I am a late bloomer in the world of cultivating immortals

"Six thousand five hundred mid-grade spirit crystals..."

"Seven thousand mid-grade spirit crystals..."

A few breaths after Ancestor Tianhe finished speaking, the auction hall, which had been silent for a long time, was once again filled with cultivators bidding.

Of course, those who spoke this time were mostly cultivators in the private rooms, whose identities were kept secret, which could, to some extent, avoid the wrath of the Feathered Dragon Clan.

However, this result was enough for Ancestor Tianhe, since there were only a dozen or so cultivators in the entire venue who were qualified to compete for the 'Wood Heart Pill'.

Forcing these people to speak again would be enough to minimize the impact of the bidding for the Great Princess.

"Seven thousand three hundred mid-grade spirit crystals..."

However, upon hearing this, Qian Ying'er did not show any surprise or anger, as if such a scene was commonplace in her Taoist career.

With her red lips slightly parted, she began bidding again.

Once the price reached his psychological limit, he calmly fell silent.

Wei Tu was not surprised by this.

Because Qian Ying'er has access to far more than just one 'Wood Heart Pill' of seventh-grade high-quality spiritual pills. The value of this pill is not worth the desperate pursuit and bidding that this princess of the Feather Dragon Clan has been willing to pay.

"Besides, this is also a good thing for me."

Wei Tu narrowed his eyes slightly and pondered.

Once is acceptable, but never again!

The cultivators at the auction house had already humiliated Qian Ying'er with the 'Wood Heart Pill,' so they would definitely have to give way to her when bidding on other valuable treasures later on.

This is the power and prestige of the overlords.

Anyone would have to weigh the consequences of completely offending the Feathered Dragon Clan.

"The Crimson Demon Golden Marrow is something I, Lin, must obtain. I hope that the Great Princess can bid on my behalf..."

After the gavel fell on the auction for the Muxin Pill, Wei Tu turned to Qian Ying'er beside him, nodded to her, and made his request.

"Bidding on behalf of someone else?" Upon hearing this, Qian Ying'er, who was well-versed in the workings of power, narrowed her almond-shaped eyes slightly and instantly understood Wei Tu's somewhat 'despicable' plan.

"This kid is too good at seizing opportunities. He will seize every single chance..." Qian Ying'er took a deep look at Wei Tu and for the first time thought to herself, 'This cultivator is truly terrifying.'

She had a vague premonition that, in Wei Tu's eyes, she was like Pei Hong, a stepping stone to climb upwards.

However, in an instant, as if she had thought of something, a slight smile appeared on her lips.

No one is born willing to be a servant.

Especially considering Wei Tu, a powerful figure from humble beginnings who has faced death countless times, it would be truly strange if he were willing to be driven by her and had no intention of using her.

Unlike Pei Hong, her level of expertise and status had long since completely overshadowed Wei Tu...

As long as she exists in the cultivation world, Wei Tu is destined to be her subordinate.

"Alright, I'm happy to help Fellow Daoist Lin with this small favor... However, as far as I know, Fellow Daoist Lin doesn't seem to have any plans to settle down in the Feathered Dragon Clan at the moment?"

"Coincidentally, I have several female acquaintances who are also unmarried and in dire need of suitable husbands."

Qian Ying'er smiled slightly and said.

Now that she understood Wei Tu's specific personality, she would no longer act as she had before—"willing to be beaten and taken advantage of"—simply yielding to Wei Tu, trying to influence him and then win his heart.

For her, discussing pros and cons and negotiating conditions is clearly faster and more cost-effective.

"An family?" Upon hearing this, Wei Tu frowned, realizing that Qian Ying'er was no longer as 'easy to fool' as before, and would continue to help him unconditionally.

At this moment, the woman's mention of "an home" was undoubtedly a further test of him.

However, this is normal and nothing strange.

Previously, because they hadn't known each other for long, in order to win him over and to win over the 'Purple Dragon Lord' behind him, she would naturally give him whatever he wanted...

