Unlimited priesthood

Chapter 152 Auction
Three days later, at the Poison Dragon Pool.

"auctions?"

"What time is it? You still have the mood to pull this stunt?"

“In peaceful times, there would be no problem with holding an auction.”

"But these are extraordinary times. Who can vouch for this auction, and how many people have the courage to participate?"

"I'm afraid that the filming will be completed no sooner than they leave the market than they'll be robbed, and they might not even be able to leave the market. A major battle is about to break out at the meeting?"

"Hurry up and get away, lest the fire at the city gates cause innocent bystanders to suffer."

"This is fucking infuriating!"

Amidst the rumors and gossip, a large number of cultivators left, departing from this sacred land of the Poison Dragon Pool.

But some people went against the tide and came to the desolate and quiet market.

Shenhe is one of them.

Looking at the desolate and quiet market, and the hurried pedestrians, he felt a pang of emotion.

The disastrous consequences of involution and the collapse of order are fully on display at this moment.

Auctions are generally considered to be quite credible, as they are usually organized by major markets with the support of Foundation Establishment or even Core Formation sects, giving them a good reputation and strong guarantees.

Therefore, major markets are happy to hold auctions to make profits, and cultivators from all sides are happy to come and shop, truly achieving a win-win situation for both hosts and guests.

But now that credibility and harmonious atmosphere are gone.

The righteous and demonic forces are locked in a chaotic battle, and the alchemy sects are fighting amongst themselves. They are too busy taking care of themselves to care about anything else.
Although the major markets have cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage, they are no match for the numerous demons and evil cultivators roaming the land, and simply do not have the capacity to hold a reputable and safe auction.

Who would participate in an auction if it lacked sufficient credibility and security guarantees?
The vast majority of people will not do this, and will not only not do it, but will also stay away from it, lest they be caught in the crossfire.

That's why we have this scene now. Most people don't even dare to stay in this Poison Dragon Pool spiritual land, let alone the market, for fear that the auction will turn into a murder and robbery halfway through.

But a small number of people went against the tide.

This is not surprising; just as some people are afraid of death, others are indifferent to life and death.

These people who go against the tide are fearless of death, wanting to snatch chestnuts from the fire and lick blood from the knife's edge, to fight for a future in this "auction".

Without exception, these people are all demonic and evil cultivators who exude a demonic aura.

Or rather, 99% of the cultivation world in the inland areas today consists of demons and evil cultivators.

This is the disastrous consequence of "involution"!

The Netherworld Yellow Springs Sect's dissemination of demonic cultivation techniques has caused extremely serious damage to the order and balance of the cultivation world.

After all, the cultivation world has never lacked people with deep-seated grievances. Once these people obtain demonic cultivation techniques, they will definitely cultivate them at all costs to gain power and take revenge.

So, here comes the problem.

Your enemy has practiced demonic arts, so do you want to practice them or not?

Of course you have to practice. If you don't practice while others do, and the gap widens, you'll have to pay the price, and you might even have your entire family wiped out by your enemies.

Not to mention that besides hatred, there are various other factors that drive, influence, and tempt.

The desire for immortality, the pursuit of power, wealth, lust, fame, and profit can all lead people astray, using the resources of all living beings to achieve their own ends.

Therefore, demonic cultivation techniques cannot be made public. If they are made public, it will disrupt the ecological balance of the entire cultivation world, forcing everyone to become demonic cultivators, leading to a life-or-death struggle for power.

The ultimate result is the raising of Gu worms. Whether or not a Gu King can be raised in the end is unknown, but other Gu worms and other creatures will definitely be driven to their deaths by this endless and unlimited vicious competition.

Therefore, the dissemination of demonic cultivation techniques has always been strictly prohibited, both for the righteous path and even more so for the demonic path. This is a tacit understanding and rule, involving the fundamental interests of both the righteous and demonic sides, and neither side will break this balance.

But now, the Netherworld Yellow Springs Sect has gone mad for some unknown reason and has broken this situation. The righteous sects such as the Xuanxiao Sect are powerless to stop it, allowing this unbalanced, disorderly, harmful and unprofitable vicious competition to appear in the inland cultivation world.

Although everyone knows that things will eventually lead to destruction if they continue like this, no one can stop it because everyone is powerless to change their fate.

That's how it is when you're swept up by the tide of events!
……

Shen He arrived at the auction venue, which was a restaurant in the center of the city. The venue had a square seating area with no private rooms or private booths. Everyone was seated in the square seating area.

This is clearly different from a regular auction.

But no one spoke; they all sat down silently, waiting for the auction to begin.

Shen He also sat in the audience, focusing his Qi energy in his eyes and using the Five Elements technique to examine everyone's cultivation level.

"Foundation building, it's all about foundation building."

"Demonic cultivators, they're all demonic cultivators."

"Um……!?"

Looking at everyone's cultivation levels, Shen He frowned and remained silent.

Those present were divided into groups of varying sizes, each with a Foundation Establishment cultivator at its core, and the rest were all Qi Refining cultivators, without the burden of Spirit Gathering cultivation.

