Chapter 156: A Price Beyond Wealth
Worldly Wave Trace Immortal Gu hung above the auction like bait above deep water.
The entire hall was stirred.
On one side was Fairy You Lan, backed by Prince Feng Xian's name. On the other side was the mysterious first secret room, whose bidder had already revealed rank 8-level confidence.
The seller's demand was absurd.
He wanted 3,000 kilograms of heaven metal, 3,000 kilograms of crack divine water, and a long list of rare immortal materials behind them. Every single material on that list was enough to make ordinary rank 6 Gu Immortals feel numb.
For a moment, even Feng Jiu Ge and the Eastern Sea rank 8 Gu Immortal were silent.
But silence did not mean retreat.
Feng Jiu Ge's gaze flickered coldly. Worldly Wave Trace was one of Water Pavilion's core Immortal Gu. He had come from Central Continent to Northern Plains for this. If he retreated now, the entire journey would lose its meaning.
The Eastern Sea rank 8 also had no intention of leaving empty-handed. To him, Worldly Wave Trace was not merely a movement Gu. It was a stepping stone toward refining World Horizon Immortal Gu, and through that, a path toward easier entry into the immemorial nine heavens.
Both sides quickly sent messages to Qin Bai Sheng.
The exact transaction details were hidden from the hall, but before long, the result was settled.
Feng Jiu Ge obtained what he needed.
Fang Yuan obtained an enormous amount of immortal materials, Eat Strength Immortal Gu, an incomplete wisdom path inheritance, and a portion of vaguely familiar face.
Inside his secret room, Fang Yuan inspected the gains calmly.
Eat Strength Immortal Gu could increase his strength path dao marks. The wisdom path inheritance contained memory thought Gu recipes from rank 1 to rank 5, as well as a remnant recipe for Reminiscence Immortal Gu. As for vaguely familiar face, although it was incomplete, Fang Yuan was already satisfied.
He had unfamiliar face as foundation. He had wisdom Gu's light. He had transformation path attainment. Even if he could not obtain the full inheritance of Thieving Heaven Demon Venerable, he could still use this fragment as reference and remodel it into something suitable for himself.
At the same time, in another room, Feng Jiu Ge quietly stored away the Water Pavilion-related Immortal Gu he had obtained.
His expression remained unchanged.
He had paid a great price, but compared to the mission of Spirit Affinity House, it was worth it.
The auction continued.
A few more Immortal Gu passed through the stage. Some were sold smoothly, while one failed to find a buyer at all. Even in this grand auction, not every Immortal Gu could meet a suitable owner.
Finally, Qin Bai Sheng stood on the platform again.
His voice spread through the hall.
"Next, we shall begin the auction of the essence of the luck path true inheritance."
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Many Gu Immortals who had been leaning back sat upright. Some secretly changed rooms, while others activated concealment methods again.
Luck path was too special.
It was the path created by Giant Sun Immortal Venerable, and it had always been hidden deeply. Even a fragment of it could change the future of a force.
The first luck path item appeared.
"This is a set of Luck Inspection Gu recipes. It contains rank 1 to rank 5 mortal recipes, as well as a remnant rank 7 Luck Inspection Immortal Gu recipe."
The hall immediately grew noisy.
Luck was formless. Ordinary inspection methods could not see it. But if one could inspect luck, then choosing disciples, subordinates, partners, and inheritors would gain another standard beyond aptitude, talent, temperament, and background.
Large forces understood the value first.
Inside his secret room, Fang Ming's gaze moved.
Luck Inspection Gu recipes were useful.
Eagle Sect was still young. It needed disciples, immortal seeds, and a proper system to identify those worth investing in. Fang Ming joined the bidding, and his first bid was not low. Several Gu Immortals immediately noticed another secret room entering the competition.
But the price rose quickly.
Large forces were far more interested than Fang Ming expected. For them, Luck Inspection Gu could be used across huge territories. They had countless mortal clans, branch families, sect disciples, wandering Gu Masters, and descendants. If they could identify people with strong fortune, they could invest early, recruit early, and harvest future gains.
Fang Ming quickly calculated the value, then stopped.
His Eagle Sect was different.
