Chapter 62: Clash
Inside the auction venue, Su Xiao's sudden bid clearly disrupted the plans of the assembled spellcasters.
It wasn't that the spellcasters had been negligent or had failed to anticipate this; rather, it was simply unavoidable.
Although the auction items came from various factions, the auction itself was held at the Dawnlight Estate. As this was the spellcasters' territory, they naturally controlled the arrangement of the auction proceedings.
Even so, they couldn't approach Su Xiao, who was disguised as the Holy Flame Alchemist, and tell him not to bid on the final item because it was a sinister object from the Abyss.
Among the spellcasters themselves, only a few knew about this. Even though they were currently trying to win Su Xiao over, they wouldn't reveal such an unsavory secret to him.
As for preventing Su Xiao from attending the auction altogether, that was even more impossible. Such an act would be blatant targeting. The subsequent relationship between the two sides wouldn't just be strained; it would be completely frozen. The resources Arcane Eternal Star had invested in courting Su Xiao would have been given away for nothing.
Furthermore, the convening of the Arcane Festival made the arrangements for this matter somewhat hasty, hence this loophole.
Before the auction began, Sefeiliya, Dean Guya, Soul Mistress, and Frostwind King had discussed the matter. Frostwind King advocated throwing the [Necronomicon] into the Abyss Passage. Since it came from the Abyss, let it return there.
Sefeiliya, Dean Guya, and Soul Mistress all opposed this. Throwing the [Necronomicon] into the Abyss Passage introduced too many variables. Selling the thing to a 'fated buyer' was much safer.
On the auction stage, the Feather Race auctioneer, though appearing composed, was sweating down his back. He was, of course, also a participant in this plan. In fact, this was a trap set by the high-ranking spellcasters of Arcane Eternal Star.
Inviting Wude as the special auctioneer for tonight was itself a pitfall. Remember, during the battle for the World of Paintings, Arcane Eternal Star had sent the female spellcaster Luo Xi and Yinqi Suo Yeg as representatives. Moreover, Luo Xi had brought the [Insight Eye] certified by the Void Tree, broadcasting the battle live to the 'Mou Arena' in the Void.
At that time, many Void race spectators had witnessed parts of the World of Paintings battle through the images transmitted back by Luo Xi via the [Insight Eye].
However, the [Insight Eye] later ended up with the Apocalypse Sisters, who staged a series of 'live-streamed' escapes.
These weren't the main point. The main point was that, through some of the [Insight Eye] footage, Arcane Eternal Star had learned that Wude and Su Xiao had previously cooperated.
Under these circumstances, inviting Wude to be the special auctioneer for this auction was certainly ill-intentioned.
Who was Wude? Wouldn't he realize this? The answer is, he did. To be precise, Arcane Eternal Star, which invited him, had ulterior motives, and he, who accepted the invitation, also had no good intentions.
The spellcasters' plan was that, with Wude as the auctioneer, the final item would be sold as a 'Daddy-level' artifact.
The buyer who won the [Necronomicon] would undoubtedly first suspect Wude from the Devil Race of being involved. The Devil Race's reputation as 'Void Daddy Raisers' was quite famous.
To prevent Wude from bidding on the [Necronomicon], the spellcasters had specifically arranged two auctioneers and had the Feather Race auctioneer take over for Wude midway through the auction, so his current appearance wouldn't seem abrupt.
Regarding the unknown variable in this plan, the Holy Flame Alchemist, the four leaders of Arcane Eternal Star had briefly discussed it in secret.
In Sefeiliya's view, it was unlikely the Holy Flame Alchemist would bid on the [Necronomicon]. First, as a top-tier alchemist, he was undoubtedly knowledgeable. Seeing the [Necronomicon] on stage, even though it was sealed in 'Frost Ice' and its sinister fluctuations were hard to detect, he would still vaguely sense something was wrong.
