Chapter Eleven: The Sword of Sorrow

  In the hall, at a service counter, several officials were seated.

  "The Fifth Prince, Second Young Master, and Young Master Sima," several officials said respectfully. It seems that the three of them are also quite famous here.

  "Alright, help him register and get a Blackwood Token." Zi Huaiyu pointed at Yao Jiao.

  "Huh?" One of the leading officials looked at Yaoguang with a puzzled expression.

  "We know the rules for handling the Black Wood Order, three people holding the Black Wood Order can recommend or take out one million silver threads to handle it. You three have the Black Wood Order, you don't need to look at it anymore," said the Second Cyan Mountain, pointing at the Demon Horn.

  "Alright, please wait a moment," the official said hastily. At the same time, another official beside him was responsible for registering and writing down three guarantors, and finally, Er Lang Shen, Sima Xiangru, and Zi Huaiyu personally signed it before giving Yao Jiao a black five-angle token with a faintly printed "Pa" character on it.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, this way please." A young receptionist walked over. She led the four of them up a staircase, slowly going up to the fourth floor, where they stopped in front of a partition.

  In the small compartment, there were several seats and a person in charge of serving tea and water on the side.

  In front of the small compartment, there is a balcony. On the balcony, you can see a vast open space below that resembles an arena. Above, there is even a skylight that shines incredibly bright light onto the interior scene.

  Several servants moved four chairs to the veranda, where the four of them sat down. Between the chairs that were placed at a distance from each other, small tables were also set up with tea on them. On the veranda, there was a curtain that could be pulled up or taken down, and people inside could see clearly outside, while it was difficult for outsiders to see in.

  "Great Uncle, what's the use of this Black Wood Token?" asked Yaoguang, fiddling with the token in his hand.

  "Hei Mu Ling is a symbol of wealth and status. At the Da Zhou auction house, you can enjoy many privileges with it, such as having a private room just for holding Hei Mu Ling. You see, those seats below are not available to those without Hei Mu Ling, and often times, you'll get priority treatment. You'll understand later on. However, the highest level at Da Zhou auction house is actually Zi Mu Ling." Second Master Cang Shan explained.

  "En" The demon's horn nodded slightly and looked down. Indeed, there were already many people sitting below, but for this kind of rooftop, there were still many more all around the circle.

  At this time, the crowd below and others on other balconies all looked towards the center of the auction venue. The host had already walked up to the center at this moment.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, the weekly auction is here again. Today, of course, there are many special items. The good show will be left for later. First, let's follow the usual procedure. The first item is a thousand-year-old ginseng. Of course, I don't need to mention the reputation of the Da Zhou Auction House. This thousand-year-old ginseng is genuine and reasonably priced. The starting price is 5,000 taels, with each bid increase being at least 1,000 taels," said the auctioneer.

  "Eight thousand taels!" someone shouted from below.

  Ten thousand taels

  15,000 taels

  Twenty-two thousand two

  "Three thousand two" came a shout from a platform in the distance.

  After this cry, everyone stopped talking. It was clear that they had already been won over by the person on the balcony.

  However, at this time, the demon horn let out a sigh of disgust. 30,000 taels? A thousand-year-old ginseng? This is extortion! Cultivation requires many similar medicinal materials, and just one costs 30,000 taels. Three thousand-year-old ginsengs would be enough to bankrupt oneself. How can one continue cultivating in the future?

  "The second item is a thousand-year-old lingzhi mushroom. The starting price is two thousand taels of silver, and each bid increase will be one thousand taels." The auctioneer shouted again.

  "Three thousand two"

  "Eight thousand taels"

  …………

  "Twenty-two thousand two" another voice ended the auction of the Millennium Ganoderma.

  "It's too expensive." The demon king shook his head and said.

  "Haha, these are all things that can increase one's power, of course the masses wouldn't mind spending money on them," said Sima Xiangru with a smile.

  Next, a large quantity of medicinal materials and some rare treasures were auctioned off. The Second Cangshan, Sima Xiangru, and the Purple Jade all took out 30,000 taels each to purchase some precious materials. Some of the medicinal materials were also eyed by Yao Jiao, but looking at his eight thousand taels of white silver, he endured it and gave up for now. There was no rush to use them yet, so he would wait and see for the time being.

  "Alright, today's ordinary items have come to an end. Next up are the highlights - some special items," the host said once again.

  "What is it?" a man below shouted.

  "Everyone should know that my Zhou country has a sect called 'Beijianmen', which was recently destroyed by the Wuyou Valley, Bajipai and Datanghai three major sects. Now, what's being auctioned are some items sent by these three sects, as well as martial arts manuals and weapons." The auctioneer shouted.

  As soon as it was known to be a secret book, the crowd below waited patiently, holding their breath and listening. After all, when practicing martial arts, apart from individual physical and spiritual roots, the secret book is the most important thing. A good secret book can save people from most of their hard work. Just like what's written in the Demon Horn Book, a person who practices the Nine Yin True Classics and another who practices horse stance every day, the speed of martial arts practice is simply worlds apart.

  At this time, six objects covered with canvas were pulled up from the background. The first one was the largest, reaching a height of two meters. The ones behind were just box-like objects.

  At this time, the host pulled open the first curtain, and to everyone's surprise, a huge cage was revealed. Inside the cage, a disheveled woman cowered in one corner, her expression sorrowful and her eyes dazed. She looked like she had been frightened out of her wits. However, despite her disheveled appearance, this woman couldn't hide her extraordinary beauty and dignity. She was extremely beautiful, and I believed that if she were dressed up, she would be the kind of stunning beauty who could topple cities and kingdoms.

  "Huh? The Grand Auction House is still auctioning off people?" Yao Jiao asked in surprise.

  "Of course, apart from the official titles of the Great Zhou Kingdom, everything else can be auctioned off," said Zi Huaiyu.

  Sima Xiangru and the Second Cangshan nodded. Let the demon horns be confused again, is this a feudal society or a slave society?

  Everyone stared at the woman in the cage, and the auctioneer smiled: "As you can see, this woman is only 28 years old, which is the best time of her life. She is the only daughter of the master of Beijianmen, with excellent medical skills, and has been responsible for treating various wounded members of Beijianmen. Her medical skills are absolutely top-notch. Now, she's still a young woman, and after some grooming, she'll be an absolute beauty. However, our auction house adheres to the principle of fairness, so we must also explain her shortcomings. This woman has narrow meridians, which makes it unsuitable for her to cultivate various true energies. Moreover, after experiencing a great calamity, she is somewhat introverted. And one more thing, she was born with a stone girl's body, so you can only admire from afar and not get close."