togophonebook Chapter 15 The Auction of Elixirs Begins
Chapter 15 The Auction of Elixirs Begins
While leisurely savoring the spiritual fruits and fine wine provided by the Great Jin royal family on the table—these spiritual fruits, though of little use to Nascent Soul cultivators, were still sweet and full of spiritual energy, making them quite rare—Wang Tianlong watched with great interest as cultivators from all sides fiercely bid for their desired items.
Amidst the continuous bidding, all the rare refining materials that Master Ziyang brought out, whether it was Houtu Sand, Ice Soul Water, Geng Gold, or Soul Stone, were sold to knowledgeable cultivators at considerable prices, with none going unsold.
When a "Celestial Star Stone," which shimmered with starlight and was remarkably effective for cultivating star-related techniques, was auctioned off at a high price by a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Star Palace, True Person Ziyang did not immediately produce the next material.
He paused briefly, a meaningful smile appearing on his face, and took a pure white, jade-like elixir bottle from the waiter. The bottle appeared simple, but a faint spiritual light flowed around its surface, clearly indicating that it was no ordinary item.
"Fellow Daoists," Master Ziyang's voice drew everyone's attention back, "the next items to be auctioned may be more practical for many of you than the spiritual materials mentioned before."
He raised the jade bottle and announced loudly, "One bottle of Jade Essence Pills contains ten pills! This pill is made primarily with ten-thousand-year-old jade marrow, supplemented with forty-nine kinds of thousand-year-old spiritual herbs, and was personally refined by the Supreme Elder of Medicine King Mountain. Its effect is singular and pure—strengthening the foundation and nourishing the vital energy, improving cultivation! Especially for fellow cultivators in the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, refining this pill can save them decades of arduous cultivation! Even fellow cultivators in the middle stage of the Nascent Soul realm will find it quite beneficial!"
A pill that can directly refine one's Nascent Soul stage cultivation! This is far more direct and practical than many rare and precious herbs! Many early-stage Nascent Soul cultivators below the stage, as well as some cultivators stuck at the mid-stage Nascent Soul bottleneck who urgently needed to accumulate cultivation power to break through, instantly had their eyes burning with desire. Such pills have always been strictly controlled by the top sects and rarely leak out.
"Ten Jade Flower Pills per bottle, starting bid—one hundred high-grade spirit stones! Each bid must be at least five stones higher!" Master Ziyang announced the price directly.
"One hundred and ten yuan!"
"One hundred and twenty yuan!"
"One hundred and fifty yuan!"
Bidding immediately erupted, and the atmosphere became heated once again. Wang Tianlong also put down his wine cup, his gaze falling on the jade bottle. This pill was no longer of much effect on his peak mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivation, so he did not intend to make a move.
The bottle of "Jade Flower Pill," capable of refining cultivation to the early stages of the Nascent Soul realm, was ultimately won by an elderly man in the early Nascent Soul stage, whose aura was slightly weathered and who was clearly a rogue cultivator, after fierce bidding among several cultivators. He gritted his teeth and bought it for 350 high-grade spirit stones. The old man's face showed a mixture of relief and pain, indicating that this expense was no small sum for him, but he had no choice but to do it for the sake of advancing his cultivation.
Immediately afterward, Master Ziyang took out several bottles of pills with different effects. There were "Nine Revolutions Rejuvenating Pills," capable of quickly restoring the severe injuries of Nascent Soul cultivators; "Myriad Wonders Detoxifying Powder," capable of curing several kinds of rare poisons; and "Spirit Nourishing Pills," which could significantly enhance spiritual power for a short time, useful for exploring dangerous areas or in battle. While these pills didn't directly increase cultivation like the Jade Flower Pills, their versatility—whether for saving lives, relieving calamities, or providing support—made them extremely practical and highly sought after, fetching high prices. The cultivators from the Seven Star Realms seemed to place particular emphasis on healing pills, bidding on several bottles of high-quality "Nine Revolutions Rejuvenating Pills."
Later, when Master Ziyang took out a bottle of pills called "Yangyuan Dan" that he claimed could increase one's lifespan by sixty years, the atmosphere in the auction house changed subtly.
For Nascent Soul cultivators with lifespans often spanning thousands of years, this elixir has limited value under normal circumstances. However, for those Nascent Soul cultivators whose lifespans are nearing their end but who are stuck at a bottleneck and unable to break through, these extra sixty years may be a lifeline, a final opportunity to find a breakthrough!
Several Nascent Soul cultivators, whose auras clearly betrayed decline and weariness, and whose eyes held deep anxiety (including the Crimson Flame True Man who had previously bid for the Ten-Thousand-Year Vermilion Fruit), straightened up abruptly almost the instant True Man Ziyang finished speaking, their gazes fixed intently on the bottle of pills. The bidding had been a desperate gamble from the very beginning, with prices soaring far faster than before.
"Two hundred yuan!"
"Two hundred and eighty yuan!"
"Three hundred and fifty yuan!"
Several elderly cultivators, nearing the end of their lives, argued heatedly, their faces flushed. Each bid seemed to be squeezing out their last reserves. They knew in their hearts that this might be their last chance to prolong their cultivation and avoid death.
This scene, witnessed by several powerful demon cultivators nearby, drew undisguised disdain. For Nascent Soul stage demon cultivators, whose lifespans generally far exceeded those of their human counterparts, often exceeding tens of thousands of years, pills that added a few dozen or a hundred years were utterly useless. The Iron Ape King even curled his lip in disdain, whispering a few words to the Azure Feather Demon King beside him, eliciting a soft chuckle from the latter. His gaze seemed to say: Human cultivators are so short-sighted and weak, fighting over such insignificant amounts of lifespan.
Finally, after a fierce bidding war, True Immortal Crimson Fire successfully won the bottle of "Nourishing Essence Pills" for the astronomical price of 430 high-grade spirit stones. The bottle contained three pills, each capable of extending one's lifespan by sixty years. However, this type of pill exhibits extremely high resistance; the more one takes, the more its effects diminish. Even if all three were taken, it would only extend his lifespan by a maximum of a hundred years.
However, when True Immortal Crimson Fire received the pill, his tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly. He carefully put away the bottle, as if holding a priceless treasure that could prolong his life. The other old cultivators who also won the longevity pills mostly showed similar expressions, a mixture of heartache at the enormous price they had paid and relief at having grasped a glimmer of hope.
Wang Tianlong, sitting to the side, took in all of this. He gently swirled the wine in his hand, looking at his fellow cultivators who were emaciated and willing to give up everything just to live a hundred years longer, and then glanced at the demon cultivators who had long lifespans and scoffed at this. A complex feeling welled up in his heart.
On the path to immortality, who is not afraid of the end of their lifespan and the demise of their cultivation? Even if one cultivates to the level of a deity and enjoys thousands of years of lifespan, if one does not achieve the Great Dao and cannot advance further, one will ultimately be swept away by the river of time and turn into a handful of yellow earth. A thousand years of cultivation will all return to dust.
"Without achieving the Great Dao, everything is ultimately just a mirage." He sighed silently to himself, his pursuit of power and his yearning for a higher realm growing ever stronger. He put down his wine cup, his gaze hardening once more as he turned to the auction stage. These longevity elixirs were still too early for him; his goal remained far beyond.