Chapter 246 - 188: Immortal City’s True Inheritance, A Great Harvest
Chapter 246: Chapter 188: Immortal City’s True Inheritance, A Great Harvest
Upon hearing her words, Lin Changheng gave Yan Mingyi a surprised glance. He hadn’t expected this woman to be so grounded and clear-headed, a trait he greatly admired.
In the past, he had attended several auctions featuring Foundation Establishment Pills or Foundation Establishment Spiritual Objects. While the other cultivators couldn’t bear to leave until the very end, he had no intention of lingering. Once he achieved his goal, he would depart immediately.
It was important to not bite off more than you could chew.
It wasn’t long, however, before his eyes lit up.
A Female Attendant on the auction stage held a tray bearing two Spirit Fruits.
They were fist-sized, with a red and white pattern. The red spots looked like splatters of blood.
They were Flood Dragon Blood Fruits, to be auctioned separately.
After encountering another powerful and wealthy competitor who also needed the fruit, they probed each other’s intentions for a moment before coming to a tacit understanding, each taking one.
It cost him over three thousand Spirit Stones.
Next, he came across two supplementary ingredients for the Youthful Appearance Pill. Both were dried and without roots, but he bought them as well.
After that, Lin Changheng didn’t make another move. When the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object and the Foundation Establishment Pill were finally brought out one after the other, the final, frenzied bidding war began.
The price for the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object surprisingly surpassed ten thousand.
The Foundation Establishment Pill also broke twenty-seven thousand Spirit Stones.
The competition was so fierce, the cultivators were practically seeing red.
In the Celestial Pavilion, Lin Changheng rested his chin in his hand and watched the scene unfold. He couldn’t help but wonder, ’Should I raise the price for my refining services?’
But this wasn’t the final item of the auction...
The final item was actually related to Core Formation!
SWISH!
Lin Changheng, who had been lazily leaning back in his chair, immediately sat bolt upright, his gaze fixed intently on the stage below.
Accompanied by a male cultivator, a Maid carried a tray covered with Red Silk onto the stage for all the cultivators to see.
The cultivator’s aura was immensely powerful. He made no attempt to conceal it, letting it wash over the entire hall, stunning the crowd into silence.
He was a Fake Core Cultivator.
He just stood there silently, but to the Early and Middle Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators and the Qi Cultivation Cultivators present, his presence was like a colossal mountain bearing down on them!
’So strong! Even though a Fake Core is the lowest of the three paths to Core Formation, with no real prospects for future advancement, it’s still a qualitative leap. The realm suppression makes it almost impossible for a Foundation Establishment Cultivator to contend with!’
Lin Changheng glanced once before quickly looking away, afraid of being sensed. From then on, he only watched from the corner of his eye.
Lin Changheng was far from the only one in this state; many other cultivators were now intrigued by the final auction item.
At that moment, the Red Silk was lifted.
Revealing a single cyan lotus seed.
It looked no different than an ordinary seed from a lotus pod, except that it was much larger.
At the same time, the host, a Female Cultivator, announced, "This Cyan Water Lotus seed is a key supplementary ingredient for refining the Returning to Truth Core, a pill that can increase one’s chances of successful Core Formation."
"If not refined into a pill, consuming it directly can also slightly improve one’s chances during Core Formation."
"The starting bid is ten thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones, with a minimum increment of one hundred Lower Grade Spirit Stones. Now, let the bidding begin."
Lin Changheng had initially planned to make a bid, but he quickly realized that while he might be wealthy for an Early Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator, his fortune was nothing compared to that of the Middle and Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
A starting bid of ten thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones already surpassed the final price of the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object. The Qi Cultivation Cultivators in the audience felt as if they were suffocating just hearing the number.
This was the gap between realms.
Given the power and earning capabilities of Middle and Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators, a hundred Middle Grade Spirit Stones wasn’t an impossible sum.
Those in the Early Stage Foundation Establishment, a transitional period, didn’t have as clear a grasp of this reality.
Soon, bids began to fly.
"Ten thousand five hundred!"
"Eleven thousand Spirit Stones!"
"I bid eleven thousand three hundred!"
...
Lin Changheng then realized there were quite a few Mid and Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators present. A deep voice, thick with Magical Power, even boomed from one of the Celestial Rooms, its power nearly on par with the Fake Core Cultivator standing on the stage.
It was another Fake Core Cultivator!
The two Fake Core Cultivators even exchanged a look across the hall and nodded slightly, as if they were acquainted.
He listened as the price blew past the twenty-thousand mark and surged toward thirty thousand with no signs of stopping.
Lin Changheng lost all desire to bid.
His usual confidence in his wealth now seemed laughable; he was completely out of his league.
"So be it."
No longer bothering to watch, Lin Changheng left directly. As he was exiting, he found a Yellow Robe Cultivator waiting outside the door, who immediately bowed respectfully upon seeing him.
"Were you waiting specifically for me?"
Lin Changheng’s expression was frosty. He shot the Yellow Robe Cultivator a frigid glance and asked in a stiff tone.
If he had encountered a situation like this in the past, he would have immediately assumed someone had ill intentions toward him.
But now, his strength was far greater than before. He could even hold his own for a few rounds against a Middle Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator, so he felt no panic or fear.
Under Lin Changheng’s gaze, an immense pressure fell upon the Yellow Robe Cultivator. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his back was soon drenched.
’But this Alchemist Lin is clearly only at the Peak of Qi Cultivation...’
Finally, he managed to force out, "Yes."
"Who sent you?"
Lin Changheng asked directly.
"In response to Alchemist Lin’s question, it was Bai Zhenchuan."
The Yellow Robe Cultivator bowed even lower. ’The man before me doesn’t feel like a cultivator, but a ferocious beast from the Wilderness! He could tear me to shreds whenever he pleased!’
"Did he say why?"
Lin Changheng had already had a vague suspicion, and now it was confirmed, but he asked anyway.
"No. When Alchemist Lin meets Bai Zhenchuan, you will naturally understand..."
The Yellow Robe Cultivator gritted his teeth and endured, not daring to hide a single thing as he told him everything.
"Haha, in that case, please lead the way, Fellow Daoist."
Lin Changheng suddenly broke into a smile, his entire demeanor changing like winter snow melting in the sun. His expression became surprisingly amiable as he gestured for the man to lead on.
"Y-yes! Alchemist Lin, this way, please."
The Yellow Robe Cultivator was completely bewildered. ’What just happened?’ he wondered, stunned by the sudden change.
Still, he hurried to lead the way, not daring to delay.
’This man’s temperament is completely unpredictable,’ he thought. ’It’s terrifying...’