At this moment, Zhang Jiuxiao was dressed in a light green robe, and the emblem pinned on his chest wasn't that of a master teacher but that of an appraiser. The seven stars on the emblem signified his identity.
Accompanying him was an elder who appeared to be in his sixties. He was also wearing the emblem of a 7-star appraiser, and his cultivation had already reached Saint 4-dan. Judging from his disposition, he carried an impressive disposition.
"This fellow … is an appraiser as well?"
Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
He had seen Zhang Jiuxiao's painting in the air before, so he knew that the latter was an accomplished painter. However, he didn't think that his appraiser would reach the level of Seven Star as well.
As expected of the number one genius of Qingyuan Empire, he wasn't as simple as he thought.
"Guild Leader Mu, it has been long since we last met!"
Upon seeing the old man, Wu Shi walked up to him with a smile.
"Wu Rufeng, if I didn't invite you, you wouldn't have come to see me. Have you already forgotten the kindness of an old friend?" The old man hammered Wu Rufeng and scolded with a smile.
"How can that be? I just returned not too long ago, and I have some matters to attend to …" Wu Shi replied.
"It seems like you are the guild leader of the Appraiser Hall …" Seeing how the two of them were conversing with one another, Zhang Xuan nodded in approval.
As a Seven Star appraiser and a person whom Wu Shi addressed as' guild leader ', it wasn't too difficult to guess the other party's identity.
Just as Zhang Xuan was about to take a closer look at the guild leader, he suddenly felt a gaze staring at him. Raising his head, he saw Zhang Jiuxiao looking at him with hostility in his eyes.
Even though the hostility wasn't too strong, with his Soul Depth of 25.1, he was still able to sense it easily.
"Hostility? I didn't offend him? "
Zhang Xuan was perplexed.
The two of them had only met once, and fearing that there might be a misunderstanding, he had even cheered for the other party to cheer him on. It was one thing if the other party didn't reciprocate his goodwill, but to harbor hostility …
"I am Zhang Jiuxiao. May I know how I should address you?"
Just as Zhang Jiuxiao was lamenting over how difficult it was to be a good person, the young man walked up and clasped his fist.
"Zhang Xuan!"
"Zhang Xuan? Are you the newly-appointed principal of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy? I've heard of your deeds. You're a genius! "
Hearing the name, Zhang Jiuxiao widened his eyes in realization. "It's no wonder why his Soul Depth is so extraordinary, allowing him to cross the Heart Tempering Bridge so easily. Without a strong Soul Depth, it's impossible for him to rule over an entire academy!"
All along, he had been wondering who the 6-star master teacher was. At this moment, he finally understood.
He had heard of Zhang Xuan's many achievements, and he was indeed a genius among geniuses.
However, no matter how talented Zhang Xuan was, he was only a 6-star master teacher. Compared to Zhang Xuan, he was still far from being a match for him.
"It's all because the teachers and students of the academy are fond of me, so I'm just about to resign," Zhang Xuan said with a wave of his hand.
The principal of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, Zhang Yinqiu, had already been intending to resign from his position, but the crowd had stopped him from doing so.
"Resign? At your age, you lack the experience to temper yourself. If you were to become the principal of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, the reputation of the academy would indeed be tarnished! "
Zhang Jiuxiao nodded.
"Ah …" Not expecting the other party to take his humble words seriously, Zhang Xuan shook his head helplessly. In that instant, he lost interest in chatting with the other party. Just as he was about to leave, the other party's voice sounded once more.
"For Wu Shi to bring you to this Appraisal Symposium, it seems like he values you highly. Just that, may I know if Zhang Shi has learned appraising before?"
"Appraising … I have learned a little of it." Zhang Xuan nodded.
Upon hearing that Zhang Xuan had learned appraising before, Zhang Jiuxiao was taken aback for a moment before asking, "May I know what your star rank is?"
"It's just 5-star," Zhang Xuan replied with a bitter smile.
