Chapter 76 -76-Deliberately Provoking Trouble, Meeting Blow for Blow
Inside the nine private suites, players like Lucy were also feeling excited.
Since their wealth had all been pooled from their guild members, they had already prepared plans in advance for the items they needed to win.
They were determined to claim victory in this Zone-wide Auction!
Looking across the entire venue, only John in Suite No. 1 remained completely calm.
He had already experienced auctions like this before, so naturally he was not the least bit surprised.
...
"With unlimited bidding, doesn’t that mean even the most ordinary auction item could be raised to an absurd sky-high price?"
"This is bad. If someone really wants to maliciously cause trouble, how are we supposed to buy the things we want?"
"Relax. The items us ordinary players are targeting probably won’t even catch the attention of the truly rich. But this time, there should definitely be a good show. The players in those ten suites are probably about to put on a real battle of astronomical bids for us."
"This really is a war of money!"
...
Inside the auction hall, the players whispered among themselves,
all discussing the spectacle that was about to unfold.
Inside the nine suites,
the wealthy players from each zone wore solemn expressions, mentally calculating how they would distribute the money in their wallets in the bidding to come.
Seeing that the atmosphere had built up enough, the Mystic Merchant immediately struck the table again.
"Now, let the auction begin!"
"The first item up for auction: an A-rank item—Dragonblood Fruit!"
[Dragonblood Fruit]
[Effect]: After a pet consumes it, a strand of dragon blood can be born within its body. Its future evolution path can then gradually shift toward the dragon race!
(Note: The closer the pet already is to the dragon race, the better the effect after consumption!)
[Description]: A must-have for any player with a pet. With it, there is a tremendous chance of cultivating a dragon-type pet in the future!
...
Looking at the crimson fruit on the high platform, faintly revealing the shadow of a dragon within it,
the breathing of every player in the hall grew hurried.
It was actually something that could give a pet the chance to transform into a dragon after consumption!
No one had expected the opening item to be such a bombshell.
And this was only an A-rank auction item.
It seemed the scale of this auction far exceeded everyone’s expectations.
"10,000 gold coins!"
Someone quickly shouted the first bid.
Mystic Merchant Harun smiled faintly.
"Player No. 997 bids 10,000 gold coins!"
According to the rules, if no one raised the price within three seconds, then this Dragonblood Fruit would be sold for 10,000 gold coins.
But soon, someone increased the bid.
And not just one person.
"I bid 30,000 gold coins!"
"50,000!"
"100,000!"
In just a few minutes,
the price of the Dragonblood Fruit was rapidly pushed up to 100,000.
That price alone was already enough to make the vast majority of players give up.
Just as the bidder thought 100,000 gold coins would be enough to secure it,
a calm voice suddenly rang out from Suite No. 7.
"200,000."
Mystic Merchant Harun’s eyes lit up.
"Player No. 7 bids 200,000! Any higher bids?"
Paying 200,000 for a Dragonblood Fruit
was already somewhat overpriced.
After all, 200,000 gold coins might be enough to buy an actual pet.
Choosing to spend that much on a Dragonblood Fruit at a time like this was absolutely not cost-effective.
The players below began discussing who the player in Suite No. 7 might be.
Only the other players inside the nine suites revealed expressions of surprise.
In Suite No. 2, Lucy fell into thought.
"Suite No. 7 should be that Grey from Zone 4, right?
He actually wants the Dragonblood Fruit?
Looks like he has a pet under his command."
Just as Lucy had guessed,
Grey really did own a pet extremely close to the dragon race.
If he could obtain this Dragonblood Fruit, his pet might directly evolve into a true dragon.
To him, spending 200,000 gold coins on the Dragonblood Fruit would absolutely be a massive bargain.
After all, that was practically the same as gaining a true dragon.
After he called out the price of 200,000 gold coins,
two full seconds passed, and no one dared continue bidding.
Just as Grey thought the Dragonblood Fruit was already in the bag,
a cold voice suddenly rang out from above his head.
"300,000 gold coins."
The entire venue instantly erupted.
Mystic Merchant Harun raised his voice excitedly.
"Player No. 1 bids 300,000 gold coins!"
Astonishment immediately appeared on the faces of many players.
300,000 gold coins.
That price was already extremely outrageous.
Many people present did not even have 300,000 gold coins in their wallets.
Who exactly was in Suite No. 1?
How could they casually add another 100,000 with a single sentence?
Lucy and the others who knew the identity of Suite No. 1 all revealed amused expressions.
"Hahaha, looks like Boss John also wants the Dragonblood Fruit to raise a pet."
"Now this is going to be fun."
"What a surprise!"
Inside Suite No. 7,
after hearing John suppress his bid, Grey not only failed to get angry—he actually laughed.
"So that bastard John wants this thing too.
In that case, I’ll help drive the price up for you!"
Grey curled his lips into a sneer and continued bidding.
"400,000!"
The whole venue was stunned.
They had not even recovered from the sky-high price of 300,000, yet Suite No. 7 had already raised it to 400,000!
This world had truly gone mad.
How were these people so rich?
Mystic Merchant Harun’s grin nearly stretched to the heavens.
"Player No. 7 bids 400,000! Any higher bids?"
He began the countdown.
Just as Grey thought John would continue raising the price,
Suite No. 1 fell completely silent.
Not another sound came from it.
Until the countdown ended.
The Dragonblood Fruit appeared in Grey’s inventory,
while a huge chunk vanished from his wallet balance.
Grey’s expression instantly froze.
What the hell?
According to the normal script, shouldn’t he have pressed me down with another bid?
How did he raise it just once and then stop?
This was completely different from how it was supposed to go!
Mocking laughter came from several nearby suites.
Clearly, they were ridiculing Grey for becoming the sucker.
Grey suddenly raised his head and stared fixedly at Suite No. 1.
"Bastard, you dared play me!"
...
"Tsk. How childish."
John, of course, had no need for this Dragonblood Fruit.
He had only wanted to disgust Grey in Suite No. 7 a little.
He just had not expected the other party to be so impatient.
The man had actually raised the bid by another 100,000 right away.
Once John saw through the other side’s intention, naturally he had no reason to keep following.
...
Thus, the first round of bidding ended with Grey of Zone 4 taking the loss.
Mystic Merchant Harun quickly brought out the next item.
"Next, the second item—an S-rank auction item..."
A violet glow lit up in his hand.
"Luckstone!"
[Luckstone]
[Effect]: A one-time consumable item. After use, the drop rate for equipment, skills, and items from defeated targets is permanently increased by 20%! (Also effective when killing players.)
[Description]: The first stone ever touched by the Goddess of Luck. With it, you possess a lifetime of good fortune!
...
The moment the Luckstone appeared, the entire hall exploded into an uproar.
This was a top-tier treasure that could permanently increase drop rates by 20%.
It even worked when killing other players.
If future inter-zone wars were opened,
wouldn’t that mean killing players with top-tier equipment could give you a chance to make their gear drop as well?
No wonder it had been rated as an S-rank auction item.
It absolutely deserved the title.