The Treasure Gathering Pavilion was brimming with valuable items.
Although few of the treasures on display were particularly useful to Huo Yuhao today, he still took his time to browse through them, savoring the experience like a wealthy connoisseur.
The Pavilion showcased a dazzling array of resources related to soul master training, including rare treasures, soul tools, precious metals, and materials from soul beasts. It was akin to a high-end chamber of commerce, offering items of exceptional quality.
Among the treasures, those related to soul master training were often in the form of pills. However, as the saying goes, "medicine is three parts poison," and most pills come with certain side effects.
For a soul master like Huo Yuhao, who possesses an ultimate martial soul, the amount of soul power required is immense, and the effectiveness of such pills is often limited.
Pills without side effects, such as Spirit Ascension Pill and Spirit Nourishing Pills, are exceedingly rare and highly prized, especially the latter.
However, Huo Yuhao had already taken such pills, so he no longer had to worry about their scarcity.
"Let's go, Yuhao. The Treasure Appreciation Auction in the inner courtyard is about to start. We should head to the third floor. We can come back to browse the second floor later."
"This area is mainly reserved for the core disciples of the outer courtyard, but the third floor is exclusively for us, the inner courtyard disciples," Ma Xiaotao said with a smile.
"There are many precious items on the third floor, and ten-thousand-year soul bones are often featured. If we find one that suits us, we can claim it. That would be a real boon."
"Is that so? I wonder if I have enough funds," Huo Yuhao replied, nodding slightly.
In truth, Huo Yuhao had been lingering on the second floor in hopes of finding the ten-thousand-year Golden Light Left Arm Soul Bone mentioned in the original story.
He also wanted to see if the Ice Empress or others might spot something valuable. Unfortunately, it seemed he had missed his chance. The Golden Light Left Arm Soul Bone did not appear.
However, this was to be expected. The ten-thousand-year soul bone was likely a customary item Shrek Academy reserved for Wang Dong'er.
It wouldn't do to display it prematurely and risk it being snatched up by other wealthy inner courtyard disciples. After all, the Treasure Appreciation Auction for the outer courtyard's core disciples would begin in a few days. Today was for the inner courtyard disciples.
"Yuhao, let me tell you a little secret," Ma Xiaotao whispered, using her soul power to transmit her voice directly to him. "Treasure Pavilion is actually owned by our academy. If there are soul bones on the third floor that suit us, we'll definitely be able to acquire them, given our talents."
Although Yan Shaozhe had instructed her not to spread this information, Ma Xiaotao felt no hesitation in sharing it with Huo Yuhao, as he was no outsider.
Huo Yuhao's recent sale of numerous items had surprised Ma Xiaotao. She never expected him to be such a hidden wealthy individual! This was an eye-opener for her.
She still remembered how, just a year ago, Huo Yuhao had made a living by selling grilled fish, earning a modest profit of one gold soul coin per fish. Of course, having tasted his grilled fish herself, she believed the price was more than fair.
Gold soul coins were easy to come by, but delicious food was hard to find. Even now, many at Shrek Academy still longed for Huo Yuhao's grilled fish.
But let's return to the matter at hand—20 million gold soul coins.
After spending so much time at Shrek, Ma Xiaotao hadn't saved much.
Most of her funds had been spent on treasures to aid her training or to suppress the evil fire within her.
Especially after resolving the evil fire issue a year ago, Ma Xiaotao had spent money freely, like water flowing after a dam's release. Now, she was left with less than a million gold soul coins.
From Ma Xiaotao's perspective, Huo Yuhao's financial resources, combined with the 40% discount for red-level VIPs, meant he could afford anything at the exclusive treasure hunting auction on the third floor of the inner courtyard.
While 20 million gold soul coins might only buy two top-tier ten-thousand-year soul bones, such high-quality soul bones didn't appear at every inner courtyard treasure hunt. Most of the time, they were ordinary ten-thousand-year soul bones.
Soul bones were treasures that countless soul masters dreamed of. Even some top-tier thousand-year soul bones could cost up to a million gold soul coins, let alone the top-quality ten-thousand-year soul bones, which were second only to hundred-thousand-year soul bones! Even ordinary Title Douluo might only possess a few thousand-year soul bones.
