Chapter 270: Mingyu

Everything suddenly took a turn for the better.

Once the student union’s self-proclaimed experts had appraised it, the artifact sphere, which was said to seal the Xuan Yang Cauldron, instantly went from being a coveted item to an object of ridicule.

The sallow-faced young man’s expression grew even more strained; he wanted to cut his losses.

The price plummeted from 800,000 Merit Points.

600,000.

300,000.

100,000.

Finally, it dropped to 50,000 Merit Points, but still, no one was interested.

“Alright, it’s my chance to step in.”

Ming Yihua’s eyes lit up at the sight. He was about to step forward and purchase the artifact sphere, which the student union had deemed a scam.

“Wait a moment, let’s first go see what Senior Mi found.” Chen Mobai, however, held him back. Mi Yudao paused for a moment, but quickly understood and nodded with a smile.

The three of them left the plaza. Riding the Crimson Cloud Silk, they descended 800 meters and flew into a tunnel entrance approximately two meters in diameter. They continued through the tunnel for another five or six hundred meters; in some of the narrowest parts, only one person could fly through sideways. Finally, they reached the location of the Fire Spirit Tree.

A scorching aura washed over them. Chen Mobai gazed at the dark red spirit tree, rooted in fiery red broken rocks, and activated his Empyrean Gaze.

The artifact sphere, buried between the roots and rocks, instantly lost its obscure aura, clearly revealing itself to his eyes.

Living-sealed artifact spheres were virtually impossible to conceal from his Empyrean Gaze.

However, upon closer inspection, he saw another artifact sphere sealed within the Fire Spirit Tree, and to his surprise, he couldn’t see through its seal.

“It’s a formation disc,” Chen Mobai said.

Wearing his black-rimmed glasses, Chen Mobai managed to keep his subtle emotional fluctuations hidden from the two people beside him.

After appraising the artifact sphere Mi Yudao had found, he used drawing software on his phone to sketch out the artifact he saw in his black-and-white vision after piercing the seal, using simple lines.

“Thanks, I’ll find a few more, and then I’ll ask you to check them all at once by the end of next year.”

Mi Yudao looked at the artifact diagram Chen Mobai had sent and was deeply impressed by his excellent drawing skills.

“Old Chen is the top student in our Talisman Department this year; his drawing ability is almost on par with mine.”

When Ming Yihua said this, he also complimented himself in passing.

However, what he said was true; artifact refiners also need excellent design drawing skills.

Before mechanical drafting, they also had to learn hand-drawing skills.

While Ming Yihua’s realistic style differed from Chen Mobai’s elegant and minimalist approach, both were masterpieces and widely imitated by classmates and even junior students.

After examining this artifact sphere, the three returned to the plaza.

By this time, only thirty or forty people remained.

The artifact sphere containing the Xuan Yang Cauldron still hadn’t been sold.

Chen Mobai and the other two pretended to be surprised, walked up, and inquired about the price.

“20,000 Merit Points, do you want it?”

The sallow-faced young man, who had previously refused to budge from 800,000, no longer put on airs. He called out a price weakly and casually.

He thought that as long as it sold, he would focus on secluded cultivation afterward and never waste time searching for artifact spheres again.

“Alright then, scan to pay or transfer?”

Ming Yihua didn’t mock him further; he took out his phone and began to make the payment.

The sallow-faced young man was momentarily stunned, knowing he hadn't had much hope.

After all, one artifact shard cost 100 academic credits to exchange, so everyone was extremely cautious when opening a sphere.

An artifact sphere like his, which the student union had already declared ordinary, would generally not be bought by anyone.

He had already decided that if it didn't sell by tomorrow morning, he would just toss the artifact sphere into a random tunnel.

Whatever he could sell it for now would be pure profit.

At that moment, without any hesitation, he added Ming Yihua as a friend and received the transfer.

“Good luck,” the sallow-faced young man said. After handing the artifact sphere on the stall to Ming Yihua, he turned and left.

But just as he left the plaza and was about to cross the dark currents, a sense of unwillingness welled up inside him.

However, the item had been sold, so what could he do about his unwillingness?

With a sigh, he vanished into the end of the tunnel.

Meanwhile, Ming Yihua gazed at the white jade sphere, whose outer shell faintly revealed the shape of a cauldron, and couldn't put it down.

“I wonder when I’ll get my artifact shard,” he murmured.

If he had an artifact shard now, Ming Yihua would have opened the artifact sphere on the spot.

“Oh, so you trust me that much?” Chen Mobai heard his murmur and asked with a smile.

After all, it was an item worth 100 academic credits. Although Chen Mobai had cultivated the Empyrean Gaze, his cultivation time was still short. Logically speaking, his mastery in this area should certainly not surpass that of Ming Yu, the vice president of the student union.

“Of course,” Ming Yihua affirmed. “And I’m not bragging, but in the same year, you and I are definitely better than Ming Yu.”

