Chapter 58: Purple Jade Spirit Water

Wang Mingzhan returned to his seat. Lin Huaigang took out a palm-sized azure miniature boat. With a gentle shake, the boat shot out, expanding to a length of three to four *zhang*. It shone with brilliant spiritual light, and a full moon pattern was carved onto its prow.

"This is the Azure Moon Boat, a high-grade flying spiritual artifact. The starting bid is two hundred spirit stones, with each subsequent bid not less than twenty spirit stones."

Flying spiritual artifacts are extremely difficult to refine and are even more valuable than defensive ones. They are the most common mode of transportation for Qi Condensation cultivators.

"Two hundred thirty!""Two hundred fifty!""Two hundred seventy!"

After seven or eight rounds of bidding, the Azure Moon Boat was acquired by a VIP in an upstairs private room for a high price of five hundred spirit stones.

Lin Huaigang cleared his throat, forced a smile, and cupped his hands. "My fellow Daoists, thank you for your patience. We will now begin the auction of the grand finale items."

He took a red wooden box from his storage pouch and, from within it, pulled out two glowing red talismans. The talismans were covered in red speckles, resembling a meteor shower.

"These are two Meteor Shower Fire Rain Talismans, low-grade Tier 2 spiritual talismans. They are comparable to a full-power strike from a Foundation Establishment cultivator at the third level. The Meteor Shower Fire Rain technique is a powerful area-of-effect attack spell. The starting bid is two hundred spirit stones, with each increment not less than twenty spirit stones."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a man's voice immediately called out from a private room on the second floor: "Two hundred."

"Two hundred thirty!""Two hundred fifty!"

These two Meteor Shower Fire Rain Talismans were ultimately purchased by a VIP on the third floor for seven hundred spirit stones.

On the third floor, in a private room, five cultivators — two women and three men — sat around a table. The oldest was a white-robed old woman with temples streaked with white and a face full of wrinkles. Judging by the powerful spiritual pressure emanating from the white-robed old woman, she was clearly a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

A young woman in a flowing red immortal dress held the two recently acquired Meteor Shower Fire Rain Talismans in her hands, her face beaming with joy.

A refined young man in a blue scholar's robe glared fiercely at the girl in red. "Third Sister, you are too willful! How could you let our Ancestor help you bid for two Meteor Shower Fire Rain Talismans? What if we don't have enough spirit stones to secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water? Father will surely punish you when we return."

The girl in red pouted and said nonchalantly, "Our Yang family ranks among the top three cultivation families in Jiangzhou; we're hardly short of seven hundred spirit stones. Besides, I heard there's more than one bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water available, so we'll definitely be able to acquire a bottle. And anyway, Ancestor bought these for me herself; I didn't beg for them!"

The white-robed old woman cast a doting look at the two and said kindly, "Sihong, you worry too much. Since I came in person this time, how could we possibly lack spirit stones? Besides the Purple Jade Spirit Water, if you see any other grand finale item you like, Grandmother can bid for it for you."

"Thank you, Grandmother. Let's secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water first. With it, our Yang family might gain another Foundation Establishment cultivator, and that is the most important thing."

The white-robed old woman showed a look of approval, nodded, and said nothing further.

Lin Huaigang was very satisfied with the price. He brought out the second grand finale item: two exquisitely green wine gourds. When he lifted the lid of one, a rich, exotic fragrance wafted out.

Wang Changsheng was seated relatively close to the front and, upon smelling the rich aroma of the wine, felt his spirits lift.

"Two gourds of Violet Dew Spirit Wine. This spirit wine is brewed from various Tier 2 spiritual herbs and must be aged in a cellar for two years before it can be consumed. Foundation Establishment cultivators who drink this wine will experience an increase in their magical power. The starting bid is two hundred spirit stones, with each increment not less than twenty spirit stones."

"Two hundred twenty spirit stones!""Two hundred forty!""Two hundred sixty!"

After more than ten rounds of bidding, the two gourds of Violet Dew Spirit Wine were purchased by a VIP on the second floor for seven hundred spirit stones.

On the second floor, in a private room, a round-faced man with a mustache gazed intently at the two exquisitely green wine gourds. He picked up one of the gourds, poured himself a cup, and downed it in one gulp.