The purchasing power of one gold soul coin could buy 150 loaves of bread. Twenty million gold soul coins was enough wealth to purchase a medium-sized city! Even a country would find it difficult to spend such a sum all at once.
From Ma Xiaotao's perspective, it was almost unbelievable that Huo Yuhao, with such wealth, was still concerned about his purchasing power.
"Yuhao, don't worry. Money isn't an issue here. Besides, as red-level VIPs, we can claim one treasure for free each year," Ma Xiaotao reassured him, patting his shoulder confidently.
"That's good to hear," Huo Yuhao replied, feigning surprise. "I really had no idea Treasure Pavilion belonged to Shrek Academy."
In truth, he was well aware.
Treasure Pavilion was indeed owned by Shrek Academy, or more precisely, by the Sea God Pavilion.
One of the Sea God Pavilion's elders, Elder Lin, was the top leader of Treasure Pavilion. Elder Lin's real name was Lin Huiqun, and his status at Shrek Academy was second only to Mu En, the Dragon God Douluo, and Xuan Zi, the Gluttony Douluo.
Seeing that there was nothing of interest on the second floor, Huo Yuhao had no intention of lingering after replenishing some basic resources. The two made their way to the third floor of Treasure Pavilion.
Compared to the second floor, the third floor was more understated. There were no receptionists outside to greet guests, nor were there any young women in short skirts with excellent looks, plump figures, and graceful manners. Following the red carpet, they passed through an ancient wooden door, and the scene before them transformed.
The spacious venue was magnificently decorated. The floor was paved with precious ivory-white jade tiles, and on either side stood white jade pillars adorned with intricate patterns.
Luxurious crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, casting a soft, warm glow that contrasted beautifully with the golden walls. The overall layout was simple yet luxurious, exuding an air of elegance.
As they entered, a faint incense filled the air, refreshing and soothing to the senses.
The third floor of Treasure Pavilion was essentially a grand auction venue. In the past, it had been used to auction rare items, but now it served as a venue for the inner courtyard students of Shrek Academy.
The rules here differed from those on the second floor. The third floor was divided into a stage and an audience area. The stage, illuminated by spotlights, was where treasures were displayed for auction. This was the area prepared for the auction, which would begin around nine o'clock.
The audience area consisted of small rooms on either side. Generally, unless they were close lovers or sworn brothers, participants would separate during the auction to avoid conflicts over desirable items or awkward situations involving loans between friends.
Huo Yuhao had no such concerns. He and Ma Xiaotao chose an empty room, Room No. 9, and entered directly.
The room was about 50 square meters in size. Though the layout was simple, the decorations were undeniably luxurious.
Precious wood, jade, and various expensive ornaments adorned the space, creating an atmosphere of refined elegance.
The wide sofa was upholstered with the hide of a thousand-year soul beast, its long white fur exceptionally soft and comfortable. In front of the sofa was a jade table laden with drinks, alcohol, food, and fruits.
Opposite the sofa was a large light-guided screen, through which the items on the stage could be viewed. Below the screen was a small device for placing bids.
The only drawback was that the core array of this soul tool required soul power to activate, perhaps as a test of the inner courtyard students' strength.
As the venue for Treasure Pavilion's top-tier auctions, the third floor ensured the privacy of its VIP participants. Each VIP had their own exclusive room where they could bid and view the items in privacy.
For this special treasure appreciation meeting for Shrek's inner courtyard students, everything was kept simple, with no accompanying personnel. This was not only to protect the students' secrets but also to test their judgment and financial resources.
As the clock approached nine, more inner courtyard disciples arrived at the third floor of Treasure Pavilion, entering their respective rooms and awaiting the start of the treasure appreciation meeting.
Since this was Huo Yuhao's first time participating in the inner courtyard's treasure appreciation meeting, Ma Xiaotao took the opportunity to explain the rules.
The treasure appreciation meeting on the third floor typically featured nearly a hundred auction items, ranging from common cultivation pills to top-tier soul bones—truly something for everyone.
"Usually, the third floor of Treasure Pavilion hosts high-level auctions, so privacy is paramount. The soundproofing in these rooms is excellent, though it can't stop your spiritual power from penetrating," Ma Xiaotao said, lightly touching Huo Yuhao's right hand.
