Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei finds a Freylian

"Ah."

Even so, Lu Mingfei couldn't help but glance at Angers. The principal raised his champagne glass, lightly clinking it against the lady's, his smile deepening, exuding a dashing charm.

The host's voice brought him back to reality: "Twelve million dollars! Any higher bids?"

The bidding has entered a fierce stage.

Only a few buyers in the VIP area are still bidding, including a Middle Eastern oil tycoon and a Russian oligarch.

Angers also symbolically raised his paddle a few times, but Lu Mingfei could tell he was just joining in the fun. Each time he raised the price, he only increased it to the minimum amount, clearly enjoying the process.

"Thirteen million US dollars once, thirty million US dollars twice, thirty million US dollars three times, sold!" The auction gavel slammed down. "Congratulations to buyer number 78!"

Applause erupted. Lu Mingfei clapped along, thinking to himself that the money from this pot of wine was enough for him to live on for ten lifetimes.

Seeing how much Frillie was enjoying her food, he was about to take a piece of pastry when he heard a slight static sound in his headphones.

Angers turned serious, a stark contrast to his previous jovial demeanor. "The show is about to begin."

Lu Mingfei and Frilian exchanged a glance and sat up straight at the same time.

The host adjusted his bow tie and gave a mysterious smile: "Ladies and gentlemen, as is customary, we have an unexpected item for auction today."

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the room. "As you all know, these kinds of auction items are often the most legendary. Last year's 'Pharaoh's Curse Bracelet' and the year before's 'Atlantis Crystal' both created miracles in auction history."

Several burly men pushed a small cart covered with a red cloth onto the stage.

"This auction item," the auctioneer said, placing his hand on the cloth, "is of unknown age, craftsmanship, and even authenticity."

He paused for a moment, then said, "With the seller's permission, the starting bid is one dollar!"

Lu Mingfei heard someone behind him scoff: "It's that kind of gimmick again."

The red cloth was lifted, revealing a set of seven swords of different shapes displayed on the stand, gleaming coldly under the lights.

"A mysterious set of swords!" the host announced loudly. "Some people doubt whether they just rolled off the production line today. Our experts assure you that these swords cannot be replicated by modern technology!"

A murmur rippled through the audience.

Someone shouted, "If even the date can't be determined, why should we pay such a high price?"

"Look at this forging craftsmanship, this texture! At least you can buy it as a decoration."

Lu Mingfei felt a strange tremor; the set of swords gave him the illusion that they were breathing.

"One dollar!" someone in the back row shouted, holding up a sign.

"Two dollars!" another voice rang out.

Ten dollars!

The host wiped the sweat from his brow: "Well, gentlemen, even brand-new knives cost more than this."

In Lu Mingfei's earpiece, Angers' voice became urgent: "Lu Mingfei, Frilian, your mission is to bid for this set of swords, at all costs!"

Frillie prepares to raise her sign.

A cool, clear female voice came from the opposite compartment: "Three hundred thousand US dollars."

Everyone looked toward the source of the sound, a long-legged woman with a Western Region style.

She wore a golden veil, revealing only her eyes, and the silver bracelet on her wrist jingled as she raised her sign. Her number was 88.

"Three hundred and one thousand," someone tentatively raised the price.

Lu Mingfei raised his paddle, saying, "Since Principal Angers has said we must bid on Seven Deadly Sins, I bid 320,000."

Bidding intensifies. 350,000, 400,000, 450,000.

Each price increase drew a murmur of discussion.

A woman from the Western Regions held up a sign that read, "50."

He raised his paddle again, "100 million."

The host stammered in shock: "Madam, you raised your paddle twice, was your bid five hundred thousand or one million?"

The woman from the Western Regions put down her number plate. "No matter how much it was before, it's a million now."

The wealthy men, who had initially dismissed the brand-new swords, began to whisper among themselves, reassessing the value of the auction item.

Tang Sen, who had been silent since the beginning, held up a sign that read: "One million one hundred thousand."

“Damn it,” Angers whispered, “they’re driving up the price. Don’t rush them, let them play for a while.”

The woman from the Western Regions answered without hesitation: "One million five hundred thousand."

An elderly Asian tycoon with white hair joined the fray: "Two million."

What was a one-dollar joke a few minutes ago is now a contest of astronomical sums.

Lu Mingfei looked at Frillie. "Frillie, our budget is only $500 million. Can we still win the bid?"

"I don't know. Even if we can't get it on the camera, we can always ask your friend Old Tang to forge it, right?" Frilian said calmly.

"Oh right! I really forgot about him. Next time I go to the orphanage, I'll ask him about the swords." Lu Mingfei had almost forgotten that Old Tang was the former King of Bronze and Fire.

