The superior-grade magical artifact, the Blazing Fire Halberd, was ultimately won by a red-robed cultivator for the steep price of six hundred and twenty spirit stones.
As the auction continued, treasures were snapped up at high prices, and the atmosphere gradually grew more heated.
It was as though spirit stones were no longer spirit stones, but ordinary rocks.
Finally, the ninth lot was the Yellow Dragon Pill.
"A bottleneck-breaking pill-the Yellow Dragon Pill!"
"Bottleneck-breaking elixirs of this sort rarely reach the market, and the spirit herbs needed to refine this pill are precious and hard to find."
"The Yellow Dragon Pill is highly potent, ranking among the better bottleneck-breaking elixirs for the Qi Refining Period."
"It can increase your chances of breaking through by a full forty percent!"
"Fellow Daoists trapped at a bottleneck, pay close attention! This pill can only be found by chance, not sought at will. Miss this one, and who knows how long you'll have to wait for another."
"But time waits for no one, and spirit stones cannot buy it back. With such an opportunity before you, those who need it must not hesitate!"
"One Yellow Dragon Pill, starting at three hundred spirit stones! Each increase must be at least ten spirit stones!"
With a coaxing tone, Ji Guanglin shouted to the audience below, his expression brimming with excitement.
He would have loved to describe the pill as something rare even in heaven and utterly unheard of on earth.
"Three hundred and fifty spirit stones."
As soon as he finished, a long-haired cultivator in a blue robe and a monkey mask placed a bid, raising the price by fifty spirit stones at once.
The Yellow Dragon Pill had finally come up. Liu Yu perked up and sat straight, though he was in no hurry to bid.
"Four hundred and sixty spirit stones."
"Four hundred and eighty spirit stones."
The bids for the Yellow Dragon Pill climbed steadily, but once the price exceeded five hundred spirit stones, the number of bidders quickly dwindled.
Only two remained in the contest.
One was a young cultivator of around thirty dressed in a scholar's robe; the other was the long-haired cultivator in the monkey mask who had placed the opening bid.
The price was already extremely high, more than enough to buy a decent superior-grade magical artifact.
The steep price brought sweat to both their foreheads. Clearly, this was a considerable sum even for them.
"Five hundred and thirty spirit stones!"
"I am a cultivator of the Zhao Household of Nine-Head Ridge. Our lineage has three Foundation Establishment Ancestors overseeing it. Might you show me a little consideration, fellow Daoist?"
The scholar-robed cultivator stood and cupped his hands toward the man in the monkey mask.
His words carried a veiled threat. The female cultivator beside him also stood, joining him in pressuring the monkey-masked cultivator.
The two seemed to be husband and wife.
But the moment the scholar-robed cultivator finished speaking, a powerful spiritual pressure of the Foundation Establishment Late Stage surged from a private room on the second floor and bore down on him.
Thud, thud.
Locked onto by that spiritual pressure, the scholar-robed cultivator staggered back several steps, his expression turning exceedingly ugly.
Ji Guanglin narrowed his eyes. His smile vanished, and his tone lost all courtesy as he said coldly:
"The auction's rules are not to be broken!"
"As this is your first offense, you will receive only a light punishment. Do it again, and your cultivation will be crippled outright!"
"Let us see whether your Zhao Household's Foundation Establishment cultivators dare come knocking!"
The scholar-robed cultivator and his wife looked extremely displeased. Their lips moved, but neither dared argue.
Yet the monkey-masked cultivator ultimately made no further bid either.
It was unclear whether the price had exceeded his limit or the lineage backing the scholar-robed cultivator had made him wary.
"Five hundred and fifty spirit stones."
Just then, Liu Yu spoke, his voice calm and resolute.
Wearing a conical hat draped in black gauze, he secretly circulated the Spirit-Concealing Art within his body, revealing not the slightest fluctuation of magical power and leaving his strength unfathomable.
For a moment, many cultivators were filled with uncertainty, unable to tell just who Liu Yu was.
The scholar-robed cultivator's eyes widened as he abruptly looked toward Liu Yu, anger lurking in his gaze.
Seeing that Liu Yu remained unmoved, he gritted his teeth and could only continue bidding.
