Chapter 76

Everyone looked up to see a young man in brocade robes seated in the private booth—Akatsuki Jin of the Burn Heaven Pavilion.

He idly twisted a jade ring on his finger, his gaze defiantly locked on Ye Lingxi’s booth, a sneer curling at his lips.

Ye Lingxi frowned tightly; Akatsuki Jin’s fire affinity naturally suppressed her ice ability, and if he obtained the Ice Phoenix Feather, he would become a major nuisance in the training camp.

She took a deep breath, about to raise her bid again, when Jiang Xia’s voice came from beside her: “Two Wang Jie spirit cores, one Fengxi spirit core.”

Jiang Xia possessed two Catastrophic-level spirit cores: one Fengxi core gifted by the Sword Saint, and one Yingzhao core given to him by the Colonel before he left.

The entire hall fell silent, all eyes locking onto him; after all, a dark horse who had just entered the leaderboard at seventh place dared to directly challenge Akatsuki Jin, the genius of Burn Heaven Pavilion—this drama was far more entertaining than the auction itself.

Akatsuki Jin’s face darkened instantly; he hadn’t expected Jiang Xia to bid against him, let alone that this local from within would spend so lavishly.

He was about to grit his teeth and raise his bid when Jiang Xia turned to face his booth, his voice low but clear throughout the hall.

“Brother Akatsuki, this Ice Phoenix Feather is an ice-type spiritual material—Itachi, a fire affinity user, have no use for it. Why waste spirit stones?”

His words struck home; Akatsuki Jin indeed had no use for the Ice Phoenix Feather—he simply didn’t want Ye Lingxi to succeed.

But exposed publicly, if he persisted, he’d appear petty. Akatsuki Jin clenched his teeth, finally let out a cold snort, and withdrew his bid.

The hall erupted in murmurs; no one expected Akatsuki Jin, the number one prodigy on the Prodigy List, to be driven back by a single sentence from Jiang Xia.

Ye Lingxi gazed at Jiang Xia’s figure, her cold eyes softening slightly as she gave him a gentle nod.

The auctioneer, seeing no further bids, raised her voice: “Catastrophic-level and Wang Jie spirit cores once! Catastrophic-level and Wang Jie spirit cores twice! Catastrophic-level and Wang Jie spirit cores thrice! Sold!”

She brought down her wooden hammer. “Congratulations to this esteemed guest on acquiring the Ice Phoenix Heart Feather!”

The auction of the Ice Phoenix Feather was settled. Jiang Xia’s gaze had just landed on the new exhibit placed on the auction stage when Wang Teng grabbed his arm, voice trembling with excitement.

“Old Xia! Look at that!”

On the large screen loomed a pitch-black scythe, its blade edged with wisps of gray-black mist—even through the screen, a chilling aura of death radiated.

Lin Wei’s voice rang out: “The next item is the Soul Devouring Scythe, forged from a thousand-year Yin Huai wood and Abyssal Frost Iron, ideally suited for dark affinity users.”

“Even rarer, this scythe can be upgraded through refinement. Today, we’ve included a specialized refinement technique exclusive to this weapon!”

Wang Teng’s eyes lit up instantly; though his Ghost City Secret Spell’s Soul Scythe was practical, its strength had always been lacking. With this Soul Devouring Scythe as a base, paired with the refinement technique, his power would leap to a new level.

He swallowed hard and whispered to Jiang Xia: “Old Xia, this thing was made for me!”

Jiang Xia understood his thoughts perfectly. He scanned the description of the Soul Devouring Scythe and made up his mind.

“Starting bid: fifty thousand spirit stones. Minimum increment: five thousand!” No sooner had Lin Wei finished than someone raised their bid.

“Sixty thousand!”

“Seventy thousand!”

The price surged rapidly, soon surpassing two hundred thousand. At that moment, a cold voice echoed from the left balcony: “Three hundred thousand!”

