Chapter 129: The Hilt of the Divine Sword (Third Update)

The silver-haired man on the red stage waved his hand and declared in a deep, resonant voice, "I am deeply honored to be invited to auction here tonight. After all, I have some history with the Flower Fragrance Pavilion."

Ye Kun suddenly realized that this was a smear on his own reputation! Who on earth had a history with a pleasure house?

The crowd was astonished. They had never expected the silver-haired man to have ties to the Flower Fragrance Pavilion; who would dare to cause trouble here in the future?

"Enough idle chatter. Let the auction begin!"

Two burly men stepped forward, carrying a wooden rack. The crowd furrowed their brows. What was this? A sword tang? Selling a sword in pieces? This business strategy was truly something else.

Ye Kun thought the same. Hiring a fake silver-haired man and then bluffing by selling a sword tang—this was clearly an attempt to exploit the silver-haired man's reputation. His own name was about to be tarnished!

Wu Chi stared at the hilt, his brow furrowed deeply. "Ye Kun, if you have the money, buy it. This sword tang is extraordinary!"

"Extraordinary?"

"If I am not mistaken, this is the tang of a divine sword!"

Ye Kun was incredulous. "You're kidding, right? Divine swords come in pieces?"

Wu Chi felt it was time to give Ye Kun a lesson. "Ye Kun, divine swords take many forms. It is not unheard of for them to be separated. Generally, a divine sword splits into four parts: the tang, the guard, the blade, and the scabbard. Some of the more bizarre ones even include the tassel as a component."

Ye Kun certainly knew that divine swords were multifaceted; his father’s divine sword was hidden within the firmament, formed from clouds and mist. Ye Kun examined the tang closely, finding it quite ordinary with nothing special to distinguish it.

"Stop looking. Once a divine sword is split, its appearance is inferior to that of an ordinary blade."

"Then may I ask, Teacher, how did you discern this?" Ye Kun wondered if his teacher had some sort of divine vision.

Wu Chi paused, then said in a profound tone, "Are you questioning your teacher's discerning eye?"

*How does my teacher look like a shill?* thought Ye Kun.

"What's the point of selling a sword tang?"

"Exactly. Don't try to pass it off as a divine sword."

"We've seen through this kind of scam before."

The silver-haired man spoke in a deep voice, "I swear on my name that everything that follows is the truth. If there is even a half-truth, may the hair on my head disappear and leave me bald!"

Ye Kun stared straight at the silver-haired man. *You actually made such a toxic vow!*

"Damn, that’s a brutal oath."

"I believe him!"

"I've never seen anyone swear such a vicious oath. I believe you!"

Wu Chi turned his head and glanced at Ye Kun’s bald head, then took a sip of wine. Ye Kun saw it out of the corner of his eye. *What’s wrong with being bald? Are you looking down on bald people?*

***

The silver-haired man on the stage shouted, "Many people want to see a divine sword! Today, it has arrived! The tang behind me is a part of a divine sword. Don't look at its dull appearance; it was once dazzlingly bright. Look at its solid surface—it must have been tempered in a hundred battles. Look at its length—long and slender, perfectly balanced for the grip."

"In my opinion, everything in this world has a price, but this sword tang—its faith is priceless!"

The entire audience was baffled.

"Silver-haired man, change your profession! Come to my shop, and I'll pay you double!"

"I'll pay you triple!"

Ye Kun was speechless. If possible, he really didn't want to see this. This silver-haired man must have been a salesman by trade.

The people present weren't fools. The legends of the silver-haired man had spread throughout the entire Taijing, but would such a figure really come here to hold an auction? It would be beneath his status. Everyone remained skeptical. Of course, if he were to demonstrate his strength, that would be another matter.

"Please, everyone, be quiet for a moment. Let us proceed with the auction," the silver-haired man said in a low voice.

"Silver-haired man, didn't you just say it was priceless? Why are you auctioning it now?"

Ye Kun immediately covered his forehead. *Good heavens... am I going to be known as a fool from now on?*

The silver-haired man turned to look at the heckler, and his entire body began to float!

"What did you just say?!"

The entire audience was stunned! If there had been any doubt before, it was gone now. Floating! He was at least a Sword Emperor! This was truly the silver-haired man!

Ye Kun was also a bit surprised. *This person is actually a Sword Emperor!* What a grand gesture—hiring a Sword Emperor for this.

"Does anyone else have any questions?" the silver-haired man demanded.

No one dared to speak.

The silver-haired man said calmly, "Very well, let us proceed with the auction. The starting bid is one hundred thousand gold coins. Everyone, a divine sword tang is worth owning; even if kept as a collectible, it holds great value."

Ye Kun pouted. If it really were a divine sword tang, it would be worth dying for.

"Two hundred thousand!"

The bid came before the silver-haired man had even finished speaking. Someone had added a hundred thousand straight away; they were certainly giving him face.

"Two hundred and ten thousand!"

"Two hundred and twenty thousand!"

"Two hundred and fifty thousand!"

The bidding started across the room, though it seemed rather ordinary. Ye Kun noticed that the people in the private boxes upstairs hadn't started yet.

Were they doubting? Probably.

"Five hundred thousand!"

Just as Ye Kun was guessing, someone from the fourth floor made a bid! They had raised the price to five hundred thousand in one go! For those sitting below, that was an impossible sum. With that bid, the competition died down instantly.

"Ye Kun, do you trust your teacher?"

"Teacher, it's not that I don't trust you, it's just..."

Before Ye Kun could finish, Ye Qin suddenly shouted, "Six hundred thousand!"

*Pfft!*

Ye Kun nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. It seemed this mess was only going to get bigger. Ye Qin had appeared at his side at some point, and Ziyan was leaning against him like a little bird.

*Isn't this what men like in women? Yan Mu'er should say something, I do the same, why doesn't Brother Kun fall for it...*

"Brother Qin is truly impressive," Ziyan said softly. Men needed to be praised. Ye Qin seemed to be floating on air; with Ziyan's encouragement, his mood had improved significantly.

The man upstairs looked through the curtain at the two brothers, his face dark. He wanted to kill these two little bastards! The people below saw that it was the same box that had called for Ziyan, and thought, *They are indeed rich!*

"Six hundred and ten thousand!"

Ye Qin laughed, "Seven hundred thousand!"

*Pfft!*

The man upstairs nearly vomited blood. *Do you have that much money? Is this a joke?* He had seen rich people, but he had never seen anyone bid like this. Was their gold falling from the sky?

The man was furious. "One million!"

"Two..."

Before Ye Qin could finish, Ye Kun quickly covered his mouth. *It's fine to have a bit of fun, but this is a trap! Don't keep bidding, little brother!* One had to know that the mansion Ye Ming bought in Ankang Province only cost two hundred thousand gold coins. One million could buy five such estates. A smart person wouldn't buy a divine sword tang—who knew if it was real or fake?