Chapter 27 - 27 - Who dares to steal from this Laozi?! (1/2)

When Li XinWen expressed his interest on the second item, Xue Rui raised his eyebrows; he looked at Li XinWen then directed his gaze towards the stage. The item was still covered and yet it looked as if Li XinWen already knew what it was.

He let out a small laugh and decided to tease Li XinWen. ”What's this XinWen, do you have a sixth sense or something? Do you already know what the item is that you are willing to bid ten million for it?”

Realizing his misstep, Li XinWen decided to tease Xue Rui back ”Haha… Rui-ge, you never know,” he teased back before saying: ”It's only because my intuition tells me that this next item is something precious.”

”Touché XinWen,” Xue Rui replied with a small laugh before continuing, ”Considering that it's just the second item on the list, the price won't reach over ten million and its quality may not be as good, unless interested parties actually bid against each other until it reaches that amount.”

”Ah… is that so? But I really must have it,” Li XinWen expressed as a matter of fact, as he turned to look at Xue Rui.

For a moment Xue Rui thought he saw a different aura surrounding Li XinWen as the latter turned towards him. There was a glint of determination in Li XinWen's gaze and Xue Rui had to blink to make sure he was not seeing things.

”Right… of course, XinWen…” was all he managed to say.

The cloth, finally removed, revealed a cauldron, which to a mortal's eye, was made of bronze. But to a cultivator such as himself, Li XinWen knew that it was only the outer appearance. From his perspective the cauldron was surrounded with magical energy, and he was certain that it was one of the legendary, twelve celestial cauldrons that had disappeared from Long Xing a long time ago.

'I knew it… If such an item was able to make its way to the mortal realm, then there is also a way for me to return to Long Xing,' Li XinWen thought, trying hard not to let his eagerness overflow.

The auctioneer's voice suddenly filled the hall as he provided a brief historical account of the second item.

”This cauldron dates all the way back to the Shen Dynasty. According to the historian who studied the archive found in QuanNi valley, an ancient shaman used the cauldron to create various poisons during that time, and one of his concoctions ended the Shen Dynasty's rule! This in turn led to the rise of the Min Dynasty. After close examination by experts, this cauldron has no other use except as a decorative item. The starting bid is...” Before the auctioneer could even finish his sentence, someone spoke out from the crowd on the ground level of the auction hall.

”I would like to buy it out!”

Li XinWen rose from his seat when he heard the offer put forth by someone from the participants on the lower level of the auction hall. He narrowed his eyes and searched for the individual as he leaned forward against the bal.u.s.trade of their box.

'Who dares to steal my treasure!? Such audacity!' he thought, as he clenched the surface of the bal.u.s.trade.

Similarly, all eyes focused on the young man who stood in the middle of the seated participants on the ground level. He was dressed in a dark, navy suit and his stance showed such strong presence and confidence it was almost arrogant. Judging from his stature and facial features, he was only slightly older than Xue Rui. The man was well-built as can be seen from how the dark navy suit hugged the contours of his body.

The auctioneer was taken by surprise that it took him a while to respond to the young man's offer. Upon regaining his composure, he addressed the man, ”I'm sorry sir, I'm not sure if I heard you correctly.”

'This young master must be out of his mind! Perhaps he is not aware of how the auction works,' the auctioneer thought.

”I would like to buy out the item.” the young man repeated without hesitation.

”My apologies, young master, however, this is an absolute auction. As such, items in our repertoire will go to the highest bidder,” the auctioneer explained.

”Then I bid five million for the item!” the man offered and the hall was filled with whispers and murmurs from the participants.

”My my! For this item to snag a price of five million, the commission I'll get for this sale will be the biggest yet!” he thought greedily.