Chapter 479: Heavenly Craftsmanship Box

Zhang Xuan quickly learned what had happened, thanks to Sun Qiang’s explanation.

“Not bad, very well done. The only pity is that the wager in spirit stones was too small, only six thousand. It should have been at least ten thousand!” Zhang Xuan praised, looking at Butler Sun with admiration, having not expected such a stunning performance from him, earning him so many spirit stones just by gambling.

“Ten thousand!” Elder Chen’s mouth twitched again.

Six thousand was already making him so anxious he felt like committing suicide. If it were truly ten thousand, he would probably have already fled.

“A bet is a bet, and I won’t go back on my word, but…” Taking a step forward, Elder Chen gritted his teeth, “My entire fortune only amounts to three thousand spirit stones. As for the rest… could you allow me one year?”

“One year? In a year, even if you gave me twenty thousand, it would be useless!” Zhang Xuan shook his head.

He had only traveled for two or three months since leaving Tianxuan Kingdom. In a year… it was imaginable that three thousand spirit stones would be insignificant to him, something he could take or leave.

“I…” Elder Chen’s face flushed, his expression becoming uncertain.

As a Mortal Transcendence 3-dan expert and a four-star appraiser, a person of status and reputation, admitting a loss in front of so many people and then refusing to pay would lead to public condemnation and ruin, even without the other party’s intervention. If news of his untrustworthiness spread, his appraisal career could be ruined.

After a moment of hesitation, he gritted his teeth, “As a four-star appraiser, although I don’t have much liquid capital, I have collected some treasures… How about this: you can choose any one of my treasures as compensation for these three thousand spirit stones!”

As an appraiser, similar to an antiques collector, one might not have much liquid capital, but certainly possesses many valuable items. These items were treasures he had collected his entire life, and he would never have parted with them unless absolutely forced.

“Treasures? Let me see. If they’re suitable, never mind compensating for three thousand, they could even compensate for your previous six thousand!” Knowing that these people had been collecting treasures their entire lives and surely had some personal stash, Zhang Xuan nodded.

“Alright!”

Knowing there was no escape, Elder Chen flicked his wrist. With a clatter, in the blink of an eye, a pile of treasures appeared before everyone. There were antiques, calligraphy and paintings, weapons, armor, and even some peculiar clay figurines. There was a vast assortment of treasures. The sheer number of items Elder Chen had collected was comparable to a small counter on the second floor, with some even more valuable.

“Here they are, pick whatever you like…” Elder Chen waved his hand, feigning generosity. These were all his cherished possessions, each one he was reluctant to part with. Unfortunately, he had lost the bet, so he had no choice but to hand them over. Otherwise, his reputation would be ruined beyond repair.

“Let me see!” Activating his Eye of Insight, Zhang Xuan looked at the pile of items on the ground. A moment later, he shook his head. Although these items were rare and some were valuable, they were all expendable to him, nothing truly impressive. In other words, whether he took them or not didn’t matter; he’d rather have spirit stones, which would be more useful.

His face full of helplessness, Zhang Xuan looked over, “You’ve collected your entire life… for just these broken bits and pieces?”

“I…” Knowing the other party was a Grand Appraiser Master, whose discerning eye surpassed even the Pavilion Master’s, and that this remark clearly meant he hadn’t found anything to his liking, Elder Chen’s face flushed. The treasures he cherished so much, unwilling to part with even one, were mere “broken bits and pieces” in the other party’s eyes, making him instantly feel utterly mortified.

“Elder Chen, bring out that item you got last time! What if… Master Zhang likes it? It would be worth six thousand spirit stones, and you’d still come out ahead!” Just as he was at a loss for what to do, Elder Lu’s voice transmission sounded in his ear.

“That one?” Suddenly remembering something, Elder Chen hesitated, then nodded and looked at Zhang Xuan, “Master Zhang, please wait a moment. I have an item that I haven’t been able to identify since I acquired it. I’ll go fetch it now. If even this item doesn’t meet your approval, then I truly have no other way!”

“Alright!” Hearing that he had another treasure, Zhang Xuan nodded. He wasn’t in a hurry anyway, so waiting a bit wouldn’t hurt.

Elder Chen turned and left. Half an hour later, he returned, and with a flick of his wrist, a dark object appeared before them. It was fist-sized, spherical, and looked dull and dark, without any distinct features. At first glance, it resembled a shot put ball.

“This is a treasure too?” Sun Qiang stepped forward and glanced at it, “You want to use this thing to replace six thousand spirit stones, Elder Chen? That’s a bit too unkind!”

“I…” Elder Chen’s face flushed.

“That’s unfair to Elder Chen!” Pavilion Master Sai interjected, “This item was dug up ten years ago from an ancient ruin. It doesn’t look like much, but it’s impervious to water and fire, cannot be cut by blades, and won’t melt no matter how intense the flames. We’ve studied it many times over the years, but we still don’t know what it is.”

“If you don’t know what it is, then it’s probably not a treasure, is it?” Sun Qiang said.

“You can’t say that. It might be an unknown ore. If it could be refined into a weapon, its grade would likely be quite high,” Pavilion Master Sai replied.

“Refine it? Who knows when that would happen…” Sun Qiang scoffed.

