How Could Something This Important Fall into Outsiders' Hands?

"Formation Breaking Cone?"

Xiao Chen looked down at the jet-black spiked cone below, a hint of curiosity flashing in his eyes.

This thing looks ordinary, how could it possibly break through the seal of Fourth-tier Grand Array?

It was truly amazing.

Moreover, since only the Holy City can manufacture it, the level of craftsmanship involved must be among the top in the New Cultivation World.

That's great stuff! It would be even better if he could get his hands on it.

It doesn't matter if it can only be used once, since many times the outcome is decided by a hair's breadth.

"Oh dear, what's wrong, Senior Seven Crane? Sigh~!"

Master Cai sighed deeply, his expression clearly not looking good.

Why would Formation Breaking Cone " appear at a perfectly good auction?

It should be noted that the Cai Family now relies on ancestral formations to maintain its prestige.

To them, any magical artifact that could break the formation was a real threat.

Especially now that the Cai Family lacks its own True Lord.

Let alone if the formation is breached by outsiders, even if it only suffers some damage, it will face a predicament that is difficult to repair.

Unfortunately, this was an enhanced Formation Breaking Cone, capable of directly destroying the Array Foundation.

Any knowledgeable user would just take a look at the Core Array Foundation.

Even if the Linked Grand Array doesn't completely collapse on the spot, its power will be reduced by at least 30%, and the formation function corresponding to that Array Foundation will be lost.

At that point, it will only be a matter of time before the entire formation is broken.

Therefore, upon seeing the Formation Breaking Cone, Master Cai immediately felt a headache.

He can only hope that this thing will eventually be acquired by the Gui Yun Sect and preserved as part of the sect's foundation, so that it won't be used against the Cai Family.

However, the others didn't think that way.

While Gui Yun True Monarch did have a desire to Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone, he wasn't in a hurry.

After all, Gui Yun Sect has three True Lord stationed in the Holy City, and they have a certain network of connections there.

Therefore, there are other channels to choose from, so I only made a token bid to join in the fun.

In reality, they did not intend to spend many Spirit Stone to compete for it.

However, for the other Three Great Families, this was something they would never normally have the opportunity to obtain.

Spirit Stone can be earned back, but if you miss an opportunity like this, you may not get another chance.

Therefore, everyone put in their best effort, constantly raising their bids, all showing an attitude of being determined to win.

In a short period of time, the price of the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone was raised to 6.7 million Spirit Stone.

Seeing the price soaring, it was clear that Master Cai Gui Yun Sect was preparing to give up bidding.

He couldn't help but feel anxious and began to calculate how many Spirit Stone his family could use and whether there was any hope of stopping the other three families.

However, if the Mid-Grade Spirit Stone used to maintain the operation of the formation are not used...

He can only scrape together a maximum of nearly eight million Spirit Stone right now.

This price might stop Gui Yun Sect, but it might not be able to beat the other three families, especially the Jin Family, which has been thriving in recent years.

Never mind, I have to give it a try no matter what.

Just as Master Cai was about to make his offer, Mu Wenbo announced, "Add another 500,000 Spirit Stone, making it 8.2 million Spirit Stone for the first time!"

"Senior Jin seems determined to win. I wonder if any fellow cultivators are willing to offer a higher price?"

It's over!

Master Cai suddenly felt dizzy; it seemed like all hope was lost.

That makes sense, after all, the Jin Family has two True Lord. Even if they spend most of the clan's Spirit Stone stones, it doesn't matter, they can earn it back sooner or later.

However, the Cai Family could not conveniently use their reserves of Mid-Grade Spirit Stone.

Otherwise, without Spirit Stone, the ancestral formation would also be unable to operate.

However, just when Master Cai thought that today was doomed, he heard Xiao Chen's voice. "I'll offer ten million."

Um?

Master Cai stared wide-eyed, wondering if he was hallucinating.

He never expected that Xiao Chen would actually bid for the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone.

But for him, this was a delightful surprise.

The two sides have now secretly reached an agreement, and it's much better for this thing to be in Xiao Chen's hands than for the Jin Family to take it.

Therefore, after a brief moment of shock, Master Cai immediately made a loud offer.

The price announcement was like a boulder dropped into water, immediately causing a huge uproar.

The crowd of independent cultivators was in an uproar, and many even took out their Memory Stone to capture the scene.

After all, this is Spirit Item Transaction worth tens of millions.

Previously, it only existed in rumors, and many cultivators in Gui Yun Market rarely saw it in their entire lives.

"How much did Daoist Cai spend today?"

Inside the Gao Family's private room next door, Old Master Gao asked with considerable surprise, "Has anything unusual happened to his family in recent years?"

