by Wong, Tao
It was, of course, disadvantageous to do such a conversion through the auction house, but it did give Wu Ying a way to enter the auction and the value of the bids at the moment.
“Rubbish. You wandering cultivators should just go home if that is all you can afford,” a voice called from a balcony box. A young woman snorted at those below before turning to the Hall Master. “One Core spirit stone.”
Rather than being the ostentatious display of wealth she expected, her words caused an eruption of laughter among the wandering cultivators. A single Core spirit stone was valued at three hundred tael, or twelve Energy Storage spirit stones, so her bid was only a marginal increase.
“Did you mean to say Nascent Soul?” the vagabond said, taunting her. “Because if it was Core spirit stones, I have one too!” He reached into his pouch and pulled out a stone, waving it. This one was jagged and slightly off-kilter, glowing a cool and pale blue-white, reminding Wu Ying of fluffy clouds on a clear spring day. “And this one is from the White Cloud Fox.”
At his words, the Hall Master gestured. An attendant hurried over, taking the Core spirit stone and bringing it back to be evaluated. One of the senior attendants peered at the stone, flushing chi into it before he looked at the Hall Master. He flashed a quick series of hand signs before the Hall Master spoke, ignoring the woman who vibrated with anger at being shown up so publicly.
“It is confirmed. As a rare spirit stone from the White Cloud Fox, we shall value it at five hundred taels. If that is suitable?” He raised a single eyebrow at the owner.
The vagabond frowned deeply, but when he glanced upward at the gloating woman, he nodded. In short order, the bidding started again at the much higher value, while Wu Ying bit his lip, debating joining the bidding. He needed one such ring, but already, the bidding was worth two-thirds of his fortune. If he purchased it, he would have no funds to purchase a weapon.
The ring could earn him funds in the future. But a strong weapon could save his life. Chewing on his lip, Wu Ying listened to the bidding as first one then another bidder dropped out. The sect cultivator stayed in stubbornly, though from his vantage point, he could see her making pleas for funds from her various sect mates. Below, the vagabond cultivator that Wu Ying had realized was another gatherer like him fiddled with his storage ring and rubbed the dirt on his hands as the bidding crested the equivalent of eight hundred taels.
“Two regular intermediate Cores, nine Energy Storage spirit stones,” intoned the Hall Master. “Do we have further bids?”
“Are you going to bid?” Tou Hei asked Wu Ying, leaning forward between the seats to speak. His sudden appearance made Wu Ying jump a little in surprise.
“I don’t know… I need a sword.”
“You have a sword. In fact, you have a few.”
“It’s not a good sword,” Wu Ying pointed out. “None of them are.”
“Every weapon is a good weapon in the right hands. Is that not what you realized? That the Dao can cut if given the right impetus?” Tou Hei said.
Wu Ying opened then shut his mouth. It wasn’t just that idea of course—his epiphany had included more. Still, there was truth there too. A blade was sharp, because he could will his chi to be sharp. He could make it stronger, tougher, with his own energy and understanding of the Dao. But his understanding was a small dao at best, a tiny shard of enlightenment. Still, perhaps it too could be sharpened if he continued to rely on what was, in effect, a blunted blade compared to the dao.
When he cast a glance at his martial sister, seeking reassurance, she just offered him an enigmatic half-smile. As if she expected him to make his own decision.
“Congra—”
“Eight hundred fifty taels,” Wu Ying interrupted the Hall Master.
The vagabond frowned, doing the math quickly before he shook his head. “Nine hundred tael then!”
“One thousand,” Wu Ying replied. Hopefully, that would drive out the vagabond. He hoped so, because that was nearly all his new fortune.
From his position, Wu Ying watched the way the wandering cultivator clutched at his hands, trying not to tremble and shame himself. “One thousand taels too. But I’ll trade my White Cloud Fox core and another intermediate Core and make the rest up with taels.”
Wu Ying moved to protest, but Fa Yuan interrupted him by shaking her head. “Let the Hall Master verify with the owner. This is normal, for some items are more in demand than cash.”
