Immortality and cultivation begin with drawing talismans...

Chapter 49 Green Horned Ox

"A first-grade, high-quality Yellow Dragon Pill is highly beneficial for late-stage Qi Refining cultivators to increase their mana and improve their cultivation. Starting bid: seventy spirit stones!"

"I'll offer seventy-five spirit stones!"

"I'm eighty!"

The auction was extremely popular. It started with various pills to enhance cultivation, as well as various magical artifacts, with the lowest grade being mid-grade magical artifacts.

"Next up is a complete set of mid-grade magic artifacts, the Golden Cicada Mother-Child Blade, starting bid..."

Lin Chang'an, sitting in the audience, was also tempted as he watched the treasures appear one by one, but he calmed down when he thought about his purpose.

There are many treasures, and although I want to take them all, I don't have the strength to do so. I'll just wait and wait for the spirit pet auction later.

Now that his cultivation level has reached the late stage of Qi Refining, the only things that can improve his strength and ensure his safety, besides magic weapons, are spirit pets.

He has no shortage of magical artifacts, but it would be even better if he could raise a tough and resilient spirit pet.

After all, having an extra spirit pet to fight alongside you when preparing for Foundation Establishment provides an extra layer of protection, so it's best to start cultivating one as early as possible.

"Next up are high-grade magic artifacts!"

The appearance of the high-grade magic weapon caused an uproar at the scene. Countless cultivators were green with envy, and even some cultivators from major clans began to participate in the bidding.

However, the Foundation Establishment cultivators of Xuan Yin Pavilion and Li Huo Palace merely looked down at this scene indifferently, as if all of this was nothing more than the appearance of ordinary people to them.

They were just there to oversee things.

With the bidding for various treasures, countless cultivators were green with envy. This was definitely the grandest auction in Qingzhu Mountain Market.

"Next up is the spirit beast auction, featuring a total of sixty-five spirit beast cubs with excellent bloodlines."

Once the auction for the spirit beasts began, the venue calmed down considerably.

Spirit beasts may not be expensive, but raising them costs a lot of spirit stones, so most independent cultivators would rather invest those spirit stones in themselves.

Of course, some powerful clans and some skilled cultivators would raise a spirit beast as a battle partner, which is far more reliable than teaming up with other cultivators.

"A Black Wind Wolf cub, this is a second-tier demon beast descendant, with a mid-grade bloodline..."

Just as cultivators possess spiritual roots, the bloodlines of demonic beasts are also categorized into corresponding levels, with higher-grade bloodlines possessing greater potential.

Bloodlines are categorized into four grades: Miscellaneous, Low-grade, Medium-grade, High-grade, Earth-grade, and Heaven-grade, which correspond to the spiritual root grades of cultivators. However, Miscellaneous has been replaced by Inferior.

"Snow Spirit Fox, mid-grade bloodline, extremely high intelligence, and extremely fast speed..."

As one spirit beast cub after another appeared, the scene lost its previous liveliness, with most of the bidding coming from large clans or powerful cultivators.

"Yeah, raising one of these is enough to raise a son."

Lin Chang'an smiled. For impoverished cultivators, spirit beasts are like living fathers, but for wealthy cultivators, they are equivalent to having a loyal and reliable partner.

"Next up is a spirit beast from the Zhou family of Beast Tamers. This one is a bit special; it's an unhatched 'Mysterious Water Turtle' egg with a superior bloodline!"

Before they were even halfway through, a high-grade bloodline spirit beast appeared, catching everyone off guard, even Lin Chang'an was astonished.

"Fellow Daoists, a hundred years ago, the strongest rogue cultivator in our Yue Kingdom possessed a Xuan Shui Turtle with a superior bloodline, which grew to the third tier and whose strength was comparable to that of a Golden Core cultivator..."

As the superior-grade spirit beast appeared, countless cultivators exclaimed in surprise, but the scene became somewhat deserted afterward.

"The Xuan Shui Turtle, let alone a top-grade bloodline, even an earth-grade bloodline would have to live until that time."

Lin Chang'an shook his head inwardly. If it were a family or a small sect, perhaps it could be slowly cultivated and used as a clan's (sect's) guardian spirit beast.

