Just as everyone was guessing at the identities of the occupants of VIP Rooms One and Three, the elder on the auction stage spoke up: "The next item is the penultimate grand finale of the Pingwu Auction—this is a spirit fruit called the Cloud-Dream Fruit."
This fruit is a miraculous healing sacred medicine, no less than a grade-seven pill. It can cure cultivation deviation and injuries to the mind and spirit. Its greatest trait is that it’s saturated with stellar force—its stellar energy content equals a high-grade Starstone, and it can be directly absorbed and converted into stellar force.
It’s said that a Cloud-Dream Fruit takes a thousand years to ripen a single fruit, making it extremely rare. The starting price is two hundred thousand Starstones, with minimum raises of fifty thousand. The auction begins now."
The elder’s lengthy introduction made it clear how extraordinary the Cloud-Dream Fruit was. Many in the crowd showed envy and longing, but the price was so steep that hardly anyone could afford it.
Everyone knew full well that only the seven mysterious VIP room occupants could realistically compete, with Rooms One and Three being the most prominent.
As for the Tuoba clan, they could only watch from afar. With a starting price of two hundred thousand Starstones and a final price likely in the millions, it was far beyond what they could afford.
The first to bid was VIP Room Five, who immediately raised the price to two hundred fifty thousand Starstones. Clearly, they’d been holding back, waiting for the right moment.
After Room Five, VIP Room Six also joined in, instantly bidding three hundred thousand Starstones. Suddenly, the quieter VIP rooms were getting lively.
Evan Chu, hearing that the Cloud-Dream Fruit could heal injuries to the mind and spirit, had already resolved that he must obtain it no matter what. If his mind wasn’t healed, his strength couldn’t improve—this was an urgent issue.
When the price reached four hundred thousand, Evan bid once, raising it straight to four hundred fifty thousand Starstones.
Immediately, a middle-aged man beside the master of Room One said, "Go find out who that is. Tell him the Cloud-Dream Fruit is extremely important to me, and ask him not to raise the price. I’ll reward him for it."
"Understood! I’ll handle it right away!" The middle-aged man quickly left the VIP room and walked toward the auction stage, heading straight for Lynn.
When Lynn saw the middle-aged man approaching, she immediately went to meet him. After he whispered a few words in her ear, he left, and Lynn turned and headed straight for Gus Bullard’s room.
"Young master, Lynn requests an audience!" Lynn called out from outside.
Gus Bullard knew exactly why Lynn was here. He didn’t hesitate: "Tell them—I can yield on anything else, but not the Cloud-Dream Fruit. I came to this auction for that fruit and that fruit alone."
Lynn didn’t say another word. She went straight back to deliver Gus Bullard’s message to the people in VIP Room One. The middle-aged man inside immediately snapped, "He refuses a toast—so he’ll drink a penalty! Once the auction ends, kill him and take the Cloud-Dream Fruit back!"
"Don’t be reckless! This isn’t the Royal Capital—we’d best behave ourselves. If he wants it that badly, let him have it. The Cloud-Dream Fruit for one and a half million Starstones is just too expensive. There’s no need to waste so many Starstones."
Down in the hall, everyone was once again awed by the shock VIP Room Three brought to the crowd. People started speculating—could the person inside be the Royal Capital’s second prince?
In the end, Gus Bullard won the Cloud-Dream Fruit for one and a half million Starstones. Next up was the final showcase item from Lyric Hall Auctions.
"Ladies and gentlemen! The most anticipated moment of the day has arrived. Now up for auction is Lyric Hall Auctions’ ultimate treasure—a top-grade Earth-tier martial manual: the Demon-Breaking Fist Manual! I’m sure you all know what a top-grade Earth-tier martial manual means, so I won’t waste words. Starting price: 500,000 Starstones. Each raise: no less than 100,000. The auction begins now!" Lynn announced loudly.
An Earth-tier martial manual—and top-grade at that—was truly rare. Back then, even Elder Victor Xu had only given Gus Bullard a lower-grade one; the value couldn’t even compare.
"Boss Evan, are you bidding for this martial manual? It’s Earth-tier—the power must be insane," Gavin reminded.
Gus Bullard was torn. He really didn’t have any good martial skills to use—the only one available was the Windchaser Sword Codex, but that was just Profound-tier. He did have some heaven-defying techniques, but they were far too restricted to practice right now. If he ran into a Heaven Martial expert, all he could do was run for his life.
With the Royal Capital ahead, he needed more strength. It looked like he absolutely had to win this martial manual.
"Buy it—no matter how many Starstones it takes! You handle the bidding, I’ll wait for your result!" Gus Bullard declared.
A top-grade Earth-tier martial manual was tempting enough that even a couple of bidders from the regular seats joined in. The price quickly shot up to one million Starstones, and it kept climbing.
Especially VIP Rooms Four and Two, who hadn’t bid before, were now going all out. In no time, the bid reached one and a half million.
Gavin was sweating bullets, nervously glancing at Gus Bullard, hoping for some guidance. But Gus didn’t even look his way.
Finally, the bidding stalled at one million seven hundred thousand Starstones—VIP Room Four had the highest offer. Just as Lynn was about to announce Room Four as the winner, Gavin made a snap decision and raised the bid by another 300,000, jumping straight to two million Starstones.
The entire hall was left in shock. Instantly, rumors and speculation exploded, but none louder than the threats from VIP Room Four. Gus Bullard heard it clearly: "Whoever’s inside Room Three—once this auction is over, you’d better be ready to die…"