Clearly, everyone knew that this auction was unusual and was prepared for a major battle, or even came specifically for a major battle.

The organizers of the auction seemed intent on escalating the conflict, as they didn't even set up private boxes or rooms. Everyone was seated in the main hall, where they could clearly observe each other.

Now, many people are just like him, recklessly using their magical power to scan everyone with their spiritual eyes to determine their cultivation level and strength.

"This kind of auction..."

Shen He's eyes flickered, revealing a strange smile, before he sat down and waited quietly.

"Welcome everyone to this auction!"

A moment later, an old man stepped onto the stage, and his cultivation level was clearly at the Foundation Establishment stage.

"It's that old codger from the Xiang family!"

"This old fellow must be nearly two hundred years old, right?"

"If he takes the lead, perhaps a war can be averted?"

"Don't be delusional. He's just a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. Without a Core Formation cultivator to suppress him, this situation is utterly useless."

"It depends on whether the items up for auction can entice all parties. If there are no rare treasures, then even a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator can hold his own."

"Hehehe, rare treasures? What more rare treasures do you need? Aren't all of you here rare treasures and miraculous medicines?"

Looking at the people on the stage, everyone's gazes were chilling, and the atmosphere became even more tense.

The old man on the stage remained expressionless: "This auction will be conducted using spirit stones, with payment settled on the spot. Now, please welcome the first item for auction—the Demon Blood Pill!"

As they spoke, a woman stepped onto the stage, carrying a tray with three jade bottles.

"Demon Blood Pill, a fourth-tier pill, is formed using the demonic blood refining method. It contains a large amount of blood and flesh essence, which can help demonic cultivators establish their foundation or increase their magic power. There are three pills available, to be auctioned separately. The starting price for each pill is six thousand spirit stones, and each bid must be at least one thousand spirit stones higher."

"Demon Blood Pill?"

Hearing the old man's words and looking at the pills on the stage, everyone's eyes narrowed, and then they sneered.

"It seems that Poison Dragon Pool has done quite a few good deeds over the years!"

"May the demonic path flourish! May the demonic path flourish!"

"Hahaha!"

With a chilling sneer, one person raised their hand to bid: "Seven thousand spirit stones!"

"Eight thousand spirit stones!"

"Nine thousand spirit stones!"

"Ten thousand spirit stones!"

"Bah!!!"

After only four rounds of bidding, one man stood up, glaring angrily at his competitor: "Old Wei, are you deliberately trying to antagonize me?"

"how?"

The old man competing with him was not afraid at all: "If you can only bid and no one else is allowed to bid, then what's the point of the auction? I'll just let you, old man, buy it all."

"Old ghost, you're asking for death!"

The man's eyes narrowed, revealing a murderous intent.

"enough!"

Fortunately, at this moment, the old man surnamed Xiang on the stage suppressed his words, using his late-stage Foundation Establishment power to subdue the two: "Ten thousand spirit stones per time!"

"Humph!"

Seeing this, the two had no choice but to suppress their murderous intent and sit down.

Soon, the three Demon Blood Pills were sold to various parties, and the atmosphere in the arena became even more tense.

As each item was brought to the stage, they were either fourth-tier items or rare and exotic third-tier treasures, fetching considerable prices and further intensifying the atmosphere of the auction. Eyes darted about, scanning the room like wolves and tigers, all searching for their targets.

At last……

"The Heavenly Blazing Banner!"

One item was brought to the stage: a set of magical artifacts and an array combination.

"This is a low-grade spiritual artifact, ranking in the fourth tier!"

The old man on the stage introduced in a deep voice: "There is a main flag and seven auxiliary flags. It can set up the Heavenly Blazing Fire Formation. It is easy to kill those who have just reached the Foundation Establishment stage. Even those who have reached the Core Formation stage but do not understand the principles of formations will find it difficult to break this formation. The starting price is 500,000 spirit stones, and each bid must be at least 10,000 spirit stones higher."

"It's actually a magic artifact made of array techniques?"

Upon hearing this, all the Foundation Establishment demon cultivators present stood up abruptly, their eyes fixed intently on the Heavenly Blazing Fire Banner on the stage, and for a moment no one uttered a sound.

The old man on the stage remained silent, waiting quietly for everyone to make their move.

After a moment of silence, someone tentatively spoke up: "Five hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones!"

"Five hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones?"

Before he could finish speaking, a laugh rang out: "Old Iron Ghost, do you even have 500,000 spirit stones to dare to shout and yell like that?"

"What does it matter to you whether I am or not?"

The old man surnamed Tie coldly replied, "If you're not convinced, then..."

"I fucking refuse to submit to you!"

Before he could finish speaking, a beam of demonic light pierced through the air, instantly throwing the scene into chaos. Several magical artifacts rushed onto the stage, and the crowd below reacted in response, instantly turning into a chaotic battle.

"!!!!!!"

