A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

He had already mastered the alchemy techniques required to concoct Creation Spirit Liquid. The only thing he was missing was a Spirit Vein capable of supplying a vast amount of Spiritual Qi, so he had come here specifically for the Spiritual Land auction.

”...Next up for auction is the Lushui Plateau. This Spiritual Land originally belonged to the Iron Sword Sect. After a financed sea vessel sank, the Iron Sword Sect became insolvent and has put the Lushui Plateau up for sale. It is a Tier One, medium-sized Spirit Vein located north of Changchun Immortal City, adjacent to the Luyang Mountain Range. It boasts abundant Spirit Medicine resources, and the Dong River, which carries a faint Spiritual Qi, flows through the territory. One hundred and twenty-seven mu of Lower Grade Spirit Fields have already been established, and its future development potential is immense. There are conditions attached: the new owner must guarantee the safety of the mortals in Lushui City and participate in the culling of the Luyang Mountain Range’s Demon Beasts, which occurs once every thirty years. The starting price is three hundred thousand Spirit Stones, with minimum bid increments of ten thousand!”

An influential Steward from Changchun Valley was presiding over the event. Once he announced the start of the bidding, the crowd of participants immediately began placing their bids.

Among the bidders were Clan Leaders, most of whom wanted to acquire land to lay a foundation for their clan’s prosperity. There were also wealthy Independent Foundation Establishment Cultivators. The latter group had two main objectives: either to buy land to expand their lineage and establish a new Cultivation Clan, or to purchase a Spiritual Land to found a Sect.

Under their bidding, the price of the Lushui Plateau Spirit Vein rose again and again, quickly soaring to a massive seven hundred thousand Spirit Stones.

Lü Zhong had no intention of bidding on this Spirit Vein.

When others bought a Spirit Vein, they looked at its future development potential—how many profitable industries could be established. The Lushui Plateau was able to command a high price of seven hundred thousand Spirit Stones because the Spiritual Land could support both a Spirit Medicine harvesting industry and the creation of numerous Spirit Fields for cultivating Spirit Rice.

He, on the other hand, only needed the Spiritual Qi from the Spirit Vein.

A Spirit Vein’s tier could be slowly raised over several generations through various methods, but time was the one thing Lü Zhong didn’t have. It was far more practical to just buy a ready-made one.

After a round of fierce bidding, Lushui Plateau was finally sold for the high price of eight hundred thirty thousand Spirit Stones, secured by a middle-aged man in brown robes.

”Next, we will be auctioning Ganquan Island. It is a Tier Two, large-sized Spirit Vein. The winning bidder will gain ownership of the entire Ganquan Islands, along with development rights to a thousand li of the surrounding sea. The Ganquan Islands are located in the Outer Sea Area beyond Changchun Immortal City and have immense development potential. The attached condition is that the owner must fend off any Sea Beast Tide attacks on their own. The starting price is five hundred thousand Spirit Stones, with minimum bid increments of ten thousand.”

Unlike the Lushui Plateau Spiritual Land, which had sparked a bidding war the moment it was announced, Ganquan Island, with a starting price of only five hundred thousand Spirit Stones, was met with a cold reception.

The reason was its location: two thousand li away in the Outer Sea. In the event of a large-scale Sea Beast attack, it would receive no support from Changchun Immortal City. Furthermore, only a Golden Core Master could single-handedly repel a Sea Beast Tide, an ability that the average Foundation Establishment Clan simply did not possess. Therefore, it was unsuitable as a clan territory or a sect’s headquarters.

After a long while, only three people had placed bids, and the increments were not large.

Seeing this, the Changchun Valley Steward frowned.

The final sale price of the Spiritual Land was directly tied to his commission. He had already spent a fortune in Spirit Stones pulling strings just to secure the right to host this auction.

Under the circumstances, he was naturally unwilling to see such a lackluster response.

After a moment’s thought, and wanting to increase his own earnings, he decisively revealed the Sect’s bottom-line condition: the winning bidder would be permitted to construct a Commercial Harbor on the Ganquan Islands.

Within the Changchun Domain, the construction of commercial harbors was under the strict control of Changchun Valley. This was because any new harbor would dilute the total volume of trade passing through Changchun Harbor, effectively reducing the Valley’s income. For this reason, not a single commercial harbor had ever been built in the inner sea of the Changchun Domain. There were only private harbors for the personal use of various clans and sects. These private harbors were forbidden from engaging in commercial trade; violating this rule would result in Changchun Valley reclaiming ownership of the land.

Upon hearing this, the crowd couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

Even the two Golden Core Masters sitting off to the side looked tempted.

But they quickly gave up on the idea.

After all, the Ganquan Islands were not on the main East Sea Route. Even if they really built a commercial harbor, it would likely end up like all the other Outer Sea Commercial Harbors before it—no ships would ever come to dock.

In the end, only a few people were still bidding.

They were either looking to buy it to fish for profit, or they were from Beast Hunting clans who planned to use it as a private hunting ground.

As for anyone who actually wanted to develop the Ganquan Islands, there wasn’t a single one.

”I bid six hundred eighty thousand Spirit Stones.”

Lü Zhong chose his moment and joined the bidding.

His words immediately drew numerous stares.

They didn’t recognize Lü Zhong, but the woman beside him, Chairman Yu Feng’Er of the Chengde Commerce Association, had recently become a well-known figure in Changchun Immortal City. They couldn’t help but wonder, ’What is the Chengde Commerce Association’s motive for buying the Ganquan Islands?’

’Could there be an undeveloped ore vein on the islands?’

’Or maybe the waters around Ganquan Island hide some kind of rare resource...’

Their merchant instincts made them suspicious.

The same thoughts surfaced in the mind of the Changchun Valley Steward, who was standing to the side. He couldn’t help but wonder if the cultivators the Sect had sent to ”plow the land” had truly missed something.

Immediately, someone placed a probing bid.

And then, their security deposit was confiscated.

The rules of the Spiritual Land auction required every bidder to pay a fifty-thousand-Spirit-Stone security deposit beforehand. If a bidder won the auction but then backed out of the sale, their deposit would be forfeited.

The moment that person made their bid, Lü Zhong immediately withdrew.

According to his own valuation, six hundred eighty thousand was the absolute most he was willing to pay for the Ganquan Islands.

Soon enough, the whole farce was over.