Bad Luck

Every time he came to the market, Shen Ping’s footsteps slowed down. Regardless of whether it was day or night, Red Willow Alley, where he used to live, was very deserted most of the time. There were not many people on the streets, but the market was lively and prosperous, as if they were two different worlds.

Now, he had gradually become a corner of this prosperity.

“Man struggles upwards while water flows downwards. I have to be vigilant at all times. I can’t make a mistake.” He had experienced it once. He did not want to repeat the same mistake.

Before he reached the entrance of the True Treasure Pavilion, a cultivator who looked sneaky walked over. He was full of smiles and deliberately lowered his voice. “Fellow Daoist, looking at your face, you should be someone with a temperament. Do you want to experience the greatest joy?”

Shen Ping was confused. The cultivator glanced around and quickly took out a brocade pouch embroidered with silver threads from his sleeve. The brocade pouch was ordinary and did not emit any aura.

“Fellow Daoist, this brocade bag contains the incense pills of the Heavenly Sound Pavilion’s popular female cultivator. If you like any kind of incense pills, you can bring them to the Heavenly Sound Pavilion. When the time comes, I promise to let you enjoy extreme happiness. It doesn’t cost you a spirit stone.”

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The cultivator was about to stuff the brocade pouch into Shen Ping’s hand. Shen Ping immediately became alert and hurriedly shook his head. “I’m sorry, I’m not interested in women.”

“So you have an interest, Fellow Daoist! Don’t worry, our Heavenly Sound Pavilion also has male cultivators.” The cultivator chuckled and took out another brocade pouch.

Shen Ping cupped his hands and interrupted, “I still have something on. Goodbye!”

“Fellow Daoist, don’t go. I’ll let you do it for free twice… thrice?” Until Shen Ping walked away, the cultivator curled his lips and stared at his next target.

“Bad luck!”

Shen Ping entered the True Treasure Pavilion and cursed in his heart. What the heck! You want me to compromise after three tries? She was not a national beauty.

He retracted his thoughts. He took out the jade token that Mu Jin had given him. After a while, a waiter in charge of receiving them came up and said respectfully, “Fellow Daoist, this way please.”

He followed him to the backyard of the True Treasure Pavilion. He walked into a house on the left. The shop assistant pressed lightly on the wall. The house trembled slightly.

A few breaths later.

“Fellow Daoist, we’ve arrived at the auction hall. Are you a talisman master or an alchemist?”

Shen Ping was clicking his tongue in wonder when he heard this. He hurriedly replied, “A Talisman Master, a High Grade Talisman Master.”

The shop assistant quickly took out a bronze mask. “Fellow Daoist, wearing this mask can temporarily block divine senses from detecting your strength and aura. The effect will last for two days. The other talisman masters and alchemists will also wear it. After the auction ends, you can wear it and leave first. You can return the mask the next time you come.”

Shen Ping’s eyes lit up when he heard that. The True Treasure Pavilion was really considerate. With this mask, the cultivators participating in the auction did not have to worry about their information being exposed. If it were any other cultivator facing such a service, they would give the True Treasure Pavilion 99 likes from the bottom of their hearts.

He put on the bronze mask, walked out of the house, and his vision suddenly opened up. The huge crystal chandelier in the oval dome illuminated the entire auction hall as if it was daytime. The high platform in the center could see every seat below clearly.

This was Shen Ping’s first time participating in an auction. He carefully chose a corner in the back row.

As time passed, cultivators continued to enter the auction hall. However, what puzzled Shen Ping was that some of these cultivators were wearing masks, while others were not hiding at all. Around noon, most of the cultivators participating in this auction had already arrived.

Shen Ping observed from the corner of his eye.

There were less than 100 people wearing different colored masks, but there were more than 300 high-level cultivators who did not conceal themselves. The auras of these cultivators were thick and smooth. Clearly, they were at the ninth level of Qi Refinement. He did not sense the obvious pressure of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Perhaps they were restraining themselves, or perhaps they were wearing a mask.

“Fellow Daoists. The small-scale auction of True Treasure Pavilion has officially begun. As usual, let’s start with a round of warm-up. Three Beauty Pills…”

The surrounding cultivators, especially the female cultivators, breathed heavily. Shen Ping could not help but swallow his saliva, his eyes burning.

Beauty Pill! If it was given to his wife and concubine, wouldn’t they look young forever? As expected of an auction, it was indeed extraordinary.

“The starting bid is ten mid-grade spirit stones. Every increment must be at least five mid-grade spirit stones.”

He was immediately tempted when he heard the price. It was not expensive! He could afford it!

“One hundred!”

“One hundred and fifty!”

“Two hundred!”

The female cultivators’ gradually raised voices sounded. Shen Ping completely gave up. He could not afford to offend them. He did not even have 100 mid-grade spirit stones in his storage bag. However, the other party offered more than a hundred.

Although the Golden Sun Sect owned more than ten spirit stone mines of various sizes, causing the purchasing power of spirit stones to be low, those who could casually take out more than a hundred mid-grade spirit stones either had high cultivation or had a certain status and background.

In the end, the three Beauty Pills were bought at an average price of 270 mid-grade spirit stones.

Shen Ping quickly calculated in his heart.

Every year, he could earn more than 300 mid-grade spirit stones from the number of high-grade talismans required to make the True Treasure Pavilion. After deducting the material fees and various expenses, he could accumulate more than 100 spirit stones. If he did not buy any Dharma artifacts, robes, or other valuable items, he should be able to buy one in two years.

“Aye.” He sighed softly.

Fine. Such a luxurious thing should be considered when the success rate of making talismans increases in the future. At this stage, his main goal was to improve his cultivation as soon as possible and change the robes of his wife and concubine to high-grade.

Next, pills that were difficult to buy outside, special dharma artifacts, array discs, dharma techniques, secret treasures, and so on were auctioned off one by one.

Shen Ping could only watch. From the price of the Beauty Pill, he knew that he could only participate in such an auction.

The auction ended. Hundreds of cultivators filed out.

“There’s still no Foundation Establishment Pill this time.”

“I heard that it was at the Foundation Establishment Auction. Unfortunately, with a Foundation Establishment senior around, it’s very difficult for us to snatch it.”

“Let’s continue waiting. The True Treasure Pavilion will definitely take out the Foundation Establishment Pill. Otherwise, how can this auction still be attractive?”

He heard the small discussions in his ears. Shen Ping’s heart stirred.

Foundation Establishment Pill! Foundation Establishment auction!

He felt as if he had come into contact with a higher level of information. However, this information should not be important. Otherwise, the surrounding cultivators who were not hiding would not have not reacted at all.

He walked out of the True Treasure Pavilion.

Shen Ping was still wearing the bronze mask. He then came to the street of the Talisman Treasure Hall. There were very few cultivators here, so he immediately took off his mask when he saw that no one was around.

In the evening, he returned to the entrance of the small courtyard. Thinking of what he had seen at the auction, he could not help but sigh. Different strengths and statuses came into contact with completely different information.

If he was still the cultivator at the third level of Qi Refinement in Red Willow Alley, he would not even dare to enter the True Treasure Pavilion casually, let alone participate in the auction.

“Fellow Daoist, you must be the talisman master in the second house. Hehe, you can live in Yunhe Alley at the fourth level of Qi Refinement. It seems that you are not an ordinary cultivator.”