Chapter 49 : Green-Horned Ox

Chapter 49: Azure-Horned Bull

“One-tier top-grade Yellow Dragon Pill, greatly beneficial for late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators to increase their mana and improve cultivation. Starting bid: seventy spirit stones!”

“I bid seventy-five spirit stones!”

“Eighty!”

The auction was exceptionally heated. From the very start, there were various pills for cultivation enhancement, along with magical artifacts, the lowest among them being mid-grade magical tools.

“Next is a full set of mid-grade magical artifacts, Golden Toad Matriarch and Offspring Blades. Starting bid…”

Seated below the stage, Lin Chang’an watched as one treasure after another was brought out, his heart stirred uncontrollably, but remembering his goal, he forced himself to calm down.

There were countless treasures, and though he wished to possess them all, he lacked the strength to compete. It was better to patiently wait for the spirit beast auction later.

Now that he had already reached late-stage Qi Refinement, the key to enhancing his strength and ensuring his safety—apart from magical artifacts—was spirit beasts.

He wasn’t short of magical tools for now. If he could raise a spirit beast with tough hide and thick flesh, that would be ideal.

After all, when preparing for Foundation Establishment in the future, an extra combat-capable spirit beast would provide one more layer of security. And these things needed to be raised early.

“Next are top-grade magical artifacts!”

As soon as the top-grade magical artifacts appeared, the atmosphere turned even more frenzied. Countless cultivators’ eyes turned red, and even cultivators from some major clans began participating in the bidding.

However, the Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Pavilion of Mystic Sound and Palace of Blazing Fire merely looked down indifferently from above, as if this whole scene was nothing more than the posturing of common folks.

They were merely here to oversee the proceedings.

With various treasures being bid upon, countless cultivators became red-eyed and tense-necked—this was undoubtedly the grandest auction the Bamboo Mountain Marketplace had ever seen.

“Next is the special session for spirit beast auctions. A total of sixty-five spirit beast cubs of excellent bloodlines will be auctioned.”

As soon as the spirit beast segment began, the atmosphere of the venue suddenly became much calmer.

Spirit beasts might not be expensive, but raising them consumed a considerable amount of spirit stones. Thus, most rogue cultivators preferred investing those resources into themselves.

Of course, some major clans and skilled cultivators would raise a spirit beast as a battle companion. This was far more reliable than teaming up with other cultivators.

“Black Wind Wolf cub. This is a descendant of a second-tier demon beast with mid-grade bloodline…”

Cultivators had spiritual roots, and likewise, demon beasts’ bloodlines were categorized by grade. The higher the grade, the greater the potential.

The bloodline classifications were: Inferior, Low, Mid, High, Earth, and Heaven grades. These corresponded to cultivators’ spiritual root qualities, except Inferior was used instead of Mixed.

“Snow Spirit Fox, mid-grade bloodline, extremely intelligent and fast…”

As one spirit beast cub after another was brought onstage, the lively atmosphere waned. Most of the bidding came from major clans or powerful cultivators.

“Of course, raising one of these creatures is like raising a son.”

Lin Chang’an chuckled. For impoverished cultivators, spirit beasts were like living fathers. For the wealthy, they were loyal and reliable partners.

“Next up is a spirit beast from the Beast-Taming Zhou Clan. This one is a bit special—it’s an unhatched 'Blackwater Turtle' egg, high-grade bloodline!”

Not even halfway through, and already a high-grade bloodline spirit beast appeared. It caught everyone off guard—even Lin Chang’an was stunned.

“Fellow Daoists, a high-grade bloodline spirit beast! A hundred years ago, the strongest rogue cultivator in Yue Country raised a high-grade bloodline Blackwater Turtle to the third tier. Its strength rivaled that of a Golden Core cultivator…”

With the appearance of the high-grade spirit beast, countless cultivators gasped in shock, though the venue soon turned somewhat quiet.

“Blackwater Turtle—never mind high-grade—even if it had Earth-grade bloodline, it’d still have to survive long enough.”

Lin Chang’an secretly shook his head. If it were a family or a small sect, they might be able to slowly nurture it as a guardian spirit beast of the clan (sect).

But with the current turbulent times, he had no interest in investing countless resources into feeding a slow-growing spirit beast.

