Chapter 271 I Picked Up Trash on the Battlefield of National Fortune 27
For the first time, the notification sound from the national destiny system wasn't so cold.
[Announcement: In preparation for the first auction in the central city of Nexus, all players will have a day off tomorrow, and battlefield quests will be suspended.]
The news caused an uproar throughout the entire player town.
The post-disaster jubilation and the pre-battle calm were strangely intertwined.
In Zhou Jue's hut, she put away all her tools, her gray uniform transformed into a dark brown robe, and the number 1024 reappeared.
Her goal was clear: the central city, Nexus.
...
Nexus, this city suspended in the torrent of data, is the heart of the entire battlefield of national destiny.
Zhou Jue appeared at the city entrance without attracting anyone's attention.
She followed the flow of people toward the most magnificent building in the city center—the Endless Auction House.
She was led to a separate appraisal room by a waiter NPC.
Inside the room, an elderly man wearing a monocle and with his hair neatly combed was absentmindedly polishing a gemstone.
"Take the things out." The old man didn't even look up at Zhou Jue.
Zhou Jue didn't speak. She gently placed the long sword wrapped in black cloth on the velvet table.
The old man glanced at it: "A sword."
He put down the gemstone, slowly put on his gloves, and leisurely untied the black cloth.
The blade of "Dawn" gleams with a restrained golden light.
"A Grade B longsword, in good condition, newly made?"
The old man picked up the sword, weighed it in his hand, and said calmly, "Starting price, I'll give you a higher one, five thousand points."
He placed the sword on the appraisal table, intending to go through the motions and get rid of the new merchant.
"Buzz—"
The appraisal platform emitted light, enveloping the longsword.
Rows of data appeared on the light screen next to it.
The old man's gaze swept across the screen, then he suddenly stopped: "Can it grow?"
He muttered to himself, pushed up his monocle on the bridge of his nose, leaned forward slightly, and got closer to the screen.
This attribute is quite rare.
His gaze continued downwards, and when he saw the line "Break the Demon," his finger unconsciously tapped the table.
Deals 80% extra damage to all evil, corrupted, and bizarre creatures.
"Eighty percent?"
The old man's voice changed. He suddenly raised his head and looked directly at Zhou Jue, the figure shrouded in a hood, for the first time, filled with shock.
He looked down again at the last line of the screen.
[Core Potential: S+]
[Feature: Can be bound to, becoming your signature weapon.]
The old man's breathing stopped.
His hands began to tremble, as if he were looking at a rare treasure or a monster. He had seen S-class, SS-class, and even SSS-class weapons before, but this was the first time he had ever seen a weapon specifically designed to target strange creatures and that could be bound to them. After all, no one would use a weapon to break through magic on the battlefield of national destiny.
He suddenly stood up, the movement so forceful that the chair behind him tipped over with a loud thud.
"Honorable...distinguished guest! Please forgive my poor eyesight! Please forgive me!"
The old man's back was bent at a ninety-degree angle: "This...this item, it...it..."
For a moment, he couldn't find the right words to describe it: "A masterpiece! No! A divine work!"
He carefully held up "Dawn," as if he cherished it a hundred times more than when he was polishing his own gemstone.
"Distinguished guest, what is your expected starting bid for this masterpiece?"
The old man adopted an extremely humble posture.
"You decide," came Zhou Jue's hoarse voice.
"I...I decide?" The old man was stunned. He looked at Zhou Jue, then at the sword in his hand, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
The value of this sword has exceeded his assessment.
Setting the price too high, fearing it will go unsold, would be a desecration of a masterpiece.
Setting the price too low would be an insult to this mysterious master forger.
He gritted his teeth, as if making a momentous decision: "Honored guest, please wait a moment!"
He grabbed the sword and practically ran out of the appraisal room.
A few minutes later, he returned, followed by a middle-aged NPC with an even more profound aura. Judging from the badge on his chest, he was the manager of the auction house.
The steward's gaze was fixed on "Dawn," his face filled with shock.
He walked up to Zhou Jue and bowed respectfully: "Revered master forger, we are willing to present this sword as the first item in the finale of this auction."
He paused, then said in an extremely serious tone, "Starting bid: 500,000 points."
"Furthermore, we will pay this point as a deposit in advance, and this point will belong to you regardless of whether the transaction is ultimately completed."
No one could see Zhou Jue's expression under her hood.
She simply nodded slightly: "Okay."
Upon receiving an affirmative answer, both the steward and the old man breathed a sigh of relief.
The steward personally escorted Zhou Jue to the entrance of the auction house, and only after watching her figure disappear into the crowd did he let out a long sigh of relief.
"Investigate immediately! What exactly is the origin of this number 1024!"
...
Zhou Jue did not linger in Nexus. He returned to the cabin, where night had already fallen.
She changed into her familiar gray uniform, and a new mission command popped up on her bracelet.
[Mission: Proceed to the Nexus auction venue and clear the area.]
The opportunity has arrived.
The magnificent auction hall was unlike any other ruin she had ever cleared. Anyone who didn't know better would think it was a peaceful era. The dome was inlaid with luminous crystals, and the floor was so shiny it was like a mirror.
Zhou Jue pushed her cart, walking on the soft carpet, surrounded by several other figures dressed in gray uniforms like her.
That was the first time she had seen her fellow "cleaners." Like her, they pushed carts and worked silently, their faces expressionless, their eyes vacant, their movements mechanical, like a group of machines programmed with instructions.
Zhou Jue tried to make eye contact with one of them, but the other person's gaze swept over her without lingering, as if looking at a wisp of air.
Zhou Jue withdrew her gaze and did not try to communicate again. She pressed down the brim of her hat and began to work silently.
Her movements were meticulous, but her consciousness was like an invisible net, quietly spreading out.
Every exit of the venue, the location of every security personnel, the view from every VIP box on the second floor...
All the information was clearly imprinted in her mind.
After cleaning her assigned area, she didn't linger for a moment. Pushing her cart, she quietly left through the side door and disappeared into the night in Nexus.
Back in that small yet familiar little house, Zhou Jue switched back to her identity as the traveling merchant 1024. She sat cross-legged on the bed, tapped her bracelet, and a notification from the auction house appeared.
[Dear Valued Guest, your item 'Dawn' has been entered into the auction. The starting bid is 500,000 points, and the deposit has been received.]
She checked her points balance.
[Points: 987,856]
Zhou Jue looked at the number and slowly closed his eyes.
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