Chapter 751

Chapter 751: The Three Paths

The auction house is not a charity; they definitely need to collect money. Normally, they take about ten percent of the auction amount. However, this rule is hard to apply to treasures above the Eighth-rank. Treasures of that level cannot be bought with mere small spirit pearls; even if you had a billion small spirit pearls, no one would sell you an Eighth-rank treasure.

Why? The reason is simple: small spirit pearls are easy to obtain, and any major sect has much more than that. But Eighth-rank treasures are not easily available; they are usually passed down through inheritance and are rarely sold. When an Eighth-rank treasure does appear for sale, it certainly won’t be traded for small spirit pearls but for treasures of the same level.

In this situation, how could they still take ten percent? They can’t just disassemble the treasure! So, the auction house had to change the rules and directly charge a certain amount of small spirit pearls as a reward for such priceless treasures.

One million may seem like a lot, but compared to the value of the Ninth-Rank Enlightenment Pill, it’s not even one percent, which shows that the other party is very sincere. After all, the appearance of such a treasured item can cause a huge stir and attract more experts, bringing greater benefits, so they are eager to offer better treasures.

Seeing their sincerity, Fang Lie naturally nodded in agreement, signed the agreement, and paid the small spirit pearls to take the spirit pill away.

Afterward, Fang Lie thought for a moment. He had intended to go to the gambling stone workshop to see if he could gamble for more Immortal Crystals. However, his stunning performance six months ago had not yet faded, and if he drew attention again, he might attract trouble.

So, Fang Lie decided not to go to gambling stones for now. Instead, he divided his efforts: his main body would return to the Mo Sect to refine the Innate Weak Water Nascent Fetus and the Glazed Nascent Fetus. Most of Fang Lie’s blood clones would remain here to continue collecting Immortal Crystals and treasures.

Without the ability to gamble on stones, going to the Land of Star Fragments to search for himself was undoubtedly the best option.

Thinking of this, Fang Lie asked Li Qing, "I want to check out the Land of Star Fragments. Do you have any information?"

"Why do you want to go to the Land of Star Fragments?" Li Qing hurriedly replied, "It’s extremely dangerous there; even a Semi-Immortal may not survive!"

"Don’t worry, I will be safe!" Fang Lie said with a smile.

"If you insist on going, I can only suggest you hire some warriors as guides!" Li Qing said solemnly.

"Warriors?" Fang Lie asked curiously. "What do they do?"

"The warriors in this city are physical cultivators; their magical powers are not impressive, but their bodies are incredibly strong. They can withstand attacks, are immensely powerful, and are nimble as well. They are not affected by the wild energy inside and are most suitable for action in the Land of Star Fragments," Li Qing explained. "They have been exploring inside for years and are familiar with many situations. Having them to protect you will greatly increase your safety!"

"They can guide, but as for protection?" Fang Lie chuckled. "With my strength, it would be good if I don’t protect them!"

"Sir, you must not think that way!" Li Qing urged. "In the Land of Star Fragments, there is rampant Nascent Soul energy everywhere. Many of a cultivator’s Dao magic and divine skills cannot be used, and they may even suffer terrible backlash. So even the Thunder Tribulation Immortal can only act with his body and hardly dares to use his Magic. Under such circumstances, a cultivator’s combat strength may not be stronger than those warriors!"

"Oh, is that so?" Fang Lie smiled slightly, not explaining further. However, in his heart, he remained unconvinced. Based on the strength of his completed Innate Dao Body, he would certainly not be inferior to the warriors here, plus he had wings to enhance his agility.

Therefore, even in the Land of Star Fragments, Fang Lie believed he would be stronger than all the warriors; he just knew not to voice this opinion, as he understood it internally.

Fang Lie then nodded and said, "Go find some suitable candidates now. We’ll depart today!"

"Of course, sir, don’t worry! With your status, I will definitely find the best for you!" Li Qing said excitedly.

After that, he turned and left.

About an hour later, along with his meal finished, Li Qing returned with ten armored men.

Fang Lie glanced over and was surprised to see that among the ten men, eight were half-demons, especially the leader, who stood tall, with muscles bulging like mountains. No normal person could have such an exaggerated physique!

Li Qing introduced them, saying, "Sir, these are the best guide warriors in the area. Each of them has spent over fifty years inside and has led many important people to treasure hunt!"

"Hmm!" Fang Lie nodded and asked, "What are your hiring conditions?"

"First, the employer must obey. If things go wrong inside, we could lose our lives, so we can’t accompany you!" said the strong armored man sternly.

"That’s fine!" Fang Lie laughed and said, "I’m not unreasonable. Since this is your territory, I will trust you and follow your arrangements!"

