Chapter 284

As the auction progressed, the atmosphere in the hall reached its peak. The moment the Heart-Flow Ganorderma was unveiled, the place fell silent for a heartbeat. Then, a wave of gasps and murmurs rippled through the crowd. The starting bid alone was set at ten million dollars. Abigail drew in a sharp breath. She had expected the herb to be expensive, but she hadn't imagined the opening price to be this astronomical. Sitting beside her, Samuel gave her hand a light, reassuring pat. A mere ten million was hardly worth mentioning. In just two or three minutes, the bidding had already climbed to 200 million dollars. "Seven hundred million dollars." Samuel had kept his paddle low until now. When he did, he drove the price up by a full half-billion dollars at once. Abigail turned to him in shock. "That much of a jump?" "This is the time to pull ahead, or it'll turn into a slugfest," he said evenly. "Don't worry, Abby. Seven hundred million to is just one more mine opening to Xavier