Zhenyuan City was bustling.
For several days, cultivators from all directions had been pouring into the city, filling the normally orderly streets with an unusual level of activity. Foundation Establishment cultivators could be seen hurrying through the various markets, Purple Palace cultivators arrived in groups representing different sects and clans, and even occasionally a Golden Core cultivator would appear, their presence causing the surrounding cultivators to instinctively lower their voices.
The reason was simple.
The Centennial Auction was about to begin.
Once every hundred years, the Myriad Dao Pavilion would hold one of its largest auctions, and although the Pavilion had branches throughout the cultivation world, the Centennial Auction held in Zhenyuan City was still famous enough to attract cultivators from extremely distant regions.
With the Myriad Dao Pavilion hosting the event, nobody knew what might appear.
That was precisely what made the auction so attractive.
A Rank 3 treasure that was considered extremely rare in one region might appear in abundance here, while an inheritance that a major sect had searched for decades to obtain could suddenly be placed on the auction block.
For Foundation Establishment and Purple Palace cultivators, this was an opportunity that couldn't be missed.
As for Golden Core cultivators, their attitude was considerably more relaxed.
They weren't particularly interested in the ordinary items being auctioned below.
Their true gathering was another event.
The Myriad Dao Pavilion had prepared a separate trading banquet exclusively for Golden Core cultivators, where cultivators of their level could exchange resources, trade treasures, discuss inheritances and negotiate privately over items that were too valuable or too sensitive to place into a public auction.
After all, once someone reached the Golden Core Realm, ordinary Spirit Stones weren't always enough to determine the value of what they possessed.
Sometimes what one person needed was worthless to another.
A Golden Core cultivator might possess an extremely rare spiritual material but have no use for it, while another cultivator might be willing to exchange a precious treasure for exactly that material.
The Myriad Dao Pavilion simply provided the platform.
The real transactions were left to the cultivators themselves.
The auction below, however, was already underway.
The host stood upon the elevated platform with a calm smile, his voice travelling through the entire auction hall with the assistance of the formation surrounding the venue.
"Everyone, the first item of today's auction is a Rank 2 high-grade defensive artifact."
A young attendant immediately walked onto the stage carrying a jade tray.
Resting upon the tray was a silver bracelet.
The bracelet wasn't particularly large, its surface covered with complicated spiritual patterns that seemed to move faintly beneath the metal.
"This artifact is called the Azure Shield Bracelet. Once activated, it can produce a defensive Qi shield capable of resisting most attacks from Foundation Establishment cultivators. Furthermore, after accumulating sufficient spiritual energy, the shield can withstand a single attack from a Purple Palace cultivator, although the defensive barrier will be destroyed immediately afterward."
The moment those words left his mouth, the previously calm auction hall erupted.
Foundation Establishment cultivators immediately became interested.
The recent conflict in the Eastern Region had completely changed the market for defensive treasures.
Before the conflict, a Foundation Establishment cultivator might hesitate before spending a large amount of Spirit Stones on a defensive artifact.
Now, nobody hesitated.
Survival had become more valuable than Spirit Stones.
The war had caused the prices of defensive treasures to rise dramatically, and even ordinary defensive artifacts that would previously have been ignored were now being fought over.
"The starting bid is one thousand five hundred mid-grade Spirit Stones."
"One thousand six hundred!"
"One thousand eight hundred!"
"Two thousand!"
The bids rose rapidly.
Several Foundation Establishment cultivators competed fiercely, their voices overlapping as each attempted to suppress the others.
"Two thousand three hundred!"
"Two thousand four hundred!"
"Two thousand five hundred!"
The hall gradually quieted.
Only two cultivators continued bidding.
One was a middle-aged man dressed in a blue robe, while the other was a young woman wearing a veil.
The middle-aged man glanced sideways.
"Two thousand six hundred."
The woman didn't even hesitate.
"Two thousand seven hundred and fifty."
Silence.
The middle-aged man's expression stiffened.
He clearly wanted the bracelet, but after hesitating for several breaths, he finally sat back down.
The host smiled.
"Two thousand seven hundred and fifty mid-grade Spirit Stones, going once."
Nobody spoke.
"Going twice."
Still no response.
"Sold."
The attendant immediately carried the Azure Shield Bracelet away.
The woman behind the veil calmly accepted it, while the surrounding Foundation Establishment cultivators looked at her with complicated expressions.
Nobody knew how much money she had.
But judging from the way she had bid, she clearly didn't lack Spirit Stones.
The auction continued.
The second item appeared.
Then the third.
Then the fourth.
The treasures gradually became more valuable.
A Vermillion Flame Fruit appeared on the third round, its surface covered in crimson patterns that resembled burning flames. The fruit contained extremely pure Fire-attribute energy, and although it couldn't directly increase a Purple Palace cultivator's cultivation by an entire realm, it could provide considerable assistance to a cultivator with a Fire spiritual root, particularly someone attempting to stabilise their cultivation after a breakthrough.
The moment it appeared, several Fire-attribute Purple Palace cultivators began bidding.
"Three Thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones."
"Four Thousand."
"Five thousand."
"Five thousand two hundred."
The price continued climbing.
The final bid reached nearly Seven thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones before the fruit was finally purchased.
The auction hall remained lively.
Rank 3 formations appeared one after another, including defensive formations, concealment formations, trapping formations, gathering formations and formations designed specifically for combat.