But now, a hundred years have passed, and after learning that Nan Cong Zi Chi Jun has a definite answer about the outcome of his help... he will naturally put even more pressure on him, demanding that he stand firmly behind him and help him, and then compete for the position of Dragon Lord of the Feathered Dragon Clan.

Previously, after soaking in the Dragon Blood Pool, he directly sided with the Great Princess between the Prince Yin and the Great Princess... But at that time, he had not yet joined the Feathered Dragon Clan and was merely a commoner.

Therefore, while such words may be valid, they can be changed. After all, he now has the Purple Dragon Lord behind him, and the Purple Dragon Lord's 'will' is, in anyone's eyes, far greater than his own 'will'.

however--

Once he agrees, Qian Ying'er's proposal to "settle down" and marry one of the princesses under his command will be tantamount to clearly standing on the side of the Grand Princess.

In the future, it will be much more difficult to switch sides and pledge allegiance to Prince Yin.

However—from these words, it can also be seen that Qian Ying'er values ​​him highly.

He was willing to "act first and report later," even if it offended the Purple Dragon Lord, just to subdue him first.

"With Lord Zichi here, I, Lin, dare not make decisions about marriage on my own," Wei Tu said after a moment's thought, invoking Lord Zichi's influence as a backer.

"If the two are in love, Lord Zichi should not object."

Qian Ying'er remained unmoved and continued to speak in riddles.

"I am new here, how could I dare to offend a senior like Mahayana for my own selfish reasons? A mere princess is far from enough..."

Wei Tu spoke coldly and directly, showing no fear whatsoever because of Qian Ying'er's words.

Now that we get to this point...

Outside the private rooms, an auction for the 'Red Demon Golden Marrow' also began.

"Three thousand five hundred mid-grade spirit crystals..."

"Four thousand six hundred mid-grade spirit crystals..."

Its price began to rise rapidly as various Nascent Soul cultivators competed for it.

"Five thousand mid-grade spirit crystals."

Upon hearing this, Wei Tu calmly replied that his disagreement with Qian Ying'er had not affected his business.

And this was accompanied by the opening auction of satellite images.

At this moment, Qian Ying'er's heart trembled slightly, and she instantly 'woke up'.

The smile remained on her face, but a cold glint appeared deep in her eyes.

Dew Pill, a mid-grade seventh-tier cave dwelling...

She could hardly believe that all her efforts to win over Wei Tu over the past century had not moved him in the slightest.

Of course, these benefits are insignificant compared to the 'loss' of Wei Tu completely siding with her.

But—the reason she dared to say those words just now was that she believed there was some connection between her and Wei Tu.

When faced with such difficulties and struggles, they would at least hesitate for a while, negotiate conditions, and then make a decision.

Unexpectedly, Wei Tu was so decisive and ruthless.

She misjudged her place in Wei Tu's heart.

"That's true. Small gains can only tempt ordinary cultivators. In the eyes of cultivators who have the potential to reach the Mahayana stage... my efforts to win them over are too cheap."

Qian Ying'er's eyes flickered, and she suddenly realized what was happening, completely erasing any lingering hope in her heart.

I started to seriously consider how to handle the relationship with Satellite Image.

It would be inappropriate to let the conversation fall into an awkward silence and offend someone directly.

That directly pushed Wei Tu and Zi Chi Jun to Prince Yin's side.

"What a shrewd mind! He pointed it out a hundred years ago... Only by marrying down can I gain his complete allegiance and support." Suddenly, Qian Ying'er thought of the conversation she had with Wei Tu when they met Zi Chi Jun a hundred years ago.

Previously, she thought that Zi Chi Jun's words were just a sarcastic remark about being disrespectful to elders and reckless.

Now she realized that it had already pointed everything out a hundred years ago.

The meaning is simple: it's impossible for her to want the Dragon King's throne and only be willing to give up those small favors.

