The price Yafei quoted caused a brief hush in the room, but soon a young man, whose mind had been completely captivated by Yafei’s subtle expressions and gestures, eagerly shouted out, "Six thousand six hundred!" After announcing his price, the young man, slightly pale, performed a graceful bow to Yafei on the stage, completely unaware that his eyes were fixed intently on her full chest. With a quiet contempt for this young man whose entire mental focus had been consumed by the physical presence of women, Yafei maintained her perfect smile and lightly smiled to the audience, asking, "Any other bids?" "Seven thousand seven hundred!" "Nine thousand nine hundred!" After a moment of quiet, the room suddenly erupted into lively activity, with a continuous stream of rising bids. The young man grew increasingly embarrassed, and when the price finally reached twenty-three thousand, he sat down with a somewhat embarrassed expression. Hearing the steadily rising price, Xiao Yan was both astonished and could only emit amazed murmurs. The intense enthusiasm for the Foundation-Stage Elixir among those present clearly surpassed his expectations—clearly, the decision to promote the event through Mitel's auction house had been quite wise. While the three major families had not all remained passive, refraining from bidding, several weaker factions had seized upon this opportunity and aggressively raised their prices, determined to secure the elixir. After all, such a medicinal elixir that enhances the pace of cultivation to strengthen one's combat energy was relatively rare throughout the Gamma Empire. After nearly half an hour of bidding, the first bottle of Foundation-Stage Elixir finally settled at a price of 47,000. Staring at the plump man, beaming with joy over the successful auction, Xiao Yan found himself utterly speechless. He hadn't expected these people to be any more enthusiastic than the bids his father had made last time—building the foundation of a spiritual elixir, originally costing only around a thousand gold coins, had been inflated by several times over. The staggering profit margins left Xiao Yan chewing on his lower lip. Running a hand over his chin, he blinked, suddenly realizing: if he hadn't met Yao Lao, he might never have qualified for the luxury of soaking in such elixirs every day. Upon seeing the first bottle of foundational elixir fetch such a high price, Ya Fei also breathed a sigh of relief, silently thinking, "This price should satisfy that mysterious patron. As long as he gains a little more favor for the Miter Auction, that would be sufficient." Gently shaking her head, Yafei looked at the crowd who had been disappointed by the failed auctions, smiled, and once again, under everyone's watchful eyes, presented a jade tray bearing two jade bottles. With a warm smile, she said, "The next six foundation-essence elixirs will be auctioned in three batches of two bottles each, with a starting bid of three thousand gold coins!" As the two foundation-essence elixirs were placed on the tray, the atmosphere in the hall grew unusually still. Everyone's eyes turned toward the three leading families in the front rows—everyone knew that these three powerhouses were about to step in. "Three thousand," said Galib, the patriarch of the Galib family, after a brief pause, speaking slowly. "Haha, Galib! Did you really spend the entire family's funds last time when you bought a technique? Now you're so stingy—you can't even raise a thousand?" Obapa, who found Galib's bid rather out of place, burst out laughing. The face of Jialibai slightly twitched, and he gave Obapā a cold, piercing gaze, but didn't respond with a direct confrontation—merely maintaining a沉沉 gaze on the white jade bottle on the stage. "Thirty-five thousand," Obapā said, with a tone that carried a hint of mockery, growing somewhat bored as he raised his hand and spoke calmly. "Thirty-eight thousand," Jialibai replied coldly, following promptly. "Forty-five thousand," Obapā said, now full of challenge. "Fifty thousand," Jialibai added, his hand slightly trembling as he raised the price—though Obapā's earlier remarks, though harsh, were true. Last time, to secure that senior stage advanced technique, the Jialibai family had nearly depleted its reserves over several years, and recently, its business holdings had shrunk by two or three layers. "Fifty-five thousand." "Fifty-six thousand..." Watching the two contenders gasp for breath as if fighting to hold on, everyone in the room sighed with regret. Even though their financial resources were solid, they simply lacked the strength to compete against the three major families. After all, each of the three noble houses in Wutan City boasted at least three powerful Grand Combatants. While economic strength was indeed a cornerstone of family power, without a strong military force to protect those resources, even vast wealth could not ensure stability. Thus, the attendees all remained prudent, refraining from joining the competition between the two families, occasionally casting their eyes toward the always-calm and detached Xiao family. When the price of the Foundation Elixir was finally raised to seventy-three thousand, Gali Bi, his face turning ashen, reluctantly withdrew. The current state of the families could no longer afford such continued extravagance. Watching Gali Bi's strained expression, Obapa straightened with a satisfied smile, his face bright with pride. During the bidding competition, Yafei maintained a charming smile throughout, observing the two contenders as if they were two sleek, well-fed sheep. It wasn't until the final price was settled that she slightly hesitated before gently striking the small hammer. "Nine and a half thousand!" With a glance that seemed dismissive toward Jalebi, Xiao Zhan waved his hand with a bold, confident air—clearly determined to match or exceed any offer. Seeing Xiao Zhan's resolute stance, Jalebi's lips twitched slightly, and a proud, almost amused smirk flashed in his eyes. He hesitated, then bit his lower lip firmly: "Ten thousand!" Xiao Yan chuckled softly, then remained silent.