Heaven Dou City.
On the bustling street, Dugu Yan walked at the front with her arm linked through Ye Lingling's, the two girls stopping now and then before jewelry stalls and clothing shops.
Yu Tianming and the others followed behind, watching them enthusiastically pick out various little trinkets.
"Lingling, this hairpin would suit you so well!"
Dugu Yan picked up a silver hairpin inlaid with a sapphire and held it against Ye Lingling's hair.
Ye Lingling shook her head slightly. "You don't need to spend money on me..."
"What are you worried about? Grandpa gave me a hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!" Dugu Yan slapped down several Gold Soul Coins with a grand flourish. "Wrap it up!"
"Certainly!"
The shopkeeper immediately beamed.
Yu Tianming stood at the shop entrance, but his gaze was drawn to an old-fashioned medicinal herb shop across the street.
A wooden sign reading "Hundred Herbs Pavilion" hung outside its entrance, and wafts of medicinal fragrance drifted out.
"Keep shopping. I'll go take a look over there," he told Yu Tianheng.
Inside the herb shop, Yu Tianming carefully selected the medicinal herbs needed to cultivate the Indestructible Vajra Body.
When he picked up a completely golden "dragon blood ginseng," the shopkeeper's eyes lit up. "Young master, you have a discerning eye. This is a rare specimen five hundred years old..."
Yu Tianming did not haggle with the shopkeeper.
As the young clan master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, he naturally had no shortage of money.
Yu Tianming bought the dragon blood ginseng outright, then continued selecting other herbs.
Suddenly,
Dugu Yan's voice came from the entrance. "So this is where you are!"
She came over curiously, her emerald eyes sweeping over the herbs on the counter before turning to Yu Tianming. "What are you buying?"
"Some medicinal herbs to aid cultivation."
Yu Tianming answered briefly, quickly paid, and put the herbs into his Storage Soul Tool.
Dugu Yan pursed her lips. "So secretive... come on. I just heard there's something good at the auction house today!"
"Mm."
Yu Tianming smiled slightly.
By the time the group arrived at the Heaven Dou Grand Auction House, it was already noon.
Before the magnificent white building, lavishly dressed nobles and Soul Masters streamed in without end.
"I heard they're auctioning a Soul Bone today..." Yu Feng said in a lowered voice.
"A Soul Bone! How old is it?"
Yu Tianheng's eyes immediately lit up, and he pressed for details.
Although Heaven Dou City's auction house was very large, it rarely auctioned Soul Bones. Those things truly could only be stumbled upon, never sought out.
Any with a somewhat higher age started at several hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!
A Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone was worth a fortune.
"Not sure."
Yu Feng shook his head. He did not know the specifics either and had only heard rumors.
Dugu Yan waved the VIP card in her hand. "Let's go inside first. My grandpa's card lets us go straight to a private box."
"All right!"
The group entered the auction house.
The auction house's interior glittered with gold and jade, and an attendant led the eight of them to an elegant private box on the second floor.
Through the one-way glass, they could clearly see the auction stage in the center.
The auction soon began.
A beautiful, elegant auctioneer dressed in a black evening gown walked gracefully onto the stage with a smile.
Then, in a clear voice, she announced the official start of the auction.
As the first lot was presented, however, everyone in the box showed little interest.
The items in the first few rounds were nothing more than pearls, precious jade, and exquisite jewelry. Although their craftsmanship was exceptional, they held little appeal for Soul Masters.
"Lot seventeen-a deep-sea blue crystal necklace, crafted by a master artisan of the Star Luo Empire and set with three hundred-year pearls. The starting bid is three hundred Gold Soul Coins."
Dugu Yan's eyes lit up. She leaned toward the one-way glass for a closer look, then raised her bidding paddle. "Three hundred and fifty."
Yu Tianheng yawned and leaned lazily against the sofa. "Yanzi, can you even wear all the jewelry you're buying?"