Marrying Wei Tu and forming an alliance with the Zi Chi Jun lineage was her biggest and only bargaining chip.

Just like this moment.

While it was certainly a loss for Wei Tu that she didn't help him bid for the 'Crimson Demon Golden Marrow', in reality, this 'loss' was far less significant.

……

"Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals!"

Wei Tu, standing to the side, had no interest in Qian Ying'er's thoughts. After all, in his mind, the Feather Dragon Clan was just a temporary place to stay... As long as he didn't offend this woman to death and could maintain the most basic dignity between them, it wasn't a big deal.

Therefore, at this moment, he focused more on bidding for the 'Crimson Demon Golden Marrow'—after hearing the bidding become increasingly sparse, he decisively raised the price to a terrifyingly high level.

"Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals? Where did he get so many spirit crystals?" Upon hearing this, Qian Ying'er's almond-shaped eyes narrowed slightly, and she felt even more ashamed of her previous behavior.

Because compared to the enormous sum of 'ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals', the favor she had previously bestowed upon Wei Tu was indeed a small favor.

Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals are basically equivalent to the entire fortune of a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator with considerable strength!
Even a great immortal like Zi Chi Jun wouldn't casually give away such a huge amount of resources to Wei Tu.

This is undoubtedly quite inconsistent with the impression Wei Tu left on her.

In her eyes, Wei Tu came from the remote Zi Chen Realm and arrived in the Spirit Realm after being hunted down and falling into misfortune. Therefore, he must be extremely poor and struggling financially.

"Even at a 30% discount, seven thousand mid-grade spirit crystals is not something that a newly promoted Nascent Soul cultivator can possess... This Lin Tianqi is far more mysterious than I imagined."

Qian Ying'er narrowed her almond-shaped eyes and began to scrutinize Wei Tu in the shadows.

"Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals?"

In the auction hall, the cultivators frowned secretly at the high price.

First, they were shocked by the wealth and power of the Feathered Dragon Clan, who were willing to spend so much money on this 'body-refining elixir'.

Secondly, they were somewhat intimidated by the bidding against the Feathered Dragon Clan.

Although Wei Tu's voice was far less intimidating than that of the Great Princess Qian Ying'er, his status was still enough to command the respect of many cultivators.

Of course, the fact that no one participated in the bidding for this item is also related to the scarcity of seventh-level body refiners.

It is true that seventh-grade body-refining elixirs are rare, but a Nascent Soul cultivator who can reach the seventh-grade body-refining realm is also a rare find!

Therefore, far fewer of those bidding actually needed this item than Wei Tu had imagined.

"Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals. Once!"

"Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals. Twice!"

"Ten thousand mid-grade spirit crystals, three times!"

At that moment, with the auctioneer's three pronouncements, the auction for the second item, 'Crimson Demon Golden Marrow,' came to a complete end.

"It's a success." Upon hearing this, Wei Tu finally felt a huge weight lifted from his heart.

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Lin, on winning the bid for this 'Crimson Ghost Golden Marrow'."

Qian Ying'er offered her congratulations, as if the previous 'unpleasantness' had never happened.

Upon hearing this, Wei Tu also put on a fake smile and casually started chatting with Qian Ying'er again.

Just now, he didn't want to offend this woman. If she hadn't been so coercing, risking offending Zi Chi Jun, he wouldn't have directly turned against her.

These days, being able to maintain basic decency is a blessing.

While Wei Tu and Qian Ying'er 'made up'.

The third and final item in the auction also made its appearance.

This treasure is far more valuable than the 'Wooden Heart Pill' and the 'Crimson Ghost Golden Marrow'. It is a rare 'eighth-order fragmented treasure' shaped like a jade axe, which is extremely rare in the cultivation world.

However, Wei Tu didn't pay much attention to this. He secretly took stock of his assets and prepared to go backstage to make the deal.

