400,000.
Gasps of astonishment echoed throughout the auction house.
The bidding had started at 280,000, with other wealthy patrons bidding in increments of tens of thousands. Then Chen Yu, starting at 200,000, had immediately jumped to 400,000 on the second bid.
What immense courage.
What vast wealth.
The patrons present, even considering their liquid assets, and certainly their total net worth, likely couldn't match 400,000 gold coins.
Yet, Chen Yu had presented 400,000 in cash flow.
No!
It should be 500,000.
Earlier, he had also spent 90,000 gold coins to purchase upgrade blueprints.
Was this a large consortium consolidating goods?
But if it was to consolidate goods, why come to such a small city-state? Wouldn't the inner city or the royal city offer greater resource output?
Mercenaries and wilderness camp lords murmured amongst themselves.
Little did they know, the wealthy patrons in the private rooms were thinking—
How dare he?
Spending 400,000 gold coins for 5,000 units of upgrade guidance almost squeezed the profit margin to zero. To risk 400,000 for a mere 100,000 profit was simply not worth it.
Was his capital tied up?
Did he not intend to participate in the bidding for subsequent items?
"Young Master Chen seems determined to obtain the upgrade guidance," laughter echoed from a private room. "I shall abstain, giving Young Master Chen face."
"Abstain."
"Withdraw."
...
The few wealthy patrons participating in the bidding all withdrew. It was then that Chen Yu felt a surge of satisfaction.
What was seized felt all the more fragrant!
"Congratulations to private room 006 for acquiring the camp upgrade guidance." Dai Bi's voice rang out, officially announcing the item had found its owner.
"Tsk, Chen Yu, someone's holding a grudge against you now."
The little demon whispered with a playful glint in its eyes. Chen Yu narrowed his eyes and smiled, a look of disdain on his face.
"And what of it?"
Chen Yu had noticed the gazes of some people after he took possession of the guidance.
Eyes filled with hostility.
This was precisely what Chen Yu wanted to see.
He stood by the window as if he wanted those people to remember his face, yet he did not participate in the bidding for the next few items.
Chen Yu did not bid.
The nouveau riche, the mercenaries, and the camp lords below all breathed a sigh of relief. The aura Chen Yu had displayed earlier made it seem as though he intended to buy out the entire auction.
Some wondered if Chen Yu had backed down.
Backed down?
It was out of the question!
The reason he didn't participate was simple.
They were useless!
They were all weapons, far inferior to his Five-Colored Sword. He simply disdained them, while those nouveau riche and mercenaries treated them like treasures.
Having not encountered any items of interest, Chen Yu gradually lost his enthusiasm.
Leaning back in his chair in the private room.
Chen Yu quietly awaited the auction of his canned goods, and then, after it concluded, to collect the blueprints and guidance, and then to receive his gold coins directly from the Elton family before leaving.
During this time, Chen Yu also video-called Yu Pu for a period.
Yu Pu's exclamations of amazement never ceased.
However, it was very busy on his end mining coal, and the video call was cut short after less than ten minutes. Despite the short duration, Chen Yu did notice the presence of beastmen operating on his side.
His efficiency was indeed quite quick.
He had said he would incorporate the beastmen from the surrounding villages, and he had indeed succeeded in doing so.
The beastmen did not need to mine.
They only needed to transport the coal out of the mines. The mining itself was handled by artillery, with each shot yielding hundreds of units of coal.
As the owner of a 40% stake, Chen Yu had now also become a major coal magnate.
He clicked on the gifting page.
Mining rights share: Coal (100000) unclaimed.
Mining rights share: Coal (100000) unclaimed.
...
200,000 coal unclaimed.
It was outrageous.
Just the day before yesterday, Chen Yu had not had a single unit of coal, and now he already possessed 200,000 units of coal. According to Yu Pu, this was...
Less than a tenth of a coal vein had been mined.
If all three veins were to be mined, one could imagine the sheer quantity of coal that would be obtained.
Immense!
Exiting the gifting page, Chen Yu thought about chatting with Jiang Yaqing again.
Unfortunately—
His voice call was not answered.
He figured she was likely resting.
With only two acquaintances in the underground, Chen Yu didn't know who else to contact, and being idle, he could only practice forging the Adventurous Gale Sword in his private room.
To his surprise, he could still forge it even though he wasn't at the camp.
The swords he forged.
Were all placed by Chen Yu into the bracelet he carried with him. He kept forging swords until the bracelet could no longer hold them.
"Wow!"
"Is the auction going to last this long?"
Chen Yu muttered.
With no items of interest, staying here was purely a waste of time. Meanwhile, Heidu, perched by the window, gazed longingly at Dai Yu, his eyes practically forming hearts.
"This is a small-scale auction,"
The little demon hovered in the air and whispered.
"Auctions held in the inner city or the royal city might last for a full day, and some super-large auctions can continue for a week."
"Ah?"
Chen Yu looked surprised.
"Where do they get so many goods to auction?"
"There's more than one merchant guild," the little demon said softly. "These super-large auctions are generally jointly organized by several merchant guilds. Small merchant guilds don't even have the qualifications to participate in the bidding; they can only set up shops around the venue."
"Hoo!" Chen Yu's eyes lit up with a smile. "I'll have an opportunity to experience it."
He imagined such a grand auction would surely be lively. However, given Chen Yu's current situation, it would be difficult to participate. His modest fortune was considered a considerable sum in this city-state.
In the inner city or the royal city, he would be at best middle-class.
"Esteemed guests!"
"The next item up for auction, I believe, will be of great interest to everyone, especially the free mercenaries present."
Auctioneer Dai Bi's alluring voice reached Chen Yu's ears.
In fact, Chen Yu had always found it peculiar that the auction house wasn't small in size, and he was seated in a second-floor private room, yet Dai Bi's voice could clearly reach him.
He could hear clearly, yet no one seated on the first floor found the volume excessive.
It was strange!
Despite his curiosity, upon hearing that mercenaries would be interested, Chen Yu also piqued his interest.
If mercenaries liked it.
It must be something needed for wilderness adventures.
He himself was currently on an adventure. If it was for survival, he would definitely bid for it, no matter what. Similar to the scarecrow substitute from the necromancer last time, Chen Yu was willing to spend money to acquire it.
Staying alive was paramount.
Anything that could ensure his survival, Chen Yu would absolutely not let go.
Dai Bi's brief introduction instantly ignited the interest of everyone at the auction. He then saw a server carrying a silver tray ascend.
The tray was covered with a red cloth.
All eyes converged on the red cloth. As the tray was placed down, Dai Bi no longer kept the others in suspense and lifted the red cloth.
Beneath the red cloth was an ancient scroll.
The scroll emitted a faint yellowish glow, making it quite conspicuous against the silver tray.
"The item for this auction."
"Pseudo-Yellow grade sword technique, Dawn Swordplay!"