318: Chapter 312 Each with their own ulterior motives

"Senior, why didn't you make a move?"

Xu Shanshan asked cautiously from behind.

Although she did not understand the intricacies, she could see that the defensive power of this treasure armor was astonishing.

Chen Zhiwen shook his head gently.

"It's just a chicken rib."

His current Physical Body strength, after many tempering sessions, combined with the Protective Aura of the Nascent Soul Stage, meant that ordinary attacks could not hurt him at all.

This treasure armor could only block three attacks.

For those weaker Early Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators, it might be a life-saving divine object.

But for him, those three opportunities were not as practical as the sword in his hand.

Furthermore, no matter how strong the defense was, could it stop his method of killing across stages?

If an attack could even bypass him, wearing this broken armor would be no different from being made of paper.

"Besides..."

Chen Zhiwen put down his teacup, his gaze becoming deep.

"The real show is just about to begin."

As if to confirm his words, the lights on the auction stage suddenly went out.

The entire hall fell into complete darkness.

Only a beam of ghostly blue light slowly rose in the center of the high platform.

Lin Jin's voice sounded exceptionally mysterious in the darkness.

"Fellow Daoists."

"Today's auction is about to reach its final moment."

"It is also the grand finale of this event!"

He carefully took out a black wooden box from his bosom.

The wooden box opened.

A fist-sized blue stone lay quietly inside.

The surface of the stone was not smooth, covered with countless natural holes.

But the moment the wooden box opened, a pale blue halo rippled outwards like water waves.

"Hum—"

A strange fluctuation swept across the entire venue instantly.

Several Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators sitting in the front row, who had just curiously taken an extra look at the stone, suddenly felt the world spinning, as if countless voices were whispering in their minds.

"Ugh—"

Some could not even control themselves and started retching on the spot, their Faces pale, their Divine Souls shaken.

"This is..."

Countless shocked gazes stared fixedly at the stone.

Lin Jin hurriedly cast a spell, activating the isolation Formation around the display stand, controlling the strange fluctuation within a certain range.

Even so, the dizzying sensation that pierced directly into the Soul still left people with lingering fear.

"Fourth-grade material—stunning spirit stone!"

Lin Jin's voice trembled, full of fanaticism.

"This item is a rare Divine Soul type Ore in the world!"

"It comes with a powerful hallucinogenic field!"

"If it is used as the eye of a Formation and arranged into a fourth-level illusion Formation, even a Mid Nascent Soul Stage great Cultivator who falls into it will find it difficult to escape for a while!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience was in an uproar.

Trapping a Mid Nascent Soul Stage?

For any Sect, this was the core of a top-tier mountain protection Formation!

But it was not over yet.

Lin Jin took a deep breath and threw out an even bigger bombshell.

"Of course, its most precious aspect is not in Formation building."

"But in Artifact Refining!"

"If a Grandmaster of Artifact Refining makes a move and refines it into a Divine Soul defensive Magic Treasure, or even... a Spirit Treasure!"

When mentioning the four words "Spirit Treasure", Lin Jin's voice rose by an octave.

"Then one can be immune to all laws, and the Divine Soul will be eternally solid!"

"Even those Nascent Soul Seniors from the Divine Fire Gate, if they saw this item, would probably put down their status to compete for it!"

Divine Soul type Magic Treasure!

The weight of these five words was too heavy.

In the cultivation world, Magic Treasures are divided into various types such as attack, defense, and auxiliary.

Among them, Divine Soul type Magic Treasures are the scarcest and most precious.

Because if the Physical Body is destroyed, it can be reshaped, or even possessed and reborn.

But if the Divine Soul is damaged, one will at best become an idiot, and at worst, the Soul will fly away and the Spirit will scatter, without even a chance to enter Reincarnation.

Therefore, among Magic Treasures of the same level, the price of Divine Soul type Magic Treasures is often more than three times that of offensive Magic Treasures!

"Starting price, two thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones!"

"Each increment must not be lower than two hundred!"

Lin Jin roared.

"Begin!"

Before the voice fell, the bidding sounds erupted like a volcanic eruption.

"Two thousand two hundred!"

"Two thousand four hundred!"

"Two thousand six hundred!"

This time, the main force of the bidding was no longer those Loose Cultivators or the Clan Chiefs of small Families.

It was those high-level Artifact Refiners who were rarely seen on weekdays.

Many Elders and Guest Elders within the Artifact Refining Alliance were red-eyed at this moment.

As Artifact Refiners, the temptation of this top-tier fourth-grade material was greater to them than any Cultivation Technique.

If they could personally refine this stunning spirit stone into a Magic Treasure, not only could they improve their own Artifact Refining attainments, but they could also become famous all over the world.

