Feeling that the rays of light had touched his skin, Forus instinctively stopped his cultivation and opened his eyes. The sun had chased away the stars on the sky and eclipsed the moon, shining brilliantly at the summit of the world.
As expressionless as ever, Forus began to remind himself with all the necessary information he had written down on his journal. He also remembered that today was an important day. It was the official opening of the auction.
He thought for a moment before coming up with a series of plans. To go to the auction, he needed to forge his identity and appearance to avoid the suspicion of the influential sorcerer families in the city. The eldest mistress of the Coruscare Family was still the massive shadow that loomed over his mind. Her unpredictable personality and mysterious abilities had reminded him of the dignified sorcerers.
Putting on a simple robe, Forus channelled his sorcery energy to change his bodily structure and facial appearance. His new body was now a slim man with a pale face. Coupled with his worn out robe, he looked like a poor random street citizen.
Walking away into the distance, Forus strangely bent in with his surrounding, as if he was always there. The way he walked resembled all those civilians beside him. Only a ring on his hand would stand out from his unimpressive appearance. Without paying any attention, one would never be able to see Forus within the crowd of mortals.
With a moment of thought, Forus had already stood in front of a tall pavilion. There was an enormous wooden sign hung above the entrance, radiating an aura of mystical power. The title of the building, Oak Forest, had been carved on the board with some help of a sorcerer. When the onlookers saw the board, the lingering power would ease their mind and relax their body.
"Please show us your invitation card." The servants of the auction repeated the same words over and over again. He would ask to verify the authority of the card and sent the guests into the building, but there would be some exceptional cases why the managers needed to come out and greeted the guests personally.
These guests were unmistakably from the influential families with a great background. They always had the arrogant bearing and superiority complex. Treating everyone as an inferior being was their mindset.
Fortunately, Forus got into the building without any trouble. His regular appearance wouldn't get any attention from the young masters at all. They even disliked the plainness of the poor.
Once he got inside, another servant came in and guided the guests into the chamber. Because of his low-status ordinary invitation, he could only sit at the outer layer of the room. Only the higher-class cardholder would be able to sit near the stage.
Then there were those from famous families. They would stay in their private rooms with all sort of services. No one would be able to know who stayed in the room without his or her permission.
The sound of chatting between friends and acquaintances gradually built up, but as soon as the manager walked in, the whole room quieted down almost immediately. Everyone's attention remained fixed on the stage.
Only the welcoming speech of the manager echoed the hall. He spoke slowly, trying to build up the hype surrounding the event. If not for the uneasy feeling he had, Forus would have relaxed his mind and took a nap. After all, he was merely a peak second-layer sorcerer apprentice. He was nothing compared to those who had the support of their family.
"The first item is the Wooden Liquid Bow. It is a perfect bow for the sorcerer trains in a long-range assault. It could empower the arrow with natural elements." One after another, the manager introduced the treasures tirelessly. Those who wanted the treasures bid until their pocket ran out. Most of them were the people who sat near the stage, but the one on the private rooms rarely bid. Once they did, none would dare to bide against them.
"Next is the Decaying Dawn Ring. A ring found in the ancient ruin, but because of the passage of time, the resentment of the owner had fused with the ring, making it unusable." After hearing the introduction, Forus' mind trembled. His gaze instantly locked onto the ring, trying his best to memorise the feature of the entire ring.
There was the familiar aura floating around the ring. It was a dark and depressing aura that could stress one's mind. Observing the dark particle, Forus smiled faintly and made up his mind to obtain it. It was the Death Aura!
"One hundred Mystical Orbs." Forus slowly stood up and clasped his hands together and bowed his head for those around him. He was begging them to let him had the treasure.
After seeing his manner, many others sorcerers from the influential families wouldn't compete with him unless it was necessary. After all, they had their reputation to protect. If they bullied the rogue sorcerers for something so disappointing and useless, other would have looked down upon them.
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"One hundred and fifty Mystical Orbs." A man in a yellow robe spoke arrogantly with the evil intention to toy with Forus. He sat near the stage, indicating his higher status than ordinary folks.
"Two hundred Mystical Orbs." Gritting his teeth, Forus spoke louder than before. Fear and anxiety filled up most of his pale face. Why was he so unlucky?
"Two hundred and fifty Mystical Orbs." The same sound echoed the whole room. At this time, no one was willing to bide now. They didn't want to be insulted like this unfortunate man.
"Young master, please let this one have this little thing. Three hundred Mystical Orbs." Tears rolled out of his eyes. He bowed toward the man in yellow before bidding for one last time.
Sensing that this was the young man's limit, the young master in yellow laughed out loud, feeling satisfied because of the begging. The servant in grey behind him looked at Forus silently.