Most of his disciples lived inside his immortal aperture. Once they entered his aperture, their connection to the outside world was heavily cut off. Even if they originally had some future fortuitous encounter, that opportunity might vanish entirely after being brought into his world.
Inside Fang Ming's aperture, the greatest opportunity was Fang Ming himself.
The contribution system, eagle training, factory formations, dream formations, resource allocation, and immortal guidance all came from him. In that kind of environment, luck was not useless, but it was not worth fighting super forces over.
Aptitude, loyalty, endurance, mental stability, and usefulness mattered more.
Fang Ming leaned back and let the bidding continue without him.
The Luck Inspection recipes eventually went to a rank 8 expert under conditions that made many forces reluctantly retreat.
Fang Ming watched silently.
Some opportunities were worth chasing.
Some were not.
The next few luck path items appeared one after another. Some caused fierce bidding, while others were strange enough that the hall became cautious.
Then Qin Bai Sheng introduced another Immortal Gu.
"Fortune and Misfortune Comes in Waves Immortal Gu. Rank 6 luck path. The seller wishes to exchange it for a defensive Immortal Gu, preferably metal path or a metal-related variant."
The image of the Gu appeared above the platform.
It looked like a small jade-blue wave curled around a black stone. Every few breaths, the wave rose and fell. When it brightened, the Gu Immortals watching it felt a faint sense of ease. When it darkened, a subtle pressure spread from it, as if disaster were hiding inside the tide.
Many Gu Immortals watched silently at first.
Luck path Immortal Gu were rare, and even troublesome luck path Gu had research value.
But after Qin Bai Sheng explained its effect, the atmosphere quickly changed.
Fortune and Misfortune Comes in Waves could only be used by rank 6 Gu Immortals. That alone narrowed its value. Worse still, the user had to be a newly promoted rank 6 who had not yet passed their first heavenly tribulation.
Once activated, this Gu would divide fortune and misfortune into waves. The Gu Immortal would no longer walk through the ordinary rhythm of earthly calamities and heavenly tribulations. Instead, calamities and tribulations would arrive in a continuous sequence, forcing the user to face at least 20 earthly calamities and 3 heavenly tribulations without stopping.
The final heavenly tribulation would even have its strength increased by 100%.
At first glance, this Gu seemed to offer a road to rapid accumulation. If a newly promoted rank 6 survived, their dao marks would surge forward, allowing them to skip years of slow growth. But the moment everyone thought deeper, they understood why the seller was willing to exchange it.
Who could survive it?
Most newly promoted rank 6 Gu Immortals did not even possess an Immortal Gu. Many struggled bitterly against their first earthly calamity, let alone 20 earthly calamities and 3 heavenly tribulations in one continuous chain. As for the final heavenly tribulation being doubled in strength, that was enough to make even confident Gu Immortals feel cold.
This was not fortune.
This was a death road covered in a thin layer of gold.
Some Gu Immortals shook their heads. Some laughed softly. Others looked interested for a moment before giving up.
The Gu was not useless, but its usable range was too narrow. It required a newly promoted rank 6 who had not passed the first heavenly tribulation, while also needing that person to possess terrifying battle strength, multiple Immortal Gu, abundant preparation, and enough foundation to survive a continuous disaster.
Such a person was almost impossible to find.
And even if such a person existed, why would they willingly step onto this kind of death road?
Inside his secret room, Fang Ming's eyes shone.
For others, Fortune and Misfortune Comes in Waves was a death-plague Gu. For him, it was different.
Fang Ming was still rank 6, and he had not yet passed his first heavenly tribulation. More importantly, his foundation could not be compared to ordinary newly promoted Gu Immortals. He possessed multiple Immortal Gu, clone methods, eagle groups, formation support spread through his aperture, large stores of one-time-use tattoo killer moves, and a constantly expanding resource base.
Even so, Fang Ming did not think this Gu could be used casually.
Facing 20 earthly calamities and 3 heavenly tribulations in waves was madness. The final heavenly tribulation being strengthened by 100% made it even more terrifying.
But if he could survive it in the future, the benefits would be enormous.
His dao mark accumulation would surge directly. When he eventually advanced to rank 7, he might not be a weak early rank 7. He could enter rank 7 with a foundation close to the peak of that rank.
