“The Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass has appeared,” Qian Duoduo said to Liu Boli in his mind.
“Mm,” Liu Boli hummed lightly.
His brief reply didn't betray much emotion, but Qian Duoduo resolved to obtain the Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass at any cost.
“Let’s watch a bit longer,” Qian Duoduo told Chu Tianqi, then re-entered the shop, bowing his head as if admiring the spiritual plant.
The Shengling Sect’s spiritual plants were a full size larger than theirs, yet the prices were similar.
Qian Duoduo looked at a few plants and felt the urge to buy them.
While waiting for the next round of guessing, many Cultivators took out money to buy spiritual plants, enjoying the 30% discount from the shop’s anniversary celebration.
At this moment, just like Qian Duoduo’s Artifact Refining competition, a perfect unity of people, goods, and venue was achieved.
Although the floral-skirted person had peculiar tastes, he understood business.
“Dong!” The bell rang.
“Fellow Daoists,” the floral-skirted person swayed, “The Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass, rumored to have the effect of reshaping the Soul, is one of the main ingredients for Advanced Soul medicines.
Our sect doesn’t have much in stock.
To benefit the Cultivators of Kongfang City, we’ve specially brought it out to reward our sect shop customers.
The starting price is eighty thousand gold coins.
For this guessing game, our shop wants to add a rule: only Fellow Daoists who have made a purchase in our shop are eligible to participate.
What do you all think?”
“Agreed!” A chorus of shouts echoed through the shop.
It seemed that quite a few Cultivators had indeed bought spiritual plants in the shop.
Those who hadn’t bought anything felt a lack of confidence and, though they wanted to object, knew they were at a disadvantage.
The floral-skirted person lightly stomped his foot a few times, “However, the guessing hasn’t started yet.
If you haven’t bought anything, you can still buy now.”
He sat down, picked up a teacup from the counter, and blew on the non-existent steam.
Qian Duoduo shook his head; this sales tactic was quite direct!
Throwing out over eight thousand gold coins, Qian Duoduo bought a spiritual plant he already wanted, gaining the qualification to participate in the guessing game.
Chu Tianqi spent over three thousand and also bought an item.
Seeing that almost all the Cultivators in the shop had placed orders, the floral-skirted person beamed, put down the teacup, stood up, and with a flip of his bright red lips, declared, “Let’s begin.”
The Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass on the tray resembled a Spirit Chicken, with a purplish-red flower crown and thick, golden-yellow roots.
Its vibrant appearance made it hard to imagine that it only grew in dark, cold underground places.
More spiritual papers appeared on the wall.
Qian Duoduo wrote “90000” and handed it to the attendant.
Chu Tianqi wrote “85678”.
Qian Duoduo had seriously considered it; there was no logic to this kind of price guessing.
Whatever the seller wrote, that was the price; the guessers were purely estimating.
The floral-skirted person chuckled twice, “Let me see what Brother Bu Huan guessed: 90000, what an auspicious number!”
Qian Duoduo secretly resented his meddling.
If someone wanted to cut off Qian Duoduo, they could guess one more coin or one less coin than Qian Duoduo.
Indeed, some Cultivators wrote 90001, and some wrote 89999.
Whether the price was higher or lower than ninety thousand, it could no longer be Qian Duoduo’s.
Unless it was exactly ninety thousand.
But that was impossible.
The floral-skirted person kept calling him “Brother,” sweet on the tongue, but malicious at heart.
“Everyone has made their guesses?” The floral-skirted person looked around, slowly opened the brocade box, took out the spiritual paper, and held it up.
“98766.”
This price exceeded most people’s guesses.
A long-faced Cultivator who had randomly written one hundred thousand and one gold coins became the lucky winner.
He rubbed his hands, hesitated a few times, and didn't pull out a single gold coin, “Who likes this thing?”
Spending one hundred thousand gold coins to buy a spiritual plant made everyone hesitate.
“If no one wants it, I’ll buy it,” Qian Duoduo said, pleased in his heart, but feigning a difficult expression.
The long-faced Cultivator grinned.
Someone buying meant he would earn fifty thousand for free.
“Wait! I’m also interested in this thing,” the floral-skirted person extended his hand, “Do you mind if I buy it?” he asked the long-faced Cultivator.
The long-faced Cultivator showed his big teeth and lifted his hand, meaning, you two bid, whoever bids higher gets it.
The two shop managers were now at odds.
All the Cultivators in the shop widened their eyes, watching the show.
“Manager Cai is also interested in his own shop’s items?” Qian Duoduo asked unhurriedly.
Cai Fuxue swayed his floral skirt a few times, “Guessing is public business, but bidding is private business.
Public and private must be distinct.
I bid one hundred and ten thousand.”
The long-faced Cultivator’s eyes widened, looking at Qian Duoduo.
“One hundred and twenty thousand,” Qian Duoduo couldn’t give up.
“One hundred and fifty thousand,” the floral-skirted person laughed, looking as if he had long known Qian Duoduo would raise the price.
