Chapter 437: Two Third-Level Talismans

Half a month later, Wang Changsheng returned to Purple Night Island.

As the auction approached, Purple Night Island became increasingly bustling.

Upon returning to his residence, Wang Changsheng found that Wang Ruyan had emerged from her seclusion.

Wang Ruyan had taken the elixirs Wang Changsheng bought for her and diligently cultivated for three years, yet she remained at Foundation Establishment Stage Six.

"Husband, did you go hunting demonic beasts?"

Wang Ruyan's willow-like eyebrows furrowed slightly. She wasn't against Wang Changsheng hunting demonic beasts; she was simply worried something might happen to him.

"It's fine," Wang Changsheng reassured her with a slight smile. "I always disguised myself as a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Whenever I sensed the aura of high-tier demonic beasts or cultivators, I steered clear. There was no danger."

"By the way, my dear, you've cultivated diligently for three years, and with the elixirs I gave you, why are you still at Foundation Establishment Stage Six? Have you encountered a bottleneck?"

Earth-grade and Heaven-grade cultivation techniques require vast and rare cultivation resources. Besides offering numerous divine abilities, a significant advantage is the fewer bottlenecks encountered. Once the necessary resources are acquired, reaching higher stages of cultivation is merely a matter of time, with few obstacles. In contrast, Mystic-grade and Yellow-grade cultivation techniques, though more common and with easily found resources, leave breakthroughs entirely to individual capability.

Luck is also a part of strength.

Wang Changfeng had been stuck at Foundation Establishment Stage Three for many years, only breaking through with considerable effort.

The 'Thousand Sounds Treasure Manual' that Wang Ruyan cultivated was not an Earth-grade technique, so encountering a bottleneck only at Foundation Establishment Stage Six was already quite good.

"Yes, I feel like I'm close to Foundation Establishment Stage Seven, but I just can't break through. It's a feeling I can't quite describe."

After marrying Wang Changsheng, Wang Ruyan had only accompanied him on two distant journeys. Most of her other time was spent raising their children and managing the household on Green Lotus Mountain. This time, accompanying Wang Changsheng to the South Sea, she merely participated in hunting Crystal Flame Shrimp and flew on her artifact above the sea; it could hardly be called true cultivation experience.

"My dear, you've been put through too much. I will help you resolve this bottleneck."

Wang Ruyan smiled slightly and said, "There's nothing to feel bad about. It's normal to encounter a bottleneck in cultivation. It's not your fault."

Wang Changsheng didn't want to dwell on the topic. He took out the bronze mirror fragment and handed it to Wang Ruyan.

He then took out the corpse of the red crab and examined it carefully. He found no other significant discoveries, but he did notice some fragments of magical artifacts and clothing, which clearly indicated that the demonic crab had devoured cultivators.

"This fragment should be from a magic treasure. If it were merely a magical artifact fragment, it would have been digested long ago by a high-grade second-tier demonic crab," Wang Ruyan analyzed objectively.

"That's what I thought too. It's a shame it's just a fragment; I thought it might have devoured a whole magic treasure," Wang Changsheng said with some regret. He only had one offensive magic treasure and no defensive ones, which made him feel less confident when facing other Core Formation cultivators.

"How could a high-grade second-tier demonic beast get the chance to devour a magic treasure? Anyway, the cultivation resources in the South Sea are indeed abundant. In just three years, husband, you've accumulated over 200,000 spirit stones. That would be impossible in the Eastern Desolate Lands."

Wang Changsheng shook his head and said, "Most of these spirit stones belonged to those evil cultivators. As the saying goes, 'murder and arson make a golden belt.' While I didn't intend to kill, their intentions were wicked, so I merely sent them to meet King Yama."

Out of the over 200,000 spirit stones, the vast majority came from evil cultivators; only a small portion was gained from hunting demonic beasts.

