As Li Mu knew, Fire Tian Venerable of Shanhe Sect had not given up searching for him.
The Auction held by the Wanbao Pavilion headquarters this time was mainly for Nascent Soul True Lords and Venerable Deity Transformation, and if he encountered Fire Tian Venerable, it would be a big problem.
“I won’t go. Tianhuo, you can have someone help me keep an eye out. If there’s a way, help me buy it. If not, I’ll do it myself later.” Li Mu sighed and decided.
“Alright! I will do my best.” Gongsun Chu nodded, then asked, “Master Li, do you have any precious Spiritual Artifacts to send for Auction? The scope of guests invited to this Auction is very wide, and High Grade Spiritual Artifacts can fetch a good price. The Tianhuo you want to purchase might not be cheap. If you have High Grade Spiritual Artifacts to send for Auction, you can take this opportunity to sell them.”
Li Mu pondered for a moment, somewhat agreeing with Gongsun Chu’s suggestion.
This grand Auction was indeed an opportunity to sell a batch of High Grade Spiritual Artifacts.
Thirty-five years had passed, and Li Mu had refined too many Spiritual Artifacts. He had completed a large number of Sect Artifact Refining tasks and Wanbao Pavilion’s Artifact Refining commissions, acquiring many Materials.
With a large amount of High Grade Artifact Refining Materials, Li Mu either directly refined Fourth-tier Spiritual Artifacts or exchanged them for Fifth-tier Artifact Refining Materials to refine Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts.
Over time, Li Mu had refined more than a dozen Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts with Artifact Spirits. If he could exchange a few Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts for a group Tianhuo, it would definitely be worth it.
In addition, the time for the next batch of Spiritual Plants to mature was approaching, and Breakthrough to Nascent Soul was imminent. Li Mu had been preparing for Undergoing Tribulation.
The ‘Nascent Soul Stage’ is the aspiration of every Golden Core cultivator. Upon entering the Nascent Soul Realm, the Spiritual Power within the body undergoes a tremendous transformation. With just a trace of power, one can unleash an attack equivalent to the full cultivation of the Golden Core Stage.
However, for a Golden Core to Breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Realm, every Cultivator has an unavoidable hurdle to overcome, and that is Undergoing Tribulation.
Generally, a Golden Core cultivator advancing to Nascent Soul needs to undergo the Six-Nine Lightning Tribulation, which means 54 bolts of Heavenly Lightning.
However, the higher the cultivation, the better the Aptitude, the fiercer the Lightning Tribulation. It could be the Nine-Nine Lightning Tribulation, 81 bolts of Heavenly Lightning, or even higher-tier Lightning Tribulations: Yin and Yang Lightning Tribulation, Heaven and Earth Lightning Tribulation, Creation Lightning Tribulation, World-Destroying Lightning Tribulation, and so on.
Li Mu, having condensed his Nascent Soul with the Five Elements Saint Body, feared that the Nascent Soul Tribulation he would have to undergo would not be an ordinary Six-Nine Lightning Tribulation.
Thinking of this, Li Mu’s mood became somewhat heavy.
Nascent Soul cultivators condense various types of Nascent Souls.
According to the Nascent Soul attribute, they can be divided into: “Five Elements Infant,” which includes Metal Infant, Earth Infant, Water Infant, Wood Infant, and Fire Infant. A single Five Elements Infant is easier to form, but the Divine Ability after forming is relatively ordinary. There are also mutated Infants, such as Wind Infant, Lightning Infant, etc. These mutated Infants are more difficult to undergo Tribulation, but once formed, their Divine Ability is more overbearing.
There is also the complete Five Elements Ancestral Infant, which means the Five Elements Infants are merged into one. The basic prerequisite for the Five Elements Ancestral Infant is that one must fully comprehend the essence of the Five Elements before rushing to the realm, which demands extremely high Comprehension Ability from the Cultivator.
Condensing an Ancestral Infant is the most difficult among all Nascent Soul formations, something ordinary Cultivators simply cannot achieve. However, Li Mu is precisely following this Nascent Soul formation path, relying on the assistance of the Spiritual Plant light clusters, using ancient Foundation Establishment Cultivation Technique, having an extremely thorough understanding of the Five Elements, and having achieved the Five Elements Saint Body.
