Chapter 356 – The Death of the Elf King, New Doubts

As soon as the auctioneer finished speaking, the Dark Elves there were about to leave suddenly stopped and looked at the stage in shock.

They saw an iron box being pushed onto the stage by the auction staff. There was an incomplete skeleton. It looked much taller than a normal elf. Every bone was as black as ink and shone with a gem-like luster. It seemed to be full of spirituality.

All the Dark Elves had the urge to kneel at that moment. Although they believed in Gajero and no longer believed in the Elf Kings, the reverence from their bloodline still made them feel incomparably shocked.

Every Dark Elf could confirm that the skeleton in front of them was once an Elf King. There was no need for the auction house to produce any other proof.

Other than the shocked crowd, there was also a dejected David, an ecstatic Dave, and a wide-eyed Vincent.

Compared to the ordinary Dark Elves, the three of them all had different perspectives on the situation.

David had received the news early in the morning that the auction house would be auctioning off a set of an Elf King’s remains. Therefore, he had prepared sufficient crystal coins to bid on the remains. However, he did not expect Dave to start bidding so early on, causing him to lose 80 million crystal coins. That was already half of his wealth!

At the moment, even if he wanted to bid for the Elf King’s remains, he would have to face Dave!

As the son of the City Lord and a well-known playboy, Dave naturally had a lot of money with him. Moreover, he had only spent 100,000 crystal coins to buy a jade token for Vincent so far. He could be said to be in prime condition. The skeleton of the Elf King was already in his bag!

Vincent was somewhat unwilling to accept the reality before him. At first, he thought that the seven Elf Kings that the Elf Race believed in were still alive. They were just hiding in someplace, struggling for their lives. However, it seemed that there was indeed an Elf King that had died at the hands of Gajero. The skeleton was the best proof.

What Vincent could not understand was that since the abilities of the Elf Race all came from faith, then how could the Elf Race still use their abilities normally after the death of the Elf King?

Whether it was the Earth Elf King in the valley outside of Dark Yuan City, or the Wood Elf, Horace, and the Thunder Elf girl who wanted to assassinate Dave in the jungle, the power that they used still came from their faith in the respective Elf Kings.

Vincent could not help but suspect that his initial guess was wrong. The abilities possessed by the elves had nothing to do with faith!

However, Vincent immediately rejected this idea that had just popped up. As the elves could change their abilities by switching their beliefs, it was clear that the abilities of the elves came from the gods via faith. There was no doubt about this. Therefore, in order to clarify his doubts, he had to figure out the origin of this skeleton and the story behind it!

At the same time, the Dark Elves in the hall had also asked the auctioneer. Although they knew that they could not get the remains of the Elf King, they wanted to know the origin and story of the skeleton.

“This is the real Elf King! But where did this skeleton come from?”

“Tell me, I’m very curious about how the remains appeared in Hell’s Rose!”

“Everyone is risking their lives to sit here, so hurry up and satisfy our doubts!”

Everyone was sitting firmly in their seats as they urged the auctioneer anxiously.

The auctioneer continued to speak slowly under everyone’s expectant gazes, “If we want to talk about the origin of this set of remains, we have to start from the time when great god Gajero descended from the Black Hole into the Elf World. Back then, in order to preserve the divine spark on their bodies, the Seven Great Elf Kings refused to allow great god Gajero to become a god of the Elf Race. Both sides fought fiercely, and in the end, the Seven Great Elf Kings were all suppressed. As for what happened to them, there is still no definite news about them until now. The only thing that could be confirmed was that the Elf King had died at the hands of the great god Gajero in that battle. From then on, the Elf King no longer had any inheritance, because his divinity had been destroyed by the great god Gajero himself, leaving behind only this skeleton that was still full of spirituality. The dark attribute and the demonic aura all belonged to Gajero. Therefore, whoever could obtain this Elf King remains would obtain a great benefit. That Dark Elf will be able to level up quickly in a short period of time. Who knows, they might even be able to obtain other benefits from the skeleton, such as the memories of the Elf King, as well as this skeleton that can be considered a top-tier material!”

Everyone listened to the auctioneer’s explanation attentively. They could not help but feel their mouths and tongues dry up. When they thought about how obtaining this skeleton was equivalent to obtaining great power and endless treasures, they could not help but feel a trace of jealousy in their hearts. If anyone was able to obtain this skeleton in the end, they would have incomparable hatred toward that individual. This was the result of a strong imbalance in their hearts.

“Then, what is the starting price for this Elf King’s remains?”

Someone made up his mind and raised his hand to ask. Whether it was young elder David or the one upstairs, they had to fight for it because this was an opportunity that no one could refuse.

Many had the same thought. They firmly believed that if they could get the remains of the Elf King, perhaps in the near future, their strength would surpass that of the current City Lord Andre. When the time came, they would have their powerful strength to rely on. Would they still be afraid of offending a few rich young masters?

The auctioneer could sense the crowd’s excitement. He quickly said, “The skeleton of the Dark Elf King, the starting price is 100 million crystal coins!”

