Chapter 1628: Earth Spirit Tribe and Earth Shadow War Chariot

A Mortal's Journey to Immortality

Han Li was startled but then relaxed, touching his nose. He remained confused by what the Human-Faced Dragon had said before leaving. He was completely human, so how could he be connected to it? Was it because of the true spirit bloodlines he had refined? That seemed unlikely; although those true spirit bloodlines were powerful, they would lie dormant after refinement and not show any trace. Otherwise, he would have encountered problems much earlier when he met so many powerful beings. Han Li pondered for a while, still full of doubts. However, some nearby non-human races began to look at him strangely. Even the young man named Fei on the stage gave him a second glance but said nothing. As for the Integration-stage cultivators on the third floor, many also cast curious gazes his way. Among them, Duan Tianren immediately recognized Han Li, and his expression became somewhat peculiar. Han Li secretly fretted, realizing he had suddenly attracted so much attention.

"Alright, since this matter has been resolved, you may continue with the auction. I'll be taking my leave now. Fellow Daoist Lu, please avoid the vicinity of the Ziwei Sea from now on. If anything truly happens, I, Fei, will not be able to intervene. Take care." The young man withdrew his gaze and spoke calmly to Xiao Buyi, the elderly man surnamed Lu, and the others.

"We will certainly bear that in mind! Thank you, Senior, for your protection just now; otherwise, we would have been in grave danger." The old man and the others naturally expressed their heartfelt gratitude. Xiao Buyi, who had been standing by, also offered words of "farewell."

The young man nodded, then stepped off the stage. His figure moved with ease, but after only a few steps, he blurred and appeared at the hall entrance, then vanished in a flash.

Upon seeing the two Mahayana-stage cultivators leave one after another, the Integration-stage old eccentrics on the third floor immediately flew back into their rooms and concealed themselves again. The other people in the hall redirected their gaze back to those on the stage.

"Brother Lu, you are injured; please return to your cave abode to rest well. Madam Kun, I'll have to trouble the three of you to stay a bit longer. Fortunately, it's almost over, so it won't delay you much. Additionally, on behalf of my clan, I will increase the originally agreed-upon compensation by twenty percent for the four fellow Daoists." Xiao Buyi spoke with unusual courtesy to the old man, the woman, and the others.

"Rest assured, Brother Xiao! Even if something major happens, since we three have promised you, we will definitely stay until the end of this auction," the woman said with a wry smile after exchanging glances with the other two.

"My thanks to the three of you!" Xiao Buyi was overjoyed to hear this. If the three of them had simply turned to leave, he wouldn't have known how to persuade them to stay.

As for the old man surnamed Lu, he merely gave Xiao Buyi a somber nod before his intact arm reached down to the ground. Instantly, the severed arm that had fallen floated lightly into his hand, which he then carefully put away. Without a word, the old man surnamed Lu formed a hand seal with both hands. After a low hum from the blue magic array on the stage, his figure vanished in a flash of spiritual light. As a member of the Saint Race, the old man had always been held in great awe. But now, having an arm severed in front of so many people, he naturally felt an unbearable sense of shame and humiliation. At that moment, he did not wish to linger there for another second. He might even be unwilling to see anyone for a long time to come.

"The previous auctioned item has naturally been canceled due to unforeseen circumstances. Fellow Daoist Lan, please take back your spirit stones first. However, to compensate for my loss, if you manage to bid successfully on any of the next three items, I can offer a discount of ten million spirit stones as compensation for Brother Lan," Xiao Buyi said with a slight cough, suddenly speaking with a smile to the curly-haired old man who had, at some point, retreated to a corner of the stage. He then raised his hand, tossing back the bag of spirit stones that the other party had just handed over.

The curly-haired old man had clearly feared trouble from the Human-Faced Dragon, which was why he had quietly appeared there and remained silent. Now, hearing Xiao Buyi's words, the old man sighed and said, "Forget it. Since the previous auction had an issue, it seems I, Lan, am not destined for this auction. Even if extremely rare treasures appear next, I will not make another bid."

The curly-haired old man was quite pragmatic. After taking the spirit stones, he immediately walked off the stage without looking back and headed straight out of the main hall. A moment later, he was gone. Seeing this, many people below the stage stirred once more.

Xiao Buyi frowned, but his expression immediately returned to normal, and he nodded at the Green Whale woman beside him. The woman instantly understood his intention. She reached into her sleeve with one hand, pulled out a dark, shapeless object, and tossed it into the air. In an instant, several cries echoed straight into the sky! Then, a fierce wind began to blow across the stone platform, and a black cloud materialized in the air. After a brief roll, it expanded to over ten zhang in size. This unusual phenomenon immediately drew everyone's gaze back to the stage.

