Aspiring to the Immortal Path - Chapter 494
Chapter 494: Bidding
Inside Celestial Flower Pavilion, Tang Jie’s duplicate had already sat down and was waiting for the auction to begin. Old Fourth Liu was seated not far from him. He and Tang Jie exchanged a glance and then never looked at each other again so that they wouldn’t draw suspicion.
A young scion sitting next to Tang Jie whispered, “Brother, are you alone or in a group?”
“Hm?” Tang Jie looked at this young scion in surprise. This person was a cultivator of average level, only having barely entered the Mortal Shedding Realm. He was waving a fan while sitting there.
Looking at Tang Jie’s expression, the scion smiled and said, “You don’t know? I’m asking if you came to the auction alone or if you’re working with others.”
“‘Working with others’? How?”
The scion replied, “Naturally, if you see something good but can’t afford it alone, you work together with others to get it. So, are you interested? This one is Sun Qing. My father is Sun Yuanchao, a man of some stature in Ninebind City.”
Tang Jie looked at this youth and saw that there were a few people around him who appeared to have been persuaded by him into working together. In truth, there were many people like them who had come together to bid. In this way, they increased their total bidding power and wouldn’t have to miss out on good items.
There were some auction items that came in far too great quantities for the buyer to consume by themselves, so if a lot of people wanted it, they could join together to buy the item.
Sun Yuanchao was considered a rather powerful figure in Ninebind City, his status much greater than the Wei Clan’s. His clan had produced cultivators for generations, making it a small cultivator clan. But this Sun Qing knew that his clan was at the bottom of the barrel in Ninebind City’s annual auction. If it hadn’t been held in Ninebind City, he wouldn’t have even had the right to enter. This was exactly why he was recruiting people in the pavilion, and there were actually quite a few people like him. The favorite hobby of rich scions wasn’t bullying and provoking, but getting their buddies together and creating a faction before going on to bully and provoke.
Tang Jie looked at him for a while before ultimately shaking his head. “Forget it. I’m used to working alone.”
Sun Qing wasn’t willing to give up. He began to chatter on about the various benefits of working together, but Tang Jie ignored him and began to look around.
He scanned the hall before gradually turning his gaze to the upper floor.
Tang Jie gazed at each of those private rooms before finally stopping at the first one.
At that time, everyone there saw that Tang Jie was seemingly looking at them, a playful look in his eyes.
“This isn’t possible! He’s only an illusion clone, so how can he see into the room?” True Person Liang shouted.
“He isn’t seeing through it, just guessing,” Nan Ningjiang calmly replied. “It appears that he speculated that we were here long ago.”
“Then what are we still hiding for? Let’s just go out there,” one of them said.
Nan Ningjiang coldly glanced at this man, and that man immediately dropped his head.
There were some things that Tang Jie could do but Godhead Palace could not.
Even if they knew that Tang Jie would still come despite knowing they were here, this didn’t mean that the 12 Hawks could act as they pleased.
Since they were laying a trap, they had to act like it. At times, form was very important. That sort of attitude where, since your opponent knew that you were here, you should go out and have a chat with them, was a very cool way of acting, but it came with a lot of problems.
Nan Ningjiang was a cautious person, and he certainly didn’t want to go back to the palace and be repeatedly questioned on why, as the architect of the trap, he had decided to reveal himself rather than hiding.
At this time, the last guest entered.
As the door to Celestial Flower Pavilion closed, the auction officially began.
At the same time, a light emerged from Celestial Flower Pavilion: its defensive barrier.
As the barrier appeared, the Tang Jie in the auction house immediately stopped moving.
It was clearly because it was no longer being controlled.
At the same time, Nan Ningjiang waved his hand, and a map centered on Celestial Flower Pavilion appeared again. “Fifth Brother!”
The fifth brother immediately fired off a series of starry points at the map, which lit up the area like a spirit-surveying formation. In truth, this spell art was akin to a spirit-detecting formation, just faster and more convenient. Moreover, it was a perfect match with Nan Ningjiang’s map.
Countless points of starlight glimmered on the map, all of them indicating a cultivator.
The densest concentration was at the center. Nan Ningjiang covered this region with his hand as he said, “Check the surroundings for anyone at peak Mortal Shedding approaching the pavilion.”
The third sister and fifth brother both acted, dividing the map up.