The prices were naturally astonishing.
A Rank 3 formation wasn't merely a collection of formation plates.
A truly good formation could change the outcome of a battle.
A defensive formation placed around a temporary camp could save the lives of an entire group, while a trapping formation could turn an otherwise impossible pursuit into an easy victory.
As the auction progressed, the cultivators became increasingly excited.
The Centennial Auction lasted for three days.
The first two days focused mainly on treasures suited to Foundation Establishment and Purple Palace cultivators, although some exceptionally valuable items would occasionally attract the attention of Golden Core experts.
The third day was different.
The third day was the reason many of the more powerful cultivators had come to Zhenyuan City.
Special items.
Treasures that could assist Purple Palace cultivators in breaking through, rare Rank 4 spiritual materials, ancient inheritances, special formations and occasionally resources that even Golden Core cultivators would find difficult to obtain.
By the time the third day arrived, the atmosphere within the auction hall had become noticeably different.
The seats belonging to the more powerful cultivators were occupied.
Several hidden auras had appeared around the venue.
Some belonged to Purple Palace experts.
Others were much deeper.
Golden Core cultivators had begun paying attention.
Even though they didn't necessarily intend to participate in the auction, there was always a possibility that something would appear that was worth taking action over.
The host stepped onto the platform.
He didn't immediately introduce the next item.
Instead, he looked around the hall.
"Everyone, the first special item of today's auction is somewhat unusual."
Two attendants walked forward carrying a wooden box.
The box was covered in sealing formations.
The host personally removed the seals.
Click.
The lid opened.
Inside was a formation plate.
At first glance, it appeared damaged.
A large portion of its surface was covered in cracks, and several of the spiritual patterns had been completely destroyed. Even so, faint spiritual energy continued circulating through the remaining formation lines, proving that the formation plate had not completely lost its function.
The host smiled.
"This is an incomplete Rank 4 formation plate."
The auction hall immediately became quiet.
Even the cultivators who had been casually discussing among themselves stopped.
Rank 4.
Those two words alone were enough to attract attention.
The host continued.
"As for its type, this formation is a supportive formation rather than an offensive or defensive formation. Unfortunately, the formation plate has suffered considerable damage, and its original formation can no longer be activated completely."
A few Purple Palace cultivators looked disappointed.
An incomplete Rank 4 formation wasn't necessarily useful to them.
But among the Golden Core cultivators observing from the special area, several expressions changed.
One old man leaned forward slightly.
Another Golden Core cultivator narrowed his eyes.
A third person quietly transmitted his voice to an attendant beside him.
"Can you determine what kind of support formation it originally was?"
The attendant respectfully shook his head.
"The formation patterns are incomplete. Even our Rank 4 formation masters cannot determine the complete function without studying the remaining structure."
The Golden Core cultivator's eyes flickered.
That was precisely why the formation plate was valuable.
If the formation were complete, its function would already be known, and a cultivator would have to search for a formation master capable of refining or modifying it according to their own requirements.
But a damaged formation plate was different.
A skilled formation master could potentially reconstruct the missing portions according to the remaining formation patterns.
The problem was finding such a person.
Rank 4 formation masters were extremely rare.
They were Grandmasters.
Their status was far beyond ordinary Golden Core cultivators, and most weren't willing to spend months or years personally modifying a formation for someone else unless the price was sufficiently attractive or the person requesting the service possessed a powerful background.
Even if someone possessed enough Spirit Stones, that didn't mean they could simply find a Grandmaster willing to accept the commission.
Connections mattered.
Status mattered.
And most importantly, the Grandmaster's own willingness mattered.
A complete Rank 4 formation plate suited precisely to one's requirements was therefore extremely difficult to obtain.
A Golden Core cultivator could spend years searching for one.
Or they could spend an enormous fortune hiring a Grandmaster to personally construct one.
Neither option was easy.
That was why this incomplete formation plate had attracted the attention of several Golden Core cultivators.
The host naturally understood this.
He smiled.
"Although the formation is incomplete, our Myriad Dao Pavilion has already confirmed that its remaining structure is genuine Rank 4 formation architecture, and the supporting principles contained within the surviving formation lines are extremely profound. A skilled Rank 4 formation master may be able to reconstruct it."
The hall became even quieter.
Several Golden Core cultivators exchanged glances.
One of them finally spoke.
"What is the starting bid?"
The host smiled.
"Five thousand high-grade Spirit Stones."
The moment the price was announced, several Purple Palace cultivators immediately sucked in a breath.
Five thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones.
That was an astronomical amount to them.
But among the Golden Core cultivators, the reaction was different.
A moment of silence passed.
Then a voice came from the private area.
"Six thousand."
Another voice immediately followed.
"Seven thousand."
The atmosphere changed instantly.
The special item had only just appeared, yet the bidding had already begun between Golden Core cultivators.
The host's smile widened.
The Centennial Auction had finally reached the part that truly mattered.
And somewhere among the private rooms overlooking the auction hall, Lin Sheng sat quietly, his gaze resting upon the incomplete Rank 4 formation plate below.
His expression was calm.
But the moment his divine sense brushed against the surviving formation patterns, his eyes narrowed slightly.
He recognised the structure.
Not completely.
But enough.
This wasn't an ordinary supportive formation.
There was something hidden within its damaged formation architecture.
Something that had immediately caught his attention.
Lin Sheng leaned slightly forward.
"Interesting."