Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi had used a small trick to blur his features, obscuring his face to anyone whose cultivation wasn’t far above his own. Before entering, he had also stowed away his sword box. One convenience of reaching the Nascent Soul Realm was the ability to open a portable space of his own, perfect for storing something as conspicuous as his sword box. It spared him a lot of inconvenience, as the sword box was too eye-catching.

He sat down, his expression unreadable.

The others, however, all eyed the newcomer with guarded suspicion. They were already well-acquainted with the major and minor factions around Dongxiao City, so much so that the black cloaks were little more than a formality.

They could all roughly guess who had entered before Li Guanqi. It was the eldest young master of the Wu family, Wu Kun, who hailed from Baiyang City, located east of Dongxiao City.

Wu Kun was awful at concealing his aura, and everyone present was at least at the peak of the Golden Core Realm. There were two Nascent Soul Realm cultivators too, so he was as good as naked to them.

They’d also heard Wu Kun had been spending a lot of time with a female disciple from the Phoenix Lightning Sect. They figured the Wu family was trying to leverage the sect’s influence.

The Phoenix Lightning Sect was among the ten strongest factions in the Eastern Territory. They were essentially an open book, and any news about their activities spread like wildfire.

The door soon shut, and it was clear no one else would be coming. Beneath his hood, Wu Kun sat stiffly, drenched in cold sweat he dared not wipe away. He folded his arms and forced himself to stay still. The people around him were too strong.

He forced himself to sit still and folded his arms.

By contrast, Li Guanqi‌ looked around with great interest. Leaning back in his chair, he plucked a few spirit fruits from the platter at his side and popped them into his mouth. I need to take advantage of free stuff! I wonder if I can take some with me later…Buzz!

The space before them warped slightly. Li Guanqi looked up at the center of the room.

An elderly man dressed in plain hemp robes slowly emerged. He was quite tall and somewhat plump, with a round face, a smiling expression that squinted slightly, and a rounded nose.

Li Guanqi pursed his lips. He preferred to stay away from people like him. Those who smiled without reason unsettled him more than those who wore their hearts on their sleeve. And the old man’s aura shifted unpredictably, sometimes faint as a breeze, other times as vast as a canyon.

The old man wasted no words. He gave a small nod of greeting, then conjured a magical treasure with flowing light on his palm.

It resembled an ice-blue oil lamp, radiating a faint blue spirit qi. It was shaped like a vicious shark, carrying a milky white inner core in its jaws.

It looked very valuable.

“This,” the old man said with his ever-present smile, “is the Heavenly Bead Lamp. Light it, and it steadies your mind, sharpening focus and aiding comprehension.”

Li Guanqi raised an eyebrow. The Dragon-Elephant Subduing Sutra was too complicated for him, so he wondered if the lamp would help him make sense of it.

Sword Spirit gradually materialized and said, “It will help, but that sea demon’s inner core only holds three uses. Once it’s spent, it’s nothing more than decoration.”

The old man looked at the group of people. He had conveniently left that part unsaid.

However, the attendees were knowledgeable too. One of the Nascent Soul Realm cultivators said, “That lamp doesn’t look like it’ll last more than a few uses. And the inner core is even damaged.”

The old man merely kept smiling. “The starting price is one hundred and twenty mid-grade spirit stones.”

A hefty sum. The room fell silent for a long time. No one seemed interested.

The old man seemed unconcerned and was already preparing to put the lamp away when Li Guanqi raised his hand. “One hundred and twenty mid-grade spirit stones.”

He spoke in a low and hoarse voice to conceal his age.

The others looked on in surprise. To them, the lamp’s value was dubious and even limited by its few uses. But they assumed Li Guanqi needed it for his cultivation, so they didn’t pry.

Li Guanqi noticed that Wu Kun, seated across from him, seemed to be interested. However, Wu Kun ultimately said nothing.

The old man nodded and tossed the lamp to Li Guanqi, who handed over a storage pouch. In the black market, money and goods changed hands without question.

Then the old man presented his next item. It was an excellent set of Daoist robes, and its price quickly soared to one thousand four hundred mid-grade spirit stones, leaving even the wealthy Li Guanqi inwardly wincing.

The third item made Li Guanqi’s heart jolt. It was half of a fire-red jade pendant. The moment his eyes fell on it, he knew it was the missing half of the pendant he already possessed. The edges matched perfectly, and their auras were identical.

Though he didn’t yet know what it was, he was pleasantly surprised. He had never imagined he would stumble across the other half in such a place.

The pendant drew the attention of the entire room. Every cultivator could sense its unusual aura. Such artifacts often pointed to opportunities.

Mysterious artifacts like keys and maps were very attractive to cultivators. For those who lived long lifespans chasing after the unknown, such things were irresistible. They carried the possibility of miracles, and there were many stories of cultivators becoming powerful overnight due to treasures like that.

As such, most people in the room were interested in the jade pendant.

Li Guanqi frowned, noticing their interest. He had to get it for himself. He was curious about it, and he even possessed its other half. How could he possibly pass up such a rare opportunity?

The bidding began at five hundred mid-grade spirit stones and climbed quickly, soon surpassing two thousand. Then the pace slowed as the bidders grew cautious, testing one another’s limits.

Li Guanqi knew they all had an internal price limit.

Just as Li Guanqi was weighing his own offer, Wu Kun suddenly raised a hand. “Three thousand five hundred spirit stones!”