In the blink of an eye, another week had passed. Ye Chen had nearly cleared out everything he no longer needed. Adding to that the rewards from Yun Qianyue, his high-grade spiritual stones had skyrocketed to a total of seven hundred and twenty!

What did that mean? The average Foundation Establishment cultivator would never accumulate so many spiritual stones in their lifetime.

Today was the day of the auction. Heavenly Evolution Pavilion's auction was a legitimate, highly secure event. With the backing of Heavenly Evolution Holy Land, they had no fear of disruptions. The venue was fortified with arrays that prevented any spirit sense probing, and there were numerous precautions in place for entry.

As long as bidders masked their identities and didn't reveal themselves, there was little to fear from bandit cultivators. The safety measures were top-notch.

Numerous cultivators were present, ranging from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment. They were already filtering into the venue.

Ye Chen had arrived early and taken his seat in the private box. The auction hall was located underground, and it seemed that a spatial array had been used, making the area vast beyond expectations.

Most cultivators were dressed in black robes and wearing masks. However, a few local cultivators were openly displaying their faces, seemingly unconcerned about being targeted.

Ye Chen sat in his box, observing the gathered cultivators while the system's prompts continued to sound intermittently.

There was even a fifty-fold multiplier among the female cultivators present. It was clear that Divine Will City was full of talented individuals. The system cooldown had finally ended today. But Ye Chen wasn't about to run down there to hand out gifts just yet. When noon arrived, the auction began promptly.

The shopkeeper of Heavenly Evolution Pavilion stood on stage, smiling as he addressed the crowd. "The auction officially begins!"

"I won't bother explaining the rules, as I'm sure none of you would make the mistake of bidding recklessly without the means to pay," he said, his tone casual.

"To save everyone's time, I'll get straight to the point! First up is the most valuable item of today's auction. The Four-tier Golden Core breakthrough method. It comes with the necessary spiritual items, and those who succeed in the breakthrough could reach a Four-tier Golden Core. If the cultivator has a strong foundation, they might even reach a Five-tier or Six-tier Golden Core!

"It's even been documented that some Heavenly Evolution Holy Land cultivators used the Four-tier Golden Core breakthrough method to achieve a Six-tier Golden Core. The starting bid is five hundred high-grade spiritual stones…"

Upon hearing this, Ye Chen was stunned. He had already seen the Golden Core breakthrough method listed in the auction catalog.

However, on one hand, it was far too expensive—he simply couldn't afford it. On the other hand, he didn't need it for the time being, so he hadn't considered it seriously. But now, the most valuable item of the entire auction was being brought out first? This was quite different from what he had read in his cultivation novels.

However, Ye Chen quickly realized that it made sense to auction the most valuable items first. After all, if the rare items were left for the end, cultivators might hesitate to bid on the earlier lots for fear of not having enough spiritual stones for the most valuable items. This would result in the prices of the earlier items being affected.

By putting the rarest items up first, the winner would be decided, and the remaining participants would simply use their remaining spiritual stones to buy what they needed, thus driving up the prices of the other lots as well.

This strategy seemed to follow the principles of economics. It made sense. The Golden Core breakthrough method was something Ye Chen didn't need for now. There weren't many people bidding for it—only about a dozen or so.

But the competition was intense, and the price steadily climbed. In the end, it was bid up to five thousand high-grade spiritual stones before being claimed by a Golden Core elder from Divine Will Sect.

Yes, the person revealed their identity. Without that, the price likely would have risen even more. Such competition was probably the result of large families and major sects fighting for it. And Divine Will Sect, being the local dominant force, probably didn't want to upset anyone by letting it go to someone else.

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The shopkeeper, though only at the Foundation Establishment stage, couldn't hide his displeasure. With a cold expression, he started the next round of bidding. The auction proceeded quickly, and it wasn't long before the fourth item came up.

"Next, we have the Star Thunder Sound Foundation Establishment method from the ancient sect, Starry Sect. This is a mid-tier Earth-grade cultivation method. This method is extraordinary. After cultivating it, one can use the power of the stars to give birth to star thunder within the body, making the user's power unmatched, with combat abilities far surpassing others.

"If cultivated by those with certain special spiritual roots, the effects are even more miraculous! This is a one-time-use method and can only be used by one person. The starting bid: One hundred high-grade spiritual stones."

As the shopkeeper's words echoed, a voice immediately rang out, "Two hundred high-grade spiritual stones…"

The voice didn't try to hide its tone, sounding cold and aloof, with a regal air, almost like that of a queen!

