The next four auction lots passed in a quick, routine blur.
Ancient pirate sea-charts, casks of kraken ink, and blackened necromantic coral reefs were snapped up by minor syndicate warlords for modest sums.
Lin Mo did not bid on any of them. He sat in his VIP booth, calmly cracking Grandma Chen’s roasted sunflower seeds while Little Guo’er fed dried sweet-potato strips to Bai Ling’s snow-fox.
GONGGGGGGG!
The bronze bell chimed for the fifteenth time.
Auction Master Black-Beard slammed his bone gavel against the jade podium with extra theatrical flair.
Four heavy dark-iron golems marched onto the stage, wheeling out a towering display case lined with dark blue velvet.
Inside the glass stood a full suit of sea-green plate armor.
