Chapter 29: Virtual Jade Stones

In front of the auction hall, there was a long and wide platform with only one red auction table on it. At that moment, an auctioneer came out from a side room. He had a round face and a cheerful smile. He walked behind the auction table and glanced around the room with a smile.
The room was silent.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I am the auctioneer for this event, Xiao Tianchang. This auction will last for a year. I’ll be with you the whole time, hoping everyone can find something they like,” the auctioneer said calmly.
The room remained silent, but the gazes directed at Xiao Tianchang made it clear: cut the nonsense and start the auction.
Xiao Tianchang was an experienced auctioneer; otherwise, he wouldn’t be in charge of the auction hall on the 71st floor. Seeing the eager looks of the cultivators, he knew they didn’t appreciate pleasantries, so he stopped talking.
“Ladies and gentlemen, let’s begin the auction now. The first item is Heart Treasure Sand—ten cubic meters in total. The starting bid is 100 billion divine crystals,” Xiao Tianchang said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, Qu Yi showed a hint of surprise. If the starting bid for the first item was already 100 billion divine crystals, the items to come must be extremely expensive.
Currently, Qu Yi had just over 100 billion divine crystals on his identity card, which he had obtained after acquiring 100 divine artifacts at Huiyou Auction House a year ago. Naturally, he was anxious about the upcoming auction.
“This can’t go on. The amount of divine crystals in my card is probably not even enough to cover the starting bid,” Qu Yi thought to himself while quickly figuring out a solution.
“Qu Yi, leave your seat now and discuss it with Huiyou Auction House. You can use your divine artifacts as collateral,” the Artifact God replied calmly.
Qu Yi thought it made sense and stopped paying attention to the auction in the hall, leaving his seat right away.
It wasn’t long before Qu Yi returned to his seat, smiling as he watched Xiao Tianchang conduct the auction, calmly observing everything that was happening.
“120 billion divine crystals!” a man from a regular seat shouted.
The first item, Heart Treasure Sand, was already selling very well.
“Just 120 billion divine crystals? How dare they set such a low bid. 150 billion divine crystals!” a burly man from a regular seat called out next.
“160 billion divine crystals.”
“180 billion divine crystals.”
……

The competition has indeed become quite fierce. Although Baoxin Sand can be used to craft divine artifacts at the Divine General level, its value has far exceeded its original worth.
“Three hundred billion divine crystals.” Suddenly, as cultivators in the regular seating areas competed fiercely, a voice rang out from Gongye Bo’s VIP box number one.
Instantly, the entire auction hall fell dead silent.
Now that Gongye Bo’s people had made an offer, the other cultivators naturally had other thoughts. They knew that bidding any higher would mean confronting Gongye Bo, who would suppress them directly.
There are only eight imperial families in the eight divine realms of the Divine World, and Gongye Bo was born into the Gongye family of the Zedui Divine Realm. Confronting Gongye Bo meant confronting the entire Gongye family. Which cultivator in the Divine World would dare to challenge them alone? Ordinary cultivators surely understood that the only outcome of such a confrontation would be death.
For a long time, no one responded.
Xiaotianchang knew that no one would bid any more if they waited any longer. Moreover, the current price of Baoxin Sand had already far exceeded the starting price and was highly valuable, so there was no need to further stimulate the other cultivators.
“Baoxin Sand, three hundred billion divine crystals—sold. Congratulations to the customer in VIP box number one for winning Baoxin Sand.” Xiaotianchang cleared his throat and announced, then cheerfully added, “Next, let’s move on to our second item: the Vital Essence Vial. This is a divine artifact at the Divine Weapon level. It can automatically absorb the primal energies of the five elements and condense the vital essence needed by cultivators. The strength of this vital essence is sufficient to summon eight million fused spiritual bodies.”
The maximum number of spiritual bodies a cultivator at the Divine Weapon level can have is one million. Since this Vital Essence Vial can summon eight million spiritual bodies, it truly qualifies as an elite divine artifact.
Upon hearing Xiaotianchang’s words, the more than ten thousand bidders all showed great interest in the Vital Essence Vial.
“The starting price for the Vital Essence Vial is one billion divine crystals,” Xiaotianchang announced at just the right moment, further spurring on those who wanted to acquire it.
Most divine artifacts at the Divine Weapon level cost within one billion divine crystals, but due to the unique effects of this Vital Essence Vial, its starting price was set at one billion.
As expected, things unfolded exactly as Xiaotianchang had predicted.
“Twenty billion divine crystals.”
“I’ll add another ten billion—thirty billion divine crystals.”
“Two paupers! I’ll take it for fifty billion divine crystals.”
……

