Zheng Tong produced a sleek black tray and announced:
"Superior First-Order Spirit Gathering Formation—activatable with just ten low-grade spirit stones. Cultivators in the Qi Refinement Stage who enter it gain a 50% boost to their cultivation efficiency! Opening bid: 150 spirit stones, with minimum increments of 10."
"Spirit Gathering Formation?" Wang Hao's eyes gleamed. His current cultivation speed was still too slow—reaching Peak Qi Refinement would take almost fifty years. With this formation, he could shave off nearly a decade!
"What, you're interested?" came Wang Yanfeng's voice at his side. "While the Formation is potent, it consumes spirit stones each time you activate it, and lasts only a few days. Cultivators from small families like ours can't afford it!"
Even swapping stones every ten days equated to one stone per day—365 per year. Unthinkable for a common cultivator.
But Wang Hao had crunched the numbers: with his Spirit Gathering Pills, he could sell one vial per month and cover the cost!
"Eighth Uncle, please bid for me. You know my aptitude—this formation might let me break into Advanced Qi Refinement!"
"How many spirit stones do you have?" Yanfeng asked.
Wang Hao held up three fingers.
Yanfeng's eyes widened.
"Well, your fortune isn't much less than mine. Alright—I'll help you this time. If it's insufficient, I'll make up the difference, but afterward you'll reimburse me in Spirit Gathering Pills, understood?"
Seven or eight bids had already driven the price to 200 spirit stones.
Yanfeng glanced at Wang Hao, who nodded slightly. Then Yanfeng called out:
"Two hundred and forty!"
That sudden jump startled some, but not all.
"Two hundred and fifty!"
"Two hundred and sixty!"
When the bid climbed past 300 stones, bids slowed.
"Three hundred and twenty!" Yanfeng bid calmly.
"Three hundred and thirty!" a young man in a brown robe stood and called. "Show some respect for the Zhao clan!"
A wandering cultivator retorted:
"Heh—auctions go to the highest bidder! What's this 'respect' nonsense? Three hundred and forty!"
Even wandering cultivators could be wealthy!
Yanfeng frowned, then caught Wang Hao's eye. Wang Hao gave a discreet thumbs-up: "Go on."
"Three hundred and fifty!"
The Zhao representative bowed out. The wandering cultivator hesitated, then withdrew.
Zheng Tong, smiling, announced:
"Three hundred and seventy spirit stones. Once—twice—sold!"
Yanfeng stepped forward, handed over the stones, and received the Spirit Gathering Formation tray.
With the purchase complete, Wang Hao exhaled deeply, sinking back in his seat. He would now have to live modestly, but the cultivation boost was worth the sacrifice!
At that moment, Zheng Tong presented three vials of Spirit Gathering Pills:
"Three vials of Spirit Gathering Pills, suitable for early and mid-Foundation cultivators. Opening bid: 200 spirit stones each, with minimum increments of 30 stones."
These were supplied by the Wang family itself—priced at 300, 330, and 300 stones respectively.
Next came full sets of offensive and defensive spirit artifacts, second-order materials, spirit beasts… but Wang Hao paid them no mind. He had neither the resources to compete nor any use for them.
Half an hour later, the auction reached its climax.
Zheng Tong cleared his throat and proclaimed:
"Now, the final items: three Foundation Establishment Pills, auctioned separately. Opening bid: 30,000 spirit stones, with minimum increments of 500!"
"Thirty thousand!"
"Thirty-one thousand!"
"Thirty-two thousand!"
Bidding heated up, driven by Foundation cultivators on the upper floors—both clan members and wanderers.
In the end, the first Pill sold for fifty-three thousand spirit stones.
But instead of moving on to the second Pill, Zheng Tong brought out a storage pouch.
"A senior bidder lacks stones and wishes to auction some items."
He withdrew two second-order demon cores—one fire attribute, one wood attribute—selling for 800 and 900 spirit stones.
Then he revealed a spirit beast egg, goose-egg sized with blue stripes:
"Unknown demon-beast egg—likely second order, with 80% vitality. High hatching chance. Excellent guardian candidate! Opening bid: 100 spirit stones!"
"One hundred stones? Ridiculous! What if it never hatches, or only a first-order beast?" some grumbled, but a Foundation cultivator silenced them with a glare.
Wang Hao hesitated—but temptation gripped him. He knew how a strong spirit beast could aid a cultivator. He recalled Old Demon Han's lazy Tihun, whose cunning had saved him many times…
"One hundred spirit stones!" Wang Hao offered tentatively.
Yanfeng tensed. He'd already helped Wang Hao with the Formation and feared his nephew was overextending. But Wang Hao whispered:
"I still have four vials of Spirit Gathering Pills. I can pay!"
"One hundred and ten!" someone countered—but quickly dropped out.
"One hundred and twenty!" Wang Hao quietly pressed on.
No one else bid, and he won the egg.
After paying, Wang Hao tucked the egg away carefully. Now he was utterly stone-broke, forced to cultivate and refine pills in the market until he recovered.
The final Foundation Pills sold, but the tension in the hall remained. Many cultivators eyed one another covetously—some clearly plotting theft or ambush.
Noticing this, Yanfeng whisked Wang Hao out of the Azure Cloud Pavilion as soon as the auction ended.
They hurried to the Wang family pill shop's second floor, where Yanfeng warned:
"Stay here at least a day. Let the dust settle before you go home!"
"Understood, Eighth Uncle. I know what's at stake!" Wang Hao replied earnestly.