The dwarf was very old, his beard and eyebrows completely white.
He paced back and forth in front of his shop, observing the passersby and watching their every move.
When Shui Miao arrived, the dwarf immediately cast a few glances in his direction.
At this moment, Shui Miao was in the form of Zhao Tianyi, unrecognizable to ordinary people.
“Friend, what are you looking for? I don’t have much, just herbs from the Netherworld and the Rakshasa Realm,” the dwarf said absentmindedly to Shui Miao, his head constantly turning left and right, scanning the crowd.
He seemed to be gathering information.
Bu Yi and Meng San Niang had disappeared, and Shui Miao had reason to believe they were hiding, waiting for the right moment to emerge.
Judging by the dwarf’s behavior, he probably knew quite a bit.
Shui Miao’s thoughts flickered, and he smiled slightly, saying, “I’m not here to buy anything. I’m looking for someone.”
“Looking for someone? Are you looking for someone from our dwarven clan? If not, I suggest you ask someone else, because I’m not very familiar with this place,” the dwarf continued to look around, clearly not focused on Shui Miao.
Shui Miao felt puzzled—what was the dwarf looking for?
“I’m looking for Bu Yi.”
Shui Miao suddenly said the name while watching the dwarf closely.
The dwarf was taken aback, then carefully examined Shui Miao. “Friend, who are you?”
“My name is Zhao Tianyi, the sect leader of Tianyi Sect. Please tell Elder Brother Bu Yi that the Immortal Realm is in chaos. We can only survive if we unite and stick together.” Shui Miao shrugged. “Nothing else, really. Since we last parted in the Rakshasa Realm, I’ve missed him greatly, so I came specially to ask you to pass on this message.”
“Oh, so you’re a friend of our clan leader. My apologies, I’ll be sure to deliver the message,” the elderly dwarf bowed slightly to Shui Miao, then resumed scanning the crowd, clearly uninterested in further conversation.
“…”
Shui Miao suddenly realized how unpleasant it felt to be ignored.
What exactly was he looking at?
Shui Miao’s thoughts turned, and he secretly activated the Dream Demon Technique to probe the dwarf’s mind.
The old man’s cultivation was not deep.
Shui Miao easily accessed his thoughts, which shocked him.
There was a rumor today that a world-class treasure would be auctioned at the event. The treasure was priceless, and whoever obtained it would surely defeat all competitors and win the championship in the group stage. Therefore, many powerful beings would definitely come today, and Bu Fa of the dwarven clan would appear shortly.
A world-class treasure?
Shui Miao couldn’t help but become curious. What kind of world-class treasure had appeared? Could it be the legendary treasure crafted by the Divine Artisan Master Luo Tong?
Suddenly, Shui Miao’s mood was stirred, and he couldn’t help but start looking around.
Inside the Treasure Gathering Hall, the auction platform was completely empty.
And there were only half an hour left until the auction began.
Shui Miao licked his lips and headed toward the shops opposite the auction venue. By chance, he noticed a shop selling immortal artifacts and became somewhat interested, walking in. Upon entering, he swept the shop with his divine sense and found that it contained only mid- and low-grade immortal artifacts, with no high-grade ones.
The shopkeeper was a middle-aged man who appeared somewhat handsome, though his attire was shabby—a long green robe that seemed to have been worn for many years and a pair of cloth shoes on his feet. However, his physique was extremely sturdy, with remarkably well-developed biceps. He was diligently reading a manual on formation techniques and, upon hearing approaching footsteps, without even looking up, he said directly, “Mid-grade immortal artifacts are 5,000 supreme crystals each, and low-grade ones are 1,000 supreme crystals each. No bargaining.”
Top-grade crystals were crystals that had been processed and refined by the Crystal Bureau.
These crystals could be used directly by cultivators for training or as currency for transactions.
The middle-aged man’s prices were relatively high compared to other shops.
Shui Miao picked up a flying sword and examined it, finding it well-crafted. Observing the middle-aged man’s serious demeanor, he curiously asked, “Did you forge all these yourself?”
“Oh yes, I’m currently a Level Three Artisan, capable of forging mid-grade immortal artifacts like flying swords and protective items. Friend, you seem to understand forging too?” The middle-aged man’s perception was sharp. He had already noticed that Shui Miao didn’t seem like a buyer but more like someone knowledgeable in forging, so he stopped to chat briefly with him.
Shui Miao nodded. Since there was still some time before the auction started, he might as well chat with someone.
Upon realizing that Shui Miao truly understood forging, the middle-aged man seemed to have found a kindred spirit and eagerly invited Shui Miao to sit down.
Through conversation, Shui Miao learned that the middle-aged man was named Li Pan and was a native immortal.
Li Pan’s method of forging immortal artifacts differed from Shui Miao’s. He used traditional forging techniques—placing materials into a cauldron to heat them red-hot, then hammering them out like ancient blacksmiths. Each immortal artifact was painstakingly hammered out piece by piece, often taking months or even years.
This traditional forging method was still very popular in the Immortal Realm.
This was also why Li Pan was so muscular—swinging hammers daily made it hard not to be fit.
As for Shui Miao’s method of forging with spiritual energy, it was the most mysterious in the Immortal Realm, and no one would teach it even if you wanted to learn.
After chatting with Li Pan, Shui Miao realized how rare and valuable his skill was.
Shui Miao also learned that in the Immortal Realm, there were official bureaus that tested forging skills, and skilled artisans were highly valued by the heavenly court. Exceptional artisans might even receive recommendations from the Immortal Emperor to take exams at higher levels, becoming Divine Artisan Masters.
