Nine Transformations of the True Spirit

Chen Yuan walked along the stone steps for about half a quarter of an hour and came to a hall.

Two tenth-level Qi Refining monks were guarding the door of the hall, blocking Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan showed the Golden Toad Order again before the two of them got out of the way.

There are forty Taishi chairs in the hall, arranged in a semicircle, facing a wooden platform.

The wooden platform is about three inches above the ground, with a square table placed on it.

At this time, more than twenty monks were already seated in the hall. Chen Yuan put away the golden armor talisman and chose a chair with no one around to sit down.

Like Chen Yuan, the monks in the hall all covered their faces, either wearing masks, covering their heads with scarves, or hanging their black shirts.

But their cultivation is generally in the late stage of Qi refining. There are only a few monks in the middle stage of Qi refining. Including Chen Yuan, there are only three.

After Chen Yuan sat down, more monks entered the hall one after another.

Half an hour later, out of forty chairs, only six were free.

At this time, a masked monk at the tenth level of Qi Refining walked into the hall, came to the wooden platform, and said in a deep voice:

"Welcome all fellow Taoists to participate in this trade fair. I would like to remind all fellow Taoists not to peek into other people's identities or disrupt the order of the trade fair. Violators will lose the qualification to participate in the trade fair. In addition, the value of the traded items shall not be less than three hundred Lingshi, I wish all fellow Taoists can gain something.”

After that, he walked off the wooden platform, stood aside, and stood with his hands behind his back.

Several monks stood up at the same time, and a monk wearing a mask took a quick step and came to the wooden platform.

Several other people returned angrily and sat down again.

"I'm sorry, I'll take the lead..."

The masked monk saluted several people, his voice hoarse and unpleasant.

He touched his storage bag, and a flying sword appeared out of thin air in front of him:

"The Jinxia Sword is a top-quality magical weapon. It is extremely sharp and can cut off magical weapons of the same level. It is suitable for monks who practice the Jinxing technique. It has eight hundred spiritual stones."

"Golden Xia Sword? Isn't this Ma Shiyuan's magic weapon?"

"How dare you provoke the Liangzhou Ma family with such good skills!"

Several monks in the audience were amazed. The masked monk just smiled and said nothing.

Chen Yuan carefully looked at the three-inch flying sword on the stage. This was the first time he had seen a top-quality magical weapon, and it was still a stolen item.

Judging from what everyone said, the original owner of this Jinxia Sword should have come from a family of monks. The masked monks dared to kill people and seize treasures, so they were certainly not weak.

A short, fat monk with a mask suddenly said:

"I want this Jinxia Sword, but Ma Shiyuan is the only son of the Ma family. I have to take a lot of risks and can only offer 750 spiritual stones!"

The masked monk looked around and saw that there was no second bidder.

He pondered for a moment and nodded:

"make a deal!"

The short and fat monk immediately stepped onto the wooden platform, carefully inspected the Jinxia Sword, and then handed the masked monk a small pile of spiritual stones.

As soon as the two people stepped off the wooden platform, the second monk immediately came up and took out a jade bottle from the storage bag:

"A Spirit Burning Pill, after a monk in the Qi Refining Stage takes it, can temporarily increase his cultivation level by one level, which lasts for an hour. However, his cultivation level will fall back by one level afterwards and can be restored after a year. Four hundred spirit stones!"

"Spirit Burning Pill? Good stuff, I'll give you four hundred and forty spiritual stones!"

"Five hundred spiritual stones!"

"Five hundred and twenty spiritual stones..."

After several rounds of bidding, the Burning Spirit Pill fell into the hands of an eighth-level Qi Refining monk for 630 spirit stones.

The third monk came on stage and took out a jade slip:

"The secret method of the devil's path, the 'Yu Nu Jing', can confuse the minds of female cultivators, collect yin and replenish yang, and quickly improve their cultivation. However, practitioners need to replenish one female cultivator every month, otherwise the yin and yang will be imbalanced, the mana will backfire, and life will be in danger. Three hundred spiritual stones!”

