"Here, the Flowing Water Sect is making a bid," Wood said, pointing to a private room where the sound originated. "Their strength ranks fifth in the entire empire."
Wood explained this primarily because Ye Fan was new to the area.
Talent like Ye Fan was destined for greatness.
Once his identity was revealed, people would be scrambling to get acquainted with him!
Seizing the advantage of proximity, Wood naturally wanted to make a good impression.
Ye Fan, however, was unconcerned with these matters.
He only wanted to see how much his pill would eventually sell for.
This was, in fact, the first time he had seriously brought something to an auction since his transmigration.
Although he knew that the inheritance in this world was severely fragmented, he hadn't really researched the specific market conditions.
Even though money wasn't his primary goal for this trip, the price could still provide a lot of information.
"Two hundred and fifty thousand!"
As soon as the Flowing Water Sect finished speaking, new bids quickly followed.
"Three hundred and fifty thousand!"
"Four hundred and fifty thousand!"
"Five hundred and fifty thousand!"
...
Several voices chimed in almost simultaneously from different private rooms.
And they were already bidding in increments of one hundred thousand!
A hint of confusion arose in Ye Fan's heart.
It wasn't surprising that so many people were interested in the Breakthrough Pill, given its excellent effects.
But the problem was the vast disparity in strength between these sects. How did those ranked lower dare to compete with the higher-ranked ones?
Even if they could acquire it now, wouldn't they fear retaliation later?
Take their Great Liang Empire for example.
The sect that ranked first back then occupied tens of times more resources and territory than other sects!
The land left for other sects was not only of lower resource quality but also produced very little.
To put it bluntly, it was merely what the top sect disdained, given to them to appease them.
After all, this was the world of cultivation.
Whoever had the stronger fist, dictated the truth.
"It's like this," perhaps sensing Ye Fan's confusion, Liang Rujing explained, "The major sect powers in the Yard Empire are actually quite evenly matched. Unless absolutely necessary, no one will initiate conflict lightly."
"I see."
Ye Fan nodded with realization.
If that were the case, it made sense.
Adding an additional cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage was certainly beneficial, but the cost of fighting over it would be too great.
If both sides fought to the death, it would only benefit others.
It was somewhat akin to the era of warring states.
The price continued to soar.
"Seven hundred and fifty thousand!"
The bid came from the Flowing Water Sect again.
From this bid, it seemed they were determined to acquire it.
"Nine hundred thousand!"
Unfortunately, it appeared they weren't the only ones determined.
"The one competing with the Flowing Water Sect is the Crimson Flame Sect, ranked third at the auction," Wood introduced. "The son of the Flowing Water Sect's Grand Elder has been stuck at the peak of the Void Refinement stage for over five hundred years, and the Crimson Flame Sect's Sect Master's direct disciple is in a similar situation."
As he spoke, Wood felt a surge of excitement.
He had initially expected the Breakthrough Pill to fetch a good price, but he never anticipated it would be this high!
After all, a sixth-tier pill that appeared hundreds of years ago only sold for fifty thousand high-grade spirit stones!
And this was just a sixth-tier Breakthrough Pill…
Don't forget, there were still two seventh-tier heavyweights coming up!
Wood knew that today's auction would set an unprecedented record!
And it would likely remain unbroken for a very long time!
Inside the Flowing Water Sect's private room.
"Nine hundred and fifty thousand!"
The Grand Elder gritted his teeth and announced another figure.
This time, he only increased the bid by fifty thousand.
He was, after all, just an elder, and the funds he could command were certainly not as vast as those of the Sect Master.
Although nine hundred and fifty thousand wouldn't bankrupt him, it would certainly cause him considerable pain for a long time…
But for his son, he couldn't afford to hesitate!
Competition within the sect was also fierce.
The fact that he had become Grand Elder meant he had accumulated many grievances along the way.
And his son, it was likely that he would never reach the Nascent Soul stage in his lifetime.
If he were to fall one day, his son's future would be precarious!
