13: Chapter 13 The Auction Begins

After a full hour, amidst the noisy crowd, an elderly Cultivator with a smile on his face walked onto the high platform.

Although this elderly Cultivator appeared amiable, the spiritual power fluctuations radiating from his body clearly told everyone that he was a Cultivator at the Qi Refining 10th Layer.

The elderly Cultivator waved his hand to silence the commotion, then said with a chuckle:

"Fellow Daoists, welcome to this Linhai County auction. I am Yuan Tiansheng. Some of you may know me. The rules for this auction are the same as usual: the highest bidder wins. If any Fellow Daoist does not have enough Spirit Stones, you may use other treasures as collateral. Remember, using force or intimidating others is strictly prohibited at this auction."

Seeing that everyone had quieted down, Yuan Tiansheng continued, "I will say no more. I hereby announce that this decennial auction has officially begun."

"We will now begin the auction with the first item: a High Grade Magical Artifact Pill Furnace. The starting bid is twenty Low-Grade Spirit Stones, with a minimum increment of one Low-Grade Spirit Stone."

As soon as he finished speaking, two Martial Artists carried a Pill Furnace and placed it on the long table.

"A Pill Furnace! The first auction item is actually a High Grade Magical Artifact Pill Furnace!" Many Cultivators below exclaimed in surprise!

It is well known that for an Artifact Refiner, the difficulty of crafting a Pill Furnace far exceeds that of other Magical Artifacts of the same Rank. Therefore, a High Grade Magical Artifact Pill Furnace is often worth no less than, and sometimes even slightly more than, an ordinary Top Grade Magical Artifact.

In this world of Cultivation, the weapons used by Cultivators are ranked from low to high: Magical Artifact, Spiritual Artifact, Magic Treasure, Spirit Treasure, Heaven-Reaching Spirit Treasure, and so on. Typically, Cultivators at the Qi Refinement Stage use Magical Artifacts, those at the Foundation Establishment Stage use Spiritual Artifacts, and only those at the Golden Core Stage begin to use Magic Treasures.

Although the starting price of the High Grade Magical Artifact Pill Furnace deterred many low-Rank Cultivators present, there were still a few Cultivators among the crowd who placed bids and participated in the auction.

"I bid twenty-one Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

"Twenty-three Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

"Twenty-five Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

...

"Thirty-eight Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

In the blink of an eye, the price of the High Grade Magical Artifact Pill Furnace was already approaching forty Low-Grade Spirit Stones. As the price soared, it was eventually won by a Qi Refining 9th Layer Cultivator for forty-five Low-Grade Spirit Stones, which was already the price of an ordinary Top Grade Magical Artifact.

The price system for low-Rank treasures in the world of Cultivation is relatively stable. For example, for the three common types of treasures suitable for Qi Refining Cultivators—Talismans, Medicinal Pills, and Magical Artifacts—Talismans and Medicinal Pills of the same Rank usually have similar prices, while the price of a Magical Artifact of the same Rank is basically about ten times that of a Talisman or Medicinal Pill.

This is because Talismans and Medicinal Pills are one-time-use items, whereas Magical Artifacts can be reused. For instance, the price of a Rank 1 High Grade Talisman is between two and two-and-a-half Low-Grade Spirit Stones, while the price of an ordinary High Grade Magical Artifact is generally in the range of twenty to twenty-five Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Once reaching Rank 2, price fluctuations become increasingly larger. The prices of some special Talismans and Medicinal Pills may even exceed those of Spiritual Artifacts of the same Rank, such as the strategic resource, the foundation establishment pill. Of course, the value of ordinary Rank 2 Medicinal Pills is still far inferior to that of Spiritual Artifacts of the same Rank.

"The second auction item is a Medium Grade Defensive Magical Artifact, the Tortoise Shell Shield. It is crafted from the shell of a Rank 1 Middle Stage Yao Beast, the Black Profound Tortoise. It has extremely strong defensive capabilities. The starting bid is ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones, with a minimum increment of half a Low-Grade Spirit Stone."

