Immortality begins with equipping a worn-out talisman pen.

The auction lasted for another half day. After that, although Li Mufeng saw equipment that could be identified in the equipment slots many times, most of them were of blue rare quality.

A small number of top-grade magical artifacts reached the purple attribute, but they were all acquired by some cultivation families.

Even though Li Mufeng still had some spare money, it wasn't enough to compete with them.

After a short rest, several maids filed out, each carrying an exquisite spirit beast cage.

The cage was filled with shimmering light, and the roars and cries of the beasts immediately drew everyone's attention.

Bai Qinglan cleared her throat slightly, "Next up is the special auction for spirit pets prepared for this event."

These words immediately caused a stir in the room.

Compared to elixirs and magical artifacts, many cultivators are more interested in spirit pets.

After all, a good spirit pet can not only protect the path and fight, but can also be passed down for generations and become part of the family's heritage.

Bai Qinglan gently raised her jade-like hand.

The first spirit beast cage slowly opened.

A small wolf, entirely crimson, stood up, baring its teeth and growling, with faint fire elemental energy gathering around its body.

"Crimson Flame Wolf cub, a superior-grade bloodline demon beast. After reaching adulthood, it can grow to a first-grade superior level. It is skilled in fire-type magic and has extremely strong combat ability."

Many young cultivators' eyes lit up immediately.

For independent cultivators, a combat spirit pet that can accompany them on their growth is undoubtedly the best partner.

Immediately afterwards, the second spirit beast cage was opened.

A small turtle with blue stripes on its back slowly poked its head out.

"The Azure-Armored Spirit Turtle is gentle in nature and has a long lifespan. It can live for more than two hundred years after reaching adulthood. It is good at water defense and is very suitable for being raised as a family's guardian spirit beast."

Some cultivators from immortal cultivation families immediately showed interest.

These spirit pets may not be outstanding in combat power, but they are good at living long. Sometimes, even after the person dies, the tortoise is still alive and can become part of the family's heritage.

Subsequently, several more spirit pets appeared, including the Wind-Riding Steed, which can travel a thousand miles a day; the Iron-Feathered Eagle, which grows rapidly and can reach adulthood in three years, but has a lifespan of only ten years or so; and the Jade Bee Swarm, which is good at collecting spiritual herbs.

The atmosphere in the auction hall gradually became more enthusiastic, and one after another, the spirit pets were sold at high prices.

Li Mufeng remained quietly seated in his place.

These spirit pets were nice, but none of them were what he needed. He neither liked hunting demons nor fighting and adventuring, and he had no family that he needed to continue.

When they reached the last cage, Bai Qinglan revealed a mysterious smile.

"The next spirit pet I'm going to introduce is also of superior bloodline."

As she finished speaking, the curtain on the cage was pulled back, revealing a small golden mouse, no bigger than the palm of a hand, curled up inside.

The little guy has soft fur all over his body, a pink nose, and two round eyes that are timidly looking around. He seems to be quite frightened by the atmosphere in the auction house. He even hugs his tail and curls up into a golden fur ball, which is very endearing.

Many cultivators couldn't help but laugh out loud upon seeing this.

"What kind of monster is this? It's so cowardly!"

Bai Qinglan, however, introduced it slowly and deliberately:

"This beast is called the Gold-Sniffing Rat, also known as the Treasure-Seeking Rat."

"This beast is born with keen spiritual senses and has a perception ability for all kinds of rare and precious materials, mineral veins and spiritual plants that far surpasses that of ordinary demon beasts. Therefore, it is also known as the Treasure-Seeking Rat."

As soon as he finished speaking, a low murmur arose in the room.

Treasure-hunting mythical beasts are indeed rare.

But Bai Qinglan's next words instantly cooled the enthusiasm of many people.

"However, I must also remind you that raising the Golden-Sniffing Rat is extremely resource-intensive. It needs to consume spiritual objects and spirit stones every day, and its growth rate is very slow. However, this beast also has a long lifespan. After reaching adulthood, it can live for two or three hundred years, far exceeding some ordinary first-tier demonic beasts."

Upon hearing this, Li Mufeng couldn't help but be somewhat tempted, not because the little guy was cute, but because of its key demon beast characteristic—treasure hunting.

If raising this rat allows me to find some rare treasures to equip myself with, it should easily be worth the price of admission.

