Chapter 252: 249
"Fuck, who the hell did you just call a dying man?" The elder's face turned extremely ugly when Ding Fan called him a dying man.
"How dare you speak to my beloved elder that way? Do you know who he is? Are you tired of living?" The enchanting woman by his side also became fiercely aggressive.
Being dependent on the elder for her livelihood, the enchanting woman naturally got furious when Ding Fan called him a dying man.
Ding Fan glanced at the elder. "Do you feel weak and often sweat coldly when you sleep at night, and every day your hands and feet are cold? Besides that, do you feel dizzy and clouded at noon the next day?"
The elder was taken aback; he had not expected Ding Fan to detail his condition so thoroughly.
"So what if that's true? I've seen doctors, and they said there's nothing wrong with me!" Although the elder felt somewhat uneasy inside, he still puffed out his chest and said to Ding Fan.
At this point, Ding Fan no longer spoke to the elder and turned away.
"Fuck! ...." The enchanting woman raised her finger, wanting to curse as she saw Ding Fan's audacity.
However, at that moment, the elder held her back. "Xiao Rao... don't stoop to that idiot's level."
Xiao Rao was startled and turned to see two men dressed in black suits approaching them.
This was an underground auction; the attendees were all either rich or noble. Those hosting the auction were even more prominent.
The two men in black suits were staff of the auction; although the elder had some background, he did not dare to offend anyone here...
"Brother Fan, you said that elder was a dying man? How could you tell?" Mu Zi asked curiously as they walked away.
Mu Zi had seen Ding Fan's abilities before; she didn't believe Ding Fan was just making baseless claims.
At that moment, Cheng Bufan, who had been silent, also turned around and looked at Ding Fan. Clearly, he was also curious about how Ding Fan determined that the elder was a dying man.
Ding Fan did not keep them in suspense. "Kidney failure yet lustful, addicted to alcohol as though it's his life... if he could quit these two things, he could actually live an extra year or so. Unfortunately, the enchanting woman accompanying him is very demanding... without any surprises, that elder will die within a week!"
Mu Zi nodded as she listened to Ding Fan's words. Cheng Bufan wore a flash of astonishment on his face, but it quickly disappeared.
The trio quickly arrived at a booth. As soon as they sat down, someone came over to serve them tea.
Cheng Bufan was clearly a regular here; many people recognized him and treated him with great respect.
After sitting down, Ding Fan quietly observed the underground auction.
The attendees included not only wealthy individuals but also many martial artists. Ding Fan was shocked to discover through his Divine Sense that there were several individuals at the Human Level Peak present.
At the Human Level Peak in the Secular World, that was a remarkable status; yet here, there were several, and this gave Ding Fan some confidence in this underground auction.
Just as Ding Fan was conducting his inspection, a very formidable aura suddenly appeared.
Feeling the aura, Ding Fan was startled and used his Divine Sense to probe. When he discerned the person's cultivation level, Ding Fan was taken aback; the man was an Earth Level First Grade martial artist!
Since his rebirth, the Earth Level experts Ding Fan had encountered were only from the Hao Mountain He Family head. It's extremely rare to encounter Earth Level martial artists as they usually hide away from the public eye. He didn't expect to encounter one here.
The Earth Level martial artist seemed to sense Ding Fan's Divine Sense probing and stopped to look in Ding Fan's direction.
Ding Fan quickly withdrew his Divine Sense.
The Earth Level martial artist looked over, but apparently detecting nothing, he finally turned and walked away.
Ding Fan felt a small relief; it seemed that after reaching the level of an Earth Level martial artist, they also possessed something similar to Divine Sense. The Earth Level expert must have sensed his probe.
But since Ding Fan withdrew his Divine Sense swiftly, the man probably did not detect him.
"Friend, the auction starts in just a few minutes. Let me brief you on the rules here," Cheng Bufan said to Ding Fan at that moment.
"Most items here can still be purchased with money, but of course, there are exceptions. Some martial artists prefer not to take money, but instead trade for items of equivalent value. So, if you have any treasures, you might as well send them backstage to be auctioned off later."
Ding Fan listened to Cheng Bufan's introduction and gained a basic understanding of this underground auction. After pondering for a moment, he took out three Foundation Building Pills.
