halfway through. What's left is just auctioning off some antiques, paintings, and rare treasures. After all, there are quite a few rich young men here who are very interested in these kinds of strange and unusual things.