Five Blessings City was as usual, with ordinary people unable to sense any change.

Ordinary people.

Practitioners.

Even limit-breaking and peak state practitioners, if not innate, would never stand out.

The vast majority were unaware that April 22 marked the annual auction held by Feiyu Trading Company, one of the two major annual auctions in Five Blessings City, the other held by Wanshan Trading Company, the largest two trading houses in the Jinze Region, an exclusive event for Innate Divine Generals.

Danhu Calendar, Year 499, April 22.

The auction had yet to officially begin, but some local postnatal realm peak state experts could already sense the city’s atmosphere shifting, as more and more Divine Generals arrived in Five Blessings City.

For local Divine Generals, the change was even more evident. The ’Divine General’s Courtyards’, usually easy to rent, had become hard to come by in recent days leading up to the event.

"So many Divine Generals!"

Yan Chuan walked through the city, sensing the increased presence of Divine Generals everywhere. Not only from the surrounding areas of Five Blessings City but also from other royal cities.

"The ’Feiyu Trading Company Auction’ in the six great royal cities of the Jinze Region is held every two months starting April, in Five Blessings City of Danhu Realm in April, in Golden Talisman City of Hunxi Realm in June, in Qiwu Realm in August..."

"Each auction attracts hundreds to thousands of Divine Generals."

Jinze Region.

Six great royal cities.

Divine Generals are lofty, but there are indeed quite a few.

According to the latest statistics from Wanxiang Pavilion in early April, there were 9,707 Divine Generals in Hunxi Territory alone. It’s said that Wanxiang Pavilion would release the ’Danhu Realm·Divine General List’ in early May, revealing the number of Divine Generals in Danhu Realm.

Of course, even without Wanxiang Pavilion, people more or less have some idea.

"Nearly ten thousand in one royal city."

"In the six great royal cities of the Jinze Region, at least sixty to seventy thousand."

If even one percent of sixty to seventy thousand Divine Generals attended the auction, it would amount to six to seven hundred. In fact, since the auctions started, the number of participating Divine Generals has never been below a thousand.

Auctions showcased rare treasures, attracting Divine Generals eager to acquire them.

For instance, this time, the appearance of the ’seventh-rank Odd Weapon: God Slaying Spear’ drew at least two thousand Divine Generals. Though many might not purchase it, as it might be out of reach, everyone was curious about who would acquire the ’God Slaying Spear’ and at what exorbitant price.

"One to two thousand Divine Generals."

"If I could give a martial arts lecture, wouldn’t that be marvelous?"

In Ladder City, Yan Chuan had merely fifty to sixty innate spectators during the ’Mutual Teaching and Learning’, which had already benefited him greatly.

A thousand Divine Generals?

Two thousand Divine Generals?

Unimaginable, that would be splendid.

"Shall I undertake a grand scheme?" Yan Chuan wasn’t imagining things; he was genuinely considering the feasibility of giving a lecture to the two thousand Divine Generals attending the ’Feiyu Trading Company Auction’ in Five Blessings City: "I am not a native of Danhu Realm or even the Jinze Region, so there’s no deep attachment. If things get too out of hand here, I can leave the Jinze Region and even the South Continent; I can go anywhere in the Northern Continent, the Eastern Continent."

Therefore—

"If I held a ’White Horn Trumpet’ public lecture in Five Blessings City, theoretically, as long as I could successfully deliver the lecture and reap the benefits, it wouldn’t matter if I couldn’t stay in this city, Danhu Realm, or even the Jinze Region."

Yan Chuan was eager to move.

Yet he remained rational.

"No, no!" Yan Chuan shook his head: "Although my speed now rivals Fifth-Rank Divine Generals, at this moment, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of Divine Generals in Five Blessings City, including those at the Fifth Rank and possibly Sixth Rank. It’s hard for me to escape. And although there’s Old Wang’s ’Monkey King Avatar’ to take me miles away, I can’t let him sacrifice himself for nothing."

His strength was still insufficient.

"If ’Wave Riding Micro Steps’ reached the peak of the Eighth Realm, with my physique at the Sixth Rank, and if I could enhance the ’Purple Gold Shuttle’ to the Sixth Rank and master the third layer of the ’Purple Gold Battle Boots’, then even a Sixth Rank Divine General wouldn’t be able to catch up with me."

"If I could elevate the ’White Horn Trumpet’ to the Sixth Rank and raise ’Ghost Prison Yin Wind Roar’ to the peak of the Eighth Realm, then my voice would be elusive, easily spreading throughout the city while making it hard for anyone to pinpoint my true body, even a Sixth Rank Divine General wouldn’t be able to find me."

Only then could the idea of lecturing thousands of Divine Generals be feasible.

As for now—

"No, no."

Yan Chuan suppressed his inner urges.

No rush.

Wait a bit longer.

At the current cultivation speed, in two more months, ’Wave Riding Micro Steps’ and ’Ghost Prison Yin Wind Roar’ would likely reach the peak of the Eighth Realm.

Then there’s the ’Purple Gold Shuttle’.

And the ’White Horn Trumpet’.

In these two months, with further progress, Yan Chuan could afford to act a little more boldly in front of Sixth Rank Divine Generals.

Moreover—

"In two months, I might have nearly two hundred friends in Ladder City; the ’Mutual Teaching and Learning’ has provided significant feedback, so there’s no need to take risks in reality."

However, a public lecture in the entire city would be too ostentatious, but what if it were more subtle?

Looking at the numerous Divine Generals in the city, Yan Chuan, failing one scheme, came up with another.

...

"The auction."

"Has begun."