“Alright, let me see!” Interrupting Butler Sun, Zhang Xuan stepped forward.

He took the iron ball and examined it with his Eye of Insight, but found he couldn’t see through it! He had practically walked through the entire Appraisal Hall, and anything he couldn’t see through was definitely a treasure.

Taking the sphere, he silently called out “Deficiencies” in his mind. A book appeared in the Library of Heaven’s Path, and he casually flipped it open.

“Heavenly Craft Mechanism Box, refined by the Heavenly Craft Institute. Unparalleled in its ingenuity, it cannot be opened without a specific method and can store important secret treasures. Deficiencies…” A dense list of its deficiencies was recorded thereafter.

“Only seventeen points?” Although the Library of Heaven’s Path wouldn’t mark the item’s value, and Zhang Xuan had never heard of the Heavenly Craft Institute, he was still startled by the number of deficiencies. The Library of Heaven’s Path could identify a vast number of deficiencies, covering everything from materials to techniques. For example, the bronze hammer, the first treasure from the Flowing Goblet Purification Ritual, also appeared flawless to his Eye of Insight, yet it had seventy-two deficiencies.

Of course, fewer deficiencies didn’t necessarily mean a more valuable treasure; it also depended on the complexity of the item. The Grand Dao simplifies everything; the more complex an item, the more flaws it tends to have. This item was called the Heavenly Craft Mechanism Box, and judging by some of the deficiency descriptions, its structure was intricate and its complexity far surpassed that of a single-purpose weapon like the bronze hammer. If it was more complex than the bronze hammer yet had far fewer deficiencies, didn’t that indicate its value was significantly higher than the bronze hammer’s?

A treasure! Definitely a treasure.

“Master Zhang, have you perhaps identified what this item is?” Elder Chen asked, seeing him study it for a long time. Pavilion Master Sai and Elder Lu also couldn’t help but look over. They had studied this item for years, trying every method, but without any results. This person’s appraisal ability was so formidable that he could even control the Flowing Goblet Purification Ritual; perhaps he truly could discern something.

“I haven’t figured out exactly what it is, either. It might require some time for research.” Knowing the principle of not flaunting wealth, Zhang Xuan didn’t tell the full truth. After a moment’s hesitation, he said, “How about this: although I can’t identify it, I know it’s not simple. So, let it replace the six thousand spirit stones, and our bet will be settled. What do you say?”

“Good!” Elder Chen breathed a sigh of relief, surprised that this unidentifiable item could indeed replace six thousand spirit stones. At the same time, he quietly glanced at the stout man not far away. This fellow had made a bet with him; would he have any objections to this decision? As a Master Teacher, Master Zhang valued his reputation and wouldn’t pursue the matter even if the item wasn’t truly worth it. But his subordinate was different. He was genuinely afraid the other party would continue to make a fuss and truly didn’t know what to do.

Full of worry, he glanced over, only to see the stout man meditating, seemingly having heard nothing, and apparently indifferent to Master Zhang’s decision. “It seems he respects this young master quite a lot!” Seeing no reaction from the other party, Elder Chen relaxed.

In truth, he didn’t know that Sun Qiang’s silence was partly due to his respect for Zhang Xuan, but more importantly, it was because he knew his young master was more astute than him and never made a losing deal. Since he was willing to accept this item in place of six thousand spirit stones, it surely meant its value far exceeded that amount. Given that, why would he say anything more?

“I’ve already sent people to collect the books you requested. It will probably take about three days to gather them all!” Seeing Zhang Xuan put the sphere into his storage ring, Pavilion Master Sai smiled, “It looks like the auction is about to start. Why don’t we head over?”

After the Flowing Goblet Purification Ritual and waiting for Elder Chen to retrieve the sphere… the one hour they had mentioned earlier was almost up. Calculating the time, the auction was indeed about to begin. Heading there now should be just right.

“Alright!” Zhang Xuan nodded. He had come specifically to purchase the Unsouled Golden Man. With the auction starting soon, he certainly couldn’t let the item fall into someone else’s hands.

Pavilion Master Sai led the way, with everyone following closely behind. The auction house was on the second floor, not far from First Grade Pavilion. Even before they arrived, they could see a surging crowd. It seemed the items to be auctioned were very appealing, attracting many influential and powerful individuals. Opening his Eye of Insight, he scanned the crowd and immediately spotted dozens of Mortal Transcendence experts, many of whom had reached the second or third stage. As expected of the Myriad Kingdoms Alliance; truly, experts were as numerous as clouds.

“This auction house isn’t run by your Appraisal Hall?” Following behind Pavilion Master Sai, they smoothly entered the venue and soon arrived at a spacious private room. Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but ask. This was the Appraisal Hall, so the auction house should logically be run by them. Why would an invitation or similar item be required? Could it be that, like the marketplace downstairs, the Appraisal Hall wasn’t directly involved?

“Indeed, it’s not run by us. Like First Grade Pavilion, it has a cooperative relationship with the Appraisal Hall. We are responsible for appraisal, and they find goods and gather customers for auctions… If we managed everything, we wouldn’t have the energy!” Pavilion Master Sai explained. Every profession has its specialty. Appraisers excel at appraising treasures and determining their value, but they are not skilled in business. If they truly ran an auction house, it might very well go bankrupt sooner or later.