Chapter 724: The Auction

“Have you heard? This auction has a pill that can help an expert in the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm advance a whole stage!”

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Kidding? The pill’s effects are real. I was on Heaven’s Edge Island and saw that battle with my own eyes. Lord Jiang Chen had only just broken through to the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm, but with that pill, he shot straight up to the Middle Stage of the Emperor Realm!”

“Wow! People are going to fight like crazy for it at this auction, then!”

“You’re telling me.”

Similar conversations were happening all over Heaven’s Edge Island.

Countless experts had gathered on Heaven’s Edge Island today, including over a hundred Emperor Realm Powerhouses. The vast majority of them were at the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm.

Of course…

There was no shortage of Late-stage Emperors, and even some at the Emperor Realm Peak.

They all shared the same goal: the Emperor Yuan Pill refined by Jiang Chen.

Inside a luxurious manor.

An old man with white hair and a white beard, dressed in black robes, had a fiery, determined look in his eyes. “I, Yao Yueye, have been in the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm for over one hundred thousand years. My lifespan is nearing its end. Even if I have to go bankrupt, I must get my hands on an Emperor Yuan Pill. I have to break through to the Middle Stage of the Emperor Realm to extend my life!”

He rose to his feet and walked out the door.

A lavishly dressed young man was standing outside the door. He smiled at Yao Yueye. “Demon Elder, are you really willing to sell this mansion? With the current land prices on Heaven’s Edge Island, this place is worth at least this much!”

The young man held up two fingers and wiggled them.

This represented two trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals!

Yao Yueye snorted coldly. “Are you buying it or not?”

“I am! Of course, I’m buying it!”

The young man chuckled, then pulled out a Golden Card and said with a grin, “Then allow me to congratulate you in advance, Demon Elder, on acquiring the Emperor Yuan Pill!”

“Hmph!”

Yao Yueye took the Golden Card, turned, and walked away.

The young man looked around, a smile spreading across his face. ‘Now I own property on Heaven’s Edge Island, too. Hmph, what’s so great about the family clan? They just force me to cultivate all day. It’s much more carefree here. Hmm, that auction should have some good stuff. I’ll go check it out later!’

…

As noon approached, all the experts began to converge on the Heaven’s Edge Sea Pavilion’s auction hall.

An invitation was required to enter the Heaven’s Edge Sea Pavilion’s auction hall.

Of course…

If one hadn’t received an invitation, they could also purchase a spot from Heaven’s Edge Sea Pavilion. The price for each spot ranged from the Low-level tier of one hundred thousand Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals to the High-level tier of one hundred million Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals.

And that was just the price of admission!

Duann Tianya’s wealth was truly unimaginable!

Jiang Chen was naturally in the most prestigious Venerable private room. Duann Tianya and Hai Zheng were already present, and their eyes lit up upon his arrival.

They looked Jiang Chen up and down.

Duann Tianya nodded and said with a smile, “Congratulations, Younger Brother Jiang. Your cultivation has improved greatly!”

Hai Zheng also had a look of astonishment. “Younger Brother Jiang, is your strength now on par with mine?”

He was a Sea Dragon at the Emperor Realm Peak, with combat power comparable to some Emperor Realm Perfection Level experts at the Peak of First Refining!

Jiang Chen smiled and said, “I’ve had a bit of a breakthrough. And I have Brother Duann to thank for his help!”

Duann Tianya waved his hand dismissively and then said, “The auction has already begun.”

“Mm!”

Jiang Chen took his seat and turned his attention to the auction.

The appearance of some Spirit Treasures and Spirit Medicines didn’t interest Jiang Chen. His physical body was already comparable to a Divine Soldier, and he possessed the Ancient Azure Dragon Sword, so he naturally didn’t care about the Profound Weapon Class items.

As for pills…

Unless it was a Seventh Grade Divine Pill, it would be of little use to him!

Hearing the soaring prices from below, Hai Zheng couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh with emotion. “Master Duann, no wonder people say you’re the wealthiest person in the Azure Sky Sea. It’s only been a short while, and the total value of items sold has already surpassed one hundred trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals. Even if you only take a ten percent cut, that’s still an income of ten trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals!”

“The profit margin isn’t quite that high. After all, my Heaven’s Edge Sea Pavilion has plenty of experts to support!” Duann Tianya said with a laugh.

