She could not believe her eyes. Was this guy so filthy rich too?! And yet, he paid her only ten gold coins for her life?! Was her life worth so little? She could not help herself but to share her grievances: "If you were so goddamn wealthy, why are you paying me only ten golds? Is my life worthless to you?"

Jin turned around to look at her and asked back: "Do you really think I have such a sum of money?"

Hymin paused. She tried to take in what he just said as she saw him continue to push the button. It only flashed green for a second before it returned to its glassy shine. The price had already gone up to two million.

She screamed in a hurry: "Stop pushing the button then! What if you won?!"

He chuckled and pointed at the screen down there: "Don't worry. I will stop once it begins to slow down"

She was still having a hard time comprehending what he was doing. She asked: "Then, what are you doing this for?"

He spoke: "There are many reasons. The first one was to test the console and understand how it worked. The second was to quicken the growth of the bid. Finally, the third one is in case they are monitoring the different booths"

She understood the first point. Buzzing once to make sure it worked was perfectly fine. If the material was defective, it was better to be aware of it from the beginning. Especially since there was something he wanted.

However, she did not see the point of the second reason. Quickening the auction process? Why would he care about this?

But the third point, she did not have the slightest clue. She wanted to ask further but he motioned for her to shut up. It seemed like she would have to patiently make her own guesses.

Jin watched the big screen down there as the number kept rolling and the number grew. At the time, the host was introducing the many features of the grade 4 artifact. To be honest, it was quite an impressive one. It contained the 'fortune' element and could bless its owner with good karma. These items were rare.

While every element could be created and everything was an element, they were vastly different. One had to first comprehend the element before he could create it. When it came to unnatural elements, artificially made... It required a cultivator to understand the element from nothing. How easy was it to understand 'fortune'? Not easy. Far from easy.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

These kinds of powerful elements were very difficult to comprehend. As for turning them into top artifacts, it was even more difficult. The fact that there was an entire ten-items set of those... It was no wonder that they were famous and the price could reach such heights. It was already far higher than a similar graded item who would have a basic element like fire or water.

In fact, they could not be compared.

It did not mean that one was stronger. It was all about the rarity. This letter had a very rare element, was famous, and part of a set. The price going up crazily was obvious. Whoever else were attending had deep pockets and did not mind spending on the good things.

Jin was buzzing on the console as well even though he had not enough money to even afford the starting bid.

He first tested the console. He managed to find out that repeated consecutive biddings were possible. That meant that even if the console was green and you were the winning bid, you could still bid higher. It was very important as the bidding itself was anonymous. If you considered the viewpoint of the auctioneer, it was quite an obvious thing to do.

'Just let them keep bidding, more money for me!'

But with this knowledge, many ways to manipulate the biddings were available. It seemed like nothing and a simple mechanism but there was a lot that could be played thanks to it. Jin already had many ideas...

As for the quickening of the auction, it was solely because he did not care about an item that he could not have. It was a waste of his time and just like the host stated, time was precious. Especially while on the run.

Finally, he used this to send a message to the hosts. They were definitely watching who was bidding. How could they know the final bidder otherwise? By keeping up with the bids, he gave them the false information that he had money. If he was going to manipulate things, he would do it thoroughly.

He was still wondering why he received an invitation in the first place.

If not because of his true identity, then could it be that they thought he was wealthy? But how? What was there that he did that could have made them think so?

As he buzzed once more, his gaze landed on his spatial ring...

"It couldn't be..."

He had the strange thought that maybe they thought of him as a royal from the sun empire due to his ring... There was nothing else on his person that could hint at wealth. Heck, he dressed freakily and with cheap stuff. He even went through the poor areas to eat and sleep...

There was only this ring.

But if that was what got him the invitation...Then, it might complicate things. Being recognized as a royalty he was not...It was not a very good thing for him. Once the auction ended, he would have to buy a new average ring and hide this one within his robe. Maybe through a necklace?

Of course, it could also be something else. But just in case, he would make sure to hide it from now on. One can never be too cautious.

It was around that time that he stopped bidding as it began to slow down. The amount had already reached eleven million golds.