Auction

After parting ways with Jiang Yun.

Before long, Lu Wanyuan arrived at a general store.

This place specialized in selling everyday items, bedding, and all sorts of odds and ends.

He had been in this market for over a year now, so he was generally familiar with the shops near Chunfeng Road.

After all, he had come here to buy things before, so he felt like he knew the way well, and quickly found the place.

"Shopkeeper, give me thirty sets of quilts and a hundred sets of toiletries!"

Even before entering the store, he shouted inside.

"Brother Lu, are you leading a team? You need that many daily necessities?"

An old man poked his head out from the back room of the shop, staring at him in surprise.

The old man was the shopkeeper, named Cao Zhen.

"Not at all. A Rogue Cultivator like me, what team could I lead? It's enough if I don't go hungry!"

"It's just a few relatives coming to stay for a few days. You know winter's almost here, so of course I need to stock up on daily goods. I can't come bothering Shopkeeper Cao every time I need something, can I?"

"Get out of here, why say so much? You bring me big business, I'm happy about it. Why would I ask so many questions?"

The old man put on a look of disdain, staring at him with contempt, and quickly cut him off.

This guy was too chatty. Why explain so clearly? Old Man wasn't a census taker; he opened his shop to do business. Who cared who the customer was.

The other party bought all his daily necessities and household items here, so they were familiar with each other. How could he not know the guy's personality by now?

Then, as if thinking it over, he asked, "With that many people, don't you need a few more sets of bowls and chopsticks and such?"

"Ah, Shopkeeper Cao is right. Let's make it thirty sets too."

"Mm, that's more like it. Wait here, I'll have someone prepare it for you!"

With that, the old man went back into the back room.

"You... you're Lu Wanyuan?"

A surprised voice came from beside him.

Lu Wanyuan immediately looked toward the sound.

He saw a tall, burly man standing by the shelves, staring at him in astonishment.

"You are?"

Looking at the vaguely familiar face, he couldn't put a name to it.

Anyway, he felt like he should know this person, which was really strange!

"I'm Hu Yidao! Shangsha Lane No. 77, your former neighbor!"

Hu Yidao reminded him.

"Oh, oh! So it's Fellow Daoist Hu! I never expected to run into you here!"

"At first, I felt like I knew you, that you looked familiar, but I couldn't remember where I'd seen you. Now that you mention it, I recall!"

Lu Wanyuan said excitedly. After all, Hu Yidao could be considered his first neighbor in Bayberry Market.

At that time, he had just moved into the market, under immense pressure, busy earning Spirit Stones every day. So even though the other lived next door, they didn't keep in touch often.

But since they lived in the same area, they occasionally ran into each other and exchanged simple greetings.

He had only lived at Shangsha Lane No. 78 for two months before moving away, and they hadn't seen each other since.

He vaguely remembered that the other was a hired hunter, often helping employers hunt Demonic Beasts or search for Spiritual Medicine ingredients.

"Yeah, I didn't dare recognize you at first either, but your face was vaguely familiar. If Shopkeeper Cao hadn't called your name, I really wouldn't have dared to. I never expected you to have struck it rich now, buying so many things."

Hu Yidao looked at Lu Wanyuan with an envious gaze. This guy used to be his neighbor, also a poor wretch. Who would have thought he'd be buying so many items today? He must have gotten rich, or else he wouldn't have moved to a new place.

"It's alright. And you? You're here too?"

Lu Wanyuan answered vaguely, then changed the subject.

After all, he wasn't very familiar with the other, so there was no need to explain in detail.

"Me? Isn't the Auction about to start soon? I came to do a little business with Shopkeeper Cao, earn some Spirit Stones so I can go to the Auction and see the world!"

Hu Yidao didn't elaborate either, shifting the topic as well. He and Lu Wanyuan were only nodding acquaintances, so of course he wouldn't lay out all his details.

"Auction? I didn't know about that."

Lu Wanyuan asked in surprise.

"Man, I can't believe you really didn't know. But that's normal, it fits your personality."

"You're always holed up inside, never stepping out, or else you're off doing something. I never see you around, so it makes sense you wouldn't know about the Auction."

