Even though she really wanted the sword, Zhao Ya knew that the reason why her teacher came to Honghai City was for the Soulless Metal Humanoid. If he were to buy the sword for her and end up running out of money, he would definitely regret it for the rest of his life.
"It's good that you like it. If you don't have enough spirit stones, we'll just have to think of something else!"
Knowing what she was thinking, Zhang Xuan nodded.
Previously, he hadn't found anything suitable for them, so he didn't buy it for them. Since he saw it now, he naturally had to buy it.
"Think of something else? What can we possibly do now? "Zhao Ya was taken aback.
For five thousand spirit stones, her teacher even tore down the Appraiser Hall. Where else could he find more spirit stones?
He couldn't possibly tear down the auction house as well, right?
"Simple!"
Chuckling lightly, Zhang Xuan gestured to Sun Qiang and said, "Call the person in charge of the auction over!"
"Yes!"
Sun Qiang blinked his eyes in bewilderment, unable to comprehend what was going on.
However, even though he didn't know what the young master was up to, he was certain that the young master had a plan in mind. Thus, he turned around and left.
Zhao Ya and the others glanced at one another … Was their teacher really intending to tear down the auction house?
Not too long later, Sun Qiang returned with a middle-aged man.
Logically speaking, given his standing, it was impossible for him to call anyone over. However, this was Master Sai's suite, so he could at least borrow some of his influence.
"Master Sai!"
Upon entering the room, the middle-aged man immediately turned his gaze to the elder.
"Manager Luo, you're here. Allow me to introduce you, this is Zhang Shi! "
Master Sai chuckled. "Zhang Shi, this is Manager Luo, Luo Qin. He should be able to resolve most of the matters regarding the auction!"
"Zhang Shi?"
Only then did Luo Qin notice the young man seated beside Master Sai. Judging from his disposition, it was clear that he held a high standing in the room.
"May I know why Zhang Shi is looking for me?"
Stepping forward, Luo Qin clasped his fist with a smile.
"Oh, I would like to add an item to the auction!" Zhang Xuan replied.
"Add things?"
Luo Qin was taken aback for a moment before a conflicted look surfaced on his face. "This … The auction has already begun, so I'm afraid that we won't be able to raise the price any further …"
You didn't say anything earlier, and now you want to auction something? What kind of joke is this?
What's more, no one knew whether the item you were adding was valuable or not. If it turned out to be a fake, the reputation of the auction house would be ruined.
"Don't be in such a hurry to reject it. Read it first before you decide!"
Knowing that the other party would have such an attitude, Zhang Xuan didn't mind at all. With a wave of his hand, he interrupted the other party.
"Alright!"
Even though Luo Qin was a little reluctant, considering that the other party was a guest of Master Sai, as well as being addressed as' Shi ', he was certain that the other party was of high standing. Thus, he couldn't help but nod in agreement.
Hall Master Sai also turned his gaze over in bewilderment. He wanted to see what this young man could take out.
Logically speaking, if there were any treasures that could be sold in the auction, he would have asked for them beforehand. He wouldn't have insisted on challenging the Harmonious Stream of Flowing Goblets and put them in such a passive position.
Whoosh!
Amidst their doubtful gazes, an object suddenly appeared in the other party's hand. Upon taking a closer look at the object, Master Sai's body swayed, and he nearly spurted blood.
A painting was placed in the young man's palm. It was the second artifact of the Harmonious Stream of Flowing Goblets.
"This is it. Let's see if you can help me sell it!"
Zhang Xuan said impassively.
Naturally, the most valuable item on him was the artifact that he had just obtained from the Harmonious Stream of Flowing Goblets.
Since it was the most valuable artifact of the Appraiser Hall, it shouldn't be difficult for him to buy two swords, let alone a single one, as long as he auctioned it off.
Thus, even though he knew that he didn't have enough money on him to purchase the Soulless Metal Humanoid, he didn't think too much about it.
"Zhang Shi, this artifact … is incomparably valuable. It's best that you don't sell it …"
Smiling awkwardly, Hall Master Sai felt his heart bleeding.
That was an artifact of the Appraiser Hall …
It was one thing for the artifact to acknowledge you as its owner, but to sell it off … What the heck was this?
"If you think that it's a pity to sell it off … Master Sai, you can buy it back! Since we're acquaintances, I won't ask for a high price. Five thousand spirit stones will do … "Zhang Xuan said with a smile.
"Cough cough …" Master Sai's face reddened, and he nearly choked on his saliva. Shaking his head helplessly, he said, "Alright, you should continue …"
He couldn't even take out three thousand spirit stones, how could he possibly find five thousand spirit stones?
Even if he couldn't bear to see the treasures of the Appraiser Hall being lost, he had no other choice.
Seeing that the other party wasn't going to stop him, Zhang Xuan turned to Luo Qin and said, "This artifact is authentic. You can have Master Sai appraise it!"
"There's no need to appraise it. This painting is definitely authentic. I can tell as well …" Taking the painting, Luo Qin unfurled it and glanced at it before nodding.
As the manager of the auction house, he possessed incredible discernment skills. Otherwise, it would have been embarrassing if he couldn't even recognize an artifact.
The painting before him carried a dignified aura, and the birds in it seemed as if they would fly out at any moment. No matter how foolish he was, it was clear that this was an invaluable masterpiece.
"Alright, you can auction it off then! It'll be best if you can sell it for five thousand spirit stones. "Seeing that Luo Qin was able to recognize the painting as well, Zhang Xuan decided to save him some trouble.
