Chapter 330: Auction Begins

Whoa!

Like a theater stage, the red grand curtain opened, and a host in a tailcoat, resembling a plump ball, dashed out clutching a microphone.

A white searchlight from above focused on him, making him look like a comical penguin.

Melodic orchestral music rose, mixed with thumping drumbeats.

The host, microphone in hand, took a jumping step to the front of the stage and shouted loudly:

"Dear guests, dear visitors, welcome to the Bolaka Auction!"

"I'm your favorite host! The loudest caller on the auction floor!"

"Hu~~Ba!"

"Clang!"

Metal clashed, and the orchestra stopped.

Suddenly, a dense rattling of iron chains came from both sides of the curtain.

Six gun-wielding soldiers followed behind four "girls" who were chained with iron chains and sprinting.

The girls wore the special uniform of the auction's attendants, though their movements were somewhat stiff.

As they appeared, a commotion stirred among the audience below.

People craned their necks; many first‑comers curiously eyed the ladies on stage.

"What is that?"

"Why bring the ladies up?"

"Roar!!"

The roar answered the questioner at the front.

The made‑up girl proved her identity with a mouth split to the limit of blood.

"Zombie!"

"It's a zombie!"

"Alas!"

Qie'e Hu Ba nimbly weaved through the chained zombies, then, as a prank, let out a loud roar at the frightened guests:

"Roar!"

The soldiers holding the chains slightly loosened them, and the chained lady‑zombies instantly went berserk, charging into the crowd.

People were thrown into disarray.

"Kill! Quickly kill these zombies!"

"Run! Run!"

Many first‑time guests in the front rows turned pale with fright; quite a few of them hadn't faced a zombie in a long time.

They were almost fleeing.

"Hahaha!"

In the rear of the seats, regular patrons of Bolaka City saw the crowd scared by Qie'e Hu Ba's prank and couldn't help laughing loudly.

They had completely forgotten that they themselves had once been startled and at a loss.

This has been a regular feature of the auction all along.

Penguin‑person Qie'e Hu Ba saw the mood was about right, then waved his hand, signaling the soldiers to tighten the chains in their grip.

He let out a hey‑ha shout, then jumped off the stage, stood beside the frightened guests, and shouted into the microphone:

"Welcome to Bolaka! This guest, number a06!"

"Please don't be afraid! In the Bolaka Auction, everything is Safety!"

With a face full of fervor, he comforted the frightened guests, then with effort jumped back onto the stage, pointing at the zombie ladies and shouting loudly:

"As you all see! These fresh, just‑out‑of‑the‑oven zombies are our beautiful auction ladies!"

The host, while speaking, ran quickly from beneath the mouth of the first zombie lady, introducing each one in turn.

Under the lights, the bodies that had just turned into corpses were ice‑cold.

The ladies who had become zombies paid no heed, letting out frenzied howls.

The sudden "beauty" stirred a commotion among the guests who liked the exotic.

Long absent, they felt a hint of novelty.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Host Qie'e Hu Ba took another step and jumped onto the auction platform higher than himself, pointing at the attendant serving beside the guests and shouted:

"Esteemed guests!"

"The four fresh‑out‑of‑the‑oven zombies behind me are damned! Disobedient! Dare to make the guests unhappy, you servants!"

"If you find any slight annoyance in the attendant serving you..."

He gestured a narrow slit with his fingers, his eyes fierce as he stared at the attendants serving respectfully all around:

"Tell me! Tell the Bolaka Auction!"

"We will help you punish them severely! They won't even be able to defecate!"

"And the guests who were just frightened—tonight's menu expenses are all free!"

"You can enjoy yourself to the fullest on site!"

Below the stage, the guests who had been somewhat dissatisfied were stunned, then, delighted, hurriedly flipped through the menus in their hands.

Many longtime patrons looked enviously at the new guests who had earned a free‑meal chance.

The services listed on the menu could almost satisfy anyone's imagination—if only they weren't so expensive...

On stage, Hu Ba looked satisfied at the heated excitement of the crowd, then, with hands behind his back, signaled the soldiers to start the next program.

"3 minutes later! The auction officially begins!"

"Now! Please everyone watch!"

"Sashimi zombie!"

"Inside the private box, the female attendant standing beside Lin An, who was bent over serving, shuddered involuntarily."

"The auction needed someone to explain, so they simply left one person there."

"Not knowing if he was suppressing his emotions, Gao Tian stared fixedly at the stage."

"Several chefs with superb knife skills weaved among the zombie attendants, the blades in their hands flying, precise and thin as a cicada's wing, flesh and bone."

"Not long after the corpse transformation, the zombie attendants, aside from howling, looked hardly different from humans in appearance."

"The corpse horde tore and bit."

"The crowd cheered and cursed, and under successive stimulations, the atmosphere was officially ignited."

"On the leather sofa, Lin An casually tossed the menu aside."

"The menu listed hundreds of special services in dense detail, almost encompassing everything one could imagine."

"The vole who had helped Zhang Tie finish the paperwork carefully sat on a corner of the sofa, its eyes couldn't help but size up the menu."

"If you are accustomed to the morality after this world's catastrophe."

"To be honest, the temptation on the menu attracted his gaze like a poison."

"Before the auction even began, many people had already been drawn to the first row that had obtained the free‑order opportunity."

"The customers who got free orders had already chosen their 'dishes'."

"Under intense stimulation, madness, angry shouts, and screams..."

"Although Lin An remained unmoved, he had to admit that the behind‑the‑scenes organizer of this auction was indeed clever."

"Vulgar, despicable."

"But it was extraordinarily effective."

"In the team channel, Zhang Tie, who had been arranged as an auction lot, suddenly spoke through gritted teeth:"

"Lin Dui!"

"I'm the second‑to‑last batch of auction items! These damn bastards think I'm not worth much? They're selling me like a toy!"

"Fuck!"

"Just wait till I turn around and crush them!"

"Don't forget to buy me!"

"Just as his voice fell, the penguin Hu Ba, who was in charge of hosting, announced the start of the auction amid cheers:"

"The auction starts now!"

"Now start the auction!"

"The first batch is the worst and cheapest! An opening warm‑up that everyone can afford!"