The rest of the auction hall was as silent as a grave when they saw the two small golems on the ground.
The auctioneer summoned an expert from the Golden Chambers. “This is a puppet type formation,” she explained. “Formations like these make dead things come to life as long as there is Qi to fuel them!”
“We will now demonstrate what it looks like when it is active!” she announced. The expert that had been summoned reached out and touched the formation engraved on the chest of the golem before he released a stream of Qi into it.
The moment the Qi entered the formation, it lit up with silver light, and then the golem began moving around the stage.
It was a very simple formation, so the golem had no combat ability. It was mainly used as a toy for children and for beginner formation masters to practice their skills.
It really was not worth a lot, but for the three great sects which sought to study the art of formations, it was a great tool.
However, there were only two up for auction. It was not enough for all the sects.
Xue Wei pondered for some time before he took a note from the table and scribbled down some characters. He then rose from his seat and exited the Sky Room, stepping into the hallway where a few servants were waiting right outside.
“Bring this note to the Cerulean Starlight Sect please,” Xue Wei smiled. “Tell them that Ye Xiao sent it.”
The servant guessed that Xue Wei was an extremely important guest so he did not hesitate to do as he was told.
From his words, it seemed as if the Cerulean Starlight Sect knew who he was, so it would not insult them to deliver the message.
The servant rushed down to the floor below and knocked on the door. Rustling sounds were heard before one of the sect disciples opened the door just enough to see the servant.
“This is a message from Young Master Ye Xiao,” the servant said, presenting the message.
“Bring it here,” Lin Huang’s voice resounded from inside the box. Soon after, he had the note in his hand.
When he looked at the note, he felt puzzled. What did Ye Xiao have to say to him?
When he scanned the message, a smile bloomed on his face. It was clearly great news for him.
“Time to mess with the other two factions, then,” he muttered to himself, just loudly enough for those near to hear him.
“What did it say?” Lin Yuelong asked curiously. Of everyone present, only Lin Yuelong had a close enough relationship to be able to ask this question, but all the sect disciples had their ears peaked and were listening intently.
“We don’t need to win the golem,” Lin Huang said with a smile on his face. “As long as we let our elders know about the favor Ye Xiao is giving us, he’ll give us an even higher ranked golem.”
“What does he gain from that?” Lin Yuelong asked with surprise. This came off as odd to him. Could they offer anything in return other than low grade essence stones?
“It is because he is an independent cultivator.” Lin Huang was more experienced than Lin Yuelong so he immediately knew what Xue Wei was thinking.
“He has enraged the Crimson Sunshine Sect. If they find out he is a formation master, they will definitely act against him,” he explained.
“They haven’t taken action yet because he is currently not strong enough to cause them any headaches, but if he becomes a famous formation master and decides to use his influence against them, then while total destruction is unlikely, their foundation is definitely going to be shaken.”
“Secondly, the Argent Moon Sect. There are no positive emotions between those two either, and he is a man, so they might team up with the Crimson Sunshine Sect against him.”
“In the end, he has enemies on both sides, and he is all alone. However, if he can get the backing of our Cerulean Starlight Sect, then he should be safe. The three sects usually give each other face, and he should also give the two other sects face if he is an honorary member of the Cerulean Starlight Sect.”
“So he is trying to find shelter?” Lin Yuelong asked excitedly. He had a good impression of Xue Wei and was more than eager to see him enter their sect, even if it was only as an honorary disciple.
“I am not sure,” Lin Huang sighed. “But if I were him, that’s how I’d do it.”
Lin Huang was not wrong. Xue Wei knew that he could not join the Cerulean Starlight Sect because he was traveling together with Hei Gou. He was not willing to jeopardize his friend's safety by entering a sect.
But even if he could not join the Cerulean Starlight Sect, he could still forge a good relationship with them.
Having friends was never a bad thing, but Xue Wei was rather socially awkward, so he tended to make enemies instead of friends.
Even if he was not a member of the Cerulean Starlight Sect, he could use their strength to intimidate the other two great sects.
While Lin Huang and company were busy with the message, the auction house was boiling with excitement. The golem was cute, and although it was not very useful, it was still a formation that gave one a lot of prestige simply from owning it.
The Crimson Sunshine Sect and the Argent Moon Sect were the most aggressive ones in the bidding war for the golem. From time to time, Lin Huang threw out a bid to make it seem as if he was interested and to, of course, also annoy the other factions.
The bids grew rapidly, but they slowed down later on as each party came closer and closer to their upper limits.
