Game: Civilization Paradise

"No, thanks. I already have company."

Keli rejected him bluntly.

Hearing Keli's words, Siel glanced at Wang Yang, who was following behind them.

Then, he shamelessly walked over to the elegant, middle-aged man beside them and spoke respectfully.

"Uncle, I heard Miss Keli is going to the Skollman Auction. I happen to be going as well. How about we let her go with me?"

"Old Huo, it's good for the young ones to go together."

Siel's father, Tuba, also said with a chuckle.

Hokas nodded slightly and looked at Keli.

"Keli, you should go with Siel."

"I..."

"What's wrong?"

Hokas's brow furrowed at once.

"Fine."

Although Keli was very much against it, she ultimately relented.

At this, Siel smugly waved a dismissive hand at Wang Yang.

"Alright, you can go back to work now. You're not needed here."

"This..."

Wang Yang was fuming, but he didn't dare to object.

Keli sighed helplessly and turned her head to say to Wang Yang.

"Wang Yang, you should head back for now."

"Okay."

Wang Yang replied, a bit crestfallen.

"Let's go."

Siel said to Keli, his face wreathed in a smile.

Keli shot Siel a glare, then walked out on her own.

"Wait for me!"

Siel hurriedly followed her.

Wang Yang sighed. As he turned to leave, he came face to face with Long Ming, who was standing nearby, watching him with a chuckle.

A self-deprecating smile appeared on his face as he walked over to Long Ming.

"I'm not busy anymore."

"I saw. You got poached."

Long Ming replied with a laugh.

"Ahem, spare me some dignity, will you?"

"Your skin is thicker than a city wall. What dignity is there to spare?"

"Forget it, let's not talk about this. I've got time now. We haven't hung out in a while."

"Oh, sorry. Now *I'm* busy."

"Where are you going?"

"A date!"

"You?"

"What, is it so strange? Are you the only one allowed to have a date? I have to go meet mine now."

"You're such a bastard!"

"Haha, let's exchange contact info first. I'll hit you up another day."

"Fine."

Wang Yang resignedly gave Long Ming his contact information.

"Bye-bye."

Long Ming waved to Wang Yang and turned to leave.

...

「Half an hour later.」

Long Ming followed Siel and Keli to the entrance of a round, copper-plated building on the commercial street.

Siel and Keli presented their invitations and walked inside.

Long Ming went to follow them.

Just then, two large men in black suits stretched out their arms to block Long Ming.

"Excuse me, sir. Please present your invitation!"

"I don't have one, but I'd like to attend the auction. Surely your establishment wouldn't turn away a customer, would it?"

Long Ming replied calmly.

"Of course not, but you will need to present some form of identification or proof of assets."

The two large men replied politely.

"Will this do?"

Long Ming took out his Mechanical God certificate.

The two men exchanged a look, then said respectfully.

"This way, sir!"

Long Ming then walked inside, following Siel and Keli to Auction Hall 1.

The auction hall itself wasn't much different from a T-shaped lecture hall.

The venue was already packed.

Siel and Keli walked to the very front row and sat down, while Long Ming found a seat in a corner.

He glanced around. There were quite a lot of people, at least a thousand in attendance.

Just then, a man in a black professional suit with impeccably styled hair and a wide smile entered from a side door. He walked onto the auction stage and addressed the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Skollman Auction. I am your host for this event, Fa Mai. This auction house operates on the principle that the customer is king, and we will provide the very best items and service for you all. Every item sold at this auction is guaranteed to be authentic. If any item is found to be counterfeit, we will provide a refund of ten times the purchase price. Therefore, you may all bid with confidence."

CLAP CLAP~

A round of applause broke out.

"Thank you all for your support. Now, allow me to explain the bidding process. This auction follows a highest-bidder-wins model. The minimum bid increment is 1,000 Star Coins. There are two ways to bid: one is by raising your paddle in person, and the other is by bidding through your wristband."

Fa Mai explained with a smile.

Long Ming was a little surprised to hear this. 'So they even have a considerate anonymous bidding option.'

"I'm sure you're all getting impatient, so I won't say any more. Let's bring out the first auction item!"

Fa Mai raised his hand and clapped.

CLICK!

The floor of the auction stage split open, and a metal pillar rose up.

On top of the pillar sat a very peculiar plant. The plant had a flower that looked like a crying face.

"The first auction item: the Ghost Mourning Flower. I won't go into detail about its effects, as the experts here will surely understand. It is an essential ingredient for concocting psyche-related potions. The starting bid is 100,000 Star Coins!"

Fa Mai said with a smile.

"110,000!"

A guest in the audience immediately raised their paddle.

"120,000!"

...

Long Ming watched the bidding, a hint of surprise on his face. 'I didn't think it would be anything valuable, but it's surprisingly popular.'

Long Ming watched quietly.

In the end, the Ghost Mourning Flower was sold for 320,000 Star Coins, more than three times its starting price.

"And now, we begin the auction for the second item..."

Fa Mai continued to host the auction, full of passion.

Long Ming waited patiently, watching as one rare item after another was sold.

「Over an hour later.」

Fa Mai addressed the crowd.

"The fourteenth auction item is an unopened mechanical box. This box was recovered from a special military ruin of the Level-3 Ximilu Civilization. The starting bid is 100,000 Star Coins."