"Good wine, good wine, good wine! These seven hundred spirit stones were well spent," the round-faced man's face showed an expression of deep enjoyment as he praised it.

Beside him sat two young men in their twenties. Their facial features were identical; one wore a tight-fitting azure outfit, and the other a blue scholar's robe.

"Second Uncle," the blue-robed youth frowned, his voice tinged with helplessness, "we don't have many spirit stones left. Please don't bid anymore. If we can't secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water, we won't be able to explain it to Father when we return."

"Listen to yourself," the round-faced man retorted, eyes gleaming with pride. "I only spent seven hundred spirit stones on two gourds of spirit wine! We'll definitely secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water. I don't believe anyone can outbid our Qian family. When it comes to financial power, our Qian family dares to claim second place in Yunzhou, and no one dares to claim first!"

The azure-clad youth's brow furrowed. He advised, "Second Uncle, cultivation families from not only Yunzhou, Jiangzhou, and Ningzhou are attending this auction, but even the Qin family from Yuzhou has come. It's best not to bid impulsively. What if we don't have enough spirit stones? It would be terrible. Once we've secured the Purple Jade Spirit Water, my brother and I can accompany you in heavy drinking for three days and three nights, if you wish?"

"Alright, alright," the round-faced man replied dismissively.

Lin Huaigang produced the third grand finale item: an azure scroll. With a flick of his wrist, the scroll flew from his hand, and he struck it with a hand seal. The azure scroll unfurled in mid-air, revealing a vividly painted eagle soaring with outstretched wings.

"This is the Soaring Eagle Diagram, a low-grade flying magical artifact. It boasts exceptionally fast flight speed. The starting bid is two hundred spirit stones, with each increment not less than thirty spirit stones."

"Two hundred thirty!""Two hundred sixty!""Three hundred!"

The Soaring Eagle Diagram was ultimately purchased by an upstairs VIP for five hundred seventy spirit stones.

Three grand finale items had already been auctioned. All the cultivators present were eagerly anticipating the next item, wondering if it would be a spiritual material to aid in Foundation Establishment, and watched Lin Huaigang with anticipation.

Under the gaze of the cultivators, Lin Huaigang took out an azure brocade box, about a *zhang* long and a *chi* wide. Inside were four shimmering azure short swords, all of identical length.

"This is a complete set of Azure Sun Flying Swords. Each sword is a low-grade magical artifact, refined from hundred-year-old Azure Sun spiritual bamboo. When all four flying swords are simultaneously deployed, their power is immense. The starting bid is three hundred spirit stones, with each increment not less than fifty spirit stones."

"Three hundred!""Three hundred fifty!""Four hundred!"

This set of Azure Sun Flying Swords was ultimately purchased by a VIP on the fourth floor for the astronomical price of twelve hundred spirit stones.

On the fourth floor, in a private room, a curvaceous middle-aged beauty held an Azure Sun Sword in her hand, her face glowing with delight. Beside her stood a yellow-clad youth with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, and a graceful woman in a green dress.

The green-clad woman smiled sweetly. "Congratulations, Third Aunt. It seems we were right to come to this auction. I didn't expect there to be not only Purple Jade Spirit Water but also a complete set of flying swords, even if their grade is a bit low."

"The Lin family is truly generous, putting up several bottles of Purple Jade Spirit Water for auction. Although it's diluted Purple Jade Spirit Water, it's still helpful for Foundation Establishment."

"Hmph, generous?" the yellow-clad youth scoffed, "You're thinking too simply of the Lin family. Most Foundation Establishment spiritual materials are controlled by cultivation sects. Cultivation families rarely sell such materials if they acquire them. If I'm not mistaken, the Lin family has a major announcement to make, which is why they're using Purple Jade Spirit Water to draw cultivation forces from several nearby prefectures around Ningzhou to Tianhe City Market."

"Who cares?" the yellow-clad youth said indifferently. "As long as we can acquire a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water, that's all that matters. If our Qin family gains another Foundation Establishment cultivator, that would be for the best."

After the flying sword set was sold, Lin Huaigang took three steps back, retreating to the side. The door to a private room on the second floor swung open, and Lin Yuxin emerged. With a light tap of her foot on the floor, she soared up and landed gracefully on the round stone platform.

