Chapter 1828: Auction
"Earth Master?"
In the private room, all the cultivators were startled.
"He's an Array Earth Master."
"Just now, that look in his eyes carried a massive amount of light patterns. All those light patterns converged to form a killing formation, which struck me from a distance."
Luo Yi took out a dragon-eye-sized sacred pill, swallowed it, and began to meditate cross-legged.
The other party's single glance had injured his sacred heart.
On the first floor of Tianjue Pavilion.
The figure standing before Da Xi Wang, Xie Canghai, and the others was called Shenya Xiansheng.
A soft exclamation of surprise came from Shenya Xiansheng's mouth, a hint of astonishment in his tone.
"What's wrong, sir?" Da Xi Wang asked.
Shenya Xiansheng chuckled: "Interesting. Tianjue Pavilion actually has such a formidable spiritual power expert."
Being able to withstand one of his Sacred Light Array Eyes without dying meant the other party was no ordinary person.
Lai Wangren followed Shenya Xiansheng's gaze, a thoughtful expression on his face, then said: "That person is indeed a spiritual power expert. Earlier, Hua Cangying fell into his trap and suffered a considerable loss."
A cold snort rang out, and a rather demonically handsome man asked: "Cangying, what's going on?"
This handsome man was called Jue Yanhu, Hua Cangying's grandmaster uncle, a top expert of the Tianzi Saint Mansion.
Although he looked very young, he was actually an old monster who had cultivated for over five thousand years.
Because he wasn't human, Jue Yanhu's lifespan was even longer than some human Great Saints.
Hua Cangying then recounted the entire sequence of events.
After hearing it, Jue Yanhu laughed in fury: "In all the world, there is such an arrogant and domineering person, actually daring to disregard the Tianzi Saint Mansion. It seems he has suffered too few losses. He needs a heavy lesson."
Shenya Xiansheng stopped Jue Yanhu, who was about to make a move, and said: "Brother Jue, let's discuss business first."
"Fine, we'll deal with them later."
Although Jue Yanhu had an extremely high seniority and unfathomable cultivation, he was still restrained in front of Shenya Xiansheng. He suppressed his aura and followed Shenya Xiansheng toward the fifth-floor private rooms.
Zhang Ruochen gently stroked his chin, watching the group of extraordinary cultivators outside, and thought to himself: "Could it be them who are planning to strike against the Eastern Domain Saint King Mansion?"
"But how could they invite an Earth Master? What does the Eastern Domain Saint King Mansion have that would warrant an Earth Master's involvement?"
Given the current situation, even if the Divine Stone really was on Lai Wangren and Qu Xingshen, Zhang Ruochen absolutely couldn't retrieve it.
Moreover, Zhang Ruochen was worried that the other side might make a move first.
An Earth Master, plus old monsters like Xie Canghai and Jue Yanhu with terrifying strength, could completely disregard Tianjue Pavilion's rules.
"Let's go." Zhang Ruochen made his decision.
Trying to walk straight out of Tianjue Pavilion was obviously wishful thinking. Only by using a Space Teleportation Array could he leave as quickly as possible.
Zhang Ruochen began inscribing space inscriptions in the private room, setting up a teleportation array.
At that moment, a beautiful woman in purple robes stepped onto the suspended sacred jade platform at the center of Tianjue Pavilion.
She appeared to be only eighteen or nineteen years old, but her cultivation had reached the Seven-Step Saint King realm.
This woman was called Zi Lan.
Zi Lan had a tall figure, a slender neck, and fair skin. Smiling, she said: "It's time for the auction again. The treasures to be auctioned tonight are each more precious than the last. Have everyone's sacred stones been prepared?"
"Sacred stones have long been prepared. The key is what treasures Tianjue Pavilion can produce."
"Is there a hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine for us to see tonight?" a cultivator in the first-floor hall asked.
Zi Lan smiled sweetly: "There are treasures even more precious than hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine that will appear on the auction stage."
No one knew whether Zi Lan was just speaking casually or if there really were heaven-defying treasures to be auctioned. In any case, the phrase "treasures more precious than hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine" piqued the appetite of many cultivators present.
"Big brother, is she telling the truth or not? Can Tianjue Pavilion produce something more precious than hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine? Could it be a Supreme Sacred Artifact or a divine medicine?" Xiang Chunan kept licking his lips.
Zhang Ruochen was inscribing the space array and didn't respond.
The first treasure was brought onto the suspended sacred jade platform.
The treasure was placed inside a transparent crystal box—a roll of black bamboo slips.
Zi Lan began introducing the treasure: "This is a Tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art, the Annihilation Seal Technique."
Just this one sentence caused a loud exclamation from the cultivators below, with countless people excited and shocked.
Mid-rank sacred arts were divided into three levels: ordinary, exquisite, and tongxuan.
The vast majority of Saint Kings cultivated ordinary mid-rank sacred arts.
If one mastered an exquisite-level mid-rank sacred art, they would have a huge advantage when fighting cultivators of the same realm.
As for tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred arts, they were even more extraordinary. Mastering just one gave one the qualification to fight across realms.
For example, after cultivating the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm to the eleventh palm, it became a tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art with boundless power, almost invincible at the same realm.
The higher one's cultivation, the more sacred dao rules one cultivated, and the greater the advantage a cultivator who mastered a tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art would have.
However, not every sect had a tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art.
One could imagine that those sects without such arts would go crazy, spending any amount of sacred stones to buy the Annihilation Seal Technique.