Soul Mistress and Dean Guya agreed with this view. The insight of a top alchemist was not to be doubted.
Frostwind King proposed a different view. What if the Holy Flame Alchemist suddenly thought the [Necronomicon] was interesting and joined the bidding?
Sefeiliya's answer was to go sit next to him on the spot and tell him not to bid on this item, saying the specific reasons would be explained later. Hearing this direct, effective, yet simple and crude solution, Frostwind King was left speechless for a long time.
The method was a bit direct, but considering various factors, this strategy was indeed feasible. Moreover, the probability of the Holy Flame Alchemist choosing to bid on the [Necronomicon] was very low.
Unfortunately, this low-probability event ultimately occurred. Or rather, it wasn't a low-probability event at all; it was bound to happen.
The reason the spellcasters didn't want Su Xiao to win the [Necronomicon] was that if this happened, it meant Su Xiao had established a karmic connection with the [Necronomicon]. In this situation, should Arcane Eternal Star continue to court the Holy Flame Alchemist or give up?
If they continued to court him, it would mean re-establishing a karmic link with the [Necronomicon]. At that point, between Arcane Eternal Star and the Holy Flame Alchemist, the [Necronomicon] would undoubtedly choose the former, as their resource reserves were not on the same level.
If they gave up on the Holy Flame Alchemist who had won the [Necronomicon], it would be a huge loss for Arcane Eternal Star. First, they would miss out on a top-tier alchemist. Second, all the resources previously invested in courting him would be wasted.
"9000."
Su Xiao bid again, causing a competing Awu Clan member to give up.
As the final item, the [Necronomicon] was introduced as an unknown ancient book, so few were interested in it. Additionally, no one present was willing to compete with the Holy Flame Alchemist.
"Mr. Holy Flame bids 9000 Soul Coins. Any higher bids?"
The Feather Race auctioneer on stage vividly described the fabricated origin of the [Necronomicon], implying that although the ancient book's function was unknown, its background was significant.
In reality, the Feather Race auctioneer was panicking inside. He was certain this item couldn't be sold to the Holy Flame Alchemist, but at this point, he couldn't just not drop the hammer.
Su Xiao had gained a lot from this trip to Arcane Eternal Star. One of his gains was discovering that, despite their apparent occasional hostility, the Feather Race and Arcane Eternal Star were actually in cahoots.
Previously, the Demon Race and Feather Race had secretly allied, seemingly in conflict or even war. In reality, their old immortals had already colluded, using this mutual hostility to avoid being targeted by Arcane Eternal Star.
After all, in recent years, both the Demon Race and Feather Race had been too active, inevitably arousing Arcane Eternal Star's suspicion. Rather than being suppressed by Arcane Eternal Star, it was better to pretend to be in conflict.
But the result was that the more they fought, the more the Demon Race felt something was wrong. They had agreed to hold back, but the Feather Race, after gathering their forces, took a running start and slammed a heavy hammer down on the Demon Race.
The Demon Race was stunned and angrily demanded, 'Are you serious?'
The Feather Race shouted apologies while actually hitting harder and seizing a lot of Demon Race territory. This wasn't mutual acting; this was a real fight.
This led to the conflict escalating. At its peak, the Demon Race saw spellcasters on the battlefield.
At this point, the Demon Race naturally understood what was happening. They had been played by the Feather Race. The Feather Race had allied with Arcane Eternal Star. After they jointly occupied a piece of Demon Race territory, they split it in half, implying that if the Demon Race dared to fight back, they would face both Arcane Eternal Star and the Feather Race together.
More importantly, the Demon Race found this too embarrassing and chose to swallow the bitter fruit.
So, seeing a Feather Race auctioneer on stage now, Su Xiao might have been surprised before, but after learning the details during this trip, he was no longer surprised.
Why hadn't the Demon Race mentioned this to him? Given their warlike and face-loving nature, it would be truly abnormal for them to bring it up voluntarily.
