Chapter Sixty-Four: The Auction

Xu Zhong stopped at a stall on a platform. The vendor was a middle-aged man, pale and sickly, exuding a chilling aura from head to toe.

In front of him sat a jade box, within which lay a piece of peach wood. Peach wood, being of pure yang, was highly prized—though it couldn't match Zhou Jing's wooden sword, it was still a rare treasure. Endless pure yang energy radiated from the peach wood, bathing the onlooker in a gentle, spring-like warmth.

“How much for this piece of peach wood?” Xu Zhong hesitated. He was drawn to it; in his gourd, he kept a sword embryo. With this peach wood, he would have the beginnings of a true-life treasure. Later, he'd only need some Geng Metal and Xin Metal to attempt forging it.

“I acquired this peach wood in a celestial cave,” the middle-aged man explained. “That cave had three suns circling above—eternal daylight, no darkness. This peach wood basked in sunlight for fifteen hundred years, accumulating pure yang energy over that span. It is a supreme treasure.”

“As for price, I’ve set it at fifty thousand Transformation Pills.”

There was no unified currency in the cultivation world; barter was common, though pills sometimes served as a standard, a shared understanding among cultivators. The Transformation Pill was the most prevalent, used to refine the spiritual energy or mana in a cultivator's body.

The vendor quoted the price not to demand payment in pills, but to give Xu Zhong a benchmark for barter.

Xu Zhong looked in his storage pouch: apart from a slab of dragon meat, he had little else. He took out the dragon meat.

“This is flesh from a beast of the Realm of Forms. I wonder how much it’s worth?” Xu Zhong had never used Transformation Pills, so he had no grasp of their value.

“This dragon meat is full of vitality,” the vendor observed, “the muscle and fascia bear dragon patterns. But it’s only a piece of meat—if it were a dragon tendon, I’d trade with you, but as it is, I cannot.”

“If you had a tendon from a Realm of Forms dragon, would you even care for this piece of peach wood?” Li Feiyu, who had walked up behind Xu Zhong, scoffed.

“If this peach wood were the heartwood, it’d be worth fifty thousand Pure Yang Pills, but clearly it’s not,” Li Feiyu examined the peach wood. “In my opinion, this dragon meat and your peach wood are of similar value.”

Seeing Li Feiyu had exposed him, the vendor grew shrewd. “If your dragon meat were fresh, we could trade, but it’s not—much of its vitality is gone…”

“I’ll add a thousand Transformation Pills,” Li Feiyu produced a jade bottle. “That’s more than fair.”

The vendor nodded, handing over the jade box. Li Feiyu paid the thousand pills, took the box, and passed it to Xu Zhong.

“I cannot accept this gift without reason,” Xu Zhong said, though tempted. “I cannot take your things for nothing.”

“It’s not a gift,” Li Feiyu smiled. “Think of it as a loan, with two percent interest.”

Xu Zhong considered. “I might not be able to repay you.”

“I’m not lacking for money.”

Xu Zhong took the jade box.

“That peach wood isn’t worth much,” Li Feiyu said softly. “But peach wood has the advantage of appreciating in value. I suspect you’ll use it as the foundation for a sword.”

“When you master the Threefold True Fire and open the Hidden Mud Pill Palace, you can plant the sword in your Mud Pill. By simulating the sun with Threefold True Fire, the peach wood will absorb it and grow in value.”

“Of course, if you possess a unique flame, you can infuse it into the peach wood, turning it into pure yang energy.”

Xu Zhong found the advice enlightening.

“Wooden swords are fine, but they’ll never be as sharp as metal,” Li Feiyu continued. “Without a good sword embryo, even the finest wooden sword won’t have great power.”

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sound of bells rang out, signaling the start of the auction.

“We should return,” Li Feiyu said, patting Xu Zhong’s shoulder.

They went back to their compartment. The others returned in succession, all apparently satisfied with their gains.

On the ritual platform stood a powerful Xiezhi. The Xiezhi was a law beast, famed for fairness and justice. In the cultivation world, wherever justice and auctions were held, the Xiezhi was present.

The opening remarks were the usual pleasantries—welcoming everyone to the auction and so forth.

“Now, the first item up for auction: True Taibai Iron.”

Two armored attendants carried a jade box onto the platform. When the box was opened, Geng Metal energy flowed out, revealing a piece of True Taibai Iron, eight feet long and as white as jade.

“True Taibai Iron is star iron, rich in golden essence. Whether for forging artifacts or refining spells, it is invaluable,” the Xiezhi solemnly declared. “Starting price: ten thousand Transformation Pills. Each raise must be at least a thousand pills.”

True Taibai Iron was a fine thing for Xu Zhong, but he had no resources left.

Fang Yuan, beside him, was tempted and bid first: “Sixty thousand!”

“Seventy thousand!”

The price climbed, but Fang Yuan was determined, raising again and again until she secured the True Taibai Iron for one hundred fifty thousand Transformation Pills—ten thousand above its true worth.

Soon after, the item was delivered to her.

“With this True Taibai Iron, I’ll boost the power of my Profound Light Roaring Qi by thirty percent.”