This Gu was not suitable for most people.
It was only suitable for someone who was mad enough, rich enough, and prepared enough to challenge a death trap for future foundation.
Fang Ming sent a message to Qin Bai Sheng.
"I offer Metallic Skin Immortal Gu."
Metallic Skin Gu was a defensive Immortal Gu, a variant between strength path and metal path. It strengthened the body like metal while retaining a strength path foundation. It was not Fang Ming's strongest defensive Gu, but it matched the seller's request very well.
The seller hesitated only briefly.
There were few other bidders. The Gu was too dangerous, and its conditions were too strict. Even if many people wanted luck path Gu for research, they were unwilling to exchange a suitable defensive Immortal Gu for something so difficult to use.
Soon, the transaction was completed.
Fang Ming lost Metallic Skin Immortal Gu and obtained Fortune and Misfortune Comes in Waves Immortal Gu.
He stored it carefully.
He would not use it now.
Not even close.
This Gu was a knife hanging above his own neck. But if he could one day hold that knife properly, it might cut open a shortcut that ordinary Gu Immortals would never dare to imagine.
The auction continued.
Then came the true fierce competition.
"Reverse Misfortune Immortal Gu," Qin Bai Sheng announced. "Rank 7 luck path. It can turn bad luck into good luck."
The hall shook.
Reverse Misfortune.
For ordinary Gu Immortals, this was already priceless. For those with bad luck, dangerous cultivation methods, or special drawbacks, this Gu could change fate itself.
Fang Yuan's eyes narrowed.
Spring Autumn Cicada brought bad luck to its user. Reverse Misfortune would suit him greatly, perhaps even better than many Gu in the entire auction.
But he could only watch.
He did not have the wealth to compete.
Inside another secret room, Fang Ming's eyes became sharp.
Reverse Misfortune also suited him.
The more Fang Ming relied on Copy, Virtual Refinement, dream exploration, dual aperture development, totem production, Eagle Sect's expansion, and his growing aperture economy, the more invisible dangers gathered around him. His methods gave him terrifying growth, but they also created more chances for bad luck, hidden variables, and sudden disasters to ruin plans that looked flawless on the surface.
Reverse Misfortune was not merely useful.
It was worth fighting for.
Fang Ming activated the bidding Gu.
"I offer Tyrannical Strength Immortal Gu."
The hall stirred.
Strength path was declining, but this Gu was not ordinary. Tyrannical Strength Gu could boost strength-related Gu and serve as the core for many types of immortal killer moves. It could be used for attack, defense, movement, escape, investigation, and control. It was broad, fierce, and powerful.
This was the Immortal Gu Fang Ming had gained when he ascended as a ten extreme physique with deep accumulation.
Its appearance immediately drew attention.
In the main hall, Chu Du's gaze sharpened.
Domination Immortal understood strength path better than almost anyone present. The moment Tyrannical Strength Gu appeared, he knew its value.
A private message was sent toward Fang Ming's secret room.
At almost the same time, another message came.
Fang Yuan also wanted Tyrannical Strength Gu.
Fang Ming saw both messages and ignored them.
His attention was completely on Reverse Misfortune.
The bidding rose quickly. Five Elements Grandmaster entered, and others followed. Fang Ming added 10 Ironclad one-time-use defensive killer move totems, causing the hall to stir even more fiercely than before.
Ten Ironclad totems had already shocked the auction once.
Now another 10 appeared.
The mysterious bidder in the secret room actually had 20 Ironclad totems in total? No, perhaps even more.
This was no longer simply wealth.
Ironclad totems were life-saving items. Their resale price remained high because supply was limited and demand was overwhelming. Most Gu Immortals who bought them kept them as trump cards instead of reselling them.
To gather 10 was difficult.
To gather 20 was astonishing.
Fang Ming then added 3 desolate hounds.
The offer became terrifying. Even some rank 7 Gu Immortals were moved. In terms of total value, Fang Ming's bid was already extremely high. Some even felt it exceeded Five Elements Grandmaster's offer.
But Qin Bai Sheng's expression did not change much.
Reverse Misfortune's seller wanted metal path Immortal Gu.
