The auction hall erupted in commotion as countless divine senses surged toward the raised platform from every direction, each eager to get a look at the treasure ahead of time.
An Emperor Treasure was inherently valuable, let alone a defensive Emperor Treasure — and a mid-grade Emperor armor at that.
Yet what disappointed everyone was that the box on the platform, seemingly forged from refined iron, completely blocked all divine sense from probing its contents. Every attempt came back empty.
The beautiful woman standing on the platform surveyed the room with a radiant smile, her voice soft and honeyed: "This armor was not forged by any of today's master refiners. It hails from an ancient cave dwelling — a relic of considerable age, discovered accidentally by a friend of mine and entrusted to our Trading Company for auction."
The moment she spoke, envy and jealousy flickered across countless faces.
Ancient cave dwellings were hardly uncommon throughout the Star Boundary, but stumbling upon one was a matter of extraordinary luck. Even if you found one, you might easily become trapped within its protective formations, let alone emerge with treasure in hand.
To locate an ancient cave dwelling, escape unscathed, and walk away with a treasure like this — one could only imagine how formidable the finder's fortune must have been.
Why does such luck never fall upon me? Every person asked themselves, teeth clenched in bitter resentment. If they could encounter such an opportunity, they would never need to worry about Cultivation resources for lifetimes to come.
"Because of its great age, this armor, though classified as mid-grade, does carry certain flaws!"
The instant the woman's words fell, the auction hall went dead silent.
A long moment passed before a voice drifted from one of the premium private boxes: "Might I ask — what sort of flaws?"
Many Emperor Realm experts had come specifically for this armor. The Purple Source Trading Company's promotional material had heralded the arrival of a mid-grade Emperor armor, and yet now this woman was telling them it was flawed.
Yang Kai was taken aback as well. Kang Siran had never mentioned this.
But given his relationship with Kang Siran, if she had known beforehand, she would never have kept it from him. In other words, this detail had been kept secret even from her.
After a moment's thought, Yang Kai accepted it. Flawed or not, it was still a mid-grade Emperor armor. There was no need to spell out every detail in the promotion — drawing the crowd was enough.
At that moment, the woman smiled and said: "You will all see for yourselves shortly. For now, please welcome Shopkeeper Lou to demonstrate the armor's power."
She stepped aside and gestured behind her. A figure of modest stature strode briskly onto the platform — Lou Chi, the man stationed here to oversee the auction.
Lou Chi arrived at the woman's side, clasped his fists toward the various private boxes in a wordless greeting, and suddenly channeled his Emperor Essence. He pointed a finger at the refined iron box, and with a series of sharp whooshing sounds, dozens of armor plates — each no larger than a thumbnail — shot out from within. They trailed streaks of ink-black light, coiling together into a dark dragon that lunged toward Lou Chi and enveloped him.
Clack-clack-clack — the thumbnail-sized plates settled onto his body in perfect order, fitting seamlessly together to form a suit of black armor that stretched from below his neck all the way down to the tops of his feet.
Clad in the armor, Lou Chi's bearing transformed instantly — he resembled a war god, his presence overwhelming. Even his aura at the first-order Emperor Realm seemed to be amplified, leaving the crowd staring in astonishment.
Upon closer inspection, the armor appeared surprisingly lightweight, far from bulky. Lou Chi spun, leaped, and moved across the platform with impressive agility, the joints of the armor restricting his movements not at all. Yet everyone could see clearly that although the armor covered nearly his entire body, there was a gap roughly a foot wide around the waist. The edges of the missing section were jagged and uneven.
This was not a deliberate design choice. It looked unmistakably like something had been lost — as though the armor had once suffered a devastating blow that tore away the plates around the waist.
"This Flying Ink Dragon Armor was once a complete set. Unfortunately, parts of it are missing, though the reason remains unknown," the woman explained.
"With such severe damage, is the armor still useful?" someone called out.
The woman smiled. "The techniques of ancient master refiners are far beyond what we can imagine. Rest assured — despite the significant loss, the armor retains more than half its original power. Of course, while it still technically qualifies as mid-grade Emperor armor, it can now only produce the defensive capability of a low-grade Emperor treasure."
As she spoke, Lou Chi gave a light shout. The black armor rattled and clattered, then peeled away from his body plate by plate, each piece hovering in midair and reassembling into the shape of the complete armor.
Lou Chi raised a hand, and a thick, yellowed tome appeared in his palm — its pages ancient and heavy.
"The Two Forms Record!" someone cried out in recognition.
This book-like object was Lou Chi's own Emperor Treasure, the Two Forms Record, a artifact of tremendous power.
Channeling his Emperor Essence, two beams of mystical light shot from the tome — one yin, one yang — spiraling around each other as they slammed into the hovering armor. The violent surge of power made everyone's expression change. No one doubted that if those two beams struck an unguarded Emperor Realm expert, they could kill instantly.
A thunderous rumble shook the hall as the mystical light struck the black armor, but it only sent sparks flying across the surface. Dark light rippled along the armor's plates, yet the armor remained completely intact.
The woman's voice rang out at just the right moment, pitched louder than before: "Our Trading Company has had several master appraisers verify this armor. It has been confirmed that the plates were forged from the scales of an adult Ink Serpent! While serpent beasts are common throughout the Star Boundary, the Ink Serpent is an exceedingly rare species, renowned for its extraordinary defensive capabilities. The Flying Ink Dragon Armor, forged from Ink Serpent scales, possesses defensive power far beyond ordinary Emperor Treasures. Acquire this piece, and in a critical moment, it could save your life!"
"It was actually forged from Ink Serpent scales!"