DIV Chapter 23: The Auction

"Puppet technique is also a skill that can make money while sitting at home!" Li Chang'an's face showed delight.

Puppet technique was considered one of the most prominent skills among the Hundred Arts of Cultivation.

When cultivators explored ancient ruins or predecessors' cave dwellings, they inevitably needed puppets to scout ahead.

When fighting with others, having an additional puppet could provide an extra chance of victory.

"Good puppets never worry about lack of buyers." Li Chang'an's eyes lit up as he stared at the divination's content.

What truly delighted him was the grade of this puppet inheritance.

First-tier superior-grade!

The talisman inheritance he currently possessed was only first-tier mid-grade.

Apart from marrying into the Zheng family, he had not found any other way to obtain superior-grade talisman inheritance.

"I'll soon be able to draw high-quality mid-grade talismans. At that time, my talisman skills will temporarily reach their limit." Li Chang'an pondered.

Before obtaining superior-grade talisman inheritance, he could just learn puppet technique.

After all, he now had sufficient energy.

He hadn't learned feng shui technique before because its grade was too low and didn't align with his cultivation philosophy.

...

The next day, early in the morning, the atmosphere in the market was exceptionally lively.

Almost everyone was discussing the upcoming auction.

At noon, the auction officially began.

Presiding over the auction was an elderly man with a gentle expression.

"Fellow Daoists, this first auction item is a 'Cloud Breaking Pill.'"

Immediately, many cultivators present had their breathing become somewhat rapid.

Countless gazes converged on the pill bottle.

The Cloud Breaking Pill was a first-tier superior-grade medicine. The required medicinal materials were extremely precious, and it had only one effect, assisting in breaking through realms!

The transition from the sixth to seventh stage of Qi Refining was the watershed between mid-stage and late-stage Qi Refining.

It was extremely difficult to cross.

Many cultivators were trapped before this barrier their entire lives, unable to break through until death.

But the Cloud Breaking Pill could greatly reduce the difficulty of breaking through, and it had few side effects.

"This Cloud Breaking Pill was crafted by a second-tier pill master of our Zheng family and is a high-quality Cloud Breaking Pill!"

"Starting price: three hundred spirit stones!"

"Each bid increase must not be less than ten stones!"

As soon as the words fell, someone immediately called out a price of three hundred fifty stones.

But soon, another person called out four hundred stones.

Various parties continued to bid, with the numbers getting higher each time, making the atmosphere of the entire auction increasingly heated.

Li Chang'an sat quietly in a corner, not making a sound.

"I probably won't need breakthrough pills."

He had heard that it was best not to use pills to break through from the sixth to seventh stage of Qi Refining.

Doing so would reduce one's potential and might cause problems when attempting Foundation Establishment in the future.

However, many people didn't dare hope for Foundation Establishment and only sought late-stage Qi Refining cultivation.

In the end, this high-quality Cloud Breaking Pill was sold for the high price of nine hundred fifty spirit stones.

"Fellow Daoists, this second auction item is a first-tier low-grade skill."

"Gu insect inheritance!"

"Starting price..."

Soon, one item after another was auctioned off.

Not all items had such high value; some had relatively low value.

About two quarters of an hour later, a puppet was brought to the stage.

"Finally, it's here."

Li Chang'an's gaze focused as he carefully examined it.

It was a humanoid puppet that was entirely black.

He didn't know what material it was made from.

Its surface had many marks left by sharp and blunt weapons. Only half of its head remained, and its limbs were also severely damaged, as if it had gone through an extremely brutal battle.

The elderly man introduced it with a smile.

"This puppet was discovered by us in a secret realm. After identification, its grade reaches first-tier superior-grade."

"What? First-tier superior-grade?"

Upon hearing this, many cultivators' eyes lit up.

The auction item list given previously only showed there was a puppet but didn't mention it was first-tier superior-grade.

A puppet of this grade, if controlled properly, would be sufficient to battle a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator!

However, someone soon raised a question.

"Senior, this puppet is so damaged, can it still display first-tier superior-grade strength?"

"Little friend has good eyesight!"

The elderly man smiled, then began to introduce it in detail.

"If this puppet were complete, it could indeed be considered first-tier superior-grade, but now it's severely damaged and cannot be controlled normally. It can barely be considered a first-tier low-grade puppet."

"However..." The elderly man changed his tone, "Our Zheng family has no skilled puppet masters, so we might have missed something. After all, this item was excavated from a secret realm, and who knows if it hides some ancient secrets."

"If any of you know skilled puppet masters, you could buy this puppet and have them examine it carefully."

His words hinted at the possibility of finding a bargain.

Such things had happened before.

Someone once bought fragments of a magical artifact from an ancient secret realm at a low price at an auction, only to discover that the fragments actually contained a storage space filled with numerous valuable treasures!

But everyone immediately lost interest, and few were willing to gamble.

The reason was simple, the possibility of finding a bargain was too low!

After another round of introduction, the elderly man gave the price.

"This puppet has a starting price of thirty spirit stones, with each bid increase not less than one spirit stone."

Among the many auction items this time, this puppet's starting price was quite low.

It was mostly just there to make up the numbers.

The venue heard scattered bidding voices, somewhat cold, not like the previous heated atmosphere.

In the end, Li Chang'an also began bidding.

"Fifty-seven spirit stones!"

As soon as he spoke, a curious gaze was cast from the uppermost private room of the auction house.

"Huh? What is he buying this for? Could he be trying his luck?"

Zheng Qingqing was in this private room, a trace of surprise appearing on her pretty face.

Beside her sat a young lady in a white dress.

This young lady had delicate features and lively eyes, and her gaze also turned toward Li Chang'an below.

"Sister Qingqing, is he the Li Chang'an you told me about?"

"Yes."

Zheng Qingqing nodded slightly and asked the young lady.

"Ling'er, what do you think of him?"

"His appearance is fairly decent."

The young lady was named Zheng Ling'er.

She was sixteen years old, petite and lovely, and was Zheng Qingqing's cousin.

She was also a cultivator with low-grade spiritual roots.

Zheng Qingqing planned to matchmake her with Li Chang'an and bring the two together.

But Zheng Ling'er frowned slightly, seeming not quite satisfied.

"Sister Qingqing, only his appearance is passable. His aptitude is really ordinary."

The cultivation world's requirements for partners were similar to those of the secular world, but also slightly different.

Appearance was only secondary.

What was truly important was personal aptitude and cultivation level.

Zheng Qingqing smiled gently and patiently persuaded, "Ling'er, Li Chang'an has low-grade spiritual roots, and you also have low-grade spiritual roots. Your cultivation talents are similar, so you're actually quite suitable."

"Sister Qingqing, how can you calculate it like that?"

Zheng Ling'er pouted, looking slightly aggrieved.

"Although I only have low-grade spiritual roots, I should at least try to find a Dao companion with mid-grade spiritual roots, right?"

[NEXT CHAPTER]