Chapter 189: Astonishing Wealth

As Shen Changqing watched, someone appeared on the auction stage below.

Almost at the same time, Ji Qu spoke.

"That man is Warden No. 2 of the Yuanyang Auction House. Usually, the auction house is run by professional auctioneers, but for significant auctions, the Wardens will come forward.

Within the Yuanyang Auction House, the Wardens are referred to by numbers, with lower numbers indicating higher status.

Warden No. 1, whom we met earlier, is effectively the public face of the Yuanyang Auction House."

"I see."

Shen Changqing nodded.

A late-stage Grandmaster expert was merely the public face of the Yuanyang Auction House.

Which meant, there were still powerful figures behind the scenes.

Grandmaster Peak?

The thought crossed his mind, but he wasn’t too surprised.

To establish a foothold in the black market, one needed sufficient strength.

However, if the Yuanyang Auction House truly had a Grandmaster Peak expert, then its strength wouldn’t be inferior to those top sects.

"Does the Yuanyang Auction House have a Grandmaster Peak expert behind it?"

He asked whatever came to mind.

Ji Qu shook his head.

"It’s uncertain for now, but the Yuanyang Auction House has stood firm in the black market for centuries, with branches in almost every black market within Great Qin.

In the open Jianghu, this is equivalent to the power wielded by a top sect.

If there’s a Grandmaster Peak expert behind the auction house, it’s not impossible."

He paused before continuing.

"A Grandmaster once caused a disturbance in the Yuanyang Auction House, and later vanished completely. Some suspect that the Grandmaster died at the hands of the Yuanyang Auction House. Although there’s no evidence, it’s an open secret in the Jianghu."

Shen Changqing picked up his teacup and took a small sip.

Ji Qu’s words were reasonable.

A faction that could stand firm in the black market for centuries, and continue to grow, couldn’t possibly do so without sufficient power.

The waters of the Jianghu ran deep.

But they couldn’t drown him.

Once he accumulated another wave of abundant slaughter points, Shen Changqing was confident he could elevate himself to the Great Sun Furnace realm.

At that time, his physical body system would have crossed the threshold of its peak.

However, to elevate his physical body to such a level, the required slaughter points wouldn’t be as simple as a few dozen or a hundred.

It would take at least several hundred points to have a chance of improvement.

Even slaying Grievance Rank monsters would require dozens of them.

As for Fiend Rank monsters…

Shen Changqing hadn’t encountered one yet, only hearing that they were equivalent to the Grandmaster Realm, but he wasn’t very clear on the specifics.

The Demon Prison didn’t have any Fiend Rank monsters imprisoned either.

At this time, Warden No. 2 of the auction house below cleared his throat, his solemn voice spreading out.

"Everyone’s presence at our Yuanyang Auction House is an honor to us, but some unpleasant words must be said first. Auctions value wealth, not martial prowess. Anyone who threatens with words or engages in combat during the auction will not be tolerated by the Yuanyang Auction House."

He paused, his solemn expression fading into an enthusiastic smile.

"Also, let me introduce myself. I am Warden No. 2 of the Yuanyang Auction House. Because this auction is of great importance, I will personally oversee it."

"Alright, I won’t waste any more time. Let the auction begin."

With those words, a beautiful woman came forward holding a wooden box, placing it on the table.

Immediately, Warden No. 2 opened the box, revealing its contents.

It was an emerald green bottle, with an unknown substance inside.

"Our first auction item is a pill refined by the Pill Sect, called the Innate Pill. Taking one Innate Pill can increase a martial artist’s chances of breaking through the Ren and Du Meridians and advancing to the Innate Realm.

After our Yuanyang Auction House’s assessment, the Innate Pill can increase a martial artist’s chances of breaking through to the Innate Realm by thirty percent. However, only one pill can be taken at a time, and each person can only take it three times in their lifetime, after which it will have no effect.

Each bottle contains a total of three Innate Pills. As long as your luck isn’t terrible, you should be able to break through successfully. If your luck is good enough, three Innate Pills might even create three Innate martial artists."

Warden No. 2’s voice, amplified by True Qi, directly entered everyone’s ears.

Although there were wing-rooms on the third and fourth floors of the auction house, their number was obviously insufficient to accommodate everyone.

Therefore, seats were set up in front of the auction stage for those who couldn’t enter the wing-rooms.

It was clear that many people showed excited expressions when he introduced the Innate Pill.

But no one urged him to continue, waiting for what he would say next.

Seeing that he had stirred up the emotions of many with just a few simple words, Warden No. 2’s smile became even more pronounced.

"Three Innate Pills, starting price of fifty thousand taels of silver, with each bid increasing by no less than one thousand taels of silver. The auction begins now!"

"I bid fifty-one thousand taels!"

"Fifty-two thousand taels!"

"Fifty-five thousand taels!"

"Sixty thousand taels—"

In a short period of time, many people eagerly bid against each other.

In the wing-room, Shen Changqing drank his tea, silently watching the fierce competition below, with no intention of participating.