"I will be auctioning the final grand finale item," Lin Yuxin announced. As she spoke, Lin Yuxin tapped her storage pouch with her jade-like hand, and a beam of azure light shot out, revealing an azure wooden box.

A flicker of excitement crossed Chen Hu's eyes as he fixed his gaze on Lin Yuxin. The cultivators present all, without exception, showed expressions of excitement, their gazes burning as they looked at Lin Yuxin.

From the wooden box, Lin Yuxin took out five azure porcelain bottles and announced loudly, "Five bottles of Purple Jade Spirit Water! Purple Jade Spirit Water is a spiritual liquid personally concocted by our Purple Cloud Sect's Tier 2 alchemists. Most Foundation Establishment cultivators from our sect have consumed Purple Jade Spirit Water. Of course, this is diluted Purple Jade Spirit Water; if it weren't, I wouldn't be putting it up for auction. The five bottles of Purple Jade Spirit Water will be auctioned separately. Each bottle has a starting bid of three hundred spirit stones, with each increment not less than one hundred spirit stones."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Chen Hu stood up and excitedly declared, "I bid one thousand spirit stones!"

"One thousand one hundred!""One thousand two hundred!""One thousand three hundred!"

Bids poured in incessantly. Three months before the auction, the Lin family had already sent people to widely publicize the event. Many cultivation families, as well as a few wealthy rogue cultivators, attended the auction, all primarily seeking Foundation Establishment spiritual materials.

Chen Hu gritted his teeth and shouted, "Three thousand!" To secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water, he was willing to spend the better part of his fortune.

"Three thousand two hundred!""Three thousand three hundred!"

The price steadily climbed, and before long, it reached four thousand.

The competition for the five bottles of Purple Jade Spirit Water was exceptionally fierce. Wang Mingzhan also placed bids but was unable to secure a bottle due to the intense bidding war. The five bottles of Purple Jade Spirit Water were sold for five thousand five hundred, four thousand seven hundred, six thousand, five thousand two hundred, and six thousand five hundred spirit stones, respectively. All were purchased by VIPs in the upstairs private rooms. Other forces received none, leaving the cultivators in the main hall with nothing but disappointment.

As a rogue cultivator, after deducting daily expenses and losses from hunting demonic beasts, Chen Hu had only managed to save four thousand spirit stones. This amount was even cobbled together with contributions from Lü Erniang and several companions. Yet, even so, he was still unable to secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water. The financial power of cultivation families was simply incomparable to that of a rogue cultivator like Chen Hu.

When the final bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water was sold, Chen Hu slumped into his chair, looking utterly despondent, as if he had lost his soul. The man, nearly sixty years old, was overwhelmed with a sense of grievance and couldn't help but weep openly. He had toiled from dawn till dusk, spending years hunting demonic beasts in the deep mountains, several times nearly dying at their hands. Hadn't he done all this just to advance further on the path of cultivation? But now, of the five bottles of Purple Jade Spirit Water, he had failed to acquire even one. It is common knowledge in the cultivation world that the difficulty of achieving Foundation Establishment increases significantly after reaching sixty years of age.

Chen Hu was utterly unwilling to accept this, yet he was powerless to change it. Reality was simply that cruel. He had risked his life, only reaching the ninth level of Qi Condensation by nearly sixty years of age, and had painstakingly accumulated four thousand spirit stones, only to still fail to acquire a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water. Meanwhile, members of cultivation families conducted their businesses securely, with large amounts of spirit stones flowing in annually. In that moment, Chen Hu felt a surge of resentment towards those cultivation families, believing that if they hadn't driven up the prices, he surely would have been able to secure a bottle of Purple Jade Spirit Water.

A tall, thin old man in a yellow robe emerged from a private room on the second floor. He leaped into the air and landed steadily on the round stone platform. He cupped his hands to the crowd and said with a smile, "This old man is Lin Tianfeng. This auction has now concluded. Thank you all for attending. In half a year, Yuxin and Daoist Zhao from the Purple Cloud Sect will hold their Dual Cultivation Grand Ceremony and become dual cultivation partners. If you are free, you are welcome to come to our Lin family for a celebratory drink. Our Lin family extends its sincerest welcome."

With that, the auction ended, and the cultivators began to depart in succession.