Chapter 2684: Jade Soul Crystal

"Given your relationship with Fellow Daoist Wang, now that he has advanced to the Void Refinement stage, he will certainly look after you more."

Venerable Jin Yue's face was filled with flattery; the stronger the Wang family became, the better his status and benefits would be. In the past, he was merely a rogue cultivator at the Spirit Transformation stage. Now, as an honored guest elder of the Wang family, his status and benefits had improved considerably.

Wang Chuanfeng nodded and said with a smile, "If you serve me well, you won't be disappointed in the future."

Venerable Jin Yue readily agreed, his expression respectful.

After a brief chat, Wang Chuanfeng dismissed Venerable Jin Yue. He then entered a secret chamber, sat cross-legged on a green meditation cushion, and closed his eyes to rest.

The day passed quickly. By late afternoon, the sky had darkened, and the number of pedestrians on the streets had increased rather than decreased.

Green Tea Pavilion was a teahouse, frequented by many customers.

Wang Chuanfeng and Venerable Jin Yue entered Green Tea Pavilion. There weren't many customers in the main hall.

To avoid drawing attention, Wang Chuanfeng changed into casual clothes. The Wang family now had a minor reputation on the Xuanling Continent, and given the dubious origins of items at underground auctions, it was best to be cautious.

Venerable Jin Yue exchanged a secret signal with the manager, who then personally led them to the backyard, where a simple wooden house stood before them.

A plain-looking woman in a green skirt, with an early Spirit Transformation cultivation, guarded the entrance to the wooden house.

After Venerable Jin Yue paid 100,000 spirit stones, he received two ghost-face masks from the woman in the green skirt. He and Wang Chuanfeng put on the masks and entered the wooden house.

In the lower left corner of the wooden house was an opening leading to a set of green stone steps that descended underground. They followed these steps into a cavern spanning several acres. In the center of the cavern was a square raised platform, surrounded by thousands of green wooden chairs. Hundreds of cultivators had gathered, their cultivation levels ranging from Core Formation to Spirit Transformation, and most were wearing ghost-face masks.

It wasn't Wang Chuanfeng's first time attending an underground auction, so he found a seat in one of the front rows.

As time passed, more cultivators wearing ghost-face masks gradually entered.

After about fifteen minutes, the venue was completely full.

"Dong, dong, dong!" A series of melodious chimes rang out.

A five-colored light barrier appeared at the entrance, and a portly old man in a golden robe flew onto the raised platform. He loudly announced, "I will be presiding over this auction. There's no need to elaborate on the rules; everyone here already knows them."

He took out ten golden porcelain bottles and loudly stated, "Ten Longevity Treasure Pills, each capable of extending one's lifespan by 400 years. Any cultivator can only consume this pill once in their lifetime. The starting bid is one million spirit stones, and each increment must not be less than 500,000."

"One million!"

"One and a half million!"

"Two million!"

Wang Chuanfeng did not bid. His family already possessed Longevity Treasure Pills, and it was far cheaper to exchange them using family contribution points, so there was no need to acquire them through auction.

All ten Longevity Treasure Pills were auctioned off at high prices. Among the bidders, a tall, slender young man in a black shirt caught everyone's attention.

The black-shirted youth was missing his left arm, and judging by his aura, he was only at the middle Spirit Transformation stage.

"Five bottles of Snow Lotus Jade Ginseng Pills, with a starting bid of one million spirit stones. Each increment must not be less than 500,000."

The golden-robed old man held up five white porcelain bottles and loudly announced.

"One million!"

"One and a half million!"

"Two million!"

The golden-robed old man presented various auction items one by one, including pills, talismans, Sky-reaching Spirit Treasures, and formations. All fetched high prices, and the atmosphere in the venue grew lively.

Wang Chuanfeng rarely spoke. Given his status and knowledge, he didn't find these items impressive, as his clan already possessed them. It wasn't worth paying high prices to bid for them.

