Chapter 269

And in the next instant, Jiang Yu heard snickering echo from the second and third floors, and someone even said, "Even eating dragon liver and phoenix marrow can't grant longevity; a half‑demon dares to raise his standing here."

translation...

"My entrance posting worth several tens of thousands of spirit stones has been wasted."

"If we are to take the Longevity Elixir with food, where is the pill?"

"……"

These people, chatting back and forth, actually caused the auction to stall right from the start.

The cultivators present were also whispering in small groups, but everyone understood that those upstairs were either Golden Core or Nascent Soul cultivators, so like-minded individuals used voice transmission and dared not speak out loud.

This caused the beautiful woman hosting the auction on stage to call for bids three times, but no one responded to buy, so the first item was instantly withdrawn without a sale.

Jiang Yu is not a three-year-old child who would blindly follow any voice transmission; she shifted her gaze away from the half-demon, but caught a glint of coldness in the opponent's eyes from the corner of her eye.

And the beautiful hostess also retreated from the high platform together with the attendant and the iron cage.

The auction was then taken over by a male Golden Core cultivator with white hair and a youthful face, who as soon as he came up laid out the heavy terms: "The second auction item consists of three Longevity Elixirs, respectively top, middle, and lower grade."

These pills are made by combining Longevity Fruit with top-tier wood-attribute demonic pills from savage beasts, painstakingly refined by twelve Nascent Soul alchemists.

The lower-grade Longevity Elixir extends life by fifty years; the opening bid is thirty thousand middle-grade spirit stones, and each bid must increase by at least one thousand middle-grade spirit stones.

The middle-grade Longevity Elixir extends life by one hundred years; its opening bid is ninety thousand middle-grade spirit stones, and it is scheduled for the fifth auction round.

The top-grade Longevity Elixir is saved for the final climactic auction, to be purchased with top-grade spirit stones, and its price is yet to be determined.

"Tsk tsk tsk, the arrangements are excellent; the auction will definitely not disperse midway."

"I suspect that the half-demon's first appearance was intentional; she will eventually be bought by someone as a withdrawn item."

"Jiang Yu, aren't you going to help her a bit?" Long Hun observed clearly, and his analysis was spot-on.

But Jiang Yu knows her own affairs: "I can't get in touch with the old shopkeeper; at most I can send a message to the city lord, yet that half-demon actually noticed the Thunder Dragon seal on my body, which is somewhat unbelievable."

Jiang Tu also pondered this: "I can't sense anything either; a half-demon locked in an iron cage is even less likely, so she's probably deceiving you eighty percent of the time."

I guess, something on your body is revealing your identity from Zhuyuan Island.

"This." Jiang Yu lowered her head to look at the fan-shaped shell ornament hanging from her waist, which she bought from the old shopkeeper's store, and it is said to be able to withstand a full-force strike from a Golden Core Grand Completion cultivator.

Just then, as the bid on stage was settled, the attendant brought up a tray and opened it; the green pill came into view, and immediately a flurry of bidding voices arose:

"Thirty-two thousand."

"Thirty-five thousand spirit stones."

"Forty thousand."

"Fifty-two thousand."

"Fifty-five thousand."

That voice, Jiang Yu was very familiar with—it was True Person Nan Su's. She thought, the ingredients for Longevity Elixirs are rarely gathered on the Tianyuan Continent; whenever an alchemist manages to refine such a pill, before the news even spreads, Nascent Soul cultivators have already divided it up.

For a Golden Core cultivator to obtain such a pill, the only way is to curry favor with a Nascent Soul elder they are close to, painstakingly buttering them up for a chance.

And True Person Nan Su, encountering this auction, will surely spare no effort to obtain it; otherwise, it would be in vain to have sent it to Dragon Emperor Island.

As expected, when the price rose to seventy thousand middle-grade spirit stones, True Person Nan Su directly bid eighty thousand to show his resolve, and immediately no one else followed.

On the high platform, the bid of eighty thousand was called twice; just as it seemed about to be sealed, someone added three thousand, whereupon Nan Su immediately raised to eighty-five thousand, and the other party added another thousand, tugging back and forth.

