Chapter 9: Auction Lot
The venue was completely packed. When contractors with grudges met, the atmosphere grew even livelier.
Neither the Divine Emperor Adventure Group nor the Black Flag Merchant Guild tried to stop this. This was a hallmark of Reincarnation Paradise—strength was the ultimate truth. With strength came rights and wealth.
Time quickly passed to 7:50 PM. The auction was about to begin.
"Divine Emperor, looks like you're doing well, hosting such a large auction."
A man dressed like a cowboy, a cigar clamped between his teeth, walked to the front row.
"You bastard..."
Divine Emperor's expression soured. He glanced at his subordinate beside him.
That subordinate immediately contacted the front gate. After receiving feedback, he shook his head helplessly.
The other party had a ticket. They couldn't stop him.
The reason for Divine Emperor's reaction was that the newcomer was from the Phantom Troupe—the Revolver Man had come uninvited.
"Divine Emperor, don't be so stingy. It's just a ticket, and you wouldn't even sell us one."
The Revolver Man sat down in seat number 15, crossing his legs.
"Stingy? Why don't you ask my thirty-four fallen subordinates first?"
Divine Emperor took a deep breath. The other party was already inside. Saying anything else was useless.
"Just cannon fodder beneath my gun. If you've got the guts, come find me for revenge. I'm always waiting."
The Revolver Man sat calmly in his seat. The grudge between Divine Emperor and the Troupe was irreconcilable.
"Big sister, can I kill you?"
A crisp, childish voice rang out. Xila, sitting in seat number two, turned pale.
"Gulu, you lunatic!"
Xila spun around to look at a little girl behind her. The girl had somehow already arrived at her back.
"Last time, I almost managed to kill you, big sister. Your heart is so soft."
The little girl wore a red children's outfit, a lollipop in her mouth. On the back of her fair hand was tattooed the Arabic numeral 6.
Her name was Gulu. She loved eating candy and loved killing people. So far, the number of contractors she had killed exceeded three digits. Her Troupe number was 6.
"Perverted murderer. I have no interest in talking to you."
"So heartless. We were already so 'intimately' close."
Hearing Gulu's words, Xila felt a dull ache in her chest.
Three derivative worlds ago, she had encountered Gulu. During the battle, the other party's hand had already gripped her heart. If Divine Emperor hadn't arrived in time, she would have died.
Gulu walked over to the Revolver Man and sat down beside him, like an innocent child, curiously looking around.
"Revolver, the guy who blew up your bladder last time is him? He looks quite to my taste."
"That's him. It was his sale that got Karl's number."
"Even more interesting now. What's with that husky? So cute."
The Revolver Man stopped talking. Gulu was moody and unpredictable. Even as a fellow Troupe member, if Gulu went crazy, she might kill him too.
Although the Troupe's appearance annoyed the Divine Emperor Adventure Group, the auction had to continue.
As for the Black Sail Merchant Guild, once the Troupe members showed up, they scurried to the backstage. Facing the Troupe's madmen, they could only tremble in fear.
After all, the last time they provoked the Troupe, within just five derivative worlds, the Black Sail Merchant Guild's membership had suffered over 20% casualties.
The venue's lights suddenly went out, drawing gasps from the contractors.
The curtain on the stage slowly drew back, and a spotlight hit the stage.
"Ladies and gentlemen, hello, hehehe~."
A host dressed like a circus clown stood on the stage. This was a member of the Black Sail Merchant Guild, who had a record of tricking a single contractor twelve times in a row.
"Bastard, pay me back!"
"Clown, you son of a bitch, don't let me run into you in a derivative world!"
"Change the host! Are Divine Emperor and the Black Flag Merchant Guild brain-dead?"
A tidal wave of angry shouts erupted. The boss of the Black Sail Merchant Guild laughed.
"Divine Emperor, looks like the effect is good."
"Yeah."
The clown on stage scanned the venue, listening to the torrent of curses.
"Everyone, no need to get excited. I'm not the host. I'm just here to announce that the entire process today is certified by Paradise. We've signed a temporary contract with Paradise."
The clown tore open his chest, revealing a mark on his sternum.
The shouting below died down. The Black Flag Merchant Guild's reputation wasn't great. If they hadn't explained in advance that this would affect the auction, even the notorious clown would have been restricted. That was reassuring.
The clown ran off the stage in a comical manner, and a man in a suit walked onto the stage.
"Hello everyone, welcome to today's auction. This auction..."
"Skip the crap, just bring out the lots!"
A muscular, burly man in the front row roared. He was holding a piece of raw meat, chewing it loudly.
"Ahem—alright then. Since everyone here is a contractor, let's skip the formalities. Let the auction begin!"
Once the host spoke, the first lot was brought on stage.
Seeing this lot, the audience erupted in uproar.
"How is this possible? This guy is..."
"Hey hey, this auction is getting more and more interesting."
The reason the audience was so shocked was that the first lot was a human.
That's right, a human. More specifically, a half-elf, mixed with human blood.
"Elf, female, contracted as a follower. Starting bid: 100,000 Paradise Coins."
The female elf's basic attributes were displayed, with only a portion of her skills shown.
The female elf stood on stage, arms wrapped around herself, looking timidly at the bidders below.
Feng Nai, sitting in the audience, felt a bit uncomfortable. This was a lot from the Black Sail Merchant Guild. Their Divine Emperor group would never sell something like this.
"130,000 Paradise Coins!"
A loud shout came from the back. Although they could input bids using the number plate, doing so lacked the momentum of shouting it out.
This elf was meant for combat. As for whether things could develop further, ultimately reaching the "home base," that depended on the contractor's personal actions.
If excessively unreasonable demands were made and the follower strongly resisted, the follower contract would be deemed terminated. Not all followers were as loyal as Bubu Wang, willing to die for their master.
This follower's combat strength wasn't weak, and there was no risk of a backstab, making her highly sought after by contractors.
The first item naturally had to be a surprise. Clearly, the Black Sail Merchant Guild had achieved that.
The female elf was ultimately sold for 170,000 Paradise Coins. The winning bidder was a female contractor.
The female elf was delighted. She had been afraid a male contractor would buy her.
"Don't be afraid. From now on, you're under my protection."
The female contractor took the female elf's hand. The female elf nodded quickly, her favorability skyrocketing.
"See that? If you wreck the house again, I'm auctioning you off."
Su Xiao looked at Bubu Wang. Bubu Wang lifted his head, giving a "Wang's Disdain," a pose that was as goofy as it got.
Bubu Wang wasn't convinced. You wrecked the house yesterday too.
...
The second lot was a mage weapon, purple quality.
The mages in the venue went wild. Staves were already rare, and purple quality was even rarer. The auction atmosphere reached a peak.
This wasn't an item from Divine Emperor or the Black Sail Merchant Guild. It was provided by another contractor. After a successful bid, they took a cut. A win-win.
Starting from the third lot, the prices began to drop. These were prepared for ordinary contractors.
Su Xiao had spent some Paradise Coins earlier, leaving him with 80,706 Paradise Coins.
Fourth lot, fifth lot. Item after item was sold.
The ordinary contractors were excited, but the contractors in the front rows showed little interest. None of these items were worth their attention.