NOVEL WEB Chapter 109: Useless Things._4
In such a situation, he was only half a step away from Golden Core.
Moreover, as an Artifact Cultivator, his strength mostly came from external forces.
He didn't even need to activate the Self-Destruction Term to obliterate him with his own power, and this was his first time witnessing someone breakthrough to Golden Core in the presence of others. He seemed to be fearlessly creating momentum regardless of the consequences.
...
The auction didn't take long to begin.
The first auction item.
"The first auction item."
"Spiritual Treasure, Mid-grade Alchemy Furnace 'Earth Fire Tripod Furnace,' starting bid..."
"..."
Chen Qiu leaned back in his chair with his eyelids slightly drooped as he waited for the subsequent items. He had almost reviewed the entire auction list, and there was nothing particularly useful for him, except for those two entries.
Not much later.
-
"The thirteenth auction item."
"Entry Jade Scroll, White entry."
"Entry name": Refining Technique.
"Entry level": White.
"Entry effect": When you forge a Spiritual Treasure, the success rate will slightly increase.
"Starting bid 100 Spirit Stones, each bid must be no less than 100 Spirit Stones."
-
This entry could be considered one of the highlights of the auction, as many Cultivators in the hall were eagerly bidding.
The price quickly reached 1,200 Spirit Stones, and the pace of the bids started to slow.
"Third call..."
Just as the hammer was about to fall, Fat Long raised his plaque and shouted loudly, "1,300 Spirit Stones."
Almost immediately after his words fell, Ning Wuping in Room No. 7, who initially showed no interest in bidding, provocatively raised his eyebrows towards Fat Long sitting in the hall, "1,400 Spirit Stones."
"Hey."
Fat Long started to smile and was about to continue bidding when he was stopped by Chen Qiu.
"Don't raise the bid anymore, let him spend more Spirit Stones so we'll have to give up fewer Spirit Stones later."
"Understood."
...
"The fourteenth auction item."
"Entry Jade Scroll, green entry."
"Entry name": Artifact Refining God.
"Entry level": Green.
"Entry effect": Every time you forge a Spiritual Treasure, there is a low chance to randomly add a special effect.
"Starting bid 100 Spirit Stones, each bid must be no less than 100 Spirit Stones."
...
This time, before Fat Long even had a chance to bid, Ning Wuping snatched the entry for 3,900 Spirit Stones, a price significantly higher than that of the green entry that had been auctioned at Wen Tian Fang Market.
After all, this entry can be considered a Divine-level for Artifact Cultivators.
With this entry, any forged Spiritual Treasure could be sold for a much better price.
"This Artifact Cultivator is truly wealthy."
Meeting Ning Wuping's challenging gaze from Room No. 7, Fat Long replied with a smile, "Nearly four thousand Spirit Stones, tossed away just like that. It really does make people envy the life of an Artifact Cultivator."
...
"The fifteenth auction item!"
"Elder Ning's qualification to forge a treasure by borrowing the power of Heaven and Earth during his breakthrough to the Golden Core stage."
It was indeed the main event of the evening.
Many people had come specifically for this.
The bids rose one after another, and those rooms with the character 'Heaven' in their number continuously increased their offers until the final price stopped at 12,300 Spirit Stones, an absurdly high sum. After all, so many Spirit Stones were merely for a qualification.
That didn't even include the forging fee or the precious materials needed to craft the Spiritual Treasure.
Even though a Spiritual Treasure crafted with the help of Heaven and Earth's power during a Great Realm breakthrough could be nearly twice as powerful as ordinary ones of the same level, it definitely wasn't worth 12,300 Spirit Stones; the price was purely a case of willingly being taken advantage of.
No one knew what kind of a sucker was sitting in room number nine with the 'Heaven' character.
Many people in the large hall were quite shocked by the price, discussing among themselves, unclear why it had reached such an outrageous amount.
Meanwhile, Chen Qiu had not made a single bid from beginning to end.
Truth be told, he somewhat looked down on such level of Spiritual Treasure. The Heavenly Dao Spiritual Treasure in the top three of the Heavenly Pride Leaderboard was his goal. Such treasures needed to become one's Lifebound Spirit Treasure to unleash their full power, and he simply couldn't be bothered to waste his efforts on cultivating them.
Before such a reputation could even be cultivated, he would already have obtained his Heavenly Dao Spiritual Treasure.
"Hahahaha!!!"
A very hearty laugh came from room number seven with the 'Heaven' character, as Ning Taiping, with his white beard and looking rather robust, stood by the window with hands clasped in front of him, bowing to the opposite room number nine: "Thank you, fellow Daoist, for your support, at the cost of your wealth."
And from room number nine with the 'Heaven' character came a dull, hoarse voice.
"Elder Ning is too modest. The whole world knows that Elder Ning is Fei City's number one Foundation Establishment Artifact Cultivator. After stepping into the Golden Core stage, with just a bit of settling, he will become Da Xia's number one Artifact Cultivator."
"It is I who have picked up a bargain. These people don't understand the significance of the four words 'Elder Ning'. This is worth the more than ten thousand Spirit Stones I spent."
"Once Elder Ning officially ascends to the position of Da Xia's number one Artifact Cultivator, this treasure crafted by Elder Ning during his Golden Core breakthrough will also have great significance for collection and commemoration."
"Hahahaha." Ning Taiping, quite pleased by the words, stroked his beard heartily and said, "You flatter me, fellow Daoist. Since that's the case, let's not delay any further and set off immediately for the outside of Fei City's Furnace Peak. I will breakthrough before everyone's eyes and forge the treasure on-site with the power of Heaven and Earth for you."
"Good!"
...
Your journey continues at empire
Fei City, Furnace Peak.
Named for its resemblance to an Artifact Cultivator's forging furnace, it was also considered a sacred site by countless Artifact Cultivators. And it was atop Furnace Peak that Ning Taiping had chosen to make his Golden Core breakthrough.
At this moment, Ning Taiping was sitting cross-legged on the ground, circulating his mental method with a Spirit Gathering Array made from forty-nine Mid-grade Spirit Stones arranged around him.
In front of him, a Golden Core lay quietly within a Jade Box.
Already, quite a number of people had gathered around him within a few meters, mostly Artifact Cultivators who had come to witness the historic moment of Ning Taiping's Golden Core breakthrough.
"I think I've figured it out," Fat Long said, clicking his tongue as he stood among the crowd, "It's not only about publicly suppressing Brother Qiu and hiring others to buy the treasure you will craft during his Core Formation at an exorbitant price, but also about choosing to make the breakthrough at Furnace Peak—a sacred site among Artifact Cultivators."
"This old man is creating momentum."
It wasn't too difficult to figure out. Anyone with clear sight could see how ridiculous it was to spend more than ten thousand Spirit Stones just for a qualification, when with that many Spirit Stones one could purchase a superior early-stage Golden Core Spiritual Treasure.
Using it to buy a peak Foundation Establishment Spiritual Treasure would be downright foolish, wouldn't it?
And that's just for the qualification, not to mention the extra costs for forging and precious materials.
It was indeed a clumsy tactic.
But it had to be said it was effective; with the right push from interested parties to spread the story, it would create a long-term positive effect for Ning Taiping similar to the one of 'spending a fortune on a horse's bones'.
"From a certain perspective," Fat Long said, arms crossed, standing on the spot and raising an eyebrow, "this old man is quite savvy with his plays. If it weren't for using Brother Qiu as a stepping stone, he might've really built up his own momentum."
"With this momentum, he could become a renowned Golden Core Artifact Cultivator in the future, and the Ning Family would become a truly major family in Fei City."
"It's just that..."
"Too bad, though."