Chapter 623: Who Can Understand the Joy of Spirit Herbs?
Chapter 623: Who Can Understand the Joy of Spirit Herbs?
After a treasure was auctioned off, one could choose to complete the transaction on the spot or pay for it later and collect the item after the auction.
Lu Chen, preferring to avoid any potential complications, opted to take possession of the small tree sapling as soon as possible.
He glanced at the auction list flashing below the meteorite and, seeing that no spirit herbs would be up for bid for some time, maneuvered the meteorite swiftly toward the backdrop of the light screen.
Faintly, he heard the murmurs of the cultivators behind him, their confusion and ridicule evident as they tried to make sense of Lu Chen's actions.
"Who is this cultivator who just spent 28,000 spirit stones on a sapling?!"
The voice was a mixture of bewilderment and mockery.
"Must be some young master from a sect or a prestigious family, treating spirit stones as if they're worthless."
"I feel pain in my heart. With 28,000 lower-grade spirit stones, you could almost buy a top-quality fifth-grade talisman or pill."
"What's the point of buying a tree sapling? Even if a Foundation Establishment cultivator buys a fifth-grade spirit herb, there's no guarantee it'll be successfully cultivated. It might all end up being for nothing."
The voices were soft, and if not for Lu Chen's keen spiritual sense, far surpassing that of a typical peak Foundation Establishment cultivator, he might not have caught them.
Hearing these criticisms, a smile appeared on his face, unperturbed by their words.
"Only I, who cultivates spirit herbs, can understand the joy they bring. Who are they to question my choices?" he thought to himself.
To others, spending such a large sum on a sapling seemed like a poor investment, but for Lu Chen, it was a different story.
A fifth-grade spirit herb, once planted, would reveal its cultivation method, eliminating the worry of potential failure.
Upon maturity, it would also yield a reward of a fifth-grade or higher luminescent sphere, and even if it were only a fifth-grade treasure, its value would far exceed that of the spirit herb itself.
Thus, in the instant Lu Chen bought this fifth-grade Evil Bizarre sapling, he had already made a tremendous profit.
As these thoughts flitted through his mind, he arrived behind the light screen, where numerous Sea Pavilion cultivators were present. With a casual sweep of his spiritual sense, he detected no fewer than five Core Formation experts, as well as another individual who had not released the slightest bit of aura. However, Lu Chen's keen spiritual sense alerted him to the other's terrifying presence—most likely an Nascent Soul elder guarding the place.
Without hesitation, he approached one of the Core Formation cultivators in charge of spirit herbs.
"Senior, I am the cultivator who just bid for the Evil Hag sapling. May I trouble you to retrieve the sapling for me?" Lu Chen requested.
"Of course!" the Core Formation cultivator replied.
After the auction, the meteorite Lu Chen had been using was already well-known to the cultivators present. Once his identity was confirmed, the cultivator immediately retrieved the small yet ancient-looking black sapling.
Lu Chen inspected it briefly before taking out 280 medium-grade spirit stones and using his spiritual power to float them over to the Core Formation cultivator.
"Please verify the amount, Senior," he said respectfully.
The Core Formation cultivator gave the spirit stones a quick glance and nodded, indicating that the count was correct.
Satisfied, Lu Chen took the Evil Hag sapling and left the area behind the light screen.
"This sapling looks so old. Are you sure it's really a young plant?" he mused aloud, examining the sapling's gnarled appearance, its bark resembling that of a wizened old woman.
As if understanding his words, the tiny tree responded. Two deep fissures appeared on its trunk, and a pair of slender, deep green eyes, filled with a sinister aura, glared at Lu Chen.
"Don't you glare at me," Lu Chen said with a chuckle. "Look at it from another perspective. Although we may look a little older, we can withstand the test of time, can't we?"
"Other spirit herbs might turn to dust after a hundred years, but you, after a thousand or even ten thousand years, might still look the same as you do now," he continued, a hint of pride in his voice.
Nourished by the Primeval Green Wood energy, the sapling immediately became more lively, waving its branches at Lu Chen in a feigned gesture before its facial features gradually faded away.
Lu Chen focused his mind on the sapling's trunk, sensing that it was only entering a brief state of dormancy before he safely stored it away in his Gluttonous Insect Pouch.
He quietly returned to the spirit herb auction area and continued to participate in the bidding.
The array of spirit herbs that appeared next was astonishing and exotic, each with its own unique qualities. Even Lu Chen, well-versed in spirit herb literature, found himself encountering many that he had never heard of before, broadening his horizons.
However, his keen senses detected that most of these spirit herbs were naturally occurring, discovered by cultivators in various secret realms, while only a small portion had been cultivated by spirit herb masters.
He understood that among the hundred arts of cultivation, spirit herb cultivation was a less popular path compared to artifact refining, pill concoction, and talisman forging. Most cultivators only dabbled in spirit herb cultivation as a side pursuit, and those who specialized in it like him were still a minority.
As a result, there weren't many cultivators capable of independently cultivating a large number of high-grade spirit herbs.
Additionally, fifth-grade and higher spirit herbs were notoriously difficult to cultivate from seeds, so the spirit herbs featured in the auction were predominantly fourth-grade.
After waiting for a while without spotting any desirable spirit herbs, Lu Chen maneuvered his meteorite over to the artifact auction area.
The number of cultivators gathered here was more than ten times that of the spirit herb area, a testament to the popularity of artifacts.
Lu Chen lingered for a while and took a liking to a fourth-grade evil-type artifact. It was sealed with countless vengeful spirits, making it ideal for cultivating several fifth-grade spirit herbs in his Underworld Spirit Field that required the nourishment of negative emotions.
The bidding for the artifact soared, and after a few attempts, Lu Chen chose to let it go.
Artifacts were not his priority; he was more interested in spirit herbs. As long as the spirit herbs he desired were within his capabilities, he was determined to acquire them. However, if the price of an artifact escalated too high, he would simply walk away.
In the end, the vengeful spirit artifact was won by a Foundation Establishment cultivator from a demonic sect at a high price.
Unfazed, Lu Chen continued his search for treasures that caught his eye.
"Twenty-five thousand, once, twenty-five thousand, twice, twenty-five thousand, thrice!"
"Sold!"
"Congratulations to the cultivator on acquiring the skeleton of a fifth-grade Giant Spirit Elephant!"
Lu Chen gazed at the massive skeleton before him, which resembled a small mountain, a smile spreading across his face.
The valuable parts of this fifth-grade demonic beast's skeleton had already been removed, including its demon core, essence blood, and the prized elephant tusks. Only the astonishingly large skeleton remained.
That was why Lu Chen was able to acquire it at a price lower than that of a fifth-grade spirit herb.
"The bigger, the better. The larger the skeleton, the longer I can sustain the Skeleton Devil Observation," Lu Chen thought to himself. With this fifth-grade demonic beast's skeleton, he no longer had to worry about sustaining the growth of the Skeleton Devil Observation.
Time flew by, and before he knew it, half a day had passed. The various treasure auctions at the branch venue were coming to a close. Lu Chen had successfully acquired a fifth-grade Evil Hag sapling and a fifth-grade demonic beast's skeleton, which were decent hauls, but he wasn't entirely satisfied.
"Next up is the main auction. Sea Pavilion has been collecting treasures for years, and with so many Core Formation and even Nascent Soul cultivators in attendance, they must present some impressive items to live up to their reputation," Lu Chen thought to himself. According to the cultivator he had encountered earlier, the main auction would feature treasures of the seventh-grade and even several of the sixth-grade. His expectations rose as he eagerly awaited the main event.
(End of Chapter)
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