Ming Yihua’s words made Chen Mobai chuckle softly. Then, he took out an artifact shard and handed it to Ming Yihua.

“Old Chen, what’s the meaning of this?”

“You can use it first. Just return your artifact shard to me later.”

Chen Mobai’s words made Ming Yihua pause, and he couldn’t help but ask, “What if there’s something you fancy? Wouldn’t that delay your own plans?”

“It’s no bother; I haven’t found anything I want either.”

“Alright then, I won’t stand on ceremony. At the very latest, once school starts next year, I’ll ask Teacher Yan to take me deep into the Myriad Treasures Cave and return the artifact shard to you.”

Ming Yihua’s Foundation Establishment timing was unfortunate, as it coincided with the end of the semester. Otherwise, given his standing in the Artifact Refining Department, and with True Lord Shaoyang in secluded cultivation, True Lord Yan, the department head, would certainly have been willing to make the effort.

With that said, Ming Yihua accepted Chen Mobai’s artifact shard.

Then, he opened the artifact sphere in his hands on the spot.

A crimson light, like a speeding dragon, flashed forth, instantly stripping the outer shell from the white jade sphere in Ming Yihua's hand, revealing its true form.

Indeed, it was a dark greenish-black, three-legged, two-eared circular cauldron.

Its precious light was contained, yet the moment their eyes met it, they felt a sense of profound weight and intense heat.

“It really is the Xuan Yang Cauldron,” Mi Yudao, standing nearby, marveled at the circular cauldron.

The scene of the artifact sphere being opened also drew the attention of the remaining thirty or forty people.

The news that they had obtained a Tier 2 high-grade magical artifact quickly spread to everyone.

In the student union’s second-floor conference room, Yuan Jinjun was expressing his gratitude to Ming Yu.

“If it weren't for you, those three cunning junior students would have scammed me out of 800,000 Merit Points.”

“Hmph, they’re trying to pull a fast one on the student union now. These junior students nowadays lack respect for their seniors.”

“Alright, alright,” said Hua Zijing, her delicate brows slightly furrowed and a hint of disdain on her exquisite face. “If you hadn't been greedy, such a scheme wouldn't have worked on you.”

Yuan Jinjun listened, looking embarrassed and not daring to retort.

Ming Yu, on the other hand, frowned, about to retort a few words.

A crimson light flared outside the window.

“Someone else opened one,” Lu Tiansuan said.

The sight of the divine fire light had been seen over twenty times today. Lu Tiansuan, standing by, immediately took the opportunity to change the subject, preventing the two vice presidents from arguing.

“Go find out what they opened.” Ming Yu instructed Yuan Jinjun, who immediately acknowledged the order and left.

A quarter of an hour later, he walked back in, his face a mix of green and red, looking at Ming Yu with a strange gaze.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Ming Yu asked.

Ming Yu saw that Yuan Jinjun, who had always been respectful towards him, now looked at him with hints of doubt, anger, and questioning—all sorts of emotions. He couldn't help but frown.

“It’s the artifact sphere you appraised. It’s been opened.” Yuan Jinjun spoke, but Ming Yu hadn't yet fully processed it.

Hua Zijing and Lu Tiansuan, on the other hand, looked startled. They exchanged glances, realizing something.

“The ones who opened it were precisely those two new Foundation Establishment cultivators, and the artifact inside… is the Xuan Yang Cauldron!”

“This is impossible!”

As soon as Yuan Jinjun finished speaking, Ming Yu stood up, exclaiming in shock and anger.

He even disregarded his usual composure, flying directly out the window, transforming into a yellow spiritual light, and landing in front of Chen Mobai and the other two.

Seeing Ming Yihua cradling the dark greenish-black circular cauldron in his hands, unable to put it down, Ming Yu looked utterly dumbfounded.

After witnessing it with his own eyes, no matter how much he denied it, the truth was laid bare for everyone.

Chen Mobai’s mastery of the Empyrean Gaze was truly superior to his own.

How could a fifth-year Foundation Establishment novice possibly achieve that!?

At this moment, Ming Yu became aware of the gazes around him.

The news of him appraising this 800,000-Merit-Point artifact sphere had spread throughout the plaza in half a day.

Earlier, he had confidently guaranteed that if his Clear Mirror Divine Eye couldn't confirm the cauldron's markings, then no one could be sure that the artifact inside was a Tier 2 high-grade Xuan Yang Cauldron.

It was precisely because people trusted his judgment that this artifact sphere, which had originally been highly sought after and whose price had soared to astronomical levels, had become undesirable by evening and was given to Ming Yihua by the sallow-faced young man for a nearly rock-bottom price of 20,000 Merit Points.

The suspicious gazes from all around made Ming Yu, who always held himself in high regard, flush crimson.

“Damn the student union! Were you deliberately colluding with these two guys just to trick me into selling the artifact sphere I painstakingly salvaged from the magma for a low price?”

