Chapter 55: Chapter 55: Essence Blood Gathered

"This is a brand-new speed-type Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact. It was crafted from the belly skin of a Cyan Wind Soaring Snake, an Exotic Beast rarely seen even in the Wilderness. It has been embedded with various Materials, such as Screw Thread Sand and Demon Tree Bark, and inscribed with a Lower Grade Array, the Light Body Array. It can greatly enhance one’s running and movement speed."

"Furthermore, it was personally refined by a Master from the Treasure Pavilion, so its quality is guaranteed. It is an essential Magical Artifact for pursuing enemies and escaping danger!"

"The starting bid is one hundred fifty Lower Grade Spirit Stones. Each bid must be an increment of at least five Lower Grade Spirit Stones. The auction begins now. Please place your bids!"

Speed-type Magical Artifacts are not common. This is because the Magical Power and Divine Thought of an ordinary Qi Cultivation Middle Stage Cultivator can, at most, simultaneously control two Lower Grade Spiritual Artifacts or a single Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact.

If one were to fully activate a speed-type Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact, it would be nearly impossible to spare the capacity to use another Magical Artifact for offense or Defense.

This is extremely dangerous.

They could only rely on Talismans for protection!

However, activating Talismans lacks sustainability and requires careful consideration of timing. Moreover, using each Talisman is like throwing away Spirit Stones—far too wasteful.

Therefore, most Qi Cultivation Middle Stage Cultivators opt for Middle Grade defensive or Attacking Spiritual Artifacts. This market demand, in turn, affects the supply—

leading to not many Artifact Refiners specializing in this area.

This has resulted in the scarcity of "speed-type boot artifacts," or they simply choose to research the more valuable and popular Dharma Ships instead.

A key reason for the popularity of Dharma Ships is that they can be powered by Spirit Stones, requiring only a sliver of Divine Thought to control, which doesn’t interfere with the use of techniques in Magical Combat.

More importantly, they can fly.

Late Stage Qi Cultivation Cultivators can control one Upper Grade Spiritual Artifact or two Middle Grade Spiritual Artifacts, which is enough to use the Flying Cloud Boots, but they usually save up their Spirit Stones to buy a Dharma Ship instead...

This creates a catch-22.

It also puts "speed-type boot artifacts" in an awkward position.

...

"One hundred fifty-five Spirit Stones."

"One hundred sixty!"

A few scattered bids were called out.

Luo Lian’Er’s beautiful eyes swept across the hall, noticing that everyone looked rather uninterested.

"One hundred seventy-five."

"One hundred eighty."

The bidding increased a little more before immediately losing momentum, with no one else speaking up.

It hadn’t even reached the base price for a Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact.

In this situation, the consignor stood to lose quite a bit.

"One hundred eighty Spirit Stones, going once..." Luo Lian’Er began the call.

Just then,

Lin Changheng spoke up, "I bid one hundred eighty-five."

"Are there any other Fellow Daoists who wish to bid?"

Luo Lian’Er immediately stopped her call and asked with a smile. Her gaze shifted to the previous bidder, waiting for him to compete with a new price.

Who would have thought that the man wouldn’t take the bait? Instead, a hint of joy appeared on his face, an expression of relief.

Luo Lian’Er was taken aback by this. She realized the man must have regretted his bid, and now that someone else was taking over, it was the perfect chance for him to back out. Naturally, he wouldn’t bid again.

After waiting for three breaths, she announced that the item belonged to the Cultivator in the bamboo hat.

...

The auction continued.

Lin Changheng had no intention of bidding again, but the variety of items at this auction was truly dazzling.

During the proceedings, a Female Attendant in a white robe came and led him to a side room to complete the transaction.

With the item now in his possession, Lin Changheng had missed out on two auction lots.

Fortunately, the Female Attendant had informed him about the two lots in advance, and he had confirmed that they were of no use to him.

After waiting a moment longer, Lin Changheng sat up straight again.

A sharp glint appeared in his eyes.

’It’s finally here.’

Luo Lian’Er had just brought out seven Pill Formulas.