"There are still fifteen years until the Heavenly Wolf Secret Realm opens. After all these years, our clan should have accumulated 200,000 spirit stones, which should be enough to help you buy a magic treasure. If it's not enough, I'll go back to my maiden family and borrow some."

Wang Ruyan wanted to help Wang Changsheng purchase a water-attribute magic treasure, as Wang Changsheng's artifact refining skill was insufficient to forge one himself.

"I'll figure out the spirit stones. In any case, you are not to neglect your cultivation anymore to refine talismans for money."

Wang Ruyan had already sacrificed enough, and Wang Changsheng didn't want her to delay her cultivation further.

Wang Ruyan gave a sweet smile and agreed.

Two days later, the auction officially commenced.

In a nine-story purple pavilion, thousands of cultivators had gathered. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan were in a private room on the second floor.

The furniture inside the room was antique and fragrant, and a giant blue seashell hung on the stone wall.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

Three heavy chimes rang out. The blue seashell illuminated with countless blue runes, forming a blue mirror about a zhang in size. On its surface, a green stone platform appeared, upon which stood a spirited old man in a green robe with a goatee.

"The South Sea's auctions are quite interesting; they use formations to project images," Wang Changsheng commented, a hint of admiration in his eyes.

Wang Ruyan smiled faintly and said, "The South Sea's development began more than ten millennia earlier than the Eastern Desolate Lands. It would be strange if a large-scale auction here were the same as in the Eastern Desolate Lands."

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan sat by a tea table, drinking tea and chatting. On the table was a palm-sized blue seashell, which was used for bidding.

"This old man, Lin Yi, welcomes all seniors and fellow Daoists to this auction. The highest bidder wins. Let the auction begin! First up, a bottle of second-tier mid-grade Red Carp Elixirs, with a starting bid of five hundred spirit stones. Each subsequent bid must be no less than one hundred."

The green-robed old man gave a brief introduction, then brought out the first item for auction.

Wang Changsheng's purpose for this trip was the grand finale items. It was rumored there would be seven such items, and magic treasures would appear among them.

There were indeed many good items, but they were mostly things needed by Foundation Establishment cultivators. Wang Changsheng wasn't interested. Wang Ruyan took a liking to a few items, but considering Wang Changsheng's current situation, she refrained from bidding.

After a set of flying needle artifacts was auctioned off, the atmosphere in the hall reached a climax.

Lin Yi cupped his hands towards the private rooms upstairs and politely said, "Thank you for your patience, esteemed seniors. Now it's time for the grand finale auction items. The first item is a low-grade third-tier defensive talisman, the Five Elements Battle Armor Talisman. Its defensive capabilities are not much worse than a first-tier defensive magic treasure. The starting bid is thirty thousand spirit stones, and each subsequent bid must be no less than one thousand."

He took out a green wooden box, opened it, and retrieved a talisman about a foot long. Its surface was covered with colorful runes, gleaming brightly.

"Thirty thousand!"

"Thirty-one thousand!"

"Thirty-two thousand!"

Many bids came in, and Wang Changsheng also participated. With this third-tier defensive talisman, he would feel more confident when facing enemies.

Wang Changsheng successfully bid for the Five Elements Battle Armor Talisman at a high price of eighty-five thousand spirit stones.

"The second grand finale item consists of three low-grade third-tier offensive talismans, Heavenly Flame Talismans, each comparable to the full-strength strike of a Core Formation Stage Three cultivator. They will be auctioned separately. The starting bid for each is thirty thousand spirit stones, and each subsequent bid must be no less than one thousand."

Lin Yi held three talismans, enveloped in red light, and announced loudly.

"Thirty-one thousand!"

"Thirty-two thousand!"

"Thirty-three thousand."

The competition for these three low-grade third-tier talismans was fierce. Wang Changsheng successfully bid for one Heavenly Flame Talisman at a price of sixty-three thousand spirit stones.

The two third-tier talismans cost nearly 150,000 spirit stones.