The streets of Lan City were bustling with people, many of whom were foreign cultivators, clearly here for the Lan City Auction. After all, this auction was considered quite a grand event, being one of the larger auctions in the vicinity, featuring uniquely characteristic and extremely rare treasures every year.

Thus, the Lan City Auction was quite famous locally, and even across the entire Donglai Continent, the Lan City Auction was quite renowned. Many cultivators would come to participate in the auction during this time. Of course, the majority of these foreign cultivators came to try their luck in Lan City, to see if they could find any treasures.

They often wouldn't participate in the auction, only trying their luck in Lan City. After all, for most cultivators, participating in the Lan City Auction wasn't an easy task, as the entry fee alone wasn't something ordinary cultivators could afford.

Those who could enter the Lan City Auction were certainly of wealth or noble status. For those cultivators, they were here for the treasures at the auction, clearly not concerned about the astronomical entry fees in the eyes of ordinary cultivators.

Ding Fan had previously heard from Long Ren that the entry fee was one thousand spirit stones. Ding Fan could see that his virtuous brother, Long Ren, was evidently not attending the auction for the first time.

For most ordinary cultivators, a one-thousand spirit stone entry fee was indeed quite significant.

It should be known that for an ordinary Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, annual expenses would roughly be about this amount. Of course, there were many cultivators in the cultivation world who were below the Nascent Soul Stage, at the Embryonic Breathing Stage. One thousand spirit stones would be the expenditures for several years for those at the Embryonic Breathing Stage, and clearly earning this amount wasn't an easy task for them.

It's entirely normal that even spending five to six years wouldn't be unusual. After all, those with only Embryonic Breathing Stage cultivation would find it difficult to even deal with some Yuan Beasts. And even if they could slay some, those would be such low-rank Yuan Beasts that they wouldn't fetch much money.

In the cultivation world, most ordinary cultivators are either at the Embryonic Breathing Stage or Nascent Soul Stage. Nevertheless, most of those at the Embryonic Breathing Stage are loose cultivators without much background, while a majority of Nascent Soul Stage cultivators are outer disciples of sects.

Therefore, most ordinary cultivators have limited financial capability to enter the auction.

However, the purposes of these foreign cultivators visiting Lan City aren't entirely for the auction. Most know about the expensive entry fees, and their destination is Lan City, all because of the auction held here.

As a result, many cultivators, or merchants, come to Lan City to do business on the streets or rent a storefront. Among them, a significant portion of ordinary cultivators sell some of the rare and precious items they have acquired.

Most of these cultivators are loose cultivators, each with potentially lucky moments where they find precious spiritual materials or acquire some mysterious magic artifacts. Though they may not know the value of these items nor know how to use them, they take the opportunity of the Lan City Auction to sell them.

Thus, a majority of foreign cultivators flock to these small vendors. It's not just one or two, but the whole of Lan City's streets are filled with small vendors, even though Lan City isn't a large city.

The streets were teeming with cultivators eager to treasure hunt.

Walking the streets, Ding Fan could see that the surrounding area was filled with cultivators, many of whom would have great luck, buying rare treasures for very few spirit stones. Also, many vendor cultivators could sell their wares at very good prices here.

After all, for those cultivators, entering the auction to buy and sell wasn't an option, since the auctioned items were generally known to everyone and quite precious. Even if they sold their items at a good price, it couldn't compare to those astronomical treasures in the auction.

As Ding Fan and his group walked along Lan City's streets, Chai Er and others couldn't help but feel overwhelmed and deeply captivated by the bustling streets.

Looking at the crowded streets, Ding Fan couldn't help but be moved. The Lan City Auction attracted even more people than Dancheng's Great Alchemy Competition, as cultivators here could gain not only medicine pills but a variety of items, including some seemingly strange yet remarkably powerful treasures.

Of course, obtaining such treasures required a lot of luck. To acquire powerful treasures without relying on luck, one would have to participate in the auction and pay a high price.

As Ding Fan and others continued walking, Long Ren explained some of Lan City's customs to Ding Fan, allowing him to learn much about Lan City. Ding Fan even learned about some of the more authoritative, famous century-old shops. However, Ding Fan didn't seem particularly interested in those.

"It's really bustling here!"

"Indeed..."

Chai Er and Wu Qianwen couldn't help but exclaim, clearly filled with curiosity for the place and feeling very thrilled by the lively atmosphere.

