Grand Duke Abel had apparently come out "for show," so he naturally made no effort to conceal the terrifying pressure within him. It radiated with a cold, grim aura, enveloping the dimly lit, quiet auction hall and adding a sense of oppression and suffocation.

"Cough, cough, cough..." Grand Duke Abel began coughing lightly, his aged body trembling as he raised his head, his cold, blood-red eyes scanning the crowd.

"First of all, I would like to thank everyone for gracing the Ashford Family with your presence."

Grand Duke Abel seemed to stagger toward the front of the auction stage. He moved with apparent difficulty, his steps slow and labored, yet the vast majority of those present dared not underestimate the old man who looked to be on the verge of death. They all pursed their lips, silently waiting for Grand Duke Abel to reach the stage's edge.

Then, he spoke again.

"This old man probably doesn't need to introduce himself, right? To be honest, I hadn't planned on coming out personally. However, our Ashford Family's auction has unexpectedly received two or three items of considerable value. A regular auctioneer might lack the necessary gravitas to present them, so I decided to come up myself. I trust no one has any objections?" His voice was slow, yet grating.

Items of considerable value!? The majority of the attendees were stunned, their eyes suddenly flaring with excitement. What kind of items would a Grand Duke himself consider to be of considerable value?

"If no one objects, then I will proceed with the auction. To give you all a proper heads-up, I, Abel, will do you all a kindness and offer a little preview..."

As Grand Duke Abel's chilling voice echoed slowly through the hall, a knot of anticipation tightened in most people's chests. Their gazes converged on the high platform, their eyes flashing with intense light.

Then, just as he promised, Grand Duke Abel began his reveal. "This time, apart from the more ordinary lots, there are only three core items meant to anchor the event! While the number may sound small, they are far more precious than anything that has circulated in recent years..."

He paused for a moment before continuing, "The first is a top-grade material that has descended from 'the world above'! The second is a Blood Ancestor Essence Stone, the size of a fist! And the last is an Ability Crystal, Fire Attribute, with a high grade of S+ Level, voluntarily left behind by a deceased SS-Level Powerhouse upon their death!"

"What!? This..."

Gasps of disbelief rippled through the venue, as guests could hardly believe what they had just heard. The entire dimly lit auction hall then plunged into an eerie silence.

The top-grade material from 'the world above' was an unknown quantity, so they could set it aside for the moment. But a Blood Ancestor Essence Stone and an S+ Level Ability Crystal—what priceless treasures were these? The former was an object of desire for even a Blood Clan Grand Duke! And now they were hearing that the Ashford Family was actually going to auction them off?

Almost everyone, especially the members of the Blood Clan families, stirred in their seats. The atmosphere in the venue instantly became exceedingly tense.

'The world above'?

Only our Chen Fei, Young Master Chen, merely had a faint, curious glint in his eyes upon hearing the list of items. If the S+ Level Fire Element Ability Crystal is so popular, then the S Level Dark Element Superpower Treasure Crystal I have lying around, while a bit inferior, should still be worth something. As for the so-called Blood Ancestor Essence Stone, that's clearly a Western term, so I have no idea what it actually is. But that other item, the top-grade material from 'the world above'? Could it be...

"Duke Ovilia, what does he mean by 'the world above'?" he suddenly asked.

"That..." Upon hearing the question, Duke Ovilia's face revealed a hint of hesitation.

"What? You can't say?" Chen Fei frowned, his tone turning somewhat cold.

"It's not that I can't tell you, it's just... Ah, forget it. It's not much of a secret these days anyway. Mr. Chen, what Grand Duke Abel refers to as 'the world above' is the world of Divine Demons." Sensing the chill in Chen Fei's voice, Duke Ovilia trembled slightly. In the end, he shook his head with a bitter smile and explained, "This is a secret of our Western world, and I shouldn't be telling an Easterner like you. However, our ancestors from centuries ago failed to keep it! As a result, many top Eastern powerhouses already know about it, so it doesn't really matter if I tell you or not."

The world of Divine Demons? Hearing Ovilia's words, Chen Fei was momentarily stunned. An intense, unusual light flashed in his pitch-black, crystal-clear eyes. He seemed to have realized something...

At that moment, outside the private room on the high stage, Grand Duke Abel had begun the auction for the first item.

"Alright, let's begin! To liven things up, we'll start with the S+ Rank Fire Element Ability Crystal. I'm sure this old man doesn't need to waste any more breath explaining its use, correct? The starting bid is five thousand Magic Gold Coins, with each subsequent bid no less than five hundred. Begin." With Grand Duke Abel's announcement, tonight's auction officially commenced.