But soon, as the auction of this 'eighth-tier damaged treasure' came to an end, a sudden voice at the subsequent 'personal trade fair' made him look up in surprise and stare intently outside.

The person who appeared was none other than the 'Flame Spirit King', one of the Five Kings who were combined, whom Wei Tu was familiar with.

"I am currently stuck at the first stage of the Integration Realm, and there is no way to advance further. Fellow Daoists, if you know of any way to reach the 'Ancient Demon Realm,' please share your knowledge..."

"If the method provided is correct and can indeed lead to the Ancient Demon Realm safely, I am willing to give you a seventh-tier spiritual treasure."

Flame Spirit King patted the Qiankun bag at his waist and immediately took out a golden spear that shone with spiritual light, placing it on the auction stage with his magic.

"To the Ancient Demon Realm?"

"The Ancient Demon Realm? Aren't these human cultivators courting death? The ancient demons are extremely ferocious, treating us spiritual cultivators like human pills... Once you accidentally enter the Ancient Demon Realm, there's basically only one path left: death and annihilation."

"That's true, but the spiritual cultivation resources in the Ancient Demon Realm are also quite abundant. Previously, there were precedents of cultivators from the Spirit Realm who ventured into the Ancient Demon Realm and attained the Mahayana stage... I guess he intends to do the same."

"Moreover, given his level of cultivation, unless he's unlucky enough to encounter a Demon Ancestor or Demon God, he shouldn't face any life-or-death crises under normal circumstances..."

"That's not right! Logically speaking, the three major overlord clans and the ten spirit clans should have a way to go to the Ancient Demon Realm. After all, Mahayana cultivators can directly tear through the spatial barrier to go to the Ancient Demon Realm... Since this cultivator is human, why doesn't he seek help from human Mahayana cultivators instead of seeking help from us Integration stage cultivators?"

"I've heard that the Mahayana path of the human race..."

After the Flame Spirit King finished speaking, the group of Nascent Soul cultivators below the stage immediately began to whisper among themselves.

However, while they were whispering, several powerful cultivators at the Integration Realm also clearly showed signs of interest.

After all, the Spirit Realm and the Ancient Demon Realm have been rivals who have loved and killed each other for hundreds of thousands of years, and they are also close to each other... Knowing a few ways to get to the Ancient Demon Realm is not too difficult for these powerful beings who have achieved the Fusion Realm.

However, whether these methods are safe is something they don't know.

Because, unless absolutely necessary, no spiritual practitioner would dare to venture into the Ancient Demon Realm without authorization.

That place—even for Mahayana immortals—is an extremely dangerous place. The slightest carelessness could lead to death and the annihilation of one's cultivation.

"I do not know the way to the Ancient Demon Realm, but I do know a little about the way to the Purple Palace Realm."

A short while later, this voice rang out from the audience.

This voice did not come from anyone else, but from one of the eight fierce ones who were the organizers of the "Flying Cloud Gathering"—the Heavenly Crane Ancestor.

He looked with great interest at the golden spear in the Flame Spirit King's hand, as if he was planning to make some extra money based on this news.

Hear this.

Wei Tu, sitting in the private room, couldn't help but feel a stirring in his heart.

After learning that the Seven Treasures Demon Ancestor was no benevolent figure, he also pondered how to return to the 'Primordial Demon Source Realm'.

Now that there is another way to reach the 'Ancient Demon Realm', it is undoubtedly a good thing for him.

Moreover, with the Flame Spirit King leading the way, inquiring about this news won't attract as much attention for him.

"But why would the Flame Spirit King go to the Ancient Demon Realm?" Wei Tu's eyes flickered, a sense of doubt arising in his heart.

He secretly felt that the Flame Spirit King's journey to the Ancient Demon Realm was not as simple as it appeared.

Within the Ancient Demon Realm, spiritual cultivation opportunities are much easier to find than in the Spirit Realm, but correspondingly, the level of danger is greatly increased; the slightest mistake can lead to certain death. (End of Chapter)