Born with immortal seed

Chapter 169 Extravagant Bidding Methods

"The next item up for auction is a thousand-year-old golden crown lingzhi mushroom, eighteen in total, with a starting bid of 20,000 spirit stones per mushroom."

As Du Shierlang's voice fell, a commotion arose in the main hall on the first floor, where the majority of the people present were late-stage Qi Refining cultivators, who appeared extremely excited.

As the main ingredient for Foundation Establishment Pills, as long as you have a Golden Crown Lingzhi and are willing to cooperate with others in alchemy, there are plenty of people who will provide various auxiliary materials and help you find a second-level alchemist to start the alchemy process.

A single batch of Foundation Building Pills yields four to six pills, depending on the alchemist's skill level, enough for the partners to distribute.

It is said that a fifth-level alchemist can break through the shackles and create seven pills.

However, even fourth-order alchemists are hard to find in the cultivation world, let alone fifth-order celestial beings, who have not been heard of for thousands of years.

"Eighteen thousand-year-old golden crown Ganoderma lucidum... Before leaving, the sect leader instructed that at least two should be brought back, and it would be best to bring back three or four."

When the true target of this trip appeared, Jin Lu sat up straight, and his previous greasy and lazy fat man image disappeared, making him look like a completely different person.

The sect leader he was referring to was not Wei Dao, but rather Gu Xisheng, who was currently in office.

"I wonder how many spirit stones the sect allocated for this trip?"

Liang Yuxin made it very clear that Bai Zichen was brought in to gain merit so that he could quickly advance his position in the Law Enforcement Hall.

Therefore, he did not interfere in any of the preliminary matters, and Jin Lu was the chief envoy for this trip.

"A whole thousand mid-grade spirit stones!"

Jin Lu regarded this task as his first step into the Alchemy Hall and was determined to complete it perfectly, taking it very seriously: "Although the second round is still a blind auction, there are only a dozen or so items up for auction. As long as you are willing to collect them, it is not difficult to calculate the approximate average transaction price... I have compiled the transaction prices of the Thousand-Year Golden Crown Lingzhi in the past hundred years. The highest price was 41,000 spirit stones, and the lowest price was 37,000 spirit stones. It can be said to be extremely stable."

If a Foundation Establishment Pill costs 15,000 spirit stones, and an average of five pills are produced per batch, that's 75,000 spirit stones.

Besides the Golden Crown Ganoderma, the other auxiliary ingredients in the Foundation Building Pill formula can be prepared with a few thousand spirit stones.

It can only be said that alchemists are indeed the most profitable profession among all the arts of cultivation, standing at the top of the hierarchy of contempt.

A peak second-tier alchemist like Tan Changkong, who has extensive experience in refining Foundation Establishment Pills, is unlikely to make a mistake. His performance at most affects the number of pills produced in each batch.

"I plan to start with 40,000 spirit stones, then 40,000, and then 38,000, making three bids in total... Junior Brother Bai, what do you think?"

Jin Lu had already formulated a plan based on the transaction trends of previous years, but hesitated before making a bid and asked again.

"Senior Brother Jin, what do you think is the difference between us sect disciples and ordinary rogue cultivators?"

Bai Zichen didn't respond directly, but instead asked abruptly.

"Ah... perhaps it's because we have the backing of a sect, which ensures better access to cultivation techniques and resources?"

Jin Lu didn't understand what his junior brother Bai meant, so he turned around.

“Those independent cultivators or immortal cultivation families can barely afford to buy a Golden Crown Ganoderma by pooling the resources of a few people or the entire clan. So they can’t raise prices arbitrarily. Even a slight increase would exceed their affordability limit… But for a sect, are several thousand spirit stones really a lot?”

Perhaps due to his innate wisdom, Bai Zichen's understanding of spending spirit stones differs from that of ordinary cultivators.

