Clearly, after reaching the Yuan婴 stage, few cultivators remain deeply interested in crafting puppets or rare, esoteric artifacts—only a handful, just a few, competed with Han Li in the initial round, which gave him great satisfaction. Subsequently, during the auction of the white-light figures' offerings, Han Li secured two more items, paying nineteen thousand and thirty-one thousand spiritual stones respectively. The latter material, a particularly renowned artifact ingredient, required Han Li to vigorously bid against numerous other cultivators, finally securing it only after pressing his price. Together, these acquisitions consumed nearly three-quarters of the spiritual stones in Han Li’s inventory. Fortunately, no further requests for puppet materials emerged afterward, allowing Han Li to breathe a deep, relieved sigh. When the last item was also auctioned off and the several storage bags on the jade table were completely empty, the figure in the white light seemed quite satisfied with the proceedings ahead. Pausing slightly, they smiled lightly and said: "All our items have now been successfully auctioned. Should any of you wish to exchange treasures, please come forward now and present your offerings one by one. Let me make it clear upfront: since these exchanges are voluntary, if any item appears to be counterfeit or if you simply fail to notice its true value, we bear no responsibility—our role is merely to provide the venue, and all outcomes rest solely with you. As per our customary practice, regardless of what items you wish to exchange, you may bring several at once. Should the exchange succeed, we will deduct one ten-thousand spirit stones per person as a handling fee. From this point on, everything rests with you—provided you adhere to the established rules, I shall simply remain a passive observer." "He was indeed quite prompt. After a few words, he flickered in mid-air and suddenly appeared at the edge of the open space, then settled into a meditative posture, as if immediately entering deep concentration. However, such incidents are not very common, and the more rare the materials exchanged, the less likely they are to be duplicated among others. Thus, most cultivators could remain calm and did not compete fiercely with the earlier few. Han Li’s remaining materials were relatively obscure, so he had little to worry about. The earlier few who stepped forward to make exchanges probably did so because the items they sought were versatile and applicable to a wide range of elixirs. Indeed, when the cultivators in the red glow presented several rare materials, they specifically requested to exchange for several versatile refining materials used across various elixirs. Soon afterward, several individuals came forward and successfully exchanged for most of those materials, leaving the cultivators in the red glow satisfied and content as they departed. Subsequent arrivals also made smooth exchanges, each gaining something of value. However, when a yellow-clad figure held a bright blue metal piece and requested to exchange for a water-type material that even Han Li had never heard of, asking three times without anyone coming forward to trade, he finally sighed and walked down disappointed. From then on, more and more cultivators began returning empty-handed. As thirty or forty people took turns to trade, it became increasingly common for those who went up to find nothing in return, while only a few succeeded in securing something. Of course, this did not mean that the materials these cultivators sought were genuinely absent among the others present; rather, it was likely that cultivators who had exchangeable items found the counterparts' offerings either unworthy of trade or simply not what they themselves desired, thus remaining unmoved and failing to step forward. Therefore, the more precious the item brought forth, the less likely it was to succeed in a successful exchange. Indeed, there were also cultivators who admired the materials held by others but lacked the very items those others sought, and thus approached privately to negotiate the exchange using their own treasures. Yet only a few of them succeeded, most of which were coldly rejected. Among the successful exchanges, however, was one involving Han Li. Han Li's action was straightforward—he simply offered several rare thousand-year immortal herbs and some high-tier spirit dan to secure the materials he needed. These two items were of great value to any cultivator. While individual examples could occasionally be found in certain markets, securing sufficient quantities at once proved quite difficult. Thus, the cultivator hesitated only briefly and eventually agreed to Han Li's proposal. In addition, Han Li obtained two more types of puppet materials by trading his stored goods. Now, only two of the most rare materials remained, and with those, he would have a complete set of puppet materials. However, these two items were exceptionally precious, and it was unlikely that ordinary cultivators would willingly offer them for trade. "Han Xi, what are you planning to offer in exchange for the materials? If they're not particularly precious, I suspect others—even if they have the materials—wouldn't be eager to part with them," the Daxian Divine Sovereign suddenly transmitted in Han Li's consciousness. "Everything has been decided long before. The cultivators here are mostly from the Magic Path. Isn't there something I hold that the Magic Path considers truly invaluable?" Han Li replied calmly. "Are you really referring to those materials? Are you truly willing to part with that?" the Daxian Divine Sovereign was somewhat surprised. "I couldn't possibly give it up without a reason, yet the materials for the puppets have now been gathered to this point. The last two items must absolutely be secured. Otherwise, all the prior efforts would have been in vain. If the puppets truly prove as remarkable as the elders described, then this effort is well worth it," Han Li transmitted softly, then glanced around, sensing that things were finally coming together. Finally, when one cultivator returned disheartened with no results, Han Li rose from his seat, stepped forward steadily, and approached the jade table from behind. The cultivators present instinctively turned their gaze toward Han Li, eager to see what rare items he might present. Han Li flipped his hands, producing two small jade boxes each, but did not rush to open them. Instead, he glanced around the hall with a slightly huskier, sandier voice and said, "For the magical realm's supreme treasures, I offer two specimens of Magi-Drain Drills in exchange for Five-Element Jade and Luminous Crystal—two materials you may have. If any of you possess these, you may take them." As soon as he finished speaking, his hands began to tremble slightly, and the lids of both boxes fell off simultaneously, revealing two objects that slowly floated upward from within—each about a few inches in size, dark and translucent, radiating a gentle black aura. These were precisely the two Magi-Drain Drills Han Li had obtained from the ten-thousand-foot-deep magical abyss. "Magi-Drain Drills! The materials for crafting the Dragon-Slayer Blade—did I hear that correctly?" "It's impossible! How could such things truly exist in the world?" "Really? Is this genuine?" ...As Han Li finished his words, the The figure among the white mist who had been meditating quietly at the edge of the open space also opened his eyes in surprise, gazing steadily at the two magic marrow drills before Han Li, his gaze never wavering. "To be honest," Han Li said with calm composure, "if my cultivation were not rooted in the magical path, I would never have brought these out for exchange. As for their authenticity—should anyone present something I need, I will personally have them examine it thoroughly." "I can have it retrieved immediately so that I may first examine the spirit-drill myself," said the white-glowing cultivator, the host of the fair, after merely glancing at the spirit-drill for a while—something entirely unexpected. "Since you've initiated this, it surely cannot be mere formality. Master, please go ahead and assess it first." A brief surprise flashed across Han Li's face, but he immediately responded without hesitation. The figure in the white mist seemed genuinely well-informed about the magic crystal core. After skillfully reaching out and grasping one of the crystals, he opened his mouth twice in succession, spitting a stream of white infant-fire directly onto it. Yet upon contact with the black vapor on the crystal's surface, the white flames instantly parted like they encountered a natural enemy, unable to reach or touch the magic crystal core at all. Curiously coincidental, as soon as this speaker uttered these words, a shimmer of light appeared three or four zhang away from him, and there, a cloaked monk with a gray robe materialized mysteriously. He bowed to the figure standing in the white mist, raised a jade box, and then vanished once more.