After learning that the Feather Race and Arcane Eternal Star were secretly allied, Su Xiao naturally wouldn't hesitate to arrange things for the Feather Race when the opportunity arose. For example, choosing the Feather Race genius Yu Li as the starting point of his plan.
"9200."
A Reverse Tooth Clan muscular man raised his sign and bid. Seeing this, the Feather Race auctioneer immediately raised his hand and said, "9200 Soul Coins. Any higher?"
The Feather Race auctioneer said this, but as he spoke, he had already raised the auction hammer, ready to strike.
"9300."
As soon as Su Xiao said this, the Feather Race auctioneer on stage nearly twisted his back. The hammer, halfway down, had to stop abruptly. If he struck and sold the [Necronomicon] to the Holy Flame Alchemist, there would be no good outcome for him.
Just as Su Xiao made his bid, he found Sefeiliya sitting in the seat next to him, whispering, "Holy Flame, that ancient book doesn't seem worth 9300 Soul Coins."
"Perhaps."
As Su Xiao spoke, he prepared to bid again. The Reverse Tooth Clan muscular man had already bid 9400 Soul Coins.
"Then why are you bidding?"
Sefeiliya turned her head to look at Su Xiao, beginning to suspect his intentions.
"The wooden box it's in must be worth that much."
Hearing this, Sefeiliya was stunned for a moment, then had nothing to say. As the maker of that wooden box, she knew its value better than anyone. Not just 9400 Soul Coins; in the outside world, 94000 Soul Coins couldn't buy that box.
"You should have said you liked it earlier. I'll give you one."
Sefeiliya whispered, causing Su Xiao to pause as he was about to raise his number plate. He whispered back:
"I need a bigger one. That one looks a bit small."
"Alright."
"Deal."
Su Xiao placed the number plate on the table. In the end, the Reverse Tooth Clan muscular man won the [Necronomicon] for 9400 Soul Coins.
As the auction ended, guests gradually dispersed. Su Xiao went backstage, paid the Soul Coins, collected his three won items, and left the auction venue with Beini.
Just as he exited the venue's corridor, Su Xiao encountered a female spellcaster wearing a black robe, a hood, and white bandages wrapped around her entire body. With a slightly husky, hoarse voice, she said:
"Mr. Holy Flame, my mentor is waiting for you at the winery."
"Lead the way."
As soon as Su Xiao spoke, the female spellcaster beside him snapped her fingers.
When the spatial fluctuations stabilized, Su Xiao was already in the dining room on the second floor of the winery's castle. He looked around, then sat down. Across from him was Sefeiliya, who was enjoying dinner.
"Holy Flame, do you know what that is?"
Sefeiliya put down her utensils, picked up a crystal glass, and took a sip. She cut straight to the point about the [Necronomicon], clearly adopting an attitude of suspicion.
"It's something from the Abyss."
Su Xiao didn't hide it. The more candid he appeared now, the less suspicion he would attract.
"And you still dared to bid on it?"
Sefeiliya's tone began to cool, losing its usual hint of politeness.
"Oh, so the Necronomicon ended up in your hands. I was wondering how you, as the auction's organizers, would accept such an item."
Hearing this, Sefeiliya's eyes narrowed slightly, and her aura became dangerous.
"So, you know a lot about the Necronomicon?"
"Of course I do. If we consider the Reverse Tooth Clan as the current holder, then the previous holder was you. Before that, it was the Law Destroyer named Bai Ye. It also passed through the Devil Race. Before that, it was the Violator Shenfu from the Sanctuary Paradise. Guess who was before him? Who sold that thing to Shenfu? Who went to the Abyss Sprawl to search for rare plants and discovered the Necronomicon?"
As Su Xiao spoke, he pulled up his left sleeve. A few semi-transparent tendrils emerged from his arm. As someone who had cooperated with the [Necronomicon] to hunt a Dark God, being intentionally assimilated to this degree by the [Necronomicon]'s fluctuations wasn't dangerous for him. He could remove it after returning to the Reincarnation Paradise.
