In Idyllic Cloud Mountain, time flowed leisurely like a fleeting white horse, and two hundred years passed in a flash.

For over two centuries, the "idle clouds and wild cranes" residing in Idyllic Cloud Mountain continued their daily pursuits of composing poetry, painting, and reveling in the beauty of nature, spending their days as they pleased, living their "immortal lives." Most of them were not particularly enthusiastic about cultivation and seclusion.

They didn't much care whether a few more or a few less people had arrived in the mountain, as they believed that being able to come to Idyllic Cloud Mountain and meet each other in this life was fate. They didn't dwell on the past, so why bother asking about the future?

The True Immortal Realm remained the same, but the mortal realm had likely undergone several dynastic changes, experiencing countless grievances, grudges, and even a change of dynasty.

As the saying goes, "A day in the Immortal Realm is a thousand years in the mortal world."

Since settling Mo Guang and obtaining a "new identity," Han Li would still travel great distances to Jukun Inner City every so often to search for "Xuanzhi Crystal Stones."

Over time, many shopkeepers in the inner city had done business with him a few times, becoming somewhat familiar with him. They also knew that there was a Fireleaf Sect outer disciple who was single-mindedly searching for "Heart-shaped Stones."

However, during his recent visits to the city, Han Li noticed that many places were being renovated, and some main streets had already been decorated with lanterns and streamers, preparing to welcome merchants from all directions for Jukun City's once-in-a-millennium grand city founding celebration.

Especially in recent months, ferries from other parts of the Black Mountain Immortal Territory and even nearby Immortal Territories had been flying into the city in rapid succession, and the ports all over the city had become increasingly busy.

In front of the shops throughout the city, all kinds of banners and placards had long been hung, written in gold powder with words such as "Genuine Goods at Fair Prices" and "Honest to Immortals and Mortals," attracting merchants. Some merchants, not following the old ways, wrote "Buy One Get One Free," "Discount Sale," and "Once in Three Thousand Years," among other slogans.

Compared to ordinary times, the flow of people in Jukun City had become denser. The immortal inns opened by various chambers of commerce in the city were already in short supply, having long been crowded with foreign merchants and cultivators. Many sects in the city had also temporarily rented out their mansions and guest rooms to earn some rental income.

Even the Floating Cloud Mountain Range far outside the city had its usual tranquility broken. Many reclusive cultivators who lived in the mountains year-round were also eager to move, planning to enter Jukun City during the celebration season and exchange for things that caught their eye.

Logically speaking, they, being close to the water, shouldn't have such a strong enthusiasm for the Jukun City festival. But in fact, like those foreign cultivators who came from thousands of miles away, they eagerly awaited the arrival of the celebration day.

The reason was simple: during the seven days of the Jukun City celebration, the boundary between the inner and outer cities would be broken. At that time, the four city gates of the inner city would be wide open, without any restrictions, allowing anyone to enter the inner city.

Moreover, during the inner city's opening, hundreds of auctions of varying sizes would be held under the auspices of various forces, and the most eye-catching of these would naturally be the large-scale Yukun Tower auction jointly organized by the Northern Palace under the Black Mountain Immortal Palace and a branch of the Hundred Refinements Mountain.

The reason why this event could attract the attention of almost half of the Black Mountain Immortal Territory was not only because it had a strong official background, but also because almost every auction would feature several top-level treasures that even Grand Luo Immortals would covet.

Whenever such treasures appeared, they would attract the contention of forces from all sides, who would rely on their respective foundations and strength to fight it out. No matter who the final winner was, it would be passed on as a good story for a time.

Seven days before the celebration, Han Li had already entered the Yukun Tower with Jingyang Shangren.

The tower had an underground palace, which was arranged with various ingenious magic formations and mechanisms, and guarded by three Golden Immortal Elders who stayed there every step of the way. Auction items transported from all over the Black Mountain Immortal Territory and even other places were stored here.

Han Li and the other two Pill Appraisers, accompanied by Jingyang Shangren, identified the treasures of pills and spiritual medicines among them, and after confirming that they were correct, they were all registered and written into the auction list.

It wasn't until the evening before the celebration that all the auction items were transported to Yukun Tower and registered in the inventory.

Jingyang Shangren, who had long been accustomed to a leisurely life, was overwhelmed by the disturbance. After finally finishing these trivial matters, he came to the other courtyard arranged for Han Li, taking advantage of the moonlit night.

Arriving outside the door, before he could speak, Han Li had already waved his sleeve to open the door and invited him in.

"How is it? The feeling of doing everything yourself is not bad, right? Haha..." After Han Li invited Jingyang Shangren to sit down, he poured him a cup of clear tea and teased him with a smile.

"It's really been a long time since I participated in these detailed matters, and I'm indeed a little unaccustomed... Don't make fun of me, kid..." Jingyang Shangren waved his hand and said with a wry smile.

After saying that, he glanced at the tea poured by Han Li with some disgust and said, "Is there any more Fire Saliva Wine?"

"Didn't I give you the wine recipe? Why are you still asking me for wine?" Han Li chuckled and asked.

