Chapter 57: Chapter 38: Competition 1
Translator: 549690339
“Azure Dragon Yi Wood Pill!”
“White Tiger Gengjin Pill!”
“Pure Yang Qi Supplement Pill!”
“Hundred Refinement Mysterious Iron Sword!”
Item after item flowed onto the auction block, mostly produced by Refinement Edge Number and Security Hall: weapons and pills.
Such armaments and life-saving objects have significant strategic value. They were basically all acquired by the various grand sects and the power factions of the rebel kings, who each controlled their own territories and had immense wealth. Others simply couldn’t compete.
From this, one could also discern the world’s structure and the power distribution among the various factions.
The Li Sect, settled in Guanzhong and firmly rooted in Chang’an, held the strongest position, embodying tremendous wealth and power.
Following them was the Song Sect, secluding itself in Lingnan, and then the Dugu Sect, which occupied Luoyang.
As for the Yuwen Sect… since Yuwen Huaji had committed regicide and usurped the throne, it was shunned by all. The sect was now in deep trouble and couldn’t even participate in this grand auction. It probably wouldn’t be long before they were annihilated.
Beyond the three major sects, sects of the five surnames and seven great families, as well as various rebel kings, also demonstrated remarkable strength.
The struggle for power in the land was intense, and it was too early to tell who would eventually emerge victorious.
As such, when the auction of weapons, armor, and medicinal pills had concluded, the grand sects and rebel kings could finally take a breather, and the tension shifted to the martial factions and clans of the Martial World.
Why were they tense?
Because…
“Next, we start the auction of martial arts manuals!”
“The first item—Ice Mysterious Power!”
“This is a secret manual passed down within the Yuwen Sect. It can be cultivated to the realm of Condensing Spirit and Unifying Dao, obtaining the unique strength of extreme coldness of Mysterious Ice, combining hardness with softness, illusion with reality, and is particularly effective against fire and yang attributed techniques. It also has profound effects on Qinggong body movements, with hidden cold poison that infiltrates the heart channels, beyond salvation even by immortals. The starting bid is fifty thousand taels of silver!”
Listening to Jin Wuming’s introduction, everyone below was silent.
After a long while, someone raised their paddle, “Sixty thousand taels!”
Jin Wuming chuckled and announced, “This guest bids sixty thousand taels, does anyone…”
“Seventy thousand!”
Before he could finish speaking, someone raised their hand to bid, casting a cold glance at their competition.
“Humph!”
But the other party snorted in defiance, not willing to show weakness, and raised their hand, calling out, “Eighty thousand!”
“Ninety thousand! ” “One hundred thousand!”
“One hundred and five thousand!”
“One hundred and ten thousand!”
Watching the two parties jacking up the price, continuously pushing it higher, everyone was silent, with none of the joy of watching from the sidelines.
Why?
Because they too could empathize; the distress of one is felt by all.
Since last year, Golden Jade Hall had been conducting acts of great audacity, stirring up chaos in the Martial World.
That is the public auction of various martial arts manuals, including the top-notch martial arts and core techniques of different clans and factions, even those legendary divine techniques, directly breaking the situation where each family cherished their own secret possessions.
Isn’t that a good thing?
Not really, at least not for the existing martial arts factions and organizations in the Martial World—it isn’t!
Because it directly spurred a meaningless competition of attrition, plunging the entire Martial World into a whirlwind of blood and violence.
Not to mention others, just take the two forces currently competing for the Ice Mysterious Power technique.
Why are they competing?
Because they are enemies, deadly ones, who would go to extremes to crush each other into dust and obliterate each other’s existence.
However, as the two forces were evenly matched, a direct fight would be too costly, so they barely coexisted.
But the emergence of Ice Mysterious Power disrupted this balance.
Since both factions cultivated fire and ice attributed techniques, if the ice faction obtained this Ice Mysterious Power, its strength would surge, directly threatening the existence of its rival enemy.
Therefore, the faction that cultivated fire attributed techniques had to compete fervently for the Ice Mysterious Power technique.
For the ice faction, this was also unacceptable. As they practiced ice attributed techniques, directly opposing their enemy, letting the enemy secure the Ice
Mysterious Power and master the ice attributed technique of Condensing Spirit
and Unifying Dao would erase their advantage, putting them in the passive position of “the enemy has while I lack, the enemy’s strength against my weakness.”
Thus, they too could not afford to let the manual fall into their rival’s hands.
This led to malicious competition.
Over matters of life and wealth, neither side would budge, driving up the auction price, with Golden Jade Hall being the only beneficiary, while both parties suffered great losses and threats.
This was just the case with ordinary enemies caught in a stalemate.
If it came to those who faced the eradication of their entire families, they were even less restrained, willing to spend the last of their family’s resources to acquire a profound martial art to seek revenge.
Not too long ago, there were rumors of a minor courier agency that angered a powerful organization. They were wiped out in a night, except for the young head courier who was out at the time and barely escaped.
Afterward, the young head courier took the family’s wealth to Golden Jade Hall and purchased a manual of a forbidden art that could be mastered quickly. At the cost of becoming something neither human nor ghost, he cultivated Gang Qi and began seeking revenge on that organization.
The strength of that organization was just so-so, definitely not enough to withstand someone who had cultivated such a malevolent skill.
Left with no choice, they had to run to Golden Jade Hall themselves to obtain and cultivate the same technique.
In the end, both parties mastered the same evil technique and ended up in a state where they were neither human nor ghost, neither yin nor yang. Through such a desperate and deadly struggle, ultimately both sides were destroyed, and no one ended up with a favorable outcome.
