Casually sipping on tea, an elderly man with grey hair and a long grey beard relaxed himself, drowned under the bustling atmosphere of a popular and greatly anticipated auction. To his right, a young man was seated, his hair a luscious silver, the same color his eyes' luster was.

Alexander was leisurely waiting, having already done all necessary administrative work to sell a first batch of five hundred Marrahva Crystals. Now waiting for it to start, he adorned his patience as if a mantle, his mind calmer than any other, his state of mind honed through an enormous amount of life experience.

The old man feeling something near him, turned his head right, shocked by the young man's aura.

'Not someone I can offend! What kind of youngster... wait, is he even young? A man with such a powerful soul and mind cannot be ordinary! It isn't something as easy to do as just doing it, even cultivation is easier than this, since cultivation can always be boosted through safe means. The state of mind however can only be achieved through living life and only that.'

Curious as to how a young looking cultivator could emanate such a peaceful aura, he braced himself.

"This brother here, I have not seen you here before, are you from outside of this Furraht City?" His tone amicable, his eyes kind, the man did his best, hoping for Alexander to feel positively of him.

"I am. But why do you want to know? Is it just casual conversation, or do you have something in mind? Nobody makes friends in the cultivation world without reason, well some idiots do, but I am sure a young thing like you, who managed to reach a peak Grand Gravitational Realm cultivation base at such a young age must be aware of this. Surviving this long, the idiots I talked about wouldn't be able to!"

Staggering for a moment, the old man cleared his throat.

'This man can actually discern my cultivation base with a simple glance, and not only that, he also called me 'young'. Unless he is boasting, this man must actually be older than he looks.'

"Oh oh, this brother, I just felt that your mental state was beyond my understanding, such a peerless man must be befriended! This old man only wanted to avoid potential dangers, turning it into benefits. Oh, and you can call this old man Guarov! I dare not claim myself to be strong, but I do possess some influence! As a descendant of the Lion Emperor from a few thousand years ago, I am currently part of the Huji Clan, the current leader of this city."

His interest picked, Alexander nodded.

"I don't mind making friends, but I also don't mind making enemies as well. But since this Alexander is quite new here, I would not let this chance be. Brother Guarov, I am currently trying to avoid making enemies, especially today, so let this Alexander accept your goodwill!"

"Oh oh! Brother Alexander was it? This old man is quite lonely in this auction, making friends here and there is only natural. Especially when it is with a dragon among men like brother Alexander here, I wonder, how old are you to possess such a powerful state of mind?"

Thinking for a moment, Alexander answered promptly.

"I should be around forty-three million years old, I think. You know, when you live so long, it becomes quite hard to remember such a thing, after all, age does not equal strength."

"Good heavens! forty-three million? Did I hear that right? I hope brother Alexander is not playing around with this old man... What kind of frightening cultivation base do you possess to boast such a long life? I would've died long ago!"

Back then, Alexander had become immortal due to the Heaven's will, however, the Celestial Realm's Heavens were not the same, and his gift of immortality had long since vanished.

"Believe it or not, it doesn't matter, I have my reasons, and of course, explanations about this."

His mouth shut, the old man was lost in thoughts.

'I heard that even the rumored ancestor of the Demonic Land Region's strongest power, a peerless master of this Southern Demonic Land Continent estimated his life expectancy to be around one hundred million years before vanishing, and he is rumored to have surpassed the Primordial Harmonization Realm! Could this Alexander also be above the Primordial Harmonization Realm? While his claim of forty-three million years of age seem dubious, his state of mind is not something so easily faked!'

"Oh oh, brother Alexander, I wonder if you have reached the powerful Primordial Harmonization Realm by any chance? Maybe even beyond?" Staring at Alexander, Guarov hoped for his conjecture to be nothing but truth.

"No, I am nowhere near this level, but like I said, my age is not abnormal, it has its own explanation. This explanation is also why my state of mind is at such a level."

Knowing when to stop, Guarov simply smiled kindly before looking back ahead, to a stage illuminated under warm lights.

On it, a young woman with beautiful features and a revealing dress shouted using her harmonious voice.

"Welcome everyone! Today's auction will feature many treasures, as always. I hope that everyone present is ready, since the auction is starting..."

"... now!"

Cheers exploding at her final word, the audience became hysteric, a recurring sight in this specific auction.

'Monkeys...' Snorting inside his heart, Alexander scoffed at their cheers.

Noticing his expression, Guarov felt the need to open his mouth.

"Is brother Alexander here perhaps not used to this type of crowd? Since most here are below the Celestial Harmonization Realm, they are easily excited by small things."