All turned to see a young man in ancient-style crimson robes slowly rising. His features were eerily beautiful, surrounded by faint, drifting dark energy.

Ye Feng couldn’t help muttering under his breath: “Bad luck! Why is it someone from the Underworld?”

Jiang Xia raised an eyebrow—he recognized the man as Cui Jue, the fifth-ranked prodigy on the Prodigy List.

Rumor had it Cui Jue was virtually guaranteed to become the next ruler of the Underworld, ruthless and infamous among prodigies for being utterly untouchable.

Cui Jue sensed the stares, lips curling into a cold smile, his gaze fixed unblinkingly on Wang Teng.

“Brother, such a top-tier treasure isn’t for just anyone to wield.”

Wang Teng instantly bristled, about to retort, when Jiang Xia pressed a hand on his shoulder.

Jiang Xia looked up at Cui Jue, voice calm: “Brother Cui, Itachi’re mistaken. Treasures belong to those capable of wielding them.”

He raised his hand. “One Catastrophic-level Yingzhao spirit core.”

The hall fell silent again. The Yingzhao spirit core’s life force was exceedingly rare, worth far more than fifty thousand spirit stones—no one expected Jiang Xia to produce another Catastrophic-level spirit core!

Cui Jue’s face darkened instantly. He glared at Jiang Xia, voice dripping with malice: “Are Itachi deliberately opposing the Underworld?”

“Not at all.” Jiang Xia smiled faintly. “My brother simply needs this Soul Devouring Scythe, and I happen to have a spirit core. If Itachi have an item of equal value, feel free to continue bidding.”

His words struck a nerve. Though the Underworld was deeply rooted, Catastrophic-level spirit cores were exceedingly scarce—he’d brought only enough spirit stones, no treasure capable of matching it.

He clenched his teeth, fists trembling, dark aura churning violently around him—furious beyond measure.

Seeing this, Wang Teng regained his courage and made a face at Cui Jue: “What? Stuck? Didn’t Itachi just sound so tough?”

Cui Jue shot Wang Teng a venomous glare, then turned to Jiang Xia, finally letting out a cold snort: “Fine! Itachi win!” He slammed back into his seat, refusing to bid further.

The hall erupted again. In barely half an hour, Jiang Xia had driven back both Akatsuki Jin, the number one prodigy, and Cui Jue, the fifth—such audacity was astonishing.

Lin Wei, visibly excited, raised her hammer, voice crisp: “Catastrophic-level spirit core once! Catastrophic-level spirit core twice! Catastrophic-level spirit core thrice! Sold!”

The hammer fell. Wang Teng leapt up, hugging Jiang Xia: “Old Xia! Itachi’re too good to me! Now I’m sure I’ll make the top fifty!”

Jiang Xia pushed him off with a laugh: “Enough. Get your prize quickly—if there’s nothing else worth bidding on, let’s leave.”

Ye Lingxi watched the two excited figures, a faint smile touching her cold eyes. “I didn’t know Itachi had two Catastrophic-level spirit cores. Seems Itachi’ve been through a lot lately.”

Jiang Xia rubbed his nose, slightly embarrassed. “Just luck.”

Ye Feng stood nearby, watching the three interact warmly. He scratched his head, sheepishly addressing Jiang Xia: “Jiang… Brother Jiang, yesterday was my fault—I shouldn’t have caused trouble at the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion. Don’t take it to heart.”

Jiang Xia chuckled and patted his shoulder. “No problem. Youth is impulsive. Just be more careful next time.”

Seeing her brother’s sincerity, Ye Lingxi’s eyes flickered with approval. She withdrew a jade tablet from her ring and handed it to Jiang Xia.

“This Ice Phoenix Feather was what I needed, yet Itachi paid for it. This contains a touch of fortune energy—take it.”

Jiang Xia waved his hand quickly. “No need. Consider it a welcome gift. Besides, between us, do we really need to talk about this?”

“No.”