Chapter 67: Chapter 67: Baihe Auction (Seeking Follow-up Reading)
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After greeting his parents, Song Chi left his home and found a secluded spot to summon the Cangqiong, then headed straight for Baihe City.
The Blaze Market in Baihe City was busier than ever today, as the triennial Baihe Auction was set to be held today at the “Heavenly River Auction Hall” on the top floor of the market.
Grimm Tros stood below the docking platform of the Torch Warships at the top floor of the auction hall, his face flushed with excitement and awe.
In just half an hour, he had already seen more than fifty Spectral Airships land one after another on the platform, and looking at those twenty-meter-long steel airships wrapped in thick armor, he felt a torrent of emotions inside him.
This was what he aspired to in the future. As for cowering in his uncle’s shop as a waiter, that was an absolute insult to him.
Though his father was not a member of the powerful Tros Family, he was a son-in-law who took his surname from his mother, also a member of the formidable Tros Family.
Far from having any complaints, Grimm was glad to be a direct member of the Tros Family.
As Grimm Tros was lost in his thoughts, another Spectral Airship, almost twenty meters in length, descended from The Vault of Heaven and landed precisely on the platform ahead, which was over a hundred meters in diameter and could support the docking of Guardian Class Spectral Warships.
For a moment, the market’s ceremonial guard around the platform once again looked up in unison, welcoming the arrival of the Spectral Airship whose identity was concealed, and whose body was enveloped in a dark Spectral Energy Shield, making it impossible to discern even the color of its hull armor.
Behind him, a look of solemnity instinctively appeared on Grimm’s face, and his heart tensed slightly.
Based on the energy fluctuations emitted by the Energy Shield on the hull of the airship, it was obvious that the Shield Components it carried were not the standard Spectral Shields, and could possibly be of Blue Quality, since White Quality Energy Shields are hardly capable of emitting such a level of energy fluctuation.
And Energy Shields of at least Blue Quality, such a level of Shield, could play a tremendous role even on those Escort Ships.
Because of this, not only Grimm Tros, but many sharp-eyed people also concluded that this Spectral Airship’s origins were anything but ordinary.
Song Chi stepped off the Cangqiong with a white mask still on his face, though it had become somewhat more humanized compared to five days earlier.
After retracting the Cangqiong into his Ancestral Aperture on his forehead, he followed a market patron directly to the Heavenly River Auction Hall.
There were no so-called tickets. As long as one is a Torch Warship Captain with a Spectral Airship or above, they automatically qualified to participate in the auction.
Song Chi could understand this.
With the convenience of the Torch Network, an always-accessible virtual network for free communication and trading, why would many large markets insist on holding auctions if not to attract more people and make their own market more popular? Why would they turn away high-quality clients like a First Rank Torch Ship Captain?
As for those Zero Rank Torch Ship Captains who want to enter the auction, I’m sorry, but they must pay an entrance fee of 100 strands of Zero Rank Floating Land Origin, which also serves to indirectly raise the standard of the auction.
The Heavenly River Auction Hall was vast, with rows of leather seats arranged in a circle, surrounding the square auction stage in the center.
Above the numerous leather seats, there were more than twenty enclosed boxes, specially reserved for Second Rank or higher Torch Ship Captains.
Song Chi’s peripheral vision swept over, and then his expression under the mask turned solemn. At this moment, more than twenty private boxes had lit up with seven, indicating that at least seven Second Rank or higher Torch Ship Captains had arrived at the auction venue.
“Isn’t it said online that the usual auctions in Baihe City only see about two or three Second Rank Torch Ship Captains? Why have so many turned up this time?”
Muttering to himself, Song Chi found an unoccupied leather seat, sat down, and quietly began to wait.
With about half an hour left before the auction was to start, surely more Torch Ship Captains would continue to arrive; it was just uncertain whether more Second Rank Torch Ship Captains would come.
He closed his eyes and allowed his spirit to sink deep into his mind. Taking advantage of this time, Song Chi prepared to visualize the “Dragon Spine Tyrant Whale – Mythical Mech Projection.”
This Contemplation Diagram was directly related to the future combat power of his Cang Qiong when it advanced to a higher class, and he had never slackened his visualization exercises. Whenever he had spare time, he basically devoted it to this task.
Even though he had successfully engraved it, and his spiritual force would improve gradually even without deliberate visualization, could that be the same as actively concentrating and visualizing the Engraving Map?
It was because of his regular active visualization that, over the course of two months, Song Chi had clearly felt an enhancement in his spiritual aspect, something that the automatic operation of the Engraving Map could never achieve.
Take the battle with the Void Demon a few days ago, for example. Despite exerting all his might to deplete his spiritual force, he managed to hold on for nearly an hour. If it had been right after his awakening, he probably couldn’t have lasted even half an hour.
If he had let the Engraving Map run on its own for these two months, he guessed he might have held on for at most forty minutes. That’s the difference between being passive and active.
As his spiritual force converged on the Mech Projection image under the engraved map, Song Chi’s spiritual force was rapidly depleting, yet in this continuous consumption, his force of spirit was also slowly increasing.
Suddenly, a series of exclamations nearby interrupted his visualization. When he opened his eyes, Song Chi quickly understood the reason behind those sounds of surprise.
Just now, the tenth Second Rank Torch Ship Captain had entered the auction venue. The simultaneous attendance of ten Second Rank Torch Ship Captains at this Tianhe auction was certainly not normal.
“Could it be that this auction has high-quality ship components, or extremely rare warship enhancement resources?”
Song Chi pondered thoughtfully, but after failing to come up with a reason, he quickly gave up. He did not attempt to visualize the Engraving Map again but sat upright and focused his gaze on the square auction stage below.
Timing it out, the auction was about to officially begin.
After about two more minutes passed, a figure leaped from high above.
Thump!
After a heavy impact sound, the figure landed precisely on the stone auction platform. As he lifted his gaze and surveyed his surroundings, Song Chi got a clear look at the figure’s appearance. At the same time, a flash of solemnity appeared in his eyes, and a hint of gravity surfaced beneath them.
The man had white hair, and his beard was no exception; his age was clearly not young.
What surprised him and the guests in the auction venue was the formidable oppressive aura exuding from the white-haired old man. Despite being of advanced years, the fluctuations of vitality within his body were exceptionally strong.
“At least lv20 in Guidance Technique, a Second Rank Torch Ship Captain!!!”