The auctioneer, having been forewarned about the item's attributes, showed no signs of panic.
True Qi within him surged madly towards the sword's body!
The temperature in the hall steadily climbed higher!
Some cultivators at the Return to Void realm and above were even forced to erect their True Qi defenses!
This sudden turn of events utterly shocked everyone!
The sword itself had displayed no energy fluctuations whatsoever!
How was this possible?!
The entire venue plunged into deathly silence…
Everyone was completely astounded!
Judging from its fire attribute, this weapon had already reached a terrifying seventh rank!
A number beyond anyone's wildest dreams.
Due to a rupture in artifact forging techniques, high-rank weapons were no longer available on the market.
The only seventh-rank weapon in the entire Yard Empire belonged to the royal family.
And it was precisely this weapon that allowed the royal family to suppress all sects.
Other cultivators hoping to obtain high-rank weapons could only set their sights on secret realms or ruins.
But exploring secret realms or ruins was no easy feat, and each expedition was accompanied by heavy casualties!
If one was unlucky, complete annihilation was not impossible.
For instance, the most powerful sect in the Yard Empire previously was another sect, whose strength could easily crush all others.
Later, they stumbled upon an ancient ruin and went to explore it.
And then…
There was no then.
Speaking of which, the royal family's seventh-rank weapon was also obtained from that ruin.
Fortunately, that sect served as cannon fodder, allowing the royal family to reap the benefits.
And this was merely near the entrance of that ruin!
Fearing the dangers further in, the royal family wisely retreated.
Some individuals had indeed acquired weapons from other ruins, but the highest was only sixth-rank.
Many powerful figures in the Nascent Soul realm were still using fifth-rank weapons…
The effect of high-rank weapons, capable of deterring multiple factions with a single artifact, was self-evident!
Moreover, the royal family's seventh-rank weapon was of the wood element, which did not excel in offense!
The one on stage now, however, was of the fire element, renowned for its ferocity!
If any force were to acquire this weapon, they could absolutely contend with the royal family!
However, soon after.
Something even more reality-shattering occurred!
The terrifying heatwave instantly vanished, replaced by an bone-chilling extreme cold!
Ice crystals spread rapidly outwards from the auctioneer like a center!
Frost began to appear on the hair and eyebrows of some cultivators in the front row!
"Bang, bang, bang!"
A series of light explosions echoed from the surrounding ice crystals.
Seeing that the demonstration was sufficient, the auctioneer withdrew his True Qi.
At this moment, everyone felt as if they were suffocating!
It was a weapon with both ice and fire attributes!
How was it possible to fuse two of the most extreme elements into a single weapon?!
But soon, they ceased to care about such matters!
How it was achieved was the artifact refiner's business.
What mattered was the tangible effect they were witnessing!
Both the initial fire attribute and the subsequent ice attribute had reached a terrifying seventh rank!
And when these two attributes appeared together, their power was far more than a simple sum of one plus one!
Compared to this weapon, the royal family's would be rendered useless!
If someone were to obtain this seventh-rank weapon now, the entire Yard Empire would face a major reshuffling!
The value of this item far surpassed what money could measure!
Because powerful weapons brought not only changes in power dynamics but also more possibilities!
Previously, they had made various speculations about what would follow the Reversion Pills, but they never imagined it would be such a monstrously terrifying item!
At this moment, everyone's eyes turned red!
Within them flickered a light called madness!
As cultivators, none were willing to be perpetually suppressed by others!
"Seventh-rank supreme grade Ice-Fire Sword, now open for bidding!" the auctioneer declared, striking his small hammer firmly: "Starting bid, none!"
Ye Fan had not named this sword after refining it, so the auction house had given it a casual designation.
Regardless, its significance was undeniable, so its name no longer mattered.
Even if it were named "Dog Egg's Sword," it would not diminish the frenzy of these cultivators.
And indeed, that was the case.
"Three million!"
"Three point seven million!"
"Five million!"
…
This time, people were clearly more frenzied!
In just a short while, the price had soared to six million!
The cultivators in the main hall couldn't help but tremble!
The terrifying record previously set by the Reversion Pills was instantly shattered by this item!
They knew this thing would not be cheap, but the frenzy of the magnates left them exclaiming inwardly that they couldn't handle it!
Damn it.
This was too exciting!
…
At this moment, everyone realized that six million was likely just the beginning!
As expected!
"Eight million!"
The new bid increased the price by two million!
And the bidder was the royal family's private box, which had remained silent until now!
Upon hearing the royal family's bid, the faces of the major sect leaders changed!
This bid had successfully eliminated several sects!
And the remaining ones were clearly struggling to keep up!
"Eight point five million!" the Dragon Soul Sect leader shouted, his eyes red.
This price was already pushing his limits.
Although the royal family's own strength was comparable to theirs, they had no clear idea of the royal family's financial capabilities.
After all, at their level, spirit stones offered limited assistance.
Therefore, no one would bother to investigate the royal family's accounts…
He was unsure if the royal family was genuinely wealthy or attempting to intimidate them with a high initial price.
"Nine million!"
The royal family offered another new bid.
Increasing the price by one million!
With the price reaching this level, raising it by a million at a time…
The Dragon Soul Sect leader was completely flustered…
"Ten million!"
He gritted his teeth and made a new bid.
Ten million was almost his limit!
If he couldn't secure it, then he would truly be helpless.
He was gambling now.
Gambling whether the royal family was truly rich or bluffing.
"Twelve million."
The royal family's bid this time was clearly weaker.
With the bidding reaching this point, the other sects knew they had no hope.
Twelve million!
Even if they sold everything they owned, they couldn't afford it…
No matter how unwilling they were, there was nothing they could do.
Unless they resorted to theft…
But this was an auction house!
Even with ten times their courage, they wouldn't dare to cause trouble here!
So, they could only suppress their regrets and watch the excitement unfold.
In fact, they now hoped that the royal family would ultimately win the bid for the Ice-Fire Sword.
After all, if the royal family acquired it, their own circumstances would not change significantly.
However, if the Dragon Soul Sect were to win, then things would become uncertain!
Although Long Xiaotian appeared harmless on the surface, he was a complete lunatic at heart!
If he were to acquire it, a bloodbath would surely be unavoidable!
At that point, it would be impossible for them to remain uninvolved!
"Twelve point five million!"
Long Xiaotian's voice echoed again.
It sounded less composed than before.
Just then, the door to Ye Fan's private room was suddenly knocked.