After putting on a somewhat clumsy display of petty tyranny, I subtly examined the reaction of the Foundation Establishment female cultivator.

  As expected, there was no change in her expression.

  Her face clearly showed she was already accustomed to the eccentricities of high-ranking cultivators.

  “This junior disturbed Zhenren’s mood with obvious words. I hereby offer my apologies.”

  I let out a derisive snort and, this time, followed behind her without saying anything further.

  Looking at the fluttering garments that revealed her figure so clearly, I did not know where to rest my eyes.

  Why on earth was she wearing such impractical clothing?

  Could it be some kind of Dharma artifact?

  Yet I could not sense even the slightest trace of spiritual power from the garment itself.

  I followed with my gaze lowered and head bowed, then suddenly realized that such behavior did not suit a high-ranking cultivator.

  I had nearly been exposed.

  Cold sweat ran down my back.

  Whew, acting was not such an easy task after all.

  Without drawing attention, I subtly raised my head and maintained an indifferent expression.

  The Foundation Establishment female cultivator arrived before a lavishly decorated hall.

  “This is the lodging where our esteemed guest will reside. I will wait in the side pavilion right next to it, so if you require anything, please call for me at any time.”

  The female cultivator, Lianhua, had a faint glow of expectation upon her face.

  If she could catch the favor of a high-ranking cultivator and engage in dual cultivation (joint cultivation through physical relations) or become his Dao companion (a cultivator’s wife), there could be no greater joy.

  Even if I did not take her with me, receiving even a single bottle of pills would be good.

  However, I could not understand her feelings at all.

  I merely felt annoyed, as if wondering why she kept hovering in front of me.

  Lianhua suppressed her disappointment and stepped back.

  “Then, this junior will withdraw to the side pavilion.”

  I immediately waved my hand and sent her away.

  “There is no need to remain in the side pavilion. If I require someone later, I will summon them separately.”

  Her eyelashes trembled faintly.

  The conscience of a petty man stirred within me.

  But I held my ground.

  Allowing her to remain nearby would only increase the chances of my secret being exposed and would not help in the slightest.

  “Yes. Then, may this junior inform you in advance about today’s schedule?”

  That was exactly what I wanted.

  I nodded at once.

  “After you rest here, you may participate in the auction to be held at 6 p.m. Do you perhaps have any items you wish to place in the auction? If you receive an appraisal beforehand, they will be recorded on the jade slips distributed prior to entry.”

  I had been waiting precisely for those words.

  “Why are you only mentioning that now? I do have several usable items.”

  Color returned to Lianhua’s face once more.

  To react like that even while being scolded?

  Did the assigned cultivator receive some commission if the guest participated in the auction?

  Tsk. Everywhere, it was all about spirit stones.

  “Then, shall we receive the appraisal right away? This junior will bring the appraiser.”

  I nodded without speaking.

  The treatment was indeed different.

  For an appraiser, considered a rare talent, to come personally.

  I intended to dispose of all the items at the auction.

  Tomorrow, there would be an exchange gathering among high-ranking cultivators, but I did not believe I would gain anything there.

  When a sparrow tried to chase a crane, it only tore its own legs apart.

  Even if I sought Dharma treasures or spirit treasures, there was no way I could use them immediately.

  More importantly, if I traded with the items I possessed, there was a risk my identity would be exposed.

  Better to be cautious, just in case.

  Thus, an auction was more suitable than an exchange.

  Well, if something truly caught my eye, I could buy it with spirit stones.

  Lianhua bowed lightly and left the hall.

  Normally, I would have given her at least a few spirit stones, but right now I was a rude, domineering high-ranking cultivator.

  I could not allow the character to collapse.

  ***

  After she disappeared, I examined the formations and defensive state arranged within the hall.

  As expected of a place prepared for high-ranking cultivators, it was extremely sturdy and stable.

  Just in case, I used the Formation Plate I had brought to layer multiple defensive formations over the bed.

  Why not draw formations directly and instead use an expensive Formation Plate? Naturally, because I did not want to leave any traces.

  From now on, when alone, I intended not to leave the bed.

  The world outside the bed was dangerous.

  That said, for a Foundation Establishment cultivator—someone I normally would not even dare meet eyes with—to play the role of a maidservant.

  In the eyes of a high-ranking cultivator, she would be less than an ant crawling on the ground.

  Sure enough, in this world, realm was everything.

  My heart began to grow impatient again.

  This would not do.

  A heart demon was about to form.

  I calmed myself by thinking of Ginger.

  As expected, it worked well.

  Some might say that clinging to old ties was itself a heart demon, but I thought differently.

