Chapter 159: One Hundred Thousand Taels of Black Gold Secured

Both the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince were descendants of the imperial family, but everyone knew that familial affection within the royal house was exceedingly thin, with interests taking precedence above all else. If conflicts of interest became too severe, even brothers born of the same blood would sever ties completely.

The Crown Prince desired the Life-Extension Pill. If other factions were bidding for it, that would be one thing, but for the Eighth Prince to suddenly step into the fray made the situation rather intriguing.

"Your Highness, it is the Eighth Prince. Who could have expected him to interfere in the bidding for the Life-Extension Pill at this very moment?" said the Crown Prince's personal bodyguard.

The Crown Prince cast a faint, indifferent glance in the direction of the Eighth Prince, who even smiled back in response.

"If this prince is not mistaken, the Eighth Prince shares the exact same intention as I do. Half a month from now is our Imperial Father's eightieth birthday; the Eighth Prince undoubtedly wishes to present the Life-Extension Pill to him in exchange for favor. In circumstances like this, it all comes down to who is willing to invest more!" The Crown Prince narrowed his eyes slightly. "I have never seen Little Eight act so proactively before. Why is he making such a high-profile move this time?"

"Your Highness, would you like me to investigate?" the bodyguard asked.

The Crown Prince shook his head and replied, "No need. No matter how much Little Eight struggles, he cannot shake my position."

With that, the Crown Prince raised his voice and called out, "Thirty thousand!"

"Forty thousand!" The Eighth Prince immediately raised the bid by another ten thousand taels of black gold.

"Fifty thousand!"

"..."

Following that, the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince continuously drove the price higher. None of the other participants chose to get involved in this internal struggle between members of the imperial family. Had only a single royal been bidding, other factions might still have contested it, but now that two members of the imperial family were entangled, outsiders had to weigh the consequences carefully.

"It seems today's supreme-grade Life-Extension Pill will ultimately fall into the hands of the royal family. The other factions have likely given up."

"There is nothing to be done about it. Although there are five major factions in the imperial city, the Violent Martial Empire ultimately belongs to the imperial family. None of the five factions wants to be dragged into an imperial succession struggle and invite countless unnecessary troubles!"

"Still, the infighting among the royal family is quite fierce. This pill is bound to reach an astronomical price!"

"..."

While the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince competed fiercely, the rest of the audience engaged in heated discussions.

"Who would have thought that today's grand show would turn out to be a battle between two princes of the imperial household? The other factions probably never anticipated this!" Tong Yixin said, blinking her eyes.

"No one wants to be dragged into factional disputes; it is only natural," Tong Yibing said calmly.

"Who do you suppose will end up with the Life-Extension Pill?" Wu Tian watched the good show with keen interest. He cared not a whit about who was competing for the pill; as long as someone was driving the price up, he was more than happy.

"The Crown Prince possesses immense financial resources, but the Eighth Prince usually keeps a low profile. For him to suddenly act with such high profile today shows he is well-prepared and cannot be underestimated. Therefore, until the final result is out, anyone could win!" Yue Shishi said thoughtfully.

"I think it will undoubtedly end up in the hands of the Crown Prince," Wu Tian remarked playfully.

"On the contrary, I feel the Eighth Prince has a better chance of winning," Guo Yuemen retorted defiantly.

As Wu Tian and his companions chatted, the contest between the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince reached its climax.

"Seventy thousand!" The Crown Prince uttered the figure with nonchalant indifference, and as soon as it was spoken, it sent a wave of commotion through the crowd.

"It has already reached seventy thousand taels of black gold—that is seven hundred million taels of silver! Heavens! If I recall correctly, the auction record for the Violent Martial Empire was seven hundred million, and it's about to be broken!" someone cried out in astonishment.

"That seven-hundred-million record was set a century ago! A record held for a hundred years is about to be shattered!"

"The imperial family is truly wealthy. It seems the final figure won't stop at just seven hundred million; a new record is going to be made today!"

Amidst the gasps of awe, a knowing smile appeared on the Eighth Prince's face before he calmly called out, "Eighty thousand!"