Next, Li Mu’s Golden Core Breakthrough to Nascent Soul Realm, the Nascent Soul he condenses will definitely be the most difficult Five Elements Ancestral Infant.
However, his cultivation was all obtained by farming for Spiritual Plant light clusters, improving along the way like a cheat. Although his Foundation was extremely solid and all his skills and techniques had reached Perfection, facing the Heaven and Earth Lightning Tribulation, Li Mu felt no confidence at all.
Seeing Li Mu’s gloomy face and heavy-hearted appearance, Gongsun Chu couldn’t help but worry.
“Master Li, is there any difficulty?” Gongsun Chu looked at Li Mu and asked with concern.
Li Mu looked up at Gongsun Chu, thinking about selling those Spiritual Artifacts.
The gains from selling Fourth-tier Spiritual Artifacts were not much. If he sold Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts with Artifact Spirits, it would be too high-profile and would inevitably bring various troubles.
However, passing the Nascent Soul Tribulation was the key now; everything else could be ignored. If he failed the Undergoing Tribulation, he might die and his Dao would vanish, and then nothing would matter.
Having clearly understood the pros and cons, Li Mu looked at Gongsun Chu and said, “Gongsun Treasurer, I do have a batch of High Grade Spiritual Artifacts that I need to sell. I entrust Gongsun Treasurer to help me handle them. In addition, I urgently need a batch of High Grade Spiritual Items, and I hope you will do your best to gather them for me.”
After speaking, Li Mu waved his hand and took out four Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts from the nine storage spiritual pearl.
The next second, a lifelike small black turtle, an embroidery needle emitting red flames, a small flood Dragon shining with azure Spiritual Light, and a small white fierce tiger appeared out of thin air. They floated in the air, circling Li Mu, full of spirituality, emitting astonishing Spiritual Pressure.
With a “snap!”, Gongsun Chu’s teacup fell to the ground, shattering into pieces.
Gongsun Chu suddenly stepped forward, staring at the four Spiritual Artifacts with an incredulous expression.
“They, they are all Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts? And they all have Artifact Spirits? Master Li, did you refine them?” Gongsun Chu looked at Li Mu in disbelief, asking with burning eyes.
“That’s right! To refine them, Li invested all his wealth. If it weren’t for raising Materials for Undergoing Tribulation, I definitely wouldn’t have brought out these Spiritual Artifacts.” Li Mu looked at the overly shocked Gongsun Chu and responded with a smile.
Li Mu’s Artifact Refining Skill was only level five. With level five Artifact Refining Skill, the success rate of refining Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts was extremely low.
Unless he could Breakthrough to level six Artifact Refining Skill, the success rate could be significantly improved.
However, being stuck with the lack of spirituality attribute, after so many years, Li Mu had refined thousands of Spiritual Artifacts, but still couldn't Breakthrough this limit.
These years, Li Mu’s entire energy was focused on taking care of Five Elements Spirit Plants, and he had no way to search for Spiritual Plants with spiritual attributes everywhere. As for the Sixth-tier Nine Yin Spirit Grass with the effect of awakening spirituality, because the Nine Yang Spirit Grass had not yet matured and could not be neutralized and consumed, it was still stored at the bottom of his storage compartment.
Over the years, with the assistance of Little White, Li Mu had barely refined seventeen Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts with Artifact Spirits.
Now, taking out four Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts for sale, Li Mu was truly a little reluctant.
However, if he could successfully pass the Nascent Soul Tribulation, everything would be worth it.
“Undergoing Tribulation! Master Li, are you saying you are preparing for the Nascent Soul Tribulation?” Gongsun Chu’s eyes widened, looking at Li Mu with even more surprise than when she saw the four Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts.
In Gongsun Chu’s perception, ‘Master Li’ was not very old. When they first interacted, he was only twenty-four or twenty-five, just at the Foundation Establishment stage.
However, how long had it been? Only forty or fifty years, and he was already preparing for the Nascent Soul Tribulation?
This ‘Master Li’s’ cultivation progress was even more profound than his Artifact Refining skill!
Gongsun Chu looked at Li Mu, her face full of disbelief and utter astonishment.
Li Mu smiled slightly, canceled the Concealed Breath Cultivation Technique, and released his Golden Core Late Stage cultivation.
