600: Chapter 600 Thunder God Crystal

Fourth Heaven.

In District Dingchou, the tallest building is called Yuling Tower.

It is the headquarters of the Yuling Auction House, which has branches all over the Southern Region of the Fifth Universe.

When Xiao Weiqing first entered the Sixth Heaven and came out of the Purple Sea, the auction he attended was hosted by the Yuling Auction House, though that type of auction is only held when the Purple Sea is open.

The 76th floor of Yuling Tower.

Ding!

The elevator doors opened.

Della led Xiao Weiqing to the door of the office at the very end of the building.

"Sir, please. Manager Qiu is waiting for you inside."

"Thank you."

Xiao Weiqing was just about to knock on the door.

Click.

The door opened.

Manager Qiu walked out from inside to welcome Xiao Weiqing.

"Hahaha! Xiao Weiqing, what a rare guest! I've been waiting for you for a long time. Come, come in, please."

Xiao Weiqing nodded with a smile. "Long time no see, Manager Qiu. Sorry to bother you this time."

"Not at all. Your arrival is my honor. To use a phrase from your Blue Star, my office is 'graced by your presence.' Yes, that's it, 'graced by your presence.' I used that correctly, didn't I?"

"Manager Qiu, you flatter me."

The two entered the office.

Della was extremely surprised by Manager Qiu's attitude. In the two months she had served as his secretary, she had never seen Manager Qiu be so enthusiastic toward anyone.

Even when some Dominators from Level 2 civilizations came to visit, Manager Qiu would only handle things professionally.

However, as a secretary, she knew what to ask and what not to ask. She simply lowered her head, closed the office door, and waited by the entrance, ready to be summoned at any time.

She had heard a little bit about how Manager Qiu's previous secretary had left.

"Come, sit. Would you like something to drink?"

"No need, Manager Qiu. I'm not thirsty."

Manager Qiu smiled upon hearing this. "Then I won't stand on ceremony."

"Xiao Weiqing, you mentioned in your email that you wanted to auction an item. I wonder what it is?"

Manager Qiu hadn't forgotten his professional duties and asked.

Of course, this was also the reason Xiao Weiqing had come. Manager Qiu understood what was on Xiao Weiqing's mind: handle the business first, and building the relationship could wait until after the matter was resolved.

The things this young man before him had accomplished in the Sixth Heaven over the past two months had not been done by anyone in thousands, or even tens of thousands, of years.

Ranked 3rd on Yunjing Mountain—it was simply monstrous.

Manager Qiu knew that Xiao Weiqing already had one foot in the Seventh Heaven, and it was only a matter of time before he entered. Xiao Weiqing had no roots in the Holy Land, yet he had come to find him; this relationship had to be maintained.

"This."

Xiao Weiqing reached out, and a palm-sized box appeared in his hand. Xiao Weiqing had already swapped the container; it was just an ordinary box.

Xiao Weiqing gently pushed the box toward Manager Qiu.

Manager Qiu pulled a pair of white gloves from his drawer, put them on, and slowly opened the box.

A flash of blue met his eyes. Inside was a crystal the size of a ping-pong ball, emitting a faint fluorescent glow.

"A thunder god crystal?"

Manager Qiu carefully picked it up and examined it closely.

"High quality."

"How high?"

Xiao Weiqing asked.

Manager Qiu set the thunder god crystal down and closed the box.

"For the same volume, the energy is 1.2 to 1.3 times that of an ordinary thunder god crystal."

"You are looking to auction this thunder god crystal."

"That's right."

"Manager Qiu, is there a problem?"

Manager Qiu tapped his fingers. "Xiao Weiqing, if I may be so bold, I'll call you Brother Xiao. If you think highly of me, you can call me Brother Qiu, or Old Qiu works too."

"Let's stick with Brother Qiu. And Brother Qiu, don't call me Brother Xiao; it feels weird. Just call me Weiqing."

Although Manager Qiu didn't know why Xiao Weiqing thought being called 'Brother Xiao' was weird, he was secretly delighted to hear Xiao Weiqing ask to be called Weiqing.

He had learned that among Blue Star people, using only a first name was a sign of a close relationship.

"Alright then, I'll take the liberty and call you Weiqing."

"Weiqing, are you auctioning this thunder god crystal just to sell it for credits, hoping to get a high price?"

"Or do you want to sell it to buy other treasures?"

Xiao Weiqing raised an eyebrow. "Brother Qiu, is there a difference?"

"Yes. If you just want to sell it for a high price, there are many ways. An auction is just one method, but it's not the way to get the most credits."

"Brother Qiu, tell me about it."

"Alright."

Manager Qiu didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "The first method, as you know, is to put it up for auction here. The highest bidder wins. A thunder god crystal of this size and quality will definitely be fought over by all parties."

"Usually, it can sell for 20% above its original price."

"20%?"

"Yes."

Xiao Weiqing calculated mentally. "A thunder god crystal of this size has a redemption price of 500,000 credits in the Holy Land. Brother Qiu, you said the quality is 1.2 times that of an ordinary one, so that's 600,000 credits."

"Yes. If it's auctioned, I can guarantee it will fetch no less than 720,000 credits."

Xiao Weiqing suppressed his joy and asked, "From what you're saying, Brother Qiu, there are other ways to sell it for an even higher price."

"Yes."

Manager Qiu nodded affirmatively.

"For example, private transactions or bartering."

"Private transactions?"

"Exactly."

Manager Qiu explained, "The invitation cards for our Yuling Auction House have very strict Ranks. There are strict regulations on what level of auction each Rank can attend and what level of treasures each Rank of the auction house can handle."

"Even the holders of the invitation cards are periodically evaluated to determine if they should be promoted or demoted. In serious cases, their qualifications are directly revoked, and they are banned from participating in auctions for life."

"What do you think those who want to bid on high-quality treasures but lack the corresponding privileges do?"

"Just like that auction in the Purple Sea?"

Manager Qiu nodded. "The principle is similar, but there's a difference. The participants, or the main entities, of an auction like that in the Purple Sea must be members of the Holy Land."

Xiao Weiqing nodded to show he understood. The Purple Sea was essentially a benefit for these Holy Land members; it was impossible for outsiders to participate.

"Then, if I do that, how much higher can the price go, and what are the risks?"

Manager Qiu held up two fingers. "It can go another 20% higher, but it requires a middleman to guarantee the transaction."

"If you just want to sell for a high price, I can act as your guarantor to ensure the transaction goes smoothly. The buyer will be absolutely reliable, and I won't charge any fees."

Xiao Weiqing raised an eyebrow. "Brother Qiu, won't doing this affect you? This should count as poaching business from the auction house, right?"

Manager Qiu laughed heartily.

"Weiqing, everywhere you go, there are explicit rules, and there are implicit rules."

"Managers like us also need to maintain interpersonal relationships. Since certain things exist, they have a reason to exist. As long as it's not too excessive, the auction house will turn a blind eye."

Xiao Weiqing nodded slightly. Unspoken rules were everywhere.

"Brother Qiu, are there any others?"

Manager Qiu was stunned, then lowered his voice. "Weiqing, there is indeed another way to sell treasures for a high price, even double. But I advise you not to touch it; that method is strictly prohibited by the Holy Land."

"Especially treasures like god crystals, which are considered semi-controlled items throughout the entire Fifth Universe Civilization."

"The Holy Land and higher civilizations all prohibit the outflow of god crystals."

Xiao Weiqing was shocked. Outflow? What kind of outflow?