Alchemy Master

Chapter 997, Forcing a Duck onto a Perch

Translator: Silavin

“Master Xu, please proceed.” Having reached this point, Xuan Mingge could truly be described as a duck being forced onto a perch. He could only steel himself.

*Hmph!* Xu Yuzhu snorted coldly without further comment.

Currently, he simply wanted to swiftly conclude this farce of a wager. Regardless of victory or defeat, he would earn the reputation of a Senior bullying a Junior.

Fortunately, yesterday Xuan Mingge’s luck had reached Heaven Defying heights and extracted a Mutated Spirit Seed. Otherwise, he genuinely would not know where to hide his old face.

Subsequently, under numerous watching gazes, Xu Yuzhu rose from his chair and walked towards the counters displaying various Shooting Star Spirit Crystals.

Seeing Xu Yuzhu move, many individuals interested in the Dao of Crystal Appraisal quietly followed behind him. Witnessing a peak Heaven Grade Divine Appraiser perform Crystal Appraisal firsthand represented quite a fortuitous opportunity.

At this moment, Xuan Mingge also stood, but he was not alone. Qin Yichen and the others followed behind him like shadows.

“Seems like Sacred Master Candidate Qin doesn’t have quite so much confidence in Sacred Master Candidate Xuan after all?”

“Exactly. Who knows whether his brain’s waterlogged or what happened. Everyone knows Sacred Master Candidate Xuan selects Shooting Star Spirit Crystals by choosing the expensive ones.”

“Hehe, this time with a price limit of ten thousand drops of Spirit Liquid, even if his luck is good, he could not possibly win Master Xu.”

Seeing their group’s movements, whispered conversations arose throughout the surroundings.

Regarding these discussions, their group’s expressions showed no change whatsoever. After all, having reached this point, they could only treat a dead horse as though it were alive.

What left many even more bewildered was that Xuan Mingge seemed to be intentionally or unintentionally following behind Xu Yuzhu.

“Hmm? This piece…” Master Xu Yuzhu approached a Shooting Star Spirit Crystal, a peculiar light flashing in his eyes. Under that radiance, it seemed as though he could penetrate the Shooting Star Spirit Crystal’s hard, thick exterior to glimpse its essential nature.

However, the hard layer on each Shooting Star Spirit Crystal was tough material that resisted the power of space to reach the land from the skies above. Penetrating that exterior was evidently no simple matter.

Xu Yuzhu clearly had not reached such a terrifying level. He could only vaguely discern quality based on the degree of Spiritual Energy beneath the Shooting Star Spirit Crystal’s surface.

Naturally, this ability already far exceeded most so-called Divine Appraisers. Moreover, if he encountered Spirit Seeds located within the more surface layer, he could naturally sense them with ease.

However, such occurrences were exceedingly rare. After all, the Shooting Star Spirit Crystals here had undergone minimal artificial cutting, instead being refined through atmospheric erosion to reveal the meteorite’s essence.

Even if Spirit Seeds existed, they generally resided at the very centre of the Shooting Star Spirit Crystal, extremely difficult to detect.

“Should be a Peak Grade Spirit Seed…” After examining it briefly, Xu Yuzhu shook his head slightly. The peculiar light in his eyes dissipated as he continued towards the next Shooting Star Spirit Crystal.

Seeing his movements, some attentive individuals secretly noted this particular Shooting Star Spirit Crystal to avoid future losses.

In certain Sacred Lands, Xu Yuzhu represented an authoritative figure in the Dao of Crystal Appraisal. Those he appraised as unsuitable naturally possessed values inferior to their selling prices.

“En, this Shooting Star Spirit Crystal… hmm, unsuitable!” The moment Xu Yuzhu left, Xuan Mingge approached this same Shooting Star Spirit Crystal. After shaking his head, tapping it a few times, he declared decisively.

“Pfft! Shameless!”

“Does he think he’s buying watermelons?”

“I originally thought my face was thick enough, but I never imagined Sacred Master Candidate Xuan’s accomplishments in facial thickness would surpass mine to such an extent. Truly admirable, truly admirable!”

Witnessing Xuan Mingge’s actions, many nearly coughed up blood.

What was this supposed to be?

Could it be this fellow genuinely intended to follow behind Master Xu, then rush to purchase whichever Shooting Star Spirit Crystal Master Xu favoured?

Indeed, while this approach carried certain shameless implications, it did not fail as an excellent method.

The issue was, if Xu Yuzhu deliberately calculated against him by selecting a waste crystal for him to snatch, the loss would outweigh any gain.

“*Hmph!* Ignorant!”

Hearing the surrounding clamour, Xu Yuzhu also noticed Xuan Mingge’s movements. However, regarding such behaviour, he merely showed disdain without concern.

Although he held the prestigious position of Heaven Grade Divine Appraiser, comparing identities, Xuan Mingge’s status was certainly no lower than his own. While he felt no fear, under such public scrutiny, he could not bring himself to openly rebuke the younger man.

“You two, the moment I favour any piece, immediately have someone carry it away.” Xu Yuzhu addressed the two attendants following behind him.

Faced with Xuan Mingge’s brazenly uninhibited behaviour, he could only tolerate it, provided he remained vigilant and prevented the theft of any Shooting Star Spirit Crystal he valued.

“Yes, Master Xu.” The two female attendants quickly nodded. They understood the wager’s stakes amounted to twenty thousand drops of Spirit Liquid. They absolutely could not create problems during the selection process.

Should they provoke Ying Xinghui’s fury, they could not bear the consequences.

Xuan Mingge behind them acted as though completely oblivious to their vigilance, continuing to follow them at his own pace. Whichever piece Xu Yuzhu examined, he examined as well.

“This piece. I’m purchasing it!” After consecutively examining over a dozen Shooting Star Spirit Crystals, Xu Yuzhu’s voice suddenly rang out.

Everyone’s gaze focused intently. They saw Xu Yuzhu indicating a Shooting Star Spirit Crystal wreathed in Spiritual Energy, priced at one thousand seven hundred drops of Spirit Liquid.

The moment his words fell, four burly men wearing Ancient Jade Pavilion uniforms emerged from the crowd. Without a word, they lifted the Shooting Star Spirit Crystal and departed, their manner suggesting fear of theft.

“*Tch.* Is this really necessary? Am I, Xuan Mingge, that sort of person?” Witnessing this scene, Xuan Mingge sneered dismissively.

“If I’m not wrong, in their eyes, you’re precisely that sort of person.” Chen Hui nodded with utmost sincerity, speaking with complete seriousness.

“That’s their ignorance! They don’t know how great I am.” Xuan Mingge’s face displayed rows of dark lines. With a cold snort, he declined to discuss this topic further, standing proudly in place while awaiting Xu Yuzhu’s continued appraisal of the next Shooting Star Spirit Crystal.

Seeing this, Lin Fengying could not help but smile bitterly, cursing inwardly. [Xuan Mingge, couldn’t you be slightly more reliable? I actually developed a sliver of confidence in you after witnessing your extraction of that Mutated Spirit Seed last time! Even if you’re just blindly guessing, you should at least make your own selections, your own guesses! That way, you’d at least provide some psychological comfort. Perhaps if your dog-shit luck strikes again, you might extract another Mutated Spirit Seed or something, right?]

This time, he had lent Qin Yichen three to five thousand drops of Spirit Liquid. If Xuan Mingge lost, he had no idea when he would recover this debt!