Given the instruction to only output translated English content and adhere strictly to the rules, here is the translation:
Since it was stated as "if," Yang Hong, contrary to expectations, encountered another unexpected situation.
"Chaoyang Immortal City? Chaoyang Sect has quite the audacity, don't they fear getting their tongues twisted."
Yang Hong scoffed, looking at the golden paper crafted from third-grade refined gold, inscribed with text written in the blood of a fourth-tier demonic beast.
Ran Boren explained beside Yang Hong.
"Sect Master, this is common parlance in the cultivation world. To distinguish cities established by cultivators from mortal cities, cities without mortal inhabitants are called Immortal Cities."
"Nonsense~ Do you think I don't know that? But have you seen many sects dare to write the words 'Immortal City' in their official documents? Even in numerous legendary biographies, they'd simply write 'XX City,' never 'XX Immortal City.' The word 'Immortal' inherently carries a certain gravitas and karmic weight. It signifies reverence and avoidance of the Heavenly Dao."
"So that's how it is. No wonder I rarely saw the word 'Immortal' in biographies before, it's because there's such a nuance."
Upon hearing Yang Hong's words, Ran Boren nodded in realization, exclaiming that he had learned something new.
Yang Hong glanced at the invitation again and asked doubtfully, "Why would Chaoyang Sect invite me to their auction this time?"
"Perhaps~ it's because they know we have spirit stones."
As Ran Boren spoke, the corner of his mouth curved upwards. He knew that the sect had earned nearly a billion spirit stones at the last sect celebration at Qingfeng Villa, and had accumulated quite a bit more over the past two years. He was confident that Qingfeng Villa could easily produce a billion spirit stones.
"Just because I have spirit stones, I have to spend them? I'm not going."
Yang Hong gave Ran Boren a sidelong glance and tossed the invitation back to him. Currently, Qingfeng Villa had no spirit stones in Yang Hong's hands, except for the twenty million spirit stones kept in the internal affairs department. The rapid cultivation of the plains had come at a cost.
"Sect Master, the information from Chaoyang Sect states that they will be presenting a ninth-tier magical artifact as the finale treasure, along with three eighth-tier magical artifacts, and even more seventh-tier magical artifacts. These are treasures rarely seen in ten thousand years!"
"Hmm~ A ninth-tier magical artifact? Has Chaoyang Sect gone mad?"
Hearing about a ninth-tier magical artifact, Yang Hong was indeed surprised. Eighth and ninth-tier magical artifacts were incredibly rare treasures, even rarer than eighth and ninth-tier spirit pills. Despite killing over a thousand ninth-tier cultivators himself, he had only managed to confiscate two ninth-tier magical artifacts, namely the [Soul Suppressing Bell] and the [Bright Light Mirror]. He hadn't even accumulated a double handful of eighth-tier magical artifacts to this day. Therefore, Chaoyang Sect offering a ninth-tier magical artifact for sale was akin to selling off the family fortune.
"Sect Master, I heard that they are co-hosting this auction with several ninth-rank sects from Nanheng Prefecture, which is why there are so many treasures; even a few eighth-grade spiritual herbs will appear."
"Eighth-grade spiritual herbs, dead or alive?"
Hearing about eighth-grade spiritual plants, Yang Hong became even more interested.
"That's unclear. Even if dead, there should be seeds, right?"
Ran Boren knew that Yang Hong was primarily concerned with the seeds of spiritual plants. Yang Hong's spiritual plant cultivation technique was the most formidable he had ever seen or heard of, bar none.
"Prepare everything. Bring all the Iron Thorn Grass seeds, Iron Thorn Spirit Wine, and any surplus spirit pills, magical artifacts, and spirit talismans from the sect. We depart now."
"Ah~ Take it all?"
Hearing Yang Hong's command, Ran Boren was startled. It had only been a little over three years since the last sect celebration, yet the Iron Thorn Grass seeds had accumulated over a billion jin, and the Iron Thorn Spirit Wine alone reached tens of billions of jin. To take it all would mean turning a popular spiritual plant like Iron Thorn Grass into common cabbage, essentially ruining many people's livelihoods.