Soon the golem’s price had risen to forty-nine low grade essence stones. The sects had now reached the limits of what they were willing to pay. Actually, they were slightly past that, but even still, neither the Crimson Sunshine Sect nor the Argent Moon Sect was willing to give up the golem. The price was now being raised one essence stone a time.
“Fifty-three low grade essence stones!” the head disciple of the Argent Moon Sect said with a strain in her voice.
The head disciple of the Crimson Sunshine Sect grit his teeth, but he stayed his hand. There was another golem left, so he would give his all to obtain that one, but he feared that his sect might not be able to win it.
The two princes were also hesitating. They knew better than to challenge the three great sects; because, although they were princes, their influence was much worse than the head disciple of a major sect, even if it was only a branch.
The three great sects spanned the entire continent, whereas their kingdoms and empires did not.
The second golem auction commenced, and the Crimson Sunshine Sect’s party was eager to show their willingness to buy it. As soon as the opening bid was announced, their head disciple called out, “fifty low grade essence stones.”
His starting bid was very high to intimidate the Cerulean Starlight Sect and show them that they were serious about winning this one. To their great surprise, no bid came after theirs The Cerulean Starlight Sect remained silent, as did the two princes. The item that normally would have been fiercely fought over was easily obtained by the Crimson Sunshine Sect.
“The final five formations are Paralyzing Formations,” the auctioneer explained with a smile on her face, but she was in truth grumbling in her mind.
She feared that the formations were not fetching a high enough price to make the seller happy, but little did she know that Xue Wei was ecstatic at how many essence stones he would be getting already.
The Paralyzing Formations ended up, as everyone expected, in the hands of the three great sects and the two princes.
Each one of them fetched around forty low grade essence stones.
In total, Xue Wei had gained around eight hundred and twenty low grade essence stones from selling the formations. He was pleased with the results. It meant that he and his friends could freely spend essence stones on their cultivation now.
“Everyone, please make your way out of the auction hall,” the woman instructed everyone from the stage. “If you have made any purchases, please make your way backstage where you can pay and obtain your items.”
Having said this, she bowed to the audience before she made her way out of the auction hall herself.
“Well then, let's head backstage,” Xue Wei grinned. He had purchased a variety of items this time, but what made him most excited was the Rainbow Pill he had won.
As he and the other three exited the Sky Room, a servant who was standing outside bowed deeply towards them.
“Young lord, many are waiting to see the appearance of the guest in this room. Therefore, if you want to avoid them, you can take the servant staircase, or you can head down the main staircase and engage them in idle conversation. Please decide, and then this lowly one will lead you backstage.”
Xue Wei contemplated for a few moments. Both ideas had merits and demerits. “Let’s just face them,” Bai Tianyi finally said with a sigh. Xue Wei looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
“Well, I cannot wait to see the expression on the faces of the Argent Moon Sect’s people. Their condescendence really rubs me the wrong way.” Bai Tianyi snickered as he imagined the head disciple’s expression.
Xue Wei could not help but smile and shook his head. “Sure, if that’s what you want,” he said while looking at the servant. “Thank you for your kind suggestion, but it seems that we will face the wrath of the many experts downstairs.”
The servant was puzzled, but he was also happy to be treated with such friendliness by a formation master.
So the group started moving down the stairs. When they reached the floor below, they saw that all the members of the three great sects, the princes, and various other cultivators were waiting to see who he was.
Everyone had different reactions when they saw Xue Wei and his friends. Lin Huang and his friends had no change in their facial expressions whatsoever, and it was clear that they were familiar already, but everyone else was in complete disbelief.
Especially the princes. They looked like someone who had eaten a fly. They had already acted arrogantly in front of this young man, but now he proved to be an important figure.
The expression on the faces of the people from the Crimson Sunshine Sect and the Argent Moon Sect was pure and utter disbelief.
Was this young man really the formation master?
While the rest were stunned, Lin Huang choose this time to smile and step forward. “Brother Ye Xiao! It is such an honor to see you here. Why don’t we go backstage together? It seems you have purchased quite a few items today.”
Xue Wei smiled when he heard Lin Huang. He nodded his head, “If brother Lin Huang is inviting me, then I will gladly follow,” he replied. Before the others had time to react, the two groups were already leaving.
The head disciple of the Argent Moon Sect was still in utter shock. She could not wrap her head around the fact that the man she had looked down upon was actually a formation master! Had she not just completely embarrassed herself in front of them?
The Crimson Sunshine Sect remained silent, but a flash of malice shone in the head disciple’s eyes.