Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Qi Condensing Pill

Since he wanted to obtain the Intermediate Space Stone and the Transformation Stone, Yang Xiao naturally decided to participate in the auction. However, he did not join at the beginning because Ren Jing’s starting price was not very high—around fifty thousand spirit stones—attracting quite a few contenders. After several rounds of bidding, only three cultivators remained vying for the items, and the price had already risen to two hundred thousand spirit stones.

Yang Xiao glanced at the remaining bidders: one was a middle-aged cultivator dressed in black, another was a burly man with a full beard, and the last was a man in his thirties with sharp, triangular eyes.

With only three competitors left, Yang Xiao joined the bidding, offering two hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones.

Once Yang Xiao entered the fray, four parties competed fiercely, and the price quickly doubled to five hundred thousand spirit stones. At this point, the bearded man was the first to withdraw from the auction, no longer raising his bid.

Now, only three remained, including Yang Xiao. After several more rounds, when the price reached eight hundred thousand spirit stones, the middle-aged man in black shook his head, feeling the price had climbed too high, so he too withdrew from the contest for the Intermediate Space Stone and Transformation Stone.

In the end, only Yang Xiao and the triangular-eyed cultivator remained. This time, Yang Xiao was determined to win, no matter the cost. He consistently outbid his rival. When Yang Xiao finally shouted a bid of one million spirit stones, the triangular-eyed man reluctantly gave up. He understood that no matter how much more he offered, Yang Xiao would always top his price. Though the Intermediate Space Stone and Transformation Stone were precious, they were not worth such an exorbitant amount.

Seeing Yang Xiao’s one million spirit stone bid, the other cultivators fell silent. Ren Jing smiled sweetly and announced, “Since no one else will raise the price, these two items—the Intermediate Space Stone and the Transformation Stone—belong to the highest bidder. After the auction concludes, this cultivator may find me to complete the transaction—payment for the spirit stones and delivery of the goods.”

The sale of the Intermediate Space Stone and Transformation Stone sparked much discussion among the crowd. Most believed Yang Xiao had overpaid, estimating the true value at around five hundred thousand spirit stones. After all, forging a spiritual treasure was exceedingly difficult; a tenfold attempt resulting in a single success was considered fortunate. With such a low success rate, attempting to create a spiritual treasure with just two stones was practically impossible in their eyes. Thus, no one else was willing to pay such an inflated price for what seemed like worthless items.

Following this, Ren Jing presented a series of valuable items—materials for pill refining and artifact forging, and even some remarkably rare cultivation techniques. These treasures undoubtedly attracted fierce bidding from many cultivators. Yet, Yang Xiao remained disinterested and did not make a move.

It was not until Ren Jing produced a pill formula beneficial for Qi Condensation stage cultivators that Yang Xiao’s attention was piqued.

“This pill formula is an ancient recipe called the Qi Condensation Pill,” Ren Jing announced, her eyes sweeping the crowd. “It is a secret formula from ancient times used by Qi Condensation cultivators to enhance their cultivation. If anyone is interested, please bid. The starting price for this ancient formula is thirty thousand spirit stones.”

“Your shop truly sells everything—even pill formulas. The name ‘Qi Condensation Pill’ sounds promising, seemingly tailored for Qi Condensation cultivators. But how does its effect compare to the currently popular Fate Pills from major sects? Also, since this is an ancient formula, the ingredients must be ancient spiritual herbs, which have long since vanished. How are we to gather them? If we obtain the formula but cannot collect the herbs, what use is the formula?” A white-bearded elder directed these questions to Ren Jing.

“Ah, Elder Xu,” Ren Jing responded, clearly recognizing the questioner. She explained in detail, “Elder Xu’s concerns are indeed sharp, but I shall address them one by one. Our Treasure Pavilion has conducted investigations. Although the formula is ancient, the herbs listed can still be gathered today. It will not be easy and may come at a high cost, but the ingredients are attainable. This means the formula is not worthless and retains considerable value. That is why our Treasure Pavilion chose to auction it. If it were a useless formula, we would never tarnish our reputation by deceiving you all. As for the Qi Condensation Pill’s efficacy, it might be slightly inferior to the Fate Pill but not by much. Remember, the secret to the Fate Pill is tightly held by the major sects and never shared externally. Therefore, this Qi Condensation Pill formula still holds significant worth.”

Ren Jing’s thorough explanation gave everyone a clear understanding of the formula, sparking active bidding once more. Naturally, Yang Xiao joined in.

Perhaps because fewer pill refiners had come to the auction this time, or because, as Ren Jing said, gathering the ingredients was difficult, the bidding for the Qi Condensation Pill formula was not as intense as for the stones. Ultimately, Yang Xiao secured the formula for four hundred thousand spirit stones.

Ren Jing then introduced several other auction items, all rare treasures of the heavens and earth, exceedingly difficult to find. Near the end, she even put forth a spiritual treasure for auction. Although it was only a low-grade spiritual treasure, it attracted fierce competition among cultivators. In the end, it sold for ten million spirit stones—the highest price achieved during the entire auction—a truly astronomical sum. Evidently, this treasure was won by a disciple from a prominent sect or powerful noble family; no ordinary cultivator could afford such a price.

Though Yang Xiao had some savings, after purchasing the Intermediate Space Stone, Transformation Stone, and the Qi Condensation Pill formula, most of his spirit stones were spent. He could not afford anything else. At that moment, he could not help but sigh, realizing he was still quite poor.

When the auction concluded, Yang Xiao went backstage to find Ren Jing. Naturally, he intended to collect the items he had won and hand over the spirit stones for payment.