"That’s perfect!" The armored man sighed in relief and then said, "In addition to that, each person needs to pay one hundred thousand small spirit pearls, and I need five hundred thousand!"

"Ha ha, it’s just a stroll, and the price is not cheap!" Fang Lie replied cheerfully.

"My lord, to be honest, we are playing with our lives!" the armored man said helplessly. "Even under normal circumstances, among the brothers going out this time, at least three or five will be left behind!"

"Just ten people, and so many are going to die?" Fang Lie exclaimed in shock. "Is the Land of Star Fragments really that terrifying? How did you manage to grow strong?"

"My lord, the dangers of the Land of Star Fragments are unpredictable, and the casualties are immense. For example, we usually choose the month with the least damage from the stars each year, where one hundred thousand people rush in to collect treasures and Stone Orbs, but we still need to leave behind over ten thousand forever!" said the armored man. "And now, the density of star damage is moderate, making it more than twice as threatening; losing three or five people is considered normal! Of course, you might be among them, so please be prepared."

"Ha ha, don’t worry, I won’t die!" Fang Lie smiled gently and then tossed them a bag filled with small spirit pearls. "Take a look, is the amount correct?"

The armored man took a look and said, "Just right, thank you, my lord!"

After speaking, he put away the Sumeru Bag and said, "If you want to set off today, we will need a bit of time to prepare; we must not lack mounts and food, along with some special supplies. Here’s the list!"

The armored man handed Fang Lie a list, which included tents and several advanced Formations, as well as some talismans, besides food and mounts.

Fang Lie immediately made a face and curiously asked, "Tents? Can we stay in the Land of Star Fragments?"

"Definitely not inside; we might get crushed!" the armored man quickly explained. "But we can set up camp outside; with a Formation for protection, the chaotic air currents inside won’t affect us."

"I see!" Fang Lie nodded and then handed him another bag to handle the purchases.

Then, both sides agreed to meet at the city gate after one hour.

After sending away the armored man, Fang Lie began his preparations, sending Madam Hu and Li Qing away. Then, Fang Lie released two clones. His main body immediately committed self-destruction and returned to the Mo Sect to refine the Nascent Fetus.

One clone wore the robes left by Fang Lie, disguising itself as the main body, and began to walk out.

The other clone sealed the place up, focusing on alchemy. He remembered he needed to make the Buddhist Light Wisdom Sword Pill for Dong Zhong!

An hour later, Fang Lie met the armored man and the others at the city gate. They were all geared up and led five large turtles, each ten feet square.

Seeing Fang Lie approach, the armored man came forward and extended his hand, saying, "Guest, please mount the mount!"

Fang Lie curiously sat on one of the large turtles, the armored man followed suit, while the others sat on the other four turtles with their luggage.

Then, the five large turtles walked out of the city gate, heading outside.

As soon as they got outside, Fang Lie realized that these turtles were not ordinary, as the violent winds were blocked by an invisible barrier. Clearly, this was the special talent of these turtles.

So Fang Lie curiously asked, "What kind of turtles are these? They are quite impressive!"

"This is called the Wind Spirit Turtle; its shell naturally possesses divine patterns that resist strong winds. They are the best mounts here," the armored man said with a smile. "Without them, we would probably tire ourselves out before even reaching our destination!"

The armored man could tell Fang Lie was well-off, so he had hired the best old turtles, which were huge and had good wind-resistance, making their journey fast and comfortable, satisfying Fang Lie.

Then Fang Lie curiously asked, "With these turtles’ help, how soon can we reach our destination?"

"Very soon, in ten days to half a month!" the armored man shrugged.

"Ten days to half a month is considered quick?" Fang Lie couldn’t help but chuckle. "The Land of Star Fragments isn’t far from here! I can even hear the boom of meteorites hitting the ground."

"It’s not far, only about a hundred thousand miles! The Thunder Tribulation Immortal can use all his magic, and it would take only a while to get there," the armored man said with a wry smile. "But the issue is that we can’t use spells here; we can only rely on the legs of these Seventh-rank demon beasts, so it will naturally be much slower."

"Alright, alright!" Fang Lie said helplessly. "As long as we can get there, it’s fine. I’m not in a hurry anyway."

Next, Fang Lie and the armored man talked about the Land of Star Fragments, discussing a lot of forbidden matters that need to be addressed while they were on the road.

A day passed in the blink of an eye. Fang Lie gained a preliminary understanding of the threats of the Land of Star Fragments, but since he had never seen it, he didn’t truly grasp it.

If given some time, Fang Lie might understand it better, but unfortunately, he was out of time because the next day, Fang Lie encountered big trouble!