Compared to the other occupations, appraisers had only read up to 5-star, so they couldn't be said to be too profound.
"5-star? Considering your age, that's not too bad … It shows that you have talent in this aspect. If you study hard in the future, you might even be able to surpass me! "
Nodding, Zhang Jiuxiao harrumphed. "Logically speaking, a 5-star appraiser shouldn't be qualified to attend the Appraisal Symposium. However, it seems like Wu Shi has brought you here to broaden your horizons."
"You can say that," Zhang Xuan replied casually.
"Un."
Zhang Jiuxiao nodded. "The Appraisal Symposium has invited quite a few experts, and they are all leaders of their respective occupations. There's a good chance that they will bring out quite a few treasures. It's fate that we got to know each other. Besides, since we share the same surname, why don't you follow behind me later on? If there's anything that you don't recognize or understand, feel free to ask me. We're both master teachers, so it's only right for me to offer you some pointers and broaden your knowledge of appraising. Perhaps, you might even be able to make use of this opportunity to push for a 6-star appraiser breakthrough. "
"I'll be troubling you then!"
Zhang Xuan nodded.
"There's no need to stand on ceremony. Even though I'm a master teacher, I've put in a lot of effort into appraising as well. I'm quite a reputable figure in the Qingyuan Empire Appraiser Guild, "Zhang Jiuxiao said with an indiscernible hint of arrogance in his voice.
Previously, he had been dealt a heavy blow by the young man before him during the Heart Tempering Bridge. Now that he had made a comeback, he felt indescribably refreshed.
"Un."
Zhang Xuan nodded. Just as he was about to continue speaking, Wu Shi and Guild Leader Mu suddenly turned to look at him. The latter said with a smile, "I was too engrossed in our conversation that I forgot to introduce you. This is Zhang Jiuxiao. He started learning appraising under me three years ago, and within such a short period of time, he has already reached Seven Star. His talent is truly fearsome … As master teachers, I believe there's no need for me to introduce him to you, right?"
"Zhang Shi is a top-notch genius, so there's no need for that!"
Wu Shi nodded. He gestured to Zhang Xuan and said, "Guild Leader Mu, this is my friend, Zhang Xuan, Zhang Shi. Even though he's young, he's a rare genius. I was intending to invite you to take the appraiser examination, but since we've bumped into each other, it's only right for me to get to know him!"
"Friend? I thought that he's your junior … "
Guild Leader Mu was taken aback.
Wu Shi was already around eight hundred years old, and he had thought that the twenty-year-old young man he had brought along would be his new disciple or junior. Who could have thought that the other party would be his friend?
The fact that the other party addressed him in such a manner showed that they were of equal standing.
"Master Zhang Shi, I'm already flattering you by addressing you as my friend. How can I possibly call you my junior? I dare not …" Wu Shi hurriedly waved his hands.
The young man before him was a Celestial Master Teacher, a Celestial Saint. It was indeed flattering for him to address the other party as his friend. If he were to address the other party as his junior, he might just die of shock.
"Oh?" Seeing that his old friend was not feigning humility at all, Guild Leader Mu shot a doubtful glance at Zhang Xuan, and the disdain that he had for the other party from before turned into a grave one. "Since Wu Shi thinks so highly of you, you should be my friend as well!"
Wu Shi was his old friend, and he had always been a person who valued honor and integrity. The fact that the young man before him could say such words was more than enough to show that the young man before him was no ordinary person.
"Guild Leader Mu, there's no need to stand on ceremony!"
Zhang Xuan clasped his fist.
"There's no need to stand on ceremony. Wu Shi and I have been friends for many years!" Guild Leader Mu chuckled softly before turning to Zhang Jiuxiao. "Jiuxiao, even though the two of you are around the same age, since Zhang Shi is my friend, he's your Senior Uncle as well. You should address him as Uncle!"
"Uncle …" Zhang Jiuxiao's body swayed weakly, and he nearly spurted blood.
