UGB Chapter 12 Gambling for Gold in the Golden Pavilion
Chapter 12 Gambling for Gold in the Golden Pavilion
As soon as it got dark, Li Ya disguised himself and headed to the Ghost Market.
Time was indeed of the essence, and we dared not waste a single moment.
The best way to quickly improve your cultivation is to take shortcuts. Don't mention anything about an unstable foundation. By the time you solidify your foundation, you'll already be far behind others.
Fallen Dragon Valley is a must-visit. According to the Fallen Dragon Valley Atlas given by Uncle Xie, there are clearly a large number of mountain roots inside. However, the spiritual herbs inside are of even higher value, and no one has ever harvested them.
It should be put into one's own possession and used to create a spiritual paradise.
According to the Ling Shu, there are three methods that can enable him to make rapid progress in his cultivation.
Firstly, there is a karst cave inside the main peak of Yunfu, containing a pool of earth milk that not only has the effect of cleansing the marrow and strengthening the bones, but can also help him enter the third level in one day and the fourth level in ten days.
Li Ya scoffed at the idea, saying that he couldn't even get into the main peak of Yunfu, let alone smell what the earth milk smelled like.
Secondly, there is a pharmacy in the Ghost Market called Ten Mile Fragrance. Inside the pharmacy is a potent medicine called Marrow Extraction Pill, which works by stimulating the life force of the bone marrow and depleting one's original essence. Once the medicine is taken, one's cultivation can advance by leaps and bounds.
However, each day's use of this medicine will consume ten days' worth of your lifespan. Moreover, this medicine is extremely addictive; if you don't use it for a day, it will feel like your marrow is being cooked by a raging fire, causing unbearable pain.
"I'm looking for a shortcut, not to commit suicide!"
The third method is a secret technique called "The Thief of Immortality," which is somewhat risky and not exactly orthodox.
This method is much better than the previous two, and it is also Li Ya's favorite method.
It involves forcefully absorbing the vitality and spiritual energy of the spirit plant and refining it into one's own true energy. The higher the grade of the spirit plant, the better the effect.
The only downside is that it will taint one's own inner energy, and it will take a great deal of effort to cleanse it completely in the future.
"The most urgent task is to raise money. Whether it's purchasing spirit plants or expanding the Spirit Pivot Grotto-heaven, it will cost a lot of money."
Go to the Ghost Market's Thousand Gold Pavilion and borrow the power of the Spiritual Pivot to gamble for treasures.
The Thousand Gold Pavilion is estimated to have five floors, three above ground, but the ground floor is built to the same height as the top of the cave. I wonder if they hollowed out the top of the rock to continue building. There are two underground floors. The whole building is magnificent.
With upturned eaves and corners, two life-sized crimson lanterns hang at the entrance, as if stained with blood.
The three gilded characters of "Qianjin Pavilion" are very eye-catching, exuding luxury, extravagance, and overwhelming wealth.
Two burly cultivators stood on either side of the entrance, both with higher cultivation levels than Li Ya.
Li Ya covered his face and went straight down to the second basement level. As soon as he entered, a noisy and chaotic atmosphere hit him.
In stark contrast to the tranquility upstairs, the noise here was far more intense, with cries, excitement, regret, and the clanging of money making one's eardrums buzz.
Although it was underground, it was brightly lit, with dozens of glass lamps hanging in the air, making it as bright as day.
In his view, the idea that cultivators must sever their seven emotions and six desires is utter nonsense; cultivators' desires are only more intense than those of mortals.
In addition, the servants were already doing backbreaking work, and all the resentment they had been suppressing was released in this gambling den.
Li Ya mingled in the crowd, obtained a list of items for today's auction from the servant, and then paid a hefty sum for a private room.
Like Qingfeng Cave, the private rooms are protected by laws and regulations. Once these laws and regulations are in place, they can isolate the inside from the outside.
Li Ya often saw servants who had lost everything and were dragged into the secret door like dead dogs.
Some servants would wander among the gamblers, watching whoever was getting carried away and then encouraging them to borrow money to continue betting.
"Please show me, Spiritual Pivot, the various treasures listed in the register, and their relative value?"
[The Spiritual Pivot will use the Sumeru artifact mentioned by the fellow Daoist as a limit to deduce its value.]
[Spiritual Energy Consumption: 300 strands of True Qi]
[Time required: Half an hour]
[Fellow Daoist, please confirm whether this deduction is valid?]
"yes!"
Li Ya could clearly sense that since entering the second level of Qi Refining, although the cost of Ling Shu deduction had not decreased, the speed had indeed increased significantly.
To expedite the simulation, the specific value was not defined this time; instead, its value was simply listed in order of magnitude.
In the center of the gambling den, there are four round plates made of gold, silver, copper, and iron, with hundreds of Sumeru ritual implements floating silently on them.
These Sumeru ritual implements are divided into four grades based on their appearance, spiritual energy fluctuations, and the strength of their restrictions.
I only have five taels of moon toad coins left, enough to bid on the lowest tier of the auction. It seems I need to be careful when making my move.
There were twenty Sumeru ritual implements on the iron plate, in various styles and colors, but all of these implements were restricted, and their value could not be seen with the naked eye.
There are many poor people who manage to find a bargain and make a fortune.
Some Sumeru artifacts are smooth and lustrous, surrounded by spiritual energy, and have powerful restrictions. They look like rare treasures, and their value is considerable just by their appearance.
The cultivator who won the bid paid a fee to open the treasure chest and took a look.
Inside were only some common medicinal herbs and pills, or even nothing at all, leaving bidders with nothing but regret.