  Was clinging to life not also clinging?

  Was clinging to the Dao not also clinging?

  Was clinging to eternal life not also clinging?

  If I forgot the bonds with my parents from the beginning of my life, and the ties formed during hard times together, could I truly reach a higher realm?

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  During more than ninety years of secluded cultivation, I had realized something.

  One must live with a smile.

  And one must cherish the ties one forms.

  If this path was not the Dao, then there would be no meaning to my coming to this world.

  This was my Dao.

  After finishing my thoughts, I took a deep breath.

  At that very moment, the enlightenment that had stubbornly refused to break through during the late stage of Qi Refinement finally arrived.

  I immediately sat cross-legged and calmed my mind.

  I did not forget to activate the Do Not Disturb mark within the hall.

  How much time passed? It did not seem very long.

  After all, it was only the late stage of Qi Refinement.

  Perhaps because I was wearing a mask, there was no phenomenon such as spiritual qi gathering around me.

  But I was certain.

  At last, I had shattered the wall of Qi Refinement Stage 9.

  Joy surged within me.

  I was deliberately delaying reaching Foundation Establishment in order to cultivate the Nine Transformations Spirit Root Scripture.

  However, delaying one’s realm and being unable to advance at all were two entirely different matters.

  Thus, my joy was all the greater.

  I looked forward even more to the upcoming auction.

  But then… the auction?

  The auction???

  Ah, right.

  I had forgotten that I had activated the Do Not Disturb mark.

  Striving not to appear hurried, I stepped out of the hall.

  In front stood Lianhua and the appraiser, both wearing forced smiles and looking flustered.

  “Ahem. An insight came to me, so I cultivated for a moment.”

  A tyrant did not apologize, even when at fault.

  Lianhua immediately smiled in a crescent and bowed.

  “Zhenren, I have brought the appraiser.”

  The appraiser also forced a smile and paid his respects.

  “To be able to wait while Zhenren cultivated is also this Ye’s honor.”

  As expected, in the cultivation world, power was supreme.

  Just look at how low they bowed!

  “Hmph. Then come in.”

  Lianhua and the appraiser once more paid their respects and entered the hall.

  “Then I will bring spiritual tea.”

  Soon, she brought two cups of spiritual tea and some refreshments before withdrawing.

  It was somewhat pitiful that she waited outside on the veranda.

  But what could be done?

  At this moment, I was at least a Core Formation cultivator.

  “Then, may I see the treasures you have brought?”

  “It is nothing much. A three-thousand-year-old Seven-Leaf Immortal Spirit Grass and a few miscellaneous items.”

  At my words, the appraiser’s eyes flew wide open.

  I half-wondered whether they might pop out.

  “Th-three thousand years? To think such a precious item…”

  It was only natural he would be shocked.

  After tens of thousands of years during which cultivators had become the object of universal admiration, the core materials for Foundation Establishment Pills had long been harvested to extinction.

  Since they could only grow by absorbing the qi of heaven and earth, they could not be cultivated artificially.

  Our old man Haoranzi had accomplished that difficult feat, but…

  He could punch a Nascent Soul sect master while only at the Core Formation realm, so let us count him as an exception.

  It might sound like boasting, but with the spirit herb fields in my subspace, I could cultivate them too, ahem.

  In any case, others maintained the line by gathering from the few remaining secret realms.

  Materials this old were even rarer.

  For any spirit pill, the better the ingredients, the better the effect.

  This was one reason why poor mountain cultivators struggled to enter the Foundation Establishment stage.

  “M-may I examine the item?”

  Without a word, I took out a jade box.

  Inside was the Seven-Leaf Immortal Spirit Grass I had just picked today, fresh beyond compare.

  “Oh… these multicolored hues, this pure and graceful appearance. Without doubt. To think I would see such an ancient Seven-Leaf Immortal Spirit Grass…”

  He leaned in close, then drew back, staring intently at the jade box.

  “If someone consumed a Foundation Establishment Pill made from this, their success rate would increase greatly. Hehe, a treasure bestowed by the heavens. Anyone with descendants would covet it.”

  Just as I had expected.

  The Qingxiu True Realm was a middle realm in the hierarchy between worlds.

  Better than the lower mortal realm, yet compared to the upper realm, it possessed far less heavenly and earthly spiritual qi.

  Thus, spirit herbs and pills for cultivation were extremely precious.

  Moreover, cultivators here spared no expense in investing in their descendants.

  Here, realm was authority and power.

  What use was money?

  If one’s realm was lacking, one’s life would be in danger.

  Thus, cultivators above Core Formation often maintained clan settlements composed of their own bloodlines.