"Two thousand eight hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones!"

In the front row of the hall, an old man in a red robe stood up, his beard and hair bristling.

He was a Senior Elder of the Artifact Refining Alliance, usually holding a prestigious status, but at this moment he was roaring like a gambler.

"This old man bids three thousand! No one is allowed to compete with me!"

On the other side, a middle-aged woman also stood up and sneered:

"Elder Li, such a good thing cannot be obtained just by having a loud voice."

"I bid three thousand two hundred!"

The price soared all the way, breaking the three thousand mark in the blink of an eye.

And looking at this posture, there was no intention of stopping at all.

Inside private room no. 3.

Chen Zhiwen looked at the stone emitting a faint blue light, and a look of satisfaction finally appeared in his eyes.

"It really is a good thing."

He whispered to himself.

When Huang Yu came to report before, he appeared light and breezy, which was to avoid revealing his bottom line.

But in reality, he was determined to win this item.

Although his Divine Soul was powerful, he had just achieved a Breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Stage, and still lacked effective defensive means.

If he encountered an opponent who was good at Divine Soul attacks, he would inevitably suffer.

This stunning spirit stone was simply tailor-made for him.

"Three thousand five hundred!"

The price outside was still climbing, already somewhat crazy.

Chen Zhiwen knew he could not wait any longer.

If he let this group of Artifact Refiners go crazy, the price would probably skyrocket to the sky.

He had to make a final decision, or even suppress people with power.

He slowly sat up straight and adjusted his robes.

Subsequently, a vast Divine Sense belonging to the Nascent Soul Stage surged out from private room no. 3 like a tide.

"Boom—"

This Divine Sense did not have much aggressiveness, but it carried a supreme majesty.

It instantly enveloped the entire auction hall.

The originally noisy venue was like being choked by an invisible hand.

Those Artifact Refiners who were arguing with red Faces only felt their hearts sink, as if a great mountain had pressed down on them.

All sounds stopped abruptly.

In the dead silence.

Chen Zhiwen's cold and indifferent voice slowly sounded.

"Five thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones."

As soon as he spoke, it was earth-shattering.

He directly raised the price from three thousand five hundred to five thousand!

What kind of wealth was this?

What kind of domineering was this?

Immediately after, Chen Zhiwen did not stop, but continued to say:

"This seat is a Cultivator of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect."

"My hometown is only forty thousand miles away from your Alliance."

"Everyone is a neighbor, and we will see each other often in the future, and perhaps there will be quite a lot of interactions."

His speaking speed was very slow, and every word was enunciated very clearly.

"I am quite fond of this stone."

"I wonder if you Fellow Daoists can give me some Face?"

These words sounded polite, as if he was discussing.

But everyone present was a shrewd person; who could not hear the threat in them?

Ten Thousand Swords Sect?

That was a famous Sword Cultivator Sect in the Eastern Continent. Although its overall strength was not as good as the Soul Transformation Sects, the killing power of Sword Cultivators was notoriously terrifying.

Moreover, this gentleman specifically emphasized the distance of "forty thousand miles".

For a Mortal, forty thousand miles was the end of the world.

But for a Nascent Soul Cultivator, it was only half a day's journey.

This was clearly saying: I live right next to you; if you don't give me this Face today, you will have a hard time in the future.

In the hall, those Artifact Refiners who originally wanted to continue bidding had ugly expressions on their Faces.

The red-robed Elder who bid three thousand five hundred was sweating on his forehead at this moment.

He really wanted to increase the price.

As an Artifact Refining fanatic, he was really reluctant to part with this precious material.

However, reason told him that he could not add more.

Five thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones had already approached the highest market price for this stunning spirit stone.

Adding more would not only cost a huge price but would also completely offend a strange Nascent Soul powerhouse.

For the sake of a stone, creating a strong enemy for the Artifact Refining Alliance, or even bringing a fatal disaster upon himself, was not worth it.

"Since it is an item favored by Senior, this Junior will naturally retreat."

The red-robed Elder took a deep breath, cupped his hands towards private room no. 3, and although he was full of unwillingness, he sat back down.

With someone taking the lead, others naturally followed the trend.

"Since Senior has spoken, we dare not disobey."

"This stunning spirit stone should belong to Senior."

For a time, the originally fierce bidding scene instantly became one-sided.

Chen Zhiwen's mouth curled slightly.

This was the benefit of strength.

If he were still a Golden Core Cultivator, even if he bid ten thousand today, these people might not give him Face.

But now, he only needed one sentence to make these people shut up obediently.

...

Meanwhile.

