I Outworked the Entire Cultivation World

Chapter 312: Chapter 276: (Revised) I Was Forced

The sky darkened, and the waves surged.

Jiang Yuebai found it difficult to concentrate on making talismans with the thunderous roaring noise outside.

Every three months, the depths of the outer sea would bring forth a Xun Wind, sweeping across the North Sea Islands, causing constant annoyance.

The Xun Wind is a special type of wind, powerful enough to easily break through a Golden Core Cultivator’s protective gang qi and can even devour all living energy, making it extremely terrifying.

The power of the Xun Wind gradually weakens; it often dissipates without a trace once it reaches the northern coast of the Black Water Area, so it only affects the North Sea Islands.

But on the North Sea, the closer the islands are to the outer sea, the more destructive the Xun Wind becomes.

Jiang Yuebai set down two talismanic pens and organized the talismans she had drawn in the past two days into a wooden box.

Fortunately, the talismans and elixirs Li Shen Zhi ordered were commonly used in the Foundation Establishment Stage, presenting no difficulty other than quantity. Unfortunately, she only had two hands, and her multitasking couldn’t fully utilize her potential.

Jiang Yuebai stood up to stretch her muscles, and the Little Ganoderma on her head stretched upward as well, causing her scalp to ache slightly.

”Hmm? Maybe I could use vines to wrap around the talismanic pens to draw them?”

A slight glow emitted from the jade talisman on the table, signaling from the Mountain and Sea Building that the auction would begin in an hour.

Jiang Yuebai hurriedly tidied her things, preparing to attend the auction hosted by the Mountain and Sea Building.

The day she received the deposit for talisman making and alchemy from Li Shen Zhi, she immediately bought three demon cores and successfully refined two drops of primordial essence, agreeing with the Mountain and Sea Building to deliver on the day of the auction.

Once the Xun Wind passes, True Monarch Fuyi will lead the Heavenly Gang Peak disciples to the Star Shattering Islands at the inner sea border to build a camp there.

For the next three to five years, besides teaching the Heavenly Gang Peak disciples Array Dao through demon hunting, she also needs to serve as a protector for Master Lingjun’s Nascent Soul formation.

Once Master Lingjun forms his Nascent Soul, he will temporarily take the position of head of Heavenly Gang Peak, and True Monarch Fuyi’s disciples will continue to be looked after by Li Shen Zhi.

Aside from Jiang Yuebai, whom she had met, Li Shen Zhi, Tang Weimian, and Hee Wangchen, True Monarch Fuyi had another disciple named Muh Wushuang, who was also in the Early-Stage Golden Core, and would soon come to the North Sea to join them.

Jiang Yuebai pushed the door open and went out, the roaring sound of the sea waves grew more intense, and the wind and clouds changed colors; though still daytime, the sky was darker than night.

From afar, she saw towering tidal waves, crashing against the coast of Biya Island with a mountain-crumbling might.

Even though the Island Protection Great Array blocked the fierce winds and waves, Jiang Yuebai could still feel the ground shaking continuously.

Behind the waves, a water dragon tornado soared into the sky, with overwhelming momentum. At such times, if someone were on the sea, even a Golden Core Master would struggle to withstand the mighty winds without being easily torn to pieces by the Xun Wind.

”Senior Sister Tang, I’m heading out briefly.”

Standing outside the house, Jiang Yuebai mentioned to Tang Weimian, and placed the communication talisman from her master and a token from the Feiyan Pavilion within easy reach just in case, donned a cloak, and walked into the night.

Upon arriving at the Mountain and Sea Building, Jiang Yuebai handed over the primordial essence to the appraiser, received a token and a new cloak and mask, and was led to an Octagonal Tower at the back of the Mountain and Sea Building.

From the outside, the Octagonal Tower looked to be only three layers high, with a base of merely ten yards on each side, but upon entering, Jiang Yuebai was astonished.

The space inside was more than a hundred times larger than it appeared from outside, resembling a Beast Fighting Arena, with a spacious center and tiered seating around the perimeter.

Luxurious glazed lamps hung from the three-layer-high ceiling, illuminating only the central area, while the surrounding stands were shrouded in a vague mist, slightly obstructing divine sense, preventing auction participants from spying on each other.

Jiang Yuebai habitually found a seat in the front row, looked around, and found everyone wrapped tightly, wearing identical masks that concealed their gender and cultivation.

The North Sea was relatively chaotic, so the Mountain and Sea Building, to ensure the maximum safety of participants, never fixed the auction time, notifying registered participants only an hour in advance.

Before long, a female cultivator in the Early-Stage Golden Core appeared, announcing the start of the auction.

”You all know the rules of the auction, so I’ll spare the formalities and get started. The first auction item today is a drop of primordial essence, starting at ten thousand mid-grade spiritual stones.”