Hearing the bid of eighty thousand, the Crown Prince finally furrowed his brow. He had originally assumed the Eighth Prince was merely engaging in some minor rivalry, but he had never expected him to push all the way to eighty thousand—a development that genuinely caught the Crown Prince off guard.

"Your Highness, eighty thousand taels of black gold is practically the entire annual stipend of the Crown Prince's estate. If we continue to raise the price, it simply won't be worth it," the Crown Prince's personal bodyguard warned.

"This is a birthday gift for Imperial Father; how could it possibly not be worth it?" The Crown Prince clenched his fists tightly, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. "Besides, I am the Crown Prince; how could I possibly lose in terms of momentum to another prince? Today, this Life-Extension Pill must be mine! Ninety thousand!"

When the Crown Prince shouted out ninety thousand, the Eighth Prince cupped his hands toward him with a full face of smiles, clearly a gesture of congratulation.

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has raised the bid to ninety thousand taels of black gold! This is a brand-new record for the auctions of the Violent Martial Empire, surpassing the previous record by a full twenty thousand taels of black gold! Magnificent! Is there anyone in the audience bidding higher than ninety thousand? If not, going once for ninety thousand, going twice for ninety thousand, going thrice for ninety thousand! Congratulations to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for obtaining the supreme-grade Life-Extension Pill!"

Dongfang Jin excitedly hammered down the gavel to finalize the transaction. Being able to preside over such a record-breaking auction thrilled him to the core; his name would be passed down to future generations alongside today's historic record.

"Ninety thousand taels of black gold... that is nine hundred million taels of silver! Such a staggering sum is something an ordinary wealthy family could never earn in a lifetime. Simply incredible!"

"My goodness, ninety thousand! I have never witnessed such a thing in my life!"

"The person who refined the Life-Extension Pill is going to make a fortune!"

After the Crown Prince successfully won the auction for the Life-Extension Pill, everyone else broke into amazed exclamations. Although most people present at the venue were wealthy individuals, nine million taels of black gold—wait, ninety thousand taels of black gold was an astronomical fortune even to them, and even members of the five major factions could not help marveling in shock.

"Th... That's incredible! Ninety thousand taels of black gold—just how much money is that?" Tong Yixin covered her mouth, her eyes filled with utter shock.

"A lot, anyway," Tong Yibing shrugged.

"Ninety thousand is manageable for the imperial family, but to anyone else, it is simply unimaginable. Take our Seven Stars Academy, for instance; that amount roughly equals three years of our academy's total expenditures," Yue Shishi said with an incredulous smile.

Wu Tian, however, did not feel particularly moved by it. The Life-Extension Pill had fetched ninety thousand taels of black gold, and combined with his previous earnings, Wu Tian now possessed one hundred thousand taels of black gold. One hundred thousand taels of black gold was equivalent to one hundred thousand exchange points. In the system mall, one hundred thousand exchange points could only buy moderate goods. Truly top-tier items in the system mall—such as divine artifacts and the like—started at millions of exchange points upwards, with many even reaching into the hundreds of millions. Wu Tian's current total didn't even amount to a fraction of a fraction.

Still, Wu Tian was quite satisfied with this outcome. Previously, he had been dirt poor, but now he had one hundred thousand taels of black gold. At the very least, it would be enough for his expenses for a considerable period of time.

"Thank you, esteemed guests, for your presence. Today's auction has now concluded..."

With the auction over, those who needed to leave departed, while those who needed to settle accounts went to settle them with the Smooth Wind Commercial Firm.

Yue Shishi and her group prepared to leave, but Wu Tian stood up and said, "Elder Sister Yue, could you wait for me for just a moment? I need to go settle accounts with the Smooth Wind Commercial Firm and then I'll rejoin you."

"Who do you think you are, actually asking the teacher to wait for you personally?" Guo Yuemen sneered.

However, Yue Shishi simply nodded and said, "Very well, we will wait for you outside the venue."

Instantly, Guo Yuemen's face flushed red, and he slunk away in embarrassment to hide in a corner.

"Great, I'll be right out to find Elder Sister Yue!"