While he wouldn't be outright killed, his future life would undoubtedly be difficult.
However, once he broke through to the Nascent Soul stage, such worries would disappear!
Even if it meant losing everything, he had to secure this Breakthrough Pill today!
Inside the Crimson Flame Sect's private room.
"Nine hundred and ninety thousand," the Crimson Flame Sect's Sect Master casually followed suit.
"Master, I've been experiencing subtle signs of breakthrough recently," his disciple said, confused. "While the Breakthrough Pill is good, I don't seem to need it, do I?"
"My path," the Crimson Flame Sect Master replied casually. "Initially, I planned to buy it as a safeguard for you. Since the Flowing Water Sect desires it so much, let's indulge them."
As a master, he was, of course, aware of his disciple's imminent breakthrough.
In fact, the Crimson Flame Sect Master had never intended to acquire this Breakthrough Pill from the start.
His bidding was purely to annoy the Flowing Water Sect's Grand Elder.
In a previous competition, his disciple had lost to the Flowing Water Sect Grand Elder's son.
This had caused him to lose face.
However, he couldn't directly intervene in a spar between juniors.
One could only say…
Cultivation could enhance one's strength, but it couldn't broaden one's petty mind…
Compared to the Breakthrough Pill, he was more interested in the next two items!
The cultivators in the main hall became excited!
That was nine hundred and ninety thousand high-grade spirit stones!
A fortune they could never earn in a lifetime!
They didn't know the cost of a sixth-tier Breakthrough Pill, but it certainly wouldn't be hundreds of thousands.
Damn it!
They knew alchemists were profitable, but they never imagined it was *this* profitable!
This could no longer be called making money; it was practically robbery!
Perhaps they should go try their luck later and see if they could become alchemists?
...
"One million!" The Flowing Water Sect's Grand Elder gritted his teeth and shouted a new bid.
This one million was almost his limit.
After making this bid, he knew that the next two items were out of his reach…
But for his son, he couldn't afford to worry about that!
As if by agreement, once the bid of one million was made, no one else followed.
"One million, first call." Seeing the room quiet down, the auctioneer spoke. "Are there any further bids?"
Unfortunately, no one responded…
"One million, second call."
Still no one spoke.
His extensive experience told him that this was likely the end.
"One million, third call."
"Thud!"
The gavel fell.
"Congratulations to the Flowing Water Sect for acquiring the sixth-tier top-grade Breakthrough Pill at the price of one million!"
"Clap, clap, clap!"
The venue erupted in warm applause.
Inside the Supreme Private Room.
"Congratulations, Young Master!" Wood quickly offered his congratulations to Ye Fan.
After all, that was one million high-grade spirit stones!
Converted to low-grade spirit stones, it was a staggering ten billion!
Enough to smash many people to death…
Such a terrifying transaction figure hadn't occurred in thousands of years!
Ye Fan's expression was somewhat peculiar.
He had previously estimated that even a rare sixth-tier pill might fetch around two to three hundred thousand at most.
This was largely due to the severe fragmentation of inheritance on this continent.
If it were in his previous world, a sixth-tier pill would only sell for a maximum of one to two thousand high-grade spirit stones…
This was simply faster than robbing a bank!
Before leaving the Cloud Blossom Sect, the pills he had consumed included quite a few seventh and eighth-tier ones.
He had practically wasted tens of millions of dollars…
The bad news was that if he were to refine even higher-tier items in the future, pricing them would become problematic.
It was like bringing a Dirac hyper-plane to Earth and trying to sell it; no matter how much he sold it for, it would feel like a loss…
It was all his damn constitution's fault!
If he could cultivate, he wouldn't have these worries!
As the applause subsided, a maid once again brought a tray to the auctioneer.
Everyone's minds were racing.
The tray was still covered with a red cloth, but it appeared flat, suggesting the item inside was very small.
The word "pill" immediately flashed through everyone's minds!
If it came after a sixth-tier pill, wouldn't it be…
Seventh-tier!!!