"A Clouded Tiger cub."
Cai Ping proudly showed off the first item at the auction. It was a newly born monster that they had somehow captured and brought to the auction.
'What is the point of selling a cub? Why not just capture an adult and sell them. Is this for some rich people's amusement? It certainly can't be for the ingredients or even the meat.' he wondered.
"As many of you may know, a Clouded Tiger has an almost guaranteed chance to reach the True realms, and even a very little chance of reaching the Saint realms."
"The cub is 4 weeks old and perfectly healthy. We have checked and found him to have no physical problems as well. We will start the bid at 5 common spirit stones, with 10 gold of minimum increment."
"510 gold"
"520 gold"
530 gold"
.
.
.
The auction house suddenly started thundering with the sound of the numerous bid. Cai Ping's smile got wider each time she heard a bit. She would get about 2% of the revenue from each of these sales, so the more it sold for, the richer she got.
Within the first 20 seconds, the bid had crossed 10 spirit stones. Alex got surprised seeing this. This behavior was completely different from what he had expected. He thought only a few people would bid for the cub; but seeing so many people bid for it, he realized his idea of what the cub was used for must be mistaken.
Ma Rong looked at his interested eyes and got a little surprised. "Do you want the cub?" she asked him.
Alex was startled as he was focused on the happenings below. He looked towards his master and said, "No, master. I was just curious why so many people would want a tiger cub and not just get an adult tiger?"
"Of course, that's because they want to raise the cub themselves. A monster trained from birth is so much easier to make a companion out of than a normal adult monster." She said to him explaining why so many people were bidding for the cub.
"A companion? What's that? Do you make friends with monsters? Why would you?" he got so very confused hearing his master's explanation. They only brought forth more questions than answers.
Ma Rong suddenly remembered how much common knowledge her disciple was lacking. She laughed a little to herself and started explaining.
"Beast companions are an important aspect of a cultivator's life. Cultivators can make a bond with a beast and control them. They can make the beasts fight for them, or just have them as a friend through their journey as a cultivator. Overall, the beasts can help you in a lot of places."
"That cub right there is a newborn monster. Those are somewhat rare to come by. A young monster is very naive and gullible, so after a few weeks or months of getting treated well by the other party, they happily bond to them. That is why the people down there are so excited to bid for it. "
"If they manage to get it and raise it to the True realms. It can be a true powerhouse that can deter their foes and help them gain fame, money, and status in life. Even if they themselves happen to be weak or untalented in cultivation, having such a beast companion would offset everything."
"In fact, even I am a little tempted to get the cub. But I won't as I am quite satisfied with my beast for now." Ma Rong said.
Alex got surprised to hear that, "You have a beast companion, master? How come I haven't seen it yet? Does it not live in the mountain?"
"Oh, I forgot to mention. Beast companions are a little unique, in that they don't live in the physical world after they bond with a cultivator. Look," she said as she swept aside a bit of her long hair to show her beautiful white skin on her neck.
On the neck was a small circular pattern that looked like it was a long beast coiling. "This is where my beast lives. I can call her anytime I want, and she would fight for me."
Ma Rong let go of her hair and asked, "So, do you want to get the cub?"
Alex gave the question serious thought. From what his master had just said, a beast companion would be an amazing help for him if he wanted to become a stronger cultivator. However, he didn't want that. He just wanted to cultivate normally, and see where life went in the game.
His main focus was on Alchemy, which he both liked and had a great talent in. He had gotten lucky with the technique, and now he was incredibly happy with it. So, he didn't think getting a beast companion could make that any better.
"No, master." He simply shook his head. Ma Rong nodded, seemingly thinking that was the correct choice for him. Distracting himself with a beast right now might hinder his progress in alchemy.
By the time the master-disciple pair's conversation had come to a stop, the bidding war for the tiger cub was also ending.
"13 spirit stones." Someone shouted.
"13 spirit stones, is anyone else bidding." Cai Ping asked the crowd.
"13 spirit stones and 50 golds." Someone else shouted from the crowd.
"13 spirit stones and 50 gold, does anyone else have a higher bid?" Cai Ping asked once more. She waited for a few seconds and heard back nothing from the crowd. So, she took the gavel and started saying,
"13 spirit stones and 50 golds going once." Nobody talked.
"13 spirit stones and 50 golds going twice." Still silence.
"13 spirit stones and 50 golds going thrice, Sold!!" Cai Ping hit the gavel on the table with a loud bang.
"The first item of the day, the Clouded Tiger cub, has been sold to the lady on seat 45 for 13 spirit stones and 50 gold coins. Congratulations."
A few staff members came and took the cub away, and replaced it with another box hidden with a cloth.