As he finished speaking, a servant of the Ashford Family cautiously spread a red cloth on the display stand and brought out a square box. When the lid was opened, it revealed a fist-sized, fiery red object. It was suffused with a dense Flame Magic Energy, with tendrils of light that writhed and leaped like living serpents.

"An S+ Level Ability Crystal! It's really an S+ Level Ability Crystal! With a bit of luck, this could be used to create an S+ Level Peak Fire Element Ability User!" the crowd erupted in a fervent buzz.

Ultimately, come what may, strength was the only thing that truly belonged to oneself. In their world, whether East or West, might made right.

Although using the S+ Level Fire Element Ability Crystal was a gamble, most people are born gamblers, and no one would willingly admit to having bad luck. It held the potential to create an S+ Level Peak powerhouse on the spot! What person or power present could possibly remain unmoved?

Even Duke Ovilia, a peak powerhouse of the Brad Family's Blood Clan, found his breathing growing heavier at the sight of the S+ Level Fire Element Ability Crystal. Should I try to acquire it? While I'm not a big believer in such games of chance, even if creating an S+ Level Fire Element Ability User is unlikely, achieving S-Level should still be quite likely, right?

To be honest, an S-Level Fire Element Ability User was by no means weak in the Western Dark World.

"Six thousand Magic Gold Coins!" But while he hesitated, the bidding for the S+ Level Fire Element Ability Crystal had already soared.

Clearly, he was not the only one who wanted this treasure.

"Six thousand five hundred Magic Gold Coins," another voice immediately followed.

"Seven thousand!" Before a second had passed, a new price was called out.

"Eight thousand!" Then someone raised the bid directly to eight thousand.

"Eleven thousand!" Someone even more aggressive raised the bid by three thousand Magic Gold Coins in a single jump, shocking those who were hoping to get lucky with a cheap bid into their senses. At this level, how could anyone compete unless they were truly wealthy or backed by a major family or power?

However, Chen Fei, Young Master Chen, did not join the competition. For one, my interests lie elsewhere, and I'm afraid I don't have enough Magic Gold Coins. For another, with my current cultivation level and strength, a mere S-Level is beneath my notice, and even an S+ Level barely catches my eye. Besides, I have other ways to create an Ancient Martial Artist at the Early Stage Peak of the Innate Realm, whose power would be comparable to an S+ Level Ability User. Unless I needed it urgently, something like this holds little attraction for me.

"Eighteen thousand Magic Gold Coins!"

"Nineteen thousand!"

"Twenty thousand!"

…

The price of the S+ Level Fire Element Ability Crystal was still climbing, but the momentum had clearly slowed.

This was understandable. Even a power like the Barton Family had struggled to scrape together fifteen thousand Magic Gold Coins to compensate Chen Fei. While there were certainly families and forces in the auction hall stronger and wealthier than the Bartons, how many could there be? There had to be a limit.

The bidding for the S+ Level Fire Element Ability Crystal began to crawl, but it finally settled at the astronomical price of twenty-three thousand five hundred Magic Gold Coins, successfully igniting the thrilling start to the night's auction.

Naturally, the subsequent items couldn't match the value of the S+ Level Ability Crystal. Even so, as each lot was brought to the stage, the atmosphere remained extremely heated and intense. Amid a chorus of bids, items were sold one after another for prices that made most of the audience green with envy.

Yet Chen Fei, Young Master Chen, patiently held back. It wasn't that he was being aloof; it was just as he had thought before. The treasures coveted by these Western cultivators were no different from trash in his eyes. For now, he could only wait patiently to see if that final piece of Jade Artifacts would appear.

"The next item up for auction is the Blood Ancestor Essence Stone! I trust our friends here, especially those from the Blood Clan, are quite familiar with the name, correct? Indeed! This is the legendary stone, tainted by the most potent drop of Blood Energy from our mighty ancestors! Its greatest function is to purify the Blood Energy within our Blood Clan members, allowing them to attain even greater strength..." Grand Duke Abel continued his emphatic speech.

Just then, as an Ashford Family servant brought forward a fist-sized, dark-red stone resting on a white cloth, Chen Fei's gaze inadvertently swept over it, and his pupils instantly contracted.

"Isn't that... the Blood Moon Stone?" he exclaimed, shooting up from his seat, his eyes blazing with an extraordinary light.

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