After all, aside from the rare soul masters with spiritual attribute martial souls, only powerful Soul Saint (sage) or above could release spiritual power.
"However, you should be careful. Although the current treasure appreciation meeting doesn't specifically guard against spiritual power detection, you shouldn't abuse it. There are people watching outside," she warned.
"I'm a law-abiding citizen. I wouldn't do such a thing," Huo Yuhao replied with a helpless smile.
The reason the inner courtyard treasure appreciation meeting was conducted in this manner was to prevent students from becoming overly greedy and damaging the harmonious relationships among classmates.
"After all, our Treasure Appreciation Auction is more advanced than Treasure Pavilion's top auctions. When good items are available, they're offered to our own first. That's why the items here are extremely valuable. Every time, there are plenty of soul bones, at least at the thousand-year level," Ma Xiaotao added seriously. "My two paired speed-enhancing soul bones were purchased at one of these inner courtyard Treasure Appreciation Auction."
Under Ma Xiaotao's explanation, the clock struck nine, and the screen in Room No. 9 lit up, signaling the official start of the treasure appreciation meeting.
On the auction stage, a charming auctioneer in a gorgeous purple dress stood up. The voice transmission soul tool in the room activated, and a soft female voice filled the air.
"Good evening, proud disciples of Shrek Academy's inner courtyard. Welcome to the annual inner courtyard treasure appreciation meeting. I am Liya, your host for tonight," she said with a smile, bowing gracefully before returning to the auction table. "Our auction begins now. Please, staff, bring out the first item."
On the screen, the first treasure of the appreciation meeting appeared on the auction table.
Liya took a small box covered with purple cloth from a girl in a red skirt and lifted the cloth to reveal three small jade bottles. Opening one, she retrieved a walnut-sized green pill that seemed to glow faintly, its surface crystal clear.
"I don't think I need to introduce the famous Spirit Ascension Pill," Liya said with a smile. "The starting price is 10,000 gold soul coins per pill. Three pills will be auctioned separately. Let the bidding begin."
"It's the Spirit Ascension Pill again. It's the same every year," Ma Xiaotao complained. "For most inner courtyard students, the Spirit Ascension Pill has already been taken, so it's not auctioned again. Only its upgraded version, the Spirit Nourishing Pill, is truly hard to find."
She then added, "Like the Spirit Ascension Pill I gave you earlier, it was moved to the second floor's Treasure Appreciation Auction after it went unsold here."
"After all, one person can only take one. That's normal," Huo Yuhao nodded.
From Ma Xiaotao's explanation, he understood that the inner courtyard treasure appreciation meeting was more like a small auction. However, unlike ordinary auctions, the items here were of extremely high quality, and the bidding process was slightly different.
Although conducted in an auction format, everyone could bid. The final decision wasn't solely based on the highest bid. VIP level took precedence, followed by inner courtyard points, and finally the bid price.
In other words, having money didn't guarantee success. Even if you met the reserve price, someone with a higher VIP level could claim the item.
Of course, the number of items each inner courtyard student could take varied according to their VIP level. Most could only take one item, so they wouldn't bid unless they truly needed it.
As for someone like Huo Yuhao with red-level authority, he could take up to five items. Additionally, the free opportunity once a year could be used, and the final settlement would be at a 40% discount.
As time passed, high-level soul tools, soul tool design blueprints, pills, medicinal materials, natural treasures, and meditation techniques were auctioned off one by one. Among them were several thousand-year soul bones.
Huo Yuhao even spotted familiar items, such as the thousand-year soul bone he had recently sold, which he had obtained from an unknown Title Douluo in the Extreme North. Although its quality and age weren't particularly impressive, it was still a rare treasure.
The two of them didn't just watch; they also made several attempts to purchase items they fancied. Huo Yuhao learned that when using the quotation device, he needed to insert his VIP card into the slot on the back.
Finally, as Liya opened a familiar bag, the ten-thousand-year soul bone made its appearance.
Huo Yuhao was puzzled. Something felt off. Although this soul bone was among the best of the ten-thousand-year soul bones, it didn't seem suitable for him. What was Yan Shaozhe keeping secret?
…
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