61: Auction

Actually, Liu Xuan's thoughts were far deeper than they realized; he wanted to use this to gradually unite all the cultivation families in Yongning into a single, cohesive force.

With his children growing in number, Liu Xuan had to earn more Spirit Stones in advance and pave the way for them so they could grow faster.

The current Yongning was a prime opportunity for development; the Chen Family had been wiped out, dragging countless other families down with them.

The Sect was in a rush to rake in money and lacked the energy to manage things, which was exactly Liu Xuan's chance.

"I currently hold the concurrent post of Inner City Tax Commissioner, in charge of the flow of goods for various shops. If you are willing to join, I can gift a few of you some quotas for low-level official positions in the city."

"This old man is willing to join!"

"I am also willing to join; I trust Talisman Master Liu!"

"Talisman Master Liu, no need to say more. Let us discuss the affairs of the Merchant Alliance directly. Those who are unwilling can leave now!"

...

Free benefits—no one would refuse. The various Family heads all expressed their agreement.

Liu Xuan stopped explaining and instructed Xia He and She Xiaorong to distribute the rules that the Merchant Alliance needed to follow, as well as the benefits they could obtain.

There were not many rules. First, no internal fighting or backstabbing teammates. Second, do not do anything harmful to the Merchant Alliance or use it for personal gain at the expense of others. Third, obey the resolutions of the Merchant Alliance. Fourth...

Although there were many terms, they were not harsh. As long as one did not have devious intentions, it was not difficult to comply.

The benefits were that internal information would be public, and each Family could agree with the Merchant Alliance in advance about what to buy or sell, facilitating transactions.

In the short term, the Merchant Alliance was just a loose organization, with the main purpose of facilitating trade and increasing profits.

In the long term, it would form merchant caravans, open specialized shops, and establish connections between the Sect, local families, and outside families, forming a massive interest conglomerate.

Most of the families in the hall already had shops in the Inner City, like the Wang Family's beef shop, the Luo Family's spirit fish shop...

With the Merchant Alliance in existence, it could absorb a lot of their output, and with Liu Xuan's connections to the Sect, they could also buy the Medicinal Pills and Talismans they needed for Cultivation more cheaply.

Spirit materials that were difficult to preserve, like one-horned wild ox beef or ox blood, could also be sold at higher prices.

The meeting gradually became heated as the families began to discuss specific cooperation matters.

Liu Xuan appointed She Xiaorong and the Wang Family head, Wang Chen, as vice-leaders to handle specific details, while he only took charge of the overall direction.

...

One day later.

A new shop called 'Vast Gathering Pavilion' opened in the Inner City, selling all kinds of spirit items—Medicinal Pills, Magical Artifacts, Talismans, Formations, Spirit Medicine, spirit fruit... covering everything.

It sounded very impressive, but in reality, the shop was just an empty shell; apart from a few basic supplies, there was nothing else.

This shop was funded by Liu Xuan. Currently, it served only as the headquarters for the Merchant Alliance and a place to sell some of the Talismans he drew, as well as some supplies from within the Merchant Alliance that were hard to sell.

There was another such all-encompassing shop in Yongning—the Hundred Treasures Pavilion opened by the Sect's Dual Cultivation Hall.

The Dual Cultivation Hall's Red Pine Merchant Alliance had branches all over the Red Pine region. The reason they were able to supply the tens of thousands of Cultivators who had gathered in Yongning City a while ago was precisely because of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

Liu Xuan was not here to steal the Sect's business. Nominally, the Vast Gathering Pavilion was just a subordinate to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

Liu Xuan planned to visit the Dual Cultivation Hall the next time he returned to the Sect to vie for the operational rights of the Yongning Hundred Treasures Pavilion and completely consolidate his monopoly.

Everything had to be done slowly; there was no need to rush. What Liu Xuan was most interested in today was the auction held by the Sect.

Hundred Treasures Auction House.

This auction house used to be the Chen Family's property, and today's gimmick for the auction was the Chen Family's assets...

In addition to part of the Chen Family's assets, there were also countless supplies seized by the Sect's law enforcement army during the raids and exterminations.

Among the various supplies, things like Medicinal Pills, common Spirit Medicine, and spirit fruit were easy to handle; they could just be transported away.

However, for things like large-scale Ore, incomplete Magical Artifacts, and immovable property that was difficult to move—like spirit fields and medicine gardens—the best way to handle them was to auction them off for local consumption.

Private room on the second floor of the auction house.

Liu Xuan and Xia He sat in their seats, looking down at the main venue below.

"One Low Grade Profound Iron mine, with a total reserve capable of refining approximately thirty thousand catties of Low Grade Profound Iron. Starting bid: one thousand Spirit Stones!"

An old man with graying beard and hair, wearing a common Daoist robe, held a deed and announced loudly.

"This mine is located eighty miles west of the city. The mining difficulty is medium, and the Ore quality is excellent..."

The old man's tone was unhurried, giving people the feeling that he disdained lying and that everything he said was the truth.

Everyone knew about this Profound Iron mine; it had previously been the property of a Family that was a vassal to the Chen Family.

Although it was not as good as the old man claimed, it was close enough, and the total value was no less than two thousand Spirit Stones.

After deducting mining costs, refining costs, and transportation and sales costs, the total value was still no less than one thousand five hundred Spirit Stones.

With normal mining and refining, it would be finished in ten years, earning fifty Spirit Stones per year; it could be considered a clearance sale.

However, no one in the arena spoke to bid. One thousand Spirit Stones was too much; even if they could afford it, they wanted to see if there was anything better.

"The Spirit Stones do not need to be paid in full at once. You can pay in installments over five years, one-fifth per year!" the old man said unhurriedly.

"Ah?"

Liu Xuan was stunned!

'They can even do installment payments? So advanced?'

Installment payments were indeed attractive. Immediately, someone started bidding: "One thousand Spirit Stones, I will take it!"

"I bid one thousand and one!"

"I bid one thousand and ten!"

...

"I bid one thousand one hundred!"

In the end, this Profound Iron mine was bought by a cultivation Family near the mine.

"One mu of Low Grade Jade Spirit Rice field. The Jade Spirit Rice in the field will be mature in three months. Starting bid..."

For things like spirit fields and medicine gardens, the target audience was basically the nearby cultivation families; they had no attraction to others.

However, there were exceptions. If someone bought the Spiritual Vein of a nearby Family, they could also compete for it.

The entire auction became increasingly heated. The Sect obtained a large amount of Spirit Stones, and the local families gained development opportunities—it was a win-win!

Liu Xuan had not made a move yet, but several families within the Yongning Merchant Alliance had made consecutive bids, taking down quite a few nearby properties.

For those families that did not have properties auctioned nearby, Liu Xuan stepped in to pool funds and, in the name of the Merchant Alliance, directly took down several Family Spiritual Veins, with dividends to be distributed according to the contribution ratio in the future.

The Sect was in a rush to sell and restore order during this auction; buying meant earning. All the families in the Yongning Merchant Alliance developed a wave thanks to this.

It had been almost a year since he came to Yongning. Liu Xuan had earned over two thousand Spirit Stones from drawing Talismans, but his consumption was huge, and he had many women and children, so he currently only had a little over one thousand on him.

At the end of the auction, Liu Xuan used one thousand Spirit Stones as a base and bid five thousand Spirit Stones to win the five-year lease for the Chen Family's ancestral grounds, White Crane Lake. He was the only Cultivator who dared to bid on the Chen Family's property.