Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 421: Gigantic Black Crow Stone

Improving divine consciousness was beneficial, but it was a bit debatable when it wasn't entirely free of side effects.

This price had already exceeded the value of an ordinary spirit essence.

Moreover, the Blue Fox auctioneer had not mentioned what kind of plant this spirit essence evolved from. This suggested two possibilities: either the Ancestral Court didn't know what it was, or the plant that produced this spirit essence wasn't very powerful.

Either way, it would lower its value.

For example, if the Blue Fox auctioneer had clearly stated that it evolved from a well-known and valued treasure plant, its value would be entirely different.

"One thousand five hundred naturae coins three times, congratulations to number 336!"

As he successfully secured it, Tang San immediately breathed a sigh of relief, a look of joy spreading across his face.

It seemed that his luck was indeed as incredible as he’d thought. The first auction item was already very useful to him. This was genuinely excellent news.

At this moment, Zhang Haoxuan's voice came over.

—Tang San, you don't have to do this. I know my own talent. Although we made a lot of money this time, it must be spent wisely!

Tang San immediately understood that his master had misunderstood. But at this moment, he couldn't just tell his master "you're overthinking this."

"Master, the spirit essence has other uses; it's not just for absorption. I'll explain it to you when we get back," he said.

On the other side, number 338, Zhang Haoxuan, was taken aback and replied somewhat awkwardly.

—Oh, then... we'll talk about it later.

Tang San didn't want to discourage his master, but he was worried that if he didn't say anything, his master might take the item, settle the bill, and consume it directly after they returned, which would be problematic.

"Next, let's present the second auction item."

When the second auction item was brought out, its size was much more prominent. Judging by the red cloth covering it, it was over a cubic meter in size.

"Today's second auction item is a piece of ore. This ore is likely familiar to many of our distinguished guests; it's black crow stone. Black crow stone itself isn't of particularly high value. Still, a piece black crow stone this gigantic and of such superb quality is probably something none of you have seen before," said the Blue Fox auctioneer as she uncovered the red cloth on the second auction item.

When Tang San heard the words "black crow stone," a hint of surprise crossed his face.

Back at Redemption Academy’s shop, the first lucky find he bought was some black crow stone!

More precisely, it was black gold, which this world's demons and nymphs didn't recognize.

Through high-temperature forging, black crow stone could be refined into black gold, which had incredible toughness.

Tang San used the black crow stone he had initially auctioned off and additional black crow stone acquired from the market to forge various hidden weapons for his companions.

He didn't expect to see this metal again at today’s rare items auction.

The red cloth was lifted, revealing a gigantic block of black crow stone to all the bidders.

The block nearly two cubic meters in size, irregular in shape and jet-black. It gave off a strange sense of depth, as if it was actually a hole in space rather than solid material.

The black crow stone he bought before weighed several dozen kilograms, and that was already a lot, but based on his knowledge of black crow stone’s density, this piece in front of him weighed at least several tons!

No wonder it took several bear demons together to bring it to the center of the Great Beast Fighting Arena.

"Black crow stone is known for its hardness, and such a massive piece is appearing for the first time in recorded history. It has been personally inspected by a Demon King who stated that he sensed some special energy within it. Additionally, given its enormous size, it is suspected that this black crow stone has the potential to develop spiritual intelligence. If it does develop spiritual intelligence, it will likely face a tribulation to transform into a nymph, and it could potentially become a Nymph King. Therefore, it was sent here as an rare item. The Ancestral Court guarantees that there is indeed an energy fluctuation present. But it will be up to our esteemed guests to decide if it can be raised to become a nymph and what kind of life it might lead if it does. The starting bid is three hundred naturae coins."

There was no doubt that this item's uncertainty was greater than that of the previous spirit essence, so the starting bid was considerably lower.

Black crow stone wasn't rare on the Daemon Continent and it wasn't expensive either. So how valuable would it be even if it could genuinely cultivate into a nymph?

Subduing a nymph like this to become a vassal?

If it could indeed be reborn, three hundred naturae coins would still be worth it, since it would be a god-level being. However, the likelihood of it becoming a god was small—it would have to survive a tribulation, after all, and that was no easy feat.

Black crow stone wasn't considered a powerful material to the demon and nymph clans.

Therefore, an unusual silence ensued when the Blue Fox auctioneer announced the starting bid.

None of the bidders made an offer for this black crow stone.

Seeing this, the Blue Fox auctioneer couldn’t help but frown slightly. She also didn't feel that this black crow stone was particularly auction-worthy, and the three hundred naturae coins price wasn’t low.

Who would be foolish enough to spend so much money on something like this?

But this was indeed the largest black crow stone ever recorded in mining history.

"This black crow stone, after hardness testing, is harder than any previously known black crow stone, indicating its superior quality. If it becomes a nymph, its defensive capabilities will likely be outstanding, giving it a good chance of surviving a tribulation."

Silence, still silence!

All those who came to participate in the auction were individuals with excellent judgment.

Moreover, the rare items auction was different from yesterday's spiritual items auction.

On the Rare Items Auction Day, high prices for junk were common.

Of course, there were also lucky finds. But the Rare Items Auction Day often wasn't as good as the first day’s spiritual items auction and never as good as the final day’s divine items auction.

Thus, the second day of the auction had always been the day with relatively poor sales at the Ancestral Court's grand auction.

Encountering such items, whose value was difficult to determine, unsold lots were not unheard of.

"Three hundred naturae coins, guest number 336 has placed a bid. Thank you, number 336!"

The Blue Fox auctioneer had been ready to start the countdown for this item to go unsold. But suddenly, a bid appeared on the crystal screen before it. It was from number 336, the same one who had just won the spirit essence.

Someone actually bid on this? That was the thought on many bidders' minds at that moment.

Yes, Tang San had placed a bid.

Based on the total volume, even five times the amount of ordinary black crow stone wouldn't be worth as much as three hundred naturae coins.

But even before hearing the auctioneer’s introduction, Tang San had already been prepared to bid.

If he hadn't been worried about other bidders noticing and competing with him, he would have bid immediately.

Only those who understood a true treasure knew its value.

"Three hundred naturae coins going once, going twice, three times... sold!"

The Blue Fox auctioneer didn't delay further, knowing it was fortunate that the item didn't go unsold. She quickly concluded the auction, allowing Tang San to win yet another item he desired.

Two successful bids in a row, even though they weren't particularly high-value items, had still attracted the attention of many bidders to VIP 336.

The auction continued, with the next few items fully displaying what it meant to be "rare."

They were truly bizarre. There was an unknown meteorite that had fallen from the sky, a peculiar giant egg containing a life aura, and a gigantic pearl from the Endless Blue Sea, among others.

However, to Tang San, these items held little value.

The giant egg, for instance, fetched a considerable price, but Tang San didn't bid.

The egg indeed contained a very strong life aura, and with his senses, Tang San could determine that it was likely a hybrid creature.

However, at the same time, Tang San could sense that the egg's spiritual fluctuations didn't match its life aura. The life aura was indeed very strong, but the spiritual fluctuations were weak.

Because of this, it was doubtful that the creature within could ever become intelligent, regardless of how powerful it was. A demonic beast, not a demon, was the most it could be.