"Well, there are nicer weapons coming up anyway," Jie said.

They all looked at her.

"What?" Pan Keai said.

Jie met their gaze, confused. "There are nicer weapons coming up?" she said again, their reaction making her feel uncertain.

"How do you know that?" Pan Keai asked.

"Is it not normal to know?" Jie asked. She suddenly felt incredibly stupid.

"No. It's not. Not even I know. I suggest you not say anything... I don't know how the auction house would react to you knowing what you do," Pan Keai said.

Jie shrugged. "It won't be too bad. They're the ones that told me," she said.

"They did?" Pan Keai said. She looked stunned.

"Surely it isn't that rare," Jie said.

Pan Keai blinked a few times as though coming back to herself. "They must've made an exception for you. Well, in that case, I suppose it is quite alright," she said.

"So what weapons are coming up?" Pan Tian asked.

"Uh... I don't know. I only listened to the one. I wasn't very interested," Jie said.

"Well, what was the one you heard about?" Pan Tian asked.

Jie stared at the ceiling as she searched her memory. "It was a sword... a uh... black moon? No... that's not quite right..." she said.

"A dark moon blade?" Pan Zhanshi suggested with wide eyes.

"Yeah," Jie said, "that sounds right."

Pan Zhanshi swallowed. "Wow... Only the highest in our family could use it," he said.

"He said it was for lower dantian cultivators," Jie said.

"Lower dantian cultivators? A dark moon blade for the lower dantian? Wow... it can't be as powerful, but it must still be amazing," Pan Zhanshi said.

"You'd like it?" Jie asked.

"Are you kidding? Who wouldn't? That would suit my style perfectly. And rather than focusing my energy on creating a night blade I could simply empower the weapon for greater damage. I've even been practicing using night blade as a weapon empowerment skill. But I haven't found anything that fits my qi and fighting style yet," Pan Zhanshi said.

Jie nodded thoughtfully.

"And you didn't hear anything about any other weapons?" Pan Tian asked.

Jie shrugged. "I wasn't interested. If I'd known you guys were, I'd have listened," she said.

Pan Tian let out a frustrated sigh. "It's fine," she said.

"Well, they'll bring them out anyway," Jie said.

"Yes, but I won't know if I get the best... they might have something even better..." Pan Tian muttered.

"I am so bidding on that dark moon blade when it comes up," Pan Zhanshi said.

Pan Keai smiled though her eyes remained fixed on Jie. "Just make sure not to get carried away," she said.

Jie leaned back in the sofa as the auction continued. They went through weapon after weapon. They seemed to increase in quality with each sale.

"I hope that mysterious cultivator doesn't bid on the dark moon blade," Pan Zhanshi said suddenly.

"I doubt it," Jie said.

They all looked to her again and she blinked. I really need to get better at dealing with people. She thought.

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"Do you know something about that person?" Pan Keai asked.

Jie shook her head. "No, just simple logic. If they're such an esteemed cultivator, why would they bid on an item for the lower dantian?" she said.

"That's true," Pan Tian said.

"But dark moon blades are rare. What if this person is a collector?" Pan Zhanshi said.

"Well, then I have no idea," Jie said.

The Pan family nodded and Jie held back a relieved sigh.

Pan Tian's eyes went wide. "Oh my gosh! That would be amazing for me!" she said.

Jie blinked. What had Jiang Feng said? She had a look at the object on display. It was a pair of metal gauntlets with long, retractable claws made of glass. Or perhaps some kind of crystal. The sharp claws glistened and refracted the light, making them look both beautiful and deadly.

"Ten qi coins!" shouted someone in the crowd below.

"Eleven!"

"Twelve!" came a voice from one of the booths.

Pan Tian pressed her hand onto the orb. "Twenty-five qi coins," she said.

The hall went silent.

"Wow, you must really want that," Jie said.

"Yes," Pan Tian said, though she looked a bit pale, "if you don't shock them with a high bid... this could go higher..."

"The claws of light going once!" Jiang Feng said.

"Thirty qi coins," said someone in another booth.

Pan Tian gnashed her teeth. "That bastard..." she said.

"What?" Jie asked.

"That's the Chen family. I'd recognize that snobbish tone anywhere. I doubt they even want it that much. They just love to try and make us spend more or take the things we want. Every time," Pan Tian said.