The old man surnamed Xiang on the stage had anticipated this, and immediately flew away in a flash, abandoning even the Heavenly Blazing Fire Banner beside him.

The scene was chaotic, with people fighting and screams echoing throughout the venue.

Even outside the venue, demonic light surged in. It was the Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators who had rushed over after receiving the news, as well as those waiting outside, who couldn't help but join the battle.

"Kill, kill, kill!"

"Go to hell!"

"You old devil, prepare to die!"

"Good body, become my food!"

"Hahaha!"

The sounds of fighting, wailing, and wild laughter continued incessantly.

Just then, outside the venue.

"boom!!!"

A dazzling golden light shot into the sky, revealing twelve golden mirrors arranged in an array outside the venue. Now, unleashing their power, beams of golden light swept into the arena, instantly turning several Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators into ashes.

"This is……"

"A formation!?"

"A fourth-order formation?"

"Oh no, we've fallen for their trap!"

Upon seeing this scene, the demonic cultivators fighting inside were finally awakened. Looking at the twelve golden mirrors that were like the sun in the sky, their faces turned pale and their souls seemed to flee.

"How could there be a fourth-order formation?"

"A fourth-realm array master! A fourth-realm array master!"

"They formed a formation without a sound, and it's even a fourth-order spirit formation! Who has plotted against us!"

"Is it the Xuanxiao Sect?"

"Or is it the Netherworld Yellow Springs Sect?"

The group of Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators were filled with shock and anger. While dodging the golden light's killing intent, they hissed as they probed their opponents.

At the same time, outside the formation, several people stood side by side, watching the battle with calm smiles.

"Uncle Xuanji's golden light array is becoming increasingly powerful!"

"Hmph, these demons and evil cultivators, blinded by greed, have walked right into their trap and are unaware of their impending doom!"

"Being blinded by greed is natural; otherwise, how could one fall into the demonic path?"

"Unfortunately, this method can only be used once. Next time, when they are on guard, it will be difficult to achieve the desired effect."

"That's not necessarily true. As long as we kill all these demons and prevent the news from leaking out, people will take the bait even if we try a few more times."

"These demonic cultivators have lived inland for a long time and are unaware of the vastness of the world. They believe that only the Xuanxiao and Youming sects can have a Core Formation cultivator and a fourth-level array master like Uncle Xuanji. That's why they dare to come here."

"Who would have thought we were overseas cultivators, returning to vanquish demons? Haha!"

Looking at the demons and evil cultivators being swept away by the golden light within the formation, a hint of smugness appeared in the eyes of the group.

The demonic cultivators inside the formation were not so carefree. Under the sweeping golden light, their numbers dwindled rapidly, with only a few still struggling to hold on.

"Four Realms Array Masters are only found in the Xuanxiao Sect and the Youming Huangquan Sect!"

"Now that the Netherworld Yellow Springs Sect is besieging the Xuanxiao Sect's mountain gate, it is absolutely impossible for them to send out array masters from the four realms."

"They are overseas cultivators who set this trap to harm us!"

"A fourth-level array master, he's probably a Core Formation cultivator!"

"Now that things have come to this, we have no other choice but to join forces and fight our way out!"

"Try to survive in the face of death, kill!!!"

Several Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators awoke with a start, finally understanding the cause and effect. Looking at the golden light filling the sky, they roared and merged into a demonic torrent, rushing towards a corner of the formation.

"boom!!!"

The heavens and earth trembled instantly, the power of the primordial spirit surged, and the golden light shattered.

"Bang bang bang bang bang bang!"

Of the twelve golden mirrors, six shattered in an instant, and a person flew out, his white clothes stained with blood, a shocking sight.

"Uncle-Master Xuanji!"

The few people watching from the outside of the formation also changed their expressions drastically upon seeing this, and hurriedly flew forward to the side of the man in white.

"How could this happen?"

"These demonic cultivators actually managed to break the formation?"

Seeing the white-clad man cough up blood, the group looked even more terrified.

They were overseas cultivators who had returned to the inland cultivation world to carry out their master's orders to wipe out the demonic cultivators. They thought they had it all figured out, but unexpectedly, this happened.

Those Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators actually broke the Golden Light Array and even injured Master Xuanji, who had Core Formation cultivation.

How is that possible!

"Hahaha!"

"How was it, Xuanjizi? The feeling of the earth veins surging and the spirit array being broken wasn't pleasant, was it?"

Just as everyone was filled with surprise and doubt, a cold laugh suddenly came.

Everyone looked up and followed the sound, only to see two people approaching from both sides.

The man in front wore a green robe and had a sinister face.

The person behind, dressed in blood-stained clothes, appeared even more alluring.

"Xin Chenzi!"

"Ding Weiyin!"

"You're back too!"

Xuanjizi clenched his teeth, suppressing his internal injuries, and coldly stared at the two of them.

"Hahaha!"

Seeing his appearance, Xin Chenzi, dressed in a green robe, laughed even louder: "The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Brilliant, brilliant!"

(End of this chapter)