This time, the layout of the underground auction was quite different from the previous one held near Canglong Mountain—it was clearly on a higher level.
At the end of the tunnel inside the hollowed-out space underground, it wasn't the main venue of the auction that greeted them, but rather a stone gate.
When the guards pushed open the gate, what was revealed behind it was actually a third-rank teleportation array.
The structure of this array was different from those Wei Tu had seen in the teleportation halls of secret realms. This one was a dark-black platform, with a bluish-green light curtain hovering above it. Within the flickering light, one could vaguely make out glimpses of another distant space.
"The Jiu Yun Merchant Guild actually has a third-rank array master? No wonder last time, when Old Freak Jia caused such a stir at the auction, the Jiu Yun Merchant Guild was able to kick him out without facing any resistance…" Wei Tu thought to himself.
He figured, this time, the Guild's deployment of a third-rank teleportation array for the underground auction was meant primarily as a deterrent.
A clear signal to all the rogue Foundation Establishment cultivators that the Jiu Yun Merchant Guild had the backing of a Golden Core cultivator.
After all, in the current state of the Zheng Kingdom's cultivation world, rogue cultivators had become increasingly bold and unpredictable.
In the cultivation world, the hierarchy of individual status, within the same cultivation realm, generally ranked sect cultivators the highest, followed by family cultivators, and at the bottom—rogue cultivators with no background.
However, times had changed. Being a rogue now meant being unburdened—no attachments, no responsibilities. One person fed, the whole clan full.
—Once order broke down, it was these rogue cultivators who often became the root cause of chaos.
They didn't dare oppose the sects openly, but killing sect disciples or family cultivators in secret? That, they certainly had the guts to do.
When Wei Tu stepped out of the teleportation array, a middle-aged scholar standing nearby immediately approached him and greeted him politely.
"Daoist Friend Hong, it's an honor for our Jiu Yun Merchant Guild to have you attend this underground auction."
Wei Tu responded with the same polite tone, "You're too kind."
Hong Wen—that was the alias Wei Tu had adopted for this auction.
He wasn't trying to fool the Jiu Yun Merchant Guild—just the other cultivators who were attending the auction.
The middle-aged scholar's smile faded slightly, and he waved a hand behind him. A beautiful young female cultivator in the Qi Refinement stage stepped forward.
"Miss Qi, this is Senior Hong. You'll be attending to him during the auction. Be sure not to offend him. If you do… your Qi Clan…"
The scholar's tone grew cold at the end, clearly issuing a veiled threat.
"Qi Clan?" Wei Tu raised an eyebrow and casually asked, "Would that be the Xuanhou Qi Clan?"
For rogue cultivators, managing to support themselves was already hard enough. If this Miss Qi were a rogue cultivator, the scholar wouldn't be threatening her using the clan name—he'd simply threaten her directly.
But within the Zheng Kingdom, among all the Foundation Establishment families bearing the surname Qi, only the "Xuanhou Qi Clan" matched the description.
Unlike the Hengshan Huang Clan, who named themselves after a mountain, the term "Xuanhou" referred not to a location but to the second-stage late-phase "Xuan Frost Monkey" the clan had raised for generations.
The Xuan Frost Monkey was a powerful spiritual beast with a nearly thousand-year lifespan. It was the Qi Clan's guardian beast.
"Daoist Friend Hong's eyes are sharp indeed. Miss Qi is indeed from the Xuanhou Qi Clan, and what's more—she is the youngest daughter of the current clan leader…"
"Only, a few years back, the Qi Clan's Xuan Frost Monkey and its Foundation Establishment cultivators all perished on the righteous-versus-demonic battlefield…"
As he spoke, the middle-aged scholar let a faint smile rise on his lips. Clearly, he was subtly reminding Wei Tu that this "Miss Qi" once had high status and was a "premium selection."
Upon hearing this, Wei Tu's face revealed a look of realization.
In these past years of warfare between righteous and demonic forces, clans like the Xuanhou Qi Clan, who had fallen due to the deaths of their Foundation Establishment cultivators, were far from rare.
Without the protection of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, many family cultivators now lived even more pitiful lives than rogue cultivators of the same realm.
Feigning indifference, Wei Tu casually reached out and wrapped his arm around the slender waist of the beautiful young cultivator, then guided her over to a purple sandalwood seat in the corner.
Just earlier, during his chat with the scholar, Wei Tu had already noticed that most male cultivators in the room had a beautiful female cultivator like "Miss Qi" seated by their side.
—If he tried to play the upright gentleman now and rejected the companionship of this Qi Refinement female cultivator, it would only make him stand out even more in this underground auction.
Besides, though Wei Tu hadn't been one to frequent brothels in his mortal days like his second brother Wei Fei, as a military officer, he had attended similar gatherings more than a few times. This kind of scene didn't throw him off.
"This humble woman is Qi Feng."
Qi Feng's body stiffened slightly as she slowly settled herself on Wei Tu's lap. After hesitating for a moment, she softly parted her lips and stated her name.
Though being forced to serve someone like this was a deep humiliation for her, she knew that if she played her cards right, this might be her chance to rise again.
With that thought, a faint flush rose to her cheeks. Recalling some explicit postures from an old secret manual, she gently guided Wei Tu's hand into her clothes.
A soft, full warmth filled his palm. Wei Tu, who was scanning the surrounding cultivators, froze slightly. Reflexively, he gave a couple of light squeezes.
A moment later, realizing what he had just done, Wei Tu's expression stiffened.
