As soon as the host finished speaking.
Many cultivators turned to look, their eyes burning.
The Blazing Divine Eagle was a Second-Rank Fire Attribute Yao Bird.
Its essence blood was a main ingredient in many Spirit Pills.
The Ding Family truly had deep reserves.
They were even putting such a precious cultivation item up for auction.
"Starting price: three hundred spirit stones!"
"Bids must increase by at least ten spirit stones!"
Hearing the price,
Shen Xuan shook his head.
He couldn't afford it.
"Three hundred!"
"Four hundred!"
"Five hundred!"
Each bid rang out louder than the last.
Shen Xuan was completely dumbfounded.
A tiny bottle of Second-Rank Yao Bird essence blood had actually fetched six hundred and eighty spirit stones!
Shen Xuan felt he'd realized something.
It seemed buying Monster Beast essence blood wasn't all that unusual.
He'd been far too cautious before.
Many cultivators used Monster Beast essence blood to cultivate and make pills.
Just as True Person Qingxu's Essays described, cultivators practiced by absorbing spiritual energy and making it their own.
Monster Beast essence blood, like Monster Beast meat, was one of the sources of spiritual energy that cultivators absorbed.
"So I can buy Water Attribute Monster Beast essence blood directly. I don't have to limit myself to living Monster Beasts."
"But..."
Shen Xuan sighed softly.
Even First-Order Middle Grade Monster Beast essence blood wasn't cheap.
With just over a hundred spirit stones in his Storage Bag, he could buy only one or two bottles—nowhere near enough to plunder a Bloodline Talent.
He'd better focus on earning spirit stones first.
At this stage, his main goals were to cultivate and advance his realm, earn spirit stones through Talisman Crafting, and practice the Life Extension Technique to improve his Proficiency.
The remaining cultivation items were auctioned off one after another, including pills, formations, talismans, artifacts, swords, and plants that were hard to find outside the Market.
Shen Xuan watched the proceedings like a spectator, broadening his horizons.
A Tier 1 High-grade Flying Sword in particular went for a staggering thirteen hundred spirit stones, leaving him in awe. The auction came to an end.
More than two hundred cultivators filed out of the auction hall.
Shen Xuan had left early.
Back at home,
he thought of the cultivation items at the auction and couldn't help sighing.
"I'm still too poor!"
He'd thought that having two Mid-grade Magic Artifacts to his name made him fairly well-off.
As it turned out, their combined value wasn't even a fraction of a High-grade Flying Sword.
This made Shen Xuan question everything.
Could it be that, as a Mid-grade Talisman Master, he was still just a bottom-tier workhorse in the Cultivation World?
After returning from the auction and seeing the prices of all those cultivation items, Shen Xuan finally came to his senses.
Without a doubt, his recent run of good luck had gone to his head.
He wasn't as calm and cautious as he used to be.
The slightest carelessness
could cost him his life!
The Ding Family had valued him so highly lately not merely because he was a Mid-grade Talisman Master.
It was also because he had a fellow student who'd become a Foundation Establishment cultivator in a sect.
Only Shen Xuan knew
that this so-called fellow student was tied to him by nothing more than a little history from years ago.
If trouble really arose, that connection wouldn't scare anyone off.
He'd clearly let his guard down when going out.
Security in Qinglong Bay Market was indeed good.
After moving to the B-grade Residence, he'd stayed within the Market's Inner City and Outer City and hadn't gone back to its outskirts.
But that was no reason to lower his guard.
He had only one life.
Even Zhao Chunsheng knew that nothing mattered more than staying alive.
"Focus on cultivation and Talisman Crafting. Be cautious in every step. Safety comes first!"
That evening, after practicing and making talismans, Shen Xuan went to the back courtyard to guide Ding Yuyao in her whip technique.
When Ding Yijin had given her the Savage Bull Soft Whip, the gift box had also contained a copy of the Spirit Snake Whip Technique, an excellent martial art from the secular world.
Ding Yuyao had practiced the Jade Maiden True Scripture for six years, cultivating Daoist internal force. When she channeled it into the Savage Bull Soft Whip, it packed quite a punch.
Her martial arts skill now rivaled that of a first-rate fighter in the secular world, giving her a little more power to protect herself.
"Husband, you know how to use a whip?"
"What kind of question is that? How could your husband not know how to use a whip? The key to a soft whip is combining softness with strength, switching between yielding and forceful. Wrap, swing, sweep, hook, cast, strike, lash, bind, catch, and so on—it all comes down to those basic moves, arranged in different combinations."