Hai Zheng paused for a moment, then nodded.

His clan also cultivated disciples through a competitive system where the fittest survived.

But the Heaven’s Edge Sea Pavilion needed to use vast resources to retain top-tier experts, and that cost was by no means small.

“Younger Brother Jiang, your Emperor Yuan Pill is up!” said Duann Tianya.

Jiang Chen’s focus sharpened.

On the auction stage.

The beautiful, curvaceous woman in a revealing dress smiled charmingly and announced, “This Emperor Yuan Pill was personally refined by the Vice President of our Heaven’s Edge Sea Pavilion, Jiang Chen—Lord Jiang. This pill was difficult to create and is extremely precious. Moreover, only Lord Jiang knows the Alchemy technique. Its effect allows an expert at the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm to consume it and advance a Small Realm with no side effects. The starting bid is one trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals!”

“Three trillion!”

“Five trillion!”

“Five point five…”

The moment the Emperor Yuan Pill appeared, it caused a sensation, with countless experts bidding fiercely for it.

“Ten trillion!”

From one of the private rooms, after placing his bid, Yao Yueye spoke in a deep voice, “Everyone, I am Yao Yueye. Perhaps most of you here know of me. There are three Emperor Yuan Pills, and I only ask for one. I ask that you please do me this favor, and I will be eternally grateful.”

This ten trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals was already Yao Yueye’s entire life savings.

His fists were clenched, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

He was incredibly nervous.

However…

Faced with a chance to advance a Small Realm—a chasm that could take decades of bitter cultivation to cross, or might even be impossible to cross in a lifetime—who would be willing to give up such an opportunity?

In the end, this Emperor Yuan Pill was sold for a price of fifteen trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals.

“Sigh… I suppose my only hope lies with the remaining two pills…” Yao Yueye said with a bitter smile.

However…

With the high price set by the first pill, the prices for the next two also exceeded what Yao Yueye could afford. One sold for twenty trillion, and the final one went for a stunning thirty-five trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals.

In total, the three Emperor Yuan Pills sold for seventy trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals.

Watching the last Emperor Yuan Pill get sold, Yao Yueye collapsed to the ground as if all strength had left him. Gradually, a look of madness and resolve appeared in his eyes. They flickered with intense unwillingness and helplessness as he grit his teeth and said, “Forget it, forget it. I don’t have much time left anyway. I’ll never be able to participate in the Holy War again in this lifetime… What’s the use of holding onto this secret?”

Then.

Yao Yueye called over an attendant and said in a low voice, “Please inform your Vice President Jiang that Yao Yueye has an urgent matter to discuss with him.” After a pause, as if still worried, he took out a Jade Scroll, left a Spiritual Thought inside it, and said, “Please take this Jade Scroll to Vice President Jiang!”

“Of course, my lord. Please wait a moment!” The attendant turned and left.

In the Venerable private room.

Duann Tianya and Hai Zheng were cheerfully teasing Jiang Chen. “Tsk, tsk, seventy trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals! Younger Brother Jiang, you’d better be treating us!”

“Of course, I’ll definitely treat you! HAHA!” Jiang Chen was also extremely satisfied.

With these seventy trillion Upper-Grade Spirit Crystals, he could even push his “Divine Demon Tyrant Body” to the Middle Stage of the Sixth Stage, making his physical body comparable to the Divine Tier Middle Level.

Just as Jiang Chen and the other two were preparing to leave, Zuo Yu walked in from outside and handed the Jade Scroll to Jiang Chen. “Vice President, this is from Yao Yueye. He had someone deliver it to you!”

“Yao Yueye?”

Jiang Chen was taken aback, a look of confusion on his face.

Duann Tianya sighed. “He’s a Loose Cultivator, once a prodigy of his generation. But an accident destroyed his Martial Dao foundation, and he’s been stuck at the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm ever since, unable to advance. He probably wants to ask you to refine an Emperor Yuan Pill for him!”

“Oh?”

Jiang Chen nodded and extended his Divine Thought into the Jade Scroll. Inside was only a tattered corner of a fragmented map.

However, it was this incredibly tattered map fragment that made the smile on Jiang Chen’s face gradually turn solemn. Even his breathing grew heavy…