Chapter 1121: Chapter 1120: Black-robed Man
"Then I shall go and report back to the young master."
The maid nodded and was about to leave.
"Wait."
At that moment, Elder Gong suddenly stopped the maid and then looked at Yuwen Lin, saying, "Yuwen Lin, you must sell the Cold Condensing Pearl. With this additional three million, our chances of acquiring the Blue Ice Tower will greatly increase. You’re only sacrificing a bit of face; what does that count for compared to the grand plan of the Sect."
Hearing this, Yuwen Lin’s gaze began to flicker intensely. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to sell, but he really couldn’t swallow his pride. He clearly knew it was a foolish thing to do; why should he jump into the trap?
"Yuwen Lin, do you still see me as an elder?"
Elder Gong frowned, scolding sternly, "I’ll take responsibility for this matter. Sell the Cold Condensing Pearl and focus entirely on competing for this Blue Ice Tower."
With that, he also looked at the maid, saying, "Tell the young master, we agree to the three million Spirit Nurturing Pills."
"Alright, here are three million Spirit Nurturing Pills. The young master handed them over to me earlier."
The maid handed the three million Spirit Nurturing Pills to Elder Gong.
Upon hearing these words, Yuwen Lin’s face grew even more unpleasant. Ling Chen’s reaction clearly indicated he had predicted they would sell the Cold Condensing Pearl to him, and his heart grew increasingly heavy.
However, this was Elder Gong’s decision, and there was nothing he could do.
After verifying the quantity of Spirit Nurturing Pills, Elder Gong handed the Cold Condensing Pearl to Ling Chen.
"As expected, the Cold Condensing Pearl is in our hands once again."
Lin Wan looked at Ling Chen with some surprise, finding it a bit unbelievable.
"Because we have no worries, unlike those from Desolate Fire City, who are all after the Ice-blue Tower. To them, the Cold Condensing Pearl is a burden, a useless object."
Ling Chen smiled faintly, "In fact, I was just gambling, betting that they were determined to get the Ice-blue Tower, and I didn’t expect to win the bet."
"Now the people from Desolate Fire City have suffered a significant loss. I reckon Yuwen Lin must be furious, perhaps even to the point of spitting blood."
A playful glint appeared on Lin Wan’s face. Yuwen Lin, knowing it was a losing business, still had to sell the Cold Condensing Pearl to Ling Chen. How could he not be vexed?
To this, Ling Chen merely smiled without concern. Not just spitting blood, now Yuwen Lin probably has thoughts of killing him.
"Sixteen million!"
After getting Ling Chen’s three million, Yuwen Lin continued to raise the bid. Ling Chen’s issues were set aside for now; securing the Ice-blue Tower was the priority.
After the price of sixteen million was called out, the previously active Elder of Shark People, as well as the Dragon Whale Island’s Island Master and others, ceased to bid further, relinquishing the competition.
"Seventeen million!"
However, on the side of the Huangfu Clan, the gray-robed old man gritted his teeth and shouted a high price.
"Eighteen million!"
Yuwen Lin gritted his teeth, raising the price to his absolute limit.
Wei Wuxian shook his head, no longer continuing to compete with Yuwen Lin.
And such a steep price, after a fierce struggle, ultimately stabilized at eighteen million.
Yuwen Lin heavily sighed, and the competing factions finally stopped bidding. Thus, the Ice-blue Tower was now Desolate Fire City’s possession.
Even if he was toyed with by Ling Chen, as long as they got the Ice-blue Tower, all the effort was worthwhile.
"Truly wealthy..." Ling Chen looked at the emerging victorious Yuwen Lin with a slightly whimsical expression.
"Hehe, Desolate Fire City is truly generous. Although this item is rumored to involve the Cave Mansion of a supremely strong figure, it hasn’t been fully confirmed. Yet, you could spend such a price to secure it; indeed, quite the boldness."
The Dragon Whale Island’s Island Master clicked his tongue, lightly laughing at Yuwen Lin.
"That’s not something for you to worry about, senior."
Yuwen Lin remained calm. This item was mandated by his superiors to secure at all costs, likely with solid intelligence; otherwise, they wouldn’t have instructed them so. Their job was to acquire it, not to fret over its usefulness.
On the auction stage, Tang Yun’er watched as the fierce competition ended, smiling radiantly. She said, "Young Master Yuwen from Desolate Fire City bids eighteen million. If there’s no further competition, then this Ice-blue Tower, for eighteen million Spirit Nurturing Pills, will belong to Young Master Yuwen."