Five Elements Grandmaster cultivated metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Among his collection were metal path Gu that suited the seller far better.
This was not a normal auction.
It was a seller's market.
The highest total value did not guarantee victory.
After several rounds, the decision came.
Reverse Misfortune Immortal Gu went to Five Elements Grandmaster.
Fang Ming sat silently in his secret room.
His face was unsightly.
He had offered enough.
More than enough.
But not what the seller wanted.
For a breath, the room was very quiet.
Then Fang Ming exhaled slowly.
This was also a lesson.
In treasure yellow heaven, wealth could solve many things. In an Immortal Gu auction, wealth was only one part.
Need decided value.
And his resources, no matter how rich, could not satisfy every seller.
The auction continued.
"Next, Blessing in Disguise Immortal Gu," Qin Bai Sheng announced. "Rank 7 luck path. It targets calamities and tribulations."
The image of the Gu appeared.
Qin Bai Sheng explained its effect.
If activated before a calamity or tribulation, and the Gu Immortal survived, the dao mark gains afterward would increase by 50%. But in exchange, the calamity or tribulation would become 30% stronger.
The hall fell into a strange silence.
Then the silence exploded.
For weak Gu Immortals, this Gu was terrifying. For strong Gu Immortals, it was irresistible. Tribulations were dangerous, but they were also the core of immortal cultivation. Dao marks obtained from tribulations were permanent foundation.
A 50% increase in dao mark gains meant faster growth.
A 30% increase in danger meant greater risk.
For those who lacked confidence, this Gu was a poison chalice. For those with enough confidence, it was a shortcut.
Fang Ming's gaze sharpened.
Blessing in Disguise was useful to him.
Very useful.
With his foundation, formations, clones, resources, and preparation ability, Fang Ming was more confident than most Gu Immortals in facing stronger tribulations. If he used this Gu properly, every successful calamity or tribulation could bring greater dao mark rewards.
But Fang Ming's eyes did not only contain desire.
There was calculation hidden beneath them.
This Gu was not like Reverse Misfortune. Reverse Misfortune could help correct hidden danger and bad luck, protecting his plans from invisible disaster. Blessing in Disguise was different. Its power was narrow, direct, and tied to calamities and tribulations. It demanded that the user willingly increase danger in exchange for greater foundation.
Most Gu Immortals feared it and desired it at the same time.
But certain experts would value it far more than ordinary people.
Fang Ming's gaze moved quietly across the hall and paused for only an instant.
Heavenly Lord Bai Zu had entered the bidding almost immediately.
That was enough.
A Gu's value was not only decided by how useful it was to oneself. Sometimes, its greatest value came from how badly another expert wanted it.
Fang Ming did not show any change in expression.
But in his heart, the decision was already made.
He wanted Blessing in Disguise. It could strengthen his own future, but that was not the only reason. There was another use, one that could not be shown here and needed patience.
He entered the bidding immediately.
This time, he did not test lightly. He fought fiercely from the start, and other Gu Immortals followed. The price rose rapidly. Soon, most rank 6 Gu Immortals became spectators, and then most rank 7s withdrew.
The final competitors became Fang Ming and Heavenly Lord Bai Zu.
One was a rank 8 enslavement path expert with deep accumulation. The other was a mysterious rank 6 whose wealth and methods had repeatedly shocked the hall.
If this continued normally, Fang Ming might lose again.
And if he lost, Blessing in Disguise would fall into Heavenly Lord Bai Zu's hands.
Fang Ming did not want that.
He changed methods.
A private message was sent.
"Senior Bai Zu, if you withdraw now, I will gift 3 desolate hounds. No conditions. No oath beyond the transaction itself."
Heavenly Lord Bai Zu paused.
Three desolate hounds were not enough to move him normally. But the current price had already gone far beyond ordinary value. Continuing meant paying an increasingly unreasonable cost. Fang Ming's offer, on the other hand, was free profit.
Three desolate beasts for stepping aside.
And Fang Ming was already paying 2 top-tier Immortal Gu for 1 Gu.
Heavenly Lord Bai Zu laughed softly.
"Interesting."
He withdrew.
The hall stirred.
Many Gu Immortals did not know what had happened, but they sensed that some private agreement had been reached.
Fang Ming did not relax.
