Chapter 285 Publicly Examine the Fossils

Chapter 285 Publicly Examine the Fossils

The organizers immediately signaled to cut all the lights. When only a single overhead spotlight remained, the host announced loudly, "Legend has it that the Luminous Pearl emits a soft glow in complete darkness—a light as gentle as moonlight, capable of illuminating an area spanning dozens of meters. The organizers will now verify the authenticity of this genuine Luminous Pearl before everyone. Once this last light goes out, the venue will be plunged into total darkness. Please remain calm, stay in your seats, and watch quietly."

As soon as he finished speaking, the auctioneer exchanged glances with the staff. When the final light was extinguished, the venue fell into pitch blackness. Several socialites gasped, "Oh my God, I'm a little scared. It's so dark!"

"What can you do? To ensure complete darkness, they even turned off all the machine lights."

"My God, they're making such a huge production out of this. If that Luminous Pearl turns out to be fake, Ivy's going to be utterly humiliated. The Green family probably won't let her off easy either."

"Who knows? All I'm saying is, having Ivy bring the auction item this year was definitely not the best choice for the Green family."

Someone was about to continue when suddenly, a voice cried out, "Oh my God, look, look—look at the stage!!"

In the darkness, someone shouted, and everyone turned their eyes toward the stage. There, in the pitch-black center, sat the pearl.

The fist-sized pearl showed no movement at first. But as the host shifted it, the pearl began to emit a faint glow. The light gradually grew larger and stronger until it illuminated the entire auction hall.

Yet its radiance was incredibly soft and beautiful—like gentle moonlight. The scene was nothing short of astonishing. People exclaimed, "Oh my God, this is gorgeous! So bright! This light is even brighter than when the lights were on."

"This pearl looks like the moon during a full moon. I absolutely love it. My God, I don't care if it's real or fake—I'm bidding on it. It's beautiful. I'm convinced this 'is' the Luminous Pearl!"

"I think so too. Otherwise, how could something this magical exist? Look, the auctioneer is holding it in his hand to prove there's no electrical connection."

The auctioneer walked from the front row outward and backward, holding the Luminous Pearl to demonstrate that there was no internal electrical current, no switches—the pearl itself was emitting light. This proved the organizers had not made an error in authentication.

After touring the entire auction hall with the Luminous Pearl, the auctioneer returned to the display platform. He spoke loudly into the microphone, "Everyone has seen it, haven't you? This Luminous Pearl is genuine. When we first received it, we were shocked too. We thought something from legend couldn't possibly appear in reality, but Ms. Cooper has allowed us to witness firsthand what the legendary Luminous Pearl truly is. This is it!"

"Moreover, this pearl has been authenticated by a highly professional institution commissioned by our organizers. The authentication agency has issued an official certificate confirming that this is indeed the Luminous Pearl, with no impurities inside."

The auctioneer's words acted like a sedative for the socialites below. They raised their paddles eagerly, shouting, "I want to bid! I want to bid! Twenty million!"

"Twenty million? That's nothing! I bid fifty million!"

"Fifty million? What's that? You're all so stingy. I bid ninety million! This is 'the' Luminous Pearl—a legendary item no one has ever owned. Something appearing out of nowhere like this has to cost big money."

"I'm bidding too! One hundred million!"

Not only offline—online bidders also began placing offers. The price skyrocketed to two hundred million in cash.

Even for a top-tier aristocratic family like the Green family, coming up with that amount immediately would be difficult. For everyone else at the venue, it became prohibitively expensive.

"My God, two hundred million?! That's insane. This has to be the highest price ever reached for an auction item."

"The Cooper family really is 'the' Cooper family. I suddenly realize how incredible they are. Even a top-tier family like the Shaw family probably couldn't produce a pearl like this. Have they really become this powerful?"

"Don't you know what kind of standing the Cooper family has now? I feel like they've gone from the top ten aristocratic families to the top five."

……

Ivy's pearl had pushed the atmosphere to its peak. Only Wendy shook her head in disbelief. "Impossible. How is this possible? That pearl is completely ordinary. Even if it glows, it must have some weird stuff added inside. Don't let her fool you!"

Ivy pressed her lips together and quietly asked Philip beside her, "The buyer already paid, right?"

Philip tilted his head slightly. He immediately understood Ivy's meaning. Glancing at his watch, he said, "It's been half an hour. Generally, at an auction, once an item is won, payment must be made within twenty minutes. After the auction ends, the item is handed over.

The person sitting three seats to my left is the buyer of that fossil. It looks like he's already paid and received the fossil."

With Philip's confirmation, Ivy immediately brightened. She suddenly stood up and walked slowly onto the auction platform.

Pointing at her Luminous Pearl, she said, "My Luminous Pearl can withstand full, comprehensive inspection from every angle without any blind spots. I wonder, Lady Wendy, can your fossil withstand the same scrutiny?"

Wendy snorted coldly. "Ridiculous. You're the one being questioned about authenticity, and now you're trying to throw dirt on my item, is that it?

Ivy, let me tell you—anything from the Mason family can absolutely withstand any inspection. Go ahead and test it however you want!"

The buyer who'd won Wendy's fossil examined it carefully under the overhead lights. Then he immediately declared, "There's something wrong with this fossil. I demand a public inspection!"

As soon as he spoke, the entire venue erupted. Many people looked toward the front in shock. "Oh my God, what does that mean? The fossil is fake? How is that possible?!"

"What's going on? The fossil is fake? How can that be? The organizers should have verified it before putting it up for auction."

"I heard that if a seller provides a counterfeit to the organizers, and the organizers suffer a loss, they can demand double compensation from the seller. That means if this fossil is fake, Wendy will have to pay one hundred forty million to the organizers. My God, that's a terrifying amount."