Chapter 0868: The Only Bidder
The moment Ning Cheng obtained the unnamed spiritual consciousness cultivation method, the number of people who noticed him immediately shot up. Many even swept him with their spiritual consciousness from time to time.
Peng Ruimei also spoke into Ning Cheng’s ear with some worry, “Ning Cheng, you shouldn’t have competed for the spiritual consciousness cultivation method just now. The cultivator with the blue face and spa.r.s.e hair is called Ou Yandu, and he has the nickname ‘Lifeless Poisonhand’. Even for the slightest offence, people who offended him have never managed to survive under his hands. This man has a dark and poisonous heart, and even I have no idea about the number of innocent people that died because of him in the Grand Essence Ruins. Yet, he lives quite comfortable in these areas as if it’s his home.”
Ning Cheng showed a carefree smile. If he were still in the four grand starry skies, he would have felt some fear. But in this place, Ning Cheng did not have to worry about such things. Alone in this place, why would he worry about his family going hungry if he had already filled his stomach? Why would Ning Cheng be afraid of an Ou Yandu? Even Ou Yandu would have to flee in front of a Dao Raising expert, wouldn’t he?
After the exchange for the spiritual consciousness cultivation method concluded, the hall seemed to have grown less enthusiastic. Even though more than 500 more deals happened after that, it all seemed a little flat. Although a few high-priced treasures did appear in the middle, none of them could compare to the spiritual consciousness cultivation method exchanged for more than 600,000 points and five Time Stones.
As another hundred numbers pa.s.sed by quickly, it eventually reached Ning Cheng. However, Ning Cheng had already made up his mind that he would just skip it when it was his turn to place an item.
Initially, Ning Cheng wanted to take out a s.p.a.ce Crystal, but he quickly dismissed the idea after taking the limelight twice. No matter the value of a s.p.a.ce Crystal, he felt that he shouldn’t bring out this kind of thing here.
He wanted to purchase a long spear spirit artefact, but he could also buy it from the merchant house later. It didn’t necessarily require exchanging a s.p.a.ce Crystal.
“The thing I want to exchange is a Dao Fruit Tree….”
The moment the cultivator in seat number 637 reported his item, the exchange hall, which gradually had become dull, once again got aroused by the three words ‘Dao Fruit Tree’. Just a single Dao Fruit could fetch hundreds of thousands of points, so just how much was a Dao Fruit Tree worth?
Ning Cheng also eagerly looked at the cultivator in seat 637. Since this seat was quite close to him, he saw that the person wanting to trade the Dao Fruit Tree was a bald monk with a huge string of prayer beads around his neck. Even his face looked like that of a naive and gullible kid. Ning Cheng might not have high cultivation, but he did have a pair of discerning eyes. When he looked at this monk, he instantly understood that this person was at least on the same level as Ou Yandu.
Peng Ruimei, who sat next to him, immediately leaned towards him and said, “Ning Cheng, this monk if very powerful. Don’t mix with him. This person’s called Ju Mei and has a nickname similar to that of Ou Yandu. People call him the Heartless Monk. He’s one of the four ‘No[1]’ of the Grand Essence Ruins. Don’t think of him as someone honest, but as someone extremely cruel. This kind of person will never bring out a Dao Fruit Tree without reason. No matter what the price he asks, you shouldn’t even quote….”
Sure enough, Peng Ruimei’s words had just ended, when Ning Cheng saw the hall’s enthusiasm immediately die down. Many people had also recognised the Heartless Monk. No one here believed that the Heartless Monk would truly sell a treasure like the Dao Fruit Tree. Just like a dog, could one change its habit of eating s.h.i.t?
Ning Cheng was just about to ask about the four ‘No’s of the Grand Essence Ruins when he saw the Heartless Monk Ju Mei raising his hand. The next moment, a Dao Fruit Tree about three feet in height appeared in the middle of the exchange hall’s main stage.
Even people like Ning Cheng, who had never seen a Dao Fruit Tree, knew that it was a real Dao Fruit Tree in just a glance. The tree body exuded a faint dao charm aura, something that no one could fake. The tree even looked lush and green with luxuriant branches and leaves. The only flaw on this Dao Fruit Tree surface was that the tree didn’t have a single Dao Fruit.