"Haha, this technique is somewhat interesting. I want the three hundred spirit stones."

"Can the method of confusing a female cultivator's mind be practiced alone?"

"Yes, this method is similar to the charm technique and is especially effective for female cultivators, but it is only limited to Qi Refining cultivators."

"I'll give you three hundred and forty spiritual stones!"

"No one wants to rob me, I'll give you three hundred and eighty spiritual stones!"

This secret method of magic was enthusiastically sought after, and 490 spiritual stones were eventually sold.

Later, thirteen more monks came on stage to auction off the items in their hands, most of which were shady things. There was even a Ziyang Sect's standard magic weapon "Purple Sun Sword".

After the thirteenth monk stepped down, the scene calmed down.

The masked monk who had been standing nearby said:

"The auction session is over, and the Taoist friends who are asking for shopping are coming to the stage."

After he finished speaking, Chen Yuan stood up and walked to the stage.

No one competed with him. Chen Yuan came to the stage, looked around, and said harshly:

"I would like to purchase elixirs and secret techniques that will help break through the bottleneck in the later stages of Qi refining. The spirit stones will definitely satisfy you."

"I have a Snow Soul Pill here, what do you think, fellow Taoist?"

Just as Chen Yuan finished speaking, someone responded.

He shook his head:

"Shepard is of no use to me."

As soon as these words came out, the hall suddenly became quiet.

There is not even Xue Po Dan, other elixirs and secret techniques are even less effective, and it is a waste of effort to take them out.

Chen Yuan waited quietly for a while, but still no one answered.

He could only walk off the wooden platform, return to his seat, and sit down again.

After Chen Yuan, several more people came to the stage to buy items, all of which were extremely rare on the market, and very few succeeded.

Finally, no one came on stage, and the masked monk announced that the trade fair was over.

The monks in the hall left the passage in batches, with Chen Yuan among them.

After he left Lan Yuexuan, he deliberately took a few detours to make sure no one was following him, then took off his disguise, bought several furnaces of spiritual herbs, and returned to the cave.

Chen Yuan didn't have many spiritual stones in his hand, only one hundred and seventy yuan. Even if there were elixirs and secret techniques at the Golden Toad Society that would help break through the bottleneck in the later stages of Qi refining, he still wouldn't be able to buy them.

He wanted to buy the secret elixir today, just to give it a try, and he still needed to continue to accumulate spiritual stones.

A month later, Chen Yuan refined five furnaces of elixirs and had two hundred and twenty spiritual stones in his hand.

He participated in the Golden Toad Club for the second time, but returned without success.

Three months later, he participated in the Golden Toad Society for the fourth time and spent 420 spiritual stones to buy a "Zhi Ling Dan".

This is an elixir that is as famous as Xue Po Dan. It comes from the Ziyang Sect and can increase the chance of breaking through the bottleneck in the later stages of Qi refining.

But after Chen Yuan took it, the bottleneck remained motionless.

However, he was not discouraged. In addition to continuing to refine elixirs, accumulate spiritual stones, and attend the Golden Toad Meeting on time, he also asked Cao You to help him keep an eye on whether there was such a secret elixir technique in the market.

But as time passed slowly, Chen Yuan found nothing.

The bottleneck in the later stages of Qi refining was like a ten-thousand-foot mountain standing in front of him.

…

"I would like to purchase pills and secret techniques that will help break through the bottleneck in the later stages of Qi refining. The spirit stones will definitely satisfy you..."

It was another Golden Toad meeting. Chen Yuan stood on the wooden platform and calmly said this sentence that he had repeated a dozen times.

As usual, there was still silence in the audience.

Chen Yuan waited quietly for a while, sighed softly, and walked down the stage.

