https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-259-Immortal-City-Auction-Luo-Chen-s-Bid/12920622/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-261-Sister-This-is-Fellow-Daoist-Dan-Chenzi/12920624/
Chapter 260: Dragon and Phoenix Pills, Core Formation Spirit Herbs
Chapter 260: Dragon and Phoenix Pills, Core Formation Spirit Herbs
After reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, Luo Chen primarily consumed Inferior Dragon Ascension Pills.
With the potent medicinal effects, continuous consumption, and other supplementary resources, he advanced from the second layer to the third layer of Foundation Establishment in just three short years.
However, after advancing to the third layer of Foundation Establishment, his cultivation speed slowed down again.
Or rather, it wasn't that his cultivation was "slow," but as his cultivation realm progressed, the amount of Spirit Qi required for each stage also increased.]
Compared to the increased upper limit, the original fixed cultivation speed naturally led to a slow progress bar.
For this situation, Luo Chen had been trying to find a solution, but in the end, he was powerless.
The mainstream cultivation pills released by the major sects were only of inferior grades.
Even if he had the money, there was nowhere to buy them!
Fortunately, there were auctions!
"Although it's not a mid-grade Dragon Ascension Pill, the medicinal power of a mid-grade Essence Fusion Pill should also surpass that of an inferior Dragon Ascension Pill by quite a bit."
"This item is of great use to me!"
Luo Chen wouldn't let this opportunity slip by, so he decisively joined the bidding.
With abundant cash flow and his expertise in auctions, Luo Chen quickly secured thirty bottles.
For this, he spent nearly forty thousand Spirit Stones in total.
It should be known that these were just mid-grade Essence Fusion Pills, and thirty bottles, costing nearly forty thousand Spirit Stones, worked out to over one thousand three hundred per bottle.
Once again, it was an extravagant transaction with a premium price! But there was no other way; to exchange Spirit Stones for time, one had to pay such a price.
After securing thirty bottles, Luo Chen decided to stop.
For the subsequent seven auctions, he no longer participated.
"Although I still want them, thirty bottles are enough for me to use for nearly a year."
"If I continue bidding, it will be easy to offend others."
With Luo Chen's withdrawal, the transaction prices for the mid-grade Essence Fusion Pills decreased significantly.
However, the auction atmosphere became even more enthusiastic than before.
Each bid wasn't particularly high, but the competition was intense, and the prices rose again during the last two auctions.
Witnessing this scene, Luo Chen sighed inwardly.
He wasn't the only one who understood these principles.
However, mainstream cultivation pills of mid-grade and above were strictly controlled by the major sects.
Everyone understood the logic, but these pills were truly scarce and expensive!
"Although thirty bottles can supply me for a period, what about after that?"
"It can't be that I have to wait for a decade each time to bid for a year's supply!"
Although his immediate worries were gone, after experiencing the Heart Inquiry Mirror's simulation, he had developed a habit of looking further ahead.
He had seen the situation, but for the time being, there was no better solution.
The auction continued.
As it progressed, the value of the resources being auctioned increased.
Previously, it was Luo Chen, Lu Rong, and other early and mid-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators competing.
But now, even late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators were actively participating.
Even those few Golden Core Masters started to make their moves one after another.
Luo Chen gradually became quiet.
Until!
"Brother Luo!"
"Yeah, I know."
The Tier 3 healing pills that Kang Xianqiong needed appeared in the auction.
Many people were bidding for them this time.
Luo Chen spent a lot of effort and a high price to secure them.
"Friend Kang, I'm sorry. It cost five thousand more Spirit Stones than I had estimated."
Kang Xianqiong quickly shook his head, his face filled with excitement and gratitude.
"Being able to bid for it is already not easy. If not for your help, I probably wouldn't have been able to obtain this item."
"Thank you, truly thank you."
Luo Chen smiled and accepted the thanks.
As Kang Xianqiong said, even with sufficient Spirit Stones, it would be difficult for him to obtain this item.
In such large-scale auctions, it was no longer just a competition of financial strength.
Since personal identity information was disclosed, each bid also carried a certain weight based on the bidder's reputation.