This path gave Shui Miao an idea for connecting with influential figures.
When Li Pan learned that Shui Miao forged immortal artifacts using spiritual energy, his face immediately showed deep admiration.
Shui Miao was generous and immediately offered to teach Li Pan how to forge with spiritual energy.
Li Pan was so excited that he immediately knelt and wanted to formally become Shui Miao’s disciple.
Shui Miao quickly helped Li Pan up, insisting they call each other brothers instead.
Thus, Shui Miao began teaching Li Pan how to control objects with his mind, but Li Pan’s spiritual power was extremely weak.
Enhancing spiritual power was not something that could be achieved overnight—it required gradual cultivation, extensive medicinal supplements, and great insight. Li Pan’s talent was poor, but he possessed perseverance and an indomitable spirit. Shui Miao valued this quality and taught Li Pan the mental cultivation techniques of Sima Zongheng and Zhuge Suopan. He also shared his own experiences of cultivation, research, and gradual growth, passing on some formation techniques to Li Pan.
Li Pan was deeply moved, vowing to study diligently and live up to Shui Miao’s expectations.
To support Li Pan, Shui Miao even gifted him two immortal artifacts he had just forged, suggesting he sell them to improve his life so he could focus on his forging studies.
Li Pan was both surprised and delighted to receive two high-grade immortal artifacts but was reluctant to sell them, immediately hiding them away as cherished mementos.
Shui Miao could do nothing about Li Pan’s decision—such a chance encounter could only be helped to a certain extent.
At that moment, many people suddenly poured into the entrance of the Treasure Gathering Hall, and to everyone’s surprise, more than half of them were heavenly soldiers and generals!
What was going on?
Shui Miao was startled—why had heavenly soldiers and generals also gotten involved in this auction?
At least 150 heavenly soldiers and generals entered, protecting an official dressed in brocade robes. Following them were a chaotic mix of people, no one knowing who belonged to whom, but there were at least 500 individuals crowding in.
Shui Miao dared not act rashly, scanning the area and spotting Bu Fa, accompanied by Bu Xiang, also arriving.
The heavenly soldiers maintained order as the official stepped to the center and raised his hand for silence.
He then spoke, “Ladies and gentlemen, today’s auction is entrusted to the Heavenly Court’s Military Bureau by a wealthy merchant. We will auction off two treasures you’ve never seen before. One is the Time-Protecting Magic Pearl, a supreme immortal artifact. It not only protects the user but also enhances movement speed, an absolute rarity that can greatly boost combat power. The other is the Supreme Artifact, the Ice-Sealing Domain, an absolute ultimate weapon…”
“…”
Upon hearing this, Shui Miao was greatly shocked—something was wrong here!
It was understandable that the Immortal Lord Hu had entrusted the Heavenly Court’s Military Bureau to sell some treasures. But why would Immortal Lord Hu sell the Ice-Sealing Domain? That was highly unlikely. Could it be that he had already taken revenge so quickly? Moreover, this was his most cherished family heirloom—why would he part with it so easily?
Shui Miao immediately suspected that Immortal Lord Hu had been killed by the Immortal Emperor Kunpeng.
Besides him, Shui Miao couldn’t think of any other ruthless figure capable of seizing the Ice-Sealing Domain from Immortal Lord Hu.
However, he found it hard to understand—regardless, the Ice-Sealing Domain was a Supreme Artifact, a treasure that even the Immortal Emperor Kunpeng would covet. Why would he be in such a hurry to sell it?
Could it be…
Shui Miao’s thoughts raced, and a shocking conspiracy suddenly occurred to him!
With the Immortal and Divine War approaching, someone might be planning to target the wealthy merchants. By auctioning supreme treasures, they could lure the rich to compete fiercely. Then, secretly record the wealthy participants and eliminate them one by one, accumulating capital for some grand scheme. The mastermind behind this must be the Immortal Emperor Kunpeng.
That’s right—there was also Hua Yuting!
Hua Yuting had just visited the Immortal Emperor Kunpeng, and shortly afterward, Immortal Lord Hu met his fate.
Damn it… I must uncover the truth!
Shui Miao’s mind was shaken, his thoughts becoming increasingly clear. Looking at the heavenly soldiers and generals, he noticed someone clearly watching the crowd.
The official then elaborated on the artifact’s attributes before starting the auction for the Time-Protecting Magic Pearl.
The starting price was 100,000 crystals.
After a moment of silence, someone suddenly shouted, “110,000!”
“Two hundred thousand crystals!”
As soon as the first bid was placed, a tall, muscular man immediately raised it to 200,000.
Everyone was stunned, turning to look at the man.
The man sneered coldly, “You think you can compete with me? Do you even have that many crystals?”
“…”
Everyone was stunned again at his words.
“Five hundred thousand crystals!”
At this point, Bu Xiang raised his hand, instantly increasing the price to 500,000.
Upon hearing this, the muscular man immediately replied without hesitation, “Two million crystals!”
“…”
Everyone was completely shocked. No one had ever seen such a high bid before.
This wasn’t an auction—it was clearly a blatant display of wealth!
Bu Xiang and Bu Fa exchanged glances, and Bu Fa raised his hand, saying, “Two million and one hundred thousand crystals.”
“Five million.”
The muscular man raised his hand again.
At this moment, Shui Miao suddenly noticed the official giving a subtle signal to the heavenly general beside him, who nodded slightly in response.
“Oh no!”
Shui Miao secretly worried for Bu Fa and Bu Xiang, but under the current circumstances, there was nothing he could do to help!
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