This creature would take over a hundred years to mature—like raising an ancestor.

What he wanted was a spirit beast that could contribute when he was preparing materials for Foundation Establishment.

“Fellow Daoists, although the Blackwater Turtle grows slowly, its advantages are obvious: an extremely long lifespan. Whether passed down to descendants or kept as a clan guardian beast, it’s an excellent choice.”

The female cultivator hosting the auction, Han Lin’er, wore a beaming smile, completely unfazed by the possibility that no one might bid.

Sure enough, with her explanation, many began to waver. After all, many cultivators did have descendants.

Wasn’t the Beast-Taming Zhou Clan a living example? They’d raised one in secret for over a hundred years, and when the family faced crisis, its appearance turned the tide—that result spoke for itself.

“To be honest with everyone, this egg was affected by external forces, resulting in premature birth. It might be somewhat weaker than normal, but the starting bid is only six hundred spirit stones!”

So that’s why a high-grade bloodline spirit beast appeared halfway through the auction—it turned out to be a weakened specimen.

In the end, this high-grade bloodline ‘Blackwater Turtle’ was sold for seven hundred and eighty spirit stones. Only then did the auction move on to normal high-grade spirit beasts.

“Next high-grade spirit beast is a ‘Azure-Horned Bull’ cub. Its hide is thick and flesh tough. Upon maturity, it can emit a smoke that confuses divine sense—also known as the Black Cloud Beast.

The advantage is that it matures quickly, taking only about ten years. The drawback is its short lifespan, only seventy to eighty years.”

Some well-informed cultivators below revealed indifferent smiles upon hearing this price.

“Azure-Horned Bull grows quickly, and indeed has a high-grade bloodline, but feeding it spirit herbs isn’t cheap. Aside from major clan cultivators, only those with top-grade craftsmanship can afford it.”

So they mentioned nothing about resource consumption. Lin Chang’an was speechless.

Though the Blackwater Turtle grew slowly, it consumed very little in daily care, whereas this Azure-Horned Bull required premium spirit herbs for feeding.

“Still, this Azure-Horned Bull suits me quite well.”

Lin Chang’an thought to himself. He still had a pile of unused spirit herbs and medicinal materials left to him by Zhou Qing—these were originally meant by the Zhou Clan to raise spirit beasts.

Though the consumption was a bit much, the fast growth rate made up for it. As for the short lifespan—if he couldn’t reach Foundation Establishment, he’d only have sixty to seventy years left himself. Wouldn’t this beast be the perfect companion for that journey?

“This spirit beast has a sturdy constitution. Starting bid: eight hundred spirit stones!”

“Eight hundred thirty spirit stones!”

“Eight hundred sixty!”

Spirit beasts were tricky to raise well, so there weren’t many bidders in the spirit beast session.

Most cultivators preferred spending that amount on a top-grade magical artifact.

After all, a top-grade magical artifact could directly enhance a cultivator’s combat strength.

“Nine hundred thirty spirit stones.”

Lin Chang’an raised his hand and reported his price hoarsely.

As for the Azure-Horned Bull, it wasn’t that he had to win it at all costs—there were still quite a few high-grade spirit beasts to come.

“Nine hundred thirty spirit stones. Any higher bids?”

Han Lin’er, the female cultivator hosting the auction, smiled with a trace of helplessness. Spirit beasts were indeed hard to sell.

Affording one was one thing—choosing to raise it was another.

“Nine hundred thirty spirit stones, sold to this fellow Daoist!”

Lin Chang’an wore a full smile. As a top-grade talisman master, outsiders believed he could earn over a hundred and fifty spirit stones a month, so raising a spirit beast was within normal expectations.

A thousand spirit stones was his bottom line—after all, this kind of thing couldn’t be hidden for long.

The auction became even livelier afterward. A spirit beast cub with Earth-grade bloodline even appeared, purchased by a disciple from the Pavilion of Mystic Sound.

Naturally, such a grand auction couldn’t go without Foundation Establishment Pills.

This time, the finale even included several types of Foundation Establishment materials, as well as supreme-grade magical artifacts only Foundation Establishment cultivators could wield.

The venue was instantly thrown into a frenzy.