Grimacing, Wu Ying could only subside. He had a little funds—har! A few years ago, it would be a fortune—but he was uncertain if it mattered. All he could do was wait. The Hall Master’s lips moved as he sent his words straight through the hall to the owner of the sword. Even as Wu Ying stretched his senses to work out who it was, he failed to do so.
A short conversation later, the Hall Master looked back at Wu Ying and the vagabond cultivator. “Thank you for your patience. The spirit ring will be sold to the honored member from the Verdant Green Waters Sect, unless the honored wandering cultivator would be willing to raise his bid further?”
At the cultivator’s shake of his head, the Hall Master swept his gaze over the room one last time to ensure no one else had a bid.
“Congratulations,” Tou Hei murmured.
“Yeah…” Wu Ying said. He touched his full purse, mentally wincing at his sudden plummet from fortune. So easy to be rich, then poor. Now, there was only the spirit stone of the Ben that they had to worry about.
***
It amused Wu Ying a little, as he fiddled with his new living world spirit ring, how some cores—from common beasts—were used as currency, and in other cases, like the Ben’s Spirit Stone, were an auction item. The difference in rarity, the difference in uses in an apothecarist’s recipes or as a central aspect of a formation made such a difference.
“Fourteen Core spirit stones,” Fa Yuan called, shooting a glare at her competitors.
To Wu Ying’s lack of surprise, their main competitor for the Ben’s spirit stone was Lu Ren’s master from the Heavenly Lake Sect.
“Fifteen.”
“Sixteen,” Fa Yuan snapped.
“Seventeen,” Lu Ren’s master replied without hesitation.
Wu Ying watched the pair go at it, neither even looking at the Hall Master below to acknowledge their bids. Their eyes were focused on one another, as if daring their opponent to step back. Each rebuttal raised the price to eyebrow-raising levels, but none more so when Fa Yuan spoke next.
“One”—as Lu Ren began to smirk, she continued—“Nascent Soul spirit stone.”
Silence filled the hall before the Hall Master spoke. “Elder Yang, while I do not wish to besmirch the good name of the Verdant Green Waters Sect—”
“Catch.” Fa Yuan tossed the pouch to the Hall Master without a care, the leather container flying unerringly at the Hall Master. He caught the pouch then peeled the inscrolled leather purse open to stare at its contents.
The spirit stone within was not particularly large, no more than a small fist’s size. Yet it glowed with an internal strength that caught the entire hall’s attention. Everyone stared at the spirit stone as it pulsed with a soft, gentle yellow light. As Wu Ying stared at it, he could almost swear he saw the image of a burning bird within.
“A Two-Tail Fire Crane, slain when it attempted to challenge the Sect’s borders twenty-four years ago,” Fa Yuan announced. “I was there.”
Below, more than one cultivator stared at the object with lust. Using such a spirit stone in their cultivation, even unenhanced by a pill or potion, could cut years off a cultivator’s journey. The Dao secrets held within, especially for a fire cultivator…
Wu Ying glanced back, only to find Tou Hei still seated calmly, meditating. His fingers continued to pull at the prayer beads, counting them one after the other as he cultivated. Wu Ying’s lips quirked in amusement as his friend ignored the treasure before them all for his own internal world.
“Confirmed,” the Hall Master murmured. Whatever he had done
to confirm its authenticity, Wu Ying had not noticed the chi fluctuations, reaffirming his belief that the Hall Master must have been at Core cultivation at the least. Otherwise, his control of chi couldn’t be so precise and controlled. “The bid stands at one Nascent Soul spirit core.”
Sneering, the Heavenly Lake Sect elder spoke. “Did you think you are the only one?” He reached into his pockets and tossed down a pouch.
When the Hall Master revealed its contents, silence once more filled the giant hall. Wu Ying found his breathing shortened, the pulse of chi within the room seeming to flow around the stage. Two Nascent Soul spirit stones stood revealed from the Heavenly Lake Sect elder’s pouch, and the very chi in the hall flowed around the trio of spirit stones. Every breath of chi pulsed with power, the very presence of the stones commanding the environment’s chi, stretching the edges of reality and revealing the Dao around the room.
