A thousand-year Longevity Fruit could only refine a low-grade Longevity Pill.

A low-grade Longevity Pill could only extend one’s lifespan by fifty years.

Furthermore, a cultivator could only consume one Longevity Pill in their entire lifetime. While a second pill wasn’t completely useless, the body built a tolerance so rapidly that the effect diminished to a few pitiful years.

Fifty years of additional lifespan held little allure for a Nascent Soul Ancestor, whose horizon stretched for centuries.

But for a Golden Core cultivator, it was life itself.

Fifty years wasn’t long in the grand scheme of the Dao, but it wasn’t short either. With those fifty extra years, one might just break through the final bottleneck and form a Nascent Soul, granting centuries more. It was a gamble against the Reaper.

“I… I bid 50,000 spirit stones!”

A rogue Golden Core cultivator from the lower level shouted, his voice trembling with desperation.

A thick aura of death clung to him like a shroud. He had only a few years left before his “Sitting Death,” the moment his Dao dissipated and his soul scattered. The Longevity Fruit was his only lifeline. He had no choice but to push all his chips into the center of the table.

“He’s gone mad! A thousand-year Longevity Fruit isn’t worth that price!”

“When it’s the only thing standing between you and the void, is there such a thing as ‘too expensive’?”

In a private booth on the second level, Han Li and his wife were also visibly agitated.

“Senior Brother, don’t be hasty. We’ll make our bid last,” Wen Huanhuan whispered, her hand soothing her husband’s rigid back.

Han Li took a deep breath, his knuckles white as he tightened his embrace around her delicate form.

Next door to the tense couple, a very different scene played out.

“Senior Brother, Senior Brother! It’s a Longevity Fruit! Buy it! Buy it!”

Qi Wei clung to Li Meng’s massive arm, shaking it back and forth like a demanding child. Her small face was flushed with excitement.

Li Meng chuckled, reaching out to pinch his Junior Sister’s nose. “Little Junior Sister, a Qi Condensation cultivator cannot withstand the medicinal potency of a Longevity Pill. You’d explode.”

Extending one’s lifespan defied the heavens. The price was too high for a fragile Qi Condensation vessel to bear.

Pouting, Qi Wei continued her wheedling. “What if I successfully reach Foundation Establishment? With that Longevity Fruit, Senior Brother could live another fifty years! Maybe those fifty years are exactly what you need to form your Golden Core!”

“Senior Brother, Senior Brother! Master is being generous for once. Don’t be shy!”

She shook his arm even more vigorously, terrified her “little old man” Senior Brother would refuse out of misplaced frugality.

Li Meng smiled helplessly and patted her head. “Alright, alright, alright. Little Junior Sister, I’ll buy it. I’ll buy it, okay?”

Qi Wei’s eyes curved into happy crescents. She stopped shaking his arm and obediently sat close, her two small hands still clutching his sleeve as if afraid he’d vanish.

By now, the Golden Core cultivators downstairs had driven the price up to 90,000 spirit stones.

Ninety thousand spirit stones exceeded the liquid assets of most Golden Core cultivators. The first desperate bidder slumped dejectedly in his seat, his face ashen. He had bet his life savings, but it wasn’t enough.

“120,000 spirit stones!”

A voice as cold and piercing as glacial ice rang out from the second level. The pressure within the tone swept through the lower hall, silencing the rabble.

All the Golden Core cultivators stirred, their gazes shifting toward the balcony where Han Li and his wife stood.

Wen Huanhuan, nestled in Han Li’s embrace, offered a charming, victorious smile. Excellent. The Longevity Fruit would be theirs.

“150,000 spirit stones!”

Right at that moment, a robust, resonant voice exploded from the neighboring booth, catching the confident couple completely off guard.

Han Li and Wen Huanhuan’s expressions turned ugly. They glared with venomous intent at the burly male cultivator on the adjacent balcony, completely ignoring the small girl beside him.

This price left them no room. Even if they begged, borrowed, and scraped every stone they had, they couldn’t muster over 150,000.

Han Li stared daggers at Li Meng, the killing intent in his eyes undisguised. They had gone all-in for this single fruit. To have it snatched away at the finish line was unforgivable.

“Husband!” Wen Huanhuan tightly grasped her husband’s hand, her nails digging into his palm. “That’s Junior Sister Qi Wei next to him. That man must be connected to Masked Moon Peak. Don’t act rashly. We need to investigate first.”

A series of emotions flickered across Han Li’s face—rage, humiliation, calculation—before he gradually calmed under his wife’s touch. This was the Joyous Union Sect’s own auction house. Causing trouble here would bring the Enforcement Hall down on their heads.

Li Meng naturally sensed the murderous intent radiating from next door. He glanced sideways.

[Name: Wen Huanhuan] [Age: 451] [Luck: 500] [Cultivation: Late Golden Core Stage] [Aptitude: Water Spirit Root] [Favorability: -50]

Her lifespan limit is approaching, Li Meng noted. No hope of reaching the Great Perfection stage. She’s practically a carbon copy of my cheap Master.

It showed just how brutally difficult it was for a Golden Core cultivator to form a Nascent Soul.

“Little Junior Sister, look. Your Senior Brother has made enemies,” Li Meng murmured.

Qi Wei leaned over the railing to glare back at the couple. “Just ignore them! Anyway…” She quickly slapped a hand over her mouth. If she finished that sentence, she might expose Li Meng’s identity.

Li Meng chuckled and rubbed her head again. His Junior Sister really was adorable. The feeling was strangely nostalgic—like petting an obedient puppy back on Earth. Just a pat on the head, and the tail would wag furiously.

“150,000 going once! 150,000 going twice! Sold! Congratulations to our esteemed Senior for winning the Longevity Fruit!”

And so, Li Meng secured his lifeline.

By this point, the auction was nearing its climax. The later the lot number, the more precious the item. For lots after number 110, the Golden Core crowd fell silent; it was exclusively the playground of the Nascent Soul Ancestors.

“Next up is lot number 125: one section of five-thousand-year Heavenly Lightning Bamboo! Starting bid is 50,000 spirit stones! Minimum increment is 1,000!”

Heavenly Lightning Bamboo?

Li Meng quickly scanned his mental Treasure Pavilion inventory. None of his current blueprints required it. Perhaps it was needed for artifacts used when advancing to a Fourth-Grade Artifact Refiner?

Whatever. I’ll buy it first and figure it out later.

“60,000 spirit stones!”

This time, Li Meng was the first to bid.

He braced himself for a war.

“Huh?”

To his surprise, the entire auction hall fell silent. Not a single voice rose to challenge him.

“Senior Brother, why are you buying Heavenly Lightning Bamboo?” Qi Wei tugged at his sleeve, looking puzzled.

Li Meng looked down. “Little Junior Sister, is there a problem?”

Seeing her “little old man” Senior Brother looking genuinely confused, Qi Wei pursed her lips into an amused smile.

“Senior Brother,” she explained patiently, as if teaching a child. “Heavenly Lightning Bamboo is material used for refining Lightning-attribute Spirit Treasures. The Lightning Spirit Root is a Variant Spirit Root. Cultivators with Variant Roots are rare enough, but Lightning users are exceptionally scarce. You won’t find a single Lightning Spirit Root cultivator in the entire State of Zhao.”

Comprehension dawned on Li Meng’s face.

No wonder the hall was dead silent.

What use was a supreme treasure if no one could wield it? Even ten-thousand-year Heavenly Lightning Bamboo would be firewood here.