Fangxian Heretical Path

Chapter 188 Appraisal of Magical Items (5 words)

Jin Family Treasure Hall.

Fang Shu appeared before Tong Cou, and a smile immediately spread across his face:

"Fellow Daoist Fang, your presence is an honor. I, Tong, have failed to greet you properly."

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Tong."

Fang Shu exchanged greetings and, without any hesitation, immediately placed the three ancient Taoist treasures he was holding on the table.

These three ancient treasures, some large, some small, some long, some short, and some different in style and material, all have an antique appearance and exude a unique aura.

Tong Cou had been a servant in the Jin family for many years, and with his sharp eyes, he naturally recognized the origin of these three items at a glance.

"What is this?" He looked slightly surprised, gestured to Fang Shu with his eyes, and after receiving permission, carefully picked up the three items and examined them closely.

A thin layer of spiritual light was also pasted on its fingers, like a glove, to isolate the skin and objects.

This is one of the essential minor spells to learn in Duobaotang: wrap your hands in qi. This will prevent you from soiling the guests' treasures and also prevent you from being entangled by poisonous powder or evil spirits on the objects.

Tong Cou quickly examined the first ancient treasure, which resembled both a bowl and a ball, his eyes filled with a strange light. He then looked at the second ancient treasure, which resembled both an iron ring and a thumb ring, and the third ancient treasure, which was made of jade and shaped like a hook.

After examining everything, his eyes were momentarily dazed, and he revealed an envious expression, muttering to himself:

"Fellow Daoist Fang's skill... Three ancient treasures, without any evil aura, have truly opened my eyes."

Fang Shu smiled, and without waiting for the young man to inquire indirectly, he went straight to the point:

"So that fellow Daoist may know, these three items were only obtained by me after I went down the mountain, and it cost my sect a great deal of favors."

Their purpose was none other than to acquire provisions to facilitate their future dealings within the immortal sect. They had come today hoping that your esteemed advisor could appraise their goods and estimate their value.

His words reached Tong Cou's ears, and the other party immediately understood, remembering that Fang Shu had been on the mountain for nine years this year and should be competing for an inner disciple position.

Therefore, it is highly likely that Fang Shu will actually make a move on the three ancient treasures.

Immediately, Tong Cou's smile widened, and he said with a grin:

"Fellow Daoist Fang, rest assured, as long as this item is of legitimate origin, my Duobao Hall will absolutely not inquire further, nor will we disclose your information to the outside world, so as not to interfere with your affairs."

Fang Shu nodded.

He came directly to this place to have his treasure appraised because he knew the reputation of Duobaotang, knew that the person behind Duobaotang was also a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and knew that the Jin family patriarch had a good reputation in the temple. He did not "compare prices from three different places".

This way, he won't have to visit too many shops, which would make more people aware of the antiques he possesses, potentially leaking information and causing unnecessary trouble.

The two then chatted for a while, and then Tong Cou led Fang Shu quickly toward the second floor of Duobaotang.

This was Fang Shu's first time on the second floor, and the layout here was undoubtedly more exquisite than downstairs.

Seeing this, Tong Cou wisely explained, "I have been disrespectful to Fellow Daoist Fang. The items sold on the second floor of this hall are mostly fifth-level tribulation items, some of which are shrouded in malevolent energy, making them quite dangerous for fourth-level disciples. That's why I haven't invited you up here in the past."

But these ancient Taoist treasures must be brought up.

Fang Shu heard the first half and his heart stirred slightly, thinking that the other party had seen through his fifth tribulation cultivation.

He nodded calmly.

"Professor Qian! Professor Qian!"

Tong Cou quickly walked to a private room, knocked on the door, and called out softly. After hearing a soft groan from inside, he cautiously invited Fang Shu in.

An old man, though frail and with gleaming eyes, was lying in a rocking chair, seemingly dozing. When he saw the two enter, he simply kept his eyelids drooping and did not get up.

But when Tong stepped forward and explained the ancient Taoist treasure in Fang Shu's hand, and Fang Shu took out three items as promised, bang!

The other person sprang up from the chair like a carp leaping out of water, and as if seeing a beautiful woman, quickly stepped forward and stared intently at the object in Fang Shu's hand.

"Quickly, let this old man take a look. Such a clean Taoist treasure is quite rare."

