After successfully bidding on the first auction item, the next items up for auction were rare elixirs, magical artifacts and formation disks crafted by human cultivators, and specialty products from the East Sea.
Huang Feifei bid several more times. She had realized by now that the giant octopus was holding a grudge against her for not acquiring the flying fish and was deliberately seeking revenge.
Since he had seen through the other party's intentions, Xiao Fei was not being polite either.
Several times, he deliberately appeared very eager, driving up the price of the auction items along with the giant octopus.
Then, he would suddenly withdraw from the bidding, foisting the auction item onto the giant octopus, causing it to spend a large amount of money unnecessarily.
Moreover, whenever the giant octopus desired something, Huang Feifei would also maliciously drive up the price. Regardless, the giant octopus would not have an easy time.
After several rounds of exchanges, the giant octopus learned its lesson. It often raised the price and then withdrew from the bidding early, intending to foist the item onto Xiao Fei.
However, the items at the auction were all very cheap in Xiao Fei's eyes, practically a steal. He wouldn't mind buying a few more.
Even if he couldn't use them himself, he could take the opportunity to clear out his inventory of elixirs. The goods he obtained in exchange could still be sold through the Treasure Pavilion for a profit.
Xiao Fei now had an extremely high success rate in producing mid-grade and high-grade elixirs. One mid-grade elixir could be exchanged for ten ordinary elixirs, and one high-grade elixir could be exchanged for one hundred ordinary elixirs.
After several rounds of engagement, Huang Feifei remained unfazed, calmly continuing to place bids.
The giant octopus had been quiet for a long time now. It remained indifferent to Xiao Fei's bids.
This made Xiao Fei feel that the auction process lacked much of its usual fun.
Just then, a large iron cage was brought onto the auction stage, covered with a red cloth, making it appear somewhat mysterious.
"Fellow Daoists, you must all know that human cultivators are skilled in alchemy and artifact crafting, especially in alchemy, possessing talent far exceeding that of our demon race."
"This time, we have successfully captured a human cultivator."
"This individual hails from the Danxin Sect, a human sect particularly adept at alchemy. By purchasing him, you will have an endless supply of elixirs in the future, making him a veritable money tree."
After the introduction by the Qing Bai twins, the crowd was already rubbing their hands together, determined to acquire this auction item.
At the same time, it had thoroughly piqued the curiosity of Xiao Fei and Huang Feifei.
Xiao Fei had initially been a little suspicious upon hearing it was a human cultivator from a major alchemy sect, thinking it might be a cultivator from the Danxin Sect.
He hadn't expected it to be true. Now, he was even more curious about who was inside the large iron cage.
However, the Qing Bai twins didn't keep Xiao Fei in suspense for long. They pulled away the red cloth covering the iron cage.
Everyone's gaze was drawn, and they looked intently.
Inside the iron cage, a disheveled man was crouching. Through the scattered, drooping hair, a blood-stained face could be seen.
The man was bound by several specially made iron chains, restricting his hand and foot movements, forcing him to maintain a half-crouching posture in a peculiar manner.
Others could only watch the spectacle, but Xiao Fei, through the bloodstains on the face, recognized a familiar visage.
"It's that pretty boy Zhu Yu!"
Huang Feifei exclaimed in surprise, secretly transmitting her thoughts to Xiao Fei.
She knew Xiao Fei disliked people who were better-looking than himself. Therefore, whenever Zhu Yu was mentioned, she would contemptuously refer to him as a pretty boy.
Xiao Fei was also very surprised. He had collaborated with Zhu Yu many times and knew his character well.
Aside from relying on his looks, which Xiao Fei disliked, Zhu Yu was not weak in other aspects. He possessed combat strength, was meticulous, patient, and cunning.
Xiao Fei found it truly unexpected that he would be captured and put in a cage.
However, this Black Flood Dragon City auction was quite a scam. Zhu Yu's alchemy skills were so poor that he wasn't even fit to carry Xiao Fei's shoes.
The auction was planning to sell him off as an alchemist.
When some demon race member bought him at a high price and discovered he was a fake, Zhu Yu would likely suffer many more lashes.
"Fellow Daoists, this is a rare opportunity, don't miss out!"
"For just one price, you can take an alchemist home. Don't hesitate, raise your hands and bid!"
Under the seductive introduction by the Qing Bai twins, the bidding officially began.
"This alchemist is mine! I'll buy him to refine elixirs during the day and serve me at night! Killing two birds with one stone!"
A demon with the body of a horse and the head of a bull laughed heartily, seemingly already having the person in the cage under his control.
Hearing this, Zhu Yu, who was half-crouching in the cage, trembled, and many unpleasant memories resurfaced.
"I bid 200 elixirs!"
"I bid 250!"
"260!"
"..."
The bidding was intense, but the increments were not large. After all, the alchemist before them only had Golden Core cultivation, and at most, could only refine third-tier elixirs.
His specific alchemy level was still unknown. If the success rate was too low, it would be a loss, so everyone was quite cautious and no one dared to bid too high.
When Huang Feifei raised the price to 500 elixirs, there were no more bids. This price was already quite high.
"500 elixirs, first call!"
"500 elixirs, second call! Are there any other Daoists willing to bid higher?"
"I bid 501 elixirs!"
The one who made this bid was the giant octopus, which had been silent for a long time.
Perhaps it saw Huang Feifei's determination to win, or perhaps it was preparing for a final gamble.
Regardless, whenever Huang Feifei bid, it would add one more spirit stone, sticking to her like a shadow, impossible to shake off.
The three of them had collaborated many times and forged a deep revolutionary friendship. Now that Zhu Yu was imprisoned in a cage, Xiao Fei naturally had to help.
This made Xiao Fei's killing intent towards the giant octopus surge. He vowed to eat the giant octopus when he got the chance.
The bidding continued. When Huang Feifei called out 800 elixirs, the giant octopus finally smiled smugly and withdrew from the auction, causing Xiao Fei to waste 300 elixirs.
After acquiring Zhu Yu, Huang Feifei led Xiao Fei and Feiyu to settle the accounts with the auction house.
It was better for Huang Feifei to handle such matters, as she was already a Nascent Soul cultivator and could save a lot of trouble.
The elixirs used for settlement at the auction house were not just any elixirs that could be mixed together.
Instead, they were pegged to a commonly used cultivation-boosting elixir for the Golden Core stage, with subsequent conversions based on value.
Xiao Fei had purchased many items this time, totaling over 2000 third-tier elixirs.
However, by settling with mid-grade elixirs, he only needed over 200.
After the exchange of goods and payment, both parties were satisfied.
For such a wealthy and important customer, the auction house also presented him with a VIP token.
With this token, he could enter and exit Black Flood Dragon City without inspection and receive a 10% discount on Black Flood Dragon tribe goods.
Xiao Fei and his group collected their items, tethered Zhu Yu with a large iron chain, and headed directly out of the city.