He completed the transaction through Qin Bai Sheng.
For Blessing in Disguise Immortal Gu, he paid Domineering Strength Immortal Gu, Strength Specter Immortal Gu, and 10 Ironclad one-time-use defensive totems. Separately, 3 desolate hounds were transferred to Heavenly Lord Bai Zu.
When the transaction was done, Blessing in Disguise Immortal Gu entered Fang Ming's hands.
He looked at it quietly.
The price was heavy.
Domineering Strength Gu was the counterpart to Tyrannical Strength Gu, a valuable Gu in his strength path system. Strength Specter Gu hurt even more. It had been copied from Hei Lou Lan's Self Strength Phantom Gu, and when used with Myriad Clones Immortal Gu, it could create a killer move that made Fang Ming's clones capable of close-range fighting without being destroyed easily.
If combined with Steel Physique Gu's effect, the clones became extremely annoying to deal with. They were hard to destroy, hard to disperse, and resistant against many area-of-effect methods. They could pressure enemies at close range while Fang Ming attacked from a distance.
Losing Strength Specter Gu weakened his immediate combat strength.
If he wanted it again, he would need to copy it from Hei Lou Lan next month.
The 10 Ironclad totems were not cheap either. They were life-saving goods, battle capital, trade capital, and reputation capital.
Now they were gone.
Yet Fang Ming did not regret it.
Immediate combat strength could be rebuilt. Ironclad totems could be produced again. Strength Specter could be copied again if the chance appeared.
But some opportunities could not be bought later.
Some pieces had to be held before others realized how badly they needed them.
Fang Ming stored Blessing in Disguise carefully, and his expression slowly returned to calm.
Inside the secret room, no aura leaked out.
No light appeared.
No one noticed anything unusual.
But Fang Ming had already used Counterfeit Copy.
A true copy of Blessing in Disguise was beyond his current level. The Gu was rank 7, and its luck path effect was profound. With Fang Ming's current rank 6 foundation, copying it perfectly was impossible. But Counterfeit Copy did not need to recreate the full original. It only needed to preserve part of the concept in a weaker and flawed form.
A new Immortal Gu formed silently.
Blessing and Misfortune Come Hand in Hand Immortal Gu.
Its effect was clearly weaker than Blessing in Disguise. Blessing in Disguise could increase dao mark gains by 50% for the price of increasing calamity or tribulation strength by 30%. Blessing and Misfortune Come Hand in Hand could only increase dao mark gains by 30%, while still increasing the calamity or tribulation strength by the same 30%.
The efficiency was far worse.
For ordinary Gu Immortals, this was almost insulting. Why suffer the same danger for a smaller reward?
But Fang Ming did not look down on it.
A weaker Immortal Gu was still an Immortal Gu. More importantly, this counterfeit version belonged to him completely. He could study it, use it, combine it with his own methods, and compare it with the original.
One gave greater reward.
The other gave him a safer research foundation.
Fang Ming stored both Gu away.
His future calamity planning had changed again.
More luck path Immortal Gu appeared afterward.
Fortuitous Encounter, Luck Deduction, Luck Suppression, and other luck path Gu broadened the vision of the Gu Immortals present. Fang Ming was interested in more than one of them, but he no longer acted rashly.
He had underestimated this auction.
Too much of his recent attention had been consumed by dream path, dream formations, dream materials, dream Gu production, formation path advancement, refinement path arrangements, and aperture development. He had come prepared, but not prepared enough.
He had thought old rank 7 Gu Immortals usually had only a few thousand immortal essence stones' worth of mobilizable wealth. Now he understood how shallow that thought was. Many old rank 7s could mobilize tens of thousands in value, while rank 8 experts were on another level entirely. They had centuries of accumulation, immortal apertures that produced mountains of resources, connections across regions, rare Gu hidden for years, and materials that could shake markets in treasure yellow heaven.
Fang Ming's income was terrifying for a rank 6.
But he was still young.
He was rich, but his wealth was constantly being converted into foundation. Copy consumed resources. Virtual Refinement consumed even more. His sect, factories, dream path, apertures, formations, and beast systems all swallowed wealth like bottomless mouths.
He had won Blessing in Disguise.