Hu Yidao looked at him and said with a smile.

"Oh, can you tell me about this Auction?"

"That's easy. This place is a godforsaken spot, cultivation resources are scarce."

"Many people get stuck at a single realm and can't break through, so this auction gives those people a sliver of hope. But since it's only held once every ten years, the competition is even fiercer."

"At this auction, there will be a lot of resources available that can help cultivators cultivate, like pills, spiritual medicines, and such. Those are all brought in from other places."

"So you're saying this business is so easy to do, why don't more people go elsewhere and bring back those needed cultivation resources to sell here?"

Lu Wanyuan asked, somewhat puzzled.

"What you're thinking, plenty of people thought of long ago. The problem is, hardly anyone can pull it off."

"First, the journey is far too long, and the surrounding area is full of demonic beasts' territory. Sometimes robber cultivators show up too. The risk is just too high."

"Without strong strength, there's no way to cross such a great distance, let alone deal with all the difficulties encountered along the way."

"Another reason is that some people, once they go out, find the outside world is much bigger, and they don't come back."

"Who would be willing to return to a godforsaken place like this? If I could get out, I definitely wouldn't come back here either. With conditions like these, isn't the outside world way better?"

Hu Yidao wore a helpless expression.

There was nothing he could do. As a rogue cultivator like him, being able to work as a hired hand was already decent.

At least he could still survive in the market. Many rogue cultivators outside the market didn't even know when they'd become cannon fodder.

But now, he had no grand ambitions. He just wanted to live steadily in the market. That was also the source of his frustration.

Hearing this, Lu Wanyuan suddenly understood. Only then did he realize why Chu Tianxing had sold him the mansion so cheaply—it was because of this.

The Chu Family was doing much better outside, so there was no need for them to return to this impoverished place.

"Oh, so you're preparing spirit stones here. What are you planning to bid on at the auction?"

"Me, bid? You must be joking. I'm preparing the entry fee just to get into the auction!"

"How could I possibly have the means to bid on anything there? The starting price for items at the auction is at least a hundred spirit stones. You know the place I live in—the rent is ten spirit stones a month."

Hu Yidao said awkwardly.

Hearing this, Lu Wanyuan immediately understood. What he said was true. With a starting price of a hundred spirit stones, how could anyone survive? To actually win a bid, you'd need at least a thousand spirit stones.

A rogue cultivator like Hu Yidao probably only had the fate of being a spectator.

Fortunately, Lu Wanyuan had his entries to exchange for quite a few spirit stones. If not for that, how would he dare to buy the Artifact Refining Workshop outright, or go to the Tooth Agency to purchase so many servants?

Adding in the profits from his Yellow Barley Malt over the past year, he now had ten thousand spirit stones stored in his Storage Ring, plus a hundred or so in his Storage Bag.

"It's an auction, so why are they charging an entry fee? Wouldn't they want as many cultivators as possible to come in?"

"The venue has limited space. Besides, if they let everyone in, all sorts of riffraff would show up. What if the people who really need to get in can't?"

"So the auction entry fee filters out a wave of people, picking out those who are genuinely interested. At the same time, it increases their revenue. Why not?"

"Oh, so how many spirit stones is the entry fee for this auction?"

"Fifteen spirit stones!"

"That's almost a month and a half of rent! Since it's so expensive, why bother going? Wouldn't it be better to use that fee to pay the rent?"

"Fellow Daoist Lu, you're mistaken! You know what I do for a living. I'm going to the auction to broaden my horizons."

"After all, I usually work out in the wild. I might run into some strange things, maybe even treasures I wouldn't recognize. That would be a real tragedy!"

"So at the venue, I can see valuable items—things like spiritual medicines, ores, spirit beasts, and so on."

"Maybe one day, if I get lucky and find something of high value, turning my fate around isn't impossible!"

After saying this, Hu Yidao wore a smug expression.

"Oh, I see. That makes sense. Fellow Daoist Hu is right. It seems this auction is indeed worth checking out!"

"Fellow Daoist Hu, when does the auction start, and where is it?"

"It's at the Central Plaza in the market. It starts in an hour and lasts the whole afternoon. Want to go together and take a look? Broaden your horizons!"