After a round of bidding, this Medium Grade Defensive Magical Artifact was won by a Qi Refining 7th Layer Cultivator for thirteen Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Seeing that the defensive Magical Artifact had been successfully auctioned off, Yuan Tiansheng raised his voice and called out, "The third auction item is a High Grade Magical Artifact, the Blazing Fire Sword. This sword is crafted primarily from Earth Core Fire Essence."

After introducing it, Yuan Tiansheng held the Blazing Fire Sword and casually swung it into the air. The blade hummed and vibrated, with a thin layer of flames flowing over its edge, carving a half-foot-long arc of fire in the air, as if all kinds of malevolent forces could be shattered by this sword in a single strike.

Following this, the auction scene became quite heated. Yuan Tiansheng successively brought out various auction items: Medicinal Pills, Talismans, Spiritual Plants, Artifact Refining Materials, and so on. Most of these were things that Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators needed. The transaction prices continued to rise, and the atmosphere in the auction hall became increasingly enthusiastic. No items failed to sell, and many Cultivators made gains.

Li Changqing did not participate in the bidding throughout the entire process. If those treasures had been presented several years ago, they might have excited him, but now, they failed to stir much interest in him.

After another hour or so of auctioning, a Cultivator also dressed in the auction house's attire walked onto the high platform from the side and whispered a few words into Yuan Tiansheng's ear. Those Cultivators who were unaware were speculating about what was happening, while some who were in the know had already guessed what the next stage of the auction would be.

Yuan Tiansheng's spirits lifted, and he said to the crowd below the auction platform, "Fellow Daoists, we will now proceed to the auction of the finale treasures of this auction. As usual, there are a total of nine premium treasures. I presume many fellow Cultivators have come for this."

Yuan Tiansheng's words brought the atmosphere of the auction hall to a climax. Many Cultivators who had not yet placed a bid perked up. Having waited for so long, they were here for this very moment. Li Changqing also straightened his body and began to focus intently. The originally noisy venue instantly quieted down, and all eyes were focused on the auction platform.

"Fellow Daoists, the first finale auction item tonight will unveil the curtain on this finale auction." Yuan Tiansheng raised his hand to signal, and four Innate Martial Artists worked together to carry a massive and ferocious Yao Beast corpse onto the high platform, presenting it before everyone.

This was the complete corpse of a python-type Yao Beast, over four zhang in length. Its scales were a dark, gloomy ink-green. Even though it had no life left, wisps of light purple poisonous mist continued to seep from the gaps between its scales, lingering on the auction platform without dissipating. The corpse was preserved extremely well; the only wounds were a broken horn on its head and a deep knife mark on its abdomen.

Yuan Tiansheng protected his body with Qi and approached the Yao Beast, beginning to introduce it in detail, "This beast is a Rank 1 Peak Yao Beast, the Nine-Poison Shadow Phosphorus Python, and it was about to break through to become a Rank 2 Yao Beast. Its strength while alive was comparable to a human Qi Refining 10th Layer Cultivator. Its scales are tough, and ordinary Magical Artifacts can hardly injure it. However, its most precious characteristic lies in its poison."

He pointed to the lingering poisonous mist and continued, "This python's venom is known as 'Bone-Corroding and Marrow-Eating'; it can melt iron and gold. If a Cultivator below the Qi Refining 7th Layer has no protective measures, coming into contact with it for even a moment will cause their body to rot and die. Even just the poisonous gas, if not guarded against, will cause one's spiritual power to rapidly deplete."

"Its venomous teeth, venom glands, gallbladder, and the Yao Beast Core containing poison attributes are all excellent Materials for crafting high-Rank poison-type Magical Artifacts, cultivating special poison techniques, feeding special Spirit Beasts, or making poisons and Medicinal Pills. Furthermore, its skin, after special treatment, can be made into anti-poison armor, and its bones can also be refined into medicine."

"Especially for Fellow Daoists who study the poison Dao or need to use poison to counteract poison for healing, this item is truly a priceless treasure." After finishing the introduction, Yuan Tiansheng raised his voice, "The starting bid is fifty Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Each increment must not be less than one Low-Grade Spirit Stone. The auction begins."