127: Chapter 128 Auction, Star Core

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, Chen Qingyuan had lingered in Yunmeng Immortal City for nine days.

After the massive purchases of the previous days, the Family's Medicinal Pill reserves for the coming years were no longer a concern.

The key resources for his own Cultivation of the Essence Nurturing Art and the Geng Metal Body Tempering Method had also been prepared.

After a quick tally, this trip had cost a total of 30,200 Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Now, his storage ring still held 80,000 Low-Grade Spirit Stones and 3,000 Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, still an astonishing sum of wealth.

Today, he had finally waited for the Ascension Auction to begin.

The true prosperity of a Family cannot rely solely on one person.

However, Spiritual Root Aptitude is determined by fate and cannot be forced.

For Cultivators like Chen Qingshan and Jiang Rou, whose Spiritual Roots are poor, a spiritual body might be the only chance to overtake others!

Fortunately, he had obtained the "Three Origin Spirit Casting Secret Canon" from the Secret Realm.

It recorded three methods for casting a spiritual body using Acquired techniques, and although the process was difficult and costly,

for Chen Qingyuan at this moment, any problem that could be solved with Spirit Stones was not a problem at all.

At this auction, he intended to try his luck

to see if he could find the rare spiritual objects mentioned in the "Three Origin Spirit Casting Secret Canon" that could forge the Foundation of a spiritual body!

The auction was held on schedule!

The venue was located in the "Ascension Hall" in the core area of Yunmeng Immortal City.

This hall was not a single building, but a complex composed of several towering palaces,

usually guarded by Disciples of Xiyun Pavilion and only opened during grand events.

Today, the area outside the Ascension Hall was bustling with people.

Chen Qingyuan had restored his appearance to that of a slightly dark-skinned Loose Cultivator in grey robes, with his cultivation base restrained to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, blending into the crowd without attracting any attention.

For Loose Cultivators like them who did not belong to any faction, Xiyun Pavilion Disciples strictly checked their assets at the entrance.

Of course, not everyone needed to be checked; a Qi Refining Cultivator like him could easily enter the venue with a few hundred Spirit Stones.

Once inside the main hall, the view suddenly opened up.

In the center of the hall was a circular high platform made of white marble; that was the auction stage.

Around the stage, hundreds of ordinary seats were arranged in a fan shape, and at this moment, they were already more than half full, with a clamor of voices.

These were "general seats" provided for ordinary participants like Chen Qingyuan.

On the second and third floors, there were individual private rooms,

shrouded in special glass or Formations, making it impossible to peek inside from the outside.

Those private rooms were reserved for Disciples of major factions like Xuangguang Mountain, Burning Sun Valley, and Xiyun Pavilion,

as well as some high-ranking Cultivators who were of noble status or did not wish to reveal their identities.

Following the instructions on his number plate, Chen Qingyuan found his seat in the Ding-Hai area near the edge!

It was remote with an average view, but it suited his intentions perfectly; it was convenient for observing the whole venue without attracting attention.

As soon as he sat down!

Noisy discussions were endless, mostly revolving around the few great treasures of this auction, especially the finale item, "ziyang warm jade."

"I heard that for this ziyang warm jade, people from both Xuangguang Mountain and Burning Sun Valley have come!"

"That's not right, logically speaking, although ziyang warm jade can help one achieve the Purple Mansion, with the status of those two, I'm afraid they wouldn't look down on this item..."

"Who knows..."

"Shh! Look, Elder Yun Zhou of Xiyun Pavilion is here!"

Just then, an old man wearing the robes of a Xiyun Pavilion Elder walked slowly onto the central stage.

"I am Yun Zhou, honored to be the External Affairs Elder of Xiyun Pavilion, and I will be presiding over this Ascension Auction."

"I presume you all know the rules: the highest bidder wins. Those who lack Spirit Stones can offer items as payment on the spot,

which will be appraised by our Pavilion's appraisers. If anyone maliciously disrupts the proceedings... Hmph!"

A soft snort, carrying the pressure of a Late Stage Purple Mansion Cultivator, made everyone present tremble in their hearts.

"Without further ado, I announce that the Ascension Auction now begins!"

As Elder Yun Zhou finished speaking, a beautiful female Cultivator walked onto the stage carrying a jade tray covered with red silk.

The auction officially kicked off.

As expected of an auction held by a Golden Core Sect, even if it was just a small-scale event, rare boutique items appeared one after another,

inciting the Loose Cultivators and representatives of small Families below the stage to compete, creating a heated atmosphere.

For example, a Second Tier Low Grade "Autumn Water Sword," with a blade like a pool of water, accompanied by a clear ringing sound when activated,

was happily won by a female Cultivator for 2,300 Spirit Stones;

a set of portable Formation Plates called "Small Five Elements Formation Flag," capable of trapping enemies and defending,

triggered a scramble among several Family representatives, with the final price settling at 4,100 Spirit Stones;

Chen Qingyuan could only suppress his temptation; given his status and cultivation base, he naturally couldn't make moves frequently.

Before the things he truly needed appeared, he had to wait patiently.

Just like a hunter, silently waiting for the true prey to appear.

As time passed, the auction items became increasingly precious, and gradually, the people in the main hall became mere foils;

the true competition usually took place within the private rooms.

"The next item is somewhat special."

Elder Yun Zhou's voice sounded again, drawing everyone's attention back.

The attendant walked forward gracefully, and on the jade tray lay an irregularly shaped Ore about the size of a fist.

Looking closely, there were countless tiny, dust-like silver light spots inside the Ore, slowly flowing, birthing and perishing, like the pulsation of stars.

"This item is a 'Star Core'."

"Of course, Star Cores can be large or small, and this is the smallest kind!"

"But do not underestimate it because of that; this item contains the power of the Star Origin, and its grade is determined to be Third Tier High Grade."

"It is an excellent material for refining Star Magic Treasures or Cultivating Star Cultivation Techniques, and it can even serve as the core eye of a Formation, with infinite wonderful uses!"

"The starting price is 6,000 Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and each increment must not be less than 500."

Star Core!

Hearing this, the crowd below the stage reacted differently.

Many Artifact Refiners had burning gazes; if they could use this as a core, supplemented by other precious spiritual Materials,

there was indeed a great chance of refining a special Magic Treasure containing Star power.

Such unconventional Magic Treasures outside the Five Elements often exerted unexpected miraculous effects in certain specific situations or when fighting specific enemies, so they were quite favored by some Cultivators.

"7,500!"

"8,000!"

"9,000!"

The bidding voices rose one after another, but the rhythm was clearly not as intense as before, and the increments were relatively conservative;

the competition was mainly concentrated among a few well-known Artifact Refiners.

When the price climbed to around 9,000 Spirit Stones, it appeared to lack momentum, and the bidding voices thinned out.

Although this thing was rare and precious, in the end, it was only an Artifact Refining material with limited scope of application;

for the vast majority of Cultivators in the venue, its actual value did not fully match its high price.

However, in the inconspicuous Ding-Hai area, the moment Chen Qingyuan heard the words "Star Core," his breathing suddenly began to become rapid!

To the vast majority of people present, this Star Core might just be a precious Third Tier High Grade Artifact Refining material,

but to him, its significance was completely different!