The boy standing nearby immediately replied, "Reporting to the Ancestor, we have already spent 9.8 million to buy four Fourth-Order Spiritual Item and seven bottles of Third-Order Spirit Pill."

Old Master Gao glanced at the location of the Cai Family's private room through the wall.

He then shook his head. "That adds up to nearly twenty million Spirit Stone. No matter how much wealth our ancestors left behind, we couldn't spend it like this."

In the Shang Family's private room on the other side.

Shang Weihao, the current head of the Shang Family, was also puzzled. "Ah Jie, what's going on with the Cai Family?"

Sitting next to him was his own brother, Shang Weijie: "He's probably getting a little desperate."

"Ordinary Formation Breaking Cone wouldn't pose much of a threat to the Cai Family's Linked Grand Array."

"But the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone doesn't do that; it can directly destroy the Core Array Foundation and render their killing array useless."

"Without the killing formation as a deterrent, the Cai Family would truly become a toothless tiger."

The Jin Family and Gui Yun Sect shared similar ideas with Shang Weijie.

Everyone believes that the Cai Family is sparing no expense to eliminate any potential threats.

"Daoist Cai truly lives up to his reputation as a wealthy man from Pingyi. When he does make a move, it's astonishing."

Mu Wenbo, who was in charge of the auction, also became excited. "No wonder everyone used to say that the Cai Family was nicknamed 'Cai Half-City.' Today, I've finally seen it for myself."

"Ten Million Spirit Stones for the first time, I wonder if any fellow cultivators are willing to offer a higher price!"

He even shouted the last half of the sentence.

They're basically already preparing to go through the procedures.

However, to almost everyone's surprise, Old Master Jin actually chose to match the offer. "Add another million!"

Not to mention how surprised outsiders were.

Even Jin Baorui, the current Jin Family Patriarch, was somewhat puzzled. "Father, isn't this price a little too expensive?"

The main reason is that the Jin Family had already burned a lot of Spirit Stone to help him break through to the Nascent Soul.

The entire clan currently only has a little over 18 million Spirit Stone, and this has already spent more than half of them.

It's important to understand that large Lineage are different from individuals; they can't just spend as much money as they have.

They also have many businesses that require capital to operate, and if they run out of cash, it will inevitably affect the efficiency of the Lineage businesses.

In other words, spending 11 million almost depleted their available cash reserves.

"It is a bit expensive, but it's not too bad."

Old Master Jin smiled slightly, "Speaking of something like this alone, it's definitely not worth much."

"But this is, after all, a spiritual item that Fellow Daoist Seven Crane brought out."

"If we spend a few more Spirit Stone, we can leave a good impression on him."

That's the logic.

But Jin Baorui still didn't quite understand. "But to make a good impression, we have to spend nearly three million more. Isn't that a bit too much of a price to pay?"

Old Master Jin could completely understand his doubts.

So he patiently advised, "Of course it's worth it. Let alone ten million, it would be worth it even if we spent all the Spirit Stone we have."

"Rui'er, you haven't even had a chance to go to the Holy City yet, and you haven't seen what it's like to really spend money like water, yet you think it's not easy to save up so many Spirit Stone."

"Actually, that's not the case. As long as we can get in touch with the Holy City, we'll have plenty of opportunities to earn back many times over in the future."

"Furthermore, once we obtain the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone, we can intensify our efforts and begin working on annexing the Cai Family ahead of schedule."

"As long as we can take over the Cai Family and their businesses, the extra Spirit Stone we spend today will make up for it."

That's right. That's why when the Cai Family lived in the city a few years ago, all the family members with some talent for cultivation died unexpectedly.

It wasn't because of bad feng shui, but because the Jin Family was pulling the strings behind the scenes.

Unfortunately, objectively speaking, the resources within the Gui Yun Sect's territory are limited; there are only so many Spirit Field and spirit mines in total.

If Old Master Jin intends to take advantage of this period of prosperity to lead the Jin Family to further progress, then he can only try to find a way out from the other three families.

The Cai Family was chosen naturally.

However, he was unaware that the Cai Family were not the only ones in the Cai Family's private room at that moment.

"Oh, there are experts too?"

Upon hearing "eleven million," Xiao Chen's eyes narrowed slightly. "You like bidding, huh? Just bid twenty million!"

He waited a while to make sure they were all arguing enough before making his move to spend ten million to close the gap.

I didn't expect the Jin Family to still be involved. Let's see who has more strength then.

If they're so capable, then let them continue.

"Ah?"

Master Cai looked utterly astonished. "Senior Xiao, twenty... twenty million?"

He was truly stunned.

Even if we had already guessed that Xiao Chen might be carrying twenty or thirty million Spirit Stone with him to bid for spiritual items.

But is it really worth spending 20 million for a single Formation Breaking Cone?

However, he couldn't see any heartache or hesitation on Xiao Chen's face. "Hmm, twenty million, make an offer."