"Five hundred and sixty spirit stones!"
"Six hundred spirit stones!"
Decisive and forceful, Liu Yu raised the price straight to six hundred spirit stones, displaying his determination to secure the pill.
The scholar-robed cultivator stared fixedly at Liu Yu, then finally abandoned the bidding.
"Congratulations to this fellow Daoist on obtaining the Yellow Dragon Pill!"
"You may go to the side hall to complete the transaction whenever you wish."
With the price meeting his expectations, Ji Guanglin's face glowed once more, and his manner became exceedingly courteous.
Liu Yu immediately rose, went to the side hall to pay the spirit stones, and collected the Yellow Dragon Pill.
His goal had been achieved, but unfortunately, he could not leave midway through the auction, so he had to return to his seat.
Time slowly passed as treasure after treasure sold for high prices.
"The Beauty-Nourishing Pill!"
"I'm sure all the fellow Daoists here have heard of this renowned Beauty-Nourishing Pill!"
"That's right, it can greatly slow the aging of your appearance, preserving your youthful beauty."
"Whether you use it yourself or give it to a female cultivator you admire, it will absolutely be worth the price."
"One Beauty-Nourishing Pill, starting at five hundred spirit stones! Each increase must be at least twenty spirit stones!"
Ji Guanglin worked hard to stir the crowd's emotions, his voice growing somewhat hoarse.
"Five hundred and twenty spirit stones!"
"Five hundred and eighty spirit stones!"
Although the Beauty-Nourishing Pill could not increase magical power, it could greatly slow the aging of one's appearance, making it one of the pills female cultivators dreamed of obtaining.
But its ingredients were expensive, and refining it demanded an exceptionally high level of skill from the alchemist, so its price remained consistently high.
It was simply beyond the means of an ordinary female cultivator.
As bid after bid rang out, the price quickly passed seven hundred, already approaching the cost of a top-grade magical artifact.
The Beauty-Nourishing Pill cannot improve cultivation. All it does is slow the aging of one's appearance.
I really don't understand why these female cultivators are so frenzied!
Watching this scene, Liu Yu was rather speechless.
The female cultivator wearing a rabbit mask on his right also began bidding.
Her fists clenched, she stood up and joined the fierce contest, seemingly placing great importance on the Beauty-Nourishing Pill.
Judging by her clear voice and slender figure, Liu Yu reckoned she could not be very old. She might well be a young girl.
"Eight hundred spirit stones."
Her chest rose and fell rapidly, and her hands clenched and relaxed, betraying her intense eagerness.
She suddenly gave a light stamp of her foot and called out an astonishing price, drawing sidelong glances from many cultivators.
"..."
Liu Yu felt somewhat helpless. He had intended to keep a low profile and watch until the auction ended.
He had never expected the female cultivator beside him to draw attention to him as well through her lavish spending.
At eight hundred spirit stones, no one else competed. The exorbitant price seemed to have brought some of the female cultivators back to their senses.
Only when Ji Guanglin announced the winner of the Beauty-Nourishing Pill did the rabbit-masked cultivator let out a soft breath and sit back down.
However, she soon rose again.
With light, brisk steps, she hurried toward the side hall to complete the transaction for a pill worth as much as a top-grade magical artifact.
Liu Yu keenly noticed that quite a few cultivators were looking at the girl with eyes full of greed.
Of course. Any cultivator who can spend eight hundred spirit stones on a Beauty-Nourishing Pill must have considerable wealth.
As this thought flashed through his mind, he secretly shook his head.
According to the Essentials of Demonic Cultivation, she was practically a rare "fat sheep."
Such choice prey would often draw several hunters into a fierce contest.
For an instant, he seemed to see yet another fragile life fading away.
At that thought, Liu Yu gave a quiet, rueful smile.
I'm just a minor cultivator in middle Qi Refining. Why am I sighing over so much?
What does it have to do with me?!
Just as the Essentials of Demonic Cultivation says, the cultivation world has always been this cruel!
Liu Yu watched coldly from the sidelines and reined in his wandering thoughts.
The slight ripples across the lake of his heart soon settled into stillness, and he quietly waited for the auction to end.
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