Chronicles of the Green Vine: A Mortal’s Path to Immortality

A quarter of an hour later, the auction resumed.

“Qing'er thanks everyone for their support. The Merchant Alliance has prepared ten treasures as the grand finale, and we hope all fellow cultivators will like them. For the following auction, we have invited Senior Wang from Wanbao Tower to host.” After the woman finished speaking, a fat old man in yellow robes walked onto the jade platform.

The old man nodded slightly toward Yan'er upon ascending the stage, then expressionlessly surveyed the surroundings.

“I am Wang Ming from Wanbao Tower, thank you all for your support. Without further ado, let's begin.” The old man exuded an imposing aura, inspiring awe. Moreover, this person was a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

The cultivators present were slightly astonished, but even more so, they vaguely anticipated the upcoming auction items.

With a wave of the fat old man's hand, a long, colorful ribbon floated before him. “Rainbow Cloud Silk, a top-grade magical artifact, integrates offense and defense. It is engraved with thirty-three array patterns. Everyone, take a good look.”

Without any visible action from the fat old man, the ribbon swayed, and phantoms appeared, transforming into a vast expanse of clouds. These clouds seemed real and illusory, drifting rapidly.

The fat old man softly shouted, and the vast expanse of clouds exploded with each contraction and expansion, transforming into countless splashing water swords. A series of explosions rang out, creating a considerable spectacle.

Countless water swords rotated at high speed and shot in all directions, exploding into countless water droplets, like layers of water waves spreading out.

However, ripples appeared at the locations where the water droplets exploded, indicating that something was blocking the power of the water spheres. It seemed to be the power of the array here.

“The starting price for this magical artifact is 1,200 spiritual stones, with each increment no less than 30 spiritual stones.”

“1,300 spiritual stones.”

“1,350 spiritual stones.”

The bidding voices grew louder and louder. As the price soared to 1,500 spiritual stones, the bidding gradually subsided.

Top-grade magical artifacts are the highest-level artifacts that Qi Refining cultivators can use. Even peak Qi Refining cultivators can only unleash five or six tenths of the power of a top-grade magical artifact.

Only Foundation Establishment cultivators can unleash the full power of a top-grade magical artifact. Even so, the five-tenths power of a top-grade magical artifact is stronger than a high-grade magical artifact.

Having a top-grade magical artifact would provide a significant advantage in combat. The market price for a top-grade magical artifact is generally around 1,500 spiritual stones.

“I bid 1,600 spiritual stones. I am determined to obtain this magical artifact.”

“1,900 spiritual stones.” Suddenly, a woman's voice rang out, instantly adding 300 spiritual stones.

There were no more bids after that. This magical artifact was clearly intended for women, so most of the bidders were female cultivators. After the woman successfully bid for this magical artifact, she immediately left the room.

This was a woman dressed in black robes, with a large bamboo hat on her head. Divine sense scans bounced off her, making it impossible to discern her true appearance.

Her departure at this time indicated that she intended to pay the spiritual stones and leave this place directly.

The fat old man on the jade platform remained indifferent and took out the next auction item, which was five talismans of different colors.

Zhang Ling's divine sense swept over them, and his face revealed a strange expression. One of the talismans the fat old man took out was a Skyfire Talisman. The other talismans also contained similar spiritual power.

“Light Blade Talisman, Azure Wood Thorns, Ice Rain, Skyfire, Earth Prison. A set of five second-order five-element talismans for auction, starting price 3,000 spiritual stones. Each increment must not exceed 50 spiritual stones.”

Upon hearing the old man's words, the cultivators present erupted in excitement. It was not easy to collect five second-order talismans, and even more so to have one of each of the five elements.

Indeed, each of these finale treasures was extraordinary.

“3,500 spiritual stones.”

“4,000 spiritual stones. The Xu family of White Mountain will take it.”

“Hmph, what's so great about the Xu family? 4,300 spiritual stones, this young master is determined to have it.”

Although there were few bidders, each bid increased by hundreds of spiritual stones. Such prices were not something ordinary cultivators could afford.

The bidders were all cultivators with some backing, either wealthy or from established families.

In the end, the five talismans were acquired by an elderly voice for 5,200 spiritual stones.

The subsequent auction items were also rare, including a White Velvet Spirit Fungus with 500 years of medicinal age, which was sold for more than 7,000 spiritual stones.

Zhang Ling had cultivated many spiritual herbs and recognized this spirit. The White Velvet Spirit Fungus was a second-grade spiritual herb, but it was a rare herb that could continue to grow.

A hundred-year-old specimen could be used to refine pills needed by Foundation Establishment cultivators, making it quite valuable.

As the auction drew to a close, Zhang Ling once again saw a treasure that he desired.

“Thunderfire Pearl, a one-time-use magical artifact refined from Heavenly Lightning and Earthly Fire. Its power is extremely great. If a Foundation Establishment cultivator is not careful and takes a hit, they will suffer serious injuries, or even death. Starting price 2,500 spiritual stones, each increment no less than 100 spiritual stones.”

The fat old man gently held a purple-red round pearl, only the size of a thumb, with faint flames and lightning intertwining on it.

The appearance of this treasure attracted the attention of many cultivators, and the bidding voices were incessant.

Looking at this inconspicuous little pearl, Zhang Ling's heart was also moved. A treasure that Foundation Establishment cultivators feared was hard to come by. Having this item was equivalent to having a trump card.

While he was considering, the price of this Thunderfire Pearl had already reached 3,800 spiritual stones.

“4,500 spiritual stones.”

Zhang Ling took a deep breath and called out a price, adding several hundred spiritual stones at once. This was also all the spiritual stones he had left.

He had also discovered a pattern earlier: if each auction item was bid up little by little, the final transaction price would often be very high. But if he increased the price by several hundred spiritual stones at once, he could deter some bidding cultivators, who might give up bidding.

With fewer people competing, the final transaction price would naturally be lower.

“4,600 spiritual stones.”

“4,700 spiritual stones.”

Although there were fewer bidders, there were still three or four people bidding. Zhang Ling frowned and gritted his teeth.

“5,000 spiritual stones.”

With his repeated price increase, no one else bid for this Thunderfire Pearl, and Zhang Ling also breathed a sigh of relief.

Five thousand spiritual stones was a considerable fortune for a Foundation Establishment cultivator, enough to add one or two top-grade magical artifacts.

But he did not regret it. With this treasure, his life would have a guarantee.

“Next are the last three treasures of this auction, everyone, take a good look.”

As the fat old man spoke, he took out three jade boxes at once. He opened them one by one. The contents of the first jade box was a cyan jade bottle, which seemed to be a pill.

The second jade box contained a disc-like magical artifact. The contents of the last jade box was actually a cyan talisman.