Dugu Yan rolled her eyes at him. "What's it to you? I'll definitely look good in this."
Yu Tianheng spread his hands and did not argue with Dugu Yan over such things.
It was not his money anyway.
In the end, Dugu Yan won the necklace for four hundred Gold Soul Coins.
The next few lots remained unremarkable, until-
"Lot thirty-two-ten-thousand-year whale glue, harvested from a giant deep-sea whale. After ten thousand years of accumulation, its medicinal potency is rich and mellow. The starting bid is five hundred Gold Soul Coins."
The auctioneer had barely finished speaking when a few quiet chuckles came from below the stage.
Clearly, everyone knew what this "whale rubber" was used for on the market.
Yu Tianming and the others, however, focused their gazes and immediately sat up straight.
This piece of whale rubber was as large as a human head, dark gold throughout, with faint, fine patterns on its surface. Consuming it would definitely greatly strengthen the body!
Even for someone with a physique as strong as Yu Tianming's, consuming it would presumably have a good effect.
Just as Yu Tianming was about to raise his paddle to bid, Dugu Yan beside him pressed his hand down.
"Tianming, you two brothers bought those pieces of thousand-year whale rubber. I can't let you pay for this ten-thousand-year whale glue too."
The corners of Dugu Yan's lips curved upward, amusement in her emerald eyes. "Big sis has money. Leave this piece of ten-thousand-year whale glue to me."
"That works too."
Yu Tianming thought for a moment and did not refuse.
Dugu Yan smiled with pursed lips and raised her paddle at once. "Five hundred Gold Soul Coins."
No one below the stage competed. After all, in most people's eyes, this was merely a tonic for boosting virility. No matter how old it was, it could not be worth much.
Unless they wanted to curry favor with some important figure who had needs in that regard, it was not worth buying at all.
"Five hundred Gold Soul Coins going once, five hundred Gold Soul Coins going twice... sold!"
The auctioneer brought down the gavel, sealing the deal.
The ten-thousand-year whale glue was soon delivered to their private box.
The auction continued.
Yu Tianming and the others had no interest in the next few auction items.
Until lot forty-five!
The auctioneer clapped lightly, and two attendants carefully carried out a crystal tray.
The red silk was lifted, revealing a strange crystal that was emerald green throughout, with what seemed to be liquid flowing inside. Its faint breath of life brought the entire auction house to silence.
"Lot forty-five-Jade Spirit Crystal, originating from the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest. Appraisal has confirmed that it contains considerable life energy.
The starting bid is ten thousand Gold Soul Coins!"
Yu Tianming abruptly straightened, a flicker of shock crossing his eyes. "This... could this be..."
He stared fixedly at the crystal,
That breath of life, that golden sheen within the emerald green-could it be the legendary... Gold of Life?
Dugu Yan leaned curiously toward the glass. "Tianming, do you recognize this thing?"
Yu Tianming shook his head.
"No, but my intuition tells me this thing is no ordinary item."
"Ten thousand Gold Soul Coins!"
Yu Tianming raised his paddle without hesitation.
Even if it was only a possibility, Gold of Life was worth taking a gamble on.
If this so-called "Jade Spirit Crystal" was Gold of Life, then never mind tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coins-even hundreds of thousands or millions would be worth it!
"Fifteen thousand Gold Soul Coins."
A deep voice suddenly resounded throughout the hall.
The one-way glass barrier of the central box on the second floor was suddenly withdrawn, revealing Bishop Salas standing there with his hands behind his back, his Platinum Bishop robes gleaming beneath the lights.
Two Spirit Hall deacons stood behind him, both exuding powerful presences.
"It's Bishop Salas from Spirit Hall!" someone below the stage exclaimed.
This deliberate display of status brought the auction house to silence.
Many nobles who had originally intended to bid silently lowered the numbered paddles in their hands.
One of the four great Platinum Bishops and the head of Spirit Hall's branch in Heaven Dou City-his status alone made the vast majority shrink back!