Chapter 192: Fierce Competition

"Sixty thousand taels!"

The calm voice drifted from a wing-room, causing many below to look up.

They were curious to see just who would bid on a source of evil.

Although Warden No. 2 had presented it well, claiming that two Grievance Rank monsters were akin to two Innate Realm thugs, the real issue remained.

How could anyone control two evil beings comparable to martial artists of the Innate Realm?

Controlling evil entities had always been shrouded in mystery, a skill beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Therefore, no one had made an offer until now.

After a long pause, Warden No. 2, finding no bidders, began to count down.

"Sixty thousand taels going once!"

"Seventy thousand taels!"

A voice interrupted him directly.

"Eighty thousand taels!"

Inside the wing-room, Shen Changqing spoke calmly.

Although he didn’t have eighty thousand taels on him right now, once the auction for the three Grandmaster martial arts techniques began, eighty thousand taels would be mere pocket change.

Beside him, Ji Qu’s eyes flickered with fleeting confusion.

"Could it be that Lord Shen knows how to control evil entities?"

"I don’t."

"You don’t?"

Ji Qu was puzzled.

If he didn’t know how to control evil entities, why was he buying the black banner? Was he simply burning money?

As if sensing his thoughts, Shen Changqing wore a righteous expression.

"We, of the Demon Suppression Division, should take it as our duty to slay demons and evil. All evil in the world should be exterminated. If the black banner falls into the wrong hands, who knows what chaos might ensue? Only by acquiring the black banner and exterminating the evil within can we eliminate any potential problems!"

Ji Qu looked at his upright and awe-inspiring appearance, feeling a bizarre sense of disbelief.

For a moment, the old member of the Demon Suppression Division couldn’t tell if Shen Changqing was being sincere.

Indeed, the Demon Suppression Division considered slaying demons and evil as their duty; it was the very foundation upon which the Division stood.

However, that didn’t mean that everyone in the Demon Suppression Division actually embraced this responsibility.

Most of the time, Demon Slaying Envoys would only actively eliminate evil when assigned a mission or when forced by circumstances.

It was simple.

Evil entities were powerful, and no Demon Slaying Envoy could confidently claim a one hundred percent success rate in slaying them.

If anything went wrong, they could lose their lives.

Therefore, only a small minority were truly committed to eradicating evil.

Having not interacted much with Shen Changqing, Ji Qu believed that the other man didn’t seem to possess such a zealous nature.

Of course, these were only his personal speculations, and he didn’t voice them directly, as it would seem like a slap in the face.

At this time, others began to bid as well.

In a short span of time, the price climbed to one hundred thousand taels.

"The evil entities within the black banner can attract so many bidders!"

Shen Changqing frowned slightly.

He had thought that the black banner wouldn’t be very competitive.

With a starting price of fifty thousand taels of silver, he figured it would sell for sixty or seventy thousand at most. But judging from the current momentum, even doubling that price might not be enough to secure it.

Ji Qu said, "There are all sorts of people participating in this auction, and some of them must be martial artists skilled in unorthodox methods.

For them, obtaining the black banner would significantly increase their strength."

"We’ll see if they have more silver than I do."

Shen Changqing shook his head and then bid again.

"One hundred and twenty thousand taels!"

"One hundred and twenty-five thousand taels!"

Inside another room, two men dressed in grey robes sat.

One was slightly chubby with a kind-looking face, while the other was thin with a sinister gaze. Both appeared to be around fifty or sixty years old.

"Strange. As far as I know, the only person attending the auction who understands unorthodox methods is from the Sky Yin Sect. Who is the third bidder?"

Miao Feng’s expression was puzzled, and his eyes grew more menacing.

There were many martial artists in Jianghu who understood unorthodox methods, but he had inquired beforehand.

The only unorthodox faction likely to participate in the auction, aside from their own Hundred Ghosts Sect, was the Sky Yin Sect.

Hearing this, the chubby old man shook his head, "Hard to say. Perhaps others have also learned about the black banner and secretly came to participate in the auction. But it’s not a big deal. Our Hundred Ghosts Sect has been preparing for this. I, Miao Hong, have never feared anyone."

He seemed confident of victory.

Before the auction even began, the Hundred Ghosts Sect had received news that two Grievance Rank monsters would appear.

To that end, the Hundred Ghosts Sect had made thorough preparations.

While others aimed to contend for the three Grandmaster martial arts techniques, their true goal had never been the Grandmaster martial arts.

Simply put, the Grandmaster martial arts were too expensive, and a small sect like the Hundred Ghosts Sect wasn’t qualified to covet them.

Therefore, as long as they could auction off the black banner, the Hundred Ghosts Sect’s trip wouldn’t be in vain.

A chilling coldness that seemed out of place on his kindly face surfaced on Miao Hong.

"If we secure the black banner, our Hundred Ghosts Sect will have two more evil entities comparable to Innate Realm martial artists. Moreover, according to the information we received, those two evil entities might even have touched the Outer Gang Realm.

With them, the sect’s strength will definitely surge.

At that time, it will be the true opportunity for our Hundred Ghosts Sect to grow and prosper."

"Indeed."

Miao Feng nodded in deep agreement.

In Jianghu, unorthodox factions were ultimately unwelcome, which led to their gradual decline, unable to compare with those orthodox sects.

Because of this, the Hundred Ghosts Sect was suppressed everywhere.

