"One Hundred Million!"
"Two Hundred Million!"
"Three Hundred Million!"
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Bids were placed in quick succession for the Nine-Convergence Lightning Essence Core, as many in the auction theater desired to obtain the item at all costs. Bidding quickly reached one billion spirit crystals, which was the highest value for a single item yet.
"You want the lightning core?" Caz asked John after hearing his soft words.
"Yes, but I'd like to know its true value," John asked Caz.
"Hmmm, it's hard to say. Essence cores form naturally from the convergence of elemental essence veins. The more converging veins, the more valuable the core. I've hardly ever heard of a nine-convergence essence core, so its value is definitely a few billion spirit crystals, but probably not worth more than two or three billion, even for the most crazed lightning cultivator, as such a high convergence count core will be incredibly difficult to get insights from. The higher the convergence count, the higher the comprehension level needed to peer into the truths within, so that will naturally lower its value a bit," Caz explained to John, who nodded his head in satisfaction at the answer.
"I guess it's time to start the true bidding war with princess Starforge," John mused as he glanced over to the distant private booth. "I wonder how long she's willing to keep up."
"One Billion Five-Hundred Million!" John placed a bid, leaping five-hundred million spirit crystals in a single bid.
The crowd gasped slightly at the increase of five hundred million, and glanced over towards John who had placed the bid. However, when they saw it was him who placed it, they naturally looked over to the other private booth, which as expected instantly placed a counter bid.
"One Billion Six Hundred Million!"
"That poor kid. He really seems to have pissed off the wrong people," many in the crowd mused with condolences.
"Thats the nature of this auction house. You have to tread lightly, or you'll find yourself in a bad situation, and he most likely didn't heed that common advice."
"You're right, but this bid is far higher than any of the previous bids from those two. I wonder how high they're willing to push it."
"I guess we'll find out soon enough!"
As the bidding quickly rose, almost all the previous bidders had been priced out, causing disappointed looks to appear on their faces. Most of the crowd had less than one billion spirit crystals to their name, and only the truly rich had more than that.
"Two Billion!" John instantly increased his bid, his expression calm and collected while he shifted his gaze to the distant booth once more.
‘I don't care how high this bid goes. With this one bid, I'll obtain something I desperately need, and I'll also let you know just how meager your challenge is. After this, Vivian should learn her place, and be less of a nuisance for future bids.'
"Two Billion One Hundred Million!" Vivian's private booth instantly placed a counter bid as expected, while she stared at John with a growing look of displeasure.
"This brat! Just how does he have this many spirit crystals? He's just a disciple from a second rate sect, there's no possible way he has this many spirit crystals," she grumbled angrily.
Due to her previous bids against John, she had already spent over five billion spirit crystals on items she didn't really need. She didn't mind it however, as she was able to crush John repeatedly while not really incurring a loss at all. After the auction, she planned to sell the purchased items to Xander, who would in turn sell it again to recoup most of her spending during the auction.
However, that was only to be done after the fact, and her current situation was growing more and more dire, as she needed proof of funds to bid on items. Her spirit crystal sum had already halved, and this bid was placing further strain on her ability to bid for future items she may want in the future.
"Two Billion Five Hundred Million!" John placed an instant counter bid, his bid causing a commotion through the theater, while the grimace of anger on Vivian's face deepened.
"This fucking brat! I refuse to believe he has this many spirit crystals," she raged. She didn't instantly counter bid, as the amount was truly starting to eat into her remaining spirit crystal count. While she was a highly valued member of the Starforge Clan, she was still quite young and had not had time to build her wealth to high levels. At the same time, she was not a true talent of the clan, and so their financial support for her was also quite lacking when compared to someone like Kadin.
A grinding sound drifted out within the private booth as she grit her teeth angrily, and eventually placed her hand on the bidding formation, placing another bid.
"This fucking brat. See if you can match this!" she exclaimed as she placed another bid, causing the eyes of the crowd to widen once more. However, the angered grimace remained on her face, as she started to realize that John's previous bids had been as Xander had suggested; a farce to force her to waste money.
"Three Billion!"
"So high! Those two have gone crazy!"
"I know, but who knew that youth had so many spirit crystals at his disposal? It seems like he was truly playing around with the private booth, slowly draining their funds while acting like he only had less than a billion spirit crystals to his name."
"So devious. I wonder who the private booth is. They have to feel like they've swallowed a pile of shit right now."
The crowd excitedly discussed the bidding war taking place, while John stared calmly at Vivian's private booth, and a small smirk appeared on his face after her bid was placed.
"That's the first time you've hesitated, Princess Starforge. I guess this is the limit of what you're willing to bid. Good, then in one fell swoop I'll obtain this lightning essence core, and at the same time let you know the meagerness of your wealth," John said as he placed his hand on the bidding formation, causing the crowd to gasp at the bid.
"Four Billion Spirit Crystals!"