"All of it!"
Yang Hong affirmed again. As long as he could exchange it for spirit stones himself, he didn't care if other cultivators ate or not.
Seeing Yang Hong's resolve, Ran Boren reluctantly went to make preparations. Meanwhile, Yang Hong went to invite Zhu Yuyan and the other two, hoping they would accompany him shopping. Unfortunately, all three of them refused. Seeing Yang Hong's rapid cultivation progress, they felt immense pressure and had been cultivating on Qingfeng Mountain for the past few years, neglecting even sect affairs.
"Husband, please go by yourself. Although you can transmit your magical power and cultivation to us, we also need to properly refine it. Otherwise, that magical power will be like explosive gunpowder, incredibly dangerous," Zhu Yuyan refused again.
"Alright, you all continue your cultivation. I'll be back soon, it shouldn't take long."
Seeing the three of them diligently cultivating, Yang Hong didn't insist further. The cultivation technique "Immovable Joyful Buddha" could indeed rapidly increase cultivation through dual cultivation, but it also had significant drawbacks. The biggest issue was that the cultivation gained through dual cultivation, while seemingly solid, couldn't be fully utilized without patient refinement. Furthermore, frequent use could lead to unstable foundations. Therefore, for the past three years, Zhu Yuyan and the other two, having reached the ninth layer of the Spirit Severing realm, had been diligently refining their internal magical power, striving to break through to the seventh-tier Body Integration realm as soon as possible.
...
First, they took a flying ship to the peak of Zikun Mountain, then used a teleportation array to directly travel to Chaoyang Immortal City, tens of millions of miles away. The other end of the teleportation array was not within Chaoyang Immortal City itself, but about a hundred miles outside the city.
In the easternmost corner of Yuruo Plain, on a vast expanse of land, stood a colossal city, one hundred and eighty miles in both length and width, dominating the plain. Its cyan city walls, a staggering 360 zhang high, equivalent to 1080 meters, rivaled that of ordinary mountain peaks. And this Chaoyang Immortal City was truly a giant metropolis akin to a mountain range.
"Sect Master, the sword and blade marks on these city walls seem to carry some kind of Dao rhythm, and it feels terrifying."
As they approached the city walls, Qiu Kun, who was visiting for the first time, trembled slightly. His sword intent emanated outwards to protect him, while Ran Boren, whose cultivation was higher but who hadn't comprehended any intent, merely felt oppressed and didn't react as strongly.
"Those are the traces left by extremely powerful experts whose attacks carried intent. The residual intent has endured for hundreds or thousands of years. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it Dao rhythm, but this kind of rhythm cannot be comprehended; it's deadly."
Yang Hong had scanned with his divine sense the moment he approached, gaining a precise understanding. The fragmented Dao rhythms were chaotic and complex, possessing powerful offensive capabilities. Yang Hong was now extremely curious about what kind of attacks Chaoyang Immortal City had endured to leave such terrifying marks, and in such numbers.
Upon entering the city gates, Yang Hong and the other two presented their invitations. After verification by four Nascent Soul cultivators, they were issued three bronze tokens, serving as temporary passes within Chaoyang Immortal City. Another Nascent Soul cultivator escorted the three to a temporary residence pre-arranged by Chaoyang Sect.
Along the way, they passed by countless high-rise buildings constructed from various materials, as well as strangely shaped structures floating in the air. Advertisements manifested through spells obscured the sky. Cultivators flew on swords between the tall buildings, while on the ground, various animal-drawn carriages galloped past, creating a scene of bustling activity. From the shops, the clamor of hawking, bargaining, and even arguments and curses from men, women, and children filled the air, creating a vibrant commercial city. This was the most prosperous city Yang Hong had encountered in his two hundred years on the Taiyuan Continent. Without a doubt.