NOVPUB
Chapter 1167: Chapter 1052: Spectator_2
The Taisui Immortal City is going to host an exceptionally grand auction!
Though there are still three months until it begins, the auction has already started its promotions—not only in Taisui Immortal City but also in other Immortal Cities and marketplaces—hoping to attract as many cultivators as possible.
After all, the greater the number of participants, the higher the final bidding price is likely to go.
Additionally, to better encourage cultivators’ enthusiastic participation, the auction has revealed some of the spiritual objects beforehand.
Unsurprisingly, this preemptive move has brought a large number of cultivators to Taisui Immortal City even before the auction officially begins.
Although Li Zhirui’s name is infamous among cultivators, he is still an Integration-stage cultivator. By chance, being in the Immortal City, he received an invitation letter.
"Making such a big spectacle of this, there must be some treasures worth seeing," Li Zhirui muttered to himself as he lowered his gaze to the jade slip in his hand.
The spiritual objects described within the jade slip were few, but each one was extraordinarily rare and precious.
"Indeed, only by staying in places of high enough tier can one come into contact with things that were previously unreachable, or even unheard of," he mused aloud after finishing the jade slip.
For example, there was a Ninth Rank spiritual object called the Spirit Enhanced Fruit, which, once consumed, could randomly increase the purity of one type of spiritual root!
Even for such an astonishingly impactful spiritual object, Li Zhirui had never heard of it before.
"Although there’s a high chance I won’t be able to afford it, broadening my horizons is good enough."
Since he had the invitation letter and didn’t need to spend spirit stones on an entrance ticket, it wouldn’t hurt to attend.
Having spent considerable time training outside, Li Zhirui decided to settle in his rented cave mansion for the next three months to cultivate and practice breathing exercises.
Time flew by, and soon the day of the auction’s opening arrived.
Li Zhirui set out early for the auction venue, simply hoping to secure a decent seat.
Moreover, as he assumed he likely wouldn’t win any bids for spiritual objects, he didn’t bother with clothing designed to conceal his identity. He entered boldly under the guise of Li Rufeng.
Perhaps due to his long absence from public view, Li Zhirui now walked through the streets with far less attention than he’d previously garnered.
Time—its passage makes people forget everything!
This was undoubtedly a good thing for Li Zhirui, especially now that he had resolved his inner mental instability and regained his earlier cautious and prudent disposition. There was no longer a need to attract undue attention.
His current priority was to strive for peaceful and harmonious periods of cultivation and environmental stability, working toward an early breakthrough to the later Integration stage.
Upon entering the auction venue, Li Zhirui was impressed by their extravagant preparations—on the first floor alone, there were at least three thousand seats! Though fewer in number, the second floor still accommodated more than a thousand cultivators.
The third, fourth, and even fifth floors all consisted of private rooms—each with varying standards.
Li Zhirui’s Integration-stage cultivation was decent in Taisui Immortal City, allowing him access to the second floor via his invitation letter. However, ascending further required considerable spirit stones, even facing cultivation restrictions, limiting him to only obtaining private rooms on the third floor. Beyond that, he couldn’t dare dream of attaining those higher floors.
The fifth-floor private rooms, it was said, were the most valuable, reserved exclusively for Great Ability cultivators from the Immortal Realm.
...
"I wonder whether I might witness the presence of a Great Ability cultivator from the Immortal Realm at this auction,"
Li Zhirui had just settled into a quiet corner on the second floor when he overheard these words.
Curious, he glanced briefly at the Integration-stage cultivator who appeared young.
Of course, outward appearances alone were unreliable in discerning a cultivator’s true age—especially certain eccentric old monsters who enjoyed disguising themselves as children only seven or eight years old.
To avoid offending this individual, Li Zhirui pretended he hadn’t heard the comment and silently took his seat in the corner, patiently awaiting the official start of the auction.
Dong dong dong—
The toll of the bell signaled the closing of the auction doors, and a stunning female cultivator in a flowing violet robe gracefully stepped forward.
