The next morning, Lü Zhong rented a Red-tailed Eagle and set off for the auction.

The journey of a hundred li took no more than half an ancient hour, and he soon landed in Yongling City.

After the war, Yongling City grew more prosperous by the day. Not only had it recovered its former splendor—with neon-like Spiritual Light filling the city and streets bustling with people and carriages—but there were even faint signs of it surpassing its former glory.

However, the second war between the Three Sects was destined to erupt, so this scene before him was fated not to last.

Lü Zhong shook his head and headed for the auction house in the central district.

When he arrived, he saw quite a few cultivators already waiting. All of them were there for the auction, and almost every one of them wore a Dharma Robe, showing off their financial means.

While waiting, he eavesdropped on the idle chatter of others to relieve his boredom.

"Fellow Daoist Xiong, I heard there’s a special Pill session in Hall One today. Is that true?" an energetic old man inquired, cupping his hands toward a thin cultivator beside him.

The Yongling City auction house was not small. It had numerous Spiritual Objects and resources to auction, so on normal days, it was divided into multiple halls, each auctioning different categories of items. However, temporary special sessions like this were quite rare.

That was why the old man was asking around.

The thin cultivator was a well-informed person. He chuckled and confirmed, "Yes. I heard there are ten bottles of Secret Pattern Pills. Brother Zhong, you’ll have to spare me two bottles later. I’m counting on them to break through to the Ninth Layer."

Soon, the auction house opened its doors.

Inside was a corridor flanked by several small doors on the left and right, labeled with the numbers one to eight. Lü Zhong didn’t even glance at them, walking straight toward a large door in the very center.

This was the venue for today’s annual auction.

Continuing inside, he came to a long hallway leading to the auction hall. Midway down, there was a large counter.

The counter was where one bought admission tickets; a ticket was required to participate in the auction.

"Fellow Daoist, would you like a private room?" a Female Cultivator behind the counter recommended. "Given your status as a disciple of the Heling Sect, we can offer you one at half price. The cheapest is only Five Spirit Stones. These rooms are fully equipped with features like blocking Divine Sense. They’re just a bit smaller, but they still protect your privacy."

Lü Zhong thought for a moment and decided to get one. After all, the price wasn’t high.

"I’ll take one, then."

As he spoke, he handed her Five Spirit Stones.

After he paid, a young maidservant came over, bowed, and said, "Immortal Master, please follow me."

He followed her down a side passage off the main hallway, and after just a few steps, they arrived at a private room.

Stepping inside, Lü Zhong glanced around. He was reasonably satisfied with the furnishings.

He sat down and picked up the auction catalog from the table.

The catalog listed all the items to be auctioned today, from High-tier Arrays to exquisite Magical Artifacts. There were Pills and Talismans, as well as various precious spiritual materials and Spirit Medicines—all fine items rarely found outside.

After flipping through for a while, he found the item he wanted to bid on.

The Shuo Jin Sword, a High-grade Magical Artifact, was listed in the middle of the catalog.

’An exquisite Fire Element Magic Sword. I really came to the right place this time!’

Reading on, he saw all sorts of treasures: the Tier Two High-grade Array, the Jade Wave Array; the Vein Protection Pill, which could protect one’s heart meridian if Foundation Establishment failed; and the final, featured treasure—the Foundation Establishment Pill.

His gaze lingered on the three words for a long time before Lü Zhong finally looked away.

The Foundation Establishment Pill. He hadn’t saved up enough Spirit Stones for it yet; he couldn’t afford it.

...

After enjoying some fragrant tea in his private room, the auction soon began.

Following the order in the catalog, items were brought out one after another. Some were fought over and sold for a good price, while others received no interest and went unsold. Spurred on by the host, the atmosphere in the hall gradually grew heated.

"Nine hundred and seventy Spirit Stones! Congratulations to this Fellow Daoist for successfully bidding on a scroll of the Primordial Technique!" the host shouted excitedly.

Lü Zhong picked up his teacup and took a sip.

The Primordial Technique was a decent Cultivation Technique. Not only did it have no obvious side effects, but it could be practiced all the way to the Core Formation Stage.

Therefore, selling for nearly a thousand Spirit Stones couldn’t be considered expensive.

The auction continued. The cultivators participating each had their own reasons; some had made a special trip for a particular treasure, while others were simply there to watch the excitement out of boredom.

Throughout the process, people continuously entered and left.

Lü Zhong kept drinking his tea, leaning back on the comfortable chaise lounge and waiting quietly.

Soon, the Shuo Jin Sword was presented.

"The Shuo Jin Sword! A brand-new High-grade Magical Artifact, completely free of any wear. It comes from the Yan Clan Workshop here in the city and is the masterwork of Master Yan Shi, into which he poured his heart and soul. It is imbued with the powerful Divine Technique ’Shuo Jin’ and the Divine Technique ’Molten Fire.’ Melting gold and dissolving iron is no problem for it..." the host introduced enthusiastically, putting all his effort into it for the sake of his commission.

"The starting bid is nine hundred Spirit Stones, with each increment no less than Ten Spirit Stones. Interested Fellow Daoists may now place your bids!"

"One thousand Spirit Stones!"

"One thousand and ten!"

The Shuo Jin Sword was clearly an exquisite Magical Artifact, so it triggered a bidding war.

With everyone trying to outbid each other, the price quickly rose to fifteen hundred Spirit Stones.

At this point, the vast majority of bidders gave up, leaving only two people still battling it out.

Lü Zhong waited until their duel was over, then raised the bid by a Hundred Spirit Stones, directly crushing his opponent’s will to continue. In the end, he successfully won the Shuo Jin Sword for the price of eighteen hundred Spirit Stones.

He paid the Spirit Stones in his private room.

Soon, a maidservant delivered the sword.

As the Shuo Jin Sword came into his hand, he felt a distinct warmth, as if he were holding a piece of charcoal.

After carefully reading the included instruction manual, he learned that the sword was actually forged from Molten Fire Stone, which was why it naturally came with the Molten Fire Divine Technique. Its effect was to amplify Fire Element Divine Techniques, making it a perfect match for the Shuo Jin Divine Technique.