Chapter 837: The Shop Is Mine

Such auctions and trade fairs often offer a chance to find good items.

Since he had nothing else to do, He Pingsheng was certainly going to participate.

"Please!"

Elder Dong said: "Friend Tai Xu Zi, please wait a moment—we still need some time to prepare; the auction will begin in about two hours."

"Alright!" He Pingsheng nodded and waited inside the private room.

He hadn't found anything on the auction list worth his interest.

Except for that shop.

As for the items at the trade fair, there might be some worth looking forward to.

During the wait, He Pingsheng didn't idle—he took out the 【Tai Qing Jin Ye Jing】 and began studying it.

He at least needed to fully comprehend the formula for the 【Seven-Colored Holy Lotus Tea】.

Two hours were enough for him to memorize the formula and mentally simulate the process of refining the golden elixir in his spiritual sea.

Time passed quickly.

Two hours slipped by, and the auction began!

Auctions are all much the same.

The layout and seating arrangements were identical.

Elder Dong gave He Pingsheng a token; upon entering, he found it was a VIP seat, so he sat down without hesitation.

After about an incense stick's time, several thousand people filled the hall.

Soon, the auction commenced.

The host was the female Elder from the first floor.

The Elder was quite attractive and spoke well, though her cultivation was low—only Soul Transformation.

"Fellow cultivators, respected elders!" the woman spoke calmly, her gaze sweeping the crowd: "Everyone knows the rules of the Shanquan Trading Society's auction: simply do not use power to oppress others. All items auctioned, whether consigned or owned by our shop, carry no intermediary fees!"

"Rest assured—this is completely free!"

"Of course, all bids are made in spirit stones."

"Therefore, you won't find any high-grade items here. If you seek better goods, wait until after the auction—tomorrow morning, join our trade fair!"

"The specific rules of the trade fair will be announced there."

He Pingsheng nodded at this rule.

It seemed generous—no intermediary fees whether consigned or self-sold.

In truth, even if they charged, the fees would be negligible; using "free" as a lure was a clever gimmick.

As this Soul Transformation Elder said, the real treasures were at the trade fair.

Only at the trade fair could they truly profit by charging intermediary fees.

Then came the auction.

He Pingsheng found the quality of the auctioned items truly mediocre.

For example, the highest-tier magic treasures were merely Spirit Treasures—and even those were low-grade.

Yet cultivators still fought over them, faces flushed.

Other heavenly treasures, talismans, elixirs, and so on, rarely exceeded sixth rank.

Most were fifth rank.

He Pingsheng naturally had no interest in these—he'd already seen the items beforehand and knew exactly what to expect.

If not for waiting for the shop, he might have fallen asleep.

After about an hour, the shop finally came up for auction.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" the Soul Transformation Elder took a deep breath: "The next item is special—a shop located on the bustling 【Dinglu Street】. Its exact location is shown here!"

Hummm…

A ripple appeared, and a light membrane floated forth, displaying a map.

The map showed a detailed layout of Dinglu Street; the shop sat in the center of the street.

"The entire shop has two sections: the front is the storefront, roughly three zhang square; behind it is a ten-zhang-square courtyard, seamlessly connected to the shop."

"Auction begins: usage term is one hundred years, with no other fees."

"Moreover, this shop is consigned by the Imperial Palace!"

"Starting bid: one hundred thousand superior spirit stones. Each raise must be at least ten thousand superior spirit stones!"

"Place your bids!"

Tap…

The auctioneer tapped her small hammer on the table, signaling bids to begin.

He Pingsheng raised his hand first: "One hundred thousand!"

And then…

That was it.

Because apart from his bid, no one else had bid at all.

This…

He Pingsheng had a faint sense of being tricked.

What was going on?

Was there some hidden flaw in this shop?

But he was a stranger here and knew little about local shops; he couldn't ask anyone now, so he shook his head and gave a wry smile: probably a trap.

"Bang…" The woman tapped her hammer again: "Congratulations, this cultivator, you have won the Dinglu Street shop for one hundred thousand superior spirit stones… If you have no other items to purchase, you may proceed to the back to complete the formalities!"

He Pingsheng had no desire to linger at the auction—he stood and, guided by a staff member, left the trading society. Soon, he stood before Elder Dong again.

"Hehehe…" Elder Dong chuckled: "Please sit."

The private room still held only the two of them.

"I've already had our staff handle the paperwork for you."

"Young brother, pay up."

He Pingsheng handed over ten supreme-grade spirit stones and asked, "This shop's location isn't bad, and the space is large—why didn't anyone bid? I got it at the starting price?"

He Pingsheng asked Elder Dong, puzzled.

Elder Dong smiled: "In the Imperial City, shops aren't worth much."

"Take the one you just won—on Dinglu Street."

"Dinglu Street is fine, bustling, a favorite among cultivators—but there are over two hundred shops on this street, all selling elixirs…"

"To be blunt, Lei Huang Continent has the most alchemists, so elixirs are… abundant."

Elder Dong's smile held a touch of helplessness.

He Pingsheng understood.

Elder Dong comforted him: "If you have a unique alchemy skill, your business can still thrive."

"For example, if your elixirs are of superior quality!"

"Or if your success rate is high—if you possess such skills, even here, you can rise to fame!"

"Alright," He Pingsheng sighed: "I bought it—I'm not worried about it anymore."

Others may fail to run a shop, but that doesn't mean He Pingsheng will.

I have the Treasure Basin—I'll use it to enhance my elixirs; even if I can't reach supreme grade, getting them to superior grade should attract customers.

Soon, the shop's paperwork was complete, and a magical key was handed to He Pingsheng.

From now on, the shop belonged to him.

And there was one advantage to these shops: no taxes.

Only the auction price.