Chapter Sixty-Eight: Underhanded Tactics

At this moment, sitting beside Lord Chett, Grace's beautiful face was awash with shock. She couldn’t help but draw a sharp breath, exclaiming, “I never imagined they could create something like that. Those alchemists truly are...”

“Indeed,” Lord Chett responded with a slow nod. “Alchemists have always been mysterious and unpredictable. The things they craft—storage rings, for example—all possess remarkable subtleties. They usually serve the royal families of the great empires, so ordinary people rarely get to see such items.”

Meanwhile, the crowd was in high spirits. Weapons with such formidable power were rarely seen. Take that fourth-grade magic core, for instance—it was almost unheard of in Changling City. The mere thought of it made the crowd’s eyes burn with even greater fervor.

Amid the raucous auction, the heads of the Lie family, Lie Chen, and the Auburn family, Auben Shan, remained notably calm and composed by comparison. Both were Doulou-level warriors, and thus understood better than anyone the true might of the Void-Piercing Crossbow.

Consider the fourth-grade lightning magic core alone—the energy it contained was immense. Though they couldn’t quantify it exactly, both men knew it far surpassed the fighting energy they had accumulated over years of training to reach the Doulou rank.

To wield the Void-Piercing Crossbow was tantamount to holding a power on par with a Doulong master. For Lie Chen and Auben Shan, it represented an enormous advantage. Worse yet, if such a weapon ended up in the hands of an enemy of equal rank for an ambush or assassination, its lethality would be even more terrifying. The very thought sent an involuntary chill down their spines.

Casting a cold, mocking glance at Lie Chen, Auben Shan then fixed his gaze on the Void-Piercing Crossbow, a look of absolute determination glinting in his eyes. Ever since his defeat by Lie Chen at the last auction, he had been waiting for an opportunity to turn the tables.

Now that opportunity had arrived. The Lie family had spent a fortune last time to obtain the Heaven and Earth Technique, stretching their finances to the brink. Auben Shan refused to believe they could muster the same resources again for this auction.

This thought deepened the sinister smile on Auben Shan’s face. While he was only a fourth-rank Doulou—one step below Lie Chen—if he obtained the Void-Piercing Crossbow, not only Lie Chen but even the Lie family’s top Doulou experts would have to tread carefully around him.

Imagining the look of anger and helplessness on Lie Chen’s face, Auben Shan chuckled darkly to himself. His lips curled into a dangerous arc, and his eyes narrowed, flashing with malice and cruelty as he murmured, “With this in hand, Su Yi, I’d like to see how you manage to turn the tides then...”

Sensing Auben Shan’s fierce resolve, Lie Chen’s brow furrowed and his expression grew grim. He fell silent. In truth, the power of the Void-Piercing Crossbow made him uneasy as well. He absolutely could not allow it to fall into someone else’s hands—especially not Auben Shan’s.

“The starting bid is two hundred and fifty thousand gold coins. The auction begins now!” With Maya’s announcement, the atmosphere in the room erupted. Everyone’s hearts pounded wildly, as if gripped by an invisible hand. While few actually qualified to bid, the excitement was palpable.

“Three hundred thousand gold coins!”

At last, someone opened the bidding. All eyes turned toward the source of the voice—it was Auben Shan, head of the Auburn family. He sat with easy composure, and after bidding, he cast a subtle glance toward Lie Chen, letting out a cold, quiet laugh.

Sure enough, Lie Chen’s expression darkened at the price. The Lie family had recently suffered a string of mysterious setbacks, losing a considerable amount of gold. Despite implementing various measures, they had brought only four hundred thousand gold coins to this auction.

He had thought that, barring another item of the Heaven and Earth Technique’s caliber, four hundred thousand would be enough. Indeed, the earlier auctioned items had gone for no more than a hundred thousand or so. Yet, unexpectedly, the final two lots included a weapon as mighty as the Void-Piercing Crossbow, with a starting price rivaling some mid-tier Xuan-level martial skills.

