Chapter 2: Esoteric Knowledge Intake Enhancement
Of the two branching paths, Su Xiao naturally leaned toward the first. No matter how he looked at it, the second choice exuded an ancient god style and a sinister aura. The description of the title, which mentioned a plummeting sanity value, had already hinted at this.
"How can you understand these ancient texts? I recognize all the ancient characters on them, but when they're strung together, it's too obscure."
The Goddess of Fortune, sitting on the sofa across from him, spoke up, picking up an ancient text from the tea table. The more she read, the more confused she became.
"Meow."
Beini jumped onto Su Xiao's lap, looking aggrieved. She meant that after finishing the late-night snack, the Goddess of Fortune had challenged her to a game of Animal Chess. Beini was confident about this; in the past, when she played against Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha, she won nine out of ten games. But today, she had lost miserably.
"Mr. Holy Flame, how about a few rounds of Animal Chess?"
The Goddess of Fortune placed the chessboard on the tea table. Seeing this, Su Xiao didn't put down the ancient text in his hand.
"I'm not good at board games."
"It's boring just sitting around, and it's only a little past nine in the evening."
"..."
Su Xiao didn't respond.
"Mr. Holy Flame, could it be that you're worried about winning or losing without any stakes? How about ten Soul Coins per round?"
"Forget it."
"Oh~? Mr. Holy Flame, you're not afraid of losing to me, are you?"
The Goddess of Fortune smiled as she spoke. Hearing this, Su Xiao squeezed the book in his hand shut with one hand.
Two hours later, the Goddess of Fortune was biting her thumbnail, staring at the chessboard. The expression of 'this can't be' on her face was practically written in bold letters. In the ten Soul Coin per round Animal Chess games, she had lost over 300 Soul Coins. No wonder she was so doubtful of her own life.
"Damn it, just one step away from winning."
The Goddess of Fortune huffily gathered the chess pieces, then let out a long sigh. "It's a pity. I haven't been able to go find Anna and the others to play chess lately. Sigh, how did I end up offending that guy?"
After saying this, the Goddess of Fortune sighed again, looking utterly defeated.
"Who did you offend?"
Su Xiao asked casually, as if making small talk.
"I..." The Goddess of Fortune hesitated, then deflated and said, "Actually, I offended a Law Destroyer. You should have heard of him. They say he's the last surviving Law Destroyer."
"Oh? What grudge do you have with that Law Destroyer?"
Hearing this, the Goddess of Fortune across from him immediately deflated. She laughed a bit awkwardly and said, "Fundamentally speaking, it was my fault. When I discovered that Law Destroyer, he was still a newly emerged one. Why did I have to offend him back then? Was I crazy? And why did he get so strong so fast?"
Saying this, the Goddess of Fortune seemed a bit frantic. She continued, as if venting, "It's too late to apologize now. I can feel that Law Destroyer isn't just planning to beat me half to death. He's got his eyes on me for some other reason. I'm done for. I've been targeted by a fully grown Law Destroyer."
"So, you don't have a mortal enmity?"
"Of course not. With how vengeful those Law Destroyers are, if I had a mortal enmity with them, that Law Destroyer would probably do nothing but search for my whereabouts all day, then kill me."
The Goddess of Fortune let out a weak, long sigh at the end.
"I know that Law Destroyer. He's one of my regular clients. Maybe I can mediate."
"Really?!"
The Goddess of Fortune across from him suddenly became excited.
"Of course."
"If you can help me get through this, I'll definitely reward you handsomely."
There was a hint of joy in the Goddess of Fortune's eyes. It was hard to imagine what expression she would have when she discovered the truth.
After the Goddess of Fortune left and returned to her room next door, Su Xiao checked the time. It was almost eleven o'clock.
Tomorrow was the second day of the Arcane Celebration, but the assassin hired from the Dead Ash Bunker hadn't made a move at all. This made Su Xiao wonder if the assassin sent by that side had been dealt with by the Spellcasters of Arcane Eternal Star before even getting close to him.
If that were the case, although it wouldn't affect the overall plan, after this matter was over, Su Xiao would have to make another trip to the Dead Ash Bunker. They had taken the money but failed to do the job, so they definitely needed to give an explanation.
Su Xiao returned to the bedroom to rest. The next morning arrived quickly. He went alone to the Lake Heart Island via the teleportation device to check the stability of the various instruments and the Solar Solution in the underground laboratory.
