Grand Return System

A Battle of Wealth [Part 2]

One million coins.

A relatively low starting price for such a treasure.

The host had barely finished speaking when the display belonging to the Heaven-class private room suddenly illuminated.

The enormous number appeared above the hall.

"One billion!"

Silence.

Absolute silence.

For several breaths, nobody seemed capable of speaking.

Then—

"Damn, again?"

The crowd exploded.

"One billion right from the beginning?"

"What is happening tonight?"

"Is this for the defeat just now?"

Everyone instinctively turned their attention toward the Heaven-class private room.

They had already witnessed the previous confrontation.

Leon had raised the price of the Crimson Mystic Sword to one billion coins, only to retreat at the last moment and leave James with a bill of one and a half billion.

Now another treasure had appeared.

And Leon had immediately thrown out one billion.

Was this revenge?

Was he trying to recover his dignity?

Or was he simply unwilling to lose?

The speculation spread rapidly.

Everyone couldn’t help but suspect that Leon had failed to bid for the supreme-grade sword against James, and now he had set his sights on the spirit artifact.

If that was the case...

Didn’t that mean he intended to challenge James again?

The thought alone made the crowd’s blood boil.

Nobody cared about the actual treasure anymore.

They wanted to see the two private rooms fight.

James naturally understood the same thing.

A grin slowly appeared on his face.

"Haha, you’re still not convinced? Then today, I’ll make you convinced."

His hand moved toward the bidding mechanism.

He didn’t hesitate.

The Earth-class private room immediately lit up.

"1.5 billion!"

The number appeared above the auction hall.

The crowd erupted again.

"He really followed!"

"As expected!"

"These two are going to fight again!"

James leaned back with a smug expression.

He had learned his lesson from the previous exchange.

This time, he was determined to suppress Leon completely.

He wanted the young man upstairs to understand that money wasn’t something he lacked.

Not today.

Not ever.

But Leon merely glanced at the displayed price.

Then he made a disdainful expression.

"Tsk, only 1.5 billion..."

His voice was not loud, yet everyone in the Heaven-class room heard the arrogance hidden within it.

The expression on Leon’s face carried an almost effortless confidence, as though one and a half billion coins were nothing more than a joke.

James’s smile stiffened.

The crowd immediately became restless again.

"He’s still bidding?"

"Looks like the fight really is continuing!"

"How much money does that Heaven-class guest have?"

Leon didn’t give them time to speculate.

His hand calmly moved toward the bidding mechanism.

The display above the private room changed once again.

He continued to bid.

"Two billion..."

Silent fall in auction hall.

"Hiss..."

"Two billion."

The moment those two words fell, the entire auction hall seemed to freeze.

For a heartbeat, there was nothing but silence.

Then came the sharp sound of countless people drawing in their breaths.

"Damn, I’ve never seen so much money in my life. How many years will it take to finish spending it?"

The words carried a mixture of disbelief and helpless admiration.

Two billion taels of silver.

That was equivalent to twenty million gold.

Twenty million.

Even among the most powerful cultivators and wealthy households, such a fortune was an astonishing figure. Yet Lord James had thrown it onto the auction table without even blinking.

The atmosphere instantly reached its peak.

Some people stared at the illuminated price in disbelief. Others exchanged glances, quietly wondering just how deep Lord James’s pockets really were.

Even Leon’s expression changed slightly.

He turned his head and looked toward Rias, who was standing nearby, then asked curiously,

"Rias, are all the princes of Drake Empire so rich?"

Rias pursed her lips before answering. Her red hair fell gently over her shoulders as she considered the question.

"Every prince in the royal family who can’t inherit the throne has their own territory. Lord James’s territory is Ashford City. Ashford is considered a big city. Just the annual taxes alone are more than this."

Leon fell silent.

More than two billion taels of silver in annual taxes?

He slowly narrowed his eyes.

So that was how it was.

This secular empire was far wealthier than he had imagined.

For the first time, Leon gained a clearer understanding of just how poor he had once been.

The dignified master of the Amethyst Summit Division had not even had a single piece of steel on him.

Thinking about it, Leon almost found the situation amusing.

Of course, that poverty was only theoretical.

If he genuinely wanted wealth, it would actually be quite simple.

The treasures left behind by Zeon alone were enough to make even the wealthiest household in the world go mad. If he casually took out one or two of those treasures and sold them, the money he received would probably exceed the amount Lord James had just thrown into the auction.

So why had he been worrying about money?

Leon rubbed his chin.

Then, unexpectedly, a smile appeared in his eyes.

That old man was becoming more and more pleasing to him.

After all, Lord James had practically handed him money himself.

What a generous fellow.

The thought had barely crossed his mind when Leon’s expression abruptly changed.

The relaxed smile vanished.

His brows furrowed.

His eyes sharpened.

Then he deliberately raised his voice and shouted,

"Three billion!"

His expression was so exaggerated that anyone watching would think he had completely lost control of his emotions.

The entire auction hall trembled with another wave of astonishment.

Three billion!

The number climbed again.

People who had been quietly watching the battle immediately became excited.

This was no longer an ordinary auction.

It had become a contest of pride.

Lord James had spent two billion.

The mysterious Heaven-class guest immediately answered with three billion.

The air itself seemed to become heavy beneath the weight of those numbers.

Inside his private room, Lord James was stunned for only a moment.

Then his beard trembled.

A smile slowly spread across his face.

"Haha, you’re indeed a brat. Are you so impatient?"

His voice carried faint amusement, but beneath that amusement was an unmistakable confidence.

He had money.

A great deal of money.

And now, someone had actually dared to challenge him with it.

How could he possibly retreat?

His fingers lightly tapped the armrest of his chair.

The corners of his mouth rose.

Then he calmly continued to shout,

"Four billion."