Cultivation begins with alchemy and collecting runes.

Li Xiuyuan glanced around and saw that the scene was filled with eight or nine hundred cultivators, most of whom were at the Foundation Establishment stage, while only one-tenth were at the Qi Refining stage.

As for whether there are any Golden Core cultivators hiding among the crowd, only heaven knows.

The Golden Core cultivators intentionally concealed their presence, making it impossible for them, who were only at the Foundation Establishment stage, to detect them.

As the number of people increased, it inevitably became chaotic. Upon closer listening, it turned out that some friends who knew each other were meeting, exchanging pleasantries, and the venue became noisy after a few words.

*Knock knock knock!*

Three melodious and clear bell tolls echoed throughout the hall, instantly suppressing all other noises and bringing a sense of tranquility and peace to all who heard them.

After the three chimes, the hall fell silent instantly, conversations dwindled, and everyone knew the auction was about to begin.

After a while.

A portly middle-aged male cultivator appeared on the high platform covered with a red carpet in the center. He had a shrewd and capable appearance, and looked like an old man who had experienced the ups and downs of the business world.

He was dressed in a magnificent golden robe, looking dignified and wealthy, like an old, worldly merchant.

However, his profound and deep aura would not be underestimated by anyone; he was at the late stage of Foundation Establishment!

Li Xiuyuan felt a chill run down his spine, thinking to himself that the auction house was indeed very powerful, with even the host being a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Jin Yun? This old guy is actually willing to personally preside over the auction? I remember the last time I saw him was more than ten years ago."

A man sitting not far from Li Xiuyuan whispered, recognizing the wealthy-looking male cultivator's identity and background; this man was quite famous.

"Fellow Daoists, welcome to this auction. Our Ling Shui Pavilion is deeply honored!"

"This auction will feature over three hundred items, including elixirs, magical artifacts, cultivation techniques, and array diagrams from various northern kingdoms, ensuring that all fellow cultivators leave with a full load."

"I am Jin Yun, the host of this auction!"

*Knock knock!*

The portly male cultivator smiled broadly and addressed the crowd in the hall, casually striking a small bell beside him to signal for silence.

Then Jin Yun announced the auction rules: "Collusion, malicious bidding, and bids must be in the lowest grade spirit stones. Items can also be used as collateral..."

"We have specially invited a Golden Core cultivator from the Azure Water Sect to oversee this auction. We hope that all fellow Daoists will not make a mistake."

"Finally, to ensure the safety of all fellow cultivators, no one may leave before the auction ends. If any cultivator does not wish to participate in the auction, they may withdraw now."

Jin Yun spoke in a loud and clear voice, reciting the rules of the auction in one breath without stopping. After waiting for three or four breaths and finding that no one had left, he spoke again.

"Since no fellow Daoist intends to withdraw, then I hereby declare this auction officially open."

"Now, please welcome the first item to be auctioned."

He gently raised the small wooden mallet and struck the small bell beside him.

Immediately, two hot-bodied, scantily clad maids carrying jade trays walked up to the platform from the passage behind them.

"Foundation Establishment Pill! A true treasure for Foundation Establishment, an indispensable item for Qi Refining cultivators, increasing the success rate of Foundation Establishment by a full 35%."

"Enough of idle talk. The importance of this pill is self-evident and needs no further explanation."

"The starting bid is two thousand spirit stones, and each bid must be at least fifty spirit stones higher."

Jin Yun pointed to the jade bottle on the tray, his loud and powerful voice echoing throughout every corner of the venue.

"Two thousand one hundred!"

"Two thousand two hundred!"

"Two thousand three hundred!"

The venue immediately brought up strategic resources like Foundation Establishment Pills, instantly raising the atmosphere to a climax. The bidding voices of many cultivators rose and fell like waves.

Li Xiuyuan shifted his body, looking at the Foundation Establishment Pills on the tray, and marveled at the extravagance of the auction.

The fact that a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator presided over the auction and the first item was a Foundation Establishment Pill demonstrates that Ling Shui Pavilion has great confidence in the more than three hundred treasures to follow.

This auction has a more profound foundation than any auction Li Xiuyuan has ever attended before.

