The Peerless Emperor (TPE)

When Zhang Keren said this, everyone around Lin Qian, including Ye Xin, felt a sudden tension in the air.

Immediately after, Zhang Keren's face lit up with a triumphant smile as he looked at Lin Qian. "You're indeed clever, but I bet you didn't realize that this was also a trap set just for you, did you?"

"You young ones, full of energy and easily provoked, would naturally try to raise the price when you see me bidding like crazy," Zhang Keren said as the three-second window passed, and the damaged sword officially belonged to Lin Qian.

As Zhang Keren spoke, the Eight-Armed Sea Clan member who had been bidding fiercely alongside him stopped and looked at Lin Qian with a sly smile.

"I was wondering why the Clan Leader of the Northern Branch would bid so high on a broken sword worth only two million mid-grade soul crystals. Turns out it was all a scheme to trick Lin Qian," someone in the crowd murmured.

"Do they have some sort of grudge against each other?" another person asked.

"That human, Lin Qian, declared he would kill the Eastern Branch Clan Leader's ally. Isn't that reason enough for a grudge?"

The surrounding crowd buzzed with chatter, with some people watching Lin Qian with a gleeful expression, hoping to see him in distress.

"Damn it, I didn't expect Zhang Keren to set another trap so quickly!" Zhang Zide muttered angrily as he noticed Zhang Keren's smug expression.

Beside him, Li Yunfeng shook his head helplessly. "Who could've guessed that after being humiliated by Lin just moments ago, Zhang Keren would turn around and set up another scheme so quickly?"

23.05 million top-grade soul crystals—this was already a fifth of the funds they had brought for the treasure-betting event. It was no small amount, and it had just been wasted in Zhang Keren's scheme.

Even though they had managed to frustrate Zhang Keren earlier, it seemed he had now gotten his revenge.

"We were careless," Ye Xin thought, her brows furrowed as she glanced warily at Zhang Keren. "We need to stay vigilant from now on, keep an eye on the surroundings, and avoid falling into another trap."

Zhang Keren chuckled to himself, feeling immensely satisfied. Earlier, he had lost 10 million top-grade soul crystals, but now he had made Lin Qian lose 20 million top-grade soul crystals. It was immensely satisfying.

But gradually, Zhang Keren's laughter faded as he noticed that Lin Qian didn't seem the least bit upset. Instead, Lin Qian was looking at him as if he were an idiot.

That feeling made Zhang Keren uncomfortable.

He had won this round, so why was Lin Qian looking at him with the gaze of a victor?

"Clan Leader Zhang, did you not realize that while you were trying to trap me, you failed to notice that the gem in the sword hilt is actually a spatial stone?" Lin Qian said with a surprised tone.

"A spatial stone?"

Lin Qian's words immediately drew gasps from the crowd, who widened their eyes in disbelief.

A spatial stone—any item related to space manipulation required such materials.

For example, a high-quality storage ring only needed a thin layer of spatial stone powder to significantly enhance its stability.

A spatial stone the size of a fingernail could easily be worth 50 million top-grade soul crystals.

Could it be that the semi-transparent crystal embedded in the sword hilt was indeed a spatial stone? If Lin Qian was telling the truth, the crystal at the bottom of the hilt would be worth at least 60 million top-grade soul crystals.

"Impossible! Spatial stones are crystal clear, completely transparent. That cloudy crystal can't be a spatial stone!" Zhang Keren retorted, clearly unwilling to believe Lin Qian's words.

"I think you're just trying to save face," Zhang Keren continued, sounding magnanimous. "If you sincerely apologize and offer an apology to Vice Hall Master Wu as well, I wouldn't mind returning half of the 20 million top-grade soul crystals."

Lin Qian sneered at the offer. "Why would I lie? If you don't believe me, feel free to follow me. I was planning to sell the spatial stone anyway to increase my funds for this event."

With that, Lin Qian turned and walked toward the central counter on the first floor.

Ye Xin and the others quickly followed him, eager to find out whether the semi-transparent crystal in the broken sword's hilt was indeed a spatial stone.

The crowd, also curious, followed behind, wanting to see whether Lin Qian's claim held up or if he was just bluffing.

Seeing everyone follow Lin Qian, the Eight-Armed Sea Clan member who had pretended to bid against Zhang Keren approached him and asked, "Clan Leader, should we go and check it out?"

Zhang Keren watched the crowd walk away, hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Yes, let's go. I want to see how this brat intends to turn a plain crystal into a valuable spatial stone."

Meanwhile, the central display in the Treasure-Betting Hall projected the news that Lin Qian had purchased a broken sword for 23.05 million top-grade soul crystals.

Since the Treasure-Betting Hall had been open for less than half a day, most people were still browsing and hadn't made any purchases. As a result, Lin Qian's transaction was the highest-priced sale so far, drawing considerable attention.

Curious onlookers gathered around the central counter, eager to see what had been sold for such a high price.

When they saw Lin Qian produce nothing but a badly damaged sword after paying so much, they burst into laughter.

As word of what had happened spread, many dismissed Lin Qian's claim that the crystal was a spatial stone. Even some skilled craftsmen voiced their doubts.

"Everyone knows spatial stones constantly emit spatial fluctuations, so they're usually ground into powder for stability. Embedding one directly in a sword hilt? Forget attacking others—such a soul tool would hurt the wielder first," one of the craftsmen remarked.

Lin Qian ignored the chatter, handing the broken sword to the top appraiser at the central counter.

The appraiser recognized Lin Qian from the Rear Sea Street items he had evaluated previously and smiled kindly at him before carefully inspecting the sword.

After a long examination, the appraiser shook his head in disappointment and placed the sword down. "It seems you misjudged this one. Even with repairs, this sword would only be worth 1 million mid-grade soul crystals."

"Hahaha, what a joke! He really thought the sword hilt contained a spatial stone," Zhang Keren roared with laughter.

Ye Xin gently placed a hand on Lin Qian's shoulder. "It's alright, Xiao Qian."

Lin Qian smiled at Ye Xin, shaking his head to show he wasn't bothered.

Then, ignoring Zhang Keren, he looked at the appraiser and said with a calm smile, "Master, you can't just rely on your eyes and soul power. You also need to use your imagination."