The map even had a partitioning function!
A moment later, the region was instantly divided into twelve parts. The 12 Hawks acted in unison, each one searching their own region. The proficiency and speed with which they acted showed that they frequently worked together. Even the two Heart Demon True Persons couldn’t help but sigh in praise. When it came to tracking, the 12 Hawks were true specialists.
In just a little while, they had finished checking, and the eldest waved his hand, merging the maps back together.
The third sister, who was responsible for collecting information, reported, “Thirteen in all at peak Mortal Shedding.”
She thrust her finger multiple times, pointing out the dots of light in question.
“So many?” Everyone was stunned.
Nan Ningjiang didn’t understand where all these peak Mortal Shedding cultivators had come from. Gritting his teeth, he said, “See where they stop.”
The thirteen points of light quickly came to a stop. The closest to Celestial Flower Pavilion was around one hundred meters away, while the farthest was only three hundred meters away.
Nan Ningjiang drew a circle and said, “True Person Ming, can you cover this area for an hour?”
Ming Yezhen nodded. “This should be fine.”
“Good. You guys, go and check to see which one of them is Tang Jie,” Nan Ningjiang said.
“There’s no need to check. Look,” the third sister said, pointing at the map.
Twelve points of light suddenly gathered together. Only one dot remained at its place, about one hundred and fifty meters from Celestial Flower Pavilion.
The eldest looked at the eighth sister, and that delicate girl nodded. “This distance should be his limit, so it should be him.”
“True Person He, True Person Li, I must leave it to you.”
The two Heart Demon True Persons rose, He Yueyang saying, “There’s no way he’ll escape this time.”
“True Persons, please hold on. You only need to go to the area and check. You must not strike. Wait until the auction for the Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill begins.”
“Why should we wait until then?”
“Tang Jie must have something that makes him confident enough to come here, so he’s probably ready to escape. But when the Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill is close at hand, Tang Jie won’t give up that easily. His every moment of hesitation is our best chance.”
“I see.” The two True Persons understood. “Then let’s have it go up for auction faster.”
“The moment the Heaven-Earth Net is complete is when the Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill will go up for auction,” Nan Ningjiang replied.
——————————
The auction had already begun.
One rare treasure after another was displayed to the noisy crowd.
“This Nether Snake Whip comes from True Person Xiao of the Celestial Flower Sect. To make it, one must kill a Deepsea Nether Snake and remove its bones. You must then add Ink Jade and Cold Steel and refine everything in a Nine Fire Divine Furnace for 81 days to forge the whip. It can shatter steel and jade, being a weapon of incredible toughness. Moreover, when waved, it can command the wind, turning it into a blade of wind that can slice through ice. It is an upper-grade art relic of an Immortal sect of vast power. The bidding starts at two hundred thousand spirit coins!”
The female cultivator presiding had a lovely voice and was using every method possible to tease the crowd and rile them up.
Alas, cultivators mostly had steely wills and weren’t easily moved. They silently calculated the pros and cons of the items up for auctions and decided on the price that they could accept. Those wealthy merchants and dignitaries, on the other hand, were quite raucous, bidding up prices without rhyme or reason. This left the cultivators rather annoyed, as these amateurs were ruining the value of these products.
The more amateurish one was, the more trouble one caused.
The Nether Snake Whip was quickly bought by a fat man for three hundred thousand coins. The man used a handkerchief to wipe off the sweat on his forehead as he said, “Finally got it. This will make it much easier to whip those people in the house who won’t listen.”
As he spoke, his plump face trembled while the chair under him groaned.
Sun Qing moved close to Tang Jie and warned, “Brother, don’t underestimate him just because he’s fat. This person is called ‘Reverend Tianchi’, and he’s said to be a ruthless person who repays every wrong. Countless people have died at his hand.”
Tang Jie knew this guy was trying to sell his experience to him, so he simply smiled and expressed his thanks.
Once the Nether Snake Whip was sold, another treasure was put up. The female cultivator strenuously pushed the product, and the atmosphere finally began to warm up.
The item up for auction this time was a pair of shackles.
These shackles were slightly less valuable than the Nether Snake Whip, and they were ultimately sold off to a female cultivator. This female cultivator had decent looks, but she was cold like a block of ice.
Strangely, when this woman made her bid, nobody dared to bid against her.
