Soul Emperor Awakening

"The second item is slightly damaged, but it is, nonetheless, a Divine Artifact! Listen closely, everyone—this is a Divine Artifact! Our appraisal has determined it to be a Low Grade Divine Artifact. But even though it’s only Low Grade, it is far stronger than any Spiritual Artifact." Sister Ya smiled faintly at the crowd. "This long rod is called the Chi Dragon Heavens Rod. Infused with Chi Dragon Blood, it is an absolute masterpiece among Low Grade Divine Artifacts!"

’A masterpiece among Low Grade items... Is that even a thing?’ The audience was torn between laughter and tears, but their eyes lit up. Regardless, it was a Divine Artifact! A Low Grade Divine Artifact could effortlessly overpower even a Top Level Spiritual Artifact, so many felt this was a much better prize than the first item.

"Of course, it is ultimately lacking a bit of Spirituality. Specifically, the Dragon Spirit it once contained has vanished. The Weapon’s former master must have fully unleashed it, completely exhausting the Dragon Spirit. As a result, its overall power is now at the Half-Divine Artifact Level."

Both Spiritual Artifacts and Divine Artifacts contain a sealed soul, which is generally known as an Artifact Spirit. Normally, this spirit will not vanish. It is only consumed after an extreme, explosive release of power. A top-tier Forging Master might be able to infuse it with a new Artifact Spirit—or rather, reforge it entirely with a new type of Essence Blood!

However, this isn’t very practical. With just a few more materials, one could forge an entirely new Divine Artifact. The most precious component in forging a Divine Artifact is always the Divine Beast Essence Blood. While the other materials are also valuable, without the Essence Blood of a Divine Beast, it can’t be called a Divine Artifact at all!

This is similar to Spiritual Artifacts; no matter how perfectly forged, a weapon without an Artifact Spirit is merely a Half-Spiritual Artifact. The same holds true for Divine Artifacts. Regardless of its initial quality, without an Artifact Spirit, it is just a Half-Divine Artifact, its value plummeting as a result.

As soon as she said this, those who had been interested in the Divine Artifact showed immediate disappointment. A Half-Divine Artifact could hardly be considered powerful; it was on par with a Top Level Spiritual Artifact at best. But the Chi Dragon Heavens Rod before them was covered in scars. In its current condition, it was far inferior to even a pristine Top Level Spiritual Artifact.

Now, it all came down to the price Sister Ya would announce. If it was low enough, someone was still bound to buy it.

In the Celestial Level private room, Lin Xuan was completely numb. He stood at the window, staring dazedly at the Chi Dragon Heavens Rod, his mind buzzing. He hadn’t heard a single word Sister Ya said. ’Buy it! No matter the cost, I have to buy this Weapon.’

"Brother Lin, what’s wrong?" Tuo Yunhai, standing beside him, was taken aback by Lin Xuan’s shock. He glanced from the Chi Dragon Heavens Rod back to Lin Xuan’s face, growing more and more perplexed.

Lin Xuan sat back down. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, but he couldn’t quell the storm of complicated, sorrowful emotions in his heart. His father’s personal Weapon had lost its Artifact Spirit and was damaged. This was proof it had been through an incredibly fierce battle. As for his father... ’Is he still alive?’ No one could say for sure.

"I’m fine," Lin Xuan said, his mood recovering slightly. ’I have to stay optimistic. Maybe things aren’t as bad as I’m imagining.’ He looked toward the stage. "This Weapon... I have to get it!"

Just then, Sister Ya on the auction stage decided she had said enough. If she dragged it out any longer, all interest would vanish. Still, she had to be transparent; otherwise, it would be considered deception and would damage the auction house’s reputation.

"For this Chi Dragon Heavens Rod, the starting bid is five hundred thousand Primordial Stones! The minimum increment is fifty thousand. Let the bidding begin!" Sister Ya banged her gavel, signaling the start of the auction.

Normally, a Divine Artifact would start at no less than five million Primordial Stones. But because this one had lost its Artifact Spirit and was damaged, its price had plummeted by a factor of ten. It was a rather sad state of affairs. But there was no helping it; the price was set. It was now being priced as a Spiritual Artifact, not a Divine Artifact.

"One million Primordial Stones!"

A stunning bid floated out from Lin Xuan’s private room. The voice was deep and powerful, laced with an unyielding resolve.

A million on the very first bid. The entire hall was stunned. No one expected some wealthy patron to take a liking to a damaged Divine Artifact. It wasn’t just the audience who was dumbfounded; even Sister Ya was taken aback. It wasn’t just the sheer number of Primordial Stones, but the fact that she had thought eight or nine hundred thousand would be a good price. She never imagined it would jump straight to a million.

But the shocks weren’t over. The bid of one million had just been called when another voice came from a different Celestial Level private room. "One million, one hundred thousand Primordial Stones!"

"Two million Primordial Stones!"

Seated in his Celestial Level private room, Lin Xuan’s expression was terrifyingly grim. His mind was focused on a single goal: to acquire this Weapon, no matter the cost. His bidding was no longer rational. In any case, he had plenty of Primordial Stones in his Storage Ring; he could afford it.

"Gods, two million for a broken Divine Artifact with no Artifact Spirit? Are these people out of their minds?"

"Two million Primordial Stones! You could buy so much with that! That’s enough for two excellent Spiritual Artifacts. It’s totally not worth it."

"The people in the Celestial Level private rooms are hardly ordinary, are they? They’re just rich and can do whatever they want!"

...

The crowd erupted, the hall instantly filled with a deafening clamor. It was an absolutely mind-blowing price—enough to buy a Celestial Level Martial Arts manual and a decent Spiritual Artifact on top of that. To spend it all on a single, broken Divine Artifact seemed like a terrible deal. All they could do was sigh at the number of rich people in the world. As for them, they were just here to watch the show.

The voice from the other Celestial Level private room went silent; they didn’t place another bid. But that didn’t mean things were calm inside that room.

"Go find out who’s in the Third Celestial Level private room. How dare they be so brazen!" a young man seated inside the room said, frowning. He tilted his head, his voice filled with displeasure. "I finally find a decent Weapon, and this guy has the gall to act so high and mighty. Find out who he is!"

"Understood, Young Master Lan Sheng. I’ll go investigate right away!" The Attendant beside him scurried out of the room to gather information about Lin Xuan’s party.

At this point, Sister Ya’s eyes sparkled on the stage. The price was truly staggering. She scanned the crowd and asked, "Is there any higher bid?"

The audience was silent. Anyone who bid higher would be a fool. In fact, most of them thought the person who bid two million Primordial Stones was already a fool.

"Then this Chi Dragon Heavens Rod belongs to the guest in the Third Celestial Level private room! We’ll have it sent up right away." Sister Ya beamed as she handed the Weapon to a nearby attendant, calling for it to be delivered. She wasn’t worried about non-payment; anyone who secured a private room had already been thoroughly vetted.

An Attendant soon brought the Chi Dragon Heavens Rod upstairs. After knocking, he pushed the door open and stepped inside. Before he could even say a word, the long rod was snatched from his hands.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

A red glow flashed through the dimly lit room. After a few powerful swings, the rod was slowly brought to a halt. As the others watched, they got a strange impression: it was as if the Weapon was made for Lin Xuan. The movements were so fluid, so perfectly coordinated, that it seemed like a natural extension of his own body.