It was just a moment ago that he said that he would protect the other party and allow the other party to learn from him, and yet, such a sentence came out of his mouth … Zhang Jiuxiao's face turned crimson, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
"Un." Guild Leader Mu nodded. "Wu Shi and Brother Zhang, most of the others have arrived. This way, please!"
"Alright!" Wu Shi nodded.
Following behind Guild Leader Mu, the few of them walked into the main hall.
The hall had a diameter of thirty meters, and there was a rectangular table at the very center. The two sides of the table were already filled with people. Most of them had long white beards, and they were around the same age as Guild Leader Mu.
Two familiar faces were seated within the hall as well. They were Guild Leader Ruan of the Spirit Awakener Guild and Guild Leader Wei of the Terpsichore Guild.
Guild Leader Mu walked up to the very front of the table and sat down. After which, he beckoned, "Take a seat!"
"Un."
Zhang Xuan nodded before taking a seat beside Wu Shi.
"Jiuxiao, stand behind me!"
Seeing that Zhang Jiuxiao was about to take a seat as well, Guild Leader Mu instructed with a frown.
"Yes!" Zhang Jiuxiao's cheeks twitched upon hearing those words. He stood behind Guild Leader Mu with a resentful look on his face.
He had thought that with his identity as a Seven Star appraiser, he would be able to regain some ground against Guild Leader Mu. Yet, before he could even show off his skills, he was already suppressed by the other party.
"Friend, since everyone is here, can you take out your item?"
After making the arrangements, Guild Leader Mu turned to the person seated on the opposite side of the table and said.
The person was wearing a bronze mask, making it impossible to see his appearance. However, through his exposed skin, Zhang Xuan could tell that he was between forty to fifty years old.
"You are all reputable figures of Qingyuan City, and you have Mingshi Tang's Pavilion Master Wu with you. Naturally, I trust your trustworthiness. However, I'll be frank with you first. I will only allow you to appraise my item and decipher the formation inscriptions on it. As for what is sealed within it and what you have seen through it, I have no intention of selling it. Of course, as long as you are able to help me solve the problem, I'll be sure to reward you handsomely!"
The copper-masked man said.
His voice was slightly hoarse, and it was clear that he had intentionally altered his tone so that no one would be able to recognize him.
Guild Leader Mu waved his hand casually. "Rest assured, the fact that I was able to find them means that I'm trustworthy!"
"I trust Guild Leader Mu's character!" The copper-masked man nodded. With a flick of his wrist, a scroll appeared before everyone's eyes. Unfurling it, a painting of a mountain appeared before everyone's eyes. There was a lush mountain peak right before their eyes, and the chirping of birds and beasts could be heard amidst the gurgling of flowing water.
It felt as if there was really a mountain not too far away from them, and they could even feel the gentle aura emanating from it.
"This is … an 8-star painting! It has reached the level of Evocative Vividness!"
Upon seeing the painting on the scroll, an elder abruptly stood up in agitation. His eyes reddened in agitation, and his body trembled uncontrollably. The elder was dressed in a painter's robe, and there were seven stars pinned on his chest. Most likely, he was the head of the Painter Guild that Wu Shi had mentioned earlier.
"Evocative Vividness?" Zhang Xuan frowned in bewilderment.
"Evocative Vividness is the ability of a painting of the eighth level. Upon reaching this level, the paintings that one creates will be reminiscent of the real world, making it difficult for ordinary people to discern the authenticity of the painting. More importantly, paintings are able to absorb spiritual energy to sustain the spirit within them. In fact, if one were to cultivate it for an extended period of time, it would even be able to leap out of the painting and become a living being. In other words, a painting that has reached the level of Evocative Vividness is no longer real!"
Wu Shi explained with a hushed voice.
"It's that powerful?" Zhang Xuan was astonished. Innumerable lines surfaced in his eyes as he turned his attention to the painting before him.
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