79: Chapter 79: Two Billion Dollars Acquired Through Auction

He knew that at this moment, there was no need for him to say anything more; the authorities in the Xia Country would provide a sufficiently weighty explanation. This was more thorough than him using any private power, and it was also more in line with the rules.

He made a video call to a still-shaken Chen Yan. Looking at his younger sister's pale but trying-to-be-composed little face, he rubbed his throbbing temples and said in as relaxed a tone as possible: "It's alright, Xiao Yan. The bad guy has been caught, and this kind of thing won't happen again."

"Were you scared? When I'm done being busy here, I'll bring you over to see the ocean, the coral, and our Deep Blue Nation to help you recover from the shock."

The night in Deep Blue Nation was quiet and profound.

Switzerland, Geneva.

The air in the auction hall was so quiet that one could hear their own heartbeat.

The light spilling from the dome gathered on the small platform in front of the auctioneer.

The seats below were packed with people, all in suits and ties, exuding a composed aura.

The front row was occupied by representatives from major museums, agents for old aristocratic families, top collectors, and some unfamiliar faces—capital market manipulators with shrewd eyes.

In the back rows and private boxes on the sides were mostly industry insiders and media here to witness an auction that might go down in history, even though unauthorized filming was strictly prohibited.

This special auction, titled "Gift of the Deep Blue," was rarely and jointly hosted by Christies and Sothebys.

Over the past month, the auction catalog had left the global collection and archaeological communities holding their breath.

The cover of the catalog featured a high-definition close-up of that 17th-century Spain-style golden scepter, with the emerald at its tip shimmering with a deep, mysterious luster under the lights.

The auctioneer struck the wooden gavel, and the auction began.

There was no long-winded opening speech; they went straight to the point.

The first batch to be auctioned was the "miscellaneous" collection: including about thirty pieces of well-preserved Ming and Qing export porcelain, a representative set of multinational gold and silver coins, several pieces of World War II archival material, and that batch of deep-sea biological specimens.

These were considered appetizers, but the competition was already fierce.

Especially the batch of deep-sea biological specimens, whose scientific value and scarcity attracted bidding wars from several famous natural history museums and private research foundations.

In the end, this batch of miscellaneous items hammered down for a total of approximately 85 million USD, far exceeding expectations.

The anglerfish specimen alone sold for 2.2 million USD.

Next was one of the main events: precious metals.

First up for auction was the batch of silver coins and silverware.

Spain "piece of eight" silver dollars, Mexican eagle dollars, Peru silver coins... these metal currencies, bearing the history of the Age of Discovery and colonial trade, were in excellent condition and vast in quantity, possessing a fatal attraction for coin collectors and historical institutions.

After several rounds of intense bidding, over 120,000 silver coins and some silverware were finally sold for a total price of approximately 160 million USD.

Then, there was gold.

Thirty tons of gold.

This number itself carried a heavy magic.

But the auction house was not stupid enough to sell it directly as gold bars.

They were carefully packaged: some were minted into special commemorative gold bars bearing historical ship emblems and salvage years; some were combined with a small amount of gemstones salvaged in the same batch to create limited-edition artistic gold bars; most were auctioned off as the first batch of official reserve gold for Deep Blue Nation, split into several standard contracts.

This was not just selling gold; it was selling a story and a concept.

The international gold price was currently around 1,800 USD per ounce, so the base value of the thirty tons of gold itself was close to 1.74 billion USD.

But the final total hammer price reached 2.23 billion USD.

The premium paid for the added value of the deep-sea legend and the symbolic significance of being linked to the first public financial act of this newborn Deep Blue Nation.

The climax was undoubtedly the golden scepter.

When it was escorted onto the stage by four security guards wearing white gloves and placed in a specially made bulletproof glass display case, a suppressed gasp echoed throughout the hall.

Under the lights, the scepter shimmered all over, and the huge emerald at its tip looked like a frozen eye of the deep sea. The intricate Spain royal carvings and the faintly discernible emblems on the scepter spoke of silent power and the vicissitudes of time.

Christies' chief jewelry expert personally took the stage and spent ten minutes detailing its historical background, craftsmanship value, gemstone quality, and most importantly, its legendary experience of being discovered in a shipwreck 500 meters deep in the ocean and remaining well-preserved.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is not just an artifact; this is a key, a key to open the door to ocean history and lost wealth."

"It symbolizes discovery, and it symbolizes royal power returning from the deep blue."

"Now, please bid for the Deep Blue Scepter. The starting price is 50 million USD."

The bidding became white-hot almost instantly.

Several old European royal foundations, Middle Eastern tycoons, top art museums in the United States, and two anonymous telephone-commissioned buyers engaged in a frantic contest.

The price jumped up in millions of dollars, quickly breaking through 100 million, 200 million, 300 million... The auctioneer's voice remained steady, but the speed of speech became faster and faster.

