The Auction of the Century

Though she had listed the Low-Grade Five-Element Pill on the market, Baek Cheong kept watch over her pill furnace with a hollow, gaunt expression. The plan she had started a few days ago with such high spirits—to refine and sell Five-Element Pills—had been hijacked by Yakseon, turning into an involuntary "Alchemy Hell."

"Again! The fire qi is too violent!"

Under the "affectionate" tutelage of Yakseon, Baek Cheong had to push herself to the limit, obsessively refining Foundation Establishment Pills, which were considered the pinnacle of second-tier pills. Even with her cultivation artifact assisting her, the difficulty of Moon-rank alchemy was so brutal that she didn't even have the energy to spare for forum-lurking.

"Infuse water qi to lower the temperature!"

Yakseon’s thunderous roar echoed through the alchemy room. Foundation Establishment Pills were essential for cultivators at the Qi Refining Great Perfection stage to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage. While they lacked the heaven-defying properties of a Five-Element Pill, the process of managing the immense medicinal power and pill toxin required a level of finesse far beyond that of first-tier pills.

'Alchemy is murder.'

Baek Cheong barely managed to control her energy, relying on the resonance from the cultivation artifact worn on her wrist. After dozens of failures and coughing up blood, a turbid energy finally coalesced inside the furnace, and an unpleasant medicinal scent wafted up.

"Haa... haa..."

When she opened the lid of the furnace, a single, unsightly pill rolled around inside. It was a Low-Grade Foundation Establishment Pill, its medicinal efficacy pathetic because the impurities hadn't been properly refined. Yet, Yakseon nodded with a satisfied smile.

"To refine a second-tier pill while still in the Qi Refining stage... you are truly worthy of being called my disciple. Rest for a while."

Baek Cheong didn't even have the strength to reply; she simply bowed and stumbled out of the alchemy room. The moment she reached her quarters, she collapsed onto her bed without even washing and fell into a deep, death-like sleep for two full days.

Two days later.

Having recovered her stamina and energy through sufficient rest, Baek Cheong opened her eyes with a refreshed face.

"Finally... the time has come."

Sitting cross-legged on her bed, her eyes glittered with greed and mischief. It was time for the Low-Grade Five-Element Pill she had carefully stored in the depths of her storage pouch to shine. Without delay, she extended her divine sense and accessed Mumyungbang. Ignoring the miscellaneous posts, she went straight to writing. When she clicked the button labeled [Market], a systematic form—different from the usual—appeared.

[Item Name]

[Item Description and History]

[Sales Method: Buy Now / Auction]

"It's better than I thought? It even supports auctions."

Baek Cheong marveled as she began filling out the form. In the item name field, she wrote a short and punchy: [Five-Element Pill]. She deliberately didn't reveal that it was a Low-Grade pill. Then, she added provocative phrases to the description. As for the most important part—the sales method and pricing—she rested her chin on her hand and fell into thought.

'How much should I ask for? At the Manxiang Pavilion auction, one High-Grade Five-Element Pill sold for three Premium Spirit Stones and a sword-path manual.'

The problem was that the value of the sword-path manual was hard to quantify. It was an opportunity not just to enter the Heavenly Sword Sect, but to become a disciple of the Pacheon Sword Sovereign, making it infinitely valuable to some. And what she had made was just a single Low-Grade Five-Element Pill full of impurities. While its efficacy couldn't compare to High-Grade or Supreme-Grade, she couldn't overlook the fact that the Five-Element Pill itself was an unprecedented rarity in the history of the cultivation world. Depending on one's aptitude, it could grow a Five-Element Root into a Four-Element Root.

'Nothing ventured, nothing gained. It won't hurt to ask for a high price.'

Baek Cheong boldly set the sales method to auction and confidently entered 1 Premium Spirit Stone in the [Starting Bid] field. It was an enormous value, equivalent to ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones. It was a sum that even most Foundation Establishment cultivators would never see in their entire lives, but the Mumyungbang of the lower realm boasted a scale that encompassed countless lower realms, with a community of tens of thousands of users. Most were just lurking Daoists who didn't even write posts or comments, but the potential was clear.

'If I'm lucky, I'll catch a big fish.'

Finally, she set a generous deadline for the auction and checked carefully to see if she had missed anything. Satisfied that every field was filled perfectly, Baek Cheong took a deep breath and registered the auction post.

The auction post was registered at the very top of the Mumyungbang market board. Baek Cheong waited with a face full of anticipation for replies. However, even after a quarter of an hour, then half a shichen, only the view count on her post increased—not a single reply appeared.

"What? Why is it so quiet? Did I set the price too high?"

Baek Cheong couldn't hide her disappointment and pouted. But come to think of it, it was a natural result. A heaven-defying pill that had suddenly appeared on the Mumyungbang market—and with an absurd starting price of one Premium Spirit Stone—the normal reaction for most Daoists would be to dismiss it as the scheme of a low-life scammer.

"If it fails to sell, I'll have to lower the price."

"Young Miss?"

A maid's cautious voice came from outside the door. "The Biun Sect envoys have finished their preparations to leave the estate. The Madam has ordered you to come out and see off the eldest young master."

"Got it! I'm coming!"

Baek Cheong disconnected from Mumyungbang with a bored expression and stood up. Since the auction response was lackluster anyway, it wouldn't be bad to go out and get some fresh air while seeing them off.

At the moment Baek Cheong disconnected and headed outside, a massive, uncontrollable ripple began to spread through the once-quiet Mumyungbang, caused by the small stone she had cast.

It started as a single derivative post on the general discussion board.

As the infamous user ID Daoist (913.14) was mentioned, the curiosity of the other Daoists began to ignite.

The derivative posts instantly turned into a battlefield of debate over the authenticity of the Five-Element Pill. As derivative posts spawned more derivative posts, Mumyungbang began to stir.

Countless Daoists flocked to the market board to pilgrimage and gawk at Baek Cheong's auction post. However, no one dared to bid in front of the staggering starting price of one Premium Spirit Stone. No fool was going to dump their fortune on an item that might be a scam. Just as this tense standoff was continuing, a bid appeared at the bottom of the auction post that made them doubt their own eyes.

It was an impulsive bid from some wealthy Daoist who had so many spirit stones they didn't know what to do with them. And that first bid acted as a detonator that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠broke the dam.

'They actually bid!'

'That crazy bastard, if that thing is real, they're hitting the jackpot!'

'If it's a scam, I'll just die, what's there to be afraid of!'

Collective greed and gambling instincts writhed in the minds of the Daoists. The rational suspicion that it was just an aggro post by a scammer melted away helplessly before the anxiety of potentially missing out on a heaven-defying pill and the delusional fantasy of a life-changing reversal.

The bids began to explode and update at a frantic pace. From Daoists of great clans with spirit ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stones to spare, to Daoists of major sects hiding their identities, everyone scrambled to open their storage pouches. Some bid out of desperation as Five-Element Root users, others bid out of sheer fascination with the existence of a heaven-defying pill. The Five-Element Pill was close to a miracle, stimulating the lost dreams and bloated greed of countless Daoists simultaneously.

In an instant, the price soared, easily breaking the barrier of 10 Premium Spirit Stones. It was a bidding war fueled by madness, all for a single Low-Grade Five-Element Pill—not even a Supreme-Grade one—that was packed with impurities.

"Cheong, stay healthy."

"Young Miss Baek, you must come visit the Biun Sect sometime."

"I'll be waiting for you, sister?"

"Ah, haha... I will."

Baek Cheong, meanwhile, was too busy seeing people off to have any idea what was happening.