Luo Chen was able to bid for Kang Xianqiong because, in addition to the high price, he had borrowed the reputation of Luo Tianhui and the momentum accumulated from his previous bids.
Everyone knew he was wealthy.
When he was determined to win, ordinary people couldn't compete with him.
If he had just kept increasing the price, it would have been fine, but Luo Chen also had the experience of withdrawing from bidding midway.
Obviously, he wasn't a reckless rich kid who blindly raised the price.
If the price had been pushed too high, Luo Chen might have backed out.
But the loss would have been theirs.
After fulfilling his promise to Kang Xianqiong, Luo Chen couldn't help but feel relieved.
He had basically obtained all the items he needed.
Today's spending spree was quite satisfying.
For the remaining items, he decided to be a mere spectator.
It wasn't due to a lack of financial resources or the items being insufficiently good.
Rather, many of the participants were people he couldn't afford to offend.
"Inferior Magical Tool, Thousand Layer Seal, 55,000 Spirit Stones, third time!"
"Congratulations to Lian Cang from Ailao Mountain!"
Looking at the auctioned Magical Tool, Luo Chen's eyes gleamed with envy.
He knew this Magical Tool.
The Duplicate Seal in his Treasure Pouch was also crafted with the Thousand Layer Seal as a model, but it was renamed due to its failure.
The attack of the Duplicate Seal was somewhat clumsy.
However, the Thousand Layer Seal had far fewer shortcomings.
His envy was just that, and he couldn't compete with Lian Cang.
Because the other party was a Golden Core Cultivator!
And it wasn't just about this one auction item.
The subsequent items became increasingly valuable.
Even a Mid-grade Magical Tool appeared and was auctioned off for 350,000 spirit stones to a Golden Core Master from Green Pill Valley.
Such a high price left everyone in awe!
Those around Luo Chen, including Sima Huiwang and Kang Xianqiong, were all stunned.
Even the usually composed Wang Yuan couldn't help but lose his composure.
They couldn't imagine how many years they would need to save up to afford such a Mid-grade Magical Tool.
Aside from killing and looting, they couldn't think of another way to obtain such a treasure.
Only Luo Chen remained calm.
It was just a matter of a few hundred thousand spirit stones.
With a few more years of saving, he could afford to buy it through legitimate means.
Just like the Golden Core Master from Green Pill Valley, who had also relied on hard-earned spirit stones to purchase the treasure they desired.
"Maybe it's not that difficult."
"Cultivators from Green Pill Valley often possess some pill refinement skills, and their wealth accumulation is no less impressive than mine."
"The exorbitant prices that ordinary cultivators find unimaginable are merely a drop in the bucket for them."
That's what Luo Chen thought.
The Golden Core Master from Green Pill Valley had done just that.
He had purchased three magical tools, two Inferior and one Mid-grade.
His generosity far surpassed that of the other Golden Core Masters.
Time passed slowly.
The auction reached its climax when Heartless Immortal Fairy took out a Dragon Transformation Pill and an Ice Phoenix Pill.
"The Dragon Transformation Pill is a specialty of Green Pill Valley, and the Ice Phoenix Pill is from the Frostwhirl Palace. Both are Tier 3 pills."
"When combined with the Frostwhirl Palace's secret technique, it can increase the chances of Core Formation by ten percent!"
"The starting bid is 10,000 spirit stones. Everyone, please!"
With these words, the entire venue erupted in excitement!
In the private room, everyone from the Luo Tianhui held their breath.
Including Luo Chen.
However, he managed to suppress the longing in his heart.
The Dragon Transformation Pill wasn't hard to come by; it was a regular product of Green Pill Valley and was often sold externally.
The Ice Phoenix Pill was relatively scarce and usually only circulated within the Frostwhirl Palace.
But in terms of price, as a Tier 3 pill, it was only a few thousand spirit stones per bottle.
A single pill was just a few hundred spirit stones.
Yet, they were starting the bidding at 10,000 spirit stones, mainly because of the secret technique offered by the Frostwhirl Palace.
"It can increase the chances of Core Formation by ten percent!"
Luo Chen sighed, "Don't even think about it. This is not something we can participate in."
