Rise of the Wang Clan: Starting with a Portable Farm

Chapter 249: Golden Core Cultivation Method

Wang Hao swept his gaze across the breathless crowd. “The fourth lot is the item I know many of you have crossed mountains and rivers to see: two Foundation Establishment Pills!”

“Ha! Exactly as I predicted!” a Rogue Cultivator on the ground floor boasted to his companion. But a second later, his smug grin vanished, replaced by a deep, furrowed brow. “Wait a minute… If the pills are the fourth item, what in the heavens is the fifth? Even a standard third-rank treasure can’t compare to the value of a Foundation Establishment Pill!”

The realization rippled through the hall. If the pills weren’t the finale, then what was? During the assembly, Wang Hao had promised a third-rank treasure. Most assumed it was just empty marketing to draw a crowd. Could it actually be real?

Thousands of eyes were glued to Wang Hao’s every movement.

With agonizing slowness, Wang Hao reached into his Storage Bag and withdrew… a plain, unadorned jade slip.

A murmur of confusion washed over the crowd, but in the VIP boxes, several sharp minds immediately connected the dots.

“Could it be… an inheritance manual?”

“It has to be!”

A complete, second-rank inheritance for alchemy or talisman crafting would certainly outvalue a consumable pill. But why would the Wang family sell something that produced generational wealth?

Wang Hao smiled, relishing the tension. “This final, concluding treasure is a cultivation method. A method that leads directly to the Golden Core stage!”

“What?! A Golden Core method?!”

In the VIP boxes, Foundation Establishment patriarchs leaped to their feet, abandoning their seats to press against the railings. Down on the floor, the Qi Refining cultivators erupted into absolute bedlam.

“Impossible! The Wang family is actually selling a Golden Core manual?”

“Maybe it doesn’t belong to them! They were accepting consignments earlier, remember?”

“Are you an idiot? Besides the Wangs, every faction here is only at the Foundation Establishment level! If one of them had a Golden Core manual, they’d hide it, not sell it! Do they have a death wish?”

For the Qi Refining cultivators, a Golden Core manual was a myth—something so far beyond their reach it hardly registered as real. After the initial shock wore off, they settled back to watch the ensuing bloodbath, eagerly placing bets on which Foundation Establishment family would bankrupt themselves to win it.

But for the Foundation Establishment experts—especially those bottlenecked at the late stage—the jade slip in Wang Hao’s hand was a lifeline. They stared at it with red-eyed desperation. Having a manual didn’t guarantee a successful breakthrough to the Golden Core, but not having one guaranteed failure. It was the absolute prerequisite for transcending mortality.

Yet, beneath their burning greed, a chilling paranoia took root.

Every powerful family in the room was now a mortal enemy. And the danger wouldn’t end when Wang Hao slammed his gavel. How would the winner transport the manual back to their territory safely? The Wang family’s security force was barely enough to protect the market itself; they certainly couldn’t offer escorts into the wilderness.

For a prize like this, the unaligned Rogue Cultivators would absolutely risk an ambush. Killing to seize treasures was a staple of the cultivation world. They could strike, steal the manual, and vanish into the neighboring provinces before the Wang family even knew what happened.

Pushing the logistical nightmare aside, the patriarchs had to ask the most critical question: Was the manual even compatible with their bloodlines?

“Fellow Daoist Wang!” a Rogue Cultivator yelled from the second floor. “What elemental attribute does this method require? What type of spiritual roots are necessary?”

Wang Hao chuckled. “I was just about to explain. The manual is titled the Profound Origin Sword Art. As a pure sword path technique, it is elementally neutral. Anyone, regardless of their spiritual root alignment, can practice it.”

A collective sigh of relief swept the VIP boxes, but Wang Hao raised a hand, his expression turning solemn.

“However, the Wang family deals in honesty. This sword art carries a severe flaw. Practicing it permanently alters the cultivator’s temperament. It strips away emotion, making the practitioner increasingly cold, aloof, and detached. If one of you were to successfully reach the Golden Core stage using this method, by the time you succeeded, you would likely be entirely dead inside—a being who recognizes neither friend nor family.”

A heavy silence fell over the room.

