Chapter 218: 218. Chapter 215: The Inexperienced Ding Huan

218. Chapter 215: The Inexperienced Ding Huan

True Core cultivators who had come here were no fewer than any others; upon hearing that the very first auction item was a Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower, the auction hall instantly stirred into a buzz.

Pang Xiangxiang seemed to have anticipated this long ago; she waited until the clamor died down a little before speaking:

"The Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower is a spiritual herb that is extremely difficult to cultivate artificially. It can be said that in the cultivation world, every stalk used is one stalk fewer—I think everyone here understands this principle.

This stalk of Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower has a starting price of fifty thousand high-grade spirit stones, with each bid increase no less than one thousand. Bidding now begins…"

It had to be said that Pang Xiangxiang knew how to talk; with just that one phrase 'every stalk used is one stalk fewer,' it was enough to drive those late-stage True Core cultivators to bid as if their lives depended on it.

"Fifty-five thousand spirit stones…"

"Fifty-eight thousand spirit stones…"

The price on the bidding array's large screen kept being refreshed, showing just how many people wanted this stalk of Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower.

Yet Ding Huan was thinking whether he could get the Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower, then use it as a means to inject genetic poison mist and set up Elder He.

If he could successfully make Elder He ingest this genetic poison, he could basically take Elder He down.

However, Ding Huan quickly tossed this thought aside.

It probably wouldn't work.

First, even if he bought the Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower and handed it to Elder He, Elder He might not necessarily be able to refine it into a Void Network Pill.

Second, Ding Huan also couldn't guarantee whether the genetic poison chain he had attached to the Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower would split apart and vanish under high-temperature quenching—this was very possible.

If he didn't use genetic poison mist, ordinary poisons Elder He would most likely be able to recognize.

Forget it then; spending several hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones to buy it would be utterly useless.

In the end, this stalk of Three-Colored Purple Dew Flower was purchased by someone for two hundred and thirty thousand high-grade spirit stones.

Pang Xiangxiang was quite satisfied with this price. She rapped the table once, and a small box was teleported onto the auction stage.

Pang Xiangxiang picked up the box and held it high:

"This is an Ascension Token. Everyone may scan it with their divine sense."

Following Pang Xiangxiang's words, Ding Huan's divine sense, along with everyone else's, fell upon the box.

Inside the jade box was a white token inscribed with the words 'Ascension Realm.'

Ding Huan's heart stirred—he had one of these tokens too.

"The Ascension Token has a starting price of one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones, with each bid increase no less than five thousand. Bidding now begins…"

An Ascension Token with a starting price of one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones, yet there was actually a whole crowd of bidders.

Ding Huan asked in confusion, "Sister Yuhe, is this Ascension Token for entering the Ascension Realm?"

Sang Yuhe knew Ding Huan came from the Four Directions Star Continent, so it was normal for him not to understand the Ascension Token. She explained:

"The Ascension Token is one of the ways to enter the Ascension Realm. Unless invited by a sect in the Ascension Realm, the Ascension Token is almost the only means to get in."

Ding Huan secretly thought, that's ruthless.

The Ascension Realm only needs to sell Ascension Tokens to gather a massive amount of cultivation resources.

He didn't need to ask to know that once cultivation reaches a certain level, if one doesn't go to the Ascension Realm, one probably can't progress further.

He had already witnessed for himself the difficulty of going from the Mortal World to the Dao Cultivation World.

Many people might not be very clear on why this is so. Ding Huan, through the information in that leather scroll, had roughly formed a guess.

This very likely had something to do with the rules of heaven and earth. Once cultivation in the Dao Cultivation World reaches a certain level, if one cannot enter a place with stronger rules of heaven and earth, one's cultivation is very likely to stagnate.

But this probably doesn't apply to him, right?

What he cultivates is the Great Cosmos Art; when he wants to advance, he relies entirely on the strength of the rules of his own cosmos.

So although his cultivation is low right now, he still needs to find ways to get involved in various cosmos rules.

What Ding Huan hadn't expected was that this Ascension Token ultimately sold for three hundred and eighty thousand high-grade spirit stones.

It seemed the Ascension Realm was also very hard to enter; the Ascension Realm wanted to monopolize resources and strictly limit the number of cultivators entering it.

Just as the Dao Cultivation World doesn't allow ordinary people from the Mortal World to enter.

People are all selfish. When they were in the Dao Cultivation World, they all advocated not letting cultivators from the Mortal World flood into the Dao Cultivation World in large numbers.

At the same time, they hoped the Ascension Realm would lift its realm restrictions, letting them enter the Ascension Realm easily.

Pang Xiangxiang had already brought out the third auction item:

"Fellow Daoists, this is a Level Five Hell Vine seed that has undergone Instant Spiritual Power Burst. The starting price is one million high-grade spirit stones; bid increases are at your discretion."

Ding Huan immediately perked up—this was something he needed.

Although for Ding Huan this was something he needed, the vast majority of people in the auction hall were not interested in this seed at all.

The few who were interested also felt the price was absurd. Not to mention one million, even a price of one hundred thousand was too high.

In their view, this seed's reputation outweighed its value.

Spending one million to buy a seed with only a single-use attack—unless one was crazy.

A long time passed, and not a single person made a bid.

Pang Xiangxiang seemed to know this Hell Vine seed would be extremely hard to sell. After waiting a while, she continued:

"The Level Five Hell Vine seed is reduced to eight hundred thousand. If no one bids again, it will be passed."

Although Ding Huan had never attended an auction, this was also his first time encountering an auction item whose price could be lowered.

