Longevity-Extending Pill

Another half hour passed, and a different item was auctioned on stage, causing a sensation in the room.

Liu Meiniang held a jade box in both hands, her smile even sweeter than before.

"Fellow Daoists, the next item is quite rare." She paused, whetting everyone's appetite, "One low-grade Longevity-Extending Pill."

A buzz of discussion erupted from the audience.

Liu Meiniang didn't beat around the bush.

"The effects of this pill are self-evident; one pill will extend your life by ten years." She held up one finger. "Only one thing: you can only take one of these life-extending pills in your lifetime."

Starting bid: 800 Spirit Stones.

As soon as the price of 800 Spirit Stones was announced, bidding erupted from below.

Shen Jingchuan was taken aback for a moment.

He turned his head and asked Xiao Mingshu beside him in a low voice.

"Sister, why is this Longevity-Extending Pill so expensive?" He frowned. "I bought those Life-Extending Pills at the market before, and they didn't cost many Spirit Stones."

Xiao Mingshu glanced at him, a hint of pettiness creeping into her eyes.

"How can that be the same?"

She picked up her teacup, took a sip, and said slowly:

"The Life-Extending Pills you mentioned are for mortals; they're completely useless to us cultivators."

She put down her teacup and continued.

"Life-Extending Pills are also divided into low-grade, medium-grade, and high-grade, but even the high-grade ones are only worth a hundred Spirit Stones at most."

"Mortals don't have Spirit Stones. Only high-level cultivators can afford them, to buy them as gifts for their biological parents and close relatives in the mortal realm."

Xiao Mingshu said:

"Therefore, this stuff is not commonly seen on the market. It's considered good if you come across a mid-grade one, and top-grade is even rarer. That's already the most expensive pill that ordinary people can afford."

Shen Jingchuan listened, but his heart was not at peace. The mid-grade Life-Extending Pills he bought did not cost many Spirit Stones. After returning home, he upgraded them to high-grade through his Heaven and Earth Ring, which extended the lifespan of mortals by a full fifty years.

He gave those few to those elderly people in the modern world; he never expected them to be so valuable.

He quickly did the mental calculation: one hundred Spirit Stones equals ten thousand taels of gold... four or five hundred million little cuties.

"But this Longevity-Extending Pill is different." Xiao Mingshu's voice pulled him back to reality. "This is a pill specifically for cultivators."

She held out her fingers, showing him each one individually.

"Low-grade, extends lifespan by ten years; medium-grade, extends lifespan by thirty years; high-grade, extends lifespan by fifty years. As for the top-grade, well, let's not even go there."

"Mid-grade ones occasionally appear on the market, but every time they do, the competition is fierce, and the prices are outrageously high," Xiao Mingshu shook her head. "As for high-grade ones, they're practically never seen."

Shen Jingchuan, "Extending your life by ten years, and you're fighting like this?"

"You think it's just about extending lifespan?" Xiao Mingshu glanced at him. "Those cultivators at the Qi Refining Great Perfection, stuck at the threshold of Foundation Establishment, are about to run out of lifespan. If they could get a mid-grade life -Longevity-Extending Pill and gain an extra thirty years, do you think they would be willing to sell everything they own?"

She paused, then spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Living thirty more years means thirty more years of comprehension and more opportunities to break through to the Foundation Establishment. This pill isn't buying longevity; it's buying that sliver of hope for Foundation Establishment."

Shen Jingchuan suddenly realized.

In the short time it took to speak, the price below the stage had already surged to over three thousand and was still rising. The frenzy was no less than that of the previous Appearance-Preserving Pill.

Shen Jingchuan leaned back in his chair, having lost all interest in bidding.

He's young, has a long lifespan, and possesses a treasure like the Heaven and Earth Ring. No matter how good the Longevity-Extending Pill is, he doesn't need it right now.

None of the people he knew or was close to needed this thing.

He picked up his tea and sipped it slowly, simply enjoying the spectacle.

Prices have been steadily rising.

Xiao Mingshu sat to the side, not thinking much of it. She had the Qi Condensing Pill given to her by Shen Jingchuan, and she believed that she had a good chance of Foundation Establishment, so she wasn't particularly interested in this pill.

Besides, a low-grade Longevity-Extending Pill only lasts for ten years, which is not very meaningful to her and not worth the effort.

His emperor father had already taken a medium-grade one, but his mother was a mortal and couldn't use it.

If they don't fight, others will.

After several rounds of back-and-forth bidding, the Longevity-Extending Pill was finally won by Foundation Establishment cultivator in a private room, with a final price of 9,300 Spirit Stones.

The moment the hammer struck, murmurs arose from all around.

A cold snort came from the next private room; it was Huang Laoxie's voice.

"That old man from the Wang Household doesn't have many years left to live," he said with a hint of sarcasm. "They're selling everything they own to prolong his life."

The woman next to him leaned closer, her voice soft and gentle.

"Ten years is ten years," she said. "The Wang Household only has one Foundation Establishment Ancestor to hold it up right now. If we give him another ten years, maybe the family can raise another Foundation Establishment during those ten years. Wouldn't that keep the Foundation Establishment Lineage going?"

"I doubt it," Huang Laoxie snorted. "What's the market price for Foundation Establishment Pills these days? They're practically impossible to find. I was lucky back then; I had to sell everything I owned to get one."

He paused, then continued.

"Furthermore, even if they did manage to obtain it, it would only be a low-grade Foundation Establishment Pill, which would at most increase their chances of Foundation Establishment by 30%. So many people are stuck at this stage, unable to get past it."

The woman quickly echoed her, her tone full of flattery.

"That's right," she said. "Of all the Qi Refining cultivators in the world, how many can overcome the Foundation Establishment? It's only because you, Master, have such great fortune and luck that you've achieved Foundation Establishment. How can others compare?"

Huang Laoxie was pleased by her flattery, laughed heartily, and said nothing more.

Another hour passed, and it was completely dark. Lights were turned on inside and outside the building.

Several more items passed by in between, all rather unremarkable, making one want to yawn.

Just then, Liu Meiniang personally presented a large jade box, her expression much more solemn than before.

She placed the jade box on the table and slowly opened it.

As soon as the box was opened, a wisp of milky-white Spiritual Qi emerged, instantly refreshing the entire hall. The cultivators nearby felt a sense of comfort, and their eyes lit up instantly.

"Fellow Daoists, the next item is one of the highlights of tonight," Liu Meiniang said, her voice rising slightly, "A section of a First-Tier Spirit Vein."

A commotion immediately arose in the audience.

"This section of Spirit Vein was painstakingly extracted from a Spirit Vein by a high-level cultivator," Liu Meiniang said, gesturing towards the jade box. "As you all can see, the Spiritual Qi remains undiminished."

She paused for a moment, then continued her introduction.

"Once you take it back, you only need to nurture it with Spirit Stones day and night for about 180 years to cultivate a complete First-Tier Spirit Vein," Liu Meiniang said. "At that time, the spiritual energy in the area where the Spiritual Qi Spirit Vein is located will be inexhaustible, enough to support the survival and inheritance of an entire cultivation Lineage."

"Such a treasure needs no further introduction." Her gaze swept over the private rooms upstairs. "Starting bid: 10,000 Spirit Stones. Gentlemen, please proceed."

Before Shen Jingchuan could react, Xian'er's voice suddenly rang in his mind, carrying an unusual urgency.

"You brat, you have to take a picture of this!"