At this time, a year and a half had passed since he first attended the Golden Toad Club.

There are more and more spiritual stones accumulated in his hands, but the bottleneck remains motionless.

The monks who participated in the Golden Toad Society came and went, but no one could come up with the secret elixir technique that satisfied him.

Unable to get what he asked for, Chen Yuan's mentality slowly changed.

We can't let this waste any longer.

He wants to leave Huanyuefang City and travel around Qi to look for opportunities.

The feeling of not being able to make any progress in his cultivation was really unbearable for him.

Instead of staying in Huanyuefang City and waiting for the opportunity to come, it is better to step out of the comfort zone and fight for a chance of survival.

After Chen Yuan made his decision, his mood suddenly became relaxed.

No matter what the future holds, it is better than staying in Huanyuefang City, refining elixirs day after day, and returning from the Golden Toad Meeting without success.

The masked monk came on stage and announced that the trade fair was over.

Chen Yuan stood up and walked towards the passage.

Suddenly, he stopped in place.

After a while, he started walking towards the passage again, but his speed was much faster.

After walking out of Lan Yuexuan, Chen Yuan did not return to the cave, but came to a secluded place.

A moment later, a monk also covered his face followed.

Chen Yuan turned around and stared at the masked monk:

"Did Fellow Taoist transmit a message to me just now? Do you have a secret technique that can break through the bottleneck in the later stages of Qi refining?"

The masked monk is tall and slender, wearing a yellow gown with only a pair of eyes exposed. He has a tenth level of Qi refining.

He chuckled, took out a jade slip from his storage bag, flicked it with his fingers, and the jade slip flew towards Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan raised his hand to stop it, and the jade slip stopped in the air, floating motionless.

"It's useless to talk too much. Taoist friends will know it once you see it."

Chen Yuan dispersed his consciousness, probed into the jade slip, and his pupils suddenly dilated.

After a quarter of an hour, he withdrew his consciousness and looked up at the masked monk:

"This is only half of the secret technique. Where is the other half?"

The masked monk said calmly:

"Don't be anxious, fellow Taoist, let's talk about the price first."

"Four hundred spiritual stones."

"not enough."

"Four hundred and fifty."

"It's still not enough."

"Five hundred, one Snow Soul Pill is only four hundred spirit stones. This technique is domineering and crazy, and the cost is extremely high. If I hadn't been trapped in front of the bottleneck in the later stage for too long, I wouldn't even consider it. Five hundred spirit stones is already the limit. Others It’s simply impossible to pay this price.”

"Seven hundred. Although the cost of this technique is high, it will definitely help you break through the bottleneck in the later stage. It is far more than comparable to Snow Soul Pill."

"Five hundred and fifty, even if you break through the bottleneck, you will still have no way forward. You can't make any further progress. I can't use up all my savings just to improve my cultivation level."

"Six hundred, as long as fellow Taoist breaks through the bottleneck, he will be a monk in the late stage of Qi refining. Even if the way forward is cut off, he will still be ten times stronger than in the middle stage of Qi refining. Six hundred spirit stones is the lowest price. If fellow Taoist refuses, I can only find another buyer. ”

Chen Yuan lowered his head and thought for a moment, then said:

"Okay, six hundred is six hundred, how to trade?"

The masked monk took out another jade slip, flicked it with his finger, flew towards Chen Yuan, and said calmly:

"Fellow Taoist, please read the secret method first, and then give me the spiritual stone after it is correct."

With that said, he took two steps forward and blocked Chen Yuan's path.

Chen Yuan's heart trembled, he took the jade slip and probed into his spiritual consciousness.

A quarter of an hour later, he withdrew his consciousness, touched his storage bag, and six hundred spiritual stones appeared in front of him out of thin air, slowly flying towards the masked monk.

The masked monk caught the spirit stone, glanced at it, put it into his storage bag, turned around and left.

Chen Yuan put away the two jade slips and left from the other direction.