He looked toward where Kou Hongying was seated, casting a few quick glances her way. Seeing that she hadn't noticed anything, he let out a silent sigh of relief.
To behave like this in front of his niece… was still a bit embarrassing.
If Kou Hongying hadn't been present, though, this little thing would have been nothing worth mentioning.
Luckily, at that very moment, the appearance of Chai Ping on the auction platform caught everyone's attention, pulling the focus of all the cultivators in the hall and easing Wei Tu's awkwardness.
Sensing that Wei Tu's hand, which had been a bit cold, had quickly withdrawn from her clothes, Qi Feng—who was still trying to please him—suddenly grew uneasy. She couldn't tell why Wei Tu had such a strong reaction.
"Could it be that this Senior Hong doesn't like women?" Qi Feng grew anxious.
For her, this underground auction was the only opportunity to come into contact with unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivators. If she missed this chance, any hope of rising back up in status would be slim.
As for Qi Feng's concerns, Wei Tu paid no mind.
At this moment, his gaze—just like everyone else's—was fixed on the items being displayed on the auction stage.
Chai Ping was poised and graceful. With just a few simple words, she stirred the mood in the venue and quickly sold the first auction item at a high price.
…
Every item that followed was alluring.
But Wei Tu was no longer who he used to be. Common spiritual items hardly interested him anymore. After all, his Foundation Establishment combat system was already well-formed; he didn't need to seek extra tools or methods.
Each item was hotly contested by the cultivators in the audience.
"The next item up for auction is a treasure from heaven and earth that enhances body cultivation—Earth Dragon Flesh."
"This item is a specialty spiritual material from the Dragon Bone Forest in the Cloud Ze Secret Realm. It greatly boosts a cultivator's blood and vitality."
As Chai Ping lifted the red cloth, she revealed a jade box filled with chunks of blood-colored meat.
The moment her voice fell, Wei Tu's eyes lit up.
He immediately raised his sign, entering into fierce bidding with the other cultivators over this rare treasure from the Cloud Ze Secret Realm.
Originally, he came to the underground auction hoping to find other rare body-cultivating treasures.
But he hadn't expected that this time, the auction would actually feature Earth Dragon Flesh—a resource he had previously consumed.
Taking it again wouldn't be as effective, of course, but he figured it would still be enough to push his body cultivation to the second-stage mid-phase.
The bidding for this box of Earth Dragon Flesh escalated quickly, soon reaching one thousand six hundred spirit stones.
"Two thousand one hundred spirit stones."
Wei Tu gritted his teeth and raised the bid by five hundred spirit stones in one go, showing that he was absolutely determined to win it.
A single box of Earth Dragon Flesh had limited potency. He didn't believe that the cultivators competing with him had also reached the "bottleneck" in their physical cultivation like he had.
Most of the competitors were powerful Foundation Establishment cultivators. Their interest in the Earth Dragon Flesh was likely due to their preparations for breaking through to the Golden Core stage.
—If one's blood vitality was insufficient or failing during the Golden Core formation process, taking Earth Dragon Flesh could help alleviate the issue.
However, treasures that replenished vitality weren't limited to Earth Dragon Flesh. There were substitutes.
So when those cultivators saw Wei Tu raise the bid so aggressively, after some hesitation, they chose to put down their signs and stay silent.
"Congratulations to this Daoist friend for winning the Earth Dragon Flesh." Chai Ping smiled and brought the gavel down.
The final price of this Earth Dragon Flesh had far exceeded her expectations.
As for Wei Tu, he didn't mind at all.
As a second-rank mid-grade talisman master, he had plenty of ways to make money. A few hundred spirit stones weren't enough to make him feel any regret—it was still within a range he could afford.
Using spirit stones to exchange for a real increase in strength?
To him, that was well worth it.
After that, Chai Ping brought out several other rare auction items from her storage pouch.
However, none of them caught Wei Tu's eye.
He gave them only a brief glance, then withdrew his gaze, waiting patiently for the final highlight of the underground auction.
…
Half a day later.
All the listed items had been sold—none were left unsold.
The highlight item was about to appear.
"Surely all the Daoist friends here have noticed that the quality of the items at this auction far exceeds those of the previous event…"
"Some items that would've been considered the grand finale in earlier auctions have now become just regular auction lots."
Chai Ping smiled slightly.
Hearing this, the cultivators in the hall silently nodded in agreement with her words.
Judging by what they'd seen, the quality of this underground auction was indeed a notch higher than those in previous years. The two hundred spirit stones they spent on invitation tickets felt worth it.
"I won't keep you in suspense any longer."
"The first highlight of this auction is a damaged magical treasure once belonging to True Lord Cold Wind of the Blood God Cult—the Blood Slaughter Banner!"
"This banner was damaged by True Lord Crescent Moon and is now a broken magical treasure. But as you all surely know, even a broken magical treasure is far more powerful than talisman treasures and the like."
"Some Golden Core cultivators might not gather enough spiritual materials in their entire lives to forge even one magical treasure."
As Chai Ping explained, an elderly man with snow-white hair stepped onto the platform, holding a dark lacquered tray. His expression was wary as he glanced at the red cloth covering the item.
When the cloth was lifted—
A wave of blood-soaked, murderous energy swept through the entire hall.
All the Foundation Establishment cultivators fell silent.
A few whose mental state wasn't strong enough had a faint red glint in their eyes, their spiritual power fluctuating wildly.
That included Qi Feng in Wei Tu's arms.
Wei Tu pondered briefly, then pressed his palm against her smooth back, helping her withstand the pressure from the Golden Core-level magical treasure.