Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Green-Clad Rifle

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The atmosphere in the Divine Radiance auction hall was electric, and the price of the Celestial Silk Armor soared accordingly. When the price hit 58,000 points, only a handful of bidders remained. A delicate-looking female psychic had already called out 60,000 points, and at that moment, she was practically the only one still competing. Normally, when the price climbs to more than five times the starting bid, it has already surpassed most people's psychological limits, and they decisively opt for "rationality." Yet, from the back row, someone impulsively shouted, "70,000 points!"

The entire crowd erupted in commotion, all eyes turning toward the back.

The auctioneer raised his voice, "Bidder 1860 offers 70,000 points! Seventy thousand—do I hear a higher bid?"

Wu Hua also turned his head in surprise, then broke into a smile.

This "impulsive guy" was none other than Maragobi, the one whom Wu Hua had previously eliminated in Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain.

Wu Hua hadn't expected to run into him here, nor could he fathom why a Controller would spend a fortune on gear meant for Psychics. Seventy thousand credit points was nearly ten thousand yuan!

"Seventy-five thousand points," the female player snapped, revealing she was not someone to be trifled with.

"I hate it when women fight me for things," Maragobi retorted, raising his paddle again. "A hundred thousand! Damn it!"

A collective gasp rose from the crowd. The auctioneer was quick to react: "One hundred thousand points, first call! One hundred thousand points, second call..."

The female player’s face went pale. Clearly, she couldn't handle the price and finally bowed her head in silence.

Maragobi beamed with pride. "See? Who dares spar with me?"

Wu Hua couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Congratulations to bidder 1860 for acquiring the Celestial Silk Armor at the price of one hundred thousand points. Congratulations once again!" The auctioneer's tone was sincere. All around, players shot Maragobi various looks—envy, jealousy, admiration—all tangled together. Maragobi basked in the attention.

"And now, we are proud to present the finest two items ever auctioned at Divine Radiance. To call them priceless would be no exaggeration, for the two who acquired them paid dearly, risking life and limb to do so..." The auctioneer began to hype them up, but the audience listened in rapt curiosity.

"Please turn your attention to the fourth of today's Five Treasures," the auctioneer gestured to the usher. This time, the usher strode up dressed as a dashing gunslinger. She walked to the display, unshouldered a pack, and pulled out an assortment of bizarre metal parts, then began assembling them. Every eye was fixed on her.

With a crisp "click," a rifle of odd design gleaming with green light appeared in her hands.

The auctioneer's voice soared: "One of the six legendary guns in the world—the augmented Sacred Guardian AUG fully automatic assault rifle——"

The hall erupted. Even though Wu Hua had heard it described by the guild master before, seeing it for himself made his heart race.

A green-grade weapon! Genuine green gear!

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Its exaggerated shape, unique body, reserved aura, and ferocious firepower had earned this gun its famous nickname—“The Cube Rifle!”

Why this nickname? The answer was simple: it came with four interchangeable barrels—standard, assault, silencer, and heavy. These allowed the rifle to adapt to a variety of tactical needs, making it a true all-in-one weapon for bursts, assaults, suppressive fire, and assassinations—something unmatched by AKs, M16s, M4s, and the like.

On the screen, the attributes appeared:

Sacred Guardian AUG (Enhanced)
Green-grade equipment
Weight: 3.6kg
Caliber: 5.56mm
Magazine: 42+18
Accuracy: 64.5%
Rate of fire: 6/second
Muzzle energy: 2100 joules +150 joules
Effective range: 400 meters
Scope magnification: 1.5x
Hidden slot: +1
Ignores any defense below 500 points
……

The most important attributes of this green-grade rifle were its “muzzle energy” and “scope magnification.” A standard white AUG has a muzzle energy of 1500 joules; the green upgrade increased that by 600 joules. It used the same 5.56mm NATO rounds as the “Shoot Without Sin” M249, but when Wu Hua saw the extra 150 joules, he realized this green-grade gun required even more powerful NATO rounds. This connected to the “1.5x” attribute.

The AUG came with a compact scope, but activating it didn’t mean the effective range increased to 400 meters times 1.5; rather, it compressed vision by 1.5 times, meaning you could rampage with pinpoint clarity within 150 meters—much more lethal than the “Shoot Without Sin” M249. However, the gun’s drawbacks were obvious: its recoil rivaled that of the AK-47, and its rate of fire was slow.

Still, Wu Hua was convinced—if he ever ran into Snowy Night Fairy again, her SVD sniper rifle wouldn’t seem so formidable.

“The starting bid is 20,000 credit points. Each increment no less than 2,000 credit points…” The auctioneer’s voice broke Wu Hua’s train of thought, but he didn’t raise his paddle yet. He would make his move at the critical moment.

“Twenty-five thousand!”

“Thirty thousand!”

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“Thirty-five thousand!”

“Forty thousand!”

...

The price shot up like a rocket. Most of the bidders were gunslingers, and the weapon’s attributes were simply irresistible. Any gunslinger would be tempted by such a killing tool—more powerful than an AK, better performance than an MP5, especially with the ability to “ignore any defense below 500 points.”

“One hundred thirty-eight thousand!” called out a sharply dressed gunslinger, his MP5 slung across his shoulder—a sign of how desperate he was for this gun.

“One hundred thirty-eight thousand! One hundred thirty-eight thousand! Any higher bid?” The auctioneer had picked up his gavel; in his experience, this was the peak.

“One hundred fifty thousand!” Maragobi swooped in to disrupt things at the crucial moment.

A collective “Whoa!” rang out. The same deep-pocketed bidder as before.

“You—” The gunslinger shot him a furious glare. Were Divine Radiance not renowned for professionalism, he would have assumed Maragobi was a plant.

Why would a Controller buy a gun? Either he was here to cause trouble or simply to flaunt his wealth.

The auctioneer saw it differently—he wished for an even higher price. “One hundred fifty thousand! One hundred fifty thousand! Any higher?”

Silence fell.

The crowd murmured—this price was outrageous. To spend over twenty thousand yuan on a rifle—most, even if they could afford it, wouldn’t dare.

“One hundred fifty thousand, first call! One hundred fifty thousand, second call! One hundred fifty thousand, third—”

“Wait!” A voice from the back row finally interrupted the auctioneer. Wu Hua slowly rose to his feet.

The moment Maragobi saw Wu Hua, his face shifted like a watercolor, a riot of changing hues.

The auctioneer sensed an indescribable aura as Wu Hua stood—a strong premonition that this was a man of great importance.

Wu Hua quietly extended two fingers. “Two hundred thousand points.”

A collective gasp shook the hall. The auctioneer’s blood surged with excitement—the price had reached ten times its starting value, and he suddenly felt like the most impressive auctioneer in the galaxy.

Wu Hua’s bid was cunning—if Maragobi raised it, Wu Hua would immediately withdraw. He wasn’t about to spend an absurd sum just to win a rifle. Any higher, and it would be a contest of egos, not just a bid.

This AUG was high-end gear, rare and invaluable at present. In Wu Hua’s estimation, its true worth was fifty thousand credit points. In time, it would never be worth so much. By daring to spend two hundred thousand, he placed enormous pressure on himself—he’d have to level up and upgrade his gear quickly to recoup the 150,000-point deficit. A daunting task, but what is motivation without pressure?