But with the current situation so turbulent, he has no time to waste countless resources feeding a slow-growing spirit beast.

It takes over a hundred years for this thing to come of age; it's like raising an ancestor for itself.

What he wanted was a spirit beast that could help him prepare the foundation-building materials.

"Everyone, although the Xuan Shui Turtle grows slowly, its advantages are also obvious. It has a long lifespan, making it an excellent choice whether to leave a guardian spirit beast for future generations or for the family." The female cultivator Han Lin'er, who was presiding over the auction, had a smile on her face, not at all worried that no one would buy it.

Sure enough, as she explained, many people became interested, since many cultivators also had offspring.

The Zhou family, the Beast Tamer, is a perfect example. They secretly raised their beasts for over a hundred years, and then they appeared when the family was in crisis. The effect was self-evident.

"To be honest, this egg was affected by external forces, causing it to be prematurely laid. It may be a bit weaker than usual, but the starting bid is only six hundred spirit stones!"

Well, no wonder a high-grade spirit beast bloodline appeared only halfway through the game; it turns out it was a product of weakness.

In the end, the top-grade bloodline 'Mysterious Water Turtle' was sold for 780 spirit stones, followed by the normal top-grade spirit beasts.

"The next superior-grade spirit beast is a 'Green Horned Ox' calf. It has thick skin and flesh, and when it grows up, it can exhale smoke that can bewitch people's consciousness. It is also known as the Dark Cloud Beast."

The advantage is its short growth period, reaching adulthood in about ten years; the disadvantage is its short lifespan, only seventy or eighty years.

Some of the more knowledgeable cultivators below, upon hearing the price, revealed unimpressive smiles.

"The Green Horned Ox grows quickly and it is indeed of superior bloodline, but the spiritual herbs it is fed are not cheap. Apart from cultivators from large clans, unless a cultivator has superior skills, how can they afford it?"

Well, they didn't mention the consumption of resources at all, leaving Lin Chang'an speechless.

Although the Xuan Shui Turtle grows slowly, it also consumes very little energy, while the Qingjiao Ox needs to be fed with top-grade spiritual herbs.

"But this green-horned ox is quite suitable for me."

Lin Chang'an thought to himself that he still had a bunch of unused spiritual herbs and medicines left to him by Zhou Qing, which were originally cultivated by the Zhou family for use by spirit beasts.

Although the consumption is a bit high, the growth is fast. As for the short lifespan, if he can't even reach the Foundation Establishment stage, he'll only have sixty or seventy years left to live. Isn't that just the right amount to accompany him on his journey?

"This spirit beast is quite strong; the starting bid is eight hundred spirit stones!"

"Eight hundred and thirty spirit stones!"

"Eight hundred and sixty!"

Raising spirit beasts is an art in itself, so not many people bid on them.

Most cultivators would rather spend this price to buy a high-grade magic artifact.

After all, a high-grade magic weapon can directly enhance a cultivator's combat power.

"Nine hundred and thirty spirit stones."

Lin Chang'an raised his hand and announced his price in a hoarse voice.

As for the Green Horned Ox, he wasn't determined to get it, since there were still many high-grade spirit beasts to come.

"Nine hundred and thirty spirit stones, is there a higher price?"

The female cultivator Han Lin'er, who was hosting the auction, had a hint of helplessness in her smile; spirit beasts were indeed not easy to sell.

Being able to afford to raise them is one thing, but not raising them is another.

"Nine hundred and thirty spirit stones, won by this fellow Daoist!"

Lin Chang'an had a big smile on his face. As a top-grade talisman master, in the eyes of outsiders, he could earn more than 150 spirit stones a month, and raising a spirit beast was within the normal range.

His bottom line was a thousand spirit stones, since this thing couldn't be kept secret anytime soon.

Amidst the lively auction that followed, a young spirit beast with a low-grade bloodline even made an appearance, which was then snapped up by a disciple of the Xuan Yin Pavilion.

Of course, such a grand auction would inevitably involve Foundation Establishment Pills.

This final event featured several foundation-building materials, as well as top-grade magic artifacts that only foundation-building cultivators could control.

The scene instantly erupted in excitement.

(End of this chapter)