This action of Su Xiao's was naturally reported to Sefeiliya by the Spellcasters monitoring the Lake Heart Island. Sefeiliya didn't give any particular attitude about it. As the one who set up and used this underground laboratory, Su Xiao coming to check the equipment periodically was perfectly reasonable.
As the sky darkened, Arcane Eternal Star, which had been bustling for another day, regained some quiet. At the same time, Su Xiao's door was knocked on.
Opening the door, Su Xiao saw the disguised Kaisa and the other two standing outside.
"The auction starts at eight sharp. It's almost seven now. Let's head in a bit early."
The Explosive Rat was very interested in this auction, or rather, this guy was very interested in the 600,000 Soul Coins he had gotten for free.
The group took the rail tram and arrived at the Dawnlight Manor just before seven-thirty.
The entire Dawnlight Manor, though called a manor, was actually a complex of buildings divided into four main districts. Su Xiao walked to the rear district of the manor, entered a magnificent building, and passed through a long corridor. As a servant lifted a heavy, dark red curtain, Su Xiao finally arrived at the auction hall.
The hall could accommodate about a hundred people. Although it was large, the seating wasn't arranged neatly. This seemingly chaotic layout actually gave people a sense of ease. It wasn't a traditional tiered seating auction hall; it felt more like a banquet hall.
As for VIP boxes or premium seats, Su Xiao didn't see any. As soon as he arrived, a waiter approached and handed him a number plate, representing his table. This clearly followed a first-come, first-served basis.
This auction wasn't open to just anyone. The threshold had already been set high enough, with only about a hundred participants. Adding more rules and regulations on top of that would inevitably cause resentment.
Su Xiao sat down not too far from the stage, with Kaisa, the Toad, and the Explosive Rat beside him.
Beini first climbed onto Su Xiao's shoulder, then jumped onto her special premium seat—Su Xiao's head—and began to look around.
"Meow."
Beini called out, meaning for Su Xiao to look to the right. Su Xiao looked in the direction Beini indicated and saw several old acquaintances.
The first thing Su Xiao saw was the Holy Maiden Seat, dressed in flowing robes, also looking his way.
The moment their eyes met, the Holy Maiden Seat calmly averted her gaze, pretending not to see Su Xiao. The reason was that she still owed him 250 Soul Crystals, and she felt very guilty about it.
In the seats in front of the Holy Maiden Seat was the Tuanzhang, wearing a metal mask, with White Bull sitting next to him.
Nairo, who had been chugging a bottle of wine at the banquet last night, had now resumed her demure appearance, probably because White Bull was nearby.
Besides the three from the Starry Sky Seat, Su Xiao also saw many familiar faces, such as the old immortal of the Feather Race, and the younger generation of the Feather Race sitting to his left and right—the siblings Yao Yi and Yu Li.
Looking further ahead was the old immortal of the Demon Race, Wobor, with Monde, Lilim, Lilis, and Yaba, who was participating in the combat competition, sitting beside him.
Zuiyasi and his wife Ouna were also there, having arrived quite early and sitting in very front seats.
Su Xiao turned his gaze to the other side. Tree Sage was the first to catch his eye, along with several other alchemists of his generation. When they noticed Su Xiao looking their way, these older alchemists politely greeted him, and Su Xiao raised his hand in response.
Besides these people, Su Xiao also saw Sefeiliya and the Fierce Winter King, among others. Between the two of them sat a withered old woman. Her eyes were pitch black, a pure black that seemed to devour all light.
On this old woman's forehead were five holes, each as thick as an index finger. The holes were pitch black inside. Moreover, these holes were neatly arranged and extended to both sides of her head. By conservative estimate, this old woman had at least a dozen holes drilled into her skull.
Undoubtedly, this was Youwen Gewu, one of the Four Leaders of Arcane Eternal Star, also known as Soul Lord.
Seeing this person, Su Xiao felt that her Soul Strength must have reached an almost unbelievable level, far higher than his own.
Considering that she was the leader of the Soul Faction of Arcane Eternal Star, Su Xiao wasn't surprised. He had such high Soul Strength because of his talent, while she had specialized in this area.
Counting Soul Lord, Su Xiao had now met three of the Four Leaders. Only the Dean of the Zhongshi Academy, Gu Ya, remained unseen.
Su Xiao looked towards a corner diagonally behind him. A figure sat alone there. It was Wude's sister. He wondered where Wude had gone.
After a while, the auction hall was completely full, with the sound of chatter filling the air. When the clock struck eight, the lights in the hall went out, leaving only a row of small lights above the stage curtain.
Under the dim light, the curtain opened to both sides. With a click, a beam of light shone on the center of the stage, illuminating the host.