"Eight hundred thousand." Ding Huan had already planned to bid one million, let alone now that it had dropped to eight hundred thousand.

"Eight hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones once… eight hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones twice…"

Pang Xiangxiang couldn't even be bothered to call out a third time; she directly brought down the gavel: "Sold."

Ding Huan spending eight hundred thousand just to buy a single seed immediately attracted numerous divine senses sweeping over.

Some people, upon seeing Ding Huan was a private room guest, withdrew their divine senses.

At an auction like this, anyone using a private room was bound to be either rich or noble.

It's best not to offend such a person.

There were still a few people whose divine sense seeped into the private box.

"Fellow Daoist Ding, although this Hell Vine seed is grade five, it's a one-time consumable, and its combat effect is poor. This seed is worth at most a hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones. For you to spend so many spirit stones…"

Sang Yuhe was shocked by Ding Huan's wealth, and at the same time reminded him of something.

She was filled with emotion. Sure enough, she had guessed right—Ding Huan had indeed obtained a great opportunity; otherwise, he could not have casually taken out eight hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones.

She was, after all, a True Pill realm cultivator. From the day she began cultivating until now, the richest she had ever been was only three hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones.

"What if I actually need to use it?"

Ding Huan could only say that.

How could he not know that spending eight hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones on a single one-use vine seed made him a sucker? He had no choice, though—who told him he had to deal with a powerhouse at the peak of the Primordial Soul realm, or even Primordial Soul Completion?

Spirit stones could be earned again once spent, but if your life was gone, then everything was gone.

Soon someone came to handle the transfer. Ding Huan paid out eight hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones and obtained this grade-five Hell Vine seed.

Pang Xiangxiang was already selling the fourth auction item—a defensive spirit artifact. Ding Huan wasn't interested, and it was finally sold for seventy thousand high-grade spirit stones.

Next came Foundation Establishment Pills, a metal-attribute cultivation method that could let one reach the Primordial Soul realm, a fragment of starry-sky crystal…

Not a single one of these things caught Ding Huan's eye. He said to Sang Yuhe beside him:

"Sister Yuhe, if you see something you like, go ahead and bid. I still have some high-grade spirit stones on me."

Ding Huan was certain Sang Yuhe was short on funds now. Once Elder He was taken care of, Sang Yuhe would surely be able to help him a great deal.

Sang Yuhe hurriedly replied, "I don't need anything right now."

Pang Xiangxiang's voice rang out again:

"Next up for bidding is a long spear. This spear is different from ordinary spears—it is a top-grade spirit artifact, and it also carries a Soul-Severing property. The spear's structure is also different from ordinary spear-type artifacts. Please look…"

As she spoke, Pang Xiangxiang raised her hand, and a two-meter-long spear floated in the air.

Ding Huan's divine sense landed on the spear. The spear was entirely black, with an extremely long blade and six ridges.

These six ridges were not evenly distributed; the two sides were wider, and the two sides of the spearhead bulged slightly, each side forming two small ridges. From a distance, it looked no different from an ordinary long spear.

What surprised Ding Huan even more was that the two sides of the spearhead were blood-sucking ridges.

This was a slaughter spear—the more it killed, the greater its power.

Ding Huan greatly appreciated the Soul-Severing property. Using this kind of spear, the stronger one's divine sense, the more powerful the spear-path divine ability.

His second of the Nine Divine Abilities, Annihilation, was a perfect match for this spear.

"This spear is named Farewell. The starting price is one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones…"

Hearing this price, almost every cultivator coveting this long spear felt a surge of joy in their hearts. Such a fine spear for only one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones?

Ding Huan also felt a bit puzzled.

"…plus one True Star Pill and a spirit fruit that can awaken a demonic beast's spiritual intelligence…"

The moment Ding Huan heard "True Star Pill," he knew he was out of luck. He did have one of the main spiritual herbs for refining a True Star Pill—Condensing Star Bamboo.

But for Condensing Star Bamboo to become a True Star Pill, there was still an impossibly long way to go.

As for the spirit fruit that could awaken a demonic beast's spiritual intelligence, he had those. He still had several Spirit-Awakening Blue-Faced Fruits on him.

"I bid five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones." A voice rang out from the main hall, and the bidding screen immediately displayed a bid of five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones.

Ding Huan figured the other party probably wouldn't be interested at this price.

It wasn't that his bid was too low; spirit stones could be obtained anywhere. A True Star Pill and a spirit fruit that could awaken a demonic beast's spiritual intelligence were far harder to come by.

Thinking of this, Ding Huan was about to write down three hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones plus one Spirit-Awakening Blue-Faced Fruit.

However, after a moment's hesitation, he changed the three hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones to one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones, plus one Spirit-Awakening Blue-Faced Fruit.

A Spirit-Awakening Blue-Faced Fruit was not something easy to obtain. If one met someone who needed it, selling a single fruit for a million high-grade spirit stones would not be unusual.

Sure enough, the moment Ding Huan's bid appeared on the bidding screen, it immediately caused an uproar in the main hall.

Several strands of divine sense even directly broke through the pitiful screening restriction on Ding Huan's private box. Sang Yuhe felt these overbearing divine senses and sighed inwardly.

Ding Huan was still too inexperienced. She had thought earlier that they should have upgraded the private box's divine-sense screening restriction.

But Ding Huan hadn't reacted, and she hadn't told him. It seemed she should have mentioned it to him in advance.

Ding Huan acted as if he didn't know these divine senses were scanning him; his expression didn't change in the slightest.

Some cultivators, seeing how low Ding Huan's cultivation was, even left divine-sense imprints on him.