The people around him were taken aback, but seeing the continuous bidding in the venue, they silently dismissed the thought they shouldn't have had.
All of them were late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators!
Luo Chen recognized Chu Kui among them.
The ancestor of the Zheng family from Rolling Dragon Ridge, despite only being at the sixth layer of Foundation Establishment, boldly joined the bidding.
Additionally, there were several other powerful individuals whose backgrounds Luo Chen couldn't identify.
This was a banquet aimed at late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
The early and mid-stage cultivators below could only watch with longing.
The Golden Core Cultivators above observed with indifference, as if they weren't the slightest bit tempted.
In the end, this set of Core Formation pills was won by a man with red lips and white teeth, his face as beautiful as jade.
"That's Xuan Yu, the actual manager of Peach Mountain."
"I heard he's the favorite of the Peach Blossom Ancestor from Hundred Flowers Palace, and he's deeply favored!"
Sima Huiwang suppressed her excitement and quietly explained the man's background to Luo Chen.
Upon hearing this, Luo Chen understood.
Indeed, when it came to Core Formation pills, it wasn't something ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators could covet.
Just look at the crowd that had just competed for it!
Most of them had the backing of major sects, either as side branches or vassals.
Xuan Yu, though not a member of Hundred Flowers Palace, was the favorite of the Peach Blossom Ancestor and even managed the Peach Mountain on her behalf.
Compared to this, how could other ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators compete?
Chu Kui's desolate expression in the crowd was particularly noticeable.
Luo Chen shook his head and stood up.
"Let's go!"
"If we want to participate in the competition for Core Formation pills, it will take at least a century or two for it to be our turn."
He spoke with detachment.
But the others didn't share his nonchalance.
Many of them left with lingering gazes, still admiring the triumphant Xuan Yu.
Even if it only increased the chances of Core Formation by ten percent, it was still a ten percent increase!
The difficulty of Core Formation was a thousand times that of Foundation Establishment!
This hardship was something outsiders couldn't truly comprehend.
However, one could get a glimpse of this from the mere handful of Golden Core Cultivators in the Jade Peak Region.
In the Jade Peak Region, there were millions of Qi Condensation Cultivators and thousands of Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
But the number of Golden Core Cultivators from the seven major sects combined didn't even reach a hundred! This was a truly one-in-a-million, or even one-in-ten-thousand, rarity.
The reason for the scarcity of Golden Core Cultivators was the extreme difficulty of Core Formation.
Xuan Yu now had a set of Core Formation pills and the backing of the Peach Blossom Ancestor.
It was highly likely that he would achieve Golden Core within a few decades.
At that time, he could join the Hundred Flowers Palace as a Golden Core Master, becoming the fourth person outside of the three major Golden Core Cultivators!
...
After leaving the private room, Luo Chen, led by Sima Huiwang, headed straight for a side hall in the Frostwhirl Palace.
This is the designated area for the delivery of Spirit Stones as payment.
After all, such a large-scale auction involves a vast array of resources, making it impossible to deliver all the items immediately after each transaction.
Thus, everything is accumulated until the end of the auction before settling the payments.]
Inside the array-shielded room, Luo Chen took out ninety thousand Inferior Spirit Stones.
Among them, twelve thousand were given to him by Kang Xianqiong, specifically for the purchase of the Tier 3 Healing Spirit Herb.
Aside from that, seventy-eight thousand were the Spirit Stones he had spent during this auction.
"Friend Luo, these are your items, and you can count them here."
The person in charge of settling the payments in this room was none other than Shi Boying, an old acquaintance of Luo Chen.
Luo Chen smiled slightly, took the items, and instead of feigning generosity, he carefully began to count them.
Shi Boying didn't mind this at all.
Given the enormity of this transaction involving such a vast amount of Spirit Stones, everyone should be meticulous.
The Warm Sun Fragrance was of good quality, and it seemed to have been recently extracted from the Warm Sun Wood.
The Tier 3 Mineral Materials were fine.
The Ice Silk Cushion emitted a faint chill, and just a brief touch calmed Luo Chen's thoughts significantly.
