Auction

With Xiao Wu's spirit ring issue resolved, Bai Shu's life finally settled into a leisurely pace.

For the next month, aside from his unwavering daily cultivation, he would occasionally set aside time to use his Life Domain to assist Dugu Yan and Xiao Wu in their training. Thanks to this, the two girls' cultivation speeds improved by leaps and bounds.

At the same time, Bai Shu bestowed two more Chaos Lotus Seeds upon Dugu Yan, further accelerating the refinement of her spirit power. Witnessing his granddaughter's transformation firsthand made Dugu Bo even more devoted to Bai Shu.

Days passed in this calm and fulfilling rhythm.

Ning Fengzhi had been silent since the day he left. Bai Shu guessed that the man had likely discovered the astonishing value of the immortal herbs and was now agonizing over what equivalent treasures to offer for a trade.

On this afternoon, as Bai Shu slowly opened his eyes from his meditation, Dugu Bo approached him with hurried steps and a hint of excitement.

"Young Master, today is the day of the Heaven Dou Grand Auction. Would you like to go and take a look?"

Bai Shu looked up at the warm sunshine outside the window and stretched. "Why not? I'm idle anyway, so I might as well go and see. I imagine this auction will be quite lively."

"It is indeed lively," Dugu Bo chuckled.

"Because of the heaven-defying effect of the Ninth-Grade Purple Ganoderma in breaking through bottlenecks, many old fellows who have been stuck at level 89 or 79 for years have caught wind of it and gathered in Heaven Dou City."

"I hear that for the past few days, those arrogant noble youths in the city have been grounded by their elders, all for fear that they might be blind and offend some short-tempered old monster."

"Heh, causing trouble is a habit carved into their bones. You can lock them up for a moment, but not for a lifetime. Trouble is bound to happen sooner or later," Bai Shu remarked indifferently.

As they spoke, the two boarded a carriage.

This carriage was a gift to Dugu Bo from the Heaven Dou Imperial family. Crafted entirely from precious ebony, it featured a spacious cabin and luxurious interior decorations.

Most importantly, the side of the carriage was carved with a lifelike green snake totem—the very image of Dugu Bo's Spirit Soul: the Azure Python Emperor!

In Heaven Dou City, this carriage was a pass in itself. The journey was exceptionally smooth; whether they were commoners or nobles, everyone instinctively steered their carriages aside.

Bai Shu lifted the curtain, watching the bustling, prosperous scene outside, and felt a momentary sense of trance.

This scene of prosperity stirred some long-buried memories, making him nostalgic for the neon-lit world of his past life, which, though devoid of blades and shadows, was equally dazzling.

I wonder if the system has the ability to send me home...

"Young Master, we have arrived." Just as Bai Shu's thoughts drifted, Dugu Bo's voice pulled him back to reality.

Bai Shu regained his composure and glanced outside. The Heaven Dou Grand Auction House was imposing, and the entrance was already packed with a sea of people, blocking the way completely.

He remained calm, showing no signs of stage fright. After Dugu Bo lifted the curtain for him, he stepped out with a composed demeanor.

The surrounding crowd, having seen the great Poison Douluo step out, had eyes filled with heat and awe. They all knew that the Ninth-Grade Purple Ganoderma had been consigned by this very man.

However, the next second, when they saw this legendary Title Douluo bow his head and gesture for the teenager behind him to proceed, everyone was stunned.

Those who were less informed immediately erupted into hushed, uncontrollable whispers.

"Who is that boy? To think he could make the Poison Douluo act so respectfully!"

"Did I see that right? That's the Poison Douluo, a figure even the Imperial family has to treat with courtesy!"

With Dugu Bo's cultivation, these mosquito-like whispers reached his ears clearly, causing him to frown. Not only were these people blocking the path, but they dared to gossip about the Young Master? Did they think a Title Douluo was just for show?

"Hmph!"

The next moment, a cold snort escaped Dugu Bo's nostrils, and a terrifying, invisible pressure erupted! The aura belonging to a Title Douluo swept out without reservation, acting like an invisible giant hand that shoved the crowd at the entrance aside!

Under this pressure, some weaker Spirit Masters felt their legs go soft and collapsed to their knees with a thud.

Even the few Spirit Sages and the one elderly Spirit Douluo in the crowd felt a tightness in their chests and shortness of breath. Their faces turned deathly pale, and they were forced back seven or eight steps before they could steady themselves, their eyes filled with horror as they looked at Dugu Bo.

A wide path was cleared in an instant.

"Young Master, please." Dugu Bo acted as if he had done something trivial, bowing again to Bai Shu.

Bai Shu wore a faint smile, unfazed. This was the world of power—simple and direct. He nodded slightly and walked past Dugu Bo with a calm expression, stepping onto the stairs leading into the auction house.

As their figures disappeared inside, the area outside the auction house fell into a deathly silence, followed immediately by an explosion of deafening discussion!

"My god... that pressure just now, I almost knelt!"

"That boy... just who is he!"

"Is this really the arrogant, ruthless Poison Douluo? The way he looked just now was even more submissive than our head butler!"

However, compared to their curiosity about Bai Shu, after witnessing the might of a Title Douluo, many experts were even more desperate for the Ninth-Grade Purple Ganoderma; it might be their shortcut to reaching the Title rank.

On the other side, as soon as the two entered the auction house, a manager in a well-tailored suit rushed over, sweating profusely, clearly having waited there for a long time.

"Young Master Bai... Your Excellency Dugu, your VIP suite has been prepared. Please, this way!" The manager bowed deeply as he led the way, never daring to look up at them for more than a second.

He brought them to a luxurious suite on the top floor with an excellent view.

After carefully taking the wooden box handed over by Dugu Bo and presenting a beautifully crafted booklet, he retreated respectfully and tactfully.

"Young Master Bai, this is the catalog of all the items in this auction. Please have a look."

Bai Shu took the booklet, flipped it open, and his gaze paused slightly on one of the pages.

"There are medicinal pills in the Douluo Continent?"

It was no wonder Bai Shu was surprised. In his impression, neither Tang San nor Ju Douluo had ever mentioned anything about medicinal properties or combinations; they only knew how to consume the immortal herbs individually.

Dugu Bo looked at the booklet in Bai Shu's hand, and after a single glance, he explained:

"Young Master, this should be the Soul Breaking Pill made by the Po Clan. Although it claims to allow Spirit Masters below level 30 to increase their spirit power by one level, it cannot be used for bottlenecks like the one between level 19 and 20. Furthermore, its medicinal power is tyrannical; it damages the meridians and permanently lowers a Spirit Master's future cultivation speed."

"Uh, that's not entirely useless." Bai Shu was speechless.

"Indeed. Aside from a few Spirit Masters with no hope of further advancement, almost no one would eat this kind of thing." Dugu Bo curled his lip in disdain, clearly looking down on such "trash."

Bai Shu did not refute Dugu Bo; after all, what Dugu Bo said was a fact, though it did stir up some other thoughts in his mind.

The immortal herbs of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well were excellent, but if they could be combined with powerful alchemy techniques from other worlds, perhaps they could be even better.

However, according to the system's rules, the better the reward, the harder the mission; at most, he could only obtain a legacy at the level of an eighth-grade alchemist.

Yet, using a precious mission attempt for this felt somewhat unworthy, and besides, alchemy techniques from other worlds might not necessarily be applicable to immortal herbs.