"100,000!"

Siel, full of smug superiority, raised his paddle to bid.

"110,000!"

Others in the crowd gradually started to follow suit.

Siel didn't mind and kept driving the price up. When he called out 200,000, no one else continued to bid against him.

After all, the item was only from a Level-3 civilization. Although there was a chance of getting something good, it was still a gamble.

If the bidding price went too high, you were more than likely to take a loss.

"200,000 going once! Are there any other bids?"

Fa Mai asked with a smile.

Siel turned his head to Keli and said with a smile.

"Keli, I've got the item I wanted. Is there anything you like? I can buy it for you."

"No, thanks."

Keli replied coldly.

At that moment, the corners of Long Ming's mouth curved up slightly. He lifted his wristband and tapped it.

An anonymous buyer's bid of 210,000 instantly popped up on the virtual screen.

Fa Mai immediately announced.

"210,000! Are there any other bids?"

Siel was stunned. 'Who's bidding against me?' He quickly raised his paddle and shouted.

"220,000!"

Long Ming tapped his wristband and entered 250,000.

The crowd was taken aback when they saw the virtual screen.

"Wow, someone bid 250,000."

Siel's face turned green. He quickly raised his paddle and shouted.

"260,000!"

After shouting his bid, he turned his head and scanned the surroundings, trying to find the person bidding against him.

Unfortunately, there were simply too many people in the hall.

Long Ming continued to bid without hesitation.

Soon, the price soared all the way to 380,000 Star Coins.

Everyone in the crowd was astonished. The item's price had inflated to nearly four times the starting bid.

Siel was about to explode with rage. This price was already beyond what he could afford, and he didn't dare to bid any higher.

The key thing was, he didn't even know who was competing with him. And even if he did, he might not be able to afford to offend them. He was losing face completely.

Seeing Siel get thwarted, Keli couldn't help but stifle a laugh.

"380,000 going once!"

"380,000 going twice!"

"Sold!"

Fa Mai declared the sale final.

Annoyed, Siel slammed his fist on the armrest of his chair.

Just then, Fa Mai made the next announcement.

"Next up is the fifteenth auction item: the Mermaid's Tear."

A stunningly beautiful necklace with a blue, tear-shaped gemstone came into view.

Many of the noble ladies and young misses in the audience began to wheedle their partners beside them.

"That necklace is so beautiful."

"Buy it for me!"

...

"Starting bid, 100,000!"

Fa Mai announced again.

"110,000!"

"120,000!"

...

"150,000!"

At this point, Keli also bid on the item.

However, because there were so many bidders, the price quickly shot up to 200,000.

Keli had no choice but to give up.

Seeing this, Siel said with a chuckle.

"Keli, if you like that necklace, I can bid on it for you!"

"Hmph, no need."

Keli rejected him outright.

"Don't worry, watch me. 300,000!"

Siel raised his paddle and shouted.

For a moment, the hall went quiet.

No one else raised their paddles. The piece of jewelry was nice, but the price was a bit too high.

"This gentleman bids 300,000. Is there a higher offer?"

Fa Mai asked, his face wreathed in a smile.

Long Ming's lips curved up slightly. He tapped his wristband, and the price instantly soared to 380,000 Star Coins.

"Whoa! Someone bid 380,000!"

The crowd exclaimed in amazement.

When Siel saw the price pop up, his face flushed with anger. 'This is a blatant humiliation!'

The other party could have bid 350,000, or even 370,000, but they specifically chose 380,000 Star Coins!

He gritted his teeth and looked around, desperate to find the person who made the bid.

But it was no use; he couldn't find them at all.

Soon, Fa Mai announced with a smile.

"Congratulations to the anonymous buyer! Sold for 380,000 Star Coins!"

Watching the Mermaid's Tear get sold to someone else, Keli felt a pang of regret and her mood sank.

At that moment, Fa Mai spoke excitedly.

"Next up is our grand finale, the most thrilling moment of the auction!"

The noisy hall instantly fell silent.

Long Ming was slightly taken aback. 'There's a grand finale item?'

Fa Mai clapped his hands.

KLICK~

Another metal pillar rose from the auction stage. On top of it was a transparent glass case.

Inside the transparent glass case was a cryogenic container.

Fa Mai, practically buzzing with excitement, said to the crowd.

"Everyone, please look! This is the grand finale item of tonight's auction: a Type II Genetic Potion, the SDL All-Purpose Gene Syringe."

"A Type II... All-Purpose type?"

"Did I hear that right?!"

"Aren't these kinds of Genetic Potions under strict control by the Star Alliance?"

"Are you stupid?! The ones produced by other civilizations aren't within their jurisdiction!"

"Right!"

...

The crowd immediately erupted into an uproar.

"Allow me to introduce it. This Type II Genetic Potion, the SDL All-Purpose Gene Syringe, was produced in the highest-level laboratory of the fallen Reikante Civilization. It has been verified by authoritative biological experts, so its authenticity is absolutely guaranteed. You can bid with confidence and inject it without worry. Its effects are no worse than those produced in the Star Alliance's own labs!"

Fa Mai told the crowd.

Hearing this, the corners of Long Ming's mouth curved upward. 'I never expected such a pleasant surprise.'