Chapter 516: Bought Everything

"The Primordial Stone is the most durable crafting material from beyond this realm," the silver-haired woman continued. "Even a full-force attack from a Seventh-level Tribulation Being cannot damage it in the slightest. Many Tribulation-level artifacts, when left without a master's maintenance, will gradually deteriorate over vast expanses of time. Yet, the Primordial Stone possesses the characteristic of 'eternity'; it remains perfectly intact even after billions of years."

"'Eternity' characteristic?" "A full-force attack from a Seventh-level Tribulation Being can't damage it?" Many less-experienced cultivators listened, wide-eyed and awestruck, carefully examining the smooth, fist-sized stone. Such a precious item was typically only seen at a treasure auction; it would be incredibly rare for them to encounter it otherwise.

This was also why many Venerables, despite clearly being unable to afford the items, still came to attend the treasure auction.

"The Primordial Stone has such an attraction for those in the Chaotic Hole realm, like a primal instinct?" Meng Chuan observed it closely. He had read numerous ancient texts before leaving Cangyuan World and, of course, knew of the famed 'Primordial Star.'

There are countless stars beyond this realm. The most common ones include Solar Stars and Lunar Stars, while more mysterious ones like Dark Stars and Boundless Stars can also be found. The cultivation system of gods and demons even names cultivation realms such as the Great Sun Realm, Dark Star Realm, and Boundless Realm after these extra-realm stars.

For ordinary cultivators, the most terrifying celestial body is a 'chaotic hole.' Meng Chuan's own dark chaotic hole within his body was also named after it. However, legend holds that the most mysterious star of all is the 'Primordial Star.'

Only Eighth-level Tribulation Beings can discover and enter it. While they can easily mine piles of Primordial Stones, even a finger-sized piece that makes its way to the outside world fetches an exorbitant price, since only Eighth-level Tribulation Beings possess the ability to mine them.

Its most common use is in refining Tribulation-level artifacts. Grand Ancestor Cangyuan documented a refining method called the 'Myriad Star Sacrifice Method.' This method requires setting up an altar with tens of thousands of Lunar and Solar Stars and then using a sacrificial ritual to cause the Primordial Stone to spontaneously decompose, allowing it to be used for refining Tribulation-level artifacts. It is generally used to refine Seventh-level Tribulation artifacts. As for Eighth-level Tribulation artifacts, their creation is extremely difficult, requiring immense fortuitous encounters, and they cannot be directly refined.

"The Primordial Stone, a crafting material, has a starting bid of three hundred and sixty units of extra-realm yuan crystal," the silver-haired woman said with a slight smile.

"Three hundred and seventy units," a voice immediately called out. It came from a white-haired old man, a perfected Emperor, who was staring intently at the Primordial Stone from within the hall.

"Three hundred and eighty units.""Three hundred and eighty-five units."Bids continued to pour in.

Meng Chuan watched intently, not rushing to place a bid.

He wasn't worried! Although the Primordial Stone was precious and rare, even a piece this size was comparable in price to a Sixth-level Tribulation artifact. Throughout the long history of the River of Spacetime, whenever an Eighth-level Tribulation Being emerged, they would typically mine vast quantities of Primordial Stones and leave them in their home's higher world. Even if only small amounts flowed out periodically, they could still be purchased in various locations. The Eternal Tower, for instance, had them. Meng Chuan recalled browsing the Eternal Tower's inventory and seeing two Primordial Stones for sale: one slightly larger than this piece, costing seven hundred and sixty units of extra-realm yuan crystal, and another significantly smaller, priced at two hundred units.

"Four hundred and five units.""Four hundred and ten units." Other cultivators in the hall continued to bid. These cultivators weren't truly in urgent need, as not everyone could use the Primordial Stone as a crafting material. Many attended the auction hoping to 'buy low and sell high.'

Meng Chuan finally spoke: "Four hundred and thirty units."

By increasing the bid by twenty units at once, he directly raised the price, causing many cultivators to hesitate.

The hall grew quiet.One breath... two breaths... Meng Chuan waited silently.

Three breaths had passed! As other cultivators in the hall hesitated and wavered, the time limit expired.

"The Primordial Stone, four hundred and thirty units," the silver-haired woman announced with a radiant smile. "Next up is a rare treasure: the 'Fire Crow Feather.'"

"I bought it," Meng Chuan thought, secretly breathing a sigh of relief.

Afterward, Meng Chuan watched each treasure with an appreciative mindset. Exotic flowers and fruits, precious materials, powerful artifacts, unique rare treasures—these were all relatively common.

Precious items like Starry Sky Crystals, Void Teleportation Talismans, or the Cangyuan Sect's 'Heart-Questioning Pearl' were so rare they couldn't even be bought anywhere.

In the vast outer void, the most precious items were first sought after by Seventh-level Tribulation Beings, and then contended for by Sixth-level Tribulation Beings.

Meng Chuan had heard that in 'higher worlds,' even though Eighth-level Tribulation Beings were no longer present, the cultivators of those worlds could sell some 'Primordial Stones' periodically, which kept their worlds consistently wealthy. The Primordial Stone was merely one aspect of a higher world's foundation.

If cultivators from mid-tier worlds felt a sense of superiority over those from lower-tier worlds, then cultivators from 'higher worlds' were wealthier than many Tribulation Beings. Their home worlds were difficult to peer into, boasting powerful cultivation systems and formidable protective artifacts. Every powerful individual from a higher world, when facing others of the same level, was like a prince encountering commoners. The disparity in their foundations was immense. It seemed that only at the Fifth-level Tribulation realm could one truly gain the respect of powerful figures from a higher world. There was no other way; after all, their ancestors from their home world had produced Eighth-level Tribulation Beings.

