Beast Taming: I Have an Immortal Mansion

Chapter 307 - 247: Tier 3 Fire Dates

Staring at the beautiful maid before him, who seemed entirely his for the taking, Fang Qingyuan felt a stir within him.

This Cyan Sparrow was originally a Qing Guanren from the Spring Flower Building, but in just three years, she had ended up here. She had even broken through the bottleneck from early-stage Qi Refining to the mid-stage and was now a Qi Refining Fourth Level Cultivator.

Although the Spring Flower Building was not a major establishment like the island’s Daqing Building, it was still no easy feat for a Qing Guanren to leave it.

’This Cyan Sparrow certainly has her methods,’ he thought. ’I wonder what expression she would wear if she knew that the person standing before her was the same one who had written a poem for them three years ago.’

Fang Qingyuan was currently in disguise. He figured that with the methods of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, there was no way this Cyan Sparrow could see through it.

At present, every Foundation Establishment Cultivator aboard the He Family’s great ship was provided with a Qi Refining maid. Besides serving as hostesses, they were likely also spies for the He Family.

Rumor had it that the He Family was one of the top one or two families on Iron Wind Island; even the likes of Zhao E Lian had to show them some respect. With the He Family’s endorsement for this transaction, security seemed well-guaranteed.

Furthermore, with the He Family’s involvement, the quality of the goods this time would also be higher. Perhaps even Tier Three Spiritual Materials would appear.

"Senior, how should I address you? May I be so fortunate as to know your name?"

Cyan Sparrow spoke in a soft, delicate voice as she led Fang Qingyuan forward. Once aboard the He Family’s great ship, Shen Wan Jun was no longer responsible for guiding them; everything was handed over to the He Family’s people.

In this event, Shen Wan Jun was playing the role of a broker, using her connections to bring clients with purchasing power to the He Family’s ship.

Fang Qingyuan estimated that if he and the others bought anything on the He Family’s ship, Shen Wan Jun would likely receive a share of the profits.

’Shen Wan Jun knows I’m a Pill Master,’ he thought. ’If I spend too lavishly this time and attract the He Family’s attention, she won’t cover for me. I should set a spending budget.’

’An Independent Practitioner Foundation Establishment Alchemist should have some wealth. After all, being a Pill Master is one of the most profitable professions. An annual income of three Top-grade Spirit Stones is quite normal.’

’Let’s use ten years of income as the basis, then. Thirty Top-grade Spirit Stones will be my limit. If I go beyond that, I’ll start to stand out too much.’

With this in mind, Fang Qingyuan said to Cyan Sparrow ahead of him:

"There’s no need for you to know my name. Just lead the way."

Fang Qingyuan’s tone was harsh and gruff. Cyan Sparrow fell silent and continued to lead the way. She had seen many cultivators like him.

The temperaments of Foundation Establishment Cultivators varied wildly. It was impossible to expect all of them to be amicable.

Fang Qingyuan didn’t want any involvement with Cyan Sparrow. It would be best if she never learned his identity. After today, it would be for the best if they never met again.

The interior of the He Family’s great ship was vast. From the outside, it looked to be no more than a hundred zhang long, but inside, Fang Qingyuan felt it was much larger.

He extended his Divine Sense. His True Knowledge Circle should have been able to probe the entire situation within the He Family’s ship, but the interior seemed to be constructed with many materials that blocked Divine Sense. Fang Qingyuan’s Divine Sense was severely suppressed.

In some areas, the qi auras permeating the air were extremely complex, and Fang Qingyuan didn’t dare to probe them recklessly.

Cyan Sparrow led Fang Qingyuan to the third deck of the ship. It was packed with a surging crowd; a quick glance suggested there were about a thousand people.

The chaotic intertwining of various auras made Fang Qingyuan uncomfortable. He extended his mental perception, and on his Mind Map, the points of light representing Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators numbered well over a hundred.

’Could it be that every Loose Cultivator on Iron Wind Island has been invited here tonight?’

"Senior, please come this way. This is the silent auction hall, held before the main auction begins. Every treasure can be purchased with a blind bid. If no other Cultivator’s final bid is higher than yours, it means you’ve won the item."

Cyan Sparrow led Fang Qingyuan to a display platform on the eastern side. Several hundred spiritual materials were silently displayed within an Array, with a group of cultivators standing guard nearby.