The Dark Elves that had made up their minds earlier all sat back down dejectedly after hearing the starting price because they suddenly realized that it was not enough to just have the courage to participate in the auction. The most important thing was to have the capital in order to participate in the auction!

100 million crystal coins was a huge fortune that most Dark Elves here would never be able to see in their entire lives, so how could they take it out to bid for this Elf King’s remains?

At that moment, David raised his hand high and said firmly, “I bid 100 million crystal coins!”

He only had 100 million crystal coins in his hand, so he had to bet that Dave, who was upstairs, did not bring that much money with him when he came out today!

At that moment, Dave’s indifferent voice came from upstairs.

“I bid 180 million!”

Everyone’s jaws dropped. The entire auction hall fell into a dead silence.

180 million crystal coins was a wealth that many border cities could not accumulate for decades!

Linus, who was sitting in the auction hall, was the one who had the deepest feelings. He was currently the High Priest of Dark Yuan City, so he knew Dark Yuan City’s annual income at the back of his hand.

Last year, the total income of Dark Yuan City, together with the personal income of all the Dark Elves in the city, was only 10 million crystal coins. This meant that in order to purchase the Elf King’s remains, Linus would require the income of all the Dark Elves in Dark Yuan City for the next full 18 years!

As everyone believed in Gajero, they did not respect the Elf Kings very much. If the elves who still believed in the Elf Kings saw the price, even if it was 1.8 billion, they would still do their best to raise money to obtain the remains!

David could not help but close his eyes in despair after hearing Dave’s bid. Before the auction started, he had brought 180 million crystal coins with him. However, he was no longer Dave’s match. He could only watch as the Elf King’s remains fall into Dave’s hands!

“Everyone, the final price of the Elf King’s remains is 180 million crystal coins!”

The auctioneer saw that the others were not prepared to raise the price, so he announced the winning bidder and the final price.

In the hall on the first floor, only a small number of Dark Elves stood up and applauded for the mysterious Dark Elf on the second floor. The rest of them immediately turn around to leave.

Their faces were all filled with malice and viciousness. For the sake of the Elf King’s remains, they had no choice but to consider a risky move!

Among them was David, who was the most disappointed, Linus, who had traveled thousands of miles from Dark Yuan City, as well as some hidden powerhouses and desperadoes!

They were all prepared to walk out of Hell’s Rose ahead of time. When the buyer walked out later, they would do whatever they could to get the Elf King’s remains!

In the private room, when Dave saw that he had successfully bought the Elf King’s remains, he could not help but raise his head and roar in excitement to vent his current mood.

Although he had fooled David twice under Vincent’s guidance, he still felt like his reputation was hurt. After all, David had taken two items from him in succession.

However, the value of this last item made Dave feel the joy of a complete victory!

Catherine could not help but stand up and said with a smile, “Congratulations, Your Highness, for successfully obtaining such a precious treasure!”

Dave nodded with an excited expression and said, “If I can obtain the remains today, I have the confidence to become the City Lord in the future. From now on, you don’t have to guard the fifth floor and smile at outsiders every day. Come with me, I will be responsible for taking care of you for the rest of your life!”

Catherine was a little touched after hearing this. She said with some worry, “Your Highness, the City Lord has always been very wary of Hell’s Rose. He has always wanted to find an opportunity to suppress Hell’s Rose. If we were to publicly expose our relationship, I’m afraid it would be disadvantageous to Your Highness! Moreover, with me managing the fifth floor, I can gather a lot of information about Devil Flame City. It will be very helpful to Your Highness. So, let me stay in Hell’s Rose for the time being. I also want to contribute to Your Highness’s great cause!”

Dave was currently in an arrogant mood. When he heard that Catherine had rejected his good intentions, his malicious personality was about to fly into a rage.

However, at that moment, the curtains were pulled open. Vincent walked out with Monica and said in a deep voice, “Your Highness, now that you are facing a great disaster, now is not the time to celebrate!”

When Dave heard Vincent’s words that were even more disappointing than Catherine’s, he should have become furious. However, he calmed down instead. He turned to look at Vincent and asked with a frown, “What do you mean?”

Vincent sighed softly, he looked out of the window and said, “Your Highness, look at how many Dark Elves left the auction early. What do you think they are doing? Did they go home disappointed because they couldn’t get the Elf King’s remains? I don’t think so. These Dark Elves should be willing to walk down a dead-end for the remains of the Elf King. It’s an extremely vicious dead end!”

Dave was not a fool. After he calmed down, he instantly understood the deeper meaning behind Vincent’s words. He sighed deeply and said, “Those who left the banquet early want to ambush me outside Hell’s Rose and seize the opportunity to steal the Elf King’s remains!”

Vincent nodded and said, “That’s right. Therefore, Your Highness should not be thinking about how to settle your confidante, but how to leave safely with the Elf King’s remains!”

Dave lowered his head and pondered with an ugly expression. However, he could not think of any good ideas. He then subconsciously looked at Vincent and asked, “Since you have already seen through my current crisis, do you have any solutions?”

Vincent turned to look at Catherine and asked, “Who is the true owner of Hell’s Rose? I don’t think that the nine floors here are a pile of scattered sand. They don’t usually do things on their own, right?”

