Li Wei looked at the light purple Energy Secret Medicine in his hand.

His face was filled with joy and excitement.

This was the first time he had successfully concocted it in reality.

This held a different meaning than the simulated experiments in his dreams.

Li Wei took out three small potion vials and poured the Energy Secret Medicine into them.

It perfectly filled the three small vials.

Based on his dream experiments, each small vial contained just enough to restore ninety percent of his Spiritual Power.

For other Mages, a single small vial of the Energy Secret Medicine was enough to fully restore a Tier Three Mage’s Spiritual Power.

Li Wei had already zeroed in on his target demographic: Tier Three Mages.

Tiers One and Two Mages also needed the Energy Secret Medicine.

However, they couldn’t afford to pay much.

They wouldn’t spend much money on consumables.

Tier Three Mages, on the other hand, were different.

First, the Elemental Tower was home to many Mages who were stuck at Tier Three, unable to break through to Tier Four.

Second, Tier Three Mages had money.

Third, a Tier Three Mage’s advancement had slowed, leaving them with more money to spend on other things.

Unlike Tiers One and Two Mages, who were constantly scrambling for cultivation resources.

The biggest concern for Tier Three Mages was no longer a lack of cultivation resources.

It was their inability to break through to Tier Four.

They couldn’t find the catalyst to become a Grand Mage.

Breaking through to Tier Four was both simple and difficult.

It’s easy for those who know how, and difficult for those who don’t.

For some, all it took was a single vial of an Awakening Magic Potion.

The problem was, a Tier Four Awakening Magic Potion wasn’t so easy to come by.

Allen had searched for a Rock Demon Crystal Core for years, only to unexpectedly obtain one from Li Wei and achieve Tier Four.

Tyr, in his attempt to break through to Tier Five, was only missing a Soul Crystal for his advancement ritual.

Yet, he couldn’t find one even after searching for two years.

When he finally found a Soul Crystal and got his chance to advance...

...the price he paid was his own life.

Many Mages stuck at Tier Three were just one catalyst away from a breakthrough.

No one knew when that catalyst would appear. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Or whether it would be a blessing or a curse.

Li Wei, however, didn’t have to worry about this.

As long as he was willing to put in the effort, he was certain to break through.

It was only a matter of time.

The catalyst was already in his hands.

Li Wei spent a day refining all the Five-coin Dragon’s Blood Grass into Energy Secret Medicine.

He produced a total of fifteen small vials of the Energy Secret Medicine.

Li Wei looked up at the night sky outside.

’The third day. Seven days left.’

Li Wei felt a sense of urgency.

If he couldn’t break through to Tier Three within seven days, the Greed Curse would corrode his foundation and obliterate his Mana.

Carrying the fifteen vials of Energy Secret Medicine, he left the manor.

Li Wei arrived at the marketplace.

He happened to run into a small auction, so he took out one vial of the Energy Secret Medicine to test the waters.

He wanted to see what price people were willing to pay for the Energy Secret Medicine.

The auction didn’t have many attendees, only two or three hundred people.

Li Wei blended into the crowd.

After waiting for some time, the Energy Secret Medicine was finally put up for auction.

The Auctioneer announced, "This is a very rare vial of Energy Secret Medicine, capable of fully restoring a Tier Three Mage’s Spiritual Power."

"The Energy Secret Medicine is an Ancient Alchemy Potion, its formula long lost. This particular vial was discovered in an ancient Alchemist’s Secret Realm, making it incredibly precious."

"Even if you don’t use it, there is immense value in simply analyzing the Energy Secret Medicine’s formula."

"The starting bid is fifty Gold Coins, with minimum increments of one gold coin."

Li Wei looked at the artificially aged vial, feeling speechless.

He had only told the auction house’s Appraiser that first sentence.

All the rest—the lost Ancient Alchemy Potion, the ancient Alchemist’s Secret Realm... that was all fabricated by the Auctioneer.

However, that didn’t stop others from feeling a sense of yearning when they heard it.

Most people, however, were focused on the Energy Secret Medicine’s actual effects.