Among them were three Lower Grade, three Middle Grade, and one Upper Grade.

After listening to the brief introduction, Lin Changheng’s eyes were fixed on the Middle Grade Pill Formula called the Red Dragon Pill.

Taking this Pill could advance one’s Middle Stage Cultivation and was suitable for Cultivators who practiced Fire Techniques.

Having seen the Lower Grade Pill Formulas set a precedent, Lin Changheng had a good idea of the price range and knew what to expect.

After a round of bidding, Lin Changheng won it for one hundred twenty-five Spirit Stones.

It was certainly not cheap.

But then he remembered how everyone in the Cultivation Realm strictly guarded their inheritances and hoarded their knowledge, keeping it under tight wraps.

’Considering that, it wasn’t too expensive after all.’

The later the auction went on, the more valuable the items became.

Even Foundation Establishment Cultivators began to call out bids and compete.

Their voices were resonant, naturally carrying an imposing and powerful aura.

Everyone else in the hall was envious and dared not make a sound, fearing they would draw attention and be targeted if they caused a disturbance.

Lin Changheng was secretly amazed and felt an even greater yearning for the Foundation Establishment Realm.

’In a world where mighty power belongs to the individual, one’s fists still have to be hard enough.’

Lin Changheng slowly realized that the remaining items were all extremely precious and mostly beyond his reach. Even if he emptied his pockets, he could only afford to bid two or three more times at most.

Even if he were lucky enough to win something, he would likely attract unwanted attention and bring disaster upon himself.

So, he quietly left his seat, exited the pavilion, and headed into the market square.

At the exit, he didn’t forget to retrieve the three Spirit Stone fee he had paid for tea.

...

Time flew by, and soon it was the morning of his scheduled departure from the market.

Over the past few days, Lin Changheng had purchased over twenty sets of the Medicinal Materials required for the Red Dragon Pill formula.

This Pill, similar to the Water Ganoderma Pill, surprisingly didn’t require any Demon Beast Essence Blood.

If he refined them all into Elixirs, it would be more than enough to cover his own consumption for at least a year.

As for the boots on his feet, he had already switched to the brand-new, carefully refined Flying Cloud Boots.

He hadn’t tested them over long distances, but for short-range dodging and weaving, they were remarkably agile. The sudden acceleration and deceleration, in particular, could help him evade some attacks.

Moreover, the key reason he bought these boots was for escaping!

They could be used as a follow-up to his Earth Escape Technique.

He could also stack their effect with speed-enhancing Talismans like the Divine Movement Talisman.

’Mm, my sense of security has increased a little more!’

...

Seeing the position of the sun, he noted it was still early. Lin Changheng walked into the Liu Family’s Spirit Fox Beast Pavilion again.

The moment he entered, he heard an urgent cry, "Fellow Daoist, you’re here at last!"

The voice was tinged with pleasant surprise.

Hearing this, Lin Changheng was startled. ’Have I been exposed?’

Lin Changheng subconsciously touched his face. He confirmed his bamboo hat was in place and he was still wearing the Human Skin Mask, which finally put his mind at ease.

Composing himself, he looked up and saw the old man from the Liu Family walking quickly from behind the counter.

’He seemed to have introduced himself as... Liu Fengxiu.’

"Were you looking for me, Fellow Daoist?"

The flat, emotionless voice came from beneath the bamboo hat.

Detecting a hint of wariness, Liu Fengxiu chuckled and explained, "I wasn’t looking for you, Fellow Daoist. Rather, I was hoping you would visit again."

"What do you mean by that?"

"The Flame-tailed Spirit Fox Essence Blood that Fellow Daoist asked about last time—we have it now!" Liu Fengxiu got straight to the point.

"Oh?"

Lin Changheng’s heart suddenly sped up, but his expression remained calm. As if it were a casual inquiry, he paused for a moment before asking, "How much is there?"

"Please, let’s speak somewhere more private."

Liu Fengxiu led him to the VIP room on the second floor. With a flick of his sleeve, he took out a row of Feihong-colored Essence Blood. "There are more than thirty vials in total."