Looking closely, the host on stage, tonight's auctioneer, was actually Wude. Thinking about it, this was quite normal. In the Void, out of ten auctions, eight were hosted by the Devil Race. Their aura was just too fitting.
"Welcome, everyone, to this auction..."
Wude began, his voice filling the entire hall. Just as everyone expected him to give an opening speech, his second sentence took a turn:
"I declare this auction begins. First up for everyone is a miracle item."
As soon as Wude finished speaking, a waiter came up from the side with a tray. On the tray was an old money bag. It looked not only dirty but also as if it had been swallowed by a wild beast and corroded by stomach acid.
The moment this money bag was brought on stage, Su Xiao noticed Kaisa's eyes go wide.
"My dear friend, no matter the cost, I must buy this thing."
Kaisa meant that even if the bidding price exceeded his share of the profits from this event, he would pay the difference out of his own pocket. He was determined to get this item at any cost.
"This item was discovered by a scavenger in an ancient battlefield. After identification, it is named the Ancient Money Bag. It is connected to an ancient treasure vault. However, because the bag itself is cursed, it can only be opened once every three days..."
Through Wude's explanation, Su Xiao understood the function of the [Ancient Money Bag]. In short, it could be opened once every three days. When opened, it would either yield a treasure or inflict a curse. If one was particularly unlucky, it might even release the evil spirits or wraiths connected to the treasure vault within.
Someone had previously tried to use this money bag as a coordinate to find that ancient treasure vault, but it proved nearly impossible. The ancient treasure vault was located in the 'Unknown Land,' which was too elusive and difficult to explore. More importantly, there were many Void anomalies there.
If one encountered an ordinary Void anomaly, there might still be a chance of survival by running away. But if one encountered the Frenzy of Abundant Growth, the Lord of the Old Days, or the Candle Woman, it was all over.
"The starting bid for the first item is 5,000 Soul Coins. Please feel free to bid."
As soon as Wude finished speaking, a member of the Reverse Tooth Race bid 8,000 Soul Coins. But in the next second, the Feather Race's prodigy, Yu Li, bid 10,000 Soul Coins. It seemed the Feather Race was quite wealthy.
"100,000!"
As soon as Kaisa said this, the hall suddenly fell silent. Taking advantage of the atmosphere, Wude on stage didn't bother counting down 3, 2, 1. In fact, an auctioneer could drop the hammer without counting if the bid was high enough.
Bang~
"Deal. The Ancient Money Bag is won by this guest."
As Wude on stage dropped the hammer, Tree Sage, who was about to raise his paddle, froze mid-motion. An expression of doubt and confusion appeared on his old face.
If Kaisa and Wude hadn't secretly colluded, Su Xiao absolutely wouldn't believe it. However, this matter didn't involve the use of Goblin Checks.
It turned out that Kaisa's secret contact with Wude to pull this stunt was very necessary. If Tree Sage had reacted in time, given this old fellow's wealth, Kaisa would have had to pay a much higher price to secure the [Ancient Money Bag].
"Ladies and gentlemen, item number two..."
Wude began introducing the second item, a Soul Fruit. Su Xiao had no interest in it.
Su Xiao didn't bid, but Kaisa was the complete opposite. He bid on almost every item, which immediately drew the ire of other bidders.
Kaisa did this on purpose. First, he was in disguise. Second, even if he weren't disguised, he didn't care about his reputation.
Furthermore, Kaisa's constant bidding would make others feel that this Goblin Company shareholder was too troublesome to deal with. As a result, fewer people would compete with him in subsequent bids.
Only by avoiding competition with others could the value of the Goblin Check be maximized. Only by using the Goblin Check to buy more items could those items be sold for more Soul Coins.
As the auction continued, the value of the items on stage grew higher and higher. Eventually, a secret treasure called [Eternal Heart] was won by the Demon Race's old immortal, Wobor, for 1,590,000 Soul Coins.
After a series of high-value items were sold, the atmosphere cooled down a bit. Some peculiar items began to be brought up. This was the ebb and flow of the auction.
"Item number 30, highly pure Abyss Blood. Starting bid, 1,000 Soul Coins."
As Wude spoke, he naturally moved away from item number 30. He didn't like anything related to the Abyss or Daddy-level artifacts.
"1,100."
Su Xiao bid. This was his first bid of the night, and it was the last. He bought the [Highly Pure Abyss Blood] for 1,100 Soul Coins.
