The old man retrieved a fiery red long blade and displayed it to the room.

“Flame Blade, a mid-grade spiritual artifact. The starting bid is eight hundred Spirit Stones, with each increment no less than one hundred!”

“One thousand Spirit Stones!”

“One thousand one hundred!”

“One thousand two hundred!”

The bidding calls rose and fell in rapid succession. Ultimately, a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator won the blade for the high price of one thousand nine hundred Spirit Stones.

Wang Hao felt the price was somewhat steep, but for those in desperate need of a weapon, it was acceptable.

With a flip of his hand, the old man produced a square red cauldron.

“Red Maple Furnace, a second-grade mid-tier forging furnace. It offers a noticeable boost to forging success rates, though naturally, its effectiveness ultimately depends on the skill of the artisan. The base price is eight hundred, with each bid increment no less than one hundred!”

A forging furnace…

Wang Hao considered the item. He did need one; otherwise, his forging and Puppet Arts skills would continue to gather dust. Buying a mid-tier furnace to practice with wouldn’t hurt, and the base price wasn’t prohibitive.

While he was pondering, the price for the Red Maple Furnace had already climbed to fifteen hundred.

Wang Hao entered the fray. “Sixteen hundred!”

“Seventeen hundred!”

“Two thousand!”

“Two thousand two hundred!”

“Three thousand.”

Just moments after judging someone else for overpaying for the Flame Blade, Wang Hao immediately contradicted himself by dropping a heavy bid.

“Three thousand. Any further bids?”

The old man followed standard procedure, calling out several times. When silence filled the room, he smiled at Wang Hao.

“Congratulations, Fellow Daoist. The Red Maple Furnace is yours!”

A maid immediately brought the furnace to Wang Hao’s table. He paid the Spirit Stones and stored the item away.

“Next up is a set of second-grade mid-tier magical instruments. The starting bid is twelve hundred. Complete sets of magical instruments are rare—don’t miss out, everyone!”

Wang Hao wasn’t lacking in magical instruments, so he lost interest, closing his eyes to rest.

…

Approximately half an hour later, over a dozen sets of magical instruments and talismans had been auctioned off, and the atmosphere in the hall grew increasingly heated.

The old man took out two jade bottles and announced loudly, “Two Face Preserving Pills. Everyone knows their effects, so this old man won’t ramble on. They will be auctioned separately. The base price is two thousand each!”

Upon hearing “Face Preserving Pill,” the eyes of every female cultivator present lit up instantly. Even some male cultivators showed interested glances.

“Two thousand five hundred!”

“Three thousand!”

“Four thousand! I am Lu Xue. I hope Fellow Daoists will give me some face and yield this one!” A young woman in a yellow dress stood up and cupped her hands towards the hall.

“Four thousand five hundred! Face Preserving Pills are rare. This young lady isn’t inclined to give anyone face,” a young woman in white clothes laughed as she stood up, her tone teasing.

“It’s Fairy Yao,” someone whispered.

Wang Hao overheard snippets of conversation—she seemed to be the daughter of a Golden Core cultivator and was quite famous. He glanced at her; her features were delicate yet striking, her white clothes as pure as snow, and her figure graceful. Truly a beauty. No wonder she was so well-known.

The young woman in yellow couldn’t compete further, and her reputation couldn’t match Fairy Yao’s. She gritted her teeth in anger but didn’t dare make a scene.

Fortunately, there was a second pill. Without Fairy Yao’s competition, Lu Xue successfully secured it for the high price of five thousand Spirit Stones.

Wang Hao thought back to when Han Feng had sold him two pills; the price hadn’t been too outrageous after all. This market was incredibly profitable. Once his spirit herbs matured, he definitely needed to refine a batch quickly to cash in.

“Alright, everyone! Next up are the finale items! Keep your eyes wide open so you don’t miss something you need!”

As he spoke, the old man flicked his wrist, and ten small bottles appeared on the display table.

“Ten Foundation Establishment Pills! Auctioned separately! Each has a base price of ten thousand! Each bid increment must be no less than one thousand Spirit Stones!”

Everyone present was already a Foundation Establishment cultivator; logically, they shouldn’t need these pills. Yet as soon as the bottles appeared, they attracted everyone’s attention.

They might not need them personally, but the juniors in their families certainly did. Buying these to resell or gift could turn a profit and earn a favor.

“Twelve thousand!”

“Fourteen thousand Spirit Stones!”

“Eighteen thousand!”

The price of the Foundation Establishment Pills kept climbing until it surpassed thirty thousand. Only then did the competition thin out.