Seeing that Li Mufeng was leaning forward noticeably, Liu Yan'er couldn't help but remind him.

"Master Li, I have seen this beast in the family's 'Spirit Beast Compendium.' It is extremely timid and has almost no fighting ability. Once it encounters danger, it can even run faster than its master. It is not worth the effort to raise it."

After listening, Li Mufeng nodded thoughtfully, observed his surroundings, and indeed saw that several Foundation Establishment families showed little interest.

On stage, Bai Qinglan had already begun bidding.

"Starting bid: 300 low-grade spirit stones."

There was a moment of silence in the room.

No one seemed particularly interested in this little mouse that had no fighting ability other than treasure hunting, except for one cute female cultivator from the lower tier who held up a sign.

Li Mufeng tried adding it.

"Three hundred and fifty yuan."

This time, there weren't even any paparazzi following them.

As the auction gavel fell.

The little golden mouse huddled in the cage was officially registered under Li Mufeng's name.

Looking at the tiny, trembling creature, no bigger than a palm, Li Mufeng couldn't help but smile.

As a talisman master, he was not short of spirit stones; he would consider three hundred and fifty as buying a future opportunity.

After the pet-themed auction ended, the highly anticipated final item finally arrived – the Foundation Building Pill.

A Bai family steward personally carried a jade box onto the high platform. As the jade box was slowly opened, a rich fragrance of elixirs filled the entire auction hall.

In the center of the jade box lay a pill the size of a longan. The pill was perfectly round and flawless, with cloud patterns flowing over it and faintly emitting a pale golden spiritual light.

In an instant, countless burning gazes converged on it.

Many cultivators at the peak of Qi Refining breathed rapidly, clenched their fists, and their eyes were filled with longing and madness.

Foundation Building Pill.

This is an opportunity that countless independent cultivators and Qi-refining family cultivators have pursued throughout their lives.

Bai Qinglan didn't elaborate further, because the words "Foundation Building Pill" were more powerful than any words could express.

"Starting bid: 10,000 spirit stones."

The voice just fell.

"Ten thousand one thousand!"

"Twelve hundred!"

In a short time, the price was raised to 13,000.

Those Qi Refining Perfection cultivators who were usually so dignified and composed now had bloodshot eyes and bulging veins on their necks, showing no trace of their former cultivation prowess.

As the price reached 15,000 spirit stones, the true power holders in the market finally made their move. Members of the Chen family, the Wang family, and the head of the Liu family all stepped in, pushing the price up to 18,000 spirit stones.

Li Mufeng gradually sensed something was amiss. Whenever the bidding was about to subside, a Foundation Establishment family would always be the first to make a bid, followed by the others following suit at a leisurely pace.

After several rounds, they tacitly raised the price significantly.

His gaze swept over Liu Chengshan, whose expression remained calm. He only raised his paddle occasionally, showing no sign of being determined to win.

Looking at the heads of the other families, they were all the same.

On the contrary, the heads of the Qi Refining families sitting in the VIP seats were all sweating profusely from arguing.

In the end, the Foundation Establishment Pill was sold for 20,000 spirit stones to a withered old man. Although the old man was a cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining, he obviously did not want the Foundation Establishment Pill for himself. After winning the bid, he immediately paid the spirit stones, took the Foundation Establishment Pill, and left the auction house through the back door.

Li Mufeng glanced around at the Foundation Establishment family heads around him. He saw that they all looked normal. Although there was some regret on their faces, they were relaxed and their breathing was steady, as if it was not a big deal.

Recalling everyone's actions just now, Li Mufeng gradually understood. It seemed that these Foundation Establishment families each had their own channels for obtaining Foundation Establishment Pills. Even the newly established Liu family had its own connections on Lingyun Peak.

Therefore, this auction was more like a joint effort by several major families to seize the spirit stones from the lower-level cultivation families.

It was through careful observation that Li Mufeng roughly figured out that the price of ordinary Foundation Establishment Pills should be around 15,000. If it exceeded 15,000, the Foundation Establishment family heads obviously stopped selling them. And 20,000 was for those rogue cultivators without connections or newly established cultivation families.

Having figured everything out, he went backstage to complete the handover procedures and retrieved all the items he had photographed back into his storage bag.

At the entrance, Liu Yan'er was waiting for him considerately, seemingly there to keep him safe. Li Mufeng smiled gratefully and followed her towards the cave.