"
"Mm." Nie Li smiled faintly and nodded, accepting Ning'er's kind offer. Now that Ning'er had returned to the Celestial Sound Sect, she would surely be able to get even more Celestial Sound Dew. Before Ning'er left this time, Nie Li was definitely going to get her a ton of treasures, including god-tier growth-type dragon blood Demon Spirits and the like. As for Celestial Sound Dew, Ning'er probably didn't need all that much.
The auction continued, and a few more outstanding-growth dragon blood Demon Spirits were sold, along with a number of first-rank and second-rank spirit artifacts, various cultivation and healing pills, and more.
The auction remained incredibly heated.
After all, the items being sold were things rarely seen in everyday life. Under the stunned gazes of the crowd,
In Nie Li's view, the spirit stones he already had were more than enough. It was better to exchange them for something practical and boost his own strength first.
The vine inside his body was severely dragging down his cultivation progress. Ning'er had already advanced to the Fifth Life Realm, while he had only just stepped into the Destiny Realm not long ago. Yet at the same time, with every realm Nie Li advanced, his combat strength was several times—or even over ten times—that of others at the same level!
Also because of that vine, Nie Li's demand for spirit stones, pills, and all manner of resources was staggeringly high. An ordinary person could achieve a noticeable boost in cultivation from refining a few dozen spirit stones, but Nie Li needed to refine hundreds, thousands, or even more.
However, Nie Li also had a feeling that once the vine inside him was fully nourished, the results would be nothing short of extraordinary.
Take the thirty bottles of Celestial Sound Dew he had just bought. An ordinary person could use them for a very, very long time, but for Nie Li, they would probably be gone in just a few days.
It was a helpless situation, which was why Nie Li needed a staggering volume of resources to push his cultivation forward.
Watching Gu Bei buy one item after another,
Murong Yu was gritting his teeth in frustration. He desperately wanted to buy something, but every time he started bidding, Gu Bei would immediately drive the price sky-high, leaving him stuck in an impossible position. After all, the spirit stones he had were painstakingly accumulated from hunting demon souls in the Ghost Ruins. They didn't just blow in with the wind! He wanted to slam the table, leap to his feet, and curse Gu Bei out, but he held himself back.
"You won't let me have it easy, and I won't let you have it easy either!" Murong Yu intermittently drove up Gu Bei's bids. The effect was limited, but as long as he could make Gu Bei spend a little more money, he felt a bit better.
When it came time to auction off a third-rank spirit artifact, the Heavy Purple Robe, Gu Bei seemed quite interested. His eyes lit up as he placed bid after bid, crushing the competition and driving the price up to eleven thousand spirit stones!
"Eleven thousand spirit stones—anyone care to bid higher?"
Just as the third-rank Heavy Purple Robe seemed destined to fall into Gu Bei's hands, Murong Yu arched an eyebrow and said, "Twelve thousand spirit stones!" In any case, he was determined to make Gu Bei's life miserable. Who told Gu Bei to keep targeting him earlier?
Gu Bei shot Murong Yu an irritated look and snorted coldly. "Thirteen thousand spirit stones!"
"Fourteen thousand spirit stones!" Murong Yu raised the bid again. He had already driven up Gu Bei's prices several times, and without exception, Gu Bei had bought every single one. He certainly wasn't going to pass up this chance to stick it to Gu Bei.
From the look of it, Gu Bei was some rich idiot without a brain who, the moment he saw something he liked, would bid without hesitation and buy it.
The estimated value of the Heavy Purple Robe was around ten thousand spirit stones.
Gu Bei spending that much of a premium on a Heavy Purple Robe would only earn him ridicule! As far as this kind of spoiled young master went, Murong Yu couldn't care less!
Murong Yu waited for Gu Bei to bid again, only to see him yawn from his seat, completely dropping the wide-eyed excitement he had shown earlier. A chill of unease crept over Murong Yu.
"If you want this Heavy Purple Robe, then go ahead and take it. Lord Bei here is magnanimous and won't hold it against you!" Gu Bei waved his hand dismissively. Having spent the earlier rounds getting under Murong Yu's skin and riling him up, Gu Bei had noticed that Murong Yu insisted on driving up every one of his bids. Gradually, Gu Bei had probed out exactly how much the guy had—roughly fifteen thousand spirit stones.
The Heavy Purple Robe might be a third-rank spirit artifact, but it was simply too heavy to be practical. Ten thousand spirit stones would have been more than enough to buy it outright. Gu Bei had put on the act of being fascinated with the robe purely to lure Murong Yu into a trap.
Originally, when the crowd saw Gu Bei and Murong Yu sparring with each other, they had all been silently amused. Knowing Gu Bei's spoiled temperament, he would surely buy it even at a bloated price. They were enjoying the spectacle, waiting for Gu Bei to bid higher, when suddenly Gu Bei just stopped. Everyone was stunned.