"I am used to them, but it doesn't stop me from expressing my bare thoughts about their behavior."

"Oh oh, brother Alexander is indeed an honest man." Stroking his beard, Guarov chuckled, not against Alexander's thoughts.

Time flying by, the auction reached its latter half, and soon, Alexander's Marrahva Crystals were now on stage.

"And now, for a very interesting and rare sight, a batch of five hundred Marrahva Crystals!"

"What?! Marrahva Crystals? The crystals used to breakthrough to the Blooming Lotus Realm?!!" Their eyes opened as wide as their mouths, insects probably dreaming of entering inside, the crowd felt tremors deep within their Martial Hearts.

'If I can just get a single one!'

'A single piece would promote my status by at least a hundred folds!!'

'If I can offer sister Qin one...'

"These Marrahva Crystals can only be bought with Tribulation Cloud Essences! The starting bid is 100 000, and the increments must not be lower than a thousand each time!"

Smiling evilly, Alexander was ready to make a killing, already sure that his crystals would fetch higher than their actual value.

'They are worth 500 000 as a whole, making a million however, should not be too hard!'

And just as he had expected, the increase in price seemed unable to slow down.

"101 000!"

"112 000!"

"130 000!"

"Let this young master take these, 150 000!"

...

Barely ten minutes later, the price had already skyrocketed.

"610 000!"

"You old fogey, are you this poor?! 750 000!"

"This old master must have these, give my Ulopian Sect face! 780 000!!"

...

"I must give my descendants future prospects! 1 400 000!!!"

"My Dreadful Ghoul Sect will take these! 2 000 000!!"

Shocked beyond belief, Alexander could not hide his grin.

'Are they crazy? How much Tribulation Cloud Essences do these sects have? If I can't make fifty million now, I can always rob them!'

...

Finally, half an hour later, the price had stagnated.

"...and three! We have a winner for these five hundred Marrahva Crystals! This old gentleman here bought them for only 3 400 000 Tribulation Cloud Essences!!"

Veins bulging, the old man in question felt aggrieved.

'Only? Did she have the damn guts to actually claim this hefty price as only, right to my face?!' Calming himself, the old man exchanged the sought after crystals with the required amount.

Alexander grinning even more, his eyes crescent moons, he looked at the man with disdain.

'This fucking idiot, showing so much wealth, be it in Tribulation Cloud Essences or Marrahva Crystals is a dumb move. Now that I think about it, I might just get my crystals back!' Being inside a large room, his Divine Sense, even under its current restrictions, proved to be a valuable asset.

'I could scan almost all of them, and I only saw a dozen or so Cloud Immortal Realm cultivators. Not only so, but I could not find a single person beyond at the Blooming Lotus Realm!'

With his current strength, Alexander was confident in defeating anyone below the Blooming Lotus Realm, at least in a fair fight. But was this even a problem for him? Someone who never fought fair?

Chatting with Guarov, Alexander noticed the old man who acquired his crystals leaving. Excusing himself, Alexander exited the auction, following closely behind the man in question.

Tailing the man as if a ghost, Alexander arrived inside a forest a small distance away from the city.

'So he's not from this city, perfect!'

Showing himself, Alexander was immediately caught under the man's senses.

"Who?!" Turning around in a panic, the man was too late, barely enough time for his eyes to catch Alexander's fist closing in on his face.

Blood spraying into the distance, Alexander's fist utterly annihilated the man's head, now splattered all over the dirt below, brain matter distributed everywhere.

Taking the man's space ring, Alexander retrieved not only his Marrahva Crystals, but also millions of Tribulation Cloud Essences. Once done, he simply returned to the auction, this time collecting some more Tribulation Cloud Essences from his sold crystals.

'Just doing so little and my wealth increased to a staggering 16 635 000 Tribulation Cloud Essences!' Now knowing what to do, Alexander simply waited patiently inside the city, 'auctioning' his Marrahva Crystals again and again, as if his deep pockets were endless.

Retrieving a bloodied space ring a few months later, Alexander felt content.

'With this, I have around eighty million Tribulation Cloud Essences... more than enough!'

This time not returning to the city, Alexander took his time, arriving to his usual flattened mountain top with ease. The reason was fairly straightforward, this place was now not only well known by him, but also filled with many arrays, Alexander making sure to be safe inside.

Seating cross-legged in the middle, Alexander was ready.

'Time to break through my bottleneck! With this much, I can most definitely reach the second stage of the Blooming Lotus Realm!!'