After more than two hours, the golden-robed old man auctioned off three flying swords, then took out a black crystal. He loudly announced, "This is a Soul Jade Crystal, obtained from the Myriad Spirit Abyss. It is available for exchange for materials of equal value, with priority given to alchemy materials."

"A Soul Jade Crystal!"

Wang Chuanfeng's eyes lit up. This was a material his family had been collecting for a long time; the task had been posted in the Hall of General Affairs for thousands of years and had never been withdrawn.

Wang Chuanfeng quickly sent a sound transmission to the golden-robed old man, offering to exchange it for a fifth-tier puppet or a five-thousand-year-old spirit herb.

Unfortunately, he failed to acquire the Soul Jade Crystal, as it was exchanged for by the black-shirted youth.

Wang Chuanfeng frowned deeply but said nothing.

"This auction now concludes. Thank you all for your patronage."

The golden-robed old man said politely, announcing the end of the auction.

The cultivators rose one after another and left the auction venue sequentially. After one person departed, they had to wait a short period before the next cultivator was allowed to leave.

"Fellow Daoist, I offer ten million spirit stones... no, how about I exchange a Sky-reaching Spirit Treasure for your Soul Jade Crystal?"

Wang Chuanfeng sent a sound transmission to the black-shirted youth.

"Not interested!"

The black-shirted youth's tone was somewhat weak, as if he were injured.

"How about a Sky-reaching Spirit Treasure plus a bottle of Golden-Veined Blood Origin Pills?"

Wang Chuanfeng was unwilling to give up and sent another sound transmission.

This time, the black-shirted youth didn't bother to reply, which annoyed Wang Chuanfeng somewhat.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, if he doesn't know what's good for him, we can find a place to deal with him."

Venerable Jin Yue sent a sound transmission to Wang Chuanfeng. He naturally knew the Wang family was searching for Soul Jade Crystals, and acquiring one would certainly be a great meritorious deed.

At these words, Wang Chuanfeng was somewhat swayed.

He thought of Wang Chuanming; if he acquired the Soul Jade Crystal, it would also be a great meritorious deed.

The black-shirted youth had lost an arm and was injured, with only a mid-Spirit Transformation cultivation. From every angle, they had a strong chance of victory.

Even if they failed, they could always label the opponent as an evil cultivator – a tactic he'd learned from Wang Chuanming.

About fifteen minutes later, Wang Chuanfeng and Venerable Jin Yue left Green Tea Pavilion. They did not follow the black-shirted youth.

Wang Chuanfeng took out a communication plate, contacted a clan member, and described the black-shirted youth's physical characteristics.

Back at their residence, Wang Chuanfeng discussed the matter with Venerable Jin Yue.

"This might not be a good idea! It would be very troublesome if the Hall of Enforcement caught us."

"He's an evil cultivator who died horribly. It will be a secret between us. Who would trouble us?" Wang Chuanfeng said meaningfully.

"This..."

Venerable Jin Yue hesitated; he was merely an honored guest elder, while Wang Chuanfeng was a core member of the Wang family.

"If this succeeds, I'll gain merit, and I won't mistreat you. If you wish to report me, that's fine too, but then no one will likely be willing to help you in the future."

Wang Chuanfeng reminded him that if Venerable Jin Yue betrayed him, other Wang family members would also avoid him, as no one wished to be betrayed.

"Alright! I'll listen to you."

Venerable Jin Yue agreed, figuring that if anything went wrong, he could simply pack up and leave.

Wang Chuanfeng nodded with satisfaction, then took out a faint golden dharma plate, channeled a spell into it, and gestured for a while.

"He's left the market. Come on, let's follow him."

Wang Chuanfeng was overjoyed. He and Venerable Jin Yue changed their clothes, altered their auras, and left the market together.

After leaving the market, they happened to see a black streak of light breaking through the air and departing. They immediately gave chase.