Alex was escorted to his VIP room somewhere. He arrived in a massive room with no windows at all. Instead, there was a formation that projected an image of the auction in the air.
"Do we not get to see the auction directly?" he asked the woman that remained behind them as the doors were locked.
"I am afraid that is how things are done here, your Majesty," she spoke. "Because of how the size of the auction, and every guest being a VIP of equal importance to us, we decided that this was the best approach a long time ago."
"My words may not mean much to you, your Majesty, but I can assure you that you will not dislike this experience, different as it may be."
"I am glad to hear that at least," Alex said, sitting on a comfortable seat, leaning back with a leg perched on his knees. The two elders sat next to him and looked at the floating image of an empty stage by themselves.
"How long before the auction starts?" he asked.
"The time intended is in about 20 minutes, however, the auction will start once all the guests are ready and comfortable. If you wish for it to proceed, you can let me know so I may relay it to the house."
"Yes, we are ready," Alex said.
The woman nodded and quickly sent a message outside that this room was ready.
Alex looked around a bit at the room with his spiritual sense and tried to search for any flaws in the room. He was important enough that they could do something like that, but his senses found nothing.
He turned toward the woman and asked, "How much of what happens here do you relay to your higher-ups?"
"We have sworn an oath to never divulge a guest's secret of whatever they say in this room. So long as they don't do anything untoward to the staff, their secrets will die with us," the woman said.
Alex smiled. "May I ask you to speak the same oath again?" he asked.
The woman nodded and spoke to them. Alex listened to her words, and so did the elders. They searched for loopholes, and after finding that there weren't any, Alex felt a little more relieved.
The woman did wonder why he was being so secretive, but most of the ones with importance did the same, so she gave no thought to his request.
Then, to her surprise, a large beast appeared in the room.
A completely black Tiger.
The girl was beyond surprised to see a beast of that type. She had never seen a tiger without stripes of any sort, so she wondered if it was a very rare type of beast.
She even wondered where Alex could've found it. Aside from that, however, she said and did nothing.
Alex let Pearl sit on one of the empty seats while Whisker ran up to his shoulder and sat there, watching the empty screen.
In the time that took for the auction to start, the woman went over the basic etiquette of the auction, just in case.
Alex didn't have to listen to anything, but he did. The elders listened more intently as they would be the ones doing the purchasing.
The auction finally started as the young woman that Alex had seen a few weeks earlier appeared on the floating screen. She wore a bright red dress that fit tightly to her curves with no sleeves and cut off around the knee.
Her red dress was bedazzled with gold that seemed to be sewn into the fabric itself, the glittering lights making for a glamorous sight.
The woman had already been pretty before, but somehow the makeup she wore today made her look simply marvelous. Her hair was tied in a bun with a single hairpin keeping it there.
The hairpin had a head of a dragon on one side, and that alone could have been the most important item to be auctioned in many of the auction houses outside the city.
The young woman smiled and bowed deeply for a few seconds before standing up.
"Greetings guests. I am Hu Biaolin, your auctioneer for the day," she spoke with a voice that sounded smoother than a breeze in a grassland.
"It's finally getting started," Alex said with a small smile. "I wonder how low they are going to start with. The first item should still be a Saint-ranked item, correct?"
The two elders nodded.
The woman in the room was a little confused. "Your Majesty, did you not receive a talisman with the list of items prior to the auction?" she asked. "If you didn't, I have one—"
Alex stopped her with a gesture of his hand. "No, we got it," he said. "I simply didn't read it. I like being surprised at an auction. It's one of the last places where you never know what to expect. Except, you know that whatever you are presented with will be a treasure either way, so you expect a good surprise."
Yao Ning smiled at his response. "I think there are a few things you will like. One thing, in particular, should catch your eye," she said.
"Oh, is it a great treasure?" Ning asked excitedly.
"I wouldn't say great," she said. "At least not compared to what else we have. But it is one of the better for certain."
"I see," Alex said. "Oh right, I've been meaning to ask. Is my pill the best thing being sold?"
"No, the Dao pill is the second-best item being sold in the auction," she said. "The first… I'll let it be a surprise."
Alex nodded and looked back.
Hu Biaolin had spoken some customary speeches in preparation as a large object was brought out for the first auction.
The object was placed onto a platform. At the same time, something flickered in the space between him and the screen and an object appeared, hovering mid-air.
A large box with a cloth on top of it.
"Oh… interesting," he couldn't help but say. "Is this an image of what is being presented in the auction right now?"
"It is a replica image, that not only replicates the shape and color of the object but also reproduces its aura to its best capabilities," the woman said. "You may also freely view it from where you sit by simply turning it around in the air to get a better look."
"Nice," Alex couldn't help but say. No auction he had ever been to had let the guests get a closer look at the item in front of them, except that one time when Heaven's Impact was sold.
"Can I take this black cloth off?" Alex asked.
"My apologies, but you'll have to wait for the staff to take it off on the other end," she said.
"Very well," Alex said, returning his attention to the woman on screen who seemed to be looking directly at him when she spoke the next few sentences.
"Let us start the auction with the first item that we will be selling today," she spoke and gestured for the staff to take off the black cloth over the item.