Before long, Su Xiao took a liking to another item called [Blazing Sun Emblem]. He found that this item was related to the [Blazing Sun Disc]. The groove on the front of the [Blazing Sun Disc] was just the right size to fit this emblem.
To his surprise, he managed to win this seemingly decent [Blazing Sun Emblem] for just 3,000 Soul Coins.
Then he thought about it. His current identity was Holy Flame Alchemist, a distinguished guest of Arcane Eternal Star. Many of the Spellcasters present were from Arcane Eternal Star and wouldn't compete with him. Tuanzhang, White Bull, and the others certainly wouldn't either. Neither would Tree Sage or the older alchemists.
Thinking this way, only the representatives of the medium-sized races would bid against him. Plus, he was bidding on curiosities, not mainstream high-value items, which was why few people competed with him.
After a few more rounds, Su Xiao found another interesting item. It was called [Corrupted Flesh], a curiosity and a rare ritual item. However, using it came with risks. The side effect was that improper use would attract a dark god.
In Su Xiao's view, the main function of this item was useless to him. Instead, its side effect was more valuable. In the end, he won it for 3,100 Soul Coins, forcing a Spirit Hunter competitor to give up. In truth, if that competitor hadn't given up, Su Xiao was ready to stop bidding.
The intense bidding he had imagined didn't materialize. Even during the auction of the [Eternal Heart], the old-timers present were very restrained.
Soon, another batch of high-priced items came on stage. Su Xiao even saw [Technique Soul: Blood] among them. This was a necessary item for him to raise his Blood Spear Grandmaster skill to lv.70.
Unfortunately, this [Technique Soul: Blood] was bundled with [Technique Soul: Heart], [Technique Soul: Ice Soul], [Technique Soul: Spirit], [Technique Soul: Death], and [Technique Soul: Blade] for sale. It seemed everyone knew that while Technique Souls were valuable, they were hard to find buyers. This time, the seller took advantage of the presence of representatives from major factions to sell them as a bundle.
In the end, these Technique Souls were won by the Demon Race. This was very gratifying to Su Xiao. His [Technique Soul: Blood] was now secured. As for what he would exchange with the Demon Race? Naturally, it would be Black Maple Tree yield.
The second batch of high-value items was sold one after another. The auction was nearing its end. The final item was brought on stage. It was a thick wooden box. Strangely, before Wude could introduce it, the waiter who brought it up opened the box.
A chill spread. A thread-bound old book, about a thumb thick with uneven edges on every page, was frozen inside the box. This ancient book was essentially many leather pages bound together.
The moment he saw this item, Su Xiao recognized it as the 'Necronomicon.' Almost simultaneously, another question arose in his mind: the Supreme Being was far more powerful than he had imagined.
Although this auction was held at the Dawnlight Manor, the items actually came from multiple factions. Therefore, with the 'Necronomicon' mixed in, the buyer couldn't trace which faction had commissioned its sale.
Undoubtedly, the 'Necronomicon' had been brought to Arcane Eternal Star by the Crow Woman. Its previous owner was Su Xiao, and the one before that was Shenfu. Before that, it could be traced back ten thousand years.
With the 'Necronomicon' now sealed in a very special kind of hard ice, the probability of someone among the bidders buying it was actually not low.
As for why Arcane Eternal Star chose to sell this item through an auction, the reason was simple. The most troublesome aspect of the 'Necronomicon' was its karma. Once one established a karmic connection with it, even if they threw it into some Primordial World, it would reappear in Arcane Eternal Star the next second.
Therefore, selling the 'Necronomicon' was essentially transferring the karma. This was the fastest and most effective way to get rid of the 'Necronomicon.' This showed that someone in Arcane Eternal Star was very knowledgeable about 'Daddy-level' artifacts, or perhaps Arcane Eternal Star had consulted the Devil Race?
Wude on stage naturally saw the 'Necronomicon.' The dazed look in his flame-like pupils indicated that this matter had nothing to do with the Devil Race. Before he could speak, the Feather Race auctioneer, who had replaced Wude once during the intermission, said:
"This is the last item of the day, the Unknown Book. Because we know nothing about it, the starting bid is 1,000 Soul Coins."
The Feather Race auctioneer's introduction piqued the interest of some bidders below, who gradually raised the price to over 5,000 Soul Coins.
Below the stage, Su Xiao had figured out the key point and formulated a counter-strategy. He was about to raise his hand to bid.
Soul Lord, Sefeiliya, and Dean Gu Ya, who had just arrived, all noticed Su Xiao's intention to bid. This caused their gazes to gradually turn serious.