In the neighboring private room no. 1.

The atmosphere was not so harmonious.

"Bang!"

A delicate porcelain cup was smashed heavily on the ground, shattering into pieces.

Wan Xingwang stood in front of the window with an angry Face, staring fixedly at the direction of private room no. 3.

His chest rose and fell violently, obviously very angry.

"Too much deception! Simply too much deception!"

He roared in a low voice, gritting his teeth.

"It's one thing to humiliate me outside just now."

"Now you dare to use power to suppress people here?"

"Five thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones want to take away the fourth-grade stunning spirit stone? Dreaming!"

He turned his head abruptly and looked at the green-robed old man sitting on the side sipping tea leisurely.

"Senior Xia Yu!"

"This person is so arrogant, he doesn't take us seriously at all!"

"Aren't you angry?"

"As long as you nod, I will help you raise the price!"

A vicious light flashed in Wan Xingwang's eyes.

"Although my Wan Family is not short of these Spirit Stones, we must never let him take the treasure away so comfortably!"

"I want to raise him to eight thousand! Even ten thousand!"

"I want him to bleed heavily!"

In his view, this was a good thing that killed two birds with one stone.

It could help Xia Yu earn more money, sell a favor, and also disgust the person surnamed Chen next door.

However.

Xia Yu just glanced at him lightly, with a half-smile on his Face.

His gray-white long hair was casually draped over his shoulders, his green robe looked a bit old, and his whole person exuded a lazy atmosphere.

But in those eyes, there was a depth that Wan Xingwang could not understand.

"Virtuous nephew Xingwang."

Xia Yu slowly put down the teacup, his tone as peaceful as a kind Elder.

"Don't be impatient."

"Five thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, this price, this old man is already very satisfied."

"Doing business, you know, stresses long-term cooperation. Why narrow the road for this little bit of anger?"

Wan Xingwang was stunned, obviously not expecting the other party to say this.

"Satisfied?"

He looked at Xia Yu in disbelief.

"Senior Xia, you are a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator!"

"Why be afraid of that kid who just formed a Nascent Soul?"

"Even if he is from the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, so what?"

"The Ten Thousand Swords Sect won't hold a grudge against you because of an Ore, right?"

Xia Yu sneered in his heart.

Afraid?

Of course he was not afraid.

He just didn't want to be the one who stuck his neck out.

Moreover, he wanted to see Chen Zhiwen get the item smoothly and then relax his vigilance.

Only then would he have the opportunity to be the oriole after the auction ended.

But he would naturally not tell these words to the fool Wan Xingwang.

"Virtuous nephew."

Xia Yu stood up, patted Wan Xingwang on the shoulder, and said earnestly.

"Outside this Eastern Continent island, there are hidden dragons and crouching tigers."

"Sometimes, keeping a low profile is the only way to live long."

"Since that person dares to be so high-profile in the Artifact Refining Alliance, he must have something to rely on."

"Why should we touch this bad luck?"

These words changed flavor in Wan Xingwang's ears.

He felt this was weakness.

This was cowardice!

A dignified Mid Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator actually had to swallow his anger for an Early Stage Junior?

Wan Xingwang threw off Xia Yu's hand, revealing undisguised contempt on his Face.

"Senior Xia, forgive me for being blunt."

"You are a bit too cautious."

He raised his head, looking proud.

"With the prestige of your and my two Families in the Eastern Continent."

"As long as we don't provoke those Soul Transformation level behemoths."

"What is there to fear from other forces?"

"No matter how strong his Ten Thousand Swords Sect is, can his hand reach our territory?"

"If my father or uncle were here, they would definitely make that kid crawl out on his knees!"

Looking at Wan Xingwang's arrogant and conceited appearance with his nostrils pointing to the sky.

A look of extreme disgust flashed in the depths of Xia Yu's eyes.

But he did not flare up.

He just sat back down on his own and picked up the teacup again.

On the surface, he was still a kind and amiable appearance, as if he did not care about the Junior's offense.

"Virtuous nephew is right, is right."

"It's this old man who is old, and my courage has become smaller."

He whispered in agreement, lowering his head to blow the tea foam.

But in fact, his heart was already cold.

The Moon Gazing Sect and the Wan Family.

These two neighboring Nascent Soul forces had coexisted on this land for thousands of years.

Once, the strength of the two families was equal, they communicated with each other, and the relationship was quite harmonious.

Whenever there was a major event, the Old Ancestors of the two families would also join hands to deal with it.

But.

In the past few hundred years, the world has changed.

The Wan Family had good luck, and two Geniuses with Lightning Spiritual Roots appeared one after another.

Myriad Thunder Bear, Wan Shun.