Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Spirit Beast Pouch

What! A direct increase of three thousand spirit stones in one breath!

The one who spoke was none other than Zhangsun Qingliu from the private room on the third floor.

An Zhan hesitated, turning his gaze toward the old master to seek his opinion.

The old master shook his head slightly. Even if they could afford that price, they could not bear such a cost.

In the private room on the fourth floor—

Wu Long looked at the head of the Ma family. “Brother Ma, do you know which power is behind this?”

“No idea!” The head of the Li family also shook his head. “It’s definitely not a power from around Dragon City.”

“Anyone else wishing to bid?” The gentle voice of Zhiqing, the woman on stage, sounded.

“Uncle, are we really not making a move?” In another private room in the southeast corner of the third floor, a young man in a yellow robe looked intently at the middle-aged man before him.

“If the Zhangsun family wants this mid-grade spiritual artifact so badly, let them have it... That way, the next item will be uncontested, and my Zhao family will take it with ease...” The middle-aged man rolled the prayer beads in his hand, looking composed and confident.

———

As expected, the mid-grade spiritual artifact, the Glazed Bottle, ultimately fell into the hands of Zhangsun Qingliu.

Though the bidding did not become as fierce as anticipated, the final price was already beyond what ordinary people could manage.

“The next auction item is rather special...” As Zhiqing spoke, a black cloth pouch, about the size of a palm, appeared in her jade-like hand.

“A Spirit Beast Pouch. As the name suggests, it’s a spatial treasure for storing spirit beasts... Though its inner space is only the size of a small room, you all should know how rare such artifacts are—no less so than a high-grade spiritual artifact...” Zhiqing’s words flowed like a gentle spring, stirring the hearts of all present.

Standing quietly on the auction stage, she said no more, letting everyone digest this information at their own pace.

Among all those present, the most excited was undoubtedly Lin Cheng.

At that moment, his eyes were shining, fixed intently on the black pouch in the woman’s hand.

Seeing Lin Cheng get up and stare at the auction stage, the two young women beside him thought he was eyeing the woman in the cheongsam and were about to lose their tempers.

But following his gaze, they realized their misunderstanding.

Naturally, this scene did not escape the notice of An Zhan and the others seated behind them. They exchanged glances, their smiles full of meaning.

“Brother Lin Cheng, do you like this Spirit Beast Pouch?” An’an asked.

Lin Cheng replied, “Yes. I have a companion... If I had this pouch, I could always keep it by my side.”

“In that case, let’s bid for it...” An’an said, taking out her own storage pouch and handing it to Lin Cheng.

Yingying also unfastened the storage pouch at her waist and placed it in Lin Cheng’s hands. “Big Brother Lin, these... These are the spirit stones you gave me, use them as you wish...”

Lin Cheng patted both girls gently on the head, a happy smile on his face.

“Don’t worry, if it’s not enough, I’ll ask you for more...” Lin Cheng said, returning the pouches to the girls.

———

Once the moment was right—

Zhiqing deliberately drew out her words and announced, “The Spirit Beast Pouch, starting bid... one spirit stone...”

One spirit stone!

Everyone was stunned!

“This Zhiqing girl really knows how to play with the crowd...” In the fifth-floor private room, Lin Cheng couldn’t help but laugh.

After a brief silence, the hall erupted in a flurry of bidding.

“One hundred spirit stones...”

“Five hundred spirit stones...”

“I’ll offer one thousand...”

“You bumpkins, thinking you can win the Spirit Beast Pouch with just a thousand spirit stones... You must be dreaming. I’ll offer five thousand!”

The man’s mocking tone was effective—many glared at him, their eyes full of murderous intent.

“Ten thousand spirit stones...” came a voice from the southeast corner of the third floor.

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Hearing this, the Grand Elder of the Zhangsun family, seated in another room on the third floor, slowly opened his eyes.

“The Zhao family couldn’t restrain themselves after all...”

