In a room on the second floor of the auction hall, Lin Houyuan was still organizing the treasures and magic artifacts that were about to be auctioned.


    Outside the door, there was a knock. Lin Houyuan, with his plump body, turned around and then looked outside the door and spoke:


    "Come in!"


    "Uncle Thirty!" A young man in green robe pushed the door open and entered. With a respectful call, he then sat down next to Lin Houyuan.


    The visitor was Lin Shiming.


    "You came sote. Shijie and the others came just a while ago and already took a look!" Lin Houyuan couldn''t help but tease.


    Upon hearing this, Lin Shiming understood that his eldest brother and fifth uncle must havee here right after leaving the Lin Family Restaurant, but his purpose this time was not for the auction items.


    "Uncle Thirty, have you heard of the Lingnan Seven Fiends?"


    "What? You ran into the Lingnan Seven Fiends?" Lin Houyuan looked somewhat grave.


    "Right in the street stall area!" Lin Shiming replied affirmatively.


    "This is somewhat troublesome. The Lingnan Seven Fiends are a cultivator n in Yunzhou and count as a family. The strength of the seven fiends is not bad; even the weakest has the strength of the eighth level of Qi Cultivation. The head of their n is even at the Foundation Establishment Stage." Lin Houyuan felt his headache growing.


    "Shiming, be a bit more cautious this time. There might beplications, given that Seventh Great-Uncle is in seclusion on Fangmu Mountain. As for the Lingnan Seven Fiends, I will send people to watch over them." Lin Houyuan continued to remind Lin Shiming, and at the same time, he handed over a jade slip that recorded the auction items to Lin Shiming.


    Lin Shiming received the jade slip with both hands, scanned it twice, then shook his head and returned the jade slip to Lin Houyuan.


    Most of the treasures this time were indeed second-rank superior-grade spiritual materials and spiritual objects.


    But for Lin Shiming, there were no items he was too desperately in need of.


    Lin Shiming bid farewell to Lin Houyuan and then visited his fifth uncle, Lin Houyong, who was extremely happy to see Lin Shiming. Thetter''s breakthrough to Foundation Establishment owed much to Lin Shiming''s contribution.


    And Lin Shiming had reached the ninth level of Qi Cultivation. The next step was how to hone spiritual energy, break through to Foundation Establishment, and he had many questions for Lin Houyong.


    The two of them chatted over tea for a good half hour. In the end, it was Lin Shiming who took the initiative to take his leave and returned to his own room.


    In the room, he had also mentioned the Lingnan Seven Fiends to his fifth uncle, but thetter just smiled slightly, full of confidence, and did not say much more.


    With that, Lin Shiming understood.


    Who is the mantis, and who is the cicada? It''s best to just wait quietly and see the oue.


    In the room, Lin Shiming took out a simple Spirit Istion Formation Array te from his storage bag and set it up.


    Then he rxed, took out the seeds of the Awakening Spirit Flower, and prepared to infuse wood attribute spiritual power to experiment.


    Although the system had prompted him, the female cultivator had referred to the seeds of the Awakening Spirit Flower as useless, so he was still somewhat concerned they might not germinate or would demand too much time or spiritual power.


    The seeds of the Awakening Spirit Flower were not small; one was the size of a thumb, and most of the spirit patterns on the seed were rubbed off, apanied by the moist scent of soil, it seemed like it had been nted in the ground multiple times and then dug up again.


    Lin Shiming took out the Spirit Soil he had acquired in Qingyun Mountain Range before, along with some Nurturing Spirit Liquid for transnting spirit nts.


    Finally, he carefully nted the seeds.


    After everything was ready, he began to operate the Purple Wood Heart Sutra and input wood attribute spiritual power.


    These spirit nts were not fast-growing, so the spirit seeds also grew very slowly. He could only judge whether they could germinate by sensing the vitality of the seeds.


    Under the influence of three factors, Lin Shiming poured in spiritual power for a solid half hour before he finally felt the vitality of the seeds suddenly increase, at the same time forming a tiny vortex of spiritual energy.