Jiang Tu felt a bit of schadenfreude: "Heh, True Person Nan Su won't really buy it for one hundred thousand middle-grade spirit stones, will he? The opening bid for the middle-grade Longevity Elixir is only ninety thousand middle-grade spirit stones."

Long Hun interrupted his amusement: "But it won't be possible to win it at ninety thousand."

"'At most we can chase it up to eighty-nine thousand spirit stones.' Jiang Yu voiced her judgment, while simultaneously sending a transmission to the city lord of Zhuyuan Island."

The other party quickly replied, saying they would have the people from the city lord's mansion attending the auction check it out.

Then the city lord sent another message: Zhuyuan Island has always refrained from getting involved in various disputes.

Jiang Yu smiled silently; she understood that pairing the half-demon auction with the Longevity Elixir was deliberately orchestrated by the Dragon Emperor Alliance.

In doing so, they immediately uncovered the Nine Immortals Alliance members causing trouble—or rather, the Nine Immortals Alliance members themselves were deliberately exposed.

It seems the auction will not be peaceful afterward; we need to consider the timing of leaving Heavenly Sweet Dew.

At this very moment, True Person Nan Su in the upstairs private box gritted his teeth and indeed bid eighty-nine thousand spirit stones; this time no one contested him, and after the stage called three times with no higher bid, a hammer strike sealed the deal.

Jiang Yu watched the attendant carry the tray upstairs to deliver the goods, then she looked up again as another treasure—a ultimate bronze mirror—was displayed, said to be able to reflect an opponent's attack when defending.

This caused her preparations to leave to be delayed: "Jiang Tu, what do you think of my buying it?"

Jiang Tu thought seriously and gave a clear opinion: "It's nothing special; you've already bought many defensive treasures, adding one more doesn't make much difference."

Furthermore, this treasure's effectiveness depends on the wielder's strength; if a Nascent Soul cultivator can cleave it with a single slash, how could it possibly reflect spiritual power?

"Quite so." Long Hun also expressed agreement, adding: "Aren't you supposed to be tracking Nan Su? He has already left through the back door."

"He's running pretty fast." Jiang Yu thought, and then she didn't linger any longer, swiftly exiting.

Meanwhile, True Person Tian upstairs also realized that Nan Su, who claimed he was going with the attendant to exchange spirit stones, would not be returning.

Taking another glance at the male cultivator slumped on the table, this fellow of unknown origin had his red notice snatched by Nan Su yet surprisingly wasn't killed.

She left without a trace, silently slipping away; she had originally intended to enter the private box marked on her red notice, but upon looking downstairs she saw that Jiang Yu had also left, and she couldn't help but frown, thinking to herself: "It seems this female cultivator is not pursuing me."

But she left after Nan Su? Could she be chasing Nan Su?

Her divine sense silently followed Jiang Yu, wanting to see whether this Foundation Establishment cultivator's appearance was merely coincidental.

After just a few breaths, she indeed saw Jiang Yu go from the front door around to the back door—was she really pursuing Nan Su?

As she was about to push open her own private box, she saw two late-stage Golden Core cultivators striding toward the private box previously occupied by Nan Su; she decisively gave up on the auction and quickly went downstairs to leave.

Upon reaching the street, she immediately turned toward the back door without hesitation; but at this point, when she tried to look for Jiang Yu again, there was no trace of her.

Jiang Yu, who shared the same Golden Core cultivation as her and had Jiang Tu beside her, immediately sensed her divine sense tracking them, so they hadn't gone far at all.

Instead, they turned into a narrow alley and employed a concealment talisman.

"Really True Person Tian, could she be suspecting you?"

"Jiang Yu, your disguise has been exposed again?" Jiang Tu now feels that True Lord Fu Ju's advice to walk openly and honorably might be more feasible.

Jiang Yu also reflects, "Perhaps it's that I, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, dared to leap onto the transmission array during the Golden Core formation without a hint of reverence."

So, disguise isn't merely swapping faces; the behavior must also fit the role being assumed.

Longhun, does Nanshu have any offshore islands?