Deep within the bowels of the Black Market, beneath an unassuming stone building, a secret auction was underway.
The lighting was deliberately dim, casting long, wavering shadows against the rough walls. Every participant wore a mask or a heavy cloak designed to block Divine Sense probing. Entry was granted only to those holding a special iron token.
The atmosphere was thick with tension and greed.
Chen Ping sat in a corner, observing silently.
The initial lots were standard fare: rare materials, Dharma Artifacts, Talismans. While some were of high quality, none piqued his interest.
He waited patiently.
It was his first auction, and a thread of nervousness tightened in his chest. Fortunately, the anonymity of the event eased his worry. Everyone here was a faceless ghost.
The auctioneer’s voice rose, cutting through the low murmurs.
“The next lot: a pill formula! The Origin Nourishing Pill!”
Dozens of gazes snapped toward the stage.
However, genuine interest was limited.
The Origin Nourishing Pill was valuable, but many established factions already possessed a variation of the formula. This particular scroll was likely a modified version, substituting a core herb for another with similar spiritual properties. It wasn’t groundbreaking.
An attendant presented a scroll made of beast hide, artificially aged to feign antiquity.
It was a common auction house trick. To an expert, it was laughable. But to a fool with money, it added an aura of mystique.
The auctioneer ignored the theatrics and got to the point.
“This formula is complete. It details all required materials, refining techniques, Fire Control methods, and more. The Origin Nourishing Pill is a High-grade pill essential for consolidating the foundation in the late stages of Qi Condensation. It also provides minor assistance in breaking through Bottlenecks! Starting bid: one thousand Spirit Stones. Minimum increment: fifty. Gentlemen, please!”
“One thousand six hundred!”
Someone shouted immediately, raising the bid by a massive margin to scare off competition.
For those who already had the formula, it was trash. For those who didn’t, it was the key to power.
“One thousand seven hundred!”
“One thousand eight hundred fifty!”
The price climbed rapidly. A formula that could stabilize cultivation was irresistible to small clans and independent cultivators stuck at a Bottleneck.
“Two thousand!”
A hoarse voice rang out from the front row, pushing the price to a new threshold.
The room fell silent for a heartbeat.
“Two thousand… and fifty.”
Someone hesitantly followed, their voice wavering.
“Two thousand one hundred!”
Chen Ping spoke up, his voice disguised by his throat muscles. He didn’t bother with small increments. He went straight for the throat.
This sum represented nearly all his liquid assets.
Silence descended on the hall. Two thousand one hundred Spirit Stones for a second-grade formula was steep. The previous bidder hesitated, weighed the cost against the value, and finally slumped back in his chair.
“Two thousand one hundred Spirit Stones! Any further bids?”
The auctioneer scanned the room.
“Going once. Twice. Sold! Congratulations to this fellow Daoist!”
Chen Ping exhaled, feeling a knot loosen in his chest. He stepped forward, handed over the heavy bag of Spirit Stones, and carefully stored the beast hide scroll.
His primary objective was achieved.
The auction continued.
Chen Ping had no intention of participating further. He watched as the items grew increasingly bizarre.
A mermaid woman captured from the distant seas. A stone naturally imbued with sword intent. The enslaved survivors of a destroyed clan, sold as a set.
Chen Ping watched with cold eyes. In the Black Market, everything had a price. There were no limits, only buyers and sellers.
Half an Incense Stick’s Time later, the auctioneer presented the next item.
Chen Ping’s eyes narrowed behind his mask.
It was a piece of wood, about half a foot long and as thick as a child’s arm.
It was charred black, its surface pitted like a burn victim’s skin. It exuded a palpable miasma of decay.
“A fragment of Soul Nourishing Wood,” the auctioneer announced, his voice tinged with regret.
“This item was once a legendary material for nourishing the spirit and stabilizing the mind. It is the primary ingredient for the third-grade Soul Nourishing Pill. Unfortunately… it has suffered severe damage. Its spiritual nature is shattered, and its vitality is nearly extinguished. Its remaining efficacy is less than one percent. Starting bid: two hundred Spirit Stones. Minimum increment: twenty.”
Soul Nourishing Wood.
Chen Ping’s heart skipped a beat.
He had read about this in the ancient texts. A complete Soul Nourishing Tree was a top-tier treasure, capable of warding off inner demons and strengthening the Divine Sense.
It grew with agonizing slowness—a single foot of height every hundred years.
Yet, a single leaf from a one-foot-tall tree could serve as the core ingredient for a third-grade Soul Nourishing Pill. Such a leaf would sell for over ten thousand Spirit Stones on the open market.
The piece on stage was exactly as described: dead wood. Its spiritual loop was broken.
To the uninitiated, it was expensive charcoal. Waste Residue. Unless a master spiritual botanist spent decades nursing it with expensive fluids, it would never sprout again.
The hall remained silent.
Two hundred Spirit Stones for a piece of charcoal? It was a bad joke. That money could buy a decent defensive artifact or a stack of Talismans.
The auctioneer looked ready to pass the lot.
Chen Ping stared at the charred wood. His mind raced.
The Jade Pendant space. The Black Earth.
It had revived the Five Elements Yin Spirit Vine from the brink of death. Could it do the same for this?
The vitality in the wood was faint, almost nonexistent. But what if?
Even if it failed, the cost was only two hundred Spirit Stones. It was a cheap price to test the limits of the Black Earth.
But if it worked…
“Two hundred Spirit Stones,” Chen Ping said.
His voice echoed in the quiet hall.
A few people chuckled, turning to look at the “fool” in the corner who enjoyed throwing money away.
The auctioneer didn’t wait. He wanted this garbage off his stage.
“Two hundred Spirit Stones! Going once, twice, three times! Sold! Congratulations!”
Chen Ping stepped forward again, paid the stones, and swept the charred wood into his storage bag.
Where the crowd saw a sucker, Chen Ping saw a gamble with infinite returns.
If the Black Earth could revive this wood, and the twelve-fold time acceleration could grow it…
He wouldn’t just have a tree. He would have a production line.
He would have an endless supply of leaves to refine Soul Nourishing Pills. He could temper his Divine Sense until it far surpassed any cultivator of his rank.
A strong soul was the bedrock of high-level Cultivation. It was the absolute best defense against illusions, mental attacks, and lethal bottlenecks.
This half-foot piece of charcoal might just be the most valuable thing in the entire room.
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