"The sect gave us a total of one thousand mid-grade spirit stones, which is only 130,000 low-grade spirit stones... Even at the lowest price in recent years, we still can't buy four Golden Crown Ganoderma. Is it more important to save the sect thousands of spirit stones, or to ensure that we bring three Golden Crown Ganoderma back?"

"What does Junior Brother Bai mean?"

Jin Lu vaguely understood and pressed for an answer.

"Forty-three thousand spirit stones, three consecutive bids... I need to make sure that the three Golden Crown Ganoderma lucidum are in my hands without the slightest mistake."

After the bumper harvest of Dragon Tooth Rice, Bai Zichen's wealth increased day by day, and with a single sentence, he raised the price quote by 10,000 spirit stones.

"Is it really necessary to be so high...? A total price of 41,000 spirit stones should be enough."

Jin Lu had already agreed with Junior Brother Bai's idea, but the thought of raising the price by so many spirit stones at once still made him tremble with fear.

Even if he were on duty at the market, this amount of spirit stones would be equivalent to several years' worth of filial piety.

It's not something he can enjoy all by himself; he has to share the profits with several elders from the same department.

"Has Senior Brother Jin forgotten the lesson learned from the Golden Jade Heart Pill?"

Seeing that Jin Lu was still hesitating and that most of the time had already passed, Bai Zichen went up and announced the price three times on the water mirror.

According to his thinking, Qingfeng Sect was at the peak of its development, with countless immortal talents emerging within its borders and disciples at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining everywhere in the sect.

With sufficient Foundation Establishment Pills, the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators in a sect can be significantly increased.

In reality, apart from true disciples, even stewards who have accumulated enough sect contributions have to wait five to ten years before they can receive the Foundation Establishment Pill.

If we wait like this, we may very well miss the best opportunity.

As for the disciples in charge, they don't even need to dream of Foundation Establishment Pills; if they are lucky enough to receive a Foundation Establishment spiritual item, it's already a blessing from their ancestors.

"Spending more spirit stones on the Golden Crown Ganoderma is absolutely worthwhile. We can easily break even by cutting some spirit stone expenditures elsewhere..."

However, Bai Zichen also knew that Qingfeng Sect's good days had only lasted a few years.

Before Ancestor Ge Cang formed his core, during the nearly one hundred years that the sect was besieged and invaded by the Ghost Spirit Sect, he received almost no spirit stones, which nearly drained the sect's resources.

It is said that during the most difficult times, the sect could not even produce a single high-grade spirit stone from its secret hall.

It was only after Elder Yang took a spirit stone that the Yin-Yang Illusion Moon Formation was able to continue operating.

After Wei Dao came to power, he improved the welfare and benefits of all disciples under the pretext of enhancing the cohesion of the sect's disciples.

After all that, the total amount of spirit stones in Qingfeng Sect's treasury did not increase much.

When the time came, the information on the water mirror changed, showing that all three bids had been successful.

Jin Lu breathed a sigh of relief, even though the offer exceeded the highest transaction price in a century.

But until everything settles down, there are still some concerns.

After the auction house manager delivered the three Golden Crown Ganoderma lucidum to the private room, the transaction was completed, and Bai Zichen took a look at the famous Golden Crown Ganoderma lucidum.

It is about the size of a palm, with a golden tip.

Only upon close inspection can one see that the top of the Ganoderma lucidum is composed of fine, hair-like golden filaments, and the inside is hollow.

Arranged on a plate, it exudes a fragrant aroma, making one want to take a bite and taste it.

"A thousand-year-old elixir, indeed extraordinary..."

Bai Zichen cleared his mind of distractions. Any spiritual herb that can grow for a thousand years will develop extraordinary abilities and undergo a qualitative change.

However, most spiritual herbs, even with deliberate cultivation, will only grow for a few hundred years before rotting and decaying.

There are also some, such as Solomon's Seal and Gastrodia elata, that can grow for a thousand years, but the medicinal effects they produce are not enough for cultivators to spend the effort and resources to cultivate them.

The location of the herb garden is precious, and every inch of soil is planned for a specific purpose, so there is naturally no place for ordinary spiritual herbs.