The Heartless Monk brought his hands together in prayer and continued in a simple tone, “Ancestors, seniors, elder brothers and sisters. Please don’t find fault for this lowly monk for stirring the pot. If not for extenuating circ.u.mstances, I would never have put this treasure up for sale. But alas, I have no choice. As long as anyone can give me 200,000 points for it, they can immediately take ownership of this Dao Fruit Tree. Please forgive me for my ignorance, as even after cultivating this Dao Fruit Tree for several years, I still don’t know its name.”
“I infused almost all my cultivation resources into this Dao Fruit Tree. If I don’t sell it now, I won’t be able to feed myself. Today, I will put my lifeblood here. I hope that there is a dao friend here who can take better care of this Dao Fruit Tree, and also treat it kindly….”
Speaking with such an honest look and a sincere tone, it seemed that almost no one could doubt the words of the Heartless Monk.
However, very few people here didn’t doubt Heartless Monk’s words. Not every cultivator here was the same as Ning Cheng, who has only been here for less than a year.
Two hundred thousand points for a Dao Fruit Tree, one could say that it was practically free. But after this Dao Fruit Tree came out, no one made an offer.
None of the people here was a fool, and despite the tree’s appearance, everyone could see that this Dao Fruit Tree had no life force. The facade in front of them was just an empty sh.e.l.l. Although the Dao Fruit Tree in front of the looked lush and vibrant on the surface, it was just a temporary state stimulated by spirit crystals’ infusion. This kind of situation would only last three days at most. After three days, this Dao Fruit Tree would wither completely.
And as the Heartless Monk said, no one could discern this Dao Fruit Tree’s ident.i.ty, which also meant that no one here had any idea about what kind of Dao Fruits would appear on this tree. Although the Dao Fruit Tree contained a faint dao charm flowing on its surface, this dao charm wasn’t the dao charm from the Dao Fruit Tree’s core. It was just a remnant dao charm of the Dao Fruit Tree’s laws on the verge of dissipation. This kind of dao charm, one could find it any Dao Fruit Tree.
If this Dao Fruit Tree still had its life force, others could try using the dao charm of its life force to determine the type of this Dao Fruit Tree.
Unfortunately, this Dao Fruit Tree’s life force had almost entirely dissipated. Even if a prominent sect from the Grand Essence Domain took it away, they couldn’t bring it back to life. Who here was so stupid as to spend their points to purchase this almost-dead Dao Fruit Tree?
Besides, the one who put it for the exchange was the Heartless Monk. Even those who had the capital and background to go against him, wouldn’t casually step into such a deal. Despite this person’s looks, this person truly had a black heart and had no morals or princ.i.p.als.
Therefore, everyone also understood that this Dao Fruit Tree didn’t truly belong to the Heartless Monk, but most likely, something he obtained by killing others. From the looks of it, after the monk killed the previous owner and seized the Dao Fruit Tree, he absorbed the life force of this Dao Fruit Tree and then came here to pit it against others.
But just when everyone thought that no one would be stupid enough to buy this Dao Fruit Tree, the bidding screen suddenly showed an offer of 200,000 points.
Peng Ruimei, who sat next to Ning Cheng, naturally understood that Ning Cheng placed the bid. She immediately sent a hate-filled message to Ning Cheng, “Do you have a problem with your hearing? Did you not hear me say to not compete for this thing?”
In just an instant, all the cultivators in the exchange hall immediately noticed that the quote came from Ning Cheng and they all quickly shifted their gaze to Ning Cheng. Just how many points does this nouveau riche Eternal cultivator have? Didn’t he already spend close to 700,000 to 800,000 points just a few moments ago? Why would he spend another 200,000 points to buy a useless almost-dead Dao Fruit Tree?
Taking a step back, even if the Dao Fruit Tree wasn’t in an almost-dead condition, could a rogue cultivator even cultivate it? Besides, just how did he have so much courage to buy something from the Heartless Monk?
Kong Ning also felt shocked by Ning Cheng’s actions. When Ning Cheng purchased the spiritual consciousness cultivation method, she already felt appalled by the number of points in Ning Cheng’s possession. But now, Ning Cheng wanted to spend another 200,000 points to purchase the Dao Fruit from the Heartless Monk? How could one dare to buy items from the Heartless Monk? Regardless of if the thing was valuable or not, as long as it came from the Heartless Monk, even disciples from the big sects would hesitate to purchase it.
