BXBX NOVEL Chapter 272: Auction Begins, Lord of Destruction and Compassion
The duo appeared back in the VIP room.
"She is sleeping peacefully," Rin grinned, happy for Aria. "Let's not disturb her."
Amu wrapped her in a bubble of spirit energy to prevent any sound from disturbing her.
"The auction will start in five minutes and last for at least three hours or more, "Lilith said as she leaned back on the couch, Rin and Erix sitting beside her since Aria was sleeping on one.
"We have to buy some things for us, and we might even see some surprising items," Lily smiled.
Maleina said, "You might even have to fight for items, both financially and physically. It happens often in big auctions."
"Some owners of items also want specific requirements for their buyers," Malein added.
Rin and Erix were more and more interested in the auction.
Five minutes later, the big magical screen in their VIP room lit up, displaying a luxurious and aesthetic platform made of wood and stones covered by a curtain.
The curtain soon dispersed into motes before rising in the sky and exploding into colorful and exotic blasts akin to fire-crackers while a melodious and attractive voice rang in the dome and VIP rooms.
A beautiful and hot red-haired woman wearing a tight dress showing her curves appeared on the platform along with an old man with a long white beard and wearing a white robe.
"Dear hunters, my most warm welcome to each of you for coming to this auction. I am Selene, today's host to entertain and bait you all into buying items," Selene winked with a lovely and attractive smile.
"She has a concept, Charm maybe," Lilith chuckled.
"Charming indeed," Erix laughed. "But not as my darlings here."
On the screen, the old man spoke next.
"We will be anchoring the auction today," the old man caressed his beard and smiled, "And I am confident to announce that this auction will be the biggest one in the past ten years."
"We have surprises on the wait, so let's start without wasting any more time," Selene said with a smile. "Old man Lambo, bring up the first item."
...
While the auction began here, the members of Cosmic Faction who went to find Rin and Erix in the Palace faced one more headache.
"They left, but no one knows where?"
"We couldn't meet any important people here, tsk," Meimei clicked her tongue. "Some said that they went to participate in that ongoing event."
"Let's just wait in the city. They will eventually return."
The members of other cosmic factions also decided to wait in the city for them to return because the group that passed the pond's test had yet to use it for full benefits.
Meanwhile, half an hour later in the auction, Selene announced with a wide grin, "The next item is unique and our first special item of the auction."
"Old man," Selene turned to old man Lambo and nodded.
Old man Lambo went behind the stage and shortly returned with something covered, 1 meter tall, as it floated a few centimeters off the ground.
Old man Lambo waved his hand to create a three-layered barrier around the statue, using both his Soul power and Prana.
"That much cautious?" Lilith was surprised. "It seems that this will indeed be a special item."
"Behold everyone," Selene smiled before she snapped her finger, causing the clothes covering the mysterious item to turn into tiny particles and revealing...a statue.
The statue's owner seemed like a man with a naturally chiseled figure and long wild black hair wearing a loincloth in a strange yet majestic pose.
Both palms were open on the left side with index fingers and thumbs touching each other. The left leg was also raised to the left and bent at the knee.
The statue was adorned with carved jewelry, increasing its majesty yet producing a somber feeling in the beholder.
Its forehead had a vertical third eye, and despite being a statue, it oozed out profoundness to anyone looking at it.
Lilith's eyes instantly shone upon seeing the statue as she said, "This is mystical."
"I might have seen something like this back on Earth," Erix raised his eyebrows.
"Me too…It looks like a god's statue," Rin nodded.
"Behold this majestic yet beautiful piece of art depicting the mysterious Lord of Destruction and Compassion."
"You might be wondering about the contradicting title, but it is what it is folks," Selene grinned and said, "This statue was found in an ancient ruin by a team of the Gnosis Orion cosmic faction during their adventure into a portal that appeared a year ago."
"It was protected by a myriad of beasts as if they were utterly crazed and sought to destroy anything they saw."
The statue became more visible and close up on the VIP room's screens.
"That's a profound statue indeed," Amu nodded. "Even I can't understand it despite my soul and spiritual power, and it's making me feel overwhelmed when I peer inside."
Meanwhile, the old man continued.
"According to our research, this statue is depicting a dance pose. The mysterious thing is that sometimes, you will see the statue's third eyes closing, sometimes opening."
Indeed, Rin, Erix, and also others saw such illusions from the screen.
"If anyone wants insight into this profound statue, then feel free to join the bidding and buy it."
Selene immediately followed after the old man finished speaking, "Before beginning the bidding, I would like to warn the dear guests that no one had been fortunate enough to remain sane after using their spirit sense to inspect the statue once they cross ten seconds, including even Empyrean-order hunters."
A wave of gasps spread in the dome after Selene finished speaking.
"The starting bid is 10 High-quality Prana stones, but there is also a buyout," Selene showed a mysterious smile and continued, "Anyone can pay 1 high-quality Prana stone and take the owner's test."
"The test is simple. Just use your spirit sense and observe the statue for ten seconds. People who tried have gone insane after a few seconds to several seconds so far with no one succeeding, but if you do not go insane after ten seconds, the statue is yours."
However, the next thing that Selene said caused most people's hearts to turn cold and make their feet heavy.
"The insane here means you will be possessed by destructive impulses and we will have no choice but to kill you the moment you show indication of releasing attacks."
Those who wanted to stand up glued their ass back into their seats after hearing this.
"This is a matter of life and death," Selene sharply smiled. "I am ready to see a few corpses at the beginning of the auction, so think while the bidding is ongoing."
*Silence*
For a few seconds, there was utter silence before Selene smiled and said, "Everyone may start bidding…now!"
"20 high-quality Prana stones!"
"40 high-quality Prana stones!"
"45 high-quality Prana stones and 10 High-quality Primal Elemental stones!"
Rin rubbed her palms, her eyes shining, "I want to take the test…"
"Me too," Erix grinned.
"You two…" Maleina was speechless.
"Let's discuss a bit about it before deciding," Lilith said with a thoughtful expression.
"I believe the statue will be useful, and since buying it is not in our plan, we can try the test."
"I feel like this statue needs a special requirement," Lily rubbed her chin. "I don't think I possess that requirement, so I don't want to try."
"Amu, can you tell us what you have found so far from the statue?" Lilith turned to Amu. "Just tell us your feelings about it."
The cute slime's big eyes squinted and faintly glowed as it tried peering into the statue.
A few seconds later, Amu muttered, "Love, Death, Rage, Dance, and Destruction...this…"
Amu looked at the group with a somber expression and said, "The host lied about the discovery of the statue."
"No team of any cosmic faction found it, but someone from that faction indeed brought it here from outside to sell it while making a story about it."
Suddenly, everyone heard a loud voice from the normal open couches in the dome.
"I shall try to take the test!"
The first daring one emerged from the crowd, however, it remained to be seen if he would end up the first guinea pig for the crowd or the owner of the statue.