“Heh. I knew it,” someone sneered from the floor. “If it were a flawless method, the Wang family would have kept it. With a side effect like that, you might not become a demonic cultivator, but you’ll certainly act like one. I wouldn’t touch it!”

“Spoken like a man who couldn’t afford it anyway,” a neighbor mocked. “Flawed or not, it’s a Golden Core path! Sword cultivators are notoriously eccentric anyway. Who cares if you lose your personality as long as you gain the power?”

Many of the Foundation Establishment patriarchs fell into deep contemplation, weighing their humanity against the survival of their clans. Others simply didn’t care; their eyes remained locked on the jade slip, burning with raw ambition.

Wang Hao observed them from the stage, suppressing a smirk. A Golden Core manual was an inelastic good. Whether it turned them into emotionless statues or not, they had to have it. Disclosing the flaw wouldn’t drop the final price by a single stone, but hiding it would have destroyed the Qingniu Market’s reputation the moment the buyer realized what they had purchased. Honesty was simply the most profitable policy.

After letting the reality of the manual sink in, Wang Hao tapped his gavel against the podium.

“Now, we begin the auction for the fourth lot: The Foundation Establishment Pills! Starting bid: 20,000 Low Grade Spirit Stones. Minimum increment: 1,000!”

“21,000!”

“22,000!”

Even knowing the Golden Core manual awaited them, the vassal families fought tooth and nail for the pills. A manual was a long-term investment that might take centuries to bear fruit; a pill was immediate, tangible power that could secure their borders tomorrow.

Ultimately, the Cheng and Xing families won the brutal bidding war, securing the pills for 54,000 and 57,000 Spirit Stones, respectively. The prices were astronomical—nearly 20,000 stones above the overseas market rate, and notably higher than the historical prices set by the Qingyuan Sect.

But the Qingyuan Sect was currently licking its wounds and hoarding its resources. No one knew when they would release pills to their vassals again. The local families had been starved for a breakthrough, and they had spent accordingly.

Having drained their treasuries, the Cheng and Xing patriarchs realized they stood no chance of bidding on the Profound Origin Sword Art. They immediately finalized their transactions and left the venue.

They weren’t the only ones. Dozens of cultivators who had purchased earlier lots quietly slipped out the exits. The longer they stayed, the higher the chance they would be marked for an ambush. With the entire room hyper-focused on the upcoming Golden Core manual, it was the perfect time to make a clean escape.

Among the Foundation Establishment patriarchs who remained, a flurry of covert, telepathic communications began.

“Fellow Daoist Cheng and Zhao have both departed. Fellow Daoist Li, I assume your presence indicates an interest in the Profound Origin Sword Art?”

“What if it does? You are still here as well, Fellow Daoist Lei.”

Lei Liheng offered an apologetic smile from across the VIP tier. “Do not misunderstand me, Li Yaozu. I merely wish to propose an alliance. The final price for this manual will be staggering. There are factions here from beyond our borders. Can you honestly guarantee your Li family has the liquid capital to win an outright bidding war against the Wuliang Palace or the Blazing Heaven Sect?”

Li Yaozu’s eyes narrowed. “Speak plainly, Lei Liheng.”

“We pool our funds. We split the final cost evenly. Once the auction concludes, we simply copy the manual so both our clans possess the inheritance.”

Li Yaozu frowned, his mind racing. The Li family already possessed a cultivation method that reached the early Golden Core stage, but one could never have too many high-tier inheritances. Moreover, the Li family boasted a high number of sword cultivators; the Profound Origin Sword Art was a perfect fit for their martial philosophy.

He looked down at Wang Hao on the stage. The Wang family, once their equals, was rapidly ascending beyond their reach. The Li family had to accelerate its growth or risk becoming entirely irrelevant.

Every fiber of his being loathed the idea of sharing a prize with the Lei family. But Lei Liheng was right. The foreign factions possessed deep pockets. If he tried to fight alone, he would likely be outbid.

He made his decision.

“Agreed,” Li Yaozu transmitted back. “However, my Li family will dictate the bidding, and my clan retains the original jade slip. You will receive the copy.”

Lei Liheng nodded immediately. “Done. As you wish, Fellow Daoist.”