Sun Qing commented, “This woman is Leng Yuebing, one of the most ruthless female cultivators of Nadir Hill. Although she’s only at peak Mortal Shedding, she’s extremely powerful. At this auction, just like that Reverend Tianchi, she’s one of the top participants.”
One treasure after another was disposed of at the auction.
It had to be said that many of the treasures at this auction were pretty good. If Godhead Palace’s people hadn’t been here, Tang Jie really would have considered stealing everything.
“Jade Verdure Stone! The summit of Windscreen Mountain is often buffeted by Astral Winds, and after a thousand years, some stones gain spirituality and are called Jade Verdure Stones. When worn, they can ward off evil, and they can also be made into puppets and such. It is an excellent stone material weighing in at three and a half tons. The starting bid is twenty spirit coins.”
Tang Jie raised an eyebrow.
He knew of Jade Verdure Stone, and it truly was a rare Wind-attribute stone.
A puppet made from this material would be extremely light and fast.
Puppets were clumsy and heavy, and normally, acceleration formations were carved into them to make them faster. Moreover, their weight also meant that they consumed extra energy, thus using up more spirit stones. Finally, taking into account all these extras meant that the initial design was more complicated.
If one could make a puppet from Jade Verdure Stone, all these problems would cease to be, and its combat power would be improved by at least 30%. It was one of the core materials for making Grade 5 to Grade 6 puppets.
Of course, Tang Jie wasn’t thinking about Wei Tianchong’s needs, but his own. After all, too many of his trump cards had already been exposed, so Tang Jie had to think of new ones.
A puppet wasn’t a bad choice.
“This thing isn’t bad,” Tang Jie blurted out.
Sun Qing smiled and asked, “Brother, are you interested? If so, why not work with us?” He was also rather interested in the Jade Verdure Stone, but he didn’t need that much and was planning on getting some people to split the bill with.
At his point, a booming voice spoke.
“Thirty spirit coins! I want it all.”
Everyone turned and saw that the speaker was a fierce and muscular man, two meters tall and with a big beard that almost covered his entire face. His hair was a chaotic mess, and his upper jacket was open, revealing the slabs of muscle beneath. This man seemed like a proper barbarian, and even his words carried an accent.
This man had spoken in a very smug and arrogant tone.
Everyone whispered, “Who is this man?”
“He seems to be a barbarian from the snow plains of the north.”
“Shh! Speak more softly. Those crazies are completely unreasonable. If you call them ‘barbarians’, they might immediately jump out and challenge you. It doesn’t matter if you win if you get kicked out of the auction house.”
Sun Qing narrowed his eyes and said, “It seems to be someone from the Manzu of the north. I’ve heard that a young master of a Manzu Tribe had come to Ninebind City, so it should be him.”
Nobody challenged the Manzu’s bid, and that young master ended up buying the three and a half tons of Jade Verdure Stone for thirty spirit coins. The item was redeemed on the spot. The Jade Verdure Stone was light but bulky, and ordinary Mustard Seed Bags couldn’t hold it. After paying, the Manzu young master put it on his shoulder, and then he went to the back. When he came out again, the stone had disappeared.
Meanwhile, Godhead Palace was in the middle of laying down its seal. Besides that group of twenty-some people, countless subordinates were acting on Hall Master Li’s orders to surround the area. With one order from him, not even a fly would be able to escape.
One item after another went up for auction, various treasures being marched out.
The auction this time had many items of high quality, and there were many items that had Tang Jie’s eyes glowing.
Alas, Tang Jie’s duplicate was a balloon that could pop with a single poke, so in the end, he didn’t dare to buy anything and could only watch as others won those items.
Those people who had teamed up to bid on items were particularly active, as well as people like Reverend Tianchi, Leng Yuebing, and that Manzu young master. Reverend Tianchi primarily bought items used for commanding. This person was very interested in the Dao of Domination, and Tang Jie guessed that this person was like those of the Beast Refining Gate, extremely skilled in some beast-controlling art.
As for Leng Yuebing, she primarily focused on offense, buying mostly hidden weapon art relics.
That Manzu young master essentially bought body-refining materials.
The rich merchants put their attention on art relics. For them, bidding was a kind of investment, and their ultimate goal was to resell the art relics.
“Heavenbane Lightning Pearls…”
Another voice resounded.
A woman on stage came forward with a small tray which held five Heavenbane Lightning Pearls.