"This …"
Hearing those words, Luo Qin hesitated for a moment before saying, "Zhang Shi, even though this painting is of a high tier and possesses incredible spirit … it's impossible for it to be sold for five thousand spirit stones!"
"Oh? How much can it be sold for then? "Zhang Xuan was perplexed.
He wasn't too clear on the value of artifacts, especially when they were sold in terms of spirit stones. He thought that since this painting was kept in the Harmonious Stream of Flowing Goblets, it would definitely be worth more than five thousand spirit stones … Yet, this fellow actually said that it was impossible.
What was going on?
"At most … five hundred spirit stones!" Luo Qin's face reddened.
"Five hundred?"
Zhang Xuan frowned in displeasure. "This painting is the work of a 5-star painter, and it possesses its own spirit. Not only can it absorb spiritual energy to replenish the painting, it also contains a cultivator's comprehension of nature. Even a Transcendent Mortal 3-dan or 4-dan expert would benefit from it … How can it only be worth five hundred spirit stones?"
Through the verification of the Library of Heaven's Path, it was confirmed to be authentic. A treasure left behind by a 5-star painter had reached the sixth level pinnacle, just a step away from reaching the legendary seventh level.
Only worth five hundred spirit stones? You must be joking!
"Indeed, who are you trying to fool? How can such a masterpiece be worth so little? "Sun Qiang and the others were also in disbelief.
"Zhang Shi, calm down. Listen to my explanation!"
Luo Qin hurriedly bowed and said awkwardly, "This painting is simple and straightforward. There's no doubt that it's the work of a master painter. However … there's no name, and there's no ink on it either. Thus, its value plummeted. The most valuable part of a painting isn't the painting itself. Rather, just like antiques, it's the accumulation of time and the reputation of the painter. If this was the work of a renowned master painter, five thousand spirit stones would be a piece of cake … But given the current situation, five hundred spirit stones is already a lot! "
Hearing the explanation, Zhang Xuan was taken aback. He turned to look at Master Sai, only to see the latter nodding in agreement.
"There's such a matter?" Zhang Xuan was speechless.
Thinking about it, it did make sense.
Painting and calligraphy were not weapons or natural treasures that had a tangible effect on cultivators. Instead, it highlighted a person's taste and hobbies. If it wasn't the work of a famous artist, the value of the collection would immediately decrease.
"This painting was left behind eight hundred years ago by the 5-star Grandmaster Painter, Wu Xuanzi. Could it be that even he isn't considered a master painter?" Zhang Xuan asked.
"Wu Xuanzi? Of course he's a master painter. He's the first 5-star beast tamer in the League of Nations. If this is truly his work, it would be worth more than five thousand spirit stones. However … even though he's a renowned figure, he didn't stay in the League of Nations for long, so he didn't leave behind many works … How can we be certain that this painting is his? "
Luo Qin was taken aback.
Wu Xuanzi was the most renowned figure in the League of Nations eight hundred years ago. Before he was two hundred years old, he had already reached 5-star in both his beast taming and painting occupations.
However, there were simply too few works left in the world. Most appraisers didn't even recognize his brush strokes and habits, so they were unable to determine whether this painting was his or not.
"Ah …"
Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
He had only found out about the origin of this painting through the Library of Heaven's Path, but this … he couldn't possibly show it to anyone.
Wu Xuanzi didn't leave behind any works, so it was impossible for him to make a comparison. Otherwise, this painting wouldn't have been placed in the Appraiser Hall for so many years without anyone recognizing it.
"Unless … a formidable painter inscribed the name of this painting. Even if his reputation isn't as great as Wu Xuanzi's, as long as he's on the same level as Wu Xuanzi's, he'll be able to earn the acknowledgement of the spirit within the painting. However … he'll only be able to earn two thousand spirit stones at most!"
Luo Qin said.
"Inscribe a name? Inscribe the essence of the painting? "
"Un. However, it isn't that easy to inscribe a name on a painting. Everyone has different thoughts, so their impression of the painting is different as well. If one's thoughts are slightly different from the painter's, it'll be hard to earn the acknowledgement of the painter! This way, not only will the value of the painting not increase, it might even damage the original style of the painting, causing its value to plummet! "
Luo Qin explained. "Only by understanding the habits of the painter and understanding his thoughts will one be able to inscribe the essence of the painting, thus increasing its value. Otherwise …"
Even though he didn't finish his words, his tone revealed his intentions.
Ten thousand people would have ten thousand different thoughts when looking at a painting.
It was difficult to fathom the thoughts of the predecessors and imitate them. In fact, it could be said that it was nearly impossible.
"What you mean is that … if one knows the painter's thoughts on the painting, there's a high chance of inscribing the essence of the painting on it?" Zhang Xuan asked.
"If one knows the thoughts of the painter … Wu Xuanzi, and inscribes them on the painting, the value of the painting will definitely increase exponentially. However, it's a pity that no one knows whether Wu Xuanzi left behind a painting or not. He's a very low-profile person, and no one knows when he painted or what his thoughts were … Furthermore, this painting is so bizarre that it's hard to tell what kind of bird it is … It's difficult to fathom it!"
Luo Qin shook his head.
Even though he had only taken a glance at it, he knew that it was impossible for him to inscribe his name on the painting and comprehend its essence like Wu Xuanzi.
"Difficult?"
After hearing Luo Qin's explanation, Zhang Xuan was taken aback for a moment before chuckling softly.
"Since inscribing a name on the painting will increase the value of the painting, why don't you …"
"Let me give it a try!"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