Feeling the Spiritual Pressure of Li Mu’s Golden Core Late Stage, Gongsun Chu took a deep breath and nodded with pleasant surprise: “Master Li, please rest assured, I will definitely help you send these four Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts for Auction, and they will surely sell for a good price. I will also do my best to collect the Spiritual Items for Undergoing Tribulation that you need.”
If ‘Master Li’ could successfully Breakthrough to Nascent Soul True Lord, then refining Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts and Sixth-tier Spiritual Artifacts in the future would be effortless!
The value of ‘Master Li’ suddenly increased several times in Gongsun Chu’s heart, and her attitude became even more respectful than before.
“Thank you, Gongsun Treasurer. However, regarding the refining of Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts with Artifact Spirits, I trouble you to keep it a secret. I do not wish for a third party to know about this matter.” Li Mu nodded, looking at Gongsun Chu and indicating.
Upon hearing this, Gongsun Chu frowned, feeling a bit troubled.
Sending these four Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts for Auction, other high-ranking officials would definitely inquire about their origin, and she would have to bear a lot of pressure.
However, if she agreed, she could gain many benefits from it, get closer to Master Li, and independently control this Artifact Refining channel.
“No problem, but, Master Li, can I entrust you to refine Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts in the future?” Gongsun Chu looked at Li Mu and asked awkwardly.
Li Mu glanced at Gongsun Chu, having anticipated this. When he revealed this information to her, he was already prepared for such a request.
“Yes, but let me make it clear beforehand, refining Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts is not like Fourth-tier Spiritual Artifacts. Currently, my success rate is only about thirty percent. If it also needs to have an Artifact Spirit, the success rate will drop by another twenty percent. You can bring any refining commissions you have.” Li Mu said lightly.
Upon hearing this, Gongsun Chu fell silent for a moment. With such a high failure rate, there probably wouldn’t be many commissions for Fifth-tier Artifact Refining.
Perhaps only after Master Li Breakthrough to Nascent Soul will the success rate of refining Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts increase!
“Okay, if I have any, I’ll trouble you then!” Gongsun Chu smiled and nodded, no longer mentioning the commission for refining Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts.
Gongsun Chu looked at Li Mu and asked with concern, “Master Li, what Materials do you need? I’ll check the warehouse. If we don’t have them, I’ll arrange for them to be transferred as soon as possible.”
Li Mu nodded, took out a Jade Slip from the nine storage spiritual pearl and handed it to Gongsun Chu. It contained various Materials needed, High Grade Yao Beast spirits, Five Elements Materials, High Grade Spirit Pill, and so on.
Li Mu had been preparing for the Nascent Soul Tribulation for years, checking the Undergoing Tribulation data of other Nascent Soul True Lords in the Sect, preparing High Grade Spirit Pill for Undergoing Tribulation, and so on.
However, this Auction from the Wanbao Pavilion headquarters made Li Mu even more attentive, willing to take out a batch of hard-refined Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts to exchange for some hard-to-find Spiritual Items for Undergoing Tribulation, such as the Bodhi Pill that resolves Heart Demon Tribulation, the Creation Pill that can repair the body, Spiritual Artifacts that deflect or offset the Lightning Tribulation, and so on.
The best way to undergo the Nascent Soul Tribulation is to rely on one’s own cultivation and Body Refining strength, directly resisting the Lightning Tribulation without relying on any aids, and passing it with one’s own strength. Only then can one reap the greatest rewards after passing the Lightning Tribulation.
These preparatory measures are all for contingency.
If he could pass the Nascent Soul Tribulation relying on his own cultivation and Body Refining strength, Li Mu would never use them.
Entrusting the four Fifth-tier Spiritual Artifacts with Artifact Spirits to Gongsun Chu for Auction, commissioning her to purchase Tianhuo and High Grade Spiritual Plants, and then taking a large batch of High Grade Spiritual Materials from the Wanbao Pavilion warehouse, Li Mu left the Wanbao Pavilion.
...
After leaving Wanbao Pavilion, Li Mu did not directly leave Qingyun City. Instead, he strolled around the Qingyun City market, experiencing the daily lives of the Cultivators in Qingyun City.
The main street, several zhang wide, had various shops along it, selling Yao Beast, Medicinal Pill, talismans, weapons, and so on. Pedestrians came and went in an endless stream, rubbing shoulders.