Heartache?

It doesn't exist at all; anyway, it was all paid for by the Illuminating Void Sect.

Xiao Chen brought Spirit Stone here to spend them.

He was truly determined to obtain this Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone.

"Senior Xiao, isn't this a bit too much?"

Although Master Cai was only responsible for relaying messages, he still felt a bit shocked when he thought about the astronomical price of 20 million.

"Um?"

Xiao Chen frowned slightly. "What's wrong with you? I already said you don't need to pay. Hurry up and give me a price."

Master Cai quickly explained, "Senior, you've misunderstood. I'm not worried about that."

"But you specifically emphasized before that you should avoid attracting the attention of outsiders."

"Given my current situation, I shouldn't be able to come up with so many Spirit Stone to bid."

"It doesn't make sense for us to spend so many Spirit Stone."

What if this unusual behavior arouses the suspicion of the Gui Yun Sect or even Seven Crane True Monarch, and then it is discovered that the Cai Family is secretly cooperating with the Rebellious Immortal Alliance?

That would mean certain annihilation.

"Oh, so that's what you're worried about."

Xiao Chen smiled calmly; he had already prepared his reason. "Let me ask you this: isn't the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone a major threat to your Lineage's array?"

Master Cai nodded; he was, of course, also worried about that.

"That settles it. How can something so important fall into the hands of outsiders?"

Xiao Chen prompted him, "To protect the safety of one's own great formation, it's reasonable to be willing to go bankrupt to obtain the Formation Breaking Cone, isn't it?"

But when it comes to something specific, he really doesn't like to fight for it.

After all, they had already spent nearly Ten Million Spirit Stones; they should have stopped long ago.

But since Seven Crane True Monarch happened to bring out the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone, he could justify paying more.

Given something that concerns the survival of the Lineage, it's perfectly understandable that the Cai Family might overreact slightly, and it wouldn't arouse much suspicion.

And most importantly, Xiao Chen is not actually afraid of the Cai Family being investigated.

To reiterate, he's not actually Rebellious Immortal Alliance Member.

The main point is not to bump into Nascent Soul True Lord, but to stop him directly and question his identity and background, ensuring that the other party cannot find out anything.

"This... seems somewhat reasonable."

Master Cai thought for a moment, then his expression suddenly changed. "Senior, while this reason works, there's still a big problem."

"If I want outsiders to believe that I'm bidding at any cost..."

"Then when we settle the bill later, we'll need to come up with at least 100,000 Mid-Grade Spirit Stone."

"Otherwise, there's no way to explain why I have so many Spirit Stone in reserve."

His concern is not unfounded.

For the Cai Family to convince others that they have misappropriated their savings, they must pay with Mid-Grade Spirit Stone.

However, Master Cai was really reluctant to part with those Mid-Grade Spirit Stone; he planned to keep them to maintain the operation of the formation.

Otherwise, he would have made an offer himself earlier.

"Hey, what do you think I'm worried about?"

Xiao Chen retorted, "You don't actually think I'm going to let you come and take out Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, do you?"

Coincidentally, he actually has no shortage of Mid-Grade Spirit Stone.

Upon hearing this, Master Cai repeatedly said he dared not.

However, he lowered his head, not daring to meet her gaze; he had indeed had such thoughts in his mind just now.

However, Xiao Chen didn't pay much attention to it. It was normal for the other party to be wary since it was their first time working together.

He simply picked up a Storage Ring and handed it over. "Inside are two hundred thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stone and nine million Low-grade Spirit Stone. Make an offer."

Master Cai didn't dare to reach out and take it directly.

Instead, he first loudly called out the price, and then respectfully extended both hands to accept the Storage Ring.

When the price of twenty million was announced, all the cultivators in the entire Auction House were somewhat dazed.

The lower-level cultivators were alright; they had already become numb when they heard about Ten Million Spirit Stones.

As the price continued to rise, it became less tangible; all I knew was that it was a level of Spirit Stone I could never earn in my entire life.

The nine Nascent Soul True Lord present were truly dumbfounded.

"Has the Cai Family gone mad?"

Gui Yun True Monarch was astonished. "Where did they get twenty million Spirit Stone?"

The Caiyun True Monarch beside him was also dumbfounded. "This... this is ridiculous!"

"Could it be that Old Man Cai has taken out his ancestral Mid-Grade Spirit Stone?"

"He's disregarding his own formidable formation?"

After thinking for a moment, Gui Yun True Monarch immediately instructed the boy beside him, "Go to the back hall now and keep watch. See clearly how the Cai Family settles their accounts, and come back to report as soon as possible."

If it's a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, then forget it.

If he didn't have enough Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, he would have asked the Cai Family about the origin of this large sum of Spirit Stone.