Chapter 53 Strengthened Powers (2/2)

Someone noticed the changes to the porcelain bowl, chronometer and the silver statue. ”They look older than they did before.”

All the security staff began escorting the crowd out one by one. They obviously thought that someone in the crowd caused the trouble.

But everyone present was either rich or powerful. With no concrete evidence that

someone had done it, the auction company did not dare detain them and could

only escort them out in order to prevent further damage to any items.

Li Du walked out. He was still pondering what the manager and the old man had said; the items had aged.

Could it be that the bug hadn’t sucked away the life force of the items, but instead their time?

He was shocked, but this was the most likely hypothesis.

The Playboy and Hans came out too. They were all sent to a different hall. The auction company prepared food and drink for them.

Li Du drank his juice absentmindedly. Li Du saw the manager walk in. He bowed, then apologized that the due to unexpected events, the auction would have to be canceled.

The crowd burst out in complaints. The manager just kept apologizing and the crowd

left slowly.

Li Du got up to leave, then looked over and stared aghast at the bug sitting on his

shoulder.

Instinctively, he asked, ”How long have we been out here?”

”Who knows?” Hans replied. ”I didn’t check the time.”

The Playboy smiled. ”Twenty-two minutes,” he said. ”We came out at 10:25. It’s

10:47 now.”

Li Du gave a random excuse. He was amazed. If so, it had been twenty-five or twenty-six minutes since the bug first appeared in the auction hall—and he was only a little tired! Just yesterday, when he’d practiced controlling the bug, he had only managed to let it out for eighteen minutes!

The bug had absorbed the time of the auction pieces, strengthening his control over it. Or, maybe, it had given him more energy.

Leaving the hotel, the Playboy invited them to lunch. Because Li Du was Chinese, he brought them to a Chinese restaurant.

The food-and-beverage industry in Flagstaff was booming. After all, there were quite a few universities supporting its consumer market.

The name of the Chinese restaurant was ”Royal Chef.” Seeing the name, Li Du gasped. The owner of the restaurant was quite brave to have chosen such a haughty name.

The restaurant’s interior design was Chinese. There were many Chinese-themed decorations, such as the porcelain ware, Chinese paintings of landscapes, paintings of ladies in the style of the Song and Tang Dynasties, festive red lanterns and Chinese knots. It would all really fool the average American into believing in the restaurant's authenticity.

They didn’t order right away after being seated. The Playboy asked, ”That b*stard Andrew has to give a piece of information on a valuable storage auction to you, doesn’t he? Has he given it to you yet?”

”Not yet.” Hans shrugged. ”But we’re not in a hurry.”

The Playboy pulled out his phone and made a call. ”You need to pester him. That guy is infamous for not keeping his word!”

The Playboy tried to provoke Andrew over the phone, but Andrew was very proud. He was unwilling to lose face in front of the Playboy. Andrew just asked Hans to take the call, then told him something.

Hans smiled from ear-to-ear after hanging up. ”Thanks, man. Andrew gave me a time and a place. Hopefully, we’ll get something good again.”