It was this contrast and the allure of getting rich overnight that drew cultivators from Sifang Town and servants from Yunfu to this gambling method as soon as it was introduced. Even some inner disciples from Yunfu would often come to play.
For a time, gambling on treasures became the most popular business at Qianjin Pavilion.
Just as Li Ya was pondering this, an old man in black robes slowly stepped forward and stood in front of the four discs.
The old man in black robes raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and in an instant, all conversations ceased.
"Fellow Daoists, I am deeply grateful for your presence today. I will not say much more. Today, I will take all the Sumeru magical artifacts from this collection of gold, silver, bronze, and iron, leaving not a single one behind!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his hand and waved it, releasing his true energy, which lifted the iron plate high into the air.
Twenty Sumeru ritual implements slowly rose up, each with a different shape: some were ornate, some were worn, some were surrounded by spiritual energy, and some were devoid of any aura.
A Sumeru bag shaped like a woman's brocade pouch floated down in front of the old man.
"Embroidered lotus pouch made of green silk, starting bid at 300 taels of red copper coins, with each bid increment no less than 50 taels of red copper coins."
No sooner had the words been spoken than a young cultivator in brocade robes made his first bid.
"Four hundred taels."
Before she finished speaking, another female cultivator immediately followed.
Five hundred taels.
"Six hundred taels!"
The bidding was intensifying, with bids rising and falling.
Li Ya immediately stopped bidding; the bidding had already exceeded his budget in no time.
The price soared, quickly reaching over a thousand copper coins.
Before long, the embroidered lotus pouch was bought by a female cultivator for twelve taels of moon toad coins.
After the female cultivator placed the order, she immediately stood up, and a servant brought her a blue silk embroidered lotus pouch.
After paying the money, follow the servant to a hidden room in the corner, where a cultivator specializing in this art will break the restrictions and examine the treasures inside.
The first item had just been photographed here when a dealer on the other side called out loudly.
"How much is this embroidered lotus pouch worth? Fellow Daoists, hurry up and place your bets, once you've placed them, it's over."
The gambling method is simple: the gamblers place bets, and the total amount is divided according to the proportion of each person's bet, which is equivalent to the value of the items opened from the embroidered silk pouch.
If the cultivator attempting to break the seal is careless and fails to open it, or destroys the embroidered lotus pouch, the money will be refunded.
Those who bid will lose everything, but if the auction results in an item that is difficult to liquidate, they can sell it to Qianjin Pavilion on the spot.
As for counterfeiting, Qianjinge wouldn't stoop to that level, since reputation is very important in this business.
A treasure auction can take at least several days. When the results of the final draw are announced, there will be joy and sorrow, showcasing the full spectrum of human emotions.
Half an hour was almost up, and only two Sumeru magic artifacts remained on the iron plate. Seeing small characters appear on the spirit pivot, Li Ya finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Mayfly pouch, gold wire bracelet.
The mayfly bag was the most valuable item on the list, as deduced by Ling Shu. If he missed it, he would have to wait for the next auction.
The remaining ones all had starting bids of at least several tens of taels of silver.
The Sumeru magic artifacts on the iron plate were just appetizers. The remaining two items looked ordinary in terms of appearance and spiritual energy. All the cultivators were waiting to finish bidding quickly so that the results of the first round of treasure opening could be revealed.
"An unnamed cloth bag, three hundred taels of red copper coins!"
This time, the old man in gray didn't specify how much he would raise the price, clearly indicating he wasn't optimistic about the bag; this magical artifact had already failed to sell at auction several times.
Some regular customers also recognized the mayfly bag.
"Isn't this the stuff that nobody wanted before? What's wrong? When did your Qianjin Pavilion become so stingy that you can't bear to replace it?"
These words immediately drew laughter from the surrounding cultivators.
"Look at what you're saying, it's still a magical artifact, after all."
"What a fine magical artifact! Hahaha!"
Hearing these barbed words, the old man was not annoyed: "Since all the gods of wealth have spoken, if this magic artifact cannot be sold today, I will bid for it. When it turns out to be a good item, you should not be envious."
"Haha, okay..."
"Qianjin Pavilion is grand, Master Zhu is grand..."
Li Ya watched the commotion quietly, not immediately making a bid, but observing whether anyone around him intended to bid.
Quite some time has passed, and still no one has made a move.
Just as Master Zhu was ready to pay out of his own pocket, Li Ya immediately spoke up.
Three hundred and one taels.
"make a deal!"
Without hesitation, Master Zhu immediately struck the gong, signaling the servant to bring the mayfly bag to the private room.
After the payment was settled, Li Ya finally felt relieved.
"Sir, do you have any technicians you know? If so, I'll send them over right away."
"No need, I won't participate in the gambling."
Senior? What kind of senior am I? There's no senior at the second level of Qi Refining. It's just flattery, but Li Ya still felt good listening to it.
Brother, you like to hear nice things, and cultivators are no exception.
Not all cultivators practice for the sake of immortality.
The servant bowed and left.
Even though Li Ya's clothes were inconspicuous, he didn't underestimate him in the slightest. There were plenty of stories about the old monster pretending to be weak while actually being strong, so giving him a smile wouldn't hurt.
Taking the conch shell out of its bosom, it sensed the aura of the Sumeru Stone on the mayfly pouch and became somewhat restless, reacting more violently than the last time with the mountain lord's pouch.
Li Ya felt much more at ease.
Before long, the last gold bracelet was also sold.
The first round has now ended, and the next step is the "opening the treasure" part, which the gamblers who have been waiting anxiously are eagerly anticipating.
"Here comes the embroidered lotus-shaped pouch!"