"Chai Er, Wen Er, the Lan City Auction isn't for a few days. After a few days, Lan City's crowd will reach a peak. It'll be very challenging to walk on the streets then, shoulder to shoulder, with overwhelming crowds!"

At this moment, Tian Qi, sporting a broad smile, introduced to Chai Er and the others, suggesting it wasn't his first visit to Lan City either.

It was getting late. After strolling the streets for some time, Ding Fan and his group arrived at an inn.

Ding Fan took a simple glance at the inn. It was Long Ren who brought everyone here. Long Ren had been to this inn before, and the environment and facilities were quite nice, so he brought Ding Fan and the others along. Naturally, Ding Fan was not too particular about inns, and since Long Ren had had a good experience before, Ding Fan and the others decided to stay here.

Ding Fan noticed that the outside of the inn looked quite unremarkable, with only a very small sign. It was even difficult to notice the existence of an inn while walking on the street. But when Ding Fan and the others entered the inn, they couldn't help but be quite astonished.

Clearly, the environment inside the inn was very spacious and luxurious. Just the front lobby alone was nearly a hundred square meters, and all the facilities and furniture were extremely luxurious and grand, presenting quite a contrast to the sign outside.

Ding Fan and the others were quite satisfied with this inn, clearly, such an inn was not something just any outsider could find. Obviously, without Long Ren's guidance, Ding Fan and the others would definitely not have found such a unique, luxurious, and low-key inn.

"Big Brother, you all sit over there and wait a moment, I'll handle the check-in procedures."

At this time, Long Ren noticed that his big brother Ding Fan seemed quite satisfied with the place. With a generous demeanor, he said to Ding Fan while heading towards the inn's front desk.

"Okay."

Ding Fan agreed with a simple reply, clearly understanding the intention of the other to make arrangements. Ding Fan did not want to contend with him and immediately led Chai Er and the others to the lounge area to sit down. At this time, the lounge area was not just occupied by Ding Fan and his group; there were quite a few cultivators sitting together chatting and sipping tea.

Ding Fan couldn't help but look at some of the cultivators over there. They seemed like they had been in Lan City for a while, and their topics of conversation were inevitably about Lan City's auction. Ding Fan couldn't help but overhear some of it.

...

"It seems Lan City really intends to showcase its best talents this time. I've heard they have invited quite a number of powerful figures!"

"Then this Lan City auction must feature some incredibly rare treasures! Otherwise, they wouldn't have invited so many big shots!"

"I think so too! After all, they've even invited lords from several cities, as well as many sect leaders. It truly is a gathering of masters…"

"Indeed! But have you heard? Even the Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves has been invited by Lan City!"

"What! The Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves?"

"That is an extremely formidable figure! The Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves is a mysterious figure, one that even sect leaders from many Great Gate Sects find it challenging to meet!"

"Really! Can't be! Aren't Great Gate Sects distinguished entities? And yet, the Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves remains elusive?"

"Absolutely! Even if those Great Gate Sects are powerful, are they as powerful as the Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves? You know, any one of those Thirty-Six Caves could match those Great Gate Sects, maybe even surpass them!"

"Indeed! They are the leaders of thirty-six sects in total, a task no ordinary person can manage!"

"I didn't expect Lan City to invite even such distinguished figures! It seems the treasures appearing at this auction will not be ordinary…"

"Yes! It's a pity that we don't have the resources to check it out ourselves. This auction is sure to be impressive!"

"Indeed, just getting a glimpse of the Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves would be considered fortunate! This Lake Master is extremely mysterious. I've heard that many Great Gate Sect leaders attend the auction just to catch a glimpse of the Lake Master, hoping to build a connection, given that their strength is unmatched by ordinary sects…"

"..."

Upon hearing the discussions among those cultivators, Ding Fan couldn't help but grow curious. He hadn't expected the auction this time to invite so many important figures. Even the mysterious Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves intrigued Ding Fan greatly. Unconsciously, Ding Fan's gaze drifted towards Long Ren by the inn's front desk, his eyes growing deeper in thought.

At this moment, Long Ren seemed to sense Ding Fan's gaze. The moment Ding Fan looked at him, Long Ren felt a bit uneasy and walked over to Elder Xi, saying something to him…

Elder Xi, hearing Long Ren's words, couldn't help but smile calmly and continued handling the check-in procedures…