Starting right off with primordial essence, Jiang Yuebai was directly stunned; elsewhere, this would suffice as the grand finale item.

Here at the Mountain and Sea Building, it was merely the first auction item; indeed, the Mountain and Sea Building was wealthy.

”Twenty thousand!”

”I’ll offer twenty-five thousand!”

”Thirty thousand!”

”Thirty-one thousand!”

From the back of the stands, everyone eagerly bid, starting with mid-grade spiritual stones, clearly considering the capabilities of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Jiang Yuebai turned her head and discovered all the bids came from those seated behind; the cultivators around her all sat rigidly without glancing elsewhere.

So... the front row likely consisted of Golden Core cultivators, uninterested due to lack of need.

Thinking this, Jiang Yuebai quickly adjusted her posture to appear a bit more arrogant, pretending to be a Golden Core herself.

”Sixty-eight thousand, first call, sixty-eight thousand, second call, sixty-eight thousand, sold!”

With the auctioneer’s final call, Jiang Yuebai breathed a sigh of relief, finally gaining some wealth.

She couldn’t wait for the next auction to begin, having already arranged with the Mountain and Sea Building that the other drop of primordial essence could be paid for at today’s auction price, with a ten percent commission on both droplets.

As a result, she now had one hundred twenty-two thousand four hundred mid-grade spiritual stones, which roughly converted to about one thousand two hundred twenty-two top-grade spiritual stones.

With a settled heart, Jiang Yuebai continued watching the upcoming auction items.

”Today’s second auction item is the Sixth-Grade Magic Treasure, the Qian Flame Fire Bamboo Sword, forged from Fire Bamboo from the Earth Core Magma, mainly of fire and assisted by wood, carrying the Fire Array ’Wood Heart Flowing Fire.’ One-tenth of spiritual energy can exert three times its power, with a starting bid of five hundred top-grade spiritual stones.”

”Six hundred!”

The person next to Jiang Yuebai raised a hand to bid; she wasn’t interested in the sword and watched silently.

This time, many of the front-row cultivators were bidding, while only a handful of the wealthier ones in the back occasionally raised their hands.

Ultimately, the cultivator beside Jiang Yuebai won the sword for one thousand two hundred top-grade spiritual stones.

Just when Jiang Yuebai felt she had made a fortune, she was struck by reality: the spiritual stones she earned from two droplets of primordial essence could only buy such a sword.

As the auction items went on, the bids grew increasingly high; Jiang Yuebai couldn’t afford to bid, merely watching for entertainment. She observed that magic treasures above the sixth grade generally didn’t possess exclusively singular attributes, and those with more comprehensive attributes fetched especially high bids.

From start to finish, she didn’t find the magic treasure she desired.

The Mountain and Sea Building’s auction items were diverse, even including a Ghost Clan cultivation technique ’Heaven-Swallowing Skill,’ which sounded quite intriguing, but she had no money for it.

The finale of this auction was a drop of Rejuvenating Immortal Dew. When the hosting female cultivator announced its name, the breathing of everyone around became rapid.

Without explaining its origin, she stated only that a cultivator could consume only one drop of Rejuvenating Immortal Dew in their lifetime, extending life by one-fifth.

This meant the higher one’s cultivation, the more years of life, the greater the extension.

This item brought the house down, ultimately selling for a price Jiang Yuebai couldn’t even dare to imagine.

Despite how others felt, Jiang Yuebai was deeply tempted, nearly having thoughts of killing and plundering. However, she knew whoever had the courage and wealth to acquire it must possess profound strength, beyond her capacity to provoke.

The Mountain and Sea Building arranged for that person to leave the transaction first, while others remained in the Octagonal Tower for two moments before being released.

Jiang Yuebai collected her spiritual stones and purchased three more demon cores. The Mountain and Sea Building staff specifically reminded her that the North Sea was unlike the Nine Domains, and she must be cautious on her way back.

As the howling gale persisted, Jiang Yuebai concealed herself upon exiting the Mountain and Sea Building. Not long after, the sound of explosions resounded from various spots on Biya Island, as rays of battle light soared skyward.

With a slight flicker in her gaze, Jiang Yuebai chose another path to detour.

She hadn’t gone far when an almost invisible net descended, ensnaring her unexpectedly.

Before she could react, two masked evil cultivators in black rushed in from either side, launching Black Dog Nails at her.

Thud, thud, thud!

The Black Dog Nails pierced through the net, embedding themselves in Jiang Yuebai, but instead of being pleased, the two evil cultivators were shocked to see Jiang Yuebai in the net dissolve into a flutter of white feathers.

”If you didn’t make a move, how could I reasonably tell my master I was forced to kill and rob?”

A voice filled with killing intent came from behind the two evil cultivators, making them break out into a cold sweat.

Also, True Monarch Fuyi needed an explanation—it wasn’t Jiang Yuebai breaking the rules; she was left with no choice!