Chapter 337: The Heaven-Defying Pill Appears |
"One million spirit stones! Is there anyone willing to go higher?"
"One million, going once!"
"One million, going twice!"
Just as Old Qian was about to strike the gavel, a voice finally echoed from the first VIP room:
"I bid 1.01 million spirit stones!"
As the voice fell, all the Gu cultivators below turned their gaze toward the first VIP room in unison.
Inside, Long Xuan had a contemplative look. He had just attempted to replicate the storage bag into a phantom in his origin realm but failed.
This indicated that the item inside the storage bag was of an extraordinarily high level, requiring a very long time for his origin realm to successfully replicate it.
Although he had no idea what was inside, Long Xuan decided to take a gamble and bid 1.01 million spirit stones.
"This mystery box could contain any kind of treasure—there's even a chance it might hold a peak-grade spiritual elixir!"
Seeing that no one was swayed by his persuasion, Old Qian reluctantly called out:
"1.01 million, going once!"
"1.01 million, going twice!"
"1.01 million, sold! Congratulations to the guest in the first VIP room!"
Old Qian struck the gavel and placed the storage bag on a jade tray, signaling a maid to deliver it to the first VIP room.
The Qian Auction House had always conducted transactions immediately to avoid any chaos during the auction of final items, which could lead to significant losses.
The maid knocked on the door and entered the first VIP room. Long Xuan readily handed over 1.01 million spirit stones and took the storage bag, playing with it in his hands.
The bag emitted a faint fragrance. Clearly, it must have belonged to a woman. He mused about how careless she must have been to lose something so valuable.
The auction continued, with one item after another brought out on jade trays by maids. The crowd's bidding filled the air with excitement, creating a lively atmosphere.
Long Xuan occasionally participated, bidding on items useful to him.
For example, he acquired some rare, lethal poisons that could kill upon contact with blood. His Disaster Poison Gu required an array of rare toxins, and he took every opportunity to collect poisons he hadn't encountered before.
The variety of auctioned items was truly eclectic—treasures of all kinds were on display.
Perhaps due to the lawlessness of this city of sin, the auction house dared to sell anything. They even auctioned off someone else's storage pouch; was there anything they wouldn’t dare to sell?
On one occasion, Long Xuan even witnessed a young girl brought onto the auction stage. The girl looked no older than thirteen or fourteen, her delicate and frail appearance evoking a sense of protectiveness in anyone who saw her.
The audience turned into a pack of ravenous wolves, shouting bids one after another. Astonishingly, the bids climbed to 700,000 spirit stones. Long Xuan clicked his tongue in disbelief.
The auctioneer's face beamed with joy. Compared to the prices of other treasures, 700,000 might not seem high, but since the girl cost them nothing, her sale brought in pure profit, making her one of the most lucrative items.
Long Xuan chose not to intervene, sitting quietly and waiting for the next auction item.
Time passed slowly, and since this appeared to be a hastily organized auction, the number of items was limited. After about two hours, the auction entered its final stages.
By then, the second-to-last item was brought out.
The moment Long Xuan saw the maid carrying it in, he immediately perked up and straightened in his seat.
The seven-colored, radiant pill instantly caught everyone's attention as soon as it appeared.
Judging by its extraordinary appearance, the pill was clearly no ordinary item. Most attendees were seeing it for the first time, and their curiosity was piqued.
"What exactly does this pill do? Don’t keep us guessing! Surely something brought out near the end of the auction must be extraordinary," someone below eagerly asked.
"Heh heh!" Old Qian chuckled. "Since someone is so impatient, I won’t keep you in suspense.
"This pill is called the Heaven-Defying Pill. Its creation once triggered a heavenly tribulation."
"A pill capable of attracting a heavenly tribulation—imagine its heaven-defying effects!"
"The pill’s effect is to unconditionally raise the aptitude of a Gu cultivator by two grades, as long as they are below the fourth tier. Even for geniuses with heaven-grade aptitude, the pill works."
"After consuming this pill, a heaven-grade genius can ascend to the legendary divine-grade aptitude."
As these words fell, the audience collectively gasped.
Many stood from their seats, their eyes blazing with fervor as they stared at the radiant pill on the table, greed written all over their faces.
The auction house descended into chaos. A pill capable of triggering a heavenly tribulation was the stuff of legends, and most attendees were witnessing one for the first time. Its miraculous effects left everyone in awe.
Enhancing one’s aptitude meant faster cultivation, greater combat power, and a higher likelihood of breaking through to greater realms in the future.
For many present, consuming the Heaven-Defying Pill would elevate them to heaven-grade aptitude—or even the legendary god-grade aptitude.
Faced with such a treasure, how could anyone remain calm? Madness swept through the crowd of Gu cultivators.
In the tenth VIP room, Long Xing slammed his fist on the table, shouting in frustration, "Damn it! How could such a heaven-defying treasure appear at an auction, and I’m only finding out now?"
"I didn’t bring enough spirit stones! There’s no way I can outbid the others!"
Beside him, a delicate-looking female Gu cultivator cautiously suggested, "Why don’t we contact the Suo Gu Pavilion and quickly request reinforcements with spirit stones?"
"It’s too late." Long Xing stood up abruptly, his face filled with urgency. "The national treasury isn’t something I can tap into with just a word."
"An auction item is sold in a matter of moments. There’s no time."
"Send word back immediately. If we can’t secure this treasure through bidding, then we’ll have to take it by force."