Eddies in the air, small wisps of wind currents flowed, highlighted by the water and earth chi that floated within. Fire chi, as part of the heat in the air, shimmered more closely around certain cultivators. The wood grain on the bannister under his fingertips pulsed. Reality stretched with each second.
In the halls above, and even in the hallway itself, small whirlpools of energy formed around the youngest, newest cultivators. Those individuals who were on the edge of enlightenment or were just lucky enough to glimpse something that touched upon their understanding of the world. One after the other, they began their process of enlightenment.
Reality pushed against his senses and Wu Ying pushed back. He exhaled hard then inhaled, catching the hint of burnt wood and soiled earth again. A moment of concentration made him narrow his eyes. It came from the two newly revealed spirit stones on the stage.
The Hall Master stared at the revealed stones—blue and brown, both dark and dirty—for moments that seemed an eternity. Then he closed the bindings on the pouches, cutting off the radiating dao truths from the revealed stones. Silence pervaded the hall, broken only by the deep and regular breathing of those still descending from their moment of enlightenment.
“The bid is two Nascent Soul spirit stones.”
Fa Yuan frowned, then shook her head at the Hall Master’s inquiring gaze. At her acknowledgement of defeat, he turned to her rival.
“You have won the Core Spirit Stone for the Ben.” The Hall Master smiled slightly, gesturing backward. “If I’d known the demand, I would have placed this as our last lot. I fear our next item will be of little interest after such a spectacular display of wealth. Still…”
Wu Ying tuned out the Hall Master as he turned to his martial sister. “What now?”
Fa Yuan stared at the Hall Master’s hands, at the spirit ring which he had made the spirit stones disappear into, her lips pursed. She shook her head slightly, as if dismissing her thoughts. “Now? Nothing. I will speak with the Hall Master and magistrate tonight.”
Wu Ying frowned, but before he could continue speaking, a knock on their door interrupted him. Lei Hui opened it to reveal an inner sect member of the Heavenly Lake Sect.
“My apologies for bothering you, Elder Yang. But Elder Hsu would like to invite you to speak about the item you were bidding on. Tonight,” the inner sect cultivator blurted under the glares of the Verdant Green Waters Sect cultivators within.
“Tonight?” Fa Yuan considered. “Very well.” Once the inner sect cultivator had left after providing their address and location, she continued. “And it seems, I’ll also be seeing Elder Hsu.”
Chapter 25
The rest of the auction had ended with little fanfare. Even the last few items—including the remnant pieces of a Saint-tier jian and a lost third manual of a cultivation style—did not elicit the same level of bidding that the Ben spirit stone had generated. While they had lost the spirit stone, there was an unexpected benefit to the entire matter.
Due to the knowledge of Fa Yuan’s rather expansive wealth, the Elder was able to purchase a number of useful items—like new attack talismans, a series of messenger talismans, a Spirit-tier jian, an enchanted tea set, and a set of Saint-level sewing needles—with minimal competition. Only the most desperate or needy dared to compete with her, knowing the true extent of her purse.
Once the auction was over, the group left with haste, declining offers to dine left and right. Back at their residence, with a simple meal on the way, Wu Ying and the rest of the expedition tried to dissuade the Elder from visiting Elder Hsu, only to fail. After a brief snack and a requisite bath, Fa Yuan swept out of their rooms to visit the magistrate and the auction hall elder, leaving the team to their own devices that night.
“I don’t like this,” Wu Ying complained to Tou Hei as they picked at the remnants of their dinner. He waved a stalk of bok choy with his chopsticks as he talked. “It’s got to be a trap.”
“In the middle of the city? After she spoke to the magistrate and the hall master?” Lei Hui said. “It would take much daring to launch an attack with so many eyes on them.”
“Then why would they invite her?” Wu Ying asked.
Wang Min arched a graceful eyebrow at Wu Ying. “She is the Fairy. And stop waving your food around, it’s rude.”
“That takes desire to a whole new level. That’s two Nascent Soul spirit stones!” Wu Ying pointed at Lei Hui and Yu Kun. “You both had epiphanies just from being in the presence of them.”
“Three. We had epiphanies from three,” Lei Hui corrected. “And it was a minor one.”