In his words, Su Xiao deliberately planted a flaw: revealing that he knew the Necronomicon had once been in the hands of a Law Destroyer. This was to make his subsequent explanation more complete and believable.
"How much do you know about that thing?"
Sefeiliya frowned. She felt a mix of amusement and frustration. The situation had developed beyond mere strangeness.
But don't be fooled by her current attitude. She had keenly caught one point: how did the Holy Flame Alchemist know that the Necronomicon had once been in Bai Ye's hands? She was ready to strike immediately at the slightest sign of trouble.
"My understanding of the Necronomicon is greater than yours. The way you sold it was too careless. The Necronomicon has a karmic trait. After it causes the death of its current holder or the extinction of their race, it traces back to the previous holder, meaning it will come back to you. When you can't withstand it, or it can't withstand your methods, it will continue tracing back to the previous holder, going to that Law Destroyer..."
When Su Xiao reached this point, Sefeiliya across the table asked, "So, if we handle it properly, the one who ends up in trouble will be that Law Destroyer?"
"Of course not."
Su Xiao looked at Sefeiliya with a faint smile, which displeased her. She hated being looked at that way.
"The Necronomicon values karma. If Bai Ye were just a Law Destroyer, it might be fine. But he is also a Hunter from the Reincarnation Paradise. Even the Necronomicon wouldn't want to fight to the death with a Reincarnation Paradise Hunter. When I learned that Shenfu had gotten rid of the Necronomicon, I was disappointed. But when I found out he had passed it on to Bai Ye, I was relieved. I thought the Necronomicon would return to Shenfu and continue to torment him. But why did it end up in your hands?"
Su Xiao didn't hide this point. He had set a trap, so he naturally needed to throw out enough bait to get Sefeiliya to take the hook.
He had deliberately revealed that he knew the Necronomicon had been with a Law Destroyer. This was a somewhat risky statement. But if the Holy Flame Alchemist identity was truly the one who awakened the Necronomicon, he would naturally keep a close eye on its movements.
According to Su Xiao's information, the Devil Race would send people every 20 to 30 days to check if the Abyssal Jar was still with Kaisa.
Thus, Su Xiao was recreating the psychological state of someone who had been burned by a 'Daddy-level' artifact. As the saying goes, the devil is in the details.
"According to you, we can't shake off the Necronomicon this time?"
"Of course you can. You can give it to me. Don't forget, I was the one who awakened it in the Abyss Sprawl. I've always had an idea: to sell the Necronomicon to the Reincarnation Paradise and see what happens. But last time, I wanted to use that method to deal with Shenfu, who ordered potions without paying. This time, I'll give it a try."
Su Xiao finished speaking, took a sip of his wine, then showed surprise and praised, "Good wine. Who brewed it?"
Hearing his praise for the wine, Sefeiliya's expression softened slightly compared to before.
"Where did you get that wooden box? It's exquisitely made."
"It's not that exquisite. It's average."
Sefeiliya's attitude completely softened. It turned out that being praised for her work by a top-tier alchemist like the Holy Flame Alchemist felt quite good.
"Holy Flame, you said you could help us solve the Necronomicon problem. This isn't free, is it?"
"Of course not. 2 million Soul Coins, and I'll permanently eliminate this hidden danger for you."
"Impossible. 50,000 at most."
"Deal."
"..."
Sefeiliya across the table looked at Su Xiao suspiciously, wanting to say something but ultimately saying nothing.
Regarding this matter, Su Xiao would take whatever benefits he could get. His main goal was to help the [Necronomicon] escape.
Having fought from the First Rank to the Ninth Rank, Su Xiao had encountered several 'Daddy-level' artifacts, 'Quasi-Daddy-level' artifacts, and dangerous objects with the potential to become 'Daddy-level' artifacts.