"But I thought this was all anonymous?" Jie asked.

Pan Tian shook her head. "No," she said, "the curtain just lets us have some privacy. People still know who's in the booths. Especially since the auction house has us use the same booths each time. Unless our status has changed somehow. Only that new cultivator is anonymous, and I guarantee people will be trying to catch a glimpse of them leaving."

"The claws of light! For thirty qi coins! Going once!" Jiang Feng said.

"You really wanted that didn't you?" Jie asked.

Pan Tian smiled bitterly. "Ah well... there'll be other weapons another night..." she said.

"Going twice!" Jiang Feng said.

"I suppose there's some kind of face involved in this too?" Jie asked.

"Yes," Pan Tian said, "the Chen family is trying to show that they're wealthier than us. They're trying hard to tear us down lately..."

"Going three times!" Jiang Feng said, "And s--"

Jie pressed her hand against the orb. "I bid fifty qi coins," she said.

Her voice rang out crisp, clear, cool, and utterly unfeeling. The audience gasped and even the Pan siblings and their aunt's eyes went wide.

"Are you insane?" Pan Tian hissed.

"Maybe," Jie said, "don't worry. I can afford it. Consider it a thank you for your hospitality and our meal earlier. That has to be the best food I've ever had."

"Uh... you know you don't have to do that, right?" Pan Tian said, "That's... a lot of money..."

"You're a friend. I kinda feel bad that I didn't find out about the weapons for you earlier," Jie said.

Jiang Feng resumed counting, but the auction house was dead silent.

"And sold!" Jiang Feng said with a dazzling smile on his face.

Jie turned back to her friend. "So do you have martial skills for those claws?" she asked.

"They should perfectly fit my fighting style and qi type so I won't even need new skills. It'll take some getting used to though," Pan Tian said.

Jie nodded. "Well, I'm sure you'll pick it up quickly. I want to see what they look like by the way, so you'd better show me," she said.

Pan Tian let out a giggle. "Didn't you see when they took it out?" she asked.

Jie shrugged. "Only from a distance. Besides, I bet they'll look way cooler when you're wearing them. Otherwise, they're just paperweights," she said.

Pan Tian shook her head and let out a combination of a sigh and a chuckle. "You've got to be the weirdest person I've ever met. But... thank you," she said.

Jie smiled. It felt good to spoil a friend. Though, part of her worried that she might end up with friends that just wanted to be around her for what she could do for them...

But Pan Tian wasn't like that and neither was Pan Zhanshi she was fairly sure. Not certain, but fairly sure. She frowned... why did she have to ruin this feeling with such thoughts?

"That's strange," Pan Keai said after some time.

"What is, Auntie?" Pan Tian said.

"Nobody has come for Jie's payment," Pan Keai said.

"Why would they? The auction is still going on," Jie said.

"Ordinarily, they would still require payment by now... but I suppose they're giving you special treatment," Pan Keai said. She plucked a golden apple off the table and took a bite.

"That mysterious expert still hasn't bid. What do you think they'll bid on?" Pan Zhanshi said.

Jie chuckled. "You're just nervous they'll snaffle your dark moon blade," she said.

Pan Zhanshi spread his hands. "I'd be crazy not to be," he said, "at least a little... they are so rare after all."

They passed the time chatting while weapon after weapon was brought out. Many of them sold for high prices, but nothing came near what Jie had paid.

"And now... an item few will ever see and live to tell the tale... a dark moon blade!" Jiang Feng said.

Pan Zhanshi's eyes lit up and his excitement grew as Jiang Feng spoke of the rarity, power, and unique features of the blade. Most notably that it was for lower dantian cultivators. He then began extolling the skill and mysterious reputation of the secretive dark moon sect.

Jie had to admit, it was a beautiful weapon. It was made of a purple-black metal with a smoke-like finish and, every edge, curve, and detail was simple yet elegant. It looked at once like the process had taken years of painstaking care to produce and like it had been no challenge at all for what had to be a master craftsman.

"How high will you go?" Pan Tian asked.

"Well... I've been saving for a weapon for a while. And... for a dark moon blade... I'll go fairly high if I have to," Pan Zhanshi said.