The treasure auction finally concluded after six hours.

In one of the Black Dragon Palace's halls.

"This is the Primordial Stone," the silver-haired woman said as she personally came to complete the transaction with Meng Chuan. She personally handled all treasures exceeding one hundred units, while lesser-priced ones were delegated to an Emperor. This was because most of these 'treasures' were consigned by other cultivators through the auction, and no errors could be afforded.

"Four hundred and thirty units of extra-realm yuan crystal," Meng Chuan said. With a flip of his hand, exactly four hundred and thirty units of yuan crystal floated in the air.

The silver-haired woman smiled slightly. She took the extra-realm yuan crystals, and Meng Chuan took the Primordial Stone.

"The Primordial Stone cannot be stored in ordinary storage artifacts; only sufficiently stable spatial treasures can hold it," the silver-haired woman reminded him before departing.

Meng Chuan, of course, knew this. Both his Spatial Golden Pagoda and Demon Prison could store it.

"The Primordial Stone," Meng Chuan thought. Although the chaotic hole in his Dantian yearned for it immensely, he resisted.

Leaving the Black Dragon Palace, Meng Chuan then headed to the Eternal Tower.

Inside a hall on the fifth floor of the Eternal Tower.

Above the hall, numerous densely packed illusory images of Sixth-level Tribulation artifacts appeared.

"I want to buy this artifact," Meng Chuan said, pointing to a star-shaped world that was none other than the Sixth-level Tribulation artifact, 'Myriad Flowers World.'

"Emperor, please wait a moment," the reception attendant said, somewhat surprised, and immediately went to invite a female Emperor.

"Emperor, you wish to purchase the Myriad Flowers World?" the female Emperor asked with a smile as she looked at Meng Chuan.

"Yes," Meng Chuan replied, "but I don't need any of the flowers within the Myriad Flowers World; I'll sell them all back to the Eternal Tower."

"You only want the Myriad Flowers World itself, and none of the rare flowers?" the female Emperor asked, somewhat astonished. "Please wait a moment; our Eternal Tower needs to conduct an investigation."

Meng Chuan nodded slightly.

Numerous rare flowers were also extremely valuable. For example, a single 'Thunder Five-Colored Flower' could fetch over three hundred units at an auction. The flowers within this Myriad Flowers World were naturally not as extraordinarily rare as the Thunder Five-Colored Flower, but their sheer quantity meant their total value wouldn't be low.

"Our Eternal Tower has investigated," the female Emperor said. "We can purchase all the rare flowers within the Myriad Flowers World for one hundred and eighty units of extra-realm yuan crystal. The Myriad Flowers World itself, however, costs three hundred and twenty units of extra-realm yuan crystal."

"Alright," Meng Chuan said, not elaborating further. The Eternal Tower had its own pricing system; anything below a Seventh-level Tribulation artifact was non-negotiable.

In terms of temporal cave-dwellings, the Myriad Flowers World was significantly weaker than the Ash Palace, but it was still good and met Meng Chuan's requirements.

"The original owner of the Myriad Flowers World happens to be in the Tianfeng River System," the female Emperor said with a slight smile. "Emperor, you only need to wait an hour, and the Myriad Flowers World will be delivered here."

Meng Chuan's expression showed pleasant surprise. He had thought he'd have to wait several months! Treasure auctions typically attracted many Tribulation Beings; some were there to sell items on consignment, while others simply attended as a gathering. It seemed the original owner of the Myriad Flowers World had also come here.

"How much can this Sixth-level Tribulation artifact robe fetch?" Meng Chuan asked, flipping his hand to produce one of the three precious artifacts left behind by Grandmaster Pangming: a robe. Meng Chuan naturally dared not bring out the most precious item, the Seventh-level Tribulation artifact gourd. Of the remaining two, the large hammer was too distinctive, being Grandmaster Pangming's signature weapon, while the robe had no clear identifying features.

As a protective artifact, this robe was quite valuable. The Eternal Tower purchased it for five hundred units of extra-realm yuan crystal.

After handing over the robe, and taking the Myriad Flowers World along with one hundred and eighty units of extra-realm yuan crystal, Meng Chuan left the Eternal Tower. His heart was full of delight: "I've bought everything!"

Selling stolen goods was safest at the Eternal Tower. After all, Grandmaster Pangming had two Sixth-level Tribulation Being enemies, but Sixth-level Tribulation Beings were not important enough for the Eternal Tower to directly reveal guest information. Furthermore, the Eternal Tower did not investigate the true identity of every guest; this was the fundamental trust that allowed its business to spread throughout the outer void.

Returning to his cave-dwelling, Meng Chuan quickly entered his quiet room.

With a wave of his hand, he released a glowing star within the quiet room. This tiny star was exquisitely beautiful and crystal clear; in reality, it contained a grotto-heaven world: the Myriad Flowers World.

The glowing star remained suspended in the quiet room, while Meng Chuan had already entered the Myriad Flowers World.

"Myriad Flowers World." Meng Chuan looked at this grotto-heaven world. Inside, there was an expanse of beautiful flowers and grasses. Of course, the remaining flora were all ordinary; the precious and rare flowers had all been picked.

Landing on the grass, Meng Chuan sat cross-legged. With a flip of his hand, he took out the Primordial Stone.

"The Primordial Stone." Meng Chuan looked at the smooth Primordial Stone in his palm. The moment it was taken out, the chaotic hole in his Dantian once again yearned with immense hunger, desiring to devour it.