Dressed in purple, the young man held himself with great aplomb and regality, just a hint of arrogance tinging his expression. At the wave of his hand, twenty-one dragons emerged to circle around him.
They looked like dragon veins, but they were manifestations of immortal crystals at a certain concentration.
Mines of immortal crystals derived from earthen veins. Once crystals reached a level of certain concentration, they would return to their original state or even evolve into dragon veins.
“Since the ninth prince of Primus Major has made a bid of twenty-one trillion crystals, I will step back.” Jiangchen Xie was reluctant to admit defeat, but the Truespirit court couldn’t rival the Primus court by any means.
Fangyang Xing returned to his seat without a word.
“I will bid another twenty-one trillion premium immortal crystals for a second lord-grade fortress ship,” said the Primus prince, waving his hand to conjure another twenty-one dragons.
“Only one lord-grade fortress ship will be sold at this auction,” Lu Yun’s voice traveled out. “If Your Highness needs another one, the Panorama Pavilion will take the order from Primus Major.”
“The ship will be slightly pricier at the auction, of course. After the auction, well…” after a bemused pause, Lu Yun continued, “The ship will be sold for fifteen trillion crystals. I hereby designate the Panorama Pavilion as the sole authorized retailer of lord-grade fortress ships.”
‘Authorized retailer’ wasn’t a phrase used in the world of immortals. Given his origins, Lu Yun found the occasional Earth saying slipping out of his mouth.
“Orders can be placed with the Panorama Pavilion for fifteen trillion crystals each, but a deposit of five trillion must be made at time of reservation. Crystal cannons will be available for a hundred billion crystals each, but there are still a lot of them, so pre-orders won’t be necessary.”
This inventory announcement attracted many heated gazes, while Fangyang Xing, Jiangchen Xie, and some other void-ascended immortals felt a deep sense of dread.
If such things were made mainstream in the world, void-ascended immortals would enjoy no advantages against regular immortals, even without formations of heaven and earth. Fortunately, fortress ships and crystal cannons came with very steep price tags. Smaller factions wouldn’t be able to afford the two, even if they liquidated all of their assets. Otherwise, there would be no more order to be found in the world of immortals.
Still, the prospect of a different future unnerved many. The heavenly courts of the nine majors, ten lands, and four immortal seas, for example, would lose some of their edge once the ships and the cannons became widely distributed.
The Primus prince simply nodded in response to Lu Yun’s statement. If he was displeased in any way, he didn’t show it.
The auction continued amidst great hustle and bustle.
Although many tantalizing treasures were brought to the auction stage, including Principal Nineheavens Talismans that repelled immortal ghosts, most of the guests were dazed and distracted. Their thoughts lingered on the fortress ships and the crystal cannons, and only when the thousand formations of heaven and earth were to be auctioned did the immortals snap back to reality.
……
None of that mattered to Lu Yun anymore. However, Qing Yu was rather worried about him. Hadn’t Lu Yun gone too far this time? Dusk Province was bound to become a common target after the auction.
Worrying her lip between her teeth, Qing Yu finally asked what she’d long wanted to ask, “Am I… worth it?”
Am I worth it?
For the longest time, Qing Yu had lied to Lu Yun and assumed another identity in his presence.
However, he hadn’t grown angry upon finding out the truth. He’d even feigned ignorance out of consideration for her feelings. The issue had now become an internal demon lodged deep in the depths of Qing Yu’s heart.
“What do you think?” Lu Yun smiled as he caressed her long hair. “I chose you. There is no price I wouldn’t pay for you. In life, it’s rare and a very lucky thing to have someone we’re willing to throw all caution to the wind for.” He flashed her a carefree smile.
Seeing her reddened eyes, he quickly changed the topic. “Come on, let’s see how many crystals we’ve earned so far.”
“A hundred and thirty-seven trillion, if we round it up,” Qing Yu quickly responded.
“A hundred and thirty seven trillion…” Lu Yun stroked his chin. “We need a little more. Let’s check how much the markets outside have earned.”
A hundred and thirty-seven trillion was an astronomical number in the world of immortals. No one throughout the current eighty thousand years of history had ever seen that many crystals. It was impressive even by the standards of the Primordial Era.
“What a shame that the Witherdew Court and Witherdew’s dozen peak factions have all been destroyed. Otherwise we’d have gained another few trillion,” Lu Yun sighed. “Not enough, it’s not enough! We must gather two hundred trillion crystals more in order to lure the Ancient Tree of Life to us.”
They still had half a year before Qing Yu’s tribulation struck. Lu Yun had to gather two hundred trillion crystals and use the Key of Life to guide the Tree of Life to her. Otherwise, the only outcome for Qing Yu would be death. She wasn’t even able to sever her own cultivation.
He’d acquired the Skyqilin Pearl during this time. After some negotiations, the Lin Clan had just outright gifted him the treasure without asking for anything in return.
Now, he just needed the Skyturtle Pearl and the Ancient Tree of Life.
The Skyturtle Pearl… was in the Ling Clan’s hands.
Light flickered in Lu Yun’s eyes. Over the past few days, he’d utilized his connections to confirm that the Ling Clan did indeed possess the Skyturtle Pearl, and that the clan knew he needed it.
However, they hadn’t said anything to him in all this time.
“Sir Lu, Miss Qing Yu.” Wanfeng entered the minor world they were in, bringing with her a faint fragrance on the air.
“All thousand formations have been auctioned off, but the prices weren’t very high,” Wanfeng reported unhappily.
In her eyes, the formations were much more valuable than fortress ships and crystal cannons, yet all thousand formations together had earned them less than a trillion crystals. In fact, many had been sold for a low price.
Of course, that had something to do with the low starting bid Lu Yun had set for the formations.
The auction had come to an end, but many remained in the venue to negotiate amongst each other. Even more were waiting to order crystal cannons or to reserve lord-grade fortress ships from the Panorama Pavilion.
“That’s to be expected. By the way, where’s Senior Wayfarer, Wanfeng?” Lu Yun thought about Yu Hengluo, still unconscious in hell.
With the severe injuries she’d suffered, she was only alive because Lu Yun had put her in the resurrection layout. There was nothing else he could do for her; he needed Wayfarer’s help.
“Master set out for the underworld. He said he needed to resolve some unfinished business—” She was interrupted by an explosion that shook the entire venue ever so slightly.
“Kekeke—I hear that the world’s so-called greatest auction is being held here,” sounded a piercing and grating voice. “Who dares call themselves the greatest without the permission of the immortal race?”
Chaos ensued as a group of terrifying figures swarmed into the venue.
“Void-ascended dao immortals?!” someone screamed.