The underlying reason was simply the Hundred Ghosts Sect’s lack of strength.

However, the two men believed that as long as they auctioned off the black banner, the Hundred Ghosts Sect’s strength would undoubtedly experience a breakthrough.

Then, it would be the Hundred Ghosts Sect’s chance to break free and expand.

"One hundred and fifty thousand taels!"

Miao Hong bid again.

Instantly, the atmosphere quieted down.

Inside the Sky Yin Sect’s room, an old man’s face turned gloomy.

"One hundred and fifty thousand taels! It seems those two old geezers from the Hundred Ghosts Sect are determined to compete with my Sky Yin Sect. I’ll see how much silver you’ve brought!"

After muttering to himself, he bid directly.

"Two hundred thousand taels!"

Raising the price by fifty thousand taels at once, many people were shocked.

They hadn’t expected the black banner to be so sought after. The few currently bidding all seemed determined to obtain it.

On the auction stage, Warden No. 2 couldn’t stop smiling.

He had almost thought that the black banner would go unsold, after all, the starting price of fifty thousand taels wasn’t cheap.

But in a short time, the price had soared directly from fifty thousand taels to two hundred thousand taels, exceeding all expectations.

"Three hundred thousand taels!"

Shen Changqing announced.

The Sky Yin Sect had raised the price by fifty thousand taels, and he immediately raised it by one hundred thousand.

Since everyone wanted to compete, a gradual increase clearly wouldn’t work. He had to bid high, showing his determination to obtain it, in order to scare off the other bidders.

Three hundred thousand taels!

Ji Qu’s face froze, and he looked at Shen Changqing as if he were looking at a madman.

Spending three hundred thousand taels to compete for a useless black banner was just a waste of money, even for someone with deep pockets!

Unless…

The other party truly possessed the means to control evil entities but was unwilling to admit it.

If that were the case, using three hundred thousand taels to buy two Innate Realm thugs would indeed be a worthwhile deal.

Slamming his palm heavily on the table, Miao Hong’s face finally turned grim.

Three hundred thousand taels!

The price had soared all at once, catching him completely off guard.

It wasn’t that the Hundred Ghosts Sect couldn’t come up with three hundred thousand taels, but Miao Hong couldn’t be sure what the other party’s upper limit was, given how the other party had increased the price by one hundred thousand taels in one go.

If they continued to compete and ended up paying an exorbitant price to auction off the black banner, it would be hard to say whether it was a loss or a gain.

The evil entities within the black banner still needed to be nurtured.

Nurturing.

That would be a considerable expense.

Miao Hong looked at Shen Changqing’s room, his eyes flickering with uncertainty.

"Where does that person come from? A faction that can casually produce several hundred thousand taels isn’t simple. If he’s a wandering martial artist, that’s even less likely."

In the beginning.

He had assumed that Shen Changqing was just a wandering martial artist who knew some unorthodox methods and wanted to compete with them for the black banner.

Therefore.

Miao Hong hadn’t taken him seriously.

But now.

The other party had bid three hundred thousand taels in one go, giving off an impression of being rich and powerful.

"What should we do? Are we still going to compete?"

Miao Feng’s face wasn’t looking too good either.

Hearing this.

Miao Hong gritted his teeth.

"Compete! Why wouldn’t we compete? Since he’s not playing by the rules, we’ll just skip the slow game."

After saying that.

He bid loudly.

"Five hundred thousand taels!"

So what if it was just raising the price? Who was afraid of whom!

At this moment.

Miao Hong had decided to go all out.

He directly threw out the maximum amount that the Hundred Ghosts Sect could afford. If the other party continued to compete, then the Hundred Ghosts Sect would give up completely.

Conversely.

The black banner would fall into the hands of the Hundred Ghosts Sect.

"Five hundred thousand taels! Someone has bid five hundred thousand taels! Is there anyone else who wants to bid!"

Warden No. 2 was excited, shouting loudly.

He was truly excited.

A black banner that shouldn’t have sold for a high price had soared directly to five hundred thousand taels.

"Five hundred thousand taels, the Hundred Ghosts Sect must be crazy!"

The Sky Yin Sect leader was furious.

First, a madman bid three hundred thousand taels, and now the Hundred Ghosts Sect was going crazy too, bidding five hundred thousand taels.

He couldn’t possibly mistake Miao Hong’s voice.

But what he hadn’t expected was that Miao Hong would go crazy along with the other party.

After his outburst of rage.

The Sky Yin Sect leader quickly calmed down.

Although the price of five hundred thousand taels was high, judging from the Hundred Ghosts Sect’s current momentum, they might continue to bid, or five hundred thousand taels might be their limit.

Should he still compete?

It was a question worth considering.

After a long time.

The Sky Yin Sect leader decided to take a gamble. In any case, the Sky Yin Sect had brought a lot of silver this time, with the aim of auctioning off the black banner. In that case, he would play with the Hundred Ghosts Sect to the end.

"Five hundred and ten thousand taels!"

As the price echoed, Miao Hong slumped onto the chair as if deflated.

Clearly.

The Sky Yin Sect’s bid had made him give up his plan to compete for the black banner.

Inside the room.

Shen Changqing’s expression was slightly serious. After thinking for a moment, he still didn’t give up bidding.

"Six hundred thousand taels!"

End of Chapter