“Thirty-nine thousand!” Wang Hao softly uttered the bid.

Several people who had been competing with him glanced over. Thinking there were still nine more pills left and no need to fight over the first one, they stopped bidding.

When the second pill came up, Wang Hao participated again.

“Forty-two thousand!”

The others exchanged looks among themselves. Where did this wealthy patron come from? Buying one wasn’t enough; he wanted a second? Could he be an agent sent by some overseas family specifically to stockpile Foundation Establishment Pills?

If so, such people were often instructed to succeed at any cost. Competing with him wouldn’t be worth it. Moreover, forty-two thousand was already a very high price; bidding higher risked him backing out and leaving them holding the bag.

For the third pill, Wang Hao continued bidding.

“Forty-four thousand!”

“This is too much!” Finally, a burly man in black couldn’t hold back and erupted angrily. “Are you here to disrupt things?”

Seeing all the cultivators in the hall staring at him, Wang Hao smiled slightly.

“I’m not short on Spirit Stones, so how is paying for goods ‘disrupting things’? On the contrary—you’re shouting and making a fuss here; shouldn’t someone manage that?”

He turned his gaze questioningly toward the old man on the high platform.

The old man immediately cleared his throat. “Everyone! At an auction, the highest bidder wins! Please do not disturb the order! Otherwise… our Treasure Clarity Pavilion will certainly seek an explanation from you!”

The burly man could only sit down helplessly, casting a somewhat venomous look toward Wang Hao.

Unfazed by the hostility, Wang Hao proceeded to secure four Foundation Establishment Pills in succession—each at a higher price than the last. His fourth acquisition reached an astonishing forty-eight thousand Spirit Stones.

However, given that he possessed three hundred and fifty thousand Spirit Stones in total, funding wasn’t exactly a concern.

When it came time for the fifth Foundation Establishment Pill, however, Fairy Yao turned her gaze toward Wang Hao.

Her vermilion lips parted slightly, and a silver-bell-like voice reached him alone via sound transmission.

“Fellow Daoist… perhaps leave some for others? Otherwise… you might incur jealousy.”

Hm?

Wang Hao turned toward her direction. Noticing the others hadn’t reacted, he realized it was a private transmission. He sighed inwardly.

He didn’t want to hoard them like this, but he had a whole clan back home depending on him. Offering an apologetic smile to the fairy, he decided to withdraw from further bidding.

Within the city walls, he remained safe enough, but it was better to avoid unwanted attention from potential thieves who might remember his face later.

Four pills meant two per family branch, which was temporarily sufficient. He would just have to wait a couple of years until his own Essence Condensing Fruits ripened; then he wouldn’t need to buy theirs anymore.

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—don’t mock my fruit trees while they’re still young.

After the Foundation Establishment Pill auctions concluded, the elder retrieved a formation disk along with five formation flags.

“Second-grade superior Five Elements Demon Trapping Array! This formation can manifest attacks based on the five elements—truly an excellent tool for hunting groups of demon beasts! It requires only one Foundation Establishment cultivator leading five late-stage Qi Refining cultivators to operate. It can trap seven or eight second-grade demon beasts without issue! The base price is twenty thousand Spirit Stones! Minimum increment is one thousand!”

This item genuinely appealed to Wang Hao. He had previously abandoned his large formation on the small island, likely leaving it too damaged for an early Foundation Establishment cultivator to bother reclaiming. Fearing enemy reinforcements, he hadn’t returned to retrieve it himself.

“Twenty-five thousand!”

“Twenty-six thousand!”

“Thirty thousand!”

Ultimately, Wang Hao secured the formation set for the high price of forty-seven thousand Spirit Stones. People nearby looked at him somewhat strangely, while distant cultivators sighed over his immense wealth.

The elder then produced an exquisite porcelain plate holding three crystalline, luminous spirit fruits.

“Jasper Moon Fruits! Each can save a Foundation Establishment cultivator ten years of arduous cultivation! Even late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators might advance one level! For early-stage cultivators, advancing two levels consecutively isn’t impossible! Auctioned separately! Starting bid: twenty thousand Spirit Stones per fruit! Minimum increment: one thousand!”

The breathing within the hall grew heavy instantly.

Who wouldn’t want to advance their cultivation so easily? Especially those stuck at bottlenecks. Consuming such a fruit might break through the barrier directly.

Jasper Moon Fruit trees required growing upon a third-grade spirit vein for two hundred years before bearing fruit. They produced a harvest only once every hundred years, yielding merely seven or eight fruits each time.

Their value already rivaled that of the Essence Condensing Fruit.