Clenching his fists, Long Xing’s eyes burned as he stared at the seven-colored pill, his greed undisguised.
In VIP Room No. 4, the tea cup in Burial Demon Old Ghost’s hand shattered with a sharp sound. Even though he had seen many grand occasions, his breathing quickened as he stared at the seven-colored pill on the auction table, displaying a rare moment of losing his composure.
"Master! Should we give up the fight for the Moon Tree and instead focus all our efforts on obtaining this Heaven-defying Pill?" asked a black-robed Gu cultivator beside him in a low voice.
Burial Demon Old Ghost narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze sharp as he said, "No! I want both the Heaven-defying Pill and the Moon Tree!"
"But I can’t chase down two people at the same time. One of these treasures must be won with spirit stones."
"Start bidding for the Heaven-defying Pill first. If we fail to get it, then we’ll bid for the Moon Tree. With our financial strength, we can surely win one of them."
"Hehe, a pill capable of summoning heavenly tribulation—this is the first time I’ve seen such a thing in my life." Burial Demon Old Ghost revealed an excited smile and added, "The Old Man Black Mountain and the White-faced Scholar would never have guessed that such a Heaven-defying treasure would appear at this auction, even if it killed them!"
"If they knew, they’d stop at nothing to get here at full speed. Their absence this time has cost them dearly."
"But this benefits me. With them not present, my only competitor is that Jade-faced Rakshasa."
Burial Demon Old Ghost turned his gaze toward VIP Room No. 3, a trace of seriousness flashing in his eyes.
It seemed the Jade-faced Rakshasa noticed this gaze, as she responded with a cold smirk.
"Hmph, this Heaven-defying Pill has indeed provoked the greed of that old ghost."
"I’d like to see how you plan to outbid me." A cold glint flashed in her eyes before disappearing.
At that moment, on the auction platform, Old Qian looked at the astonished expressions of the Gu cultivators below and smiled with satisfaction. "This pill has been appraised by my Golden Eye Technique, and I guarantee there is no exaggeration in its description."
"Now, the bidding starts at 1 billion spirit stones. Let the auction begin!"
As soon as he finished speaking, someone in the crowd couldn’t wait to shout, "I bid 2 billion spirit stones!"
"I bid 3 billion!" Another voice followed closely.
"I bid 6 billion!" At this moment, someone unexpectedly doubled the previous bid.
Everyone turned their eyes to VIP Room No. 3, their expressions filled with fear, and for a moment, no one dared to bid.
However, not everyone was afraid of the Jade-faced Rakshasa. Soon, an aged voice came from VIP Room No. 4.
"Hehe! Not many can produce 6 billion. Just how many people have you killed to amass such wealth? I bid 6.1 billion spirit stones!"
"Don’t slander me! My spirit stones were earned one by one by myself. When have I ever killed anyone for treasures?" the Jade-faced Rakshasa replied disdainfully, glancing at VIP Room No. 4.
"You said that I earned my 6 billion spirit stones by killing people and stealing treasures, then how did you get your 6.1 billion spirit stones?"
Jade-faced Rakshasa glanced at VIP Room No. 4 and said with disdain.
"Naturally, this old man earned it through business. I inherited ghost cultivation techniques and established the Ghost Sect, recruiting disciples far and wide. Isn’t it reasonable for me to earn so much from tuition fees?"
"Oh? That sounds so noble. Then tell me, how did you refine those dozen or so Ghost Kings?"
"A ghost is essentially a human soul. You must have killed countless Gu Kings to refine those Ghost Kings. And where are their storage bags now?" the Jade-faced Rakshasa sneered.
Hearing the bickering between these two infamous figures, Long Xuan looked toward VIP Room No. 4, his expression gradually becoming curious.
In the world of Gu, most people were 'Gu' cultivators. Other professions were exceedingly rare, and this was his first encounter with a ghost cultivator.
If Gu cultivators controlled 'Gu', ghost cultivators controlled ghosts.
Like 'Gu' cultivators, ghost cultivators could seal ghosts within their bodies to gain their powers or summon them for battle.
Ghosts, being the souls of humans, required killing to refine. Moreover, refining ghosts had a success rate, meaning one often needed to kill many to successfully refine even a single ghost.
Yet this Burial Demon Old Ghost had refined over a dozen Ghost Kings. How many Gu Kings had he slaughtered to accomplish this? How strong must his combat prowess be?
As Long Xuan gazed at VIP Room No. 4, a deep sense of apprehension appeared in his eyes.
However, just as he was lost in thought, another aged voice came from VIP Room No. 2.
"I bid 8 billion spirit stones!"
This statement silenced the bickering between the Jade-faced Rakshasa and Burial Demon Old Ghost. Both of their faces turned grim.
Even Long Xuan was stunned. Someone actually dared to snatch the treasure from these two terrifying figures. Who could be so fearless?
He quickly turned his gaze to VIP Room No. 2, eager to see who had the audacity to act so boldly.
But when he saw the familiar progress bar, his expression turned strange, and a playful smile appeared on his lips.
Earlier, while appraising treasures in the artifact identification room, he had noticed an invisible person whose progress bar was identical to this bidder’s.
He found it amusing. Had the Qian Auction House’s staff disguised themselves as customers to bid for treasures again? Were they addicted to pretending to be buyers?
........................................................................
Read extra chapters on >>> patreon.com/SpiritStonetranslation