Hearing Cyan Sparrow’s explanation, Fang Qingyuan’s interest was piqued. A silent auction was the ultimate test of a Cultivator’s eye. If a spiritual material caught someone’s fancy, they might bid an exceptionally high price for it.

There were forty or fifty cultivators lingering in the silent auction area. Fang Qingyuan followed Cyan Sparrow, inconspicuously blending in with the crowd.

Once there, Fang Qingyuan looked at Cyan Sparrow beside him, thought for a moment, and said:

"I’m going to browse here. You can go attend to your own business for now. When the auction starts, you can come find me then."

Upon hearing this, a look of disappointment crossed Cyan Sparrow’s face, but she still curtsied and took her leave.

Having temporarily dismissed Cyan Sparrow, Fang Qingyuan began to slowly browse the spiritual materials up for silent auction by himself. As he examined them one by one, a hint of delight welled up inside him.

None of the spiritual materials placed on the silent auction platform were below Tier Two quality. There were even a few Tier Three Lower Grade Spiritual Materials among them.

And among these Tier Three Lower Grade Spiritual Objects, there was one that perfectly suited Fang Qingyuan’s needs.

Fire Jade Blood Dates, a Tier Three Lower Grade Spiritual Material. It takes sixty years to mature, another sixty years to flower, and a final sixty years to bear fruit. Consuming it can strengthen a Cultivator’s physique and offers a small chance of increasing a Fire Spirit Root Cultivator’s Spirit Root aptitude by one to three points, but it is only effective for those below a Top-grade Spirit Root.

A fist-sized, Fire Jade-like date was displayed in the most central position among the spiritual materials for silent auction.

Even with the Array blocking it, Fang Qingyuan could seemingly smell a faint, alluring fragrance. This was his Qi Eating Technique at work, sensing the sweet scent of the Jade Date.

’What a treasure. Besides strengthening a cultivator’s constitution, it has a chance to improve their Spirit Root aptitude. Even though the probability is small, it’s enough to make many Foundation Establishment Cultivators willing to take a gamble.’

The only drawback was that the Fire Jade Blood Date could only improve aptitude for those below a Top-grade Spirit Root. If a Cultivator’s own Fire Spirit Root had already reached the top grade, the fruit would lose its greatest effect.

Even so, a dense pile of blind bid slips had already been submitted for these Fire Dates.

Even if a Cultivator couldn’t use it themselves, it was an excellent choice as a gift or to be saved for their children.

If the child of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator had poor aptitude, consuming this Fire Date would make their cultivation path much smoother.

Fang Qingyuan was also tempted, but not by the Fire Date itself—he was interested in its pit.

’The black soil in my Immortal Mansion is very nutritious; any Spirit Plant can grow well in it. If I plant this Fire Date in the Immortal Mansion, won’t I have an endless supply of Fire Dates to enjoy in the future?’

’Although it takes one hundred and eighty years, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator who buys it and plants it won’t live to see the day the tree bears fruit. But I have an abundant lifespan and plenty of time to wait.’

Thinking this, Fang Qingyuan took a blind bid slip, wrote down a price of thirty Top-grade Spirit Stones, and placed it in front of the Fire Date.

A price of thirty Top-grade Spirit Stones was already quite high for the Fire Jade Blood Date, especially since it could only improve a Fire Spirit Root aptitude that was below top grade.

Without this restriction, this Fire Date probably wouldn’t have even appeared in the silent auction. It would have been the finale item for the main auction, and at that point, forget thirty Top-grade Spirit Stones—it would be furiously fought over even at three hundred.

Besides the Fire Jade Blood Date, Fang Qingyuan also placed bid slips in front of several other spiritual materials that caught his eye.

A moment later, Cyan Sparrow returned to Fang Qingyuan’s side, curtsied, and said:

"Senior, the auction is about to begin. Please follow me to your seat."

Fang Qingyuan nodded and followed Cyan Sparrow to the fourth deck of the great ship. As he arrived, several new points of light abruptly appeared on his Mind Map, like massive black holes that eclipsed the glow of the surrounding Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

Golden Core Cultivators. There were three of them.

Fang Qingyuan’s pace didn’t falter in the slightest. He calmly walked to his seat, sizing them up from the corner of his eye.

The one at the front was a true beauty.