A furious voice rang out. Everyone turned to see that it was the sallow-faced young man.

He had already left, but the news of Ming Yihua opening the Xuan Yang Cauldron had been relayed to him by people on the plaza who recognized him.

The feeling of a knife being twisted in his heart made him almost vomit blood. After rushing back, he saw Ming Yu standing with Chen Mobai and the other two, and he naturally assumed that the student union’s scoundrels had deliberately found two unfamiliar faces to trick him out of his treasure.

“Watch your words! Slandering the impartial student union? Do you want to be publicly criticized by the entire school?” Ming Yu was already annoyed. Being slandered by the sallow-faced young man now was unbearable, so he furiously roared, his face grim.

“You dog! Do you really think your student union is the Disciplinary Office?”

The sallow-faced young man's anger had been building up in waves. After Ming Yu’s appraisal at noon, the artifact sphere, which could have fetched an exorbitant price, ended up being sold at a great loss, and he even endured the mocking gazes of many academy students in the plaza.

At that time, he had believed that his artifact sphere was genuinely just a common item whose spirit liquid had begun to lose efficacy, and the sealed artifact inside was indeed mediocre, so he had tolerated it.

After all, asking 800,000 Merit Points for an ordinary Tier 2 artifact was indeed a bit excessive.

But now that the misunderstanding was cleared and it was indeed an excellent artifact—a versatile Tier 2 high-grade Xuan Yang Cauldron, with a market price of at least tens of millions of Merit Points—all his anger surged. The sallow-faced young man completely ignored Chen Mobai and the other two minor figures, clenched his fists, and charged at Ming Yu.

“How dare you!”

A burst of yellow light erupted. Ming Yu’s clothing was actually a Tier 2 magical robe, which immediately repelled the young man.

However, the fact that someone dared to lay hands on him, the vice president of the student union, made him, who always thought highly of himself, flush with anger.

He pulled out a golden-yellow wooden rod and couldn’t help but smash it down towards the sallow-faced young man who was charging at him again.

This golden-yellow wooden rod was also a Tier 2 magical artifact, his proud creation obtained using his Clear Mirror Divine Eye: the Nine Blazing Wood, a Tier 2 high-grade item.

The artifact's radiance burst forth, and the sallow-faced young man's protective spiritual light dispersed the instant it made contact.

Just as he was about to be struck on the head by the Nine Blazing Wood, a streak of green sword light erupted from a distance, accurately striking the side of the Nine Blazing Wood and deflecting the artifact.

With a thud!

The Nine Blazing Wood landed on the ground, creating a sizable crater.

Ming Yu turned his head, staring intently at Chen Mobai, who had unleashed the Divine Wood Sword. An idea to clear his name had already flashed through his mind.

“I see,” he said. “Your target all along was me, not Yuan Jinjun. You used this artifact sphere, whose outcome you already knew, to ensnare me, all to ruin my reputation, didn’t you? Hmph, anyone with such intentions must be that despicable person. But ultimately, I saw through it…” Just as Ming Yu was speaking, Chen Mobai had heard enough. He simply couldn’t stand what was happening. Moreover, he felt a bit apologetic towards the sallow-faced young man. While finding a bargain was his skill, being the one from whom a bargain was found must feel terrible. Seeing the latter on the verge of a mental breakdown, and as fellow academy students, he couldn't bear to see him suffer further physical harm.

“Are you enraged because I exposed you?” Ming Yu sneered. “I’ll suppress you all first, then invite the Disciplinary Office teachers to investigate the truth and restore my reputation and justice.”

As Ming Yu spoke, he smirked, looking at Chen Mobai and the others.

He had already used his Clear Mirror Divine Eye to check their cultivations; they were all merely at Foundation Establishment Layer One.

Even if it was one against three, he could easily defeat them.

Thinking this, he tightened his grip on the Nine Blazing Wood, instinctively ignoring the scene where the Tier 2 low-grade Divine Wood Sword had effortlessly deflected his own Tier 2 high-grade artifact, assuming it was because he hadn't been serious.

“Ceaseless babble.”

Chen Mobai's words were relatively polite. If it had been Ming Yihua, he probably would have just said, “What are you barking about?”

Five reddish-yellow halos appeared at the tip of the wooden rod, transforming into swirling ripples that swept through the fire spirit energy over the plaza. A bright yellow swirling vortex rapidly formed, creating a domain that made one's body feel heavy.

“Foundation Establishment Layer Five,” Chen Mobai said.

Since Ming Yu had first used his Clear Mirror Divine Eye to probe his cultivation, Chen Mobai unceremoniously used his Empyrean Gaze in return, seeing through the former’s realm at a glance.

“Hmph, it’s still not too late for you to surrender now.”

Ming Yu had no intention of concealing his cultivation, wantonly unleashing his 'powerful' aura.