Jin Lu carefully stored the elixir in three specially made jade boxes. The strange fragrance in the private room disappeared, and the restrictions on the jade boxes were enough to ensure that the Golden Crown Lingzhi would not lose its spiritual energy within ten years.

"Excellent, we have finally completed the important task entrusted to us by the sect... Now we can relax and act as spectators."

Jin Lu looked relaxed. He had acquired three thousand-year-old golden crown lingzhi mushrooms. Although it cost him a few more spirit stones, it was still a great achievement.

If three batches of Foundation Establishment Pills produce fifteen pills, the sect will experience a surge in Foundation Establishment cultivators over the next twenty years.

Bai Zichen continued to stare at the water mirror. He had bought the spiritual herbs needed by the sect, but his own shopping plan had not yet begun.

So far, the auction has yielded only two bottles of sword-tempering spirit water.

He also hoped to acquire a valuable treasure through the auction.

As the second round of auctions drew to a close, Bai Zichen began to feel somewhat anxious.

The final round of auction items were mostly Tier 3 treasures.

Regardless of whether he could use it or not, Bai Zichen certainly didn't have the ability to compete with a Core Formation cultivator in terms of wealth.

"Who made such a reckless bid and won three thousand-year-old golden crown Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms!"

In the third-floor, A4-4 private room, a man with an eerie appearance and a vertical pupil between his eyebrows flew into a rage, black demonic flames rising around him.

"Elder Tu, I remember you said that the highest price for Golden Crown Ganoderma was no more than 41,000 spirit stones... I bid 42,000 spirit stones eighteen times in a row, and you said it was foolproof, so why did I fail to win three more!"

The interior of the fourth VIP room was like a small hall, with fifteen thousand-year-old golden crown Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms on the long table.

“Holy Son, logically speaking, our offer is already quite conservative…”

Elder Tu, dressed entirely in black robes, bowed his head slightly, adopting an extremely humble posture.

Even though he was a Core Formation True Person, the young man in front of him was a level lower in cultivation, and he was used to being loudly reprimanded.

The three-eyed youth is the direct descendant of the sect leader, possessing a unique bloodline spiritual root that perfectly complements the sect's divine skills.

He cultivated for less than sixty years and reached the Foundation Establishment stage. After refining the Blood Demon, forming the Core would be a piece of cake for him.

Elder Tu felt a bitter taste in his mouth. Outside, he was a fierce and ruthless old demon, but now he could only humble himself: "Perhaps someone urgently needs the Golden Crown Ganoderma and is willing to pay a high price to buy it..."

"Would someone urgently need three Golden Crown Ganoderma lucidum at the same time?"

The three-eyed youth's vertical pupil between his brows was blood-red, opening and closing eerily.

"A mere Golden Crown Ganoderma is nothing, but this is the congratulatory gift I prepared for my Blood God Uncle... How can I show my Uncle my sincerity if I don't acquire all the Golden Crown Ganoderma at the auction!"

"Elder Tu, go and find out the name and background of the cultivator who bought the Golden Crown Lingzhi. That will be enough to atone for your sins!"

"Holy Son, you mustn't... making eighteen bids in an attempt to sweep all the items is already a minor transgression against the Immortal City. If you were to inquire about the auction guests' information further, you would surely anger the Du family!"

Elder Tu's expression suddenly changed, and he repeatedly tried to dissuade him.

"The fate of the Immortal City is related to the Great Dao of the Du family patriarch. Anyone who dares to break the rules of the Immortal City will only have one fate... I urge the Holy Son to think twice."

"Hmph! Then wait until you return to the sect, and you can go to the Blood Pool to receive the three-year punishment of being corrupted by the Blood Sea!"

Even the arrogant and spoiled young man with three pupils wouldn't dare offend a Nascent Soul True Monarch who was of the same level as his master.

However, since one of the original congratulatory gifts was missing, they had to bid on another treasure to give to the Blood God Immortal.

(End of this chapter)