Chapter 149: Chapter 116: Purple Mist Red Fruit
With so many Foundation Establishment Cultivators sitting in front, the pressure was immense.
At this moment, Chen Jianghe wanted to move to the very last row, but there were no seats left. Initially, he assumed these cultivators would all sit at the front, so he had chosen a seat in the fourth row from the back. But looking around now, his seat had become part of the middle section, even slightly toward the front.
At 9:15 PM, the entrance to the fourth-floor auction closed.
Chen Jianghe took a glance around. There weren’t many cultivators present—only about a hundred Qi Refining Cultivators. Ninety percent of them were in the Late-Stage Qi Refining. The rest were in the Mid-Stage Qi Refining, and as for Early-Stage Qi Refining, there was not a single one. Furthermore, there were thirteen Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
Among these Foundation Establishment Cultivators, Chen Jianghe spotted a familiar figure.
He thought in shock, "The Yun Family Ancestor? He actually came too!"
Back when Yun Bufan attempted to break through to Foundation Establishment, the ancestors of four major Foundation Establishment Immortal Races had come to "congratulate" him, and the Yun Family Ancestor had personally welcomed them. Chen Jianghe had seen his back from afar on a fishing boat; the powerful, terrifying aura was unforgettable.
He wondered, "Could he be here for the Lifespan Extension Pill?"
When he was at Jingyue Marketplace, he had heard rumors about the Yun Family Ancestor. He was the great-grandfather of Patriarch Yun Xiaotian and Yun Xiaoqian. By now, the Ancestor should be around one hundred and ninety years old. Considering the absolute lifespan limit for the Foundation Establishment Stage was two hundred and twenty years, that meant he only had twenty or thirty years left to live. It was indeed time for him to purchase a Lifespan Extension Pill.
Of the thirteen Foundation Establishment Cultivators sitting in the front, nine were old men, one was middle-aged, and three were young men. Clearly, most of them were here for the Lifespan Extension Pill.
He didn’t look at the Yun Family Ancestor again, lest he be discovered. Even though releasing Divine Sense wasn’t allowed here, the perception of a Foundation Establishment Ancestor was still incredibly sharp.
THUD!
The Gilded Crystal of the Ring Array lit up, brightly illuminating the auction stage. Chen Jianghe stared intently at the stage, wondering who would host the auction this time. Back at Jingyue Lake, the auction had been hosted personally by the steward of the Hundred Treasures Tower.
The next moment, an old man walked onto the stage and delivered the opening remarks.
It wasn’t Gao Peiyao, which was within expectations. After all, she was a Foundation Establishment Cultivator; how could she stand on stage and present auction items to a group of Qi Refining Cultivators? Even her peers in the Foundation Establishment Stage wouldn’t have the face to make such a demand of her. Gao Peiyao was a Sect Foundation Establishment, not a Foundation Establishment Ancestor from a Cultivation Clan.
"...This auction features a total of thirty-two rare treasures. Ten of them are Spiritual Object and Materials needed by Late-Stage Qi Refining Cultivators, while the remaining twenty-two are treasures meant for Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
"Now, let the auction for the first treasure begin.
"Tier One High-Grade Spirit-Enriching Spirit Liquid. As everyone knows, Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid is easier to absorb than the Nourishing Spirit Pill, and it is extremely helpful for enhancing Soul Essence.
"There are ten bottles in total. The starting price is one thousand Spirit Stones, and each minimum bid increment must not be less than ten Spirit Stones."
As soon as his voice fell, cultivators began calling out bids.
"One thousand and twenty Spirit Stones."
"One thousand and seventy Spirit Stones."
"..."
"One thousand, one hundred and ninety Spirit Stones."
"..."
All the bidders were Late-Stage Qi Refining Cultivators, and specifically, Ninth-Layer Qi Refining Cultivators. They had likely all begun to practice Spiritual Cultivation Techniques, which was why they were willing to spend a fortune on Tier One High-Grade Spirit-Enriching Spirit Liquid. Furthermore, there was a high probability that these cultivators were all from Cultivation Clans, as Demon Hunters simply couldn’t afford Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid.
The base price alone was enough to deter them. If bought bottle by bottle on the open market, it was a priceless treasure with far more demand than supply. Much like the Nourishing Spirit Pill, it could only be purchased at an Immortal Sect Marketplace; anywhere else, it would only appear at auctions.
"Alchemist Zhuang, is Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid truly better than the Nourishing Spirit Pill?" Chen Jianghe asked via voice transmission.
Logically speaking, the effects of a Spirit Pill were always superior to those of a Spirit Liquid. So why did the auctioneer claim the Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid was better? It was rather strange.
"The efficacy of the Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid is slightly lower than that of the Nourishing Spirit Pill, but over ninety percent of it can be absorbed and refined by a cultivator. On the other hand, the Nourishing Spirit Pill can only be absorbed and refined to about seventy or eighty percent."
Alchemist Zhuang cast a glance at Chen Jianghe’s confused gaze and explained a bit more via voice transmission.
"Both the Nourishing Spirit Pill and Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid are only sold in Immortal Sect Marketplaces. In other Marketplaces, they can only be bid on at auctions.
"The price of a Nourishing Spirit Pill in an Immortal Sect Marketplace is eighty Spirit Stones per pill, but at an auction, the premium price can reach up to one hundred and twenty Spirit Stones.
"Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid costs one hundred Spirit Stones per bottle in an Immortal Sect Marketplace, and its auction premium can max out at one hundred and fifty Spirit Stones.
"However, when buying the Nourishing Spirit Pill and Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid in an Immortal Sect Marketplace, you are required to consume them before leaving the Marketplace."
Hearing Alchemist Zhuang’s transmission, Chen Jianghe was surprised that Immortal Sect Marketplaces had such a rule. But it made sense considering the high markup at auctions. If someone could just buy them from an Immortal Sect Marketplace and resell them at other Marketplaces, wouldn’t they instantly strike it rich?
"Alchemist Zhuang, with the profits for the Nourishing Spirit Pill being so high, can you refine it?" Chen Jianghe asked.
He would also need the Nourishing Spirit Pill in the future, so it was naturally better to ask now. If Alchemist Zhuang was still alive in the future, he could just buy directly from him. That way, he wouldn’t have to figure out a way to get to an Immortal Sect Marketplace, much less engage in cutthroat bidding at an auction.
Alchemist Zhuang cast a surprised glance at Chen Jianghe and fell silent. After a long while, he finally replied, "I don’t have the Pill Formula."
"Uh!" Chen Jianghe smiled awkwardly.
It suddenly struck him that Alchemy Dao was different from drawing Spirit Talismans. A Talisman Dao inheritance basically included the templates for drawing all kinds of Spirit Talismans. However, an Alchemy Dao inheritance certainly did not include every Pill Formula. Many Pill Formulas were exclusive secrets. The only exceptions were those where the main material was monopolized—like the Youthful Pill. Every Pill Master knew its formula, but what use was that? Its main material, Youthful Grass, was monopolized by the Celestial South Sect. Could anyone really storm the Celestial South Sect to rob them?
"What about the High-Grade Qi Blood Pill? Can Alchemist Zhuang refine that?" Chen Jianghe asked again. He was about to delve into Body Refining soon, so this was an Elixir he urgently needed.
"There are many kinds of Pill Formulas for the Qi Blood Pill, but their effects are roughly the same. I have two Qi Blood Pill Formulas in my possession. Therefore, I can refine the Qi Blood Pill, the Meridian Opening Pill, and the Body Refining Pill."
"Alchemist Zhuang is truly knowledgeable," Chen Jianghe praised sincerely. He would need all of these in the future, so he genuinely commended Alchemist Zhuang from the bottom of his heart. As for the Nourishing Spirit Pill and Spirit-Encompassing Spirit Liquid, he would figure something out when the time came.
While they chatted via voice transmission, the auction was in full swing, already reaching the twenty-sixth rare treasure. The earlier treasures meant for Qi Refining Cultivators were just appetizers; the items that followed were the true treasures.
Main materials for refining Top-Level Spiritual Artifacts, as well as the horns, Spirit Blood, and claws of Tier Two Spirit Beasts, appeared. Furthermore, main materials for refining Top-Level Defense Spiritual Artifacts were being fiercely contested by Foundation Establishment Cultivators. In particular, the treasure currently being auctioned—the Turtle Shell of a Tier Two Demon Beast, the Stone Rock Turtle—had already been bid up to one thousand and one hundred Spirit Stones by the Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
The Stone Rock Turtle had a Third-Grade High-Class Bloodline. Its entire body was a treasure, but its Turtle Shell had the highest value. With just a little refinement from an Artifact Refiner, it was guaranteed to become a Top-Level Defense Spiritual Artifact.
"Does Fellow Daoist Chen know how this Turtle Shell came to be?" Alchemist Zhuang asked via voice transmission, his tone full of profound mystery.
"Please enlighten me."
"A Great Core Formation expert of the Beast Taming Immortal Race Zhou Family ventured deep into the Youxian Mountain Range and encountered a Stone Rock Turtle. He originally wanted to capture it and tame it into a Spirit Beast, but it managed to escape, leaving this Turtle Shell behind."
"??? It discarded its shell and escaped, and it can still live?" Chen Jianghe was stunned.
"Of course it can live, but its defenses will be weakened. Plus, since the Stone Rock Turtle’s attacks aren’t strong, it will ultimately be devoured by other Demon Beasts."
Hearing Alchemist Zhuang’s words, an involuntary thought popped into Chen Jianghe’s mind. He thought, "If Little Black breaks through to Tier Two and times get tough in the future, I could sell Little Black’s Turtle Shell first to make a living."
Ultimately, this Stone Rock Turtle Shell was won by the Foundation Establishment Cultivator backing the Qinghe Marketplace for one thousand and six hundred Spirit Stones.
"Now auctioning the twenty-seventh rare treasure: the Purple Mist Red Fruit," the auctioneer announced.
As his voice fell, all the cultivators in the auction hall froze and drew in a sharp breath, looking in astonishment at the item covered by red silk on the stage.
The Purple Mist Red Fruit?
Chen Jianghe was at a loss. The *Yun Family Magazine* had no record of the Purple Mist Red Fruit, but he saw that the expressions of the vast majority of cultivators in the Auction Site had changed. Even Alchemist Zhuang, sitting beside him, had his pupils dilate.
"Alchemist Zhuang, what is this Purple Mist Red Fruit?"