9: Chapter 9 Two Techniques for Picking Up Bargains

"This is the top auction in Qingzhou, a gathering of the top forces; their financial resources naturally cannot be underestimated!" Nangong Xi said.

Ning Yuan nodded in agreement, but while the two were talking, the price of the Soul-Breaking Pill had already reached seventy thousand Spirit Stones.

"Seventy-five thousand!"

"Seventy-six thousand!"

At this point, the price had almost reached its limit, and the rate of increase slowed down.

"Ninety thousand!" At this moment, a voice came from a private booth on the second floor, offering a price of ninety thousand.

Immediately, the crowd below stopped bidding; this price had already exceeded their expectations.

"Are there any more bids? If not, the infant transformation pill will be taken by Booth Number Five!" Old Wang asked from the stage, but still no one bid, so in the end, the infant transformation pill was won by the person in Booth Number Five.

The next auction item was immediately brought up; it was a longsword filled with an ancient aura.

"Rank Three Magic Treasure, Changyang Sword! Starting price, fifty thousand Spirit Stones!"

Someone bid instantly, and the price rose by twenty thousand.

"Seventy thousand Spirit Stones!"

"Seventy-five thousand!"

"Eighty thousand!"

Bidding voices continued to ring out; clearly, they were determined to get this sword.

"My Divine Sword Sect bids one hundred thousand!" From a booth on the second floor came Elder Zhou's voice.

The people who were just competing for the bid had no choice but to give up; after all, they could not afford to offend the Divine Sword Sect.

"Since no one else is bidding, then the Changyang Sword belongs to the Divine Sword Sect!" Seeing that no one else was bidding, Old Wang confirmed the ownership of the Changyang Sword.

Subsequently, the third auction item was brought up; it was a scroll, and everyone looked over.

Old Wang pointed at the scroll and introduced it to everyone, even mentioning its flaws:

"This is a Rank Three Palm Technique called Heavenly Fire! It gathers the True Fire within the body into a single palm strike. Its power is impressive, but the Cultivation process is extremely dangerous. Please choose carefully! Starting price, thirty thousand!"

However, no one had any intention of bidding on this palm technique because it had failed to sell many times; it appeared in basically every auction.

Rumor had it that Cultivating this palm technique was a near-death experience—at best, one would be severely injured, and at worst, one's life would end and their Dao would dissipate.

A Cultivator's True Fire is exceptionally overbearing, let alone having to concentrate it in the palm; the difficulty involved can well be imagined.

Old Wang's reaction to everyone's response could be said to be unsurprised; after all, he had auctioned this palm technique many times.

Bringing it out was just an attempt to see if anyone would buy it.

"Take it away! Take it away quickly! What a waste of time!"

"No one will buy that thing! Auction the next one!"

"Everyone didn't come here to see this!"

"..."

Just as everyone was telling Old Wang to bring out the next item, a voice suddenly rang out, drowning out everyone else's voices.

"I bid thirty thousand Spirit Stones!"

Instantly, everyone looked toward the direction the voice came from and found a burly man with a fierce, fleshy face.

The burly man was exactly what Ning Yuan looked like after his disguise!

At this time, even Nangong Xi looked at Ning Yuan in surprise, not expecting him to bid. She couldn't help but whisper anxiously:

"Are you crazy? Do you know how dangerous it is to Cultivate that? You dare to bid blindly!"

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing! Help me pay first, and I'll pay you back later!" However, Ning Yuan did not change his mind because he truly had the confidence to Cultivate it successfully.

"You..." But before Nangong Xi could finish, Old Wang's excited voice already came from the stage.

"Congratulations to this honored guest for successfully purchasing this palm technique!"

Old Wang almost did not hesitate to confirm the transaction; it was clear how desperate he was to sell the Heavenly Fire Palm.

After all, there wasn't a bid every time it was auctioned; if he missed this chance, who knew how long he'd have to wait.

As soon as Old Wang finished speaking, the crowd began to discuss fervently.

"Tsk tsk tsk, where did this idiot come from, actually daring to buy it!"

"Hmph! Someone who doesn't know the heights of the heavens!"

"It's finally sold! We won't have to see it again!"

"..."

Ning Yuan was not moved at all, letting them gossip without any intention of retorting.

Seeing that the matter was settled, Nangong Xi said no more and could only look at Ning Yuan speechlessly.

In her view, thirty thousand Spirit Stones would be better off thrown into the sea; at least you'd hear a splash.

She didn't believe Ning Yuan could successfully Cultivate it; that would be harder than a sow flying to the sky.

Ning Yuan naturally wouldn't explain that because of the System, he could successfully Cultivate any Cultivation Technique.

His own methods were somewhat lacking, and this palm technique could just make up for it.

Subsequently, the fourth auction item was brought up, then the fifth, the sixth... for the next dozen or so items, none met Ning Yuan's fancy, so he didn't make a move.

Nangong Xi didn't make a move either; her main goal this time was the Soul Transformation Stage Pill, everything else was secondary.

However, the next auction item piqued Ning Yuan's interest, and a glint flashed in his eyes.

"The next auction item is a Rank Four Footwork Technique called 'Cloud-Soaring Steps'. However, it is partially incomplete. Starting price, twenty thousand Spirit Stones!"

"Twenty thousand!"

As soon as Old Wang finished speaking, Ning Yuan hurriedly bid, fearing someone would beat him to it.

Nangong Xi looked at Ning Yuan as if he were a fool, wondering if he had gone mad.

Because these Cloud-Soaring Steps were just like the Heavenly Fire Palm, both were things that had failed to sell multiple times; otherwise, how could they be so cheap?

"Congratulations again to this honored guest for successfully purchasing this footwork technique!"

Old Wang, just like last time, quickly finalized the transaction. He was incredibly excited; he had finally sold two defective products.

The crowd, like Nangong Xi, cast looks at Ning Yuan as if they were looking at an idiot.

They didn't expect such a fool to exist in this world; they had certainly seen one today.

Ning Yuan ignored their gazes, secretly mocking them in his heart for knowing nothing.

This time he had truly gotten a bargain, and he had also found the correct way to use the System.

In the future, he could use the System to turn low-value items into things worth a hundred times more, truly turning waste into treasure.

He hadn't expected such a harvest this time; Ning Yuan couldn't help but look forward to the rest of the auction.

Unfortunately, there were no more items that everyone despised, much to Ning Yuan's disappointment.

But it didn't matter; after all, the two Cultivation Techniques were enough for his current use.

Soon, the auction reached its end, and the grand finale item was about to appear.

At this time, Old Wang's expression became much more solemn. He cleared his throat and said loudly: "The next item to be auctioned is the final one, and also today's grand finale!"

The atmosphere in the hall suddenly fell silent because what followed was the true highlight.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on Old Wang, as if they would miss something if they blinked.

Especially the people in the second-floor booths; even their heartbeats quickened.

One must know that the upcoming auction would change the situation in Qingzhou; they could not afford not to be solemn.

Old Wang personally took a transparent jade box from his storage ring. Inside lay a white Medicinal Pill quietly. He introduced:

"Rank Five Soul Transformation Stage Pill! It can help a Nascent Soul Peak Cultivator advance to Soul Transformation. Starting price, two hundred thousand Spirit Stones!"