The Abyssal Jar, the Necronomicon, the Soul Crown (Dark Crown), the Primordial Mask, and finally the Bloodthirsty Battle Armor and Dark Blade. When the latter two decide the victor, they should be heading towards 'Quasi-Daddy-level' artifact status.
Among these artifacts, the [Primordial Mask] seemed to have the closest relationship with Su Xiao. But Su Xiao knew that once this mask advanced from a 'Quasi-Daddy-level' artifact to a 'Daddy-level' artifact, even if it didn't backfire on him, it would leave and distance itself from him.
Only the [Necronomicon] had hunted a Dark God with him and, after the hunt, hadn't taken all the spoils for itself.
Su Xiao naturally wouldn't watch this kind of 'Daddy-level' artifact remain sealed in 'Frost Ice'. Of course, even if he freed it, he wouldn't carry it around. As the saying goes, distance creates beauty. Maintaining their current occasional cooperation was the best distance. If they got too close, Su Xiao was certain he would die under the karma of this 'Daddy-level' artifact.
After dinner, Su Xiao left the winery. Not long after he returned to his lakeside dormitory, there was a knock on the door.
Knock, knock, knock~
Su Xiao gestured for Beini not to open the door. He got up from the single sofa and opened the door himself. No one was outside. A one-meter-square wooden box was placed on the red carpet outside.
Su Xiao opened the box. Inside was the [Necronomicon], sealed in 'Frost Ice'. He directly picked up the cube of 'Frost Ice'.
Meanwhile, in the winery's castle at the Dawnlight Estate, Sefeiliya, Dean Guya, Soul Mistress, and Frostwind King were all watching Su Xiao pick up the 'Frost Ice' through a magical projection.
"Is this alchemist crazy?"
Frostwind King frowned. He had previously risked touching the 'Frost Ice' that sealed the [Necronomicon], and the feeling was unforgettable.
"That Law Destroyer named Bai Ye was also a holder of the Necronomicon and also came from the Reincarnation Paradise. What do you think? Could the Holy Flame Alchemist and Bai Ye be the same person? Bai Ye disguised himself as the Holy Flame Alchemist. Is that possible?"
Soul Mistress spoke. It could only be said that she was a formidable person with over a dozen brain holes.
"Before tonight, I actually had this suspicion. But after tonight's events, I think it's unlikely."
Sefeiliya stated her opinion. The reason was that the Holy Flame Alchemist had never shown anything related to the Law Destroyer, except for both being from the Reincarnation Paradise and the latter being his old customer.
Being in the same paradise, a Hunter being a customer of an alchemist was perfectly normal. In fact, if the Holy Flame Alchemist claimed not to know the Law Destroyer Bai Ye, that would be the biggest red flag.
With such perfect disguise, why bring up this matter tonight? Logically, it was inexplicable.
On the contrary, the Holy Flame Alchemist's straightforward background meant he didn't care about these things. Revealing his connection to the [Necronomicon] was purely for profit. This was real. This was the tangible Holy Flame Alchemist. No matter how superb his alchemy skills were, he was first and foremost a person. People have emotions and desires.
Tonight's events perfectly matched the Holy Flame Alchemist's character and actions. In Sefeiliya's view, he came to Arcane Eternal Star to gain more benefits and resources. He was someone who would cooperate with the White Bull faction for benefits and resources. So, for profit tonight, revealing his relationship with the [Necronomicon] was perfectly normal.
For this reason, Sefeiliya didn't find the Holy Flame Alchemist suspicious. On the contrary, when his identity was very clean before, Sefeiliya had always been cautious.
"Don't worry about his background. If there's the slightest thing wrong, kill him to silence him."
Dean Guya spoke. This old fellow, who appeared the least, was actually the most ruthless. He had always adhered to the principle of killing a thousand by mistake rather than letting one go.