"I am Ruyan, honored to serve as the auctioneer for this event. I hope everyone will give me their support." With that, she offered a seductive smile that left many cultivators staring in awe.
Li Zhirui observed coldly—this female cultivator had clearly practiced Bewitching Technique to a high level. Otherwise, it would not have affected even some Integration-stage cultivators.
It must be noted that this woman named Ruyan was but at the Void Refinement stage.
On the first floor especially, most cultivators were at the Void Refinement stage—bewildered by her allure, they seemed ready to agree to anything she said.
Fortunately, Ruyan understood the dangers of overdoing it. She quickly withdrew her Bewitching Technique and commenced the auction in earnest.
"The first auction item is the Seventh Rank Magical Treasure Lei Jiaoqin, an incredibly suitable treasure for sound cultivators. With every performance, it harnesses lightning, capable of accumulating energy over time to unleash a devastating killing strike."
Ruyan introduced it thoroughly, her voice dripping with allure, tempting the gathered cultivators.
But they soon calmed down, as sound cultivators were exceedingly rare—among the three thousand attendees, only a handful practiced sound cultivation.
For non-sound cultivators, the value of such a specialty treasure was greatly diminished. Only a few sound cultivators competed for it, and eventually, a veiled female cultivator won the Lei Jiaoqin.
Li Zhirui was quite puzzled by the auction’s arrangement; logically, the first item should set a good precedent, typically one that would spark heated competition among the crowd.
Yet, the Taisui auction didn’t start that way.
"Are they brimming with confidence about the items being auctioned later?" Li Zhirui speculated inwardly.
"The second auction item is the Seventh Rank Spiritual Object Life-Infusing Spirit Water Bottle, crafted in imitation of the renowned Immortal Artifact Rejuvenation Bottle. Although inferior to the Immortal Artifact, it produces spirit water daily that can irrigate over a thousand acres of Spirit Fields. Not only does it accelerate the growth of spiritual objects, but it also gradually enhances their quality."
Another relatively uncommon magical treasure, though significantly more appealing than the Lei Jiaoqin, drew far more competitors into the bidding.
Li Zhirui joined the fray as well.
Unfortunately, alone and without family support, even as a Seventh Rank Alchemy Master, he couldn’t earn enough spirit stones to compete against cultivators backed by clans.
One spiritual object after another appeared, each more precious than the last, with steadily rising prices.
Dozens of spiritual objects were auctioned, with none left unsold!
However, up until now, the cultivators from the third, fourth, and fifth floors rarely participated in the bidding.
"Up next is a spiritual object called the Spirit Enhanced Fruit! Once consumed, it can randomly increase the purity of one spiritual root!"
Ruyan smiled enchantingly and said, "Surely everyone knows what spiritual root purity means, so I’ll skip the redundant explanations."
"Starting bid: Three million spirit stones. Minimum increment: Two hundred thousand!"
Before her words even finished echoing, a voice boomed from a private room on the fourth floor, full of authority: "I’ll bid ten million!"
Hiss—
Even the well-informed Li Zhirui was astonished. Such a brazen bid—it directly raised the starting price by over threefold.
He had no qualification to participate at all.
Nonetheless, other cultivators didn’t shy away from bidding.
Ten million and fifty thousand...
Twelve million...
Fifteen million...
The bidding price continued to climb, albeit more gradually.
In the end, the Spirit Enhanced Fruit was claimed by a Human Immortal for the astronomical sum of nineteen million nine hundred ninety thousand!
After the Spirit Enhanced Fruit, more rare and precious spiritual objects were unveiled, inciting fierce competition among the higher-floor cultivators.
It could be said that these rare treasures were almost entirely unrelated to the cultivators on the first and second floors, who had gradually turned into mere spectators.
"Up next are the three finale spiritual objects of this auction. Each one is exceptionally rare. If anyone has taken a liking to them, act swiftly to avoid future regrets," Ruyan remarked with a seductive smile.
Hearing her words, Li Zhirui’s interest was piqued.
He was curious to see what sort of spiritual objects would be deserving of such praise.
Naturally, lacking spirit stones, he remained a mere spectator.
