Chapter 558: The Longevity Pill That Turns Back Time
Honored Master Tian Ming wasn’t willing to play second fiddle to this madman as he hiked the price up to five million. However, Xiang Wentian’s eyes had gone bloodshot in his desire. He didn’t even blink as he tossed in a bid of six million spirit stones.
The situation was quickly getting out of hand. If this continued, these two maniacs might resort to something ludicrous in their frenzy for the pill. Off to the side, Wei Wuying was watching coldly. If he had been allowed to speak, he would’ve gladly added some more fuel to the fire and turned it into a complete mess. Things would be perfect if he could incite a fight between the Great Cathedral and Dark North Sect.
Wei Wuying was the sort who loved a good show, but didn’t particularly care about how it came about. The unluckier others were, the happier he was. Besides, with how the competition had developed, he too felt that the price of the Longevity Pill had far exceeded its true value. Six million stones! Even if he were to take out so many stones in one go, it would still tug painfully at his heartstrings.
Wang Jianyu had been forced to sit in silence after being blasted by Xiang Wentian, but his thoughts ran a similar path to Wei Wuying’s. His only hope was that the bidding would boil over to the point where it would rage completely out of control. If the situation reached that point of no return, he could step forward to fan the flames a little and embroil the Regal Pill Palace in the whole mess. If both the Dark North Sect and the Great Cathedral also formed a grudge with the Regal Pill Palace over this incident, then the Regal Pill Palace would become the hated enemy of all the other sects in the Myriad Domain. He would naturally be delighted to see this happen, and would laugh even in his sleep if it really did.
Honored Master Tian Ming was now caught between a rock and a hard place. Judging from Xiang Wentian’s attitude, there was no way he would stop. Tian Ming also knew that that no matter how he upped the price, the other would always be nipping at his heels. This old man was obviously ready to go to the point of bankrupting his family in order to obtain the pill and save his life.
As he hesitated, Xiang Wentian smiled coldly. “Why aren’t you bidding, old man Tian Ming? Doesn’t your Dark North Sect possess a great deal of wealth? Continue!”
Honored Master Tian Ming was different from Xiang Wentian. Although the former’s sect had money, it had to come from sect funds in the end. Although he was the sect head, he had other heavyweights in his sect that could put pressure on him. But when it came to the Sacred Elephant family, Xiang Wentian’s word was law and no one dared disobey him. Honored Master Tian Ming had already lost in terms of prerequisites. However, he didn’t feel comfortable in just giving up just like this. He ignored the darkening faces of his elders and cried out, “7 million!”
Xiang Wentian could also tell that Tian Ming was at his limits and couldn’t really hold on. He laughed arrogantly, “I’ll put down 8 million! Old man Tian Ming, dare you carry on?”
Tian Ming privately cursed at Xiang Wentian for being a madman and refused to step down. “I also offer 8 million and a jug of Darknorth Starsand. This is the best material in the Myriad Domain to use for refining weapons and glyphs.”
Xiang Wentian immediately laughed heartily. “Are you out of money and resorting to precious materials to guarantee your bid? I’ll offer 10 million and the full skin of a Lightning Antlers Python. This python skin can be used in crafting earth rank glyphs and runes!”
Tian Ming was speechless as he glared silently at Xiang Wentian, knowing that this crazed old man had indeed thrown everything to the winds. Even if they continued bidding on the pill, Tian Ming didn’t have the same advantage of throwing everything to the wind. “Fine, this one goes to you, ole brother Xiang. I can’t move you with pleas, nor can I best you with wealth. If there’s another Longevity Pill, you can’t take it from me then!”
These words were clearly capitulating on the auction, and looking for a concession. Xiang Wentian laughed heartily and didn’t press his point when he saw Tian Ming conceding. “What does another pill have to do with me? This pill isn’t candy. It’s of no more use to me after I take one.”
When he finished, he looked at Jiang Chen with hotly burning eyes. “Jiang Chen, this Longevity Pill is now mine, right?”
Jiang Chen smiled faintly and looked at the impromptu auctioneer. The latter chuckled. “Is there anyone offering a price higher than the Sacred Elephant family head?”
No one topped that bid even after three rounds of questions. It was obvious that no unsuspecting person would come fight for this pill now. In addition, anyone who stepped forth to try to seize it now would be publicly setting themselves against the Sacred Elephant family head. The price of doing so would be unimaginably horrifying.
Bam! The impromptu auction was declared at an end when the gavel came down. Xiang Wentian was delighted and reached into his robes for a storage ring he’d long since readied. He flung it forward carelessly onto the auction table. “Ten million upper rank origin spirit stones and the skin of a Lightning Antlers Python. It’s all in here, check it yourself. Where’s the Longevity Pill? Give it to me, give it to me!”
Xiang Wentian couldn’t wait another second. Nothing was more urgent than the pursuit of life.
Jiang Chen carefully took out the pill and handed it over. He was about to give a few reminders of its effects when Xiang Wentian forestalled him by snatching the pill and started beaming merrily at it. “Good, good! It’s clearly apparent with a glance that this pill is uncommon. I’ve once seen some of the earth rank pills that emperor realm cultivators take, but none of those can measure up to this one! How could this be fake? Only idiots would think this is fake, hahaha!”