“Selling High Grade Spiritual Swords! Only twenty medium spirit stones!”
“One-hundred-year-old Purple Pill Spirit Ginseng! Don’t miss it!”
“Top-grade Qi Gathering Pill! Freshly made top-grade Qi Gathering Pill! Only three medium spirit stones per pill!”
“Come and see! Second-tier Treasure-seeking Rat cubs, selling cheap!”
...
The shops and stalls along the street were filled with various shouts, haggling, and bargaining, creating a lively atmosphere.
Having stayed on Yue Qiong Peak for a long time, it was a rare trip to the market. Li Mu strolled along the street, looking more than buying.
After Breakthrough to Golden Core, Li Mu’s standards also became higher. Ordinary second and third-tier Spiritual Items and Spiritual Materials were not necessary to buy. Many High Grade Spiritual Items could be easily obtained from Wanbao Pavilion and the Sect.
There wasn't much at the stalls set up by Qingyun City Cultivators that caught his eye. Li Mu found a stall selling meat soup and pancakes, leisurely enjoying the food, preparing to return to Yue Qiong Peak after eating.
Li Mu ate his pancakes and drank his meat soup, watching the Cultivators coming and going along the street. He inexplicably felt a hint of loneliness, as if the entire Qingyun City had nothing to do with him, isolated from the world.
An extreme emptiness in his heart, the despair of the whole world having nothing to do with him, the disgust of heaven and earth—for a moment, all sorts of negative thoughts flooded his mind.
Li Mu’s heart tightened. This sudden negative aura made him feel suffocated.
Li Mu’s eyes blurred, and he saw his parents from his previous life: his mother, Ye Huilan, nagging him to get married, his drunken father, Li Mingyong, hitting him hard with a belt... Some long-sealed ‘memories’ came flooding back.
“Chirp chirp!”
Little White’s anxious urging sounded in Li Mu’s ear.
Li Mu’s spirit was roused, and he suddenly awoke from his daze, his eyes showing Yin and Yang, and he abruptly looked to his right.
Soon, the figure of a young girl appeared in Li Mu’s eyes. Seeing that the other party had discovered herself, the girl’s figure flickered, turning into a swift shadow that darted into an alley and disappeared.
What a powerful illusion!
He was actually affected just like that.
If it weren't for Little White's reminder, he would surely have fallen victim to the opponent's fatal illusion, and then his Divine Soul would have been lost, perhaps even enslaved.
Li Mu released his Divine Sense, locked onto the girl’s figure, and performed the Five Elements Earth Escape.
The next moment, Li Mu’s figure disappeared into the earth, chasing after the girl.
Under the Talent Divine Power - Identify Myriad Spirits, the information of that girl had already appeared in the character virtual box.
【Three-tailed Snow Fox (Infant Stage)】
【Tier: Fourth-tier Yao Beast】
【Characteristics: Fox Breath Illusion Soul, Fox Charm Seduction Spirit, Tail Severance Life Extension】
【A fox girl born to an Eight-tailed Snow Fox Demon Emperor and a Seven-tailed Snow Fox, naturally possessing three tails, lively in nature, with the Foundation of six tails. Can transform into human form in a hundred years, and advance to Demon King in a thousand years. Possesses a trace of the Nine-Tailed Snow Fox ancestral Bloodline, with extraordinary Aptitude, and potential to reach nine tails.】
That girl’s figure was not a Cultivator, but an illusion transformed from a Three-tailed Demon Fox.
Seeing the attribute information of the Three-tailed Demon Fox, Li Mu was immediately reminded of a memory he had almost forgotten.
If he remembered correctly, this Demon Fox was the Three-tailed Demon Fox that was auctioned by Wanbao Pavilion decades ago. Li Mu recalled her origin, and at the same time, he also thought of the transformed fox demon, who was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life.
So, the question is!
Did the transformed fox demon who confronted Qingfeng Shangren not rescue this little Demon Fox earlier?
Whose hands did this little Three-tailed Demon Fox fall into?
Why did it attack him?
Did he just happen to encounter it, or did it know his identity and specifically target him?
He was almost succeeded by the little Demon Fox, and even his hidden memories were touched.
Now, Li Mu was furious and pursued the little Demon Fox relentlessly, but he didn't capture it. He chased it, intending to uncover the person hidden behind it.