"Don't be so stingy! Your wine is more aged, right? Those I brewed are less than one hundred and fifty years old, and the taste is far worse. Besides, I won't drink your wine for nothing, I'll leak a little inside information to you," Jingyang Shangren lowered his voice and said mysteriously.

Hearing this, Han Li smiled helplessly. With a wave of his palm, a dark gray wine jar appeared on the table.

"This is the last jar I've hoarded. The vintage is longer than the last one I took out. Your little inside information can't be unworthy of my wine," Han Li said, patting open the mud seal of the altar.

As the mellow aroma of wine filled the entire room, the glutton in Jingyang Shangren's stomach was immediately hooked. He couldn't wait to pour himself a full cup with a teacup and drink it all in one gulp.

With the fine wine down his throat, he tilted his head back and smacked his lips, savoring the aftertaste between his lips and teeth, with a look of intoxication on his face.

Han Li watched from the side, wanting to laugh a little, but he didn't urge him.

"It really is good wine..." Jingyang Shangren gave a thumbs up and exclaimed.

As soon as he finished speaking, he grabbed the wine jar and was about to pour himself another drink when he was stopped by Han Li.

"Aren't you going to say what the news is?" Han Li asked.

"Hehe... Can't you let me have a few more sips before I say it?" Jingyang Shangren chuckled twice and said.

"Speak quickly," Han Li said, ignoring him.

"Okay... I'll tell you, the Xuanzhi Crystal Stone you want has been found. The last batch of goods that arrived this afternoon just happened to have this item," Jingyang Shangren withdrew his hand and said, shaking his head.

"Is this true?" Han Li was immediately overjoyed and asked.

"Don't be in such a hurry to be happy. The price of this thing is not low. The starting price is one thousand Immortal Essence Stones. The final transaction price is likely to be several times that amount. Is your purse fat enough?" Jingyang Shangren deliberately looked him up and down and asked.

Han Li laughed in his heart. Even if it was several times that amount, it would only be a few thousand Immortal Essence Stones. Although it was a considerable sum of money for other ordinary Golden Immortal cultivators, it was nothing to him now.

"Jingyang Fellow Daoist, don't forget that I am a Pill Refiner. Although spending money is like opening a floodgate, the speed at which I earn money is not slow either. I have been planning for this matter for so long, so naturally I am prepared," Han Li said with a smile.

Seeing Han Li looking so confident, Jingyang Shangren only thought that Han Li was new to the place and didn't know the "danger" of the auction. If he was not careful, he would be killed and become destitute.

"If you don't have enough Immortal Essence Stones at that time, you can first mortgage some pills to our Hundred Refinements Mountain. I will definitely give you a satisfactory price. If you want to redeem them later, you can also buy them back at the original price. How about it, am I being generous enough?" He didn't directly pour cold water on Han Li, but said this instead.

Han Li pushed the entire jar of Fire Saliva Wine to Jingyang Shangren and said cleanly:

"Generous."

……

The next morning, a loud bell rang throughout the entire Jukun City.

The four city gates in the southeast, northwest, and southwest of the inner city, which had been sealed for a long time, were all opened. All the checking cultivators stationed here were evacuated, but the number of patrolling cultivators distributed on the city walls increased several times.

As the light of the rune restrictions on the city gate faded away, the cultivators of all walks of life who had been waiting outside the city gate could not wait to pass through the gate and pour into the inner city.

The usually quiet streets and alleys of the inner city suddenly became noisy. The chaotic crowd dispersed along the roads to various parts of the inner city. Some went to the shops selling magic treasures and immortal artifacts, while others went directly to some auction houses.

The entire inner city had become even more lively than the outer city.

At night, the inner city of Jukun was lit up with lights. Red lanterns were lit everywhere, and all places were brightly lit. There were also bursts of fireworks rising from the city walls to help the atmosphere, and the lively atmosphere was not reduced at all.

Six days passed in a row, and the most eye-catching Yukun Tower auction in the city finally opened.

Han Li and Jingyang Shangren, as the organizers, naturally entered the Yukun Tower auction venue one step ahead.

After entering, he realized that the internal space of the Yukun Tower, which looked like only a tower from the outside, was actually so wide.

In the center of the building, there was a circular stone platform with a considerable area, which was obviously used to display the auction items. Around it were distributed small VIP rooms that were closely connected to each other, forming a neat circle.

After the first floor was full, the second and third floors each formed another circle, looking like there were about hundreds of them.

In each VIP room, there was a low table and a futon. A furnace of sandalwood was lit in the upper right corner of the table, and some immortal vegetables, spiritual fruits, and a pot of fine wine were placed in the center.

Han Li and Jingyang Shangren chose a VIP room on the second floor and walked in first.

A young woman in the appearance of a palace maid stood in the room, immediately adding a futon for the two of them and pouring them fine wine.

Han Li glanced sideways unintentionally and was a little surprised to find that the palace maid was not a real person, but only a puppet, because the breath was low, only equivalent to a Core Formation cultivator, so it was not easy to be noticed.

"Jingyang Fellow Daoist, are you really not going to preside over the conference?" Han Li withdrew his gaze and asked.