Some people saw him and paid him no mind, while others looked confused.

"Xu Yang? He can come to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion’s auction too? What could he possibly afford?"

Chen Jiang, sitting in the crowd, looked surprised.

"Even if he can’t afford anything, he can still broaden his horizons."

A disciple from the He Ming Boxing Hall beside him said.

"Master Xu, this is your seat. Please, have a seat first. I still have other guests to attend to."

Zhou Yong led Xu Yang to a chair, pointed out his seat, and then left.

Xu Yang glanced over and, what a coincidence, found that he was sitting right next to Yue Gui, with Liu Qian just past him.

On his other side were more familiar faces: Gu Haoming and Lu Ren.

Both Liu Qian and Yue Gui looked uncomfortable, then gave a slight nod.

Xu Yang had no intention of making things hostile, so he nodded back in acknowledgment.

Gu Haoming remained expressionless, but Lu Ren offered a faint, smiling nod.

The two of them had garrisoned the Hundred Medicine Hall together for over two months. While their relationship wasn’t exactly harmonious, it was no longer as confrontational as before. They would at least greet each other now.

In fact, as long as Lu Ren didn’t get cocky and try to put him down, Xu Yang generally wouldn’t go out of his way to target him.

After another short wait, a middle-aged man walked onto the high platform in the center of the hall, and the surrounding clamor instantly vanished.

The middle-aged man cupped his hands and said, "First, I’d like to thank you all for attending this auction at our Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion. I am Tao Hujin, the humble Shopkeeper of the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion, and I will be overseeing today’s auction.

Without further ado, everyone knows the rules of the auction, so I won’t repeat them. Now, let’s bring out our first item of the day."

As Tao Hujin finished speaking, an attendant from the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion carried a tray and placed it before him.

Tao Hujin reached out, whisked the red cloth off the tray, and revealed a ginseng root as thick as a child’s arm.

The ginseng was entirely blood-red and translucent, covered in vein-like patterns that resembled threads of blood.

Tao Hujin smiled. "This is a fifty-year-old Blood Ginseng. As everyone knows, a fifty-year-old Blood Ginseng is one of the main ingredients for refining the Profound Yuan Qi Transformation Pill.

The auction begins now. The starting price is three hundred taels, and each bid must be an increment of at least ten taels."

The Profound Yuan Qi Transformation Pill is one of the elixirs for the Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm. It can strengthen and purify one’s Gang Qi, and it’s something ordinary people can’t buy even if they have the money.

"As expected of an auction at the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion. The very first item is a Blood Ginseng."

"A fifty-year-old Blood Ginseng... even without being refined into an elixir, consuming it directly can significantly boost the cultivation of a Gang Qi master."

Gasps of amazement came from the crowd, but no one placed a bid.

An item like this could only reach its full potential in the hands of a Pill Master. To buy it just to eat it directly would be the act of a complete fool.

"Three hundred taels!"

A clear voice rang out. It was a woman in the front row. When Xu Yang looked, he could only see her back.

"Three hundred and fifty taels. Junior Sister Ye, it’s a bit unrealistic to think you can snag a fifty-year-old Blood Ginseng for just three hundred taels."

Laughter rang out. The voice was somewhat familiar, and Xu Yang remembered it belonged to Sun Jian, the Inner Sect Disciple who had rushed over that night.

From the way Sun Jian spoke, it seemed the woman who made the first bid was also an Inner Sect Disciple.

"Three hundred and sixty taels. Junior Brother Sun Jian, your bid isn’t exactly high either."

Another voice, tinged with amusement, spoke up.

After that, the three of them continuously bid against each other. In the end, the fifty-year-old Blood Ginseng was won by Sun Jian for four hundred and fifty taels.

’Inner Sect Disciples are certainly extravagant. A fifty-year-old Blood Ginseng normally goes for around four hundred taels, but he spent an extra fifty taels just to prove a point.’

The next few items were also mostly medicinal herbs. Xu Yang wasn’t interested, and neither Lu Ren nor the others beside him placed any bids.

"Next up for auction is a bottle of Guiyuan Pills. There are five pills in total. The starting price is five hundred taels, with each bid increasing by no less than ten taels."

The Guiyuan Pill was another elixir for the Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm. A single pill was equivalent to a month of arduous training for a Gang Qi master.

For someone with a good Root Bone who could absorb the medicinal effects well, it could even be worth a month and a half.

Xu Yang’s spirits soared. ’Finally, something I can use has appeared.’

But he quickly noticed that Lu Ren, Yue Gui, and the others beside him had also perked up as if injected with chicken blood, restless and eager to bid.

It was the same for everyone else. It seemed most people had come to this auction with the sole purpose of acquiring this bottle of Guiyuan Pills.

"Five hundred taels!"

"Five hundred and fifty taels!"

"Six hundred taels!"

...

Before Xu Yang even had a chance to bid, the price for the bottle of Guiyuan Pills had already been driven up to six hundred and fifty taels, and it quickly shot up to seven hundred.

"There are so many rich people here!" he couldn’t help but exclaim.

Even the wealthy young masters from Qingyuan County, like Gu Haoming and Yue Gui, seemed unqualified to bid. The premium was just too high.