Continuous neighing sounds emanated from the cloud, followed by several claps of thunder. Amidst flashes of white lightning, the black cloud instantly dispersed and vanished. In its place, a jet-black flying chariot appeared in the air. It was five to six zhang long, covered in intricate, ancient patterns, and exuded an aura of wild antiquity. Pulling the chariot were four equally jet-black, one-horned flying horses. Not only did they have black wings on their backs, but the greater part of their bodies was also covered in black battle armor. Each of the four flying horses was ridden by a black armored warrior, as tall as a normal human. Every warrior was fully armed, with a sword at their side and a quiver on their back. However, both the flying horses and their riders hovered motionless in the air, clearly four beast-riding puppets! Both the chariot and the four riders glowed with the same cold, eerie light, clearly crafted from the same material. Upon seeing these flying chariots and riders, many people below immediately showed signs of interest.

"Hehe, this is the second highlight item of this auction: the 'Netherworld War Chariot.' I won't go into much detail about this chariot, but simply mentioning its origin will likely ring a bell for most fellow Daoists. Many of you should still remember the Earth Spirit Race, which was annihilated hundreds of thousands of years ago. The Earth Spirit Race was once renowned as the foremost in automaton and puppet artistry on the Thunderous Continent! This very set of Netherworld War Chariots originates from the Earth Spirit Race and was discovered in a secret ruin of the Netherworld Race. I won't demonstrate its specific powers. I can only tell all fellow Daoists plainly that these accompanying rider puppets alone each possess the strength of a mid-stage Void Refinement cultivator. Furthermore, when the four rider puppets combine forces, they can unleash a long-lost joint secret technique, capable of withstanding an attack from an early-stage Saint Race member. As for the Netherworld War Chariot itself, its transformations are endless, and its profound mysteries can only be truly experienced by the fellow Daoist who ultimately acquires it," Xiao Buyi said with a chuckle.

Upon hearing the name of the Earth Spirit Race, many people seated below showed signs of interest. When they then heard that four puppet riders combined could withstand an early-stage Saint Race member, they were immediately overcome with surprise and delight. Some couldn't resist immediately sweeping their divine sense over them, eager to probe them. The moment these individuals released their divine sense, they were greatly startled the next instant and hastily withdrew it. The puppet riders themselves were fine, but the moment their divine sense touched the flying chariots, a strange suction force emanated from the chariots' surfaces, forcefully drawing many people's divine senses into the vehicles. This naturally gave them quite a fright! Perhaps this was because the chariot had no owner yet and had not been refined. They did not encounter any obstacles when withdrawing their divine senses; otherwise, they would have truly suffered a significant loss. However, this incident inadvertently confirmed the chariot's profoundness from another angle, instantly piquing the interest of even more people.

Han Li, caught off guard, also suffered a minor setback. He became quite curious about the chariot but immediately sighed inwardly. Although he didn't know the starting price of the chariot yet, a treasure capable of withstanding a Saint Race cultivator's attack would undoubtedly fetch an exorbitant price. He could only remain in his seat and observe. However, the Golden Thunder Bamboo had still not appeared, which indicated it was indeed highly valued by the auction house, placed even among the final highlight items.

As Han Li pondered, Xiao Buyi finally announced the starting bid for the "Netherworld War Chariot" on stage! The complete set of Netherworld War Chariots had a starting price of one hundred twenty million spirit stones! Although he knew the chariot's price would be astonishing, Han Li was still momentarily stunned in his seat after hearing the figure, then a faint smile appeared on his face. As expected, the bidding for the Netherworld War Chariot was incredibly fierce! With each new bid, it easily surpassed the sky-high price of two hundred million, yet many people still seemed unwilling to give up. This time, however, there were only a few Saint Race members bidding from the third floor. A few who had made one or two bids immediately fell silent once the price exceeded two hundred million. Ultimately, the chariot was won by a veiled, slender woman for two hundred twenty million spirit stones. Afterward, many people muttered among themselves as they looked at the veiled woman. It was truly incredible that a woman who appeared to be only at the mid-stage of the Spirit Transformation realm could possess such a vast sum of spirit stones. Han Li was also somewhat surprised but quickly dismissed the matter from his mind.

This was because Xiao Buyi had taken a jade box from the two-headed monster, and upon opening it, revealed a vibrant, emerald green bamboo. It was precisely the Golden Thunder Bamboo that Han Li had provided!

"The source of the Five Elements Divine Wood Thunder, one stalk of Golden Thunder Bamboo! Starting price: one hundred seventy million!" This time, Xiao Buyi was uncharacteristically direct. He held the bamboo in one hand, waved it in the air towards the audience below, and gave a remarkably brief introduction.

A roar of thunder erupted, and countless golden electric arcs simultaneously shot forth from the bamboo's surface, instantly forming a golden electrical net that appeared out of thin air before everyone's eyes.

"Golden Thunder Bamboo!"

"Evil-Dispelling Divine Thunder!" "Ultimate Wood Divine Thunder!" Almost simultaneously, a dozen exclamations of surprise burst forth from various places. Several of these even came directly from the third floor. And everyone else's expressions changed dramatically the moment they saw the golden electric arcs appear.

Whispers immediately rose throughout the hall!

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