Lie Chen shot Auben Shan a cold look and responded, “Three hundred fifty thousand gold coins!”

A direct increase of fifty thousand gold coins drew gasps from the crowd, who marveled at the financial power and boldness of the city’s foremost family. Even the up-and-coming Kina family would struggle to muster such a sum—the top four forces were in a league of their own.

Auben Shan was surprised by Lie Chen’s bid; he hadn’t expected the Lie family to scrape together so much gold despite their current troubles. But the thought quickly passed. In his mind, however much the Lie family struggled, the outcome would not change. Smirking, he bid again.

“Three hundred sixty thousand gold coins!”

“Three hundred seventy thousand!” Lie Chen promptly added another ten thousand.

“Three hundred eighty thousand!”

“Three hundred ninety thousand!”

As Lie Chen doggedly kept pace, Auben Shan sneered inwardly. He was curious just how much gold the Lie family could produce.

“Four hundred thousand gold coins!”

With Auben Shan’s bid, the atmosphere reached a fever pitch. Although most present were mere spectators, the spectacle of tens of thousands of gold coins being added with each bid was intoxicating—more thrilling than bidding themselves.

Four hundred thousand gold coins! In the span of a few breaths, the price had soared from the starting bid by a full one hundred fifty thousand. The crowd was awash in a sense of extravagant abandon.

Even the visiting guests, Ina and Shi Yan, were left speechless. Though their own cities were larger than Changling, such fierce bidding wars were rare even for them.

By now, Lie Chen’s face was utterly clouded. Auben Shan obviously cared nothing for the true value of the crossbow—he was intent on driving up the price to strike a blow at the Lie family. More importantly, the Lie family had no more gold to spare.

With a cold snort and a glint of steel in his eyes, Lie Chen spoke: “Four hundred fifty thousand gold coins!”

Another direct increase of fifty thousand! The crowd trembled with excitement, and even Maya, onstage, allowed a hint of surprise to cross her face before smiling again. “Clan Leader Lie Chen has bid four hundred fifty thousand gold coins. Any further bids?”

As the crowd’s attention shifted toward him, Auben Shan’s expression twitched. He looked up at Lie Chen and said, voice dripping with malice, “Clan Leader Lie Chen, can you truly afford four hundred fifty thousand gold coins?”

Without changing expression, Lie Chen shot him a frosty glance and replied, “If you’re not bidding, the Void-Piercing Crossbow is mine.”

“Hmph!” Auben Shan, irked by Lie Chen’s arrogance, waved his hand and barked, “Five hundred thousand gold coins!”

It seemed the Auburn and Lie families were once again at odds. Observing the escalating bids, the onlookers mused that Auben Shan appeared to have the upper hand—after all, at the last auction he had bid a staggering six hundred fifty thousand gold. Did the Lie family have another trump card to replicate their previous victory?

“Five hundred fifty thousand gold coins!” Lie Chen said coolly, his expression severe.

“Damn it!” Auben Shan nearly sprang from his seat, cursing aloud. He simply couldn’t fathom how the Lie family could still produce so much gold. Suppressing his fury with difficulty, his resolve hardened and a hint of madness flickered in his eyes. No matter what, today he would force Lie Chen into defeat. “Six hundred thousand gold coins!”

Seeing Auben Shan’s reddened eyes, Lie Chen only smiled coldly and slowly spoke three words: “It’s yours.”

Auben Shan stood there, momentarily stunned, before realization crashed over him. He shot to his feet, jabbing a finger at Lie Chen and snarled, “Lie Chen, you—you dare trick me?!”

The rest of the audience quickly caught on as well. Perhaps the Lie family truly lacked the gold to fight for the crossbow, but Lie Chen’s ruthlessness was undeniable—he had deliberately driven up the price, then exited at the perfect moment. Auben Shan, caught off guard, was left paying far more than necessary, sapping his family’s strength as well.

Martial Peak, Chapter 68: The Devious Move, complete.