  They selected children with spirit roots from among their descendants and raised them as successors.

  Raising a child of one’s own blood from youth naturally bred deep attachment.

  They secured both practicality and bonds.

  Even if they themselves could not soar higher, their successors would uphold the clan.

  Parents would do anything for their children.

  What parent could calmly watch their child grow old and die?

  Thus, Foundation Establishment Pills grew ever more precious.

  Only upon reaching Foundation Establishment could one truly cultivate properly.

  This was why I knew the Seven-Leaf Immortal Spirit Grass would sell at a high price.

  Even if they already possessed pills and materials, they would covet mine.

  The success rate of Foundation Establishment Pills was only thirty percent, and failure could cripple a cultivator.

  But if such ancient core materials were used, the success rate would rise to seventy percent.

  No wonder the appraiser looked as though his eyes might roll back.

  “If there were fifteen more of these, how much would that be worth?”

  His eyes widened even further.

  “H-heh… to think such a thing exists…”

  He could not even finish his sentence.

  This was the very moment I, a mere Qi Refinement cultivator, had been waiting for.

  Originally, even treasures could only be kept by those qualified to protect them.

  Now, disguised as a cultivator of Core Formation or above, I had to sell them.

  “If all are sold, even conservatively speaking, you could obtain at least thirty thousand mid-grade spirit stones. If bidding rises, over fifty thousand is possible.”

  Thirty thousand mid-grade spirit stones?

  That was three million low-grade spirit stones.

  It felt as though spirit stones were raining from the heavens.

  My heart pounded at the sum.

  I hurriedly controlled my expression.

  Yes. That made sense.

  With a single core material, ten Foundation Establishment Pills could be made.

  Several people could pool their spirit stones to purchase a single herb.

  Considering that Foundation Establishment Pills rarely appeared on the market, it was entirely possible.

  “Hmph. Only that much? Then I suppose I must put these up as well.”

  At my indifferent tone, the appraiser became even more respectful as he received the Formation Plate and jade box.

  “Mm, this is…”

  “A Formation Plate I recently researched. It can scatter rain over land of a specified width for a desired time. It consumes few spirit stones. If I were to sell it outright, how much would it fetch?”

  The appraiser’s voice trembled again.

  “I have been an appraiser for seventy years, yet I have never been this excited. A formation personally crafted by a Formation Master of Core Formation or above…”

  After a moment of silence, he declared firmly,

  “A Formation Grandmaster would need to assess it for precise value, but I am confident it would fetch at least fifty thousand mid-grade spirit stones.”

  Hmm. If I sold everything, I could perhaps afford not five hundred, but two thousand years of secluded cultivation.

  Simply absorbing spirit stones, I could learn the Nine Transformations Spirit Root Scripture and compress my spiritual power.

  But secluded cultivation required more than absorbing spiritual power.

  I had learned that bitterly during ninety-seven years of living as a beggar.

  Have you ever eaten rabbit stew without salt or pepper?

  If not, do not speak.

  And that was not all.

  I would need spirit stones to maintain formations.

  Spirit stones to feed Baizi.

  To expand spirit herb fields, buy alchemy materials, earn points…

  Thinking of eternal life, even tens of thousands of mid-grade spirit stones felt insignificant.

  Ah, I alone earned, yet why were there so many expenses?

  I felt a slight regret.

  If I added restrictions to the formation and sold the Formation Plate, I could earn even more.

  But that would attract the attention of the powerful.

  Better to be satisfied with this.

  After all, it was only the minimum price.

  “Next. Appraise the next item.”

  This one was a rare ore discovered by Baizi.

  After steadying himself, the appraiser opened the jade box.

  “Hah… this is also a precious item. A chunk of Purple Gold Essence the size of two fists.”

  Purple Gold Essence was a golden ore shimmering with purplish light.

  It was the most precious among ores capable of receiving spiritual power.

  Dharma treasures forged from it would gain even greater might.

  Even in games, items made from this were expensive.

  It was only a pity that the size was somewhat small.

  It could not be helped.

  I had to keep some for myself.

  “And how much would you value it at?”

  “This too is a precious item. Its exact value can only be determined at auction, but it would likely start at five thousand mid-grade spirit stones. It is unfortunate that the size is small. Shall I register all these for auction?”

  Each time he estimated a price, I consulted the system.

  Fortunately, it had not lied about market rates.

  That did not mean I would hand everything over immediately.

  The appraiser’s eyes gleamed as though he had caught a great fish.

  After sipping spiritual tea, I spoke calmly.

  “Let us see what discount you can offer on the commission.”