“Profound Light Roaring Qi is one of Fang Yuan’s spells, hidden in her liver. The liver connects to the eyes, so it manifests in her gaze,” Li Feiyu explained.

“Profound Light is the eyes; Roaring Qi is the golden energy in the lungs,” Fang Yuan excitedly described her spell. “With it, I can kill with a glare, or with a shout.”

The next items failed to stir much interest.

This continued until the auction of Celestial Sand. When its name was announced, Yun Yong, who had been resting with closed eyes, perked up.

Among them, only Li Feiyu had formed a Golden Core. The others, like Xu Zhong, had just entered the Realm of One, or had yet to reach the Golden Core stage. But all were gathering materials for that purpose.

“Now, we’re all rivals, not friends,” Tang Yuan began the bidding.

“One hundred thousand!”

“One hundred ten thousand!”

“One hundred twenty thousand!”

The price climbed relentlessly. For them, these Transformation Pills were numbers, not pills.

When the price reached two hundred thousand, Yun Yong entered the fray. His opening bid jumped straight to three hundred thousand.

Everyone looked toward their compartment.

“That’s not how you bid!” Li Feiyu glanced at Yun Yong.

Like Xu Zhong, Li Feiyu had only met Yun Yong and Tang Yuan today. As for Fang Yuan, their families were old friends, and the two had grown up together.

Among those present, Yun Yong was the hardest to read. He was mysterious and reserved, yet seemed to know everything, forcing Li Feiyu to pay him heed.

Yun Yong ignored Li Feiyu, bidding silently. Though they shared a compartment, their jade bidding tokens were different.

“Three hundred ten thousand!”

After a brief lull, someone raised the bid.

But Yun Yong responded coldly, “Four hundred thousand!”

Even Xu Zhong, unfamiliar with market prices, was startled. Others raised the price by ten thousand at a time; Yun Yong, by a hundred thousand.

“Four hundred ten thousand!”

The previous bidder tried again.

“This is the market price for Celestial Sand,” Li Feiyu remarked to Yun Yong.

“Five hundred thousand!”

Li Feiyu shook his head. Such a premium wasn’t worth it to him.

The other bidder made one last attempt—“Five hundred ten thousand.”

Yun Yong, without hesitation, claimed the Celestial Sand for six hundred thousand.

“What wealth!” Xu Zhong glanced at Yun Yong.

The attendant delivered the Celestial Sand, and Yun Yong paid promptly.

Celestial Sand looked much like ordinary sand. He took a handful and smiled, “Excellent quality.”

Then Yun Yong closed his eyes and resumed cultivation.

The auction continued. Dozens of treasures followed—artifacts, robes, pills—none of which interested Xu Zhong.

A few longevity pills sparked heated bidding, but none matched the drama of the Celestial Sand.

Tang Yuan managed to win one of these pills.

“You can’t leave empty-handed, can you?” Li Feiyu asked Tang Yuan, who responded awkwardly.

“One Yellow Spring Pearl remains,” Xu Zhong said, scanning the auction list. “As expected, the Yellow Spring Pill must be the finale.”

The Yellow Spring Pearl was a bead of interlaced black and yellow, radiating robust Wu Earth essence.

At this point, Yun Yong opened his eyes again, eager.

“Five hundred thousand!” His bid went up by two hundred thousand at once.

His voice silenced the hall.

“Five hundred fifty thousand!” The bidding continued.

“Eight hundred thousand!” Yun Yong, curt as ever.

The other bidder didn’t pursue further.

Yun Yong won the Yellow Spring Pearl.

Now came the main event.

But Yun Yong showed no interest in the Supreme Profound Liquid. Having obtained the Yellow Spring Pearl, he closed his eyes and resumed cultivation.

Xu Zhong could sense the Geng Metal and Wu Earth energies swirling within Yun Yong. He seemed to be absorbing the essence of the Celestial Sand and Yellow Spring Pearl from afar.

“Next, the final auction item: Supreme Profound Liquid.”

With the Xiezhi’s announcement, a young woman carried a jade-clear bottle onto the platform, placing it for all cultivators to view.

“It’s polluted, as expected,” Li Feiyu commented.

“This drop of Supreme Profound Liquid was tainted by the Yin Evil of Fengdu upon excavation. Its quality is impure. Starting price: eight hundred thousand Transformation Pills.”

The words provoked an uproar.

The Yin Evil of Fengdu, accumulated since the dawn of creation, could easily cause one’s soul to falter if even a trace was absorbed.

Especially for cultivators who had opened the Mud Pill Palace: if tainted, they might be dragged into Fengdu, transformed into spirits or ghosts.

But for those who hadn’t yet opened the Mud Pill Palace, it posed little threat. Their souls remained in chaos, able to absorb all things, so the Yin Evil, even if it passed through, would simply be swallowed by the chaos and could not harm the soul.

No wonder the Supreme Profound Liquid was auctioned in the Realm of One.

After the opening bid, the atmosphere grew tense.

At that moment, Li Feiyu struck the match.

“One million!”