"Old thing, you don't understand the specifics of this matter. That Holy Flame Alchemist knows how to handle people. Now, the Alchemist Guild sees him as the pinnacle of alchemists. Not only can we not kill him without any reason, but even if he dies on Arcane Eternal Star by someone else's hand, the alchemists in the Alchemist Guild will blame us."
Soul Mistress grew more exasperated as she spoke. She glanced at Sefeiliya, unable to understand how the situation had reached this point. In the past, even if she wanted to find fault with Sefeiliya's actions, she couldn't. But this time, it had turned out like this.
"Is that so? Then we really need to think carefully. But speaking of which, how suspicious do you think this Holy Flame Alchemist is?"
"Half a point?"
Frostwind King spoke. So far, he hadn't found anything suspicious about the Holy Flame Alchemist. If not for the need to carefully probe his background due to his status as a top-tier alchemist, when recruiting other talents, they would have stopped probing long ago.
"It seems like not even half a point."
Sefeiliya also stated her opinion.
"So, even if the Holy Flame Alchemist has a problem, it's only that his background as an alchemist is somewhat questionable?"
Dean Guya looked around at the other three.
"Saying the Holy Flame Alchemist is Bai Ye in disguise is indeed too far-fetched. To be honest, to avoid this possibility, I took him to the Soul Forest. We passed the Rock Bridge along the way. There are so many magical towers on the Dark Ring River below, and not a single one reacted. You all know the elemental affinity of Law Destroyers."
As soon as Sefeiliya said this, Soul Mistress's face darkened. She realized that her old rival Sefeiliya had deliberately led her to suggest that the Holy Flame Alchemist might be Bai Ye in disguise. A Law Destroyer couldn't possibly walk past so many magical towers without any reaction.
"Then stop wasting words. He's just an alchemist. Even if his background is somewhat questionable, what big trouble can he cause?"
Soul Mistress's words essentially declared the end of this secret meeting.
What the four leaders didn't expect was that everything Su Xiao had done tonight, and the risks he had taken, were all to get the four of them together. The reason was that on Arcane Eternal Star, Su Xiao feared five people. The most feared was the Supreme Being, followed by Sefeiliya, Soul Mistress, Dean Guya, and Frostwind King.
The Supreme Being rarely left the [Elemental Superconducting Tower]. Su Xiao only needed to briefly stall the four leaders, and some things could be done during this time.
Lakeside dormitory. Su Xiao sat at his workbench, preparing a sleeping potion. This was a commission from Prince Wind.
Just then, the communicator on the workbench rang. Su Xiao held two reaction vessels in his hands. He gestured for Green Gillian to answer it.
Green Gillian picked up the communicator. Bai Niu's voice came through: "Come out for a drink? Got a new boss, but don't forget the old one."
"Tomorrow night. I'll treat you tomorrow night."
"Alright."
Bai Niu hung up. Throughout the conversation, Su Xiao and Bai Niu didn't hide anything from Green Gillian, Sefeiliya's disciple.
In fact, the content of the conversation didn't matter at all. Bai Niu making this call meant the plan had succeeded. If he hadn't called, it meant he had failed, and Su Xiao would need to adjust the plan accordingly.
In short, tonight's plan was for Su Xiao to use the [Necronomicon] to attract the attention of Arcane Eternal Star's four leaders, focusing all their attention on him.
Simultaneously, while the four leaders' attention was drawn to Su Xiao, Bai Niu, Kaisa, Wude, Zuiyasi, Toad, and Storm Rat would quietly carry out another task.
At 10 PM that night, in a luxury hotel room on the commercial street in the front area of Star Plaza.
The lights in the room were off. Moonlight streamed in, illuminating the profile of a Feather Race genius: Yu Li.
Yu Li held an ancient-looking hourglass in one hand, a smile of unrestrained joy spreading across his face. This was his trump card for winning the combat competition. He was very confident in this trump card.