"One Foundation Establishment Pill. The starting bid is twenty thousand low-grade spirit stones, with a minimum increment of one hundred spirit stones."
At this, Liu Changxu immediately sat up straight. He had not expected the underground auction to offer a Foundation Establishment Pill.
His greatest worry at present was the Liu Household's shortage of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Red Lotus Island still had none stationed there!
Because of this, Liu Changxu could only leave his spirit beast at Red Lotus Lake. But however powerful a spirit beast was, it could not replace a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
The Azure Cloud Sect's strict control over Foundation Establishment Pills meant that very few ever reached the market.
Liu Changxu had originally planned to exchange the merit points he and his lineage earned for Foundation Establishment Pills once the Human-Demon War ended. But no one could predict when the war would end, leaving the Liu Household unable to obtain any. His father, Liu Shihao, had attended auctions several times in hopes of buying one, but all his efforts had come to nothing.
Now that a Foundation Establishment Pill was up for auction, he had to secure it. In fact, Liu Changxu was not the only one determined to win it; many other Foundation Establishment cultivators shared his resolve. The atmosphere reached a fever pitch.
"Thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones!"
"Thirty-five thousand low-grade spirit stones!"
"Forty thousand low-grade spirit stones!"
"Fifty thousand low-grade spirit stones!"
Liu Changxu spoke up, immediately raising the price to the usual ceiling of fifty thousand low-grade spirit stones. That was normally as high as Foundation Establishment Pills went at auction.
Sure enough, the room immediately fell silent after Liu Changxu announced his bid.
Yet, to Liu Changxu's surprise, a clear female voice rang out:
"Fifty-three thousand low-grade spirit stones!"
"Fifty-five