Chapter 294: Zhaojialing Zhaojia

Wang Changsheng opened the blue scroll. It displayed a young man in a green shirt with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes. Below the image was a line of small text: "Chen Qingshu, Foundation Establishment Stage, eighth level, sword cultivator, uses a set of blue flying swords, already severely wounded by the enforcement team. Anyone who kills this person may use their identity token or head, regardless of gender or age, to enter the Taiyi Immortal Sect. This offer is limited to one person. If one does not wish to join the Taiyi Immortal Sect, a reward of fifty thousand spirit stones will be given."

"What's this person's background?" Wang Changsheng asked in surprise. "Killing him grants entry to the Taiyi Immortal Sect? Is he from the State of Wei?"

Wang Mingjiang replied, "The Bailing Sect disciple who delivered the message said this person killed a descendant of a Nascent Soul elder from the Taiyi Immortal Sect. That's why the Taiyi Immortal Sect issued this bounty. I haven't heard that he's a cultivator from the State of Wei. If we could find and kill him, that would be excellent."

"But how do we find him in such a vast sea of people?" Wang Changsheng mused. "Let's circulate his portrait among our clan members who are out and about. Hopefully, someone can find him; if not, so be it. By the way, Uncle Twenty-one, why have Big Brother and the others been gone so long? It's been almost three months, and they're still not back. Nothing bad has happened, has it?"

Wang Mingjiang shook his head. "I don't think so. They have several second-tier puppet beasts with them. Unless they were ambushed by multiple people, they must have been delayed by something."

"I hope so. Come, Uncle Twenty-one, try some peach blossom pastries that Changyue made."

Wang Mingjiang didn't stand on ceremony. He sat on the stone stool, picked up a spiritual pastry, and put it in his mouth.

***

In Canglan City, at the Thousand Treasures Pavilion, a long line had formed at the entrance, with many cultivators queuing to enter.

Wang Changfeng and his two companions paid a fee and entered the Thousand Treasures Pavilion, taking seats near the front. The price of spirit grains in the State of Chu remained high, and they had made a significant profit from selling them this time. This auction was a perfect opportunity to purchase some useful items.

In the center of the auction hall was a circular platform, surrounded by wooden chairs. Private rooms were available on the upper floor.

As cultivators steadily entered the auction hall, Wang Qingshan's eyes widened, and his face turned grim. He sent a telepathic message to Wang Changfeng: "Uncle, it's the Zhao family disciples from Zhaojialing."

Wang Changfeng looked in the direction Wang Qingshan indicated and saw four Foundation Establishment cultivators—two men and two women—walking along the second-floor corridor. Their sleeves bore a green mountain pattern.

When the State of Chu invaded the State of Wei, the Zhao family from Zhaojialing led an attack on the Wang family. Many clan members, including Wang Yaozu, tragically died at the hands of Zhao family cultivators. For years, the Wang family had harbored thoughts of revenge and had privately investigated the Zhao family.

The Zhao family had been established for nearly a millennium, and many of their disciples had joined the Sword Palace. They had at least eight Foundation Establishment cultivators openly, indicating great strength. Crucially, the Zhao family's clan residence was not far from the Sword Palace, so the Wang clan members could only temporarily suppress their hatred.

Wang Qingshan had always remembered this incident. He could never forget that night when his clan members fell one after another in pools of blood, and even the clan elder who taught him died at the enemy's hands.

"This is the State of Wei; do not act rashly," Wang Changfeng admonished telepathically, frowning. Their purpose for this trip was to sell spirit grains, not to seek revenge. The opposing four Foundation Establishment cultivators were far stronger than their three, and any confrontation would only result in their loss.

Wang Qingshan nodded and agreed.

After a short while, the auction began. The auctioneer was a middle-aged man named Wei Yuan, who was at the second level of the Foundation Establishment Stage. Wei Yuan briefly explained the auction rules and then commenced the bidding.

"The first item up for auction is a set of Golden Snake Darts, a complete magical artifact set with four darts. Each dart is a low-grade magical artifact. The starting bid is five hundred spirit stones, with each subsequent bid not less than one hundred."

"Five hundred!""Five hundred fifty!""Six hundred!"