    "There''s a chance!" Lin Shiming immediately felt relieved, did not continue catalyzing, and put away the seeds and Spirit Soil instead. He nned to cultivate them when he returned to Fangmu Mountain, utilizing Fangmu Mountain''s third rank superior grade Spirit Vein.


    Afterward, Lin Shiming began to meditate and cultivate.


    As the sun rose and set, and clouds rolled and shifted, two days passed in the blink of an eye.


    By the time Lin Shiming opened his eyes again, it was the day the auction began.


    Together with Lin Shijie and Lin Houyong, he arrived at thepartment behind the auction hall. This location offered an excellent view of the entire auction scene and allowed the group to promptly deal with any issues that might arise.


    Also present was his second uncle, Lin Houshou, who was in charge of the formations here, ensuring that if a powerful enemy appeared at the auction hall, they could quickly deploy the formations.


    However, unlike thest auction, this time thepartment was almost empty.


    The Foundation Establishment families that did attend were mostly represented by the younger generation seeking spiritual objects, while in contrast, the main hall buzzed with noise. Many Loose Cultivators were eager and ready to make a big move.


    At noon, Lin Houyuan also appeared on the auction stage on time.


    "Wee fellow Loose Cultivators and family members who are here to participate in our Lin Family''s auction. My name is Lin Houyuan, and just like thest auction, the highest bidder wins. Also, for those friends who purchased auction itemsst time, you can deduct the price ording to the previous conditions. This opportunity shouldn''t be missed, as it won''te again.


    Everyone seated, please rx and enjoy the auction!"


    "The first auction item is a Second Rank Supreme Grade Spirit Shield Artifact!"


    "There''s no need for me to borate on the preciousness of Spirit Shield Artifacts; they are seldom seen even in majormercial establishments. The starting bid is 1500 Spirit Stones, with a minimum increment of 100 Spirit Stones."


    "I bid 1800!"


    "2000!"


    "I, Qi Mou, bid 3000!"


    ...


    The Supreme Grade Spirit Shield was in high demand and eventually sold for the high price of 3800 Spirit Stones.


    There were Loose Cultivators who, hoping to save a hundred Spirit Stones, ended up driving the overall expected price even higher.


    Otherwise, even a rare Supreme Grade Spirit Shield Artifact typically wouldn''t fetch nearly four thousand Spirit Stones at auction.


    Lin Shiming, who himself possessed two Supreme Grade defensive Spirit Shield Artifacts, considered selling one upon seeing the auction price.


    The auction continued, and the next few items,pared to the first, were somewhat less impressive until another heavyweight artifact from Thousand Layer Mountain appeared.


    This artifact shared a certain ingenious simrity with Profound Water Heavy Mountain, which piqued his interest. After paying 3500 Spirit Stones, he sessfully acquired the Thousand Layer Mountain Artifact.


    Given the Red-haired Demon Monkey''s strength, the Profound Water Heavy Mountain was no longer sufficient for its needs, and the Thousand Layer Mountain was perfectly suitable.


    After auctioning off two more Spirit nts, it was finally time for the Lin Family''s eagerly anticipated Red Spirit Fish.


    The Red Spirit Fish was enormous, over a meter long, covered in red scales, with a slightly bulging belly,


    Cultivators were particrly enthusiastic upon seeing it, and after learning about the sess of the Lin Family Restaurant, the price of the Spirit Fish had skyrocketed, especially among cultivators who owned a Spirit Pool and were eyeing it intently.


    This included quite a few cultivators from other families as well.


    However, they had not received prior notice and were somewhat unprepared in terms of Spirit Stones.


    "A Second Rank Intermediate Grade Red Spirit Fish! Attention all fellow Daoists, this Red Spirit Fish is still in its spawning period. The starting bid is 2000 Spirit Stones, with no less than 100 Spirit Stones for each increment!"


    "2300!"


    "2800 Spirit Stones!"


    ...


    Just as the bidding went back and forth, Lin Shiming decided to put forth a staggering offer:


    "5000 Spirit Stones!"


    His bid, more than double the current one, instantly quelled all others.