From this arose a blood-soaked and sinister wind!
Nowadays, in the Martial World, everyone is on edge. As soon as Golden Jade Hall starts an auction, all major martial sects and factions send representatives to watch their sworn enemies closely.
Once an opponent bids for a martial art, they would compete for it fiercely. If they failed to secure it, they would strike first and hard. As soon as the auction ended, they would launch an attack, giving the opponent no chance to master the skill.
With this tactic, Golden Jade Hall stirred up the martial competition between the various sects in the Martial World and reaped astonishing profits.
Thus, the conflicts in the Martial World began.
The turbulence in the Martial World arose from this.
Had anyone else or any other power employed such methods, they would have been attacked by the major sects long ago.
But Golden Jade Hall…
Well, since the auction of secret manuals began, people have been heading to Xuzhou continuously, hoping to confront Heavenly King Wu and to force him to yield.
And then… there was no ‘and then’. Golden Jade Hall continued its business as usual, and those opposed, those looking for trouble, either kept silent, disappeared, or were outright annihilated.
That Heavenly King Wu has a really bad temper!
Some thought of seeking out peak forces like Ning Daoqi or sacred places in the Martial World like Mercy Sailing Temple and Purity Zen Religious, or the Head of the Righteous Path, to intervene and stop Golden Jade Hall’s activities, hoping for the Martial World to return to its former tranquility.
But… Ning Daoqi is as elusive as a dragon seen only in its head and not its tail. These so-called sacred places of the Martial World, the Mercy Sailing Temple and the Calming-heart Zen Religious, along with the Head of the Righteous Path, didn’t even make a sound, let alone reveal their plans.
In short—no can do, impossible to handle!
With no other choice, everyone had to join in and hold their noses to attend the auction-
“One hundred fifty thousand taels!”
“Sold!
“The Ice Mysterious Power cultivation technique goes to bidder number fifty-six!”
With the fall of the hammer, the fate was sealed and the family studying ice-based martial arts secured the Ice Mysterious Power technique.
Even though they successfully obtained the technique, the family head’s expression was far from pleased.
Because they were just an ordinary martial family, far from able to compare with the power of the Li, Song, or Dugu clans, with their coffers now drained by the one hundred fifty thousand taels.
Not to mention that after the auction, their opponents might become desperate and a deadly fight was almost inevitable.
If he could, he really would not want to do this since it is not at all conducive to the continuation and survival of his family.
But alas, this ‘if’ doesn’t hold up. In today’s world, in today’s Martial World, it’s all about one thing.
Struggle!
Everyone is struggling; if you don’t, you’ll die!
Unless you are a powerful influence like the Song Sect, with ultimate Grandmasters at its helm, no one can sit back and watch the world change from their peaceful perch.
The crowd falls silent, weighed down by their heavy hearts.
However, Jin Wuming on stage didn’t mind and still smiled like Maitreya
Buddha, “The second item for auction, the Flame Sun Marvelous Skill!”
“This is a marvelous skill created by one of the three great Grandmasters, Bi Xuan of the Western Regions, and is a Flame Sun Skill of the fire type, surpassing Ice Mysterious Power. However, the set of techniques is incomplete, missing the final stage.”
“The starting bid—fifty thousand taels of silver!”
At the announcement of the second item, those who had just fought over the Ice Mysterious Power, along with those yet to bid, were all rendered speechless and astonished.
“Can’t you have a little shame?”
“You just sold Ice Mysterious Power and now you’re offering Flame Sun Skill?” “Don’t you fear getting killed one day by conducting business this way?” “I’ve never seen such brazen and shameless behavior!”
“You bunch of bastards are even blacker than the Kunlun Slave!”
The crowd cursed inwardly, wishing they could tear apart Jin Wuming on the stage.
But as much as they hated him and cursed him, their actions were swift. The family that failed to obtain Ice Mysterious Power immediately raised their bid: “Eighty thousand! ”
“One hundred thousand!”
“You just bought Ice Mysterious Power, where do you even have the silver to compete with me, are you bluffing?
“I’ve got it, if you can’t afford it, shut up!”
“To hell with you, one hundred twenty thousand taels!”
The air was thick with tension, as if infused with gunpowder, and everyone began a desperate gamble against their rivals.
“Golden Jade Hall…’
Li Xiuning observed from the sidelines, her cold gaze upon the frenzied and competitive bidding before glancing at the ever-smiling Jin Wuming on stage and frowning slightly, “Clever tactics, but I wonder, how long can you keep up such a volatile approach?”
Song Hui was also silent: “Operating so extremely, yet Mercy Sailing Temple refuses to intervene. Could it be they plan to descend upon Xuzhou and choose Heavenly King Wu as emperor?”
“No, this person acts with disdain for others and dominates with his powerful martial prowess; he’s definitely not the best candidate for Mercy Sailing Temple,” she said, then turned her attention towards Li Xiuning.
“Li Sect!”
“While they have many supporters and control Guanzhong, they lack a top-level master. To truly unify the Martial World and reign supreme, they must rely on the support of Mercy Sailing Temple and Buddhism to firmly establish themselves as the sacred land of the Martial World, as the Head of the Righteous Path.”
“A monarch rules the world, I govern the Martial World. The monarch holds power, I collect the faith.”
“Only then will it meet the interests of Mercy Sailing Temple and Buddhism! ”
“With this in mind, they will meet Heavenly King Wu soon..”