Bids came thick and fast, and the set of magical artifacts ultimately sold for one thousand three hundred spirit stones. Wei Yuan successively brought out more auction items: pills, magical artifacts, talismans, and materials. Each item was of good quality. The Zhao family bid on two pieces of metal ore.

"Next is a second-tier, mid-grade Beast Soul Talisman," Wei Yuan announced loudly, holding up a shimmering red talisman with a tiger pattern on its surface. "It can transform into a second-tier, mid-grade Flame Tiger to attack enemies, manifesting eighty percent of its original power. The starting bid is five hundred spirit stones, with each subsequent bid not less than one hundred."

"Five hundred!""Six hundred!""Seven hundred!"

After several bids, Wang Qingshan successfully acquired the second-tier, mid-grade Beast Soul Talisman for one thousand four hundred spirit stones. Following this, Wei Yuan presented several more auction items, all of which sold for high prices, making the atmosphere in the hall increasingly lively.

"Now, it's time for the highlight items. The first highlight item is five bottles of Violet Jade Spirit Water. The starting bid is one thousand spirit stones, with each subsequent bid not less than two hundred."

While Violet Jade Spirit Water could assist in breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage, its effect was not as good as that of a Foundation Establishment Pill, yet it still attracted numerous bidders. Wang Changfeng acquired one bottle of Violet Jade Spirit Water for eleven thousand spirit stones. The Zhao family, displaying their immense wealth, purchased three bottles in one go.

"The second highlight item consists of two Foundation Establishment Pills, to be auctioned separately. The starting bid for each is ten thousand spirit stones, with each subsequent bid not less than one thousand."

The competition for the Foundation Establishment Pills was extremely fierce. Wang Changfeng also participated in the bidding, but he stopped raising his bid because others' offers were too high. The two Foundation Establishment Pills sold for forty-six thousand and fifty thousand spirit stones, respectively. The Zhao family acquired one of them.

"The third highlight item is a set of formation flags for a small teleportation array," Wei Yuan stated, pointing to hundreds of formation flags. "Its teleportation range is within ten thousand li. The starting bid is twenty thousand spirit stones, with each subsequent bid not less than three thousand."

"A teleportation array!" Wang Changfeng's eyes lit up, and he was overjoyed. The Wang family now controlled a considerable territory, including the spiritual vein at Red Leaf Ridge, Wang Family Fort, and the Yunzhou underground caves. These three locations were quite far apart, making travel inconvenient. As the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators was not particularly high, the Wang family had dispatched some Qi Refining cultivators with second-tier puppets to guard these places, where only low-grade spirit grains were cultivated. To ensure the safety of Red Leaf Ridge, at least two Foundation Establishment cultivators were needed for defense. However, the distance was too great, making support extremely inconvenient if enemies attacked. Acquiring this teleportation array would be incredibly beneficial.

"Twenty thousand!""Twenty-three thousand!""Twenty-eight thousand!"

Compared to previous auction items, significantly fewer people bid on this teleportation array set. The price steadily climbed, and before long, it reached forty thousand spirit stones.

"Fifty thousand!" Wang Changfeng called out, his expression serious.

"Sixty thousand!" A powerful male voice came from the Zhao family's private room. Zhao Zhongxian, a fourth-level Foundation Establishment cultivator, was leading their group. Besides him, there were three other clan members at the second level of the Foundation Establishment Stage.

"Seventy thousand." Wang Changfeng did not give way. He was determined to acquire this teleportation array.

Zhao Zhongxian frowned and pondered for a moment before calling out, "Seventy-five thousand. I ask the fellow cultivator to show the Zhao family from Zhaojialing some respect. Our Zhao family would be extremely grateful."

"Eighty thousand." Wang Changfeng ignored him, adding another five thousand spirit stones. Eighty thousand spirit stones were enough to buy a decent third-tier material.

"Eighty-five thousand." Zhao Zhongxian's tone became heavier.

Wang Changfeng frowned deeply. Although he had earned a substantial amount of spirit stones from selling spirit grains this time, he didn't have that many on hand. If he asked Wang Changhai for help, he might be able to gather eighty-five thousand spirit stones, but there was no guarantee that the Zhao family wouldn't continue to raise the price. He showed a hesitant expression.

"Big Brother," Wang Changhao telepathically advised, "we can't keep bidding. Many people have already noticed us."

Wang Changfeng shifted his gaze, nodded in agreement, and said no more.