The thirty bottles of Mid-grade Essence Fusion Pills were of excellent quality; the moment they were opened, a rich aura of Spirit Qi could be felt.
The Body Refinement Technique, Shared Essence, was a Second Stage technique, and it was sealed intact, confirming that it hadn't been opened since the auction.
After carefully counting the items, Luo Chen was satisfied and put them away.
"Thank you, Friend Shi, for your trouble."
Shi Boying smiled, "It's not a trouble at all. This only happens once every ten years, and I don't need to get involved in these small-scale auctions."
Shi Boying, who usually had a cold and aloof demeanor, had become more amiable towards Luo Chen due to his collaboration with Dantu Jin.
Their conversations were always filled with laughter.
"Friend Luo, are you planning to leave directly?"
"Yes, is there anything else?" Luo Chen asked curiously.
Shi Boying pointed in a direction, "There's a banquet at my Ice Fortress, and you're welcome to attend."
"Oh? A banquet?"
"Yes, it's specifically for entertaining Foundation Establishment Cultivators who participated in the auction."
Shi Boying explained this to satisfy Luo Chen's curiosity.
Apparently, the banquet after the auction wasn't specially organized by the Ice Fortress; it was a customary event.
Almost every ten years, after the auction, the organizers would host a banquet for Foundation Establishment Cultivators and even Golden Core Cultivators.
The reason was simple.
During the auction, it was common for the atmosphere to become tense, with bidders driving up prices, only to regret their purchases later.
Some bidders might lose to others but still desperately need the resources they were bidding for.
There were even fools who made outrageous bids but couldn't produce the corresponding amount of Spirit Stones.
Consequently, after the auction, conflicts and disputes were inevitable.
There were even instances of fights breaking out within and outside the Heavenly Wave Immortal City over certain resources.
Therefore, the organizers would intentionally hold this banquet.
It provided an opportunity for people to sell their resources at a lower price to recoup their investments.
It also allowed those urgently in need of specific resources to offer more valuable items in exchange for the desired ones.
Occasionally, unsold treasures would be put up for auction again.
In short, this banquet was an effective way for the organizers to resolve many potential issues.
Some sect geniuses would also attend such banquets to network extensively.
The last point was Luo Chen's own inference.
"Of course, some people prefer to stay low-key and leave quietly, and we don't force anyone to attend," Shi Boying said.
After listening, Luo Chen thought for a moment. Indeed, it would be beneficial to attend this banquet.
He wasn't the type to focus solely on cultivation; even without any resources to exchange, he could still expand his network.
Previously, upon arriving in the Heavenly Wave Immortal City, he and the Luo Tianhui had maintained a low profile.
Now that the Luo Tianhui had stabilized, and he had reached the third level of Foundation Establishment, it was time to meet some fellow cultivators.
The four essential elements of cultivation were wealth, companions, techniques, and environment.
He always strived for comprehensive development!
"Thank you, Friend Shi, for the reminder. I will attend the banquet."
Without further chat, Luo Chen bid farewell to Shi Boying and left the room.
Outside, he asked for the opinions of Wang Yuan, Duan Feng, Sima Huiwang, and Kang Xianqiong.
Wang Yuan had no interest in socializing and planned to return directly to study the Shared Essence technique.
Duan Feng felt the same; Feng Xia was waiting for him at home.
Sima Huiwang wanted to go, but unfortunately, this banquet was only for Foundation Establishment Cultivators and above.
She had the status, but her cultivation level was insufficient, so she couldn't attend.
Kang Xianqiong, on the other hand, had no intention of attending at all.
After receiving the healing herb from Luo Chen, she was eager to return to Taishan Fang.
Thus, only Luo Chen was left to attend the Frostwhirl Palace banquet.
He didn't mind and bid farewell to the four of them. Led by a maid, he entered a side hall dimly lit with a subtle ambiance.
Perhaps because he had arrived early, the banquet hall wasn't crowded yet, with only a few people present.
His gaze focused, and he spotted Chu Kui sitting alone at a table, drinking alone.
"Friend Chu, why are you sitting alone, drinking in solitude?"
Chu Kui raised his eyes, self-mockingly, "You already know the answer to that, don't you?"
(End of Chapter)
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