The other party reached out impatiently, and before even touching the object, he noticed something amiss and said eloquently, "To be able to keep an antique so clean, it seems that it was not forcibly cleansed with magic, but rather nurtured over time."

Tong Cou immediately responded in a comical manner:
"Old Qian is indeed a discerning eye. These three items are the fine collectibles that this fellow Daoist managed to acquire by asking for a favor!"

The old man and the young boy immediately started talking about the three items in Fang Shu's possession, each of them offering their own reasoning.

Fang Shu, on the other hand, stood aside, feeling strange and surprised at the same time.

According to their discussion, even if a Taoist artifact is free of evil spirits when it is unearthed from a stone, a trace of them will still remain inside. It's like a newly unearthed object, always carrying a slight earthy smell.

To eliminate this "earthy smell," one either needs to let it slowly warm up or place it in the ground, or one must use magic to forcibly expel the evil energy inside, but the latter is very likely to reduce the quality of the object.

The "dragon energy" inside the three items in Fang Shu's hands had been completely absorbed by the Dao Talisman. In the eyes of the others, they seemed to have been slowly nurtured and placed before being formed, making them proper family heirlooms.

This unexpected turn of events actually corroborated the story Fang Shu had just made up.

However, Fang Shu did not feel secretly pleased; instead, he felt a tightness in his chest.
"The evil energy extracted from the ancient treasure using the Taoist talisman was so thoroughly absorbed... It seems that I will have to be more careful when dealing with the ancient treasures that have been manipulated in the future, so as not to leave any traces and have someone discover something amiss based on various factors."

He instantly made a decision in his heart: even if he obtained the ancient treasure again in the future, he would never eat it in the stomach again.

It should be understood that even if someone can disguise themselves while inside the stomach, a skilled person will have a hundred ways to guess their identity.

This is also why Fang Shu openly and honestly came to Duobaotang to sell goods; since it was all inside the temple, it was difficult to hide.

Upstairs, Fang Shu's thoughts were racing, but his expression remained calm as he stood quietly in the private room, gazing into the distance.

After a long time.

Then Old Qian raised his head, clicked his tongue, and gave his appraisal:

"Of the three ancient treasures, one is a useless treasure, one is a treasure for personal protection, and one is a miscellaneous treasure. All three are of acceptable quality."

"I wonder if this fellow Daoist wishes to entrust our hall with the entire task of handling this matter?"

In an instant, the eyes of the old man and the young man were fixed on Fang Shu.

Fang Shu calmly bowed and then asked, "May I ask how your esteemed institution will assist in handling this matter?"

Tong Cou coughed lightly and briefly introduced the two methods used to handle the situation in the hall.

One method is similar to mortgaging or selling something, where the item is handed over to Duobaotang for a fixed price. It can be a fixed or flexible pawn. The other method is to have Duobaotang auction it off.

Tong Cou said, "Taoist treasures like these have a high premium. Unless they are highly sought after and have a clear purpose, the auction process is quite lengthy. If they are kept in the temple, I estimate that few disciples would be willing to buy them."

Therefore, our hall often transports it to the market in Fudang Mountain for auction, where there are more people and disciples from the five sects come and go.

If they don't fetch a good price in Floating Mountain, our hall will send them to the Vast Sea Immortal City for auction... but this will take a long time, anywhere from three months to three years.

After hearing these words, Fang Shu didn't hesitate much and sighed softly:
"It seems that it would be easier to sell directly to your esteemed establishment. However, I am a long-time customer of your establishment and we have a long-standing relationship. I hope you will not make things too difficult for me."

Tong Cou's face lit up, and he said immediately, "How could that be! Fellow Daoist, you are practically one of us from Duobaotang, how could we possibly cheat you?"

This fellow turned to Old Qian and said seriously, "This is my good friend, please bear with him."

Old Qian nodded dismissively and said, "How could I be such a cheap thing as deliberately trying to lower the price? Whether you estimate too much or too little, I don't make much money anyway, so why ruin my reputation?"

Immediately, the old fortune teller took out three sheets of yellow rattan paper from his sleeve, and after flicking a rat-tail pen on his tongue, he carefully began to write the appraisal document:

"A Qi-refining object, of pure color, about a foot long, resembling a rice bowl, of medium quality, containing neither precious light nor evil energy..."

Before long, the old immortal had written on three sheets of paper, and then took out a small personal seal, breathed on it, and stamped it on the three sheets. He then coughed lightly and rubbed his fingers together.