Xiang Wentian was immensely proud of himself. It appeared that he’d seen the Longevity Pill before, but just hadn’t revealed the level of this pill before. Now that he had it in hand, he was happily revealing its level. It was obvious that although ten million upper rank stones was a great deal of his wealth, he felt it a completely fair trade to receive a pseudo-earth rank pill that would lengthen his lifespan in return! These days, no dream was as alluring as the chance to extend his life. In addition, with his cultivation at the peak of the sage realm, an additional 500 years gave him the confidence to try for the emperor realm.
Once he succeeded in ascending to the emperor realm, then he would’ve truly made it. An emperor realm cultivator appearing after several hundred years was absolutely of monumental significance! Not only would the Great Cathedral soar to new heights, his overall lifespan would see yet another breakthrough.
One’s lifespan would increase by at least a thousand, possibly even two or three thousand years when breaking through from the sage to emperor realm. He would then have ample time to assail even higher realms. For a cultivator of his level, what was more alluring than the idea of extending his lifespan again?
As he listened to Jiang Chen mention a few things regarding the Longevity Pill, Xiang Wentian went ahead and popped the pill into his mouth.
Taking it on the spot!
Everyone was both surprised and amused by this scene. The mightiest, strongest cultivator in the Myriad Domain was actually this impatient?
When the Longevity Pill hit Xiang Wentian’s stomach, it dissolved and traveled to every inch of his body through his meridians. On the outside, his body was suddenly covered with a light red haze that was speckled with green. Upon seeing this, Jiang Chen recognized it as the pill starting to come into effect.
The red haze indicated the strength of Xiang Wentian’s bodily functions, and the green specks represented the medicinal effects of the dissolving Longevity Pill. As time passed, the faint green specks faded away, and the red haze grew increasingly stronger and vibrant. Xiang Wentian’s skin also began to crack, the fissures expanding like a python shedding its skin. The dead skin broke into flakes, falling off like like chunks of mud that had been plastered onto a wall.
Beneath the dried flakes, fresh new skin peeped out. Xiang Wentian was shedding his skin like a python in exchange for new skin! Black impurities began to flow out of his orifices and fingertips in short order. Jiang Chen knew that the process of shedding dead skin was the renewal of the body’s exterior, much like an old tree gaining new shoots. The black sludge was the concentrated form of all the impurities that had accumulated inside the body after all these years being forced out by the medicine in the form of bodily waste.
Jiang Chen nodded slightly as he analyzed the pill’s effects. By this point, even those who had the worst observation skills could tell that the Longevity Pill was living up to its name. Perhaps they couldn’t understand what the black sludge was, but the picture of new skin beneath the molting old skin was something even fools could understand.
As the haze of light slowly began to fade, Xiang Wentian’s features began to come back into view. As it died away, it revealed a face that was no longer marred by wrinkles, and a head of hair that looked like it’d been dyed from snowy white to jet black. In the short time since Xiang Wentian had taken the pill, his entire being seemed to have reverted back from his elderly frame to that a healthy middle aged man!
When everyone managed to pick their jaws off the floor, an uproar broke out. The crowd was absolutely flabbergasted by the amazing effects of the Longevity Pill.
“Grandfather, you’re… you’re younger!” Xiang Qin was both surprised and overjoyed. He couldn’t help but yell loudly. If Xiang Wentian was the happiest after this entire episode, then the second happiest would absolutely be Xiang Qin.
The other family heads from the Great Cathedral also walked up to offer their congratulations.
“This is wonderful, ole brother Xiang. This Longevity Pill is indeed wondrous to be able to turn back time like this. This is absolutely incredible!”
“Ole brother Xiang, you often sigh that the prime of life is transient and that you want to borrow another five hundred years from the heavens. It looks like you’ve obtained your wishes!”
“The Longevity Pill lives up to its name!”
Jiang Chen smiled faintly. If the Longevity Pill had sold according to market value, it would’ve fetched one or two million spirit stones at most, which was already an eye-popping price! He’d made out like a bandit from this auction. As for the claim of reversing time, that was merely an exaggeration. The pill didn’t actually do that. It cleaned all the impurities from one’s body and stimulated the remaining life-force hidden in one’s body. No one, not even the most pinnacle cultivators, could dig out all of their lifeforce’s potential. There would always be various reasons or causes that damaged or suppressed the body’s natural mechanisms.
What the Longevity Pill did was to clear away all those impurities suppressing or damaging the body’s mechanisms and thoroughly excavate the potential in a human’s life. In actuality, this lifespan should’ve originally belonged to Xiang Wentian, but had been left untapped due to various reasons. All the pill had done was to take it back. The emperor realm cultivators actually had a similar kind of pill available to them as well, but its level was even higher.
Xiang Wentian knew his body’s condition far better than anyone else. He could feel how light his steps seemed to be. He’d bid farewell to that declining body of his and replaced it with one full of life. “Hahaha, Jiang Chen, my money was well spent! My body has absolutely returned to what it was five hundred years ago. It’s not a lie at all that the Longevity Pill can extend life by five hundred years. Now, which of you would dare say that my money wasn’t well spent?”
Money wasn’t anything to Xiang Wentian. Having extended his life was something truly worth celebrating!