The woman from the Western Regions raised her sign again: "Two and a half million."

Lu Mingfei took a deep breath and held up the sign, "Two million six hundred thousand."

All eyes were on Lu Mingfei.

“Three million,” the woman from the Western Regions said slowly.

“Three million one hundred thousand,” Lu Mingfei retorted, not to be outdone.

The bidding turned into a duel between two people, with prices climbing steadily.

Lu Mingfei's palms were sweaty; he had never imagined he would be involved in a money game of this level.

The woman from the Western Regions stood up, the silver ornaments on her long dress jingling: "Five million. Do you want to continue?"

The pressure was overwhelming, and Lu Mingfei felt like prey being targeted by a wild beast.

Chapter 64 One Hundred Million Dollars

Lu Mingfei gripped his bidding paddle number 17 tightly, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He whispered into his headset, "Principal, what if we don't have enough money in our account?"

Angers pushed away the noblewoman in his arms, a calm smile playing on his lips. "Continue the bidding. After you buy the Seven Deadly Sins, the Academy will allocate funds to your account. The $500 million is just the capital that will allow you to compete with them."

Lu Mingfei nodded and held up the sign: "520w".

"Mr. No. 17 has bid 520 million!" the host announced excitedly. "Any higher bids?"

"550 million," the woman from the Western Regions held up a sign.

"580 million," Lu Mingfei said, raising his paddle again, his voice more determined than before.

"Six million," the other party raised the price almost as soon as he finished speaking.

The price, like a runaway horse, kept rising between the two.

700 million, 800 million, 900 million.

When the figure broke the $1000 million mark, Lu Mingfei felt dizzy.

The woman from the Western Regions never hesitated to raise the price each time, and occasionally she would glance at Lu Mingfei with a gaze that seemed to have a tangible weight on him, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

"$1000 million per bid! Anyone else interested in bidding?"

"$1000 million twice!"

Just as the host was about to bring down the gavel, a slightly cool hand gently covered the back of Lu Mingfei's hand.

"Should we give up the auction and have Old Tang forge a set of swords?" Frillian whispered in Lu Mingfei's ear, her warm breath brushing against his ear. "But that would be so unfair, wouldn't it?"

Yes, I'm not reconciled.

Lu Mingfei took a deep breath and raised his sign just before the host announced the deal.

$2000.

The host's eyes widened, wondering if he had misheard: "Sir, you mean 2000 million?"

"Yes, $2000 million."

The host hurriedly exchanged glances with the backstage staff, and an assistant quickly walked onto the stage and whispered a few words in his ear.

The host nodded and cleared his throat: "Distinguished guests, the competition for this set of swords is exceptionally fierce, and the price has exceeded our expectations. To prevent malicious bidding, we need to ask Mr. Lu and Ms. Fu, who hold paddle number 17, to proceed to the finance office for further discussions. The auction will be temporarily suspended for 5 minutes."

Lu Mingfei and Frilian exchanged a glance and left the venue with the staff.

They were led down a red-carpeted corridor into a lavishly decorated finance office. A smartly dressed finance manager was waiting there, with a card reader in front of him.

“Both of you are newcomers to the auction,” the manager said, adjusting his gold-rimmed glasses, his tone tinged with obvious skepticism. “$500 million is certainly more than enough as principal, but $2000 million is four times that amount. As is customary, we need to verify your ability to pay.”

Lu Mingfei could sense the contempt in the other party's gaze, as if to say, "You think you're qualified to bid on this level of collection?"

Lu Mingfei remembered the words Lu Mingze had once told him.

"Go ahead," Lu Mingfei said calmly, walking towards the card reader.

The manager pushed the machine in front of him, a professional smile on his lips: "Please show your funds."

Lu Mingfei tapped lightly on the keyboard, entered the cheat code Lu Mingze had given him, "show me the money," and then pressed X100.

He looked up and stared directly at the finance manager: "These are my assets."

The manager initially maintained a polite smile, but his smile froze the moment he saw the numbers on the card reader screen jumping wildly.

The initial $5 million grew rapidly as if by magic, the numbers kept rolling, and finally stopped at a dizzying number: $105 million.

"One hundred million."

"This, this is impossible," the manager repeatedly checked the machine to confirm it wasn't a mechanical malfunction. "Are you... are you sure you want to offer $1 million?"

“Yes,” Lu Mingfei said, “this is our offer.”

They returned to the auction hall, and the recess ended.

Host: "Thank you for your patience. The auction continues, and the highest bid so far is $6000 million from lady number 88."

During the time Lu Mingfei and Frilian were away, the woman from the Western Regions chose to raise the price to 6000 million.

"Mr. Lu and Ms. Fu, number 17, have bid $1 million," the host stammered, his voice trembling with shock.