As her words fell, there was no response. Seeing this, Tang Yun’er was about to announce the auction result when suddenly, from a secluded corner of the auction hall, a very low, indifferent voice emerged, sounding like that of an elderly man.
"Twenty million."
The person bidding was surprisingly a black-robed figure wearing a hood.
"What?!"
Yuwen Lin was caught off guard by this sudden appearance. He had almost pushed all competitors aside, but now a black-robed figure suddenly emerged, bidding twenty million without any prior participation in the auction?
What kind of person is this?
"Twenty million, this old gentleman has bid twenty million. If there are no higher offers, then this Ice-blue Tower will belong to him."
Tang Yun’er’s beautiful face showed a faint smile. She was happy to see someone raise the bid; she didn’t care whose hands the Ice-blue Tower would ultimately fall into.
"Wait a minute!"
Yuwen Lin stood up with a somber expression, "I seriously doubt whether this person can produce twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills. Miss Tang, I request verification that this person can indeed provide twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills."
Many people nodded in agreement and turned their gaze to the hooded black-robed elder. Everyone present was a prominent figure in the Penglai Island Territory, none without a name. This black-robed person was mysterious and unidentified, and indeed not anyone could produce twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills.
If he can’t produce them, the consequences would be severe; not only would the auction be invalid, he would also be blacklisted by the East Sea Chamber of Commerce.
Yuwen Lin’s eyes flickered; he couldn’t believe this black-robed figure could produce such a hefty sum.
Twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills are not a small sum for any power. General forces couldn’t possibly produce it.
"Humph, a mere twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills are nothing to me."
The black-robed elder snorted coldly, then waved his hand and shot a Storage Ring towards Tang Yun’er on the auction stage.
Tang Yun’er caught the Storage Ring and, after a quick inspection, her beautiful eyes lit up suddenly. She then returned the ring to the black-robed elder and said aloud, "Indeed, there are twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills inside. I hereby apologize to this old gentleman; it was our mistake to suspect honorable intentions."
"What?"
Yuwen Lin looked incredulous. This mysterious black-robed person actually provided twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills in one go?
His mouth twitched, and Yuwen Lin could only silently stew in annoyance and sit back down.
Ultimately, the Ice-blue Tower went to the black-robed elder for the price of twenty million Spirit Nurturing Pills.
Though the auction of the Ice-blue Tower ended, the entire auction hall started buzzing quietly. Many people’s expressions were peculiar, and beneath their intertwined gazes, a hint of greed flickered.
Clearly, many weren’t completely dissuaded from the Ice-blue Tower.
At this moment, the direction of Desolate Fire City, Yuwen Lin and others also stared gloomily at the black-robed elder, inwardly sneering. This Ice-blue Tower wasn’t easily obtained.
This thing is a hot potato; without enough strength, one cannot hold onto it.
"Let’s go; the auction is over."
Ling Chen glanced towards the black-robed elder before rising to leave with Lin Wan and Yunlong.
"Yes." Lin Wan nodded, understanding that even though the auction was over, the real drama was just starting. In the coming days, the area around Lotus Island would likely see a storm of blood.
This auction, Ling Chen obtained the Cold Condensing Pearl and a bottle of Saint Body Ointment, which was quite rewarding and met expectations.
After collecting the auction items, Ling Chen did not linger and proceeded towards the auction hall’s entrance. Just as he reached the door, he saw a surge in the crowd and subsequently spotted Yuwen Lin and his entourage, being pointed at by many.
When Ling Chen saw Yuwen Lin, the latter clearly noticed him too, with a cold light flashing in his eyes as he strode forward, sneering, "You dare appear before me again. Your courage is not small."
"Heh, how ungrateful of Your Excellency. In the final moments, I actually helped you. It was just that you were unfortunate; otherwise, you might’ve won that treasure." Ling Chen responded mildly.
"So, I should thank you?"
Yuwen Lin looked displeased at Ling Chen, fists clenched. If it weren’t for Elder Xunlong behind Ling Chen, he might’ve already taken action against him.
"What, you want to fight?"
Lin Wan stepped forward without any hint of retreat. Though the three from Desolate Fire City were not weak, they weren’t easy to push around. If a fight broke out, it’s hard to say who would emerge victorious.
"Let’s go; focus on that old guy. We need to plan the next move; hanging around with this kid isn’t worthwhile." Elder Gong said quietly to Yuwen Lin.
Yuwen Lin took a deep breath and nodded, glaring fiercely at Ling Chen before turning to leave with the other two.
