Under the glow of luminous pearls and formation light, the underground chamber was as bright as daylight.

Wei Tu scanned the room and noticed that, unlike Danqiu Mountain’s auction house, which was divided into three floors, this underground auction had only a single grand hall.

On the western side of the hall was the auction stage, designed similarly to Danqiu Mountain’s auction house. A jade table stood in the center, and several auction items were covered with red cloths on top of it.

On the eastern side was the VIP seating area, furnished with over a hundred sandalwood chairs.

At this moment, seventy to eighty cultivators were already seated.

As Wei Tu stepped into the hall, these cultivators—each dressed uniquely—glanced at him briefly. After noticing that he was a new face, they quickly withdrew their gazes.

His eyes met Kou Hongying’s from across the room, and they exchanged a subtle nod before Wei Tu chose a seat neither too close nor too far from her.

“At least half of these people are using disguises, but their techniques are rather crude…”

After sitting down, Wei Tu extended his divine sense, surveying the other cultivators.

With the Thousand Faces Phantom Art, one of the rarest illusion arts in the cultivation world, he had honed his disguise skills for decades.

To his trained eyes, many of the cultivators in the underground auction had poor disguises, easy to see through.

“Pill Master Shu…”

“Ren Yifeng…”

“Chen Tang…”

“Huang Shaoshan…”

“Master Yu Kui…”

A quick scan, and Wei Tu recognized several familiar faces among the seventy-plus Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Pill Master Shu, Ren Yifeng, and Chen Tang were all well-known wandering cultivators in Danqiu Mountain.

Meanwhile, Huang Shaoshan and Master Yu Kui were Foundation Establishment cultivators from Heshan Huang Clan, whom Wei Tu had met at the exchange gathering.

Huang Shaoshan was one of twelve Foundation Establishment cultivators in Heshan Huang Clan.

Wei Tu also noticed that several Foundation Establishment cultivators were casting frequent glances at Kou Hongying.

Some were well aware of her strength, while others were clearly drawn to her beauty.

“Good thing I didn’t enter with Hongying. Just being close to her would be enough to attract unnecessary trouble. Beauty is truly a double-edged sword.”

Wei Tu silently sighed in relief.

Even though Foundation Establishment cultivators were generally more disciplined than Qi Refinement cultivators, there were still plenty of fools blinded by lust.

Wei Tu had arrived a little late.

Over the next two days, another dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators trickled into Canglong Mountain, and soon, the Baibao Pavilion Underground Auction, held once every twenty years, officially began.

To Wei Tu’s slight surprise—

The auctioneer this time was none other than Chai Ping, the female Foundation Establishment cultivator who had delivered his auction invitation.

However, compared to before, Chai Ping’s attire was much more modest, unlike the revealing dresses that Lou Hong used to wear.

“Fellow Daoists, thank you for attending Baibao Pavilion’s underground auction, held once every twenty years. As a token of appreciation, Baibao Pavilion will present each participant with a small gift after the auction.”

“Additionally, I must take a moment to explain the auction’s rules for those who are new here…”

Standing on the auction stage, Chai Ping smiled confidently. She spoke fluently, showing no signs of nervousness.

One particular rule caught Wei Tu’s attention—

After the official auction, participating cultivators could freely trade with each other using this platform.

“A free-trade session?”

“No wonder this auction has attracted so many Foundation Establishment cultivators…”

Wei Tu was impressed.

Having nearly a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators in one place was no small feat—this was roughly one-third of all wandering Foundation Establishment cultivators in Zheng Kingdom.

Of course, after excluding clan-affiliated and sect-affiliated cultivators like Kou Hongying and Huang Shaoshan, the remaining number was still a significant portion of independent cultivators.

“The first auction item is a low-grade Tier-Two artifact, the Water Mist Shield.”

“This defensive artifact not only enhances protection but also generates an illusion array, the Water Mist Formation, making it an excellent tool for evasion during battle.”

“The starting bid is 300 spirit stones.”

“Each bid increment must not be lower than 50 spirit stones.”

Chai Ping’s crisp voice echoed through the hall.

“400 spirit stones!”

“450 spirit stones!”

“600 spirit stones!”

As soon as she finished speaking, several impatient bidders immediately started raising their prices.

“Too expensive.”

Wei Tu was momentarily interested in the Water Mist Shield, but once the price exceeded 600 spirit stones, he abandoned the idea.

His Foundation Establishment stage was still recent, and compared to most cultivators present, his wealth was limited.

In the end—

The Water Mist Shield was sold for 1,050 spirit stones to a mysterious male cultivator wearing a black cloak.

The second auction item soon followed.

It was a top-tier Tier-One flying boat artifact.

Although its rank was lower than the Water Mist Shield, its price skyrocketed, doubling that of the first item.

An hour passed.

More than a dozen items had been successfully auctioned, with none failing to sell.

“Everything is rare and valuable… but too expensive.”

Wei Tu finally realized how poor he was compared to these Foundation Establishment cultivators.

If he spent his entire fortune, he could only afford a single item.

“Next time, I’ll come better prepared.”

He consoled himself.

However—

Just as the auction was drawing to a close, a particular item caught Wei Tu’s full attention, making him completely abandon his previous thoughts.

“The next auction item is a method for crafting a magical treasure. As everyone knows, magical treasures are exclusively wielded by Golden Core cultivators, standing a tier above ordinary artifacts. With a magical treasure in hand, nothing is insurmountable in battle.”

“Even talisman-based pseudo-magical treasures, imbued with power similar to actual magical treasures, can easily overwhelm regular artifacts in combat.”

“And this particular magical treasure, even Foundation Establishment cultivators can forge on their own.”

