Chapter 230: Bury Devils Beneath the Earth (2/2)

Three days flashed by. During that time, the entire State of Eastern Emergence bustled with activities as one Sect after another arrived in Violet Moon City [1. Violet Moon City was first mentioned in Chapter 209, when Meng Hao first arrived in Violet Fate Sect territory]. There weren’t just Sects from the State of Eastern Emergence, but from other places as well.

In fact, all of the other four great Sects, as well as the three great Clans, all dispatched disciples to the Violet Fate Sect to participate in the yearly Pill Auction. Actually, for an event to take place yearly made it a somewhat frequent event; nonetheless, it still attracted the attention of Cultivators throughout the entire Southern Domain. That was because all of the items in the auction were concocted by master alchemists of the East Pill Division.

Furthermore, Furnace Lords would usually participate as well, and would provide a unique variety of medicinal pills. The medicinal strength of their pills would be considerable, enough to cause a sensation in the Southern Domain. Occasionally, stunning, one-of-a-kind creations would appear.

Every year, different master alchemists’ names would rise and then spread throughout the outside world. You could say that the Pill Auction was a platform for master alchemists to gain fame. Of course, the East Pill Division encouraged this, and urged the master alchemists to concoct pills to sell at the auction.

Not only were the master alchemists encouraged to provide medicinal pills so that their fame would grow within the Southern Domain, but also, for material gain. After all, the profits from the sale of the medicinal pills all went back to the master alchemists.

This was a set rule, which caused virtually all of the master alchemists to participate.

Furthermore, the Violet Fate Sect strictly controlled its medicinal pills. The only way for outsiders to acquire them was by participating in the Pill Auction. There would always be a few types of pills that would give rise to frenzied bidding. Usually, this was not because of the medicinal strength of the pill alone, but also the concoction method used.

After all, despite not acquiring the pill formula, research of the pill would reveal much about the methods which had been used to concoct it. The master alchemists of the Violet Fate Sect had no way to prevent this from happening. Anyone with sufficient skill could perform such research on medicinal pills.

In short, it is easy to imagine the stir caused by the yearly Pill Auction.

The location of the Pill Auction was, of course, Violet Moon City. In the southeast corner of the city, was an enormous circular edifice, a stadium which could seat a hundred thousand Cultivators.

Generally speaking, during every Pill Auction, because of the influx of Cultivators from all regions, the seats would be completely filled.

The Pill Auction usually lasted for seven days, and could be rated as a grand occasion hosted by the Violet Fate Sect.

This particular day was the first day of the auction. The auction stadium was already full. The eyes of the Cultivators from all the various Sects and Clans were focused on the stage in the middle of the stadium.

Standing there was a middle-aged man who smiled and clasped hands respectfully to the audience.

“Fellow Daoists of the Southern Domain, Ladies and Gentlemen, you all know the rules of the Violet Fate Sect’s Pill Auction, so I won’t go into all the details. We have a total of 789 types of medicinal pills up for auction, including pills appropriate for Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and even Nascent Soul stage Cultivators! Furthermore, there will be poison pills and magic pills available as well.

“According to the rules of the Violet Fate Sect Pill Auction, before auctioning each pill, a small shaving will be taken to test the medicinal strength of the pill, as well as to clearly demonstrate its effectiveness.” Having said that, the man waved his hand, causing a gigantic curved portal to open up behind him.

Bright ripples spread out, after which everyone could see a group of seven hundred Cultivators standing on the other side, their faces expressionless.

These Cultivators had Cultivation bases of various levels, and their ages were different. There was one similarity between all of them, however. All of their eyes glowed with a violet light. Outsiders might not know what this meant, but Meng Hao would. It would only take one glance for him to determine that these people… had all cultivated the Violet Qi to the West technique! These were puppet disciples of the Sect! [2. Violet Qi to the West was described in Chapter 114]

“These Cultivators of the East Pill Division have been selected to sample all the pills which will be auctioned today. Ladies and Gentlemen, most likely this is not your first time to attend our Pill Auction, so you must surely already know, the Violet Fate Sect’s Pill Auction is unmatched in the entire Southern Domain!” The man’s voice echoed throughout the stadium, which subsequently filled with respectful laughter.

“Let the auction begin!” the man cried. “Lot one is a bottle of Yang Toppling Pills concocted by Furnace Lord Liu Yong of the East Pill Division! Transform life force into Death Qi, cause enormous transformation! Use this pill in your Immortal’s cave to collect Yin powers. Consume it to cause an abrupt rise of Death Qi. This pill is suitable for any Fellow Daoist who cultivates Spirit Puppet arts.” Even as the man’s voice rang out, Bai Yunlai and Meng Hao were hurrying toward the stadium.

Being a master alchemist, Meng Hao caught the attention of many apprentice alchemists as he entered. He sat down in the pavilion reserved for master alchemists, and then looked down at the auction proceeding below.

He took a deep breath of anticipation. He keenly anticipated finding out if people would be interested in his Bedevilment Pill, and how high of a price it would fetch. After all, since becoming a master alchemist, he had never been more pleased with a pill. Although he had complete confidence in it, he was a bit worried about whether or not it would be profitable.

He glanced over the crowd, a thoughtful expression on his face. Suddenly, a look of shock appeared, which then transformed into a slight smile. His gaze had fallen onto a group of visitors, amidst whom was a certain fat young man, casually grinding his teeth.