Free Web NovelChapter 460: Chapter 284: Taiyi Geng Metal (2)
This was a Spiritual Artifact-tier flying sword called the Qing Guang Sword. According to the portly cultivator, it was a famed weapon, a peerless blade.
Yang Jing and his five disciples, however, showed little interest. The sword was likely forged by a master craftsman, but it was still a far cry from Ji Feng’s work.
Soon, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator won the sword with a bid thirty percent above its market price. Beaming with joy, he placed the sword and its box into his Storage Bag.
The next few items were all rare treasures, inciting a bidding frenzy among the Foundation Establishment Cultivators in the back. None of them sold for cheap.
The portly cultivator hosting the auction wore an increasingly radiant smile.
"The next item has an extraordinary origin indeed. It is a set of five Talismans, all of them the highly practical Golden Light Arrow Talisman, painted by Yang Yinjiao, a True Disciple of the Five Elements True Spirit Sect! The power of this Talisman is beyond question. All you need to know is this: once activated, an ordinary Defensive Magical Artifact will be hard-pressed to stop it. Even a Defensive Spiritual Artifact can only block four or five arrows! In Magical Combat between Foundation Establishment Cultivators, this can be the final word."
"Because Master Yinjiao is commissioned by the Eastern Army Governor’s Mansion, most of the Golden Light Arrow Talismans he creates are sent to the battlefront on the East Sea Frontline. Very few ever make it to auction. We had to call in a huge favor just to acquire these five for today."
Many attendees had traveled thousands of miles from other Fiefdoms and had naturally never heard of the Golden Light Arrow Talisman’s might. But the cultivators who *had* heard of it were already raising their paddles, eager to bid.
The five Golden Light Arrow Talismans quickly sold for the astonishing price of nearly eight thousand Spirit Stones.
This price was already five times that of a typical Tier Two Spirit Talisman.
Even a life-saving Divine Talisman like an Earth Escape Talisman would have difficulty fetching such a price.
After all, an Earth Escape Talisman could only ensure that a Qi Cultivator might temporarily escape from the clutches of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator. The Golden Light Arrow Talisman, however, gave a Qi Cultivator the power to actually threaten one.
Furthermore, the claims made at the auction were no exaggeration. The Golden Light Arrow Talisman first appeared on the battlefield, in the war between the Eastern Army Governor’s Mansion forces and the sea Demons.
Five soldiers of the Demon Suppression Army, acting in unison, had instantly and severely wounded a Great Demon of the Foundation Establishment Realm. If the Great Demon hadn’t been so alert, and if the soldiers’ Cultivation hadn’t been too low to achieve a precise lock, the Golden Light Arrow Talismans might have slain a Foundation Establishment-level entity outright.
In later battles, even though the sea Demons were on their guard, the Golden Light Arrow Talismans still achieved significant results.
While there were many types of Tier Two offensive Talismans, most were only useful for harassment during Magical Combat against Foundation Establishment Cultivators. Very, very few could pose a genuine threat.
And those with power as devastating as the Golden Light Arrow Talisman, which even a Qi Cultivator could activate with ease, were rarer still.
As such, the Golden Light Arrow Talisman became a highly sought-after piece of military ordinance.
Yinjiao only had to supply the Sect with sixty Golden Light Arrow Talismans each month to earn Merit Points equivalent to nearly thirty thousand Spirit Stones.
This sum was naturally much less than the auction price, but it had the advantage of being a stable income. Moreover, the Sect provided the necessary Talisman Paper and Talisman Ink for their creation.
The Golden Light Arrow Talisman was immensely powerful, and ordinary Talisman Paper and Talisman Ink simply couldn’t contain its might.
Yinjiao’s Talisman Making skills were so superb that he always ended up with a surplus of Talisman Paper and Talisman Ink. He would use these leftovers to create extra talismans, which he would then sell through the True Spirit Lineage and at auctions.
Each Golden Light Arrow Talisman sold for at least thirteen to fourteen hundred Spirit Stones.
After a few more items, the portly cultivator accepted a Spiritual Artifact from the hands of a female cultivator.
This Spiritual Artifact was a Ruyi carved from Spiritual Jade. It was a pale yellow, with a faint, shimmering Spiritual Light that immediately marked it as a rare treasure.
The Ruyi was carved with exquisitely lifelike phoenix patterns, making it exceptionally beautiful.
"This Ruyi is called the Yellow Jade Ruyi, a treasure Refined by Master Ji Feng, an Inner Sect Disciple of the Five Elements True Spirit Sect! With Master Yang Jing focused on his Cultivation and rarely taking action himself, Master Ji Feng can be called the foremost Artifact Refiner in the Five Elements True Spirit Sect below the Nascent Soul Realm. This Yellow Jade Ruyi is brimming with Spiritual Essence! Our own inspection has confirmed that it is not far from advancing into a Magical Treasure. All you Golden Core Cultivators here today should take note: with just your Magical Power to nourish it, this artifact could become a Magical Treasure in as little as ten years—thirty or forty at most!"