After hearing Vincent’s question, Catherine replied with a helpless expression, “Although Hell’s Rose is divided into nine floors, there is naturally a boss behind it who is responsible for coordinating everyone. It’s not that I’m unwilling, to tell the truth. However, as this currently relates to the life and death of His Highness, I will naturally do my best to help. But the boss is not in Devil Flame City at the moment, so he won’t be of any help to us at all!”

Vincent nodded and said, “My original intention is not to ask the boss of Hell’s Rose for help. I just want to confirm whether the nine floors of Hell’s Rose can be united as one.”

Catherine said confidently, “Of course! The nine floors are united as one. They help each other and depend on each other for life and death. This is the iron rule left by the boss. No member of Hell’s Rose can go against it!”

Vincent smiled and said to Dave, “That’s easy! Since there are Dark Elves outside who want to ambush His Highness, you don’t have to go out for the time being. Let’s see how long they can wait!”

After hearing that, Dave immediately fell into deep thought. According to his personality, he naturally did not want to stay in Hell’s Rose to hide. However, there were dangers everywhere outside. It seemed that he could only do as Vincent said.

Dave finally said in a deep voice, “Then let’s go to the fifth floor!”

Catherine heard that and quickly said, “Then I’ll go find the person in charge of the auction house and ask him to help us out! There is a special passage between the nine floors of Hell’s Rose. Only the nine of us in charge can use it. We can go straight to the fifth floor through the secret passage. That way, we can avoid all eyes and ears!”

Vincent nodded and said, “Alright!”

Catherine then turned around and left.

Dave walked to the window and saw that there were still some Dark Elves in the hall who were unwilling to leave. He could instantly guess that it was because they wanted to confirm the identity of the mysterious buyer and inform their companions that were guarding the outside.

Although he was the son of the City Lord, he would still attract many Dark Elves. It would also allow a small number of even crazier Dark Elves assassins to lock onto him.

In the current situation, if he made a wrong step, he would lose the whole game!

Dave turned his head and looked at Vincent, who was trying to dissuade him. He forced out a smile and said, “Today, it’s all thanks to you by my side. During the day, I only thought that you were a confidant that could be nurtured. But now, it seems that you are my lucky general!”

Vincent smiled slightly and raised his hand to hug Monica beside him. He pretended to be grateful and said, “I am only repaying Your Highness’s kindness toward me. If Your Highness considers me as a lucky general, I will do my best to protect Your Highness!”

Dave took a deep breath and said seriously, “It’s a deal! From now on, as long as you follow me and pledge your loyalty to me, I can give you everything that I am able to give! I can give you women, money, and status. Other than Catherine, I can give you everything else! Even if I take control of Devil Flame City in the future, I can still give you half of it!”

Vincent smiled and nodded but did not reply.

This was because Dave had already said so much. If Vincent opened his mouth and agreed to Dave’s promise, he would appear too ambitious. Even if he did not make Dave feel afraid at that moment, it would still bring trouble to him in the future.

Therefore, Vincent chose not to answer. It was already the best way for him to express his gratitude for Dave’s kindness!

At that moment, Catherine returned to the room and said to Dave, “The one in charge of the ninth floor has agreed. We can go to the fifth floor through the secret passage now!”

Dave nodded and said in a deep voice, “Let’s go. Hide our strength and bide our time first, then wait for an opportunity to move!”

Under Catherine’s lead, the four of them walked along the secret passage to a small lift platform. The space was not formed naturally. It was created by several generations of Dark Elves in Hell’s Rose. They had spent countless manpower and resources to open a passage that connected the first floor to the ninth floor.

When the four of them walked onto the lift platform one after another, Dave suddenly pushed Catherine to the corner of the wall. He pressed his hands against the wall and stared at her angrily.

Catherine looked at Dave in panic. She did not know why he was suddenly so angry.

Dave questioned her with a serious face, “There is a boss behind Hell’s Rose. There is a secret passage between the first and ninth floors. Why didn’t you tell me these secrets before?”

Vincent looked at Dave with a shocked face, but after hearing his question, he could not help but raise his hand to fan his nose. He turned to Monica, who was also shocked, and asked, “Do you smell a sour smell?”

Catherine looked at the serious-looking Dave and suddenly smiled. There was joy in her eyes as she said softly, “Because the previous His Highness made me feel like he was unreliable!”

After hearing that, the corner of Dave’s mouth trembled violently as he continued to ask, “Then why did you say it today?”

Catherine raised both her hands and cupped Dave’s face as she said, “Because today, I saw that my little prince has matured! Although there are times when he cannot control his emotions, I still feel like he is very reliable!”

The corner of Dave’s gloomy mouth slowly turned into a smile under Catherine’s fingers. However, he still sighed solemnly, “You hid such important information from me, you deserve to be punished! In the future, you are not allowed to hide anything from me!”

Catherine replied with a smile, “Yes, Your Highness!”

After seeing the scene, Monica, who was standing beside Vincent, finally nodded, and said, “Mmm, it is indeed very sour!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep