Standing at the end of the bustling street, Xiao Yan couldn’t help but let out a gasp as he gazed at the enormous auction house in front of him. Back in the capital of the Jia Ma Empire, when he first saw the Mistel Family’s auction house, he was quite impressed by its scale. But now, upon arriving in Black Mark City, he realized that compared to the “Black Mark” auction house, the Mistel Auction House seemed like a mere speck. At the entrance of the Black Mark auction house, dozens of expressionless, black-clad men with sharp weapons at their waists, and eyes as keen as hawks, constantly scanned the crowds going in and out. Judging from the faint aura emanating from them, there were actually five people who were at the level of a Dou Shi, while the rest were at the peak of Dou Zhe. Using individuals of the Dou Shi level to guard the entrance, it was clear that the strength of the “Eight Doors” was indeed extremely formidable. At least, the Mistel Family would not be so extravagant as to use a Dou Shi master as a gatekeeper. Tightening the broad black cloak around him, Xiao Yan lowered his head slightly, allowing the shadow of the hood to completely cover his face. In the chaotic Black-Corner Region, he did not think that exposing himself casually was a wise decision. Following the crowd, Xiao Yan slowly entered the auction house, where the vast space once again left him momentarily dazed before he recovered and walked towards the center of the hall. Inside the auction house, huge screens hung on all sides, displaying countless items up for auction. After a cursory glance, Xiao Yan did not see anything particularly extraordinary, likely because those rare items were being kept under wraps to maintain their mystique. Of course, some powerful factions could still get information about those hidden treasures through other channels. As his gaze swept around, it finally landed on the door frame of a treasure appraisal room. Xiao Yan hesitated for a moment before stepping inside. Entering what was called the appraisal room, Xiao Yan was somewhat surprised to find that the spacious room was neatly divided into no less than a hundred small, private chambers. Presumably, this was to prevent the exposure of the treasures. As soon as Xiao Yan entered the appraisal room, a maidservant in a revealing outfit approached, her voice dripping with coquettishness: “Sir, are you here to have your treasure appraised, or to have it evaluated for auction?” “The latter,” Xiao Yan replied, intentionally keeping his voice a bit hoarse. “Please follow me.” The maidservant gave a seductive smile and turned, her waist swaying in an enticing manner. Her alluring figure was enough to kindle a fire in any man’s belly. It seemed that the maidservants here had undergone special training to maximize their allure in the eyes of men. Keeping his gaze within the shadow of the hood, Xiao Yan ignored the maidservant’s provocative movements. In the chaotic Black-Corner Region, even a woman without a scrap of combat ability could bring a man down. Therefore, Xiao Yan dared not and did not want to have any dealings with the women here. Following the maidservant for nearly a dozen meters, they stopped in front of a small chamber. She bowed respectfully to Xiao Yan and said with a smile, “Sir, if you hand over the item you wish to auction to the master inside for evaluation and review, you will be able to obtain a different level of seating at the auction based on the value of your item.” Nodding slightly, Xiao Yan gently pushed open the black wooden door and walked in, closing it behind him. The small chamber was brightly lit, and an old man with slightly gray hair was giving Xiao Yan a sharp look. However, since the latter was almost completely hidden under the black robe, the old man could not discern much. “Please sit down.” The old man pointed casually to a chair in front of the table and, after finishing the arrangement of the tools for examining the auction items, looked down and said, “Take out the item you wish to auction.” Maintaining his silence, Xiao Yan waved his hand, and three small jade bottles appeared on the table.
“Pill?” Hearing the sound of the jade bottles hitting the table, the old man paused for a moment, raised his head, and fixed his gaze on the three small bottles. A flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes. He put on thin, transparent gloves and carefully picked up one of the small bottles, then poured the pale green, round pill into his palm, sniffed it, and examined the green and purple patterns on the pill. After a moment’s thought, his face changed slightly, and he said with amazement, “Is this a Two-Stripe Green Spirit Pill?”
“Yes.” Xiao Yan nodded slightly, his voice still hoarse, “Since you have heard of the Two-Stripe Green Spirit Pill, you must know its effects. Please estimate the starting bid for me.”
“I need to examine it first.” The old man shook his head and then took out some peculiar tools to examine the pill. After a while, he stopped and looked at Xiao Yan with a strange expression, saying, “It is indeed a Two-Stripe Green Spirit Pill, and of high quality. Even a common fourth-grade alchemist would find it difficult to produce such a quality.”
“According to the valuation method in the Black-Corner Region, the starting bid for this Two-Stripe Green Spirit Pill should be around 300,000 gold coins. If wealthy forces are bidding, it might fetch up to 500,000 gold coins.”
“Then, let’s take a look at this one…” Xiao Yan nodded slightly. This price was already higher than he had expected. He then pushed the bottle containing the Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill toward the old man.
“Oh?” Slightly startled, the old man took the bottle and rolled out the smooth, emerald-like pill. When his gaze fell on the three stripes on the pill, his calm face finally showed a trace of seriousness. Although the Two-Stripe and Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pills differed by only one stripe, their values were vastly different.
While the Two-Stripe Green Spirit Pill could help a Dou Shi break through barriers and advance, it could only increase their strength by one or two stars, and there was a significant risk of backlash. The Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill, on the other hand, could not only break through the barrier but also sharply increase the user’s strength by three stars. Of course, this was under the assumption that the user did not suppress the sudden surge in power. When Xiao Yan took the Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill, he had been worried about the rapid increase in strength, which might cause him to lose precise control over his body. So, he had stored the medicinal energy in his body, and when it activated later, it caused another surge in his strength. From this, one could see the significant difference between the Three-Stripe and Two-Stripe pills!
For this, the old man, who had seen countless treasures, was naturally aware. Therefore, his expression now showed a mix of surprise and gravity.
“Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill?” The old man muttered in astonishment as he examined the pill.
“Yes.” Xiao Yan nodded calmly.
“Good stuff…” The old man smacked his lips, even though he was used to seeing precious items, he still made this comment. After a moment’s hesitation, he said, “This Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill could set the starting bid at around 700,000 gold coins, and with the bidding, I think it could sell for around 900,000 gold coins.”
Xiao Yan nodded silently, but inwardly, he let out a sigh. The combined value of these three Green Spirit Pills was close to two million gold coins. This amount of money… was truly frightening. No wonder alchemists were a profession that never lacked money. This kind of business, where one could make a fortune, was enough to make other professions envious.
Of course, Xiao Yan was well aware that such a profit was based on a sufficiently high success rate. After all, some alchemists, even with ten attempts, might succeed only once. The materials for the Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill alone cost around 60,000 to 70,000 gold coins. Even if they succeeded once out of ten times, it would barely cover the cost. Not all alchemists in the world had the assistance of a highly experienced Pharmacist Elder and Heavenly Fire, which were two great advantages.
“Two Two-Stripe Green Spirit Pills and one Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill. Sir, the value of the items you are auctioning has reached the second-class VIP level of our Black Mark Auction House. Here is your seat number. The auction will officially start this afternoon, please take your designated seat.” The old man carefully placed the pills down and then retrieved a green jade card from the counter, handing it to Xiao Yan.
Nodding, Xiao Yan took the jade card and asked, “Can I leave now?”
“Of course, sir, please feel free.” The old man carefully put away the three Green Spirit Pills and said with a smile. Perhaps because of them, his attitude towards Xiao Yan had improved somewhat.
With that, Xiao Yan did not waste any more words. He stood up, walked slowly to the door, and left.
Watching the door slowly close and hearing the gradually fading footsteps, the old man tapped the table lightly with his fingers. After a while, he looked down at the three sealed Green Spirit Pills, and a strange glint flashed in his cloudy eyes.
“This person, whom I have never seen before, can bring out three Green Spirit Pills at once. He must be an alchemist, and a fairly high-level one at that…”
The old man pressed a spot on the table, and a dark hole slowly opened in the wall. He picked up the three Green Spirit Pills and stepped into the hole, his low murmur echoing in the chamber.
“An alchemist capable of producing a Three-Stripe Green Spirit Pill is not common in the Black-Corner Region. The Sect Leader would surely be interested in such a person…”
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