At this moment, Ye Chen finally encountered a cultivation method. He was about to raise his bid, but his expression shifted. The system prompt suddenly sounded in his mind.

"System has detected a feedback target!"

"An Miaoli: Two hundred times feedback!"

What the hell…

Ye Chen's eyes widened. Two hundred times? The highest multiplier Ye Chen had seen up to now was his master, Gu Yun Yun, with a full one hundred times. That was already the pinnacle of the system.

Now, though, another female cultivator with a two hundred times multiplier had appeared? This was outrageous. Moreover, she just so happened to need this Foundation Establishment method.

All the conditions made Ye Chen's heart race. He had originally planned to bid for this Foundation Establishment method and gift it to Yao Xi.

But now, Ye Chen had a new plan. However, the key was to first secure the auction for this Foundation Establishment method. There were many participants in the auction, as Foundation Establishment methods were in high demand by both families and sects.

Unfortunately, this was a one-time-use method. If it weren't for that, the bidding would have been even more intense. The price quickly rose to five hundred high-grade spiritual stones.

"Six hundred high-grade spiritual stones!" Ye Chen called out, directly raising the bid by one hundred.

At this price point, most of the original bidders had fallen silent and stopped participating. While the mid-tier Earth-grade Foundation Establishment method was precious, Divine Will Sect had its own Earth-grade low-tier methods that could be studied an unlimited number of times.

The bidders were mostly from large families affiliated with Divine Will Sect, and their disciples could enter Divine Will Sect. There was no need to invest such a huge amount of high-grade spiritual stones for a one-time-use method.

The bidding continued, and the female cultivator who had initially raised the bid didn't back down.

With an unstoppable determination, she called out, "Six hundred and fifty high-grade spiritual stones."

Ye Chen felt a little uneasy. Who exactly was this cultivator named An Miaoli? How could she be so wealthy? Was the amount he had prepared enough?

Though he felt a little nervous, Ye Chen still maintained his composure and countered, "Seven hundred!"

There was a moment of awe in the crowd.

The female voice responded a little slower this time: "Seven hundred and ten high-grade spiritual stones."

Hearing this, Ye Chen felt a bit relieved. It seemed he wasn't the only one feeling pressured. That made things easier.

"Seven hundred and fifty!" Ye Chen called out without hesitation, his tone still as firm as ever.

This time, the female voice did not respond.

After the shopkeeper on stage asked three times with a smile, he finally announced, "The Star Thunder Sound Foundation Establishment method has been sold to Fellow Daoist Ye!"

In the private box, Ye Chen sighed in relief as he had managed to scare off his competitor. He began rummaging through his storage ring, looking for items to make up the remaining amount.

Ye Chen only had seven hundred and twenty high-grade spiritual stones, but that wasn't a problem. With a few items to exchange, he would easily make up the difference.

Exchanging items for debt was a common practice at Heavenly Evolution Pavilion, but the value would be at a discount—around seventy percent of the market value. It wasn't ideal, but it would work.

Before long, the deacon arrived and knocked on the door. He didn't find it strange when Ye Chen wanted to use items to make up the thirty high-grade spiritual stones.

Soon, a qualified appraiser was called in.

"Six top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills? Unfortunately, they've been stored for too long, and the medicinal power has faded by a fifth, but they're still decent..." the appraiser said.

"Not many alchemists can refine top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills. I'll value them at twenty high-grade spiritual stones. It's a shame they're not perfect. Otherwise, they would be worth at least fifty high-grade spiritual stones."

The top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills were highly valued, especially since they could prevent damage to one's vitality in case of a breakthrough failure. They were highly sought after by large families and sects. After all, even prodigies might fail to break through. Having top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills made breakthroughs more reliable.

Ye Chen easily made up the thirty high-grade spiritual stones, using the six specially aged pills and a few system rewards he had bought earlier.

With the Star Thunder Sound Foundation Establishment method now in hand, Ye Chen smiled. The primary goal of his trip to Divine Will City had finally been achieved.

At that moment, there was another knock at the door of the private box. The deacon entered, speaking calmly. "Fellow Daoist, the cultivator who was bidding against you earlier is an elder of Divine Will Sect. She wishes to speak with you… I am merely passing on the message! There's no need to worry about accepting or your safety. Heavenly Evolution Pavilion will never reveal any guest's identity."

Ye Chen raised an eyebrow at this.

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