C9 Bidding

The stall owner's eyes gleamed with glee. This was exactly the kind of drama he loved to witness at the Worm Iron Ore Market, where such scenes were commonplace. Buyers usually knew their stones well, like the one priced at 8,000, which he personally considered top-notch. Stone pricing was far from standardized; it was all at the discretion of the seller, making haggling the norm. Yet, the lack of set prices often led to fierce bidding wars, with the cost of a stone sometimes skyrocketing to absurd heights.

Unwavering, the stall owner wouldn't accept Young Master Wang's card, stating, "Gentlemen, in this business, the highest offer wins. Please, settle it amongst yourselves."

Fuming to the point of distortion, Young Master Wang was out of his depth with stones and frankly uninterested. His sole purpose today was to impress a girl. Ignorant of the true value, he wasn't keen on spending big, so he had chosen the most affordable stall to flaunt a few thousand bucks and make a swift exit. Everything was planned perfectly, even down to slicing the stone open on the spot and proclaiming, "Wealth is but a cloud to me," before whisking the girl away. But then, out of the blue, Tang Tianyuv had stepped in and blocked his final move.

What mattered most in life? Face!

With the girl by his side, Young Master Wang was determined not to be outdone. "Eleven thousand! The stone is mine," he declared.

Without missing a beat, Tang Tianyuv countered, "Twenty thousand!"

Young Master Wang inhaled sharply, then realigned his thoughts: It was clear he'd have to dig deep into his pockets today. It was now or never—fight tooth and nail or beat a hasty retreat.

Biting back his frustration, Young Master Wang called out, "Twenty-one thousand."

Ever decisive, Tang Tianyuv shot back, "Thirty thousand."

"Darn it, I should've kept my mouth shut earlier," Young Master Wang rued internally. "I totally misread this guy. Dressed in bargain-bin threads, yet he's playing the wolf in sheep's clothing..." But there was no turning back now. With resolve, he stated, "Thirty-one thousand."

Tang Tianyuv was as decisive as ever, "Forty thousand."

Onlookers began to converge, drawn by the commotion. The nearby buyers, curious about the fuss, came to take a look. Then, someone recognized Tang Tianyuv, "Hey, isn't that the guy who cut the stone twice and decided to take it home to cut more?"

Young Master Wang was filled with regret, thinking to himself, "Turns out this guy's a pro. He just bought a stone here. They say those who dabble in Worm Iron Ore are either seasoned pros looking for a gold mine or wealthy folks out to splurge. This young fellow doesn't seem like a pro, so he must be loaded."

But what's most important in life?

Prestige!

"Forty-one thousand," Young Master Wang called out, not ready to back down.

The vendor was grinning from ear to ear. Selling the stone for eight thousand eight hundred yuan would have been a win; he'd set the price high expecting to haggle. To say this stone was of good quality was relative; it paled in comparison to those in regular stores. He never anticipated encountering such a sucker—first buying a stone himself, and now engaging in a bidding war with another. Luck, it seemed, was unstoppable when it came your way.

"Fifty thousand."

"Fifty-one thousand."

"Sixty thousand."

"Sixty-one thousand."

Young Master Wang persisted, but his confidence was waning. Tang Tianyuv was upping the ante by tens of thousands, while Wang was inching up by thousands. The girl on his arm was no longer smiling sweetly; her once adoring eyes had shifted from Wang to Tang.

Young Master Wang had noticed, of course. The girl might be vain, but she was attractive, and Wang hadn't yet succeeded in wooing her. He wasn't about to let go without a fight. He decided to go all in.

"To hell with it, consider it the cost of chasing a girl," Wang fumed to himself. Then, with a sudden surge of volume, he bellowed, "One hundred and fifty thousand!"

Tang Tianyuv did indeed pause, a flicker of surprise crossing his face.

Young Master Wang felt a rush of elation, the pent-up frustration in his gut dissipating like smoke. "Humph, you think you're the only one who can play the hero? I may not usually be bold, but when I am, I'm unstoppable. Looks like I've got you stumped, huh?"

But his sense of triumph was short-lived. He heard Tang Tianyuv call out a figure with unnerving calm: "200,000."

The crowd gasped collectively, the bid soaring way beyond the stone's value. Sure, bidding wars were not uncommon in this market, driven by the hope of hidden treasures within the stones. But this was no longer about gambling for profit; it was a clash of egos.