No wonder they dared to put on such a grand display of banners, and even had to use an invitation and verification system for guests, and even managed to invite a Golden Core cultivator from the Biyue Sect to oversee things. This shows that they have an extremely strong confidence in their own strength and resources.

Although Li Xiuyuan had the idea of ​​participating in the auction for the Foundation Establishment Pill, he held back when he saw the soaring prices.

"I'd better rely on myself. Once I improve and refine my alchemy skills, I can refine Foundation Establishment Pills on my own."

The new Foundation Building Pill formula, which uses demon cores as the main ingredient, was exchanged for by Li Xiuyuan in the Scripture Pavilion as a reward for his merits in destroying the Demon Flame Sect's invasion plot, and he kept it on his person.

Once he goes to the front lines of the war between good and evil to carry out his mission, he will have plenty of opportunities to collect second-tier demon cores. At that time, he will have as many Foundation Establishment Pills as he wants.

Li Xiuyuan leaned back in his seat, watching the other cultivators bid enthusiastically.

"Seven thousand four hundred spirit stones."

"Seven thousand five hundred spirit stones."

"Seven thousand eight hundred spirit stones."

"Eight thousand spirit stones!"

As the price of the spirit stones increased, fewer and fewer cultivators participated in the bidding. In the end, it was won by a Foundation Establishment cultivator for 8,300 spirit stones.

Some Foundation Establishment experts, who were considered "extraordinary" by Qi Refining cultivators, were now blushing and withdrawing from the bidding. The reason was simple: they were short of money and lacked confidence in their words.

The Foundation Establishment Pill was snapped up, and two maids carrying jade trays retreated from another passage.

Soon, two more beautiful maids came up carrying trays of different items.

The process was very smooth, with no flaws or problems to be found.

The Foundation Establishment Pill was auctioned off at a reasonable price. Jin Yun's smile remained unchanged, his emotions unreadable. This was the Foundation Establishment Old Ghost, who had lived for over two hundred years and was quite famous in the Chu Kingdom.

He then introduced the next item up for auction: "The top-grade magic weapon, the Flowing Cloud Flying Fire Umbrella, is both offensive and defensive. This item was crafted by the master craftsman 'Ban Yezi,' and is adept at using fire and flying clouds for both offense and defense. Even those in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage cannot easily break through the magic weapon's defensive restrictions."

"Fellow Daoists who are about to head to the battlefield between good and evil should not miss this. With this item to protect you, you might be able to survive the meat grinder on the front lines. Such a treasure that can save lives is extremely rare."

"Starting bid is 1,500 spirit stones, with each bid increment no less than 50 spirit stones."

Jin Yun went to great lengths to praise the benefits of the magical artifact, attempting to raise its price, while concealing its shortcomings.

This top-grade magic weapon is both offensive and defensive, and it can be useful to many cultivators in the early and middle stages of Foundation Establishment.

Li Xiuyuan was somewhat tempted, but after thinking about it, he realized that he had limited spirit stones and two top-grade magic artifacts on him.

What's needed most right now are formations that specialize in defense and concealment, not magical artifacts.

He also knew that these were just appetizers, and the real treasure was yet to come.

Li Xiuyuan watched with great interest as various rare treasures broadened his horizons.

Finally, this magical artifact, the "Flowing Clouds and Flying Fire Umbrella," was acquired by a beautiful female cultivator for two thousand spirit stones.

As the auction progressed, items were sold for high prices, often amounting to one or two thousand spirit stones—a sum unimaginable to cultivators of Qi Refining.

But this was nothing out of the ordinary for Foundation Establishment cultivators, and Jin Yun's smile never stopped throughout the afternoon.

When the twentieth item was presented by the maid, Li Xiuyuan's expression changed; what he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

Inside the jade plate was a small blue flag, about the size of a palm.

Jin Yun spoke at just the right moment: "A second-tier high-grade composite formation called 'Overturning Rivers and Seas'. This formation was created by Fairy Tianyi of the Azure Water Sect. It excels at trapping enemies, defense, and concealing one's aura. If a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator enters the formation, he will be trapped by the restrictions and will not be able to escape even after ten days and ten nights."