As for the claim that it was a lost Secret Medicine, no one would believe that so easily.

’How many "lost treasures" had this auction house sold before?’

Quickly, the price rose to one hundred and fifty Gold Coins.

Then, the bidding started to stall.

Li Wei frowned, raised his paddle, and called out, "Two hundred."

The hall instantly fell silent.

The Auctioneer glanced at Li Wei, and after confirming he wasn’t a shill, quickly struck the gavel.

"Two hundred Gold Coins, going once."

"Two hundred Gold Coins, going twice."

...

Li Wei watched the Auctioneer intently. He would rather buy it back himself than let it sell for less than two hundred Gold Coins.

Two hundred Gold Coins was his bottom line.

Just as the third strike of the gavel was about to fall...

...someone in the crowd stood up and shouted, "Two hundred and eleven."

Everyone saw his Three-Star Magic Robe and knew he was a Tier Three Mage.

The three green stars indicated that he was a powerful Tier Three Mage.

The Floating City was primarily composed of Mage Academies from the Elemental Tower.

Everyone could judge a Mage’s strength by the color of the stars on their Mage Robe.

Before long, another Tier Three Mage in the crowd placed a bid.

Once the price surpassed two hundred Gold Coins, basically only the Tier Three Mages were left competing. Everyone else just silently watched the show.

They didn’t have the financial means to compete.

"Three hundred twenty-five Gold Coins!"

"Are there any higher bids?"

the Auctioneer shouted excitedly.

For a single vial of a consumable Secret Medicine to fetch over three hundred Gold Coins truly exceeded the Auctioneer’s expectations.

Even a cheap Tier One Awakening Magic Potion only cost five or six hundred Gold Coins.

When Li Wei saw the Energy Secret Medicine sell for three hundred and twenty-five Gold Coins, he breathed a sigh of relief.

It proved he had made the right decision to come tonight.

After the auction house took its cut, Li Wei received 292.5 Gold Coins.

The commission rate was ten percent.

Li Wei now had a good sense of the price Tier Three Mages were willing to pay for the Energy Secret Medicine.

After putting on a disguise, Li Wei rented a small stall.

He displayed the Energy Secret Medicine and set the price at two hundred and eighty Gold Coins a vial.

His strategy was to market it as rare, expensive, and high-end.

Li Wei’s target demographic was wealthy Tier Three Mages.

Upon seeing the advertised effects of the Energy Secret Medicine, quite a few people came over to haggle with Li Wei.

Li Wei remained silent, and gradually, people stopped trying to haggle.

Joyce, who had just left the auction, spotted Li Wei’s roadside stall.

He froze for a moment in surprise.

Just moments ago, he had been bidding fiercely for an Energy Secret Medicine. The price had shot past three hundred Gold Coins, and he had still lost the bid.

He never expected to walk out and immediately find a cheaper vial of the same potion.

Without a second thought, Joyce paid for and bought a vial of the Energy Secret Medicine.

Li Wei glanced at him, recognizing him as one of the bidders from the auction.

Joyce put away the Energy Secret Medicine, looked at Li Wei, and asked, "Did you brew this?"

Li Wei didn’t answer.

Seeing this, Joyce didn’t press the issue and turned to leave.

Li Wei’s silence was an answer in itself.

After Joyce left, Li Wei took out another vial of Energy Secret Medicine and placed it on the stall.

There was always only a single vial of the Energy Secret Medicine on display.

Li Wei didn’t expect anyone to buy two vials at once anyway.

Over the course of the evening, Li Wei sold four vials of the Energy Secret Medicine.

He earned 1132.5 Gold Coins.

’They really are a hard sell.’

But Li Wei had no intention of lowering the price.

Taking the money, he went to the Zui Wan Commerce Association to buy Fire Spirit Ginseng and a Tier Three Fire Elemental Crystal Core.

While he was there, Li Wei also asked if the Zui Wan Commerce Association had any Dragon Blood Plants.

The Zui Wan Commerce Association had one Dragon Blood Tree, but its price was exorbitant.

Then he suddenly remembered that he seemed to have a Dragon Blood Tree of his own.