In the blink of an eye, the price of the alchemy furnace on the high platform had already reached 130,000 crystal stones. After a brief silence, no one bid higher.
Alchemy furnaces, by their nature, limited the number of users, thus attracting fewer buyers.
The next few items were all weapons. The ones auctioned here possessed much better attributes than those sold in outside shops. Lu Heng also participated in bidding and won an ice-element longsword.
Shortly after the purchase, the weapon was brought to Lu Heng’s private room.
Lu Heng was unsure how the people below identified specific bidders, as the curtains of the private rooms were all drawn.
"Esteemed sir, the Ice Ling Sword you bid for was priced at 460,000 crystal stones. Considering you have bid on such high-priced items, the Spirit Treasure Pavilion will waive the 10,000 crystal stone fee for your private room tonight. Therefore, you only need to pay an additional 450,000 crystal stones for this Ice Ling Sword." The man who delivered the sword cupped his hands towards Lu Heng and placed the tray holding the Ice Ling Sword on the table.
"Your Spirit Treasure Pavilion is very business-savvy. However, this is my first time here. I'm not sure if I should settle the payment for the auctioned item now, or..."
"Sir, that is entirely up to you. However, our usual practice is to settle the payment on the spot once the item is delivered to the buyer." The man looked up at Lu Heng, who was sitting by the table, and then smiled gently.
"Since there is a practice, I shall not break it. I will settle it with you now. However, how should I give you so many crystal stones?"
Although Lu Heng had several storage rings, which could hold hundreds of thousands of crystal stones, these rings required a contract to be used. Once contracted, the ring seemed to become untradeable.
The man’s eyes widened in surprise, looking at Lu Heng with disbelief. However, this expression lasted only for a moment before he resumed his subservient demeanor.
The man took out a bag made of what seemed to be leather from his embrace and placed it on the table. "This is a storage bag, which can hold items. The only difference between this and a storage ring is that items placed inside can still be traded."
Taking the storage bag, Lu Heng examined it carefully. The item resembled a small pouch for storing items, but the opening of the pouch was inlaid with a circle of metal. "Where can I buy these storage bags?"
"These items are sold within the capital city, usually in shops that sell storage rings. However, if this item is lost, others can easily obtain the items within it, so fewer people purchase them." The man, noticing Lu Heng’s lack of familiarity with these items, explained patiently.
Lu Heng nodded, realizing there were still many things for him to explore in this world.
He poured the crystal stones from his space into the storage bag and handed it to the man. The man roughly counted the quantity, took the storage bag, and exited the room.
While Lu Heng was speaking with the man, the auction below had not stopped. Lu Heng would glance at each item brought onto the high platform, but most of them were weapons similar to the one he held.
Picking up the Ice Ling Sword from the tray, Lu Heng immediately felt an enhancement in his ice-elemental abilities. The entire scabbard was carved with intricate runes, which Lu Heng couldn’t understand, looking like scribbles.
He drew the longsword slightly from its scabbard. A cold glint flashed from the blade, emitting a chilling aura that lowered the temperature in the room significantly.
Lu Bai leaned over to take a look and reached out a finger to touch the blade.
"Be careful." Lu Heng raised his hand to block Lu Bai's reaching hand and put the Ice Ling Sword back into his space.
"Master, that's so beautiful." Lu Bai was likely referring to the gem-like shining object inlaid on the sword hilt.
"Do you like these shiny things?" Lu Heng had long noticed that this fox seemed to be very fond of such items; its previous collection contained many of them.
Lu Bai nodded. Unable to see the beautiful sword hilt, he turned his gaze back to the food on the table.
"Don't eat too much of these either, or you might not be able to sleep tonight." Lu Bai tilted his head, pondered for a moment, and then reluctantly withdrew his gaze from the pastries.
"The next item to be auctioned is a batch of magic crystals. Following the usual practice, we will start with level six. Level six magic crystals are also auctioned based on the difficulty of obtaining their attributes, so their prices will vary." The woman clapped her hands, and then several women in gorgeous dresses, each carrying a tray, walked onto the high platform.
"Level six fire-element magic crystal, starting bid ten thousand crystal stones, with each increment of one thousand."
"I bid twenty thousand."
"Twenty-one thousand."
"Twenty-three thousand."
"Thirty thousand."
"..."
Lu Heng was surprised that the starting bid for a level six magic crystal was the same as that for a level four crystal in the apocalypse.
This meant that the price of his crystals was not that high.
However, Lu Heng thought further. These crystals could be purchased in Jinyang City, and the supply was relatively stable, with twenty available for normal sale each day.
Advanced magic crystals, on the other hand, required hunting high-level magical beasts. High-level magical beasts were already rare, and the danger involved in killing them was also high. Therefore, it was understandable that advanced magic crystals commanded higher prices.
While Lu Heng was contemplating, the bidding price had already soared to sixty thousand.
When the bidding below quieted down again, the woman looked around. This price was considered normal for the Spirit Treasure Pavilion, so she intended to proceed with the next magic crystal. "If there are no further bids, then this level six fire-element magic crystal..."
"Sixty-one thousand," Lu Heng said loudly from his seat by the window.
This was a joke. He was here specifically to bid on magic crystals. Today, he intended to buy them all, as he had plenty of crystal stones.
The woman raised an eyebrow and then called out, "Are there any further bids?"
At this moment, people in the hall below began to discuss.
"I recall that in previous auctions, these level six magic crystals were around sixty thousand crystal stones each. Why is someone bidding higher today? It's a bit of a loss."
"Yes, at most sixty-five thousand each, and that was only once several years ago. The prices have been quite stable since then."
"Sixty-one thousand, sold."
With the woman's loud announcement, the price of the level six fire-element magic crystal was settled.
Lu Heng remembered that he had obtained two level six magic crystals from the little fox: one earth-element and one water-element.
It was likely that there were fire-element ones before, but the little fox had eaten them for upgrades.
Looking at Lu Bai, who was now lying by the bed, his eyes gleaming as he looked down at the magic crystals, Lu Heng patted his head. "Don't get any ideas about these. If you really need to eat them in the future, we'll talk about it after I take you home."
"Home?" Lu Bai tilted his head, looking at Lu Heng, not understanding the meaning of "home."
"Yes, home."