Seeing that no one would bide any further, the manager waved his hand, and a female servant walked toward him. She held the ring and put it in the box before walked toward Forus' seat.
Forus took out a bag filled with Mystical Orbs and handed it to her before reaching out for the box. He tightly held the crate and sat down, not talking to anyone anymore.
After there was no exciting story of revenge waiting for them, the bystanders lost their interest and stopped paying their attention to Forus. The auction then continued as if nothing had happened.
Once no one had paid any attention to him, Forus pull the robe over his head, concealing his expression and appearance. Without anyone's knowledge, his earlier emotions were just a facade to evoke the pity in the mass, so that he wouldn't have to pay for even more amounts of Mystical Orbs.
Forus would gladly abandon pride and do anything if the benefits were good enough. After he had died once, his lingering emotion was suppressed, making him felt detached from this unfamiliar world.
A little while later, the hall dimmed its candles and lamps, preparing to show the main item of the auction. The sound of chatter quieted down as everyone was eager to examine the best treasure of this time.
It was without doubt that there would be a grand bidding war between the influential families. Maybe those in private rooms would show up to suppress other with their status.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the time is now. This last item is the Underworld Copper Coin, an undoubtedly middle-grade treasure. Any sorcerers could use its mysterious sealing power to suppress weaker treasures." A coin that was empowered by the mysterious might of the ancient appeared on the stage, radiating the sealing power that could seal the world.
"Ten thousand Mystical Orbs and a middle-grade spiritual technique Revolving Blazing Comet." A feminine voice echoed the hall, chilling the body of the onlookers. A stunningly beautiful figure walked out of the private room. Her body radiated the freezing air of coldness and indifference.
"She is Ocelia Coruscare of the Coruscare Family!" The crowd took only a moment to realise her extraordinary identity. She was the talent sorcerer who would become the head of the family in the future. Her elegant bearing of the leader had already earned respect from others.
At the same moment when the voice rang out, Forus' body shivered uncontrollably, but he suppressed his chaotic state of mind before casually stood up and walked toward the exit. He needed to get out of the auction as soon as possible before she noticed him.
Little did he know, the mistress had already noticed his behaviour and locked her glistening gaze at him, observing his appearance and committed them into her soul. When he turned his head to look at her for the last time, their gaze met, causing both of their eyes to brighten in their respective colour.
The colourful light that was invisible to others twirled around themselves willingly, causing the two to feel the intimating sensation created from the resonance of their soul. The two rays of light fused together gently, creating an invisible string of fate that tied the two with each other.
After a moment of confusion, Forus instantly rushed out of the auction and disappeared into the crowded area, leaving the mistress to savour the wonderful feeling of soul resonance. Little by little, the seventh floor of the leaning tower that floated inside her plane of conscious actualised itself into existence.
The sudden change in the leaning tower caused her indifferent emotion to stir up. Only that man could cause her feeling to stir up. She could feel that they were about the same being as if she and he was once the same entity.
"I'm leaving now, prepare me a carriage. I could feel the resonance between us as clear as ever." Ocelia smiled warmly at the thought of their union. She could feel that if she and he joined together, their future would be limitless.
...
"Young master, the man had unexpectedly left early. Should we go after him? Your heritage is not to be tarnished by such a lowly commoner!" The servant in grey reported the news to his young master in yellow. His young master had taken interested in the poor man that just left.
"Very well, I shall bring you with me to find him, that man had taken what I wanted. His punishment is only death and suffering." The young master in yellow spoke as if it was natural for him to kill someone. The arrogant in his words presented itself perfectly for everyone to hear.
"This one shall prepare you a square of hunters to bring that man and his little treasure for you." The servant bowed his head while leaving, but the young master stopped him unexpectedly.
"I will be the one hunting him personally. There is no need for those useless hunters. If the victim is delivered to me easily, then how would the hunt be enjoyable?" The young master in yellow laughed loudly, feeling excited from all the thought about the hunt
...
"The man with a mysterious ring is unmistakably a criminal. He is trying to avoid contact with the maiden of the influential family, probably because she knew his identity." Little Florie also stood up from her seat and walked out of the auction. She was trying to tail behind the criminal, trying to help the city rid of the evil man.
She would try to capture that man and brought him to the maiden in the private room. The maiden from the Coruscare Family would be happy to have a criminal arrested.
"With the unique treasures that my teacher gave to me, I could see that he is only a second-layer sorcerer apprentice. I could easily arrest him, even if I couldn't, my life wouldn't be in danger." Little Florie had some confidence in herself and her teacher. She wouldn't be afraid of a random sorcerer apprentice.