This was a strategic treasure. Not only could it enhance one's own strength, but it could also greatly boost the entire sect's power.
However, Zi Lan's next words cooled the fiery gazes of many cultivators present.
"The Annihilation Seal Technique is incomplete. It has the mental method and technique diagrams, but lacks the sacred qi circulation diagrams. One must research and supplement it themselves."
After all, any sacred art required different sacred qi circulation routes to execute.
Zi Lan's finger tapped the transparent crystal box.
A stream of sacred qi was injected into the bamboo slips.
"Whoosh!"
Immediately, black mist emanated from the bamboo slips.
The mist condensed into dozens of figures, performing various exquisite seal techniques inside the box. However, those techniques disappeared in an instant.
"Tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art, Annihilation Seal Technique. Starting bid: thirty million sacred stones. Each bid must increase by no less than one million sacred stones."
"Thirty-five million sacred stones."
"Thirty-six million sacred stones."
...
After dozens of rounds of bidding, the "Annihilation Seal Technique" was finally bought by a female demon clan cultivator in a third-floor private room for one hundred seventy million sacred stones.
This was the original copy of a tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art, not a transcribed version. It had great research value, and even incomplete, it could fetch a sky-high price.
"The first auction item is a tongxuan-level mid-rank sacred art. The later treasures can't possibly be cheap."
"Maybe there really is something more precious than hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred medicine."
...
The entire Tianjue Pavilion was buzzing with excitement.
When the second auction item was brought up, it once again drew exclamations from the cultivators in Tianjue Pavilion, with countless eyes showing greed.
"A ninety-thousand-year sacred medicine, the Great Sun Jade Fruit. Even if directly refined and absorbed, it can greatly enhance a cultivator's cultivation and strengthen their physique. If used to refine a heavenly-grade sacred pill, its value would be even greater."
After a brief introduction, Zi Lan said: "Starting bid: forty million sacred stones. Each bid must increase by no less than one million."
"Forty million sacred stones."
"Forty-three million sacred stones."
...
A ninety-thousand-year sacred medicine, though only ten thousand years short of a hundred-thousand-year one, had a vastly different value.
Of course, a ninety-thousand-year sacred medicine was still extremely precious, especially for Nine-Step Saint Kings. It could make their accumulation more substantial.
The more substantial the accumulation, the easier it would be to cultivate a dao domain and condense an undying sacred body.
In the end, the Great Sun Jade Fruit was bought by Lai Wangren of the Nether God Hall for one hundred million sacred stones. No one dared to raise the bid further.
Lai Wangren's cultivation was very profound, and he was preparing to condense a dao domain, so naturally, he wouldn't let go of this Great Sun Jade Fruit.
Zhang Ruochen finished setting up a basic teleportation array and let out a long breath. "Setting up a Space Teleportation Array on the fly is indeed very tiring. It seems it's time to refine a Space Teleportation Array Diagram."
The so-called "Space Teleportation Array Diagram" involved inscribing a space teleportation array onto a scroll.
When needed, one could directly open the scroll, and the space teleportation array would appear, teleporting Zhang Ruochen hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of miles away.
For a space cultivator, a Space Teleportation Array Diagram was the best means of survival.
Previously, Zhang Ruochen's space attainment wasn't high enough to refine such a diagram, but now there was a possibility of success.
With the space teleportation array set up, he could attack or retreat as needed. Zhang Ruochen felt much more at ease.
At that moment, the sixth auction item was being presented on the suspended sacred jade platform.
The auction items were stored in jade bottles engraved with inscriptions, and there were as many as thirty bottles.
"What's being auctioned?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Xiang Chunan clearly wasn't interested in this item and said: "It's called... something... tears."
"Cosmic Void Tears," Murong Yue said.
Zhang Ruochen was momentarily stunned, then a look of delight appeared on his face.
The reason he hadn't yet helped the sword spirit of the Abyssal Ancient Sword condense a dao body was that he didn't have enough Cosmic Void Tears. Such a rare treasure, encountered at Tianjue Pavilion—how could he miss it?
Tianjue Pavilion was auctioning a total of thirty drops of Cosmic Void Tears.
At that moment, the price for thirty drops of Cosmic Void Tears had already been driven up to one hundred seventy million sacred stones.
"Two hundred million sacred stones." Zhang Ruochen called out the price.
Many cultivators' gazes turned toward the northern private room on the fifth floor, knowing that inside was an arrogant and domineering expert with many powerful subordinates. Thus, no one dared to provoke him.
The bidding voices in Tianjue Pavilion disappeared, and it became quiet.
Zi Lan stood on the suspended sacred jade platform, her beautiful eyes glancing toward the northern private room on the fifth floor, then asked: "Two hundred million sacred stones. Is there any cultivator willing to offer a higher price?"
For a long time, no one raised the bid.
Just as Zi Lan was about to announce "sold," Hua Cangying's voice came from the eastern private room on the fifth floor: "Three hundred million sacred stones."
All the cultivators in Tianjue Pavilion showed amused smiles.
Hua Cangying wasn't trying to buy the Cosmic Void Tears at all. He was clearly driving up the price on purpose, taking revenge for the earlier humiliation.
Directly adding one hundred million sacred stones—that was indeed ruthless.
Zhang Ruochen frowned deeply, then a cold glint flashed in his eyes as he called out again: "Three hundred fifty million sacred stones."