Whatever the others thought, she felt compelled to send an urgent message to Ning Cheng. “Senior Apprentice Brother Ning, you must not buy this Dao Fruit Tree. It’s not a matter of 200,000 points…..”
Ning Cheng smiled, but before he had the time to answer Kong Ning, Shan Yaocen sent him a message, “Senior Apprentice Brother Ning, you must not buy this Dao Fruit Tree….”
Ning Cheng looked at Shan Yaocen in surprise, why had this woman become so caring towards others?
Shan Yaocen had no choice but to care about Ning Cheng. Since Ning Cheng bought the Heartless Monk’s Dao Fruit Tree, it meant that the Heartless Monk would most likely make a move against him. How could she let her points bag fly away to others?
“Sister Yishuang, this person truly is an idiot. He even dared to b.u.t.t heads with the Heartless Monk.” Na Yuanxiang, who looked at Ning Cheng from a distance, shook her head and spoke up with some disdain.
Shi Yishuang sneered, “That’s because he let those points get into his head, which turned him into an idiot. Even if we wanted to take advantage of such a low price, we would never buy the Dao Fruit Tree from the Heartless Monk.”
Ning Cheng wanted this Dao Fruit Tree no matter what, it didn’t matter to him if others saw him as an idiot or not. As soon as this Dao Fruit Tree came out, he could vaguely feel that it was a thunder-attributed Dao Fruit Tree. Sensing that, he had immediately communicated with the Everlasting Blue Thunder Fort and felt a slight tremor of excitement coming from the Everlasting Blue Thunder Fort.
The Everlasting Blue Thunder Fort was a thunder-attributed weapon. Only when facing a top-grade treasure having a similar thunder-attribute, would it show a slight reaction.
Similar to the lack of spiritual consciousness cultivation method, Ning Cheng also lacked a powerful thunder-based spirit technique. Although this thunder-attribute Dao Fruit Tree wouldn’t bring him a thunder-attributed spirit technique, it could help him deduce a thunder-attributed spirit technique unique to himself.
Moreover, Ning Cheng’s purpose for it wasn’t limited to a spirit technique at all. He was also a Starry Sky Grade 9 Pill Emperor. Within the four grand starry skies, one could say that his proficiency in alchemy had no peers. Even the Premier Pill Emperor Cang Caihe couldn’t match him. But after coming to the Grand Essence Realm, he came to know about the existences of Pill Deities and Pill Sages.
In this place, as long as you couldn’t refine a Dao Pill, even if you can make medicinal pills for Dao Transformation Holy Emperor with divine gra.s.ses, you can only be called a Pill Deity. At most, people would give you the t.i.tle as Dao Transformation Pill Deity.
Only those people who can refine Dao Pills can call themselves Pill Sage. A Dao Sculpting Pill Sage was far more sought after and more valuable than a Dao Transformation Pill Deity.
But how many Pill Sages could refine Dao Pills? No sect had such confidence to let their Alchemy divisions use their Dao Fruits to refine Dao Pills. Therefore, even if someone wanted to become a Pill Sage, just how many Dao Fruits would that person have wasted? It’s because of this reason that Dao Pills rarely if ever appeared in the market. Because of this very reason, the vast majority of the cultivators would not ask for Dao Pills and would rather consume the Dao Fruit directly.
Ning Cheng bid for this Dao Fruit Tree mainly for the second goal. Only by owning a Dao Fruit Tree could he hope to learn how to refine Dao Pills without the help of masters. Using points to buy Dao Fruits for learning to refine Dao Pills, Ning Cheng understood that he couldn’t afford it all.
As for this Dao Fruit Tree’s almost-dead state, Ning Cheng wasn’t worried about it at all. He had the Mysterious Yellow Bead and a bunch of Wood Origin Crystals. Not to mention that Ning Cheng also had a way to form Law Soil. Considering all these factors, Ning Cheng believed that he could save this almost-dead thunder-attributed Dao Fruit Tree.
[1] The ‘No’ here is the translation of the character ‘无’, which also have the meaning ‘not to have/ none/ lack/ un-/ -less’.