Finally, when the gavel fell in a way that seemed to freeze time, there was a brief moment of absolute silence in the hall.

"Sold! Congratulations to Buyer No. 767! 380 million USD!"

380 million to buy a scepter.

This price set a new record for the auction of similar types of artifacts.

Buyer No. 767 was an agent representing the Qatar Royal Museum. He stood up and bowed slightly, with no expression on his face, but his eyes revealed a sense of satisfaction at having secured his goal.

The subsequently auctioned tin ingots and natural rubber went through bulk commodity trading channels. Although they also attracted the interest of relevant industrial buyers, the process was much calmer compared to the thrilling events before.

Over 35 tons of tin ingots sold for about 10.5 million USD, with a unit price close to 30,000 USD per ton; 17.6 tons of natural rubber sold for about 3.52 million USD.

These were tangible industrial raw materials, and the premium was limited.

When the final lot, a complete set of late Ming and early Qing export blue and white porcelain tableware, was sold for 9.2 million USD, the auctioneer took a deep breath and struck the final gavel.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the 'Gift of the Deep Blue' special auction concludes here. Thank you all for participating."

People didn't disperse immediately; many were whispering, calculating, and making phone calls.

Reporters in the media area were already impatiently starting to draft news flashes.

Preliminary statistics circulated rapidly internally, and after final accounting and confirmation, the two auction houses jointly issued a concise press release:

"The 'Gift of the Deep Blue' maritime cultural heritage special auction, commissioned by the government of Deep Blue Nation, had a total turnover (including commission) of: 2.72042 billion USD."

Total Auction Amount: 2.72042 billion USD

Commission Paid: 272.042 million USD (10%)

Taxes Paid: 489.6756 million USD (20%)

Net Proceeds: 1.9587024 billion USD (approx. 72% of total)

2 billion USD!

This number was like a deep-sea bomb, detonating once again in global media and financial circles!

This did not even include the tin ingots and rubber already cashed out through other channels, nor the more precious metals and cultural relic reserves still remaining in President Chen Ran's own system space!

In just one or two months, President Chen Ran and the Deep Blue Nation he represented had not only demonstrated unbelievable deep-sea exploration and salvage capabilities, but now had also converted this ability into staggering amounts of real money!

With 2 billion in cash inflow, plus the 4.5 billion in secret funds recovered earlier, the liquid funds in President Chen Ran's hands already exceeded 6.5 billion USD!

This did not even calculate the potential value of those unrealized cultural relics, nor the territory and marine resources of Deep Blue Nation itself.

All the previous doubts, mockery, and sour comments were washed away in the face of these naked wealth figures.

In the world of capital, strength is king.

And now, with an auction, President Chen Ran had declared to the world the true value of the strength he possessed.

"Deep-sea Money Printer," "Turning the Sea into Gold," "King of the Blue Sea"... various exaggerated titles flooded the media once again.

The international community's attitude toward Deep Blue Nation and President Chen Ran had undergone a subtle yet significant change.

Contempt and hostility still existed, but more and more people began to seriously consider how to deal with this suddenly emerged, wealthy, and secretive blue-sea country.

Letters of intent for cooperation, investment, and trade began to fly like snowflakes toward the teams of Samuel Colt and Elliot Dunne.

In Funafuti, President Chen Ran looked at the final auction report submitted by Victor, and a smile appeared on his face.

2 billion, very good.

This money came at just the right time.

"Tell Colt and Dunne to properly handle the entry of funds, pay taxes legally, and establish the Deep Blue National Development Fund."

"The priority order for the use of the first batch of funds: First, emergency reconstruction and expansion of infrastructure after the earthquake, especially airports, ports, freshwater, and energy."

"Second, the launch of large-scale coral reef restoration and cultivation projects."

"Third, procure a batch of necessary construction machinery, ships, and... hmm, some defensive equipment from Xia Country and other trusted suppliers; you and Fortress should refine the list further."

"Fourth, establish national scholarships and talent introduction programs to recruit the people we need globally, with excellent compensation."

"Yes, Boss." Victor recorded this, unable to help but grin as well.

With money, many plans that could previously only stay on paper could now be pushed forward immediately.

The construction of Deep Blue Nation would truly enter the fast lane.

President Chen Ran walked to the nautical chart on the wall, his finger tracing over that piece of blue territory that was about to grow tall and large.

6.5 billion USD is the confidence, the fuel, and also the magnet.

It can attract builders, but it will inevitably attract more greedy gazes.

But it doesn't matter.

Beneath the deep blue, he has the system.

Above the deep blue, he will have enough resources to build his own city defense.

And over in Hangzhou, the threat to his younger sister had been removed, and the laws of the Xia Country would naturally provide a just verdict.