“Two hundred thousand,” Qian Duoduo jumped a large price, cheerfully looking at the floral-skirted person.
“Three hundred thousand,” the floral-skirted person’s venom was too potent.
“Five hundred thousand!” Qian Duoduo reddened his face, shouting fiercely.
The floral-skirted person was retaliating against him; it would be impossible to get the Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass without spending a few extra coins.
Acting exasperated and pained by the money was to make him think that he was acting on impulse and could withdraw from the auction at any time.
Once he withdrew, the floral-skirted person would have given the long-faced Cultivator hundreds of thousands for nothing.
The sect shop fell silent, and the Cultivators all looked at Cai Fuxue.
The floral-skirted person cupped his hands towards Qian Duoduo, “I just remembered, I still have two more plants in my Storage Pouch.
I won’t compete with Brother for this one.
Congratulations, Brother, on acquiring your desired spiritual plant.”
Qian Duoduo held his breath, making his face even redder, “You, you…”
The long-faced Cultivator spread his hands, “Money.”
The floral-skirted person lightly clapped his hands, “My apologies, Brother, for making you spend so much, so much.”
Qian Duoduo threw over a Storage Pouch.
The long-faced Cultivator took out fifty thousand gold coins from it and handed them to the floral-skirted person.
The floral-skirted person gave Qian Duoduo a charming smile and handed him the Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass.
The long-faced Cultivator then handed it to Qian Duoduo.
Qian Duoduo immediately took it, feigning a huff, and walked away.
Behind him, a wave of laughter erupted from the Shengling Sect’s sect shop.
Entering his own room and activating the shielding Formation, Qian Duoduo couldn't help but laugh out loud, placing the Cold Flower Blood Crown Grass into the Golden Toad, “Master, please examine it.”
Spending five hundred thousand gold coins, Qian Duoduo actually didn’t feel any pain.
He knew that without his Master Liu Boli, he would have died countless times.
Although he and Liu Boli often called each other “Evil Teacher” and “stubborn disciple,” they both held each other in extremely important positions in their hearts.
Liu Boli said with a smile, “These roots are plentiful, enough for at least three refinements.
Fortunately, you acted quickly; if you had met someone who truly lacked this Spiritual Plant, you would have spent more than this, perhaps several more five hundred thousands.”
“For the Five Yin Soul Returning Pill, we’re only missing one Black Velvet Soft Purple Artemisia,” Qian Duoduo felt some anticipation for Liu Boli to recover a significant portion of his cultivation.
“No rush.
We’ll find it when we find it,” Liu Boli had an excellent mindset.
Perhaps, after waiting for thousands of years in the Golden Toad, his patience had accumulated like dust, becoming thick and profound.
Leaving the room, Qian Duoduo immediately arranged for the Magic Treasure guessing event.
On the same day as Qian Duoduo, the Ba Ling Sect’s guessing event also began.
Inside the market, their three sect shops competed in bleeding money, making every day a festival for the Cultivators.
Qian Duoduo began refining artifacts like crazy, just like he did on Phoenix Feather Mountain, refining without restraint.
The Shengling Sect and Ba Ling Sect had resources, and Qian Duoduo had the ability, the ability to refine Magic Treasures.
The Spiritual Qi in the Spiritual Vein had already turned plum-green.
This allowed Qian Duoduo’s furnace temperature to be higher and his Artifact Refining speed faster.
During repeated Artifact Refining, Qian Duoduo suddenly had a strange thought: since all things can be refined, can people also be refined?
If he refined a person, refined a person who could use immortal techniques, what would that be like?
Qian Duoduo was startled by this thought, but the thought was like a wild Spiritual Plant; once it grew, it was hard to uproot.
“Am I falling into the Dao of devils?” Unable to resist, Qian Duoduo told Liu Boli his crazy idea.
Liu Boli, however, was nonchalant, “Refining people is certainly possible.
Among Artifact Refining, the most Advanced Magic Treasure is the Puppet.
What is a Puppet? It is a person who obeys your commands.”
“It’s not a person, but it’s better than a person.”
Liu Boli said, “The technique for refining Puppets is in the later volumes of the Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining.
Even the lowest level Puppets are Dan artifacts.”
So that was it.
The desire to refine people was a thought that every Artifact Refiner inevitably produced.
Qian Duoduo felt relieved about himself.
One day, as Qian Duoduo was refining artifacts, Zhu Junliang knocked on the door and came in, whispering, “Manager, someone from your family is here!”
“My family? Where do I have a family?
My parents in You Sha Village died long ago; they can’t crawl out of their graves, can they?”
Qian Duoduo thought for a long time before he came to his senses.
It was someone from Jin Buhuan’s family.
However, Jin Buhuan’s family had no one left long ago.
Jin Buhuan’s mother sold herself to be a servant, so she couldn't possibly come out.
Qian Duoduo had wanted to redeem Jin Buhuan’s mother several times, but thinking of Jin Buque’s ruthlessness, he put the thought aside.
He would consider it when his strength was greater.
Unexpectedly, someone from the Jin family had come looking for them first.