He had obtained Fortune and Misfortune Comes in Waves.
He had created Blessing and Misfortune Come Hand in Hand.
But he had also been slapped awake.
This was a once-in-a-century auction, and he had not prepared for it with the seriousness it deserved.
After that, Fang Ming gradually became like many other Gu Immortals.
A spectator.
Not because he had nothing left, but because the remaining sellers did not necessarily want what he could offer. Many of his Gu were strength path, and even among strength path Gu Immortals, his branch was unusual. His methods focused on heavy ranged attacks, high immortal essence expenditure, clone support, and distance control. Even Chu Du might not want some of his Gu.
Different branches of the same path could still be far apart.
Thus Fang Ming watched.
He watched rank 8 experts throw out offers that made the main hall numb. He watched super forces compete with hidden reserves. He watched the true depth of Northern Plains reveal itself.
Finally, Qin Bai Sheng raised his voice.
"The next item is the final, and most important item of this auction."
All discussion ceased.
On the platform, 2 unconscious mortals appeared.
One was a young man.
The other was a young woman.
Ma Hong Yun.
Zhao Lian Yun.
Many Gu Immortals' gazes changed instantly.
Qin Bai Sheng introduced them calmly.
Zhao Lian Yun had obtained part of the luck path true inheritance. Ma Hong Yun was the recognized inheritor of the luck path true inheritance. More importantly, Fortune Rivalling Heaven Immortal Gu had been used on him.
The hall erupted.
Fortune Rivalling Heaven.
Giant Sun Immortal Venerable's legendary luck path trump card.
Qin Bai Sheng continued. The complete recipe was not present, but the inheritance contained a method to reverse refine the used Fortune Rivalling Heaven Immortal Gu.
The main material would be Ma Hong Yun himself.
The gazes toward Ma Hong Yun became burning hot.
Fang Ming looked at him from his secret room.
He did not bid.
Not even once.
This was no opportunity.
This was a calamity wearing human skin.
Ma Hong Yun was a hot potato that even rank 8 experts might burn their hands trying to hold. Old Ancestor Xue Hu would later nearly ruin himself trying to refine Fortune Rivalling Heaven. If Fang Ming touched Ma Hong Yun now, he would be dragged into conflicts involving Snowy Mountain, Huang Jin tribes, Giant Sun's arrangements, Central Continent, rank 8 experts, and heaven knew how many hidden schemes.
He wanted opportunities.
Not death.
The bidding began.
Someone shouted 300 immortal essence stones.
Then Fairy You Lan's cold voice sounded.
"30,000 immortal essence stones."
The weak were instantly cleared out.
But the true competitors remained.
Yao Huang, Five Elements Grandmaster, Heavenly Lord Bai Zu, Old Ancestor Xue Hu, Feng Jiu Ge under Fairy You Lan's identity, and representatives of super forces entered the competition one after another. The price climbed beyond reason, turning into a contest ordinary Gu Immortals could no longer understand.
Fang Yuan also watched silently.
He had once caused the Imperial Court blessed land incident himself. He understood much of the truth and knew the temptation of Fortune Rivalling Heaven. But he could not compete. Even if he could, refining rank 8 Fortune Rivalling Heaven was far beyond him. Protecting it afterward would be even harder.
The bidding lasted for a long time.
In the end, Zhao Lian Yun was obtained by Feng Jiu Ge.
Ma Hong Yun was obtained by Old Ancestor Xue Hu.
Many Huang Jin bloodline Gu Immortals could only watch, faces ugly and hearts burning with unwillingness.
Giant Sun Immortal Venerable had hidden luck path deeply. He had wanted his inheritance to remain with his descendants. But now, the inheritance was incomplete, its pieces were scattered, and the key people had fallen into the hands of outsiders.
Zhao Lian Yun fell into the hands of a Central Continent infiltrator.
Ma Hong Yun fell into the hands of Northern Plains' number one demonic path expert.
The Huang Jin bloodline failed to secure the key pieces.
The auction hall remained bright, and the platform remained calm.
But in that moment, the irony was colder than winter wind across Northern Plains.
The luck path inheritance of Giant Sun had finally appeared before the world, yet the ones who grasped it were not the descendants he had intended.