“The Heavenly Extinction Sect’s Heavenbane Lightning Pearls! I didn’t think that such a thing would appear here!” Sun Qing’s loud voice resounded in Tang Jie’s ear. “Do you know about Tang Jie? He frequently uses Heavenbane Lightning Pearls.”
Tang Jie chuckled. “I don’t.”
“You haven’t heard of him?” Sun Qing basically had “You’re clueless” on his face as he looked around and whispered, “This is the most infamous person of the present age I’m talking about here. Godhead Palace has sent many of its people to capture him, but they have yet to capture this savage of the Basking Moon Sect! Whether it’s Reverend Tianchi or Leng Yuebing, none of them even have the right to carry his shoes!”
Tang Jie found it weird to hear other people talk about him.
So I’ve already become that infamous?
If other people heard his name, would they become so scared that they wouldn’t dare to bid against him?
Thinking this, Tang Jie laughed and said, “He seems to me like an ordinary guy with a nose and two eyes, just like everyone else. There’s nothing incredible about him.”
“Hmph, a frog in the well!” someone snorted in disdain. It wasn’t Sun Qing, but one of his companions. Unable to take Tang Jie’s coolness and indifference anymore, he pulled on Sun Qing and said, “Brother Sun, don’t waste your time with this person anymore. He hasn’t even made a bid yet, so he hardly seems like a participant. I wonder how he even got an invitation card! He’s probably just here to fill space.”
Tang Jie shrugged. “I’m just unlucky. Someone is always taking anything I like.”
He raised his hand and said, “210,000.”
He had barely spoken when that Manzu young master shouted, “230,000!”
It was twenty thousand above Tang Jie’s bid.
Tang Jie sighed. “Look. Like I said, anything I like gets taken by someone else.”
Sun Qing and the others spat out their tongues and looked at that burly man. “He really has a shitload of money.”
Thus, the five pearls were sold off.
Ten-some more items were auctioned off.
Finally, a booming voice spoke.
“One Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill, a divine pill necessary for the charge at Celestial Heart! The starting bid is five hundred thousand spirit coins.”
Tang Jie was energized by these words.
He knew that the show was about to begin.
Since the Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill had appeared, he knew without asking that Godhead Palace had finished its preparation.
The private room.
Nan Ningjiang and company were staring at Tang Jie.
“Do we strike now?” the fifth Hawk asked Nan Ningjiang.
“Wait a little longer,” Nan Ningjiang replied.
After some thought, he said, “I want to see what Tang Jie is trying to do.”
It was only a duplicate that had come.
While this method was safe, it meant that Tang Jie would have a much harder time getting the Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill. This clone could be obliterated with a single finger. If Tang Jie really had brought spirit coins to buy the pill, he was essentially giving the money away.
Nan Ningjiang trusted that Tang Jie wasn’t that stupid.
The bidding for the Five Energies Sovereign Essence Pill began.
The price steadily climbed.
As the most important medicine for advancing to Celestial Heart, it was far more valuable and important than any mighty weapon.
On the path of Immortality, cultivation realm was the foundation. Everything else was pure fancy.
As the bidding proceeded, Tang Jie remained seated.
The price hit nine hundred thousand, getting closer and closer to one million. The only people still bidding were the representatives of two groups of merchants, Reverend Tianchi, Leng Yuebing, the Manzu young master, and Old Fourth Liu.
Nan Ningjiang looked over these people and nodded. “As expected. It seems like Tang Jie has sent someone else to bid for him.”
Huang Yue said, “This person should be a Basking Moon Sect spy. It’s precisely because of him that our teleportation talisman plan failed, allowing Tang Jie to take precautions and go on another crime spree.”
“Which one is it?” the eighth Hawk asked.
“You would have to ask our third sister.”
As the third sister of the 12 Hawks, Zhou Fanghua’s primary responsibility was information gathering. All the information was sent to her for her to analyze and draw conclusions from. One could say that she was the brains of the 12 Hawks.
Cracking open her eyelids, she gazed at the bidders and said, “Cao Shuang of Bladeless City’s Cao Clan, Fan Liu of Beacon City’s Fan Clan, Reverend Tianchi, Leng Yuebing, and also that Manzu young master, Agutai. They are all people who have received invitation cards. Only this one… is an exception.”
She pointed at Old Fourth Liu.
