Inside the Ten Thousand Li Silk Corridor's inner city, Lin Yan left his courtyard and headed toward the largest building in the area, where the auction was held. It was a massive mortal Gu House, crowded and imposing.
As he walked, rows of shops lined both sides of the street. Lin Yan glanced around and nodded slightly. The inner city was not only famous for its auctions, these shops were just as tempting.
Some belonged to super forces, displaying large quantities of rare Gu materials and Gu worms. Others were small stalls run by individuals, filled with strange items, rare treasures, and even exotic beasts.
Before long, Lin Yan followed the flow of people into the auction Gu House. He selected a private room and quietly waited for the items he wanted to appear.
A beautiful Gu Master stepped onto the stage, smiling as she introduced the first item.
Lin Yan glanced at it, but his expression did not change. Although the Rank 3 Otherworldly Flame Gu was valuable, it would not bring a meaningful increase to his strength.
Time slowly passed as item after item was presented. The atmosphere grew more intense. Flame Path Gu Masters competed fiercely, their tempers rising. Some even had flames burst from their hair in anger, making the air grow noticeably hotter.
Only Lin Yan remained calm from beginning to end. It was not that the items were lacking, but that he already had a clear goal.
Soon, the item he had been waiting for appeared. A Rank 4 Otherworldly Flame Gu—Life Spirit Fire Gu. It carried both Wood Path and Flame Path traits. It could nurture large amounts of Gu materials and greatly improve efficiency during Gu refinement, making it extremely valuable.
Moreover, if used properly, it could also heal Flame Path Gu Masters, with effects close to a Rank 4 Wood Path Gu. This directly made up for one of the biggest weaknesses of the Flame Path.
In truth, the Huang Family had studied Flame Path for hundreds of years and already possessed more than ten Otherworldly Flame Gu recipes. They were not lacking in such Gu, but most were single-attribute, mainly Earth Path or pure Flame Path. A flame that also carried Wood Path depth like this was extremely rare.
The auctioneer smiled and announced, "Starting bid: fifty thousand primeval stones."
In the next moment, the bidding began. Flame Path experts, all Rank 4 and Rank 5, raised their offers one after another. Sixty thousand… seventy thousand… eighty thousand. The price quickly climbed to one hundred thousand.
Lin Yan's eyes flickered slightly. He did not join the bidding. Instead, he directly contacted the seller and proposed a trade—one Otherworldly Flame Gu in exchange for another.
A short while later, a message Gu delivered the seller's reply. The voice on the other end was clearly pleased. "Good, good. Since you have an Otherworldly Flame Gu, we can exchange."
Lin Yan quietly let out a breath. Flame Path Gu Masters could not do without Otherworldly Flames. As long as the seller followed the same path, negotiation was much easier. Otherwise, he would have had to rely on primeval stones, which would have been far more costly.
As for why the seller was willing to part with it, it was likely because they already had strong healing methods and no longer needed the Life Spirit Fire Gu.
Soon, the auctioneer in the center received the notice and spoke with a composed smile. "Apologies. The seller has accepted an exchange offer for another Otherworldly Flame Gu."
Hearing this, many Flame Path Gu Masters showed clear disappointment, some even voicing their dissatisfaction.
This kind of exchange was allowed within the auction rules. At the Rank 4 and Rank 5 level, many items could no longer be measured purely by primeval stones, so bartering naturally became more common.
The auctioneer quickly calmed the crowd and said with a smile, "Please don't be disappointed. More excellent Otherworldly Flame Gu will appear later."
As expected, after every few items, another Otherworldly Flame Gu was brought out. Their attributes varied widely. Some carried traces of Soul Path, while others showed signs of Wisdom Path.
Lin Yan found many of them appealing, but he remained restrained. His primeval stones had to be reserved for Relic Gu, Human Path materials, and aperture-related Gu recipes.
Moreover, he already possessed two Rank 4 Otherworldly Flame Gu, and feeding them was becoming a burden. Although the Mystic Yellow Earth Fire Gu did not require Profound Yellow Mother Qi, it still needed a Rank 4 material known as Turbid Flame.
In this aspect, the Huang Family could not cultivate it artificially and had to rely on natural formation or external acquisition.
Fortunately, among the three lakes, Turbid Lake could produce this material, though the quantity was limited.
This clearly showed how important it was for a Family to control an oasis with natural resource points. Their unique inheritance and long-term development all depended on this foundation.
The First Ancestor, Flame King, had chosen Sandwell Oasis for this exact reason. The resources there could sustain his Gu worms.
Because of this, Lin Yan did not plan to collect too many Otherworldly Flame Gu. He would wait until he reached Rank 4. The Ten Thousand Li Silk Corridor held Flame Path auctions regularly, and as a mainstream path, there would always be more chances to acquire them.
Not long after, another Flame Path inheritance that caught his attention appeared—the Fire Control True Inheritance. Its introduction was brief, but it clearly explained methods to control various rare and unusual Otherworldly Flames.