Chai Ping’s words immediately stirred excitement among the gathered cultivators. Their eyes burned with interest as they fixated on the pale jade slip resting atop the auction table, eager to learn more.

However—

Her next words poured cold water on most of their enthusiasm.

“This magical treasure is called Ice Jiao Sword, a talisman sword magical treasure.”

“Talisman sword?”

The crowd’s interest quickly waned.

Talisman sword magical treasures were notorious in the cultivation world as “pseudo-magical treasures.”

While Foundation Establishment cultivators could indeed forge them, the process was extremely costly unless one was a skilled talisman master.

Even among talisman masters, not all could afford the exorbitant price required to forge such an item.

This was because talisman swords were crafted by stacking layer upon layer of talismans onto a weapon embryo, gradually transforming it into a magical treasure through sheer accumulation of talisman energy.

However—

This process often required over a hundred Tier-Two talismans, with no guarantee of success.

Even the cheapest Tier-Two talisman cost at least 200–300 spirit stones per piece.

Spending tens of thousands of spirit stones to create a pseudo-magical treasure made little sense when one could simply buy a few talisman-based magical artifacts for a fraction of the price.

A talisman-based magical artifact typically cost only a few thousand spirit stones per piece.

Even so—

The starting price for the Ice Jiao Sword’s crafting method was set very high, beginning at 500 spirit stones.

Bidding quickly escalated to 700 spirit stones.

Wei Tu felt tempted and joined the bidding.

The Ice Jiao Sword crafting method included several Tier-Two talisman techniques.

For those techniques alone, the auction was already worth it.

Moreover, he was different from other talisman masters.

With his “Late Bloomer” destiny, his success rate for crafting talismans reached perfection once he attained mastery.

This meant that, unlike others who wasted countless talismans in failed attempts, he could forge the Ice Jiao Sword at a fraction of the usual cost.

“Wei Shu, I have 800–900 spirit stones on hand. If you need them, I can lend them to you. There’s nothing else in this auction that interests me.”

At that moment, Kou Hongying’s voice sounded in Wei Tu’s ear.

She had clearly noticed his repeated bids and sensed his strong desire for the Ice Jiao Sword crafting method.

“Good.”

Wei Tu nodded, accepting her offer without hesitation.

“Opportunities like this are rare.”

Even though talisman sword crafting techniques were considered impractical by most, that didn’t mean they were easy to find.

“1,400 spirit stones!”

After calculating the value of his own assets, plus the spirit stones borrowed from Kou Hongying, Wei Tu boldly raised the bid by 200 spirit stones in a single leap.

Inside the auction hall—

The flurry of bidding voices suddenly fell silent.

Before Wei Tu’s bid, the highest offer had been 1,200 spirit stones.

Wei Tu’s large jump in price left everyone momentarily stunned.

“1,400 spirit stones?”

The previous bidders instinctively turned their heads to look at Wei Tu, committing his face to memory.

This wasn’t because they intended to rob him—most Foundation Establishment cultivators weren’t foolish enough to become bandits over a mere talisman sword technique.

Rather, they knew that talisman swords wielded considerable power.

If they ever encountered Wei Tu in combat, knowing he owned a talisman sword magical treasure would help them prepare accordingly.

“1,400 spirit stones.”

Chai Ping waited for nine silent breaths.

Seeing no further bids, she brought down the auction hammer, sealing the sale.

Shortly after—

The second half of the auction began.

This portion of the event was dedicated to the three most valuable items—the main attractions of the auction.

The quality of these items was undeniably high-tier.

Wei Tu noticed that several familiar cultivators were discreetly negotiating, pooling their spirit stones in hopes of securing one of the final treasures.

“The first grand finale item—a talisman treasure created by Yan Guang True Lord: the Fire Dragon Halberd.”

Following a brief intermission, Chai Ping reached into her storage pouch, retrieving a jade box.

Carefully, she lifted the lid, using her spiritual power to suspend a faint yellow talisman paper in mid-air.

“This… is a talisman treasure?”

Wei Tu’s curiosity was piqued.

As a talisman master, he had never seen a real talisman treasure before.

Talisman treasures were unique—crafted by Golden Core cultivators, they sealed a portion of a magical treasure’s power inside a single talisman, creating a one-time-use weapon of immense strength.

Most talisman treasures were hoarded within powerful cultivation clans, rarely circulating in the open market.

Under the gazes of the cultivators, the true form of the yellow talisman gradually became visible.

Emblazoned on its surface was a crimson halberd, exuding a strange sense of vitality.

At times, the halberd’s image twisted, transforming into a flaming dragon, as though it were struggling to break free from the talisman paper itself.

“Yan Guang True Lord was a wandering Golden Core cultivator from 700 years ago, renowned throughout Zheng Kingdom’s cultivation world.”

“Moreover, Yan Guang True Lord wasn’t just any Golden Core cultivator—he was a late-stage Golden Core grand cultivator…”

Chai Ping’s voice echoed throughout the chamber.

Most wandering cultivators lacked extensive knowledge of cultivation history.

But upon hearing Chai Ping’s introduction, they immediately erupted in fervor, eager to compete for the Fire Dragon Halberd talisman treasure.

“This talisman treasure has a starting bid of 3,000 spirit stones, with a minimum increase of 50 spirit stones per bid.”

Chai Ping struck the jade table with her auction hammer, declaring the opening price.

“3,300 spirit stones.”

At that moment, Pill Master Shu, whom Wei Tu had been quietly observing, finally broke his silence, stepping forward to bid on the Fire Dragon Halberd talisman treasure.

Only an artifact of this caliber could entice a high-level Foundation Establishment alchemist like Pill Master Shu to participate.

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