The Golden Core Cultivators at the auction had shown little interest in things like the Golden Light Arrow Talismans or common Spirit Medicines, only occasionally bidding to acquire an item or two for their juniors.
The appearance of this Yellow Jade Ruyi, however, instantly captured their full attention.
This was because the vast majority of Artifact Refiners lacked the ability to forge a Magical Treasure directly. Their only recourse was to first forge a Spiritual Artifact and then nourish it with Magical Power, hoping for the opportunity to break through to Tier Three and elevate it to a Magical Treasure.
Consequently, many Golden Core Cultivators who lacked the backing of a Noble Family didn’t even possess a Magical Treasure.
If this Yellow Jade Ruyi could truly become a Magical Treasure after only a dozen years of nurturing, as the auctioneer claimed, then its value wasn’t much lower than that of a genuine Magical Treasure.
"I must inspect it myself before I make a bid."
A Golden Core Cultivator immediately made the request. After all, the amount of Spiritual Essence in a Spiritual Artifact could mean a world of difference in its value.
"But of course."
As soon as he agreed, several Golden Core Cultivators eagerly stepped forward to investigate. They each took the Ruyi, examined it carefully, and then returned to their seats without a word.
Moments later, those same Golden Core Cultivators began bidding furiously.
The price started at thirty thousand, shot up to ninety thousand in no time, and only began to slow when it approached one hundred fifty thousand. Only three Golden Core Cultivators were left, bidding against one another.
"One hundred and sixty thousand Spirit Stones."
"One hundred and sixty-eight thousand!"
The scene was thrilling for the Foundation Establishment Cultivators watching.
An ordinary Spiritual Artifact cost between eight thousand and twenty thousand Spirit Stones; this Yellow Jade Ruyi was worth at least seven of them.
In the end, the Yellow Jade Spiritual Artifact was won by a red-faced, curly-bearded Golden Core Cultivator.
Ji Feng nodded in satisfaction. ’This Yellow Jade Ruyi is my most satisfying creation from the past few years. If not for the limits of my Cultivation, it might have been forged directly as a Magical Treasure.’
’If that had happened, the price would have been at least two or three times higher.’
’After all, there’s always a chance of failure when a Spiritual Artifact attempts to advance into a Magical Treasure.’
Next, three bottles of Tier Three Elixirs refined by Iron Head also sparked a fierce bidding war and sold for a handsome price.
"This Five Elements True Spirit Sect’s fortune has been truly remarkable these past few years. Not only did it produce a heaven-sent talent like Yang Jing, but it has also produced three masters in the Hundred Skills of Cultivation."
A Golden Core Cultivator who had won the Spirit Pills immediately opened the vial to inspect the Pill Grade. Upon discovering they were indeed Upper Grade pills with minimal Elixir Poison, he nodded in great satisfaction.
"Hmph. Didn’t you notice? Yang Tietou, Yang Yinjiao... the naming convention is exactly the same. The two of them, along with Ji Feng, Chi Yu, and Yellow Foot, are all disciples of Master Yang Jing."
The Golden Core Cultivator traveling with him, fearing his companion would speak recklessly and offend Yang Jing or his disciples, quickly interjected with a warning.
"Well, Master Yang certainly has a... unique way with names," the first cultivator remarked.
The auction continued, with item after item going under the hammer. Yang Jing and his five disciples also made bids from time to time, acquiring a few Spiritual Objects that caught their eye.
After all, many of these Spiritual Objects had been transported from the Central Continent by the Seven Great Trading Houses and were a rare sight on the Western Continent.
"This next item is a form of Magic called the Innate Grand Capture! It is an inherited technique from a fallen Noble Family of the Central Continent, who have entrusted us to auction it on their behalf. All capture-type Magic, if you trace their origins, ultimately come from the Upper Realm. Furthermore, their power often grows in proportion to the depth of the user’s Magical Power! This Jade Scroll can only be read ten times before it self-destructs. The bidding starts at five thousand Spirit Stones!"
Yang Jing’s interest was piqued at once.
Ever since he learned the Pure Yang Qi Grand Capture, he had been fascinated with capture-type Magic. He had even gone to great lengths to collect others, but with little success. He never expected such a pleasant surprise here.
He immediately placed a bid.
The other cultivators, though somewhat curious about capture-type Magic, didn’t dare to compete too fiercely when they realized the bidder was one of the honored guests in the private rooms up front.
Soon, a Maid delivered the Jade Scroll to Yang Jing’s private room.