“Grand Elder, should we...?” Zhangsun Qingliu hesitated.

“The Spirit Beast Pouch is good, but for the family, that martial manual is the true priority... We don’t have enough spirit stones to bid on anything else,” the Grand Elder said.

“Qingliu understands.”

The price for the Spirit Beast Pouch did not stop at ten thousand spirit stones.

After a brief lull, the bidding surged again.

“To think our An family has been reduced to mere bystanders at this auction...” The old master sighed as the bids continued to rise.

“So be it. We won’t hope for anything else. Let’s focus all our efforts on securing this Spirit Beast Pouch for young friend Lin.”

The old master had seen through it all—the foreign powers present were far beyond their reach.

Rather than coveting unattainable treasures, it was better to help Lin Cheng win this item.

With the old master’s approval, An Zhan stood up before Lin Cheng could protest.

“Our An family bids twenty thousand spirit stones. We are determined to win this Spirit Beast Pouch. I hope all present can show some leniency—An will be deeply grateful...”

At An Zhan’s words, the hall fell silent. The bid of twenty thousand spirit stones had crushed their hopes.

The young man in the yellow robe from the Zhao family frowned.

He had thought that with the Zhangsun family out, the Spirit Beast Pouch would be theirs for sure. Who would have expected the An family to jump in at this moment?

“Let them have it...” the middle-aged man with the prayer beads said in a low voice.

“Yes, Uncle.”

———

In the end, the Spirit Beast Pouch fell into Lin Cheng’s hands.

“Next is the final item of tonight’s auction, the grand finale...”

On the auction stage, Zhiqing smiled radiantly.

A crimson martial manual appeared in her hand.

“Blood Devouring Force, a high-tier Profound grade technique... Starting bid, thirty thousand spirit stones...”

With her introduction, everyone’s breathing grew tense.

The old master also stood and walked to the window, his eyes flashing as he stared at the manual.

On the third floor, the Zhangsun family’s Grand Elder opened his eyes.

At that moment, the middle-aged man from the Zhao family, prayer beads in hand, also rose to look.

Any faction with true strength in the private rooms above was now staring intently at the item in the woman’s hand.

A high-tier Profound grade martial manual!

Even among the three great sects, such treasures weren’t easily obtained.

If anyone in the hall was the calmest, it was Lin Cheng.

To him, martial manuals were just fuel for the fire.

Not to mention high-tier Profound grade techniques—even a Heaven grade manual would be meaningless to him.

As his strength grew, he felt more and more the power and terror of the Five Elements Sword Scripture.

“Our Zhangsun family bids thirty thousand spirit stones...” Zhangsun Qingliu declared.

Could he be from the Zhangsun family of the Zhao Kingdom?

Hearing Zhangsun Qingliu state his name, some quick-witted individuals immediately began to guess.

But on second thought, it seemed unlikely—the Zhangsun family was far off in the Zhao Kingdom’s capital. How could they appear in Dragon City?

“Old Master An, do you know which Zhangsun family this is?” Lin Cheng asked curiously.

To open with a bid of thirty thousand spirit stones—even the An family couldn’t manage that. Clearly, the Zhangsun family was no ordinary lineage.

Everyone in the fifth-floor private room was filled with questions.

“It should be a branch of the Zhangsun family from Wen City...” the old master replied after some thought.

In his view, it could not possibly be the main line from the Zhao Kingdom’s capital.

That kind of power would hardly lack for Profound grade manuals.

And the nearest Zhangsun family was the branch in Wen City.

“The Zhangsun family is a towering and mighty clan. As far as I know, their main line resides far away in Central Province...”

“But in the various kingdoms of the Azure State, there are also many branch families...”

“Even a single branch is far beyond what our An family could compare to...”

“Not just the Zhangsun family; all twelve great clans of the Sky Vast Realm are much the same.”

Listening to the old master’s unhurried explanation, everyone was astonished—they hadn’t expected the power and complexity of these great family networks.

———