28: Auction

Gu Changan arrived at the auction venue early.

The second and third floors of the entire auction were filled with various private boxes, so Gu Changan could only squeeze into the main hall with most of the Loose Cultivators.

A Beautiful Female Auctioneer stepped onto the stage, her beauty beyond words.

One couldn't tell her cultivation level; she was likely at the Foundation Establishment Stage!

Gu Changan realized once again that he was still too weak; most of the people here had higher cultivation levels than him.

After a few simple pleasantries, the Beautiful Female Auctioneer on stage began today's auction.

“The first item: a low-grade foundation establishment pill.”

“Starting price: 3,000 Spirit Stones!”

Gu Changan sucked in a breath of cold air; with a starting price of 3,000 Spirit Stones, he couldn't even dream of it for the time being.

But if he managed to get a foundation establishment pill in the future, wouldn't he achieve 'foundation establishment pill freedom'?

Whether it was for developing his own power or using it for trade, it was a solid hard currency!

“5,000 Spirit Stones!”

“6,000 Spirit Stones!”

“6,500 Spirit Stones!”

The voices rose and fell, slowly pushing the price all the way up to 12,000.

Gu Changan had now witnessed the scarcity of foundation establishment pills; in this Dharma-Ending Age, a foundation establishment pill was equivalent to an opportunity for Foundation Establishment.

Gu Changan felt a bit parched watching this.

The Beautiful Female Auctioneer introduced one item after another.

“The thirty-seventh item is a batch of Jade Carvings!”

“They contain Crimson Treasure Qi!”

“Interested Fellow Daoists, please take note!”

After she spoke, an assistant pushed out a Jade Statue over a man's height.

As the red cloth over the statue was pulled away, Gu Changan's pupils constricted sharply.

He discovered that this statue was from the same batch as the ones in Panshi Village a few days ago.

Gu Changan remembered that this Jade Statue was in the likeness of a middle-aged woman, who had been lying peacefully in bed sleeping at the time.

Gu Changan's eyes flickered. These statues were brought here for auction, so what about the rest?

Were they divided among them?

Were only a select few brought to auction?

Thinking of the dozens of people in Panshi Village, could it be that Treasure Qi was traded like this?

Gu Changan didn't care for the Crimson Treasure Qi inside this Jade Statue; he had more than enough in his treasure gathering basin!

Beautiful Female Auctioneer: “Starting price: 100 Spirit Stones!”

“300 Spirit Stones!”

“500 Spirit Stones!”

“800 Spirit Stones!”

“1,000 Spirit Stones!”

As it turned out, once it reached 1,000 Spirit Stones, it seemed as if a silent agreement had been reached, and everyone stopped bidding.

Gu Changan observed that those participating in the bidding were all people in the private boxes, seemingly from various major powers.

Perhaps only they knew how to utilize Treasure Qi!

“The thirty-ninth auction item: the Jade Mending Incantation.”

“This is a special Cultivation Technique that allows one to Cultivate and utilize Treasure Qi.”

“I won't say much more about the details!”

“Like the Jade Carving in item thirty-seven, it contains Treasure Qi.”

“This auction item, the Jade Mending Incantation, can be used precisely with that Jade Statue!”

Gu Changan suddenly became interested. The fact that the Jade Mending Incantation was being auctioned here meant it couldn't be bought in ordinary shops, possibly including the Treasure Pavilion.

If he missed it this time, who knew when he would encounter it again!

However, the appearance of this Cultivation Technique was suspicious.

Right after a Jade Statue containing Treasure Qi was auctioned, a technique to utilize the Treasure Qi within such statues was put up for auction.

Could someone be fishing?

To draw out the person who caused the tragedy in Panshi Village?

While Gu Changan was still analyzing the pros and cons, the auction over there had already begun.

Only a few scattered people were calling out bids, most of whom were Loose Cultivators in the hall!

As for the private boxes on the second and third floors, they were all silent this time.

Either they all already possessed techniques to utilize Treasure Qi...

...or they were all fishing, having reached some kind of silent agreement.

Gu Changan seized this opportunity; he could see that over a dozen Loose Cultivators were already bidding.

So adding himself to the mix wouldn't stand out much!

“500 Spirit Stones!”

Suddenly, he felt many people watching him, sensing gazes from all directions.

“550 Spirit Stones!”

Gu Changan's bid was quickly surpassed!

Gu Changan's heart was tense, but he still called out a bid directly: “580 Spirit Stones!”

Perhaps because there were many people bidding, the gazes focused on him gradually diminished.

Finally, the price reached: “880 Spirit Stones!”

Gu Changan watched the price go up by tens of Spirit Stones at a time, wondering how long the auction would last!

He called out directly: “1,000 Spirit Stones!”

He was prepared; if anyone else bid higher, he would give up.

As a result, there was a sudden moment of silence in the venue.

Beautiful Female Auctioneer: “1,000 Spirit Stones, going once!”

“1,000 Spirit Stones, going twice!”

“1,000 Spirit Stones, going thrice!”

“Congratulations to this Fellow Daoist for winning the Jade Mending Incantation!”

“You may proceed backstage to complete the transaction!”

“The fortieth auction item...”

Gu Changan was in no mood to continue watching the auction; he wanted to go backstage and get the Cultivation Technique first.

Having obtained the technique, Gu Changan did not leave.

He returned to the auction venue once more; who knew when he would encounter another auction.

He wanted to take this chance to see what the final grand finale items were.

As for the danger, he would be boarding the Tianji Pavilion's flying boat shortly.

That would temporarily cut off any gazes from outside the Tianji Pavilion!

As expected, the last ten items were mostly for those at the Golden Core Stage.

A Golden Core Stage Magic Treasure, the Blazing Sun Sword, sold for a high price of 120,000 Spirit Stones.

A bottle of Golden Core Stage Medicinal Pills, spirit nurturing pills—six to a bottle—sold for the high price of 60,000.

A Cultivation Technique, the Boundless Divine Thought Incantation, which was a Divine Sense technique, appeared as the grand finale item and sold for the high price of 300,000.

Gu Changan was stunned; these people didn't treat Spirit Stones like money at all!

They were bidding hundreds of thousands at a time!

Gu Changan once again felt his own insignificance and poverty.

Even with the treasure gathering basin, he still felt poor now!

Not only was he poor now, but he also lacked the strength to protect his own safety.

After obtaining the treasure gathering basin, Gu Changan had felt like he was a child of destiny!

Now, that feeling of being a child of destiny had vanished.

It seemed that from now on, he had to take it one step at a time, playing it safe and steady, and staying under the radar.

Only by being the one who laughs last could one show off before others!

The auction ended, and Gu Changan followed the crowd out of the auction venue.

He went straight to the Tianji Pavilion's flying boat.

Those whose Divine Sense had been lingering on Gu Changan first felt surprised.

Then, it all turned into anger or resentment.

Then, most of the gazes disappeared, leaving only some who were also within the Tianji Pavilion's sphere of influence still watching Gu Changan closely.

Gu Changan submitted his identification details and boarded the flying boat easily.

At this moment, a Woman in White standing in the crowd spotted Gu Changan.

A faint smile flickered at the corner of her mouth.

Then she picked up a Token, and after activating it, she began to give orders through it: “Listen, regarding the mission for the newcomers returning to Tianji City.”

“I don't care about the other flying boats!”

“But for the Yizi-class flying boat, you must ensure its safety.”

“Ensure it lands safely in Tianji City.”

“If anything goes wrong on the way, you'd better pray that your lives are tough enough!”