Normally, a Guiyuan Pill costs about one hundred taels each, but now the price per pill had already reached one hundred and forty, and people were still bidding.

For many, this premium was nothing, especially since elixirs that could enhance Gang Qi were often unavailable even if they had the money.

"How about we team up? We can split them."

Lu Ren whispered, a flash of unwillingness in his eyes.

’Without elixirs, just relying on time... when will I ever reach Gang Qi Minor Achievement? When will I be able to place in the top three of the Outer Sect competition and finally make a name for myself?’

But the bidding was too high. Even if he didn’t care about the premium, the money he had on him wasn’t enough to even qualify for the bidding.

Xu Yang was also tempted. He asked, "What’s your limit?"

Lu Ren said, "I have four hundred taels. How about you also put up four hundred?"

That was eight hundred taels!

But before Xu Yang could even speak, the price of the Guiyuan Pills had already been called at eight hundred taels.

Lu Ren looked dazed, then resentfully shut his mouth. Even if he were to bankrupt himself, he still wouldn’t be qualified to compete.

In the end, the five Guiyuan Pills were sold for nine hundred taels of silver to a portly middle-aged man—a premium of almost double the base price.

’I really need to earn more contribution points,’ Xu Yang thought.

Although the Outer Disciples of the Purple Sun Sect were treated like beasts of burden, some of the benefits were quite good.

Contribution points could be exchanged for Guiyuan Pills. Each person could exchange for one pill a month, and one pill cost thirty contribution points.

Next came a few more good items. There were some that Xu Yang took a fancy to, but he wasn’t qualified to bid for any of them.

The most expensive was a Gang Qi Martial Arts manual, which sold for over five thousand taels.

At this moment, another attendant from the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion brought a tray and placed it before Tao Hujin.

He untied the red cloth on top, revealing a sheet of white paper covered in writing.

"This is a Pill Formula completed by an Inner Sect Disciple of the Purple Sun Sect. It is for a pill called the Blood Coagulation Pill. The Blood Coagulation Pill is an elixir for the Qi Gathering Realm that can condense one’s qi and blood and temper the Physique.

Our Purple Sun Sect has verified its efficacy. The effects of the Blood Coagulation Pill are no worse than the Qi Replenishing Pill. You can think of it as a weaker version of our Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion’s own Eight-Treasure Body-Strengthening Pill.

For this auction, the starting price is four hundred taels, and each bid must be an increment of at least ten taels."

After Tao Hujin finished speaking, very few people showed any interest.

"If you’re not a Pill Master, what’s the use of this Pill Formula?"

"Alchemy isn’t something you can do just because you have a Pill Formula. Otherwise, why would the Pill Masters of Medicine King Peak hold such high status?"

"Four hundred taels for a Pill Formula isn’t expensive, but wanting to learn it without thousands or even tens of thousands of taels worth of herbs to practice with is just a fool’s dream."

...

A thought struck Xu Yang. Pills were extremely profitable. Something that cost only a few taels of silver in materials could be sold for at least double the price once refined into pills, and some could even sell for several times the premium.

’If I could learn to refine this Blood Coagulation Pill, I would have a way to earn money and wouldn’t have to just watch helplessly as things I want to buy get sold off.’

For others, learning to refine the Blood Coagulation Pill would probably require thousands or tens of thousands of taels worth of herbs for practice, as well as a master’s guidance.

But he was different. He had his panel. He could learn Alchemy without needing to practice with actual herbs; at most, he would just have to spend some Martial Arts Longevity points.

"Four hundred taels!"

Xu Yang’s heart pounded, and he immediately placed the first bid.

Instantly, many people who recognized him turned to stare, their faces filled with astonishment.

"Are you crazy? You’re not a Pill Master, what are you bidding on this for?"

Lu Ren hissed, "Do you think that just because you have the Pill Formula, you can refine and sell pills? If it were that simple, people would have been fighting desperately over this formula."

He wasn’t an idiot; he saw Xu Yang’s intentions at a glance.

Xu Yang remained expressionless. "I want to try."

Gu Haoming sneered, "You think you’re some kind of alchemy genius who can refine pills with just a formula? The Pill Masters on Medicine King Peak all studied pharmacology for years, starting with identifying and discerning herbs, then practicing with massive amounts of materials before finally becoming Pill Masters. Do you think you’re better than them?"

"You’re too conceited," Lu Ren said with a frown.

Xu Yang couldn’t be bothered to explain or argue. "I’ve already made the bid. Can it be withdrawn?"

Hearing this, Lu Ren knew that anything else he said would be useless.

Because after Xu Yang made his bid, absolutely no one else competed.

"Four hundred taels, going three times... Congratulations to the young talent from the Purple Sun Sect for winning the Blood Coagulation Pill Formula."

Tao Hujin called out, also looking surprised. He had thought the Blood Coagulation Pill Formula would fail to sell, never expecting Xu Yang to place a bid.

’Aren’t they saying he’s cautious and careful? Why would he do something so unwise, spending four hundred taels on a useless item?’ he thought to himself.

An attendant walked over to Xu Yang’s seat to lead him to settle the payment and receive the Pill Formula.