After being reborn, all I want to do is run away.

Chapter 358 Four-Party Auction

"Shen Xu, is this really a good idea? Now, the wood carving in your hand has become a priceless treasure in the eyes of others."

"But we all know it's just an ordinary wood carving. If it ends up being bought by someone else for an exorbitant price, you won't have a good ending," Bai Lu said worriedly, trying to dissuade you.

"That's not right. I never said that the wooden carving was priceless, but they insist on buying it, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"But I think you're just lying."

"Then you're an accomplice!" Shen Xu said with a smile.

"You... I didn't do anything."

"Once things are exposed, will others think you did nothing? You usually gamble so much, why are you suddenly so timid now?"

“That’s different. I only lose my own money. I can’t bring myself to cheat other people out of their money.”

"I didn't ask you to do anything!" Shen Xu looked at Bai Lu with great curiosity.

“Miss, things have come to this point, there’s no going back. Judging from the current trend, that wooden carving is probably worth more than a million. Even if we only get 10% in the end, that’s still 100,000 Nourishing Yuan Pills,” Guan Bi said excitedly.

"Sigh!" Bai Lu sighed deeply.

"By the way, is there any news about my Longevity Pill?" Shen Xu asked Bai Lu.

"Aunt Wang said she couldn't do anything about it, because the rewards for you and Xiao Yi need to be evaluated by the Four-Party Council, and she has no authority to issue the rewards to you on her own. But she told you to rest assured that she has already reported your request, and the council has no reason to refuse your request."

"When can I get my things?" He really didn't expect Wang Rong to kick him to the Four Directions Council.

"After the auction! The entire Sword Alliance is very busy right now, so your and Xiao Yi's rewards will naturally be put on hold. However, the Sword Alliance will not mistreat anyone who has contributed to the Sword Alliance, and you will definitely receive more than just one Longevity Pill in the end."

"An auction?" Shen Xu asked, somewhat puzzled.

"The Four Directions Auction will be held soon, and all the powerful forces and cultivators of the Four Directions Sword Alliance will be there. The Sword Alliance has been busy with this matter recently," Li Xiaoyi explained.

"Why don't you hand the wood carving over to the Heavenly Sword Merchant Guild for auction? Someone from the guild has already approached me to make this happen. I think this wood carving might actually sell for a price we can't even imagine."

Li Xiaoyi never expected that Shen Xu's story would cause such a huge stir in the Four Directions Sword Alliance.

But as Guan Bi said, there is no turning back now. Even if they tell everyone that the wood carving is just an ordinary wood carving and has no secrets, probably no one will believe them.

Once a person is convinced of something, it takes a much greater price to change their mind.

"At this moment, Shen Xu was lost in memories. In his previous life, he had heard various rumors about this auction from others, and the scene was very grand."

Even the other three fourth-rank forces in Xingchuan Region sent people to participate, and the transaction volume was astonishing, making the Four Directions Sword Alliance a fortune.

But the timing doesn't seem to match up. After thinking about it, Shen Xu guessed that the story was still about the Blood Central Realm, which is why the Four Directions Sword Alliance had to hold the Four Directions Auction ahead of schedule to raise resources for setting up the boundary gate.

Unfortunately, he didn't have enough Nourishing Essence Pills to come to Tianjian City to join the fun, otherwise he should have been able to find out the whereabouts of many good things in advance.

However, there was one thing that he overheard, even though he was in the distant city of Anyue at the time.

It is said that the auction brought together the four jade pendant fragments that could open the Hanxu Cave.

Hanxu Daoist was a rogue cultivator who was active in Xingchuan Domain before the Seven Luminaries Star Saint. When his lifespan was about to end, he sealed his cave in a void near Xingchuan Domain, where he stored all kinds of precious natural treasures he had collected throughout his life.

Moreover, he divided the jade pendant that could open the cave into four pieces and bestowed them upon his four most outstanding disciples. He also left a will stating that whoever could collect all four pieces of the jade pendant would obtain his cave and all the items hidden within.

Unfortunately, fate played a cruel trick on him; his four disciples were evenly matched, and none of them could completely defeat the other.

Ultimately, they could only die one after another amidst endless struggles and resentment, leaving behind lifelong regrets.

As time passed and the world changed, those four jade pendant fragments vanished without a trace, like stones sinking into the sea, and never reappeared without a trace.

Who could have imagined that thousands of years later, those four jade pendant fragments would reunite and appear together in the Four Directions Sword Alliance? It makes one marvel at the mystery of fate.

However, he could never know who ultimately obtained Hanxu Daoist's cave dwelling.

"Shen Xu, what do you think? Should we hand over the wood carving to the Heavenly Sword Merchant Guild for auction?" Seeing that Shen Xu seemed to be in a daze, Li Xiaoyi couldn't help but remind him.

Hearing Li Xiaoyi's voice, Shen Xu snapped out of his daze. "Of course, it's a rare opportunity. But what are your chamber of commerce's conditions? And how much commission will you take?"

"There are no conditions; all the expenses are included in the 20% allocated to me."

"What is their bottom price?"

"How much do you think would be a good price?" Li Xiaoyi asked.

"Let's keep it at ten thousand! Setting it too high will damage Guanbi's reputation. We also need to spread the word that we're seeking the heart of sandalwood at a high price. If we're going to put on an act, we should go all the way."

"Sure, is there anything you'd like? I'll have the Chamber of Commerce keep an eye out for you."

"Yuan liquid! I want as much as you have," Shen Xu said.

“I’ve already asked the Chamber of Commerce to reserve it for you,” Li Xiaoyi replied calmly.

"Xiao Yi, you are so kind! Without you, I really don't know how I would have been able to gather so much Yuan Liquid."

"It's just that I might not have the money to buy it," Shen Xu said shamelessly.

"Don't worry, I'll deduct your share from the wood carving."

"You can't do this! That's my money! And haven't you gotten enough already?" Shen Xu said through gritted teeth.

"Given your debts, even if that wooden carving could be sold for a million Nourishing Yuan Pills, it might not be enough to pay off the debt completely. I've already advanced a considerable number of Nourishing Yuan Pills for you."

And even if you want to repay your debt, it seems you shouldn't be coming to me; you should be going to that fox.

"Xiao Yi, does Shen Xu owe a lot of money?" Bai Lu asked with some concern.

"It's not about money. I owe Kunyuan Palace a lot of Yuan Liquid. If I don't pay it back, I might die." He guessed that Li Xiaoyi hadn't told anyone about Yun Yao, so the Yuan Liquid she had intercepted for him was probably bought with her own money.

"Kunyuan Palace?" Bai Lu asked, somewhat puzzled.

So Shen Xu told Bai Lu what had happened in the Kunyuan Palace again, but only said that he had absorbed a lot of Yuan Liquid for some reason, without mentioning the hairpin and the fox.

“The Sword Alliance has a lot of Yuan Liquid. You can apply to the Sword Alliance to replace all the other rewards with Yuan Liquid,” Guan Bi suggested after listening to Shen Xu’s explanation.

“However, if it really is a pool of that kind of Yuan liquid, a million Nourishing Yuan Pills might not be enough to buy it, because even the Yuan liquid in the Condensing Yuan Pool within the Sword Alliance is not that pure,” Bai Lu said thoughtfully.

"I have no choice but to try to accumulate as much Yuan Liquid as possible, hoping that the Kunyuan Secret Realm will spare me in the end!"