The stone, while decent in appearance, had a slim chance of containing a crystal—no more than one percent. And the odds of finding a crystal in Worm Iron Ore were even slimmer, never exceeding one in ten thousand. Betting a few tens of thousands of yuan was reasonable, but anything more was simply not worth it.

Young Master Wang couldn't bring himself to bid again. He glanced over at Tang Tianyuv, guilt creeping in, only to be met with a smug grin that seemed to say, "Go on, keep going."

150,000 had been his carefully considered maximum. Despite his modest success at a young age, his money was hard-earned, not found on the street. He couldn't justify spending such a large sum in a fit of jealousy.

"I make my money through skill, not like these trust fund kids..." Young Master Wang brooded, feeling wronged. "Competing with me using your parents' money? That's no skill at all."

"Young Master Wang, will you place another bid?" the vendor inquired with a courteous tone.

With a scowl, Young Master Wang shook his head, took the girl by the hand, and walked away without a word. But Tang Tianyuv wasn't done yet—he beckoned the girl with a crooked finger.

The girl's face brightened with excitement, and without a second thought, she flung Young Master Wang's arm aside and hurried over. As she reached to cling to Tang Tianyuv's arm, her voice took on a coquettish tone that sent shivers down the spine. "Handsome..."

"Stop," Tang Tianyuv quickly stepped back, saying, "Sniff around, do I reek at all?"

The girl paused, puzzled. "No, not at all."

"Good, that's a relief. I saw you covering your nose and worried I hadn't washed up properly," Tang Tianyuv said with a grin. "Okay, you can go back now. Thanks for that."

The girl finally caught on, her cheeks flushing a mix of red and white as she hung her head and darted through the crowd.

"Little brother, about this stone..." The vendor clutched the stone, his expression one of mixed emotions. The price had soared, and with Young Master Wang gone, he feared Tang Tianyuv might have second thoughts.

Tang Tianyuv presented his card. "Two hundred thousand. My word is my bond."

"Fantastic!" The vendor beamed, swiftly running the card through and then asked with enthusiasm, "Ready for the cut?"

"The usual way, two slices, and I'll mark it myself," Tang Tianyuv replied with a smile.

This time, he refrained from marking the center, sensing that the crystal lay at the heart of the stone. The market was always teeming with merchants eager to snap up crystals at steep prices. Yet, Tang Tianyuv had promised Xiaomi the crystal and had no intention of revealing it here.

Besides, he had paid a hefty 200,000 yuan for the stone. If it held no crystal, the worst he'd face was being labeled a spendthrift. But if a crystal emerged, it would surely attract unwanted attention. Despite his act of jealousy and rivalry, Tang Tianyuv never underestimated the intelligence of those around him.

Over a decade as a recluse had taught him little else, but he had come to understand the depths of human hearts and nature profoundly. Perhaps, that was his most significant insight all these years.

After two unsuccessful cuts, Tang Tianyuv emerged from Black Stone Lane, his stone significantly smaller, amid the hushed whispers of onlookers.

By the time Tang Tianyuv arrived at the energy acquisition point for the third time, it was well past five in the afternoon. Xiaomi was preparing to close up shop when she saw Tang place another box on the counter, giving her an eerie sense of unreality, as if the world had taken a turn into madness.

Energy Crystals were no mere rocks or trinkets; they were the most scarce natural energy source known to humankind. Yet, in the hands of this youth, they seemed to appear as if they cost nothing at all.

The faint blue glow emanating from the box confirmed its authenticity once more, revealing a crystal larger than the one he'd brought in at noon. It resembled a tear, a droplet of blue, gently rolling within its container.

"One low-grade Energy Crystal, purity level two, strength three, endurance one, weighing 3.25 grams. Analysis complete," announced the instrument with precise readings.

"Little brother, you've struck gold," Xiaomi declared. "This one's purity is similar to the earlier one, but it's six times heavier. Do you realize what that means?"

"It means..." Tang Tianyuv ventured, his voice laced with hope, "six times the price?"

"You're not getting it, are you? The larger the Energy Crystal, the more it's worth. How can you not grasp that?" Xiaomi chided with a roll of her eyes. "It's not sixfold, it's tenfold! That's ten million credits!"

The truth was, even this staggering sum was on the low end. The military's buying rates were always below what the merchants would shout out, which explained the lack of a crowd here.

Tang Tianyuv inhaled sharply, momentarily overwhelmed by the revelation.

He had always known the value of these crystals, but the actual figures were beyond his wildest expectations. His rate of earning was, frankly, a bit outrageous...