Yan Chuan entered the venue, a vast auction hall, where the space seemingly expanded infinitely. Focused around the auction stage, it encompassed six layers: the first layer for First-Rank Divine Generals, the second for Second Rank, the third for Third Rank, and so on, with the sixth holding Sixth Rank and above, with fewer numbers as it goes higher.

Yan Chuan, being Innate Fourth Layer, was placed on the first level. Fortunately, regardless of the floor, everyone had a private box, undisturbed. Besides the host Feiyu Trading Company, no one else would know who was in other boxes, nor what they bid on, unless they deliberately exposed themselves without disguising or changing their voice.

Feiyu Trading Company maximized guest privacy and ensured attendee safety.

"The highlight of this auction is the ’God Slaying Spear’, but the other items aren’t bad either." Yan Chuan sat alone in his box, reviewing a more detailed list of auction items, which included ’Fire Bud Crystal’, one of the focus items promoted this time.

Feiyu Trading Company caught the trend. Recently, the hottest topic in the Jinze Region was the Moth Vine incident in Nanyue Lake within Hunxi Territory. Various battles had long gone beyond being dominated by the Fu Family; the ’Four Families and Three Sects’ of Hunxi Territory were all involved, the Beast King City had entered the fray, and other War God-level forces from the five remaining great royal cities also intervened.

Divine Generals gathered at Nanyue Lake, surpassing the number in Five Blessings City today.

Every day, an average of ten or more Divine Generals accidentally died due to various frictions.

Nanyue Lake!

It had clearly become a ’Divine General’s meat grinder’!

"The three Fire Bud Crystal Stones auctioned this time were obtained from Nanyue Lake, maybe from Feiyu Trading Company’s stock?" Yan Chuan wasn’t sure, but he was interested in these three Fire Bud Crystals, as Chen Ze was still lacking. However, he understood: "I can’t win them."

Blood Shadow Temple’s acquisition price for Fire Bud Crystals had hit at least 20 Primordial Pills.

This auction set a starting bid of 60 Primordial Pills for the three Fire Bud Crystals, a price beyond Yan Chuan’s means.

"My target is the materials matching the Miracle Item." Yan Chuan had a clear goal.

For this auction, Yan Chuan was prepared to simply play the observer.

...

"Thank you for your patience, everyone! Without further ado, the first auctioned item is the currently popular Fire Bud Crystals, a set of three, starting at 60 Primordial Pills. Before we begin, here’s some good news: just now, another guest consigned three more Fire Bud Crystals for our auction. These will be the last items to be auctioned."

"Now."

"Let’s begin the auction."

...

Feiyu Trading Company was crisp and decisive, commencing the auction without unnecessary chatter.

But the attendees were highly enthused—

"60."

"62."

"65." 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"70."

"100."

...

In just moments, the bid shot up to 100 Primordial Pills.

In the North Mansion’s stone room—

"The rich truly have their ways!" Ding Xiang clicked her tongue.

A hundred Primordial Pills?

Even if she sold herself, she couldn’t earn that much.

Situ Fei pursed her lips, finding it absurd, but she had no need to rely on others. As long as Ding Xiang’s goodwill towards her was high enough and her emotions were positive enough, she could make bold advancements without bottlenecks.

But seeing Ding Xiang’s seemingly money-obsessed demeanor, Situ Fei’s heart stirred, suddenly having a thought: "If I could occasionally give her a hundred Primordial Pills, she’d surely be overjoyed."

There was potential!

The more Situ Fei thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

Recently, her relationship with Ding Xiang had reached a bottleneck. Many of her methods to please Ding Xiang had entered a phase of diminishing returns, making it hard to earn more favor from her. But after arriving in Five Blessings City, she inexplicably felt Ding Xiang’s cheerful spirit, which accelerated her progress significantly.

However, not long after, she often sensed Ding Xiang’s irritability, pain, torment, and even utter despair. Such negative emotions hindered Situ Fei’s cultivation, subjecting her to tenfold, hundredfold mental torment, honing her Dao Heart, strengthening her resolve, but the suffering was exceedingly hard to bear.

Situ Fei still wanted Ding Xiang to be happier, and if merely with Primordial Pills she could bring joy to Ding Xiang, it would simplify a complex problem.

This way, Situ Fei’s problem shifted from tackling Ding Xiang’s complex emotions to figuring out how to acquire Primordial Pills.

"How to earn them?" Situ Fei fell into deep thought.

Earning money’s even harder than eating crap!

While pondering.

Suddenly.

She sensed a coolness in her mind, a piece of information appeared, leaving Situ Fei surprised: "Is this even possible?"

...

Feiyu Trading Company’s auction continued with fervor.

The first item, the set of three Fire Bud Crystals, set a strong initial pace, eventually selling for 142 Primordial Pills. Who took it was unclear, nor was it known if this person already possessed 208 Fire Bud Crystals, as such an outrageous price couldn’t be comprehended otherwise.

There were indeed many wealthy people!

Yan Chuan couldn’t help but share the same sigh as Ding Xiang.

As the auction proceeded, such sighs grew more frequent and intense, as each item easily fetched several tens of Primordial Pills, with some reaching hundreds, and even a few hundreds.

After the innate devaluation, Yan Chuan felt a fleeting notion that Primordial Pills were also losing value.

Tens to hundreds of them.

Really worthless.

Yan Chuan felt it was like a dream, until the auction entered its middle stage, slowing its pace to auction some high-rank materials, some rare Fourth Rank and Fifth Rank materials at a price range of about one or two Primordial Pills up to a dozen, finally grounding Yan Chuan back in reality, his eyes focused.

One had to admit.

Yan Chuan was quite lucky, this auction did offer him something—

...