Shen Xuan took Ding Yuyao's hand and channeled a thread of spiritual power into the Savage Bull Soft Whip. Sure enough, it lashed through the air like a Spirit Snake.
"Husband, you're amazing!"
Ding Yuyao's eyes sparkled with admiration.
They'd been married for six years, yet Shen Xuan showed no signs of aging. If anything, he looked more vigorous and spirited than ever.
In every way, he pleased Ding Yuyao more and more.
"Go back and bathe. In a bit, I'll let you experience another kind of whip technique!"
Ding Yuyao's ears turned red.
Her husband was wonderful in every way. It was just that every so often he said something strange that made her heart race for no reason.
Still, when it came to their married life, she did her best to indulge his every preference.
"My husband is a Mid-grade Talisman Master, yet he married only a mortal like me. If I can't satisfy him, what right do I have to stop him from taking another wife or concubines?"
Ding Yuyao mused to herself.
Late that night,
Shen Xuan gave his whip technique a thorough workout.
Ding Yuyao's cheeks flushed, and she panted breathlessly, letting out soft cries.
Afterward,
she collapsed against Shen Xuan.
"Yaoyao, how was your husband's whip technique?"
"Wonderful..."
Ding Yuyao murmured as if in a dream.
Day after day passed.
In the blink of an eye, autumn arrived.
All things withered.
The Market grew quiet, too.
Zhao Chunsheng returned from a hunt.
He hadn't brought back much this trip, and it left him anxious.
Tianxiang Pavilion had been buying Shen Xuan's premium talismans.
Lately, he hadn't even been asked to buy Monster Beasts on Shen Xuan's behalf.
His income now depended entirely on what he could bring back from hunting outside.
If it were just him and his wife, Jiang Xueqi, they wouldn't need to spend many spirit stones.
But tuition for his two sons cost ten spirit stones per month for each of them.
Becoming an Alchemy Apprentice or an Artifact Refining Apprentice was no easy feat!
He went to find Shen Xuan.
"Talisman Master Shen, we recently spotted an Adult Water Cloud Turtle!"
Shen Xuan looked puzzled.
If they'd spotted one, why not go hunt it? An Adult Water Cloud Turtle was worth seven or eight hundred spirit stones!
Even in a team of seven or eight, each person could get around a hundred spirit stones.
Zhao Chunsheng explained, "That Adult Water Cloud Turtle is on the bottom of the Longze River. It's quite large, and might even be Tier 1 High-grade!"
"Our team has only one Water Cultivator, and he's just at the Mid Qi Refining Stage. We'd have a hard time dealing with this Water Cloud Turtle."
A Tier 1 High-grade Water Cloud Turtle—wouldn't it sell for thousands of spirit stones?
Shen Xuan was tempted.
The essence blood of an Adult Water Cloud Turtle should improve his Life Extension Talent's Proficiency.
But when he thought about how hard it would be to hunt a Water Cloud Turtle underwater, he shook his head and politely declined.
"Fellow Daoist Zhao, I'm not good at fighting, so I wouldn't be much help. I'll have to pass."
He could slowly cultivate his Life Extension Talent; it would advance eventually.
The Water Cloud Turtle had excellent defenses, and could use Water Control and Breath Concealment. Its teeth were hard and sharp, and its bite was powerful. It wouldn't be easy to handle.
Monster hunters faced more than Monster Beasts when they went out hunting. They also had to contend with cultivators harboring ill intentions.
As a Qi Refining Level 5 healing-type Talisman Master, he'd certainly become the enemy's first target if the two sides clashed.
"If you catch that Water Cloud Turtle, just sell me some of its essence blood."
Zhao Chunsheng looked disappointed.
A few days later, he set out.
Jiang Xueqi said their team had found two capable fighters to join them in hunting the Water Cloud Turtle.
"Let's hope Zhao Chunsheng has good luck."
Shen Xuan understood how Zhao Chunsheng felt.
The poorer people were, the more they dreamed of striking it rich overnight.
For that chance at sudden wealth, even cautious Zhao Chunsheng would charge ahead without a second thought.
Shen Xuan stayed home, cultivating and making talismans every day, and occasionally enjoying a friendly match with his lovely wife to brighten up life.
A month later, Zhao Chunsheng returned home covered in wounds, carrying a small bucket of Monster Beast blood.
"Talisman Master Shen, this is the Water Cloud Turtle's blood. How many spirit stones do you think it's worth?"
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