An auction frenzy immediately swept through the entire auction house. Compared to Baoxinsha’s starting bid of 100 billion, the price of this Zhenyuan Bottle was indeed too low, prompting many people to bid without hesitation.
Qu Yi, of course, had no interest, but he smiled inwardly: “It seems this auction house doesn’t only auction valuable items. Putting this Zhenyuan Bottle up for auction is just to liven up the atmosphere.”
Just as the auction house became noisy, a voice came from VIP Box No. 3: “50 billion divine crystals.”
In an instant, the entire auction house fell silent again.
It was someone from another VIP box who bid next. Those who could enter VIP boxes clearly had powerful backing—forces that even ordinary cultivators couldn’t match.
Undoubtedly, upon hearing the voice from VIP Box No. 3, no one else dared to bid.
“100 billion divine crystals,” suddenly, another voice came from VIP Box No. 1.
Gasps of shock filled the auction house as bidders felt a chill. Gongye Bo in VIP Box No. 1 was far too domineering—did he intend to buy all these auction items by himself?
The eight great royal families of the Divine Realm were all immensely wealthy, with no force in the Divine Realm capable of matching their riches. Now, Gongye Bo was spending divine crystals like water, flaunting his wealth and status.
All bidders understood Gongye Bo’s intentions, but none dared to challenge him. They knew that the slightest misstep could earn him their hatred, bringing them close to death.
Xiaotianchang never expected Gongye Bo to use such a tactic, but it turned out to be advantageous for him, as Gongye Bo’s bid far exceeded his expectations. Xiaotianchang was overjoyed.
“The second auction item, the Zhenyuan Bottle, has been purchased by VIP Box No. 1 for 100 billion divine crystals. Once again, congratulations to the customer in VIP Box No. 1 for acquiring another treasure. May we witness their brilliance in future auctions,” Xiaotianchang announced cheerfully, his joy almost showing on his face.
All bidders watched Xiaotianchang calmly, but inwardly, they were thinking of leaving. With the situation like this, there was no point in bidding—they might as well leave.

Xiao Tianchang, being an experienced person, keenly noticed the expressions of the cultivators and immediately shouted, “Ladies and gentlemen, the third item is the Virtual Jade Stone. This miraculous stone can turn into stone one moment and white jade the next. Its greatest advantage lies in its virtual capability—any cultivator who has mastered a new spell and doesn’t want others to know can use this Virtual Jade Stone to simulate their spell and test its power.”

Wow!

A wave of astonishment filled the air.

Many of those attending the auction knew little about the Virtual Jade Stone; they had come for other items. Hearing its functions from Xiao Tianchang’s mouth, many cultivators quickly changed their minds and wanted to bid for it.

It was difficult to grasp a set of laws, and it was equally hard to master a new spell. No cultivator wanted their newly learned spells to be seen by others, as they could serve as their trump cards. Thus, having this Virtual Jade Stone was extremely useful.

Seeing that all bidders had sat down, Xiao Tianchang was delighted and immediately declared, “Starting bid for the Virtual Jade Stone: 100 billion divine crystals.”

Sure enough, when Qu Yi heard Xiao Tianchang’s bid, he sneered inwardly—this price was exactly what he had expected. Fortunately, Qu Yi had prepared in advance; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to bid for it this time.

“110 billion divine crystals,” suddenly, a voice came from the VIP box number one as soon as Xiao Tianchang finished speaking.

All the bidders who wanted to speak quickly retracted their voices, awkwardly shook their heads, and then kept their mouths shut.

Gongye Bo in VIP box number one seemed to have set his sights on the Virtual Jade Stone this time; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been the first to bid. If it weren’t for his interest in this item, his purpose in bidding was merely to show off his status.

All the bidders fell silent, feeling frustrated.

Meanwhile, Gongye Bo in the VIP box remained calm, took a sip of tea, and then said with a faint smile, “These fools—who among them knows the true use of the Virtual Jade Stone? Master Sun Gongxia once told me that it can be used to set up a formation, allowing us to mass-produce divine artifacts at the Divine Human level without worrying about formation construction. If not for Master Sun Gongxia’s instructions, who would force me to waste time here at this auction house?”

Sun Gongxia was a master blacksmith from the Gouye family. Just like the God of Tools, he also came up with a formation similar to a “holographic simulation array,” aiming to use it to directly form a structure around the tool embryo.
“Young master, how could these inferior cultivators compare to the Gouye family?” an old man beside him said with a faint smile.
Gouye Bo laughed heartily, his eyes filled with mockery, clearly looking down on those onlookers.
Just as Gouye Bo was convinced no one would dare to bid against him, a loud voice rang out.
“One hundred and twenty billion divine crystals, virtual jade stones—I’ll take them.”
Qu Yi had bid at that moment.