According to Warden No. 2’s description, the Innate Pill was indeed good.

It increased the chances of breaking through by thirty percent.

In other words, as long as a normal person swallowed three Innate Pills, they would definitely succeed in breaking through after three attempts.

Unless their talent and luck were extremely poor, in which case, failure was unavoidable.

"The Pill Sect can even refine such pills, they are quite extraordinary!"

Shen Changqing raised his eyebrows slightly, a strange look on his face.

Ji Qu, hearing this, also had a touch of emotion on his face.

"The Pill Sect’s strength isn’t considered too strong in the Jianghu. Although there are Grandmasters present, there are no Grandmaster Peak experts. In terms of strength alone, they can’t be considered a top sect, but their pill refining methods are divinely skilled, unmatched in the Jianghu.

Many of the Demon Suppression Division’s pill refining methods were obtained from the Pill Sect.

Although the Demon Suppression Division also has powerful alchemists, they are still somewhat lacking compared to the Pill Sect."

"The Demon Suppression Division also has alchemists?"

Shen Changqing was hearing this for the first time.

He had been in the Demon Suppression Division for so long, and hadn’t heard of any place in the Demon Suppression Division where pills were refined.

Ji Qu smiled: "The Demon Suppression Division has so many people, the supply of pills is countless, so they must have their own alchemists, otherwise, buying them all from the outside would be a considerable expense.

The Demon Suppression Division’s alchemists are actually not in the Demon Suppression Division, but in the Imperial Palace.

Moreover, pill refining emphasizes talent, unlike martial arts. Those alchemists are carefully selected seedlings from the Demon Suppression Division. Every year, a large number of pills come out of the palace and are then distributed to the Demon Suppression Divisions throughout the country."

So that’s how it is!

Shen Changqing suddenly understood.

He was still curious about where the Demon Suppression Division’s pills came from.

He hadn’t expected that the alchemists were actually in the Imperial Palace.

Thinking about the geographical location of the capital Demon Suppression Division, Shen Changqing could understand.

At this time, the price of the Innate Pill below had soared to one hundred thousand taels of silver.

There was no way around it.

The effects of the Innate Pill were just too powerful.

Each Innate Pill could increase the chances of breaking through by thirty percent. If luck was good enough, three Innate Pills might create three Innate martial artists.

For ordinary Jianghu factions, each additional Innate martial artist could have a huge effect.

"The Pill Sect must have accumulated astonishing wealth just by relying on pills!"

Shen Changqing sighed.

Three Innate Pills were already one hundred thousand taels of silver.

And this price wasn’t the final price.

Looking at the current momentum, the price might even climb higher.

Ji Qu said: "Pill refining is inherently a lucrative industry. Although the materials for pills are precious, the price after refining them is even higher. There were originally many alchemists in the Jianghu, but after the Pill Sect grew, those alchemists were either pushed to the fringes or were subdued by the Pill Sect.

Currently, the Pill Sect is the only dominant force in the path of pill refinement in the Jianghu.

Precisely because of this, the Pill Sect is qualified to join the ranks of top sects, comparable to old forces like the Ten Thousand Buddhas Sect."

The Jianghu valued power.

But it also valued connections.

The Pill Sect’s strength wasn’t enough to join the ranks of top sects, but the pill resources it controlled were needed by all experts.

Over the years, countless experts had gone to the Pill Sect to seek pills.

Some of these people had even owed the Pill Sect many favors in order to obtain pills.

It could be said that although the Pill Sect’s strength wasn’t strong now, when the Pill Sect was truly in danger, a single call to arms could summon a large number of experts.

At that time, even top sects wouldn’t want to confront them head-on.

"The price of the Innate Pill has reached one hundred and twenty thousand taels. Master, should we make a move now?"

Inside a wing-room, the members of the Seven Luminaries Sect sat there. The person who spoke was Ming Zhengyang.

This outstanding disciple of the Seven Luminaries Sect had already broken through to the Innate Realm in just over a year.

The one he addressed as master was a middle-aged man wearing a scarlet robe, with a chilling look between his brows.

Ji Cang, the Sect Master of the Seven Luminaries Sect!

This time, only two people from the Seven Luminaries Sect had come: Sect Master Ji Cang and Ming Zhengyang.

Hearing this, Ji Cang’s expression remained unchanged. He picked up his teacup and took a sip, his gaze falling on the auction stage.

"Observe the situation. The price of three Innate Pills won’t just be a mere one hundred and twenty thousand taels. Right now, the bidders are some scattered individuals or small factions. The other sects haven’t made a move yet.

Let’s wait a little longer and bid at the end.

However, the main goal this time is still to obtain Grandmaster martial arts. If the price of the Innate Pill is too high, there’s no need to force it."

Newborn Innate martial artists were important to any sect.

The Seven Luminaries Sect was no exception.

However, in Ji Cang’s view, the Seven Luminaries Sect’s true goal this time was to bid for Grandmaster martial arts. Other things could be put aside for the time being.

If Grandmaster martial arts could be obtained, the Innate Pill could be sacrificed.

End of Chapter