"This item is very useful for fellow cultivators who want to go deep into the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains to hunt demons. Just set up an array in advance and lure the demons into it, and you can greatly increase the success rate of hunting and capturing them. If an accident occurs, you can also use the array to delay your escape time."

"The starting bid is 2,500 spirit stones, and each bid must be at least 50 spirit stones higher."

Before Jin Yun could even fully praise the advantages and features of the formation, a cultivator immediately made a bid.

"Two thousand six hundred spirit stones."

"Pah! Fairy Tianyi is a near-third-tier array master. You think you can buy an array she personally crafted for two thousand seven hundred dollars? Who do you think you are!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm broke but I can't pretend to be rich like others, charging three thousand spirit stones!"

A cacophony of mocking voices rose from beside Li Xiuyuan; these cultivators were quite fanatical about this "Heavenly Fairy".

If you didn't know better, you'd think you'd stumbled into a fan club for "older brothers and sisters".

"What is the background of this Fairy Tianyi? Why are her formations so popular? That's quite interesting."

Li Xiuyuan looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young man and a middle-aged strong man going back and forth, quickly raising the price.

"Although the cultivation world doesn't judge people by their appearance, this young cultivator is full of vitality and energy. He's in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, so he's obviously young. I'd guess he's a prodigy from some cultivation sect."

Then he looked at another person, a middle-aged cultivator in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, who was arguing and bidding against the young man with a flushed face.

"This person has the air of authority that comes with long-standing power, and is probably the ruler of some family or cultivation force."

After the two took turns raising the price, two more Foundation Establishment cultivators made offers, clearly also interested in the formation.

The price of the "Overturning Rivers and Seas" formation has reached 3,600 spirit stones.

"Three thousand nine hundred spirit stones!"

Li Xiuyuan calmly raised the price by three hundred spirit stones, stopping at the limit of the price of a second-tier high-grade formation, trying to make these people back down.

His voice was calm yet carried a resolute tone, clearly demonstrating his determination to obtain this formation.

A typical second-tier high-grade formation is worth around 3,300 spirit stones. Although the "Overturning Rivers and Seas" formation is a rare composite formation that combines defense, trapping enemies, and concealment, its quality is quite good, and it was made by a famous master.

The price is close to four thousand spirit stones.

Upon hearing the price, the four of them became visibly hesitant, repeatedly weighing the pros and cons in their minds.

"Three thousand nine hundred spirit stones per attempt, are there any fellow cultivators interested?"

"As long as the price exceeds this amount, we can take this rare composite formation with us."

"If you miss it once, you'll have to wait another ten years!"

Jin Yun spoke with a slightly seductive tone at just the right moment, constantly stirring the hearts of the cultivators present.

This was clearly directed at the four people who had previously bid.

A few breaths later, just as the third announcement was about to be made, the young cultivator in fine clothes spoke up.

"Four thousand spirit stones!"

Of the four, only he continued to bid; clearly, the other three had given up.

"Four thousand one hundred spirit stones!"

Li Xiuyuan added another hundred spirit stones without expression.

His imposing presence completely overwhelmed the cultivator, ignoring the other's icy gaze, exuding an air of arrogance that "all the heroes under heaven are nothing more than this."

Upon hearing the offer of 4,100 spirit stones, a shadow of gloom flashed in the young male cultivator's eyes. He clenched his fists, but ultimately gave Li Xiuyuan a cold look and chose to give up bidding.

"Since no fellow Daoist has made any further bids, this 'Overturning Rivers and Seas' Formation will be awarded to this fellow Daoist for the price of four thousand one hundred spirit stones."

"Next item for auction!"

"Fellow Daoist, you have successfully bid on this formation. You can proceed to the backstage area to complete the transaction."

Jin Yun's old face lit up with joy, and he even used his divine sense to send a telepathic message to Li Xiuyuan, indicating the location for the transfer of goods.

Li Xiuyuan stood up abruptly, walked to the designated location, paid the spirit stones, took the array flags and array plates, verified their authenticity, and then put them into his storage bag.

He then returned to his seat to participate in the auction. Opportunities to broaden one's horizons in the cultivation world are rare, and Li Xiuyuan would not miss them.