These Foundation Building Pills were refined using the fine Nine Luminaries Fire and were comparable to Second Grade Pills. On Earth, these pills indeed commanded a high price.
Ding Fan then went backstage and deposited the Foundation Building Pills. As for the auction terms, one was for cash, another was to be exchanged for Soul Gathering Herb, and for the last one, Ding Fan had no specific demands; it could be exchanged for anything of equivalent value.
The reason for selling one for cash was that Ding Fan did not have enough money on him. By selling one, he could earn some money, and if someone were selling a Soul Gathering Herb, he could afford it...
Not long after Ding Fan delivered the items backstage, the underground auction began.
Before the auction started, a hunched elder came to the auction stage. Ding Fan assessed the elder's cultivation level and was surprised to find that the elder was an Earth Level First Grade cultivator.
This underground auction was not simple; just tonight, he had already encountered two Earth Level Martial Artists.
"Thank you all for coming, the auction is now beginning..." the hunched elder briefly began, then continued speaking.
"Since many are here for the first time, I will briefly go over the rules again. Any items traded here, until you leave the premises, if any issues arise, our auction house will take responsibility. However, if problems occur after leaving the auction, then we are not responsible..."
Although the elder spoke simply, Ding Fan understood clearly. The elder's words essentially meant that within this auction, underhanded tactics such as thievery or robbery were out of the question. However, outside, it's a free-for-all...
The elder then continued, "We help with consigning items, taking a 20% commission. Let me remind you, if anyone tries to deceive us with fake items, no matter which sect you belong to, our auction will absolutely not let you go!"...
After laying down the rules, the elder then turned and left. At this underground auction, the elder clearly had some authority, as he spoke without anyone in the audience speaking out of turn, maintaining a very quiet atmosphere.
After the elder stepped down, a middle-aged woman came up.
Although this middle-aged woman was no longer in her prime, her full figure still retained her charm. Ding Fan scanned her with his Divine Sense and found that this middle-aged woman had reached the Grade Eight Human Level.
"...Now, I announce that tonight's auction is officially starting!" the middle-aged woman said after some pleasantries, addressing the audience.
After the middle-aged woman announced the start, the auction hall reverberated with applause, though it was not very enthusiastic.
"Today, the first auction item is a exquisite golden pendant. Its age, evaluated to be at least a thousand years old, boasts fine craftsmanship. Furthermore, attached to the bottom of the pendant is a Luminous Pearl about the size of a quail's egg... After evaluation and the expectations of the consignor, the starting bid for this golden pendant is five million!"
The golden pendant was indeed impressive in craftsmanship. However, Ding Fan felt indifferent toward this item, as only cultivation resources truly mattered to him.
"I bid six million!" No sooner had the middle-aged woman announced the price, someone adjacent had already made a bid.
Ding Fan didn't need to look to know who it was; just by hearing the voice, he recognized that the bidder was the elder he had just met upon entering the auction hall.
At this moment, the elder was somewhat ostentatiously looking over at Ding Fan's direction, almost as if he was taunting him.
Ding Fan was rendered speechless.
The elder seemed to think that he was trying to entice his flamboyant companion. Considering the woman's heavily made-up appearance, even if she was offered to him for free, he would have declined.
Just then, Mu Zi beside Ding Fan stretched out his hand directly.
"I bid eight million!" Mu Zi then made a face at the old man. "Bidding for a piece of jewelry so stingily, it's just a matter of one or two million..."
Fuck!
Watching Mu Zi's arrogant demeanor, the flamboyant woman by the elder's side got upset.
"Old darling, I want that golden pendant, don't let anyone have it!" she said while glaring fiercely over at Mu Zi.
The elder hesitated; paying more than six million for the golden pendant seemed pointless.
Seeing the elder's hesitance, the woman's expression darkened immediately. "What, are you feeling the pinch?"
"How could I? Don't worry, my darling. I won't let anyone snatch what I have my eye on." As he spoke, the elder quickly spread a smile. "Anything my darling wants, I would not hesitate to buy it."
As the elder spoke, he gritted his teeth and slowly raised his hand. "I bid eight million five hundred thousand!"