“There is no big or small, just enlightenment,” Tou Hei said softly. His words cut through the group, silencing them with the simple conviction in his statement.
“I beg to differ,” Lei Hui said. “That barely helped with my cultivation.”
“Enlightenment and the road to immortality is not something you should judge like a trip to the river,” Tou Hei said, tapping the rim of his teacup. “Breaking the cycle of samsara and achieving an awakened mind cannot be achieved by strict adherence to how many meridians we form, how many layers of our Core we have achieved. The final form of your newborn spirit is not the sum of your body, but of your soul.”
“That’s what you think,” Lei Hui snapped.
“And don’t you mean joining the Dao?” Wu Ying said, frowning at his friend’s use of Buddhist terms. Tou Hei shrugged, and Wu Ying had to dismiss the matter. “My point stands. They paid too much just to court her.”
Yu Kun put down his rice bowl, placing the chopsticks on the empty bowl and fixing Wu Ying with a firm gaze. “Then what are you worried about? It seems it’s more than her chastity or vague concerns that worries you.”
Wu Ying hesitated while the other two new cultivators stared at him with interest. Only Tou Hei seemed calm, happily picking at the remnants of the meal.
“Speak. You had us stay home because you feared something would happen before the auction. Now you’re worried about the Elder, the strongest of us all,” Yu Kun pushed. “What are you not telling us?”
“It’s about our mission. And Elder Cheng,” Wu Ying said finally. “We think his attackers might be in the city.”
“Think or know?” Lei Hui sniffed.
Wu Ying hesitated. “Know.”
“How?” This from Wang Min. Her voice was gentle still, but insistent.
“Their chi. At times, it’s… wrong.”
“Twisted and spoiled,” Tou Hei said. “Their karmic balance is perverted, such that it affects the very things they touch.”
“You knew?” Yu Kun asked.
“I paid attention.” Receiving the glares of all three other cultivators, Tou Hei smiled enigmatically and popped the last spare rib into his mouth. That made Wang Min at least look away.
“It doesn’t matter if he knew. We didn’t tell you because—”
“You think it’s a dark sect,” Yu Kun said. As Wu Ying’s jaw dropped, Yu Kun snorted. “Did you think those of us who joined your Sect have not seen the signs? We are not blind. The rumors have grown among us. If anythin
g, it is you orthodox sects that are slow to this realization.”
“That’s impossible. They were all wiped out!” Lei Hui protested. The thin cultivator leaned over the dining room table, his robe dangerously close to being stained by the dishes. “There are no more dark sects. Not in the State of Shen.”
On the other hand, Wang Min focused on Tou Hei and Wu Ying, looking between the pair of inner sect cultivators. Humming to herself, she turned to Yu Kun, who met her gaze and offered her just the slightest of nods.
“Don’t tell me you believe this bucket of waste herbs they’re trying to sell us,” Lei Hui said to Wang Min.
“They believe it. Enough to warn us against the matter and face ridicule. Enough to join a Sect when they refused to before,” Wang Min replied neutrally. “More. The poison we are trying to cure—its origins are from the very same sects you say are destroyed.”
“It’s possible to use poison without being a member of the dark sect,” Lei Hui rebutted. “Many of my recipes have varied origins.”
“Yes.” Wang Min opened her hands sideways. “I choose to believe they believe. And will act accordingly. After all, they are not asking us to do more than be careful, no?”
Wu Ying hesitated, looking out the door to where Fa Yuan had departed. “I…”
“You want to follow her,” Yu Kun said.
“The Elder asked us to stay out of this. To stay in,” Lei Hui said, crossing his arms. “Defying her will reflect badly upon her evaluation of us to our own Masters.” Turning pleading eyes on Wang Min, he continued. “And even if they are right, what can we do?”
Wang Min shrugged one graceful shoulder. “If we are not there to choose, how would we know?”
“You’re willing to come?” Wu Ying said.
Her nod greeted his words, but Yu Kun raised a hand. “Before we go anywhere, let’s talk about what we intend to do. It’s not as if we can just walk in and demand they not hurt the Elder, now can we?”