Tong Cou took the initiative to step forward, took out a string of coins from his pocket, and handed it to the other party.

Fang Shu took in this scene and found Tong Cou even more pleasing to the eye.

Before coming to Duobaotang, he had made preparations. He knew that regardless of whether he sold anything or not, it would cost money to have the clerks at Duobaotang appraise and authenticate the items.

He has only expressed his intention and hasn't made a final decision yet, so it's quite polite of Tong Cou to offer to pay.

Tong Cou glanced at the appraisal documents and handed them to Fang Shu. Fang Shu took them, glanced at them, and noticed the prices of the three items. He was immediately overjoyed!

"Thirty-five, sixty, fifty-five!" he estimated in his mind.

The combined price of these three ancient treasures exceeded one hundred, reaching one hundred and fifty spirit stones, almost equal to the number of spirit stones he currently possessed!

The spirit stones he possessed were accumulated by extorting money from two martial arts schools in Guling Town and receiving substantial subsidies from the school's owner.

Selling ancient Taoist treasures is indeed a very lucrative business!
However, Fang Shu remained calm. He did not immediately agree, but instead read the information on the appraisal paper more carefully and chatted with the old appraiser from time to time.

Of the three ancient treasures, the useless one is the rice bowl-shaped one; the one with the advantage of self-defense is the small thumb ring-shaped one; and the one with miscellaneous uses is the jade hook-shaped one, about the size of a palm...

After a full three cups of tea.

Fang Shucai looked conflicted and reluctant. He handed over the money and the goods, left Duobaotang, and went straight back to his own cave.

Once back in the cave.

He took out all the newly acquired items from his storage bag, piled them on the altar, and examined them carefully.

The spirit stones he released were far less than 150 taels; they looked less than 100 taels.

This is because Fang Shu did not sell all three items, but kept the small, exquisite thumb ring-shaped antique.

He put the ring on his left hand and gently rubbed it. Then, as instructed by the old immortal, he carefully and slowly probed his true energy and divine sense into it to avoid damaging the object.

Soon, a spark of inspiration was released from the ancient treasure, and it actively emitted a force that drew in his true energy.

Fang Shu nurtured it with his true energy, like feeding a baby. After a long time, the spiritual light on the ring magnified and, like stars, flickered with his breath.

At the same time, he felt calm inside and a sense of peace and security arose in his mind.

He thought excitedly, "As expected of an ancient Taoist treasure, it can actually directly affect a person's soul and mind."

According to the appraisal of the immortals of the Duobaotang, this thumb ring can be blessed on the soul of an immortal, and has the effect of assisting in stabilizing it.

Moreover, the sense of stability is secondary; more importantly, it can form a protective layer that can isolate the spiritual pressure and mental attacks of others, as if it were armor on one's soul.

It was for this reason that Fang Shu decided to preserve these items.

It should be noted that although he has mastered invisibility, wall-penetrating, and object-manipulating techniques, he still lacks protective spells.

Unfortunately, this ring can only protect against mental damage, and its effectiveness against illusions is poor, let alone physical damage.

Despite this flaw, it is still a rare treasure, worth sixty taels of low-grade spirit stones!
In addition, Fang Shu also learned from the old immortal of Duobaotang that the reason why the immortals of today divide cultivation tools into magic tools and magic treasures is because they are influenced by the ancient treasures of Taoists.

The ancient treasures of Taoist priests are actually magical artifacts.

Or rather, the term "magical treasure" used by immortals is actually a replica of an ancient treasure.

These kinds of items are either useless or very useful. When worn, they are quite useful without the need for magical incantations or consecration. They can kill or defend, and the more skilled the user, the better the effect.

For example, the protective effect of this thumb ring is linked to the strength of the immortal's true energy and spiritual consciousness. The stronger the immortal, the stronger the thumb ring, rather than it being a fixed effect.

Moreover, this item can be worn on the body at any time, making it convenient and effective.

Fang Shu was overjoyed.

Upon returning to the mountain, he possessed a staggering 247 taels of low-grade spirit stones alone, and also acquired a new protective magic treasure, making his gains quite substantial!
After thinking for a long time, Fang Shu remembered the other two ancient Taoist treasures that he had sold.

Of the two ancient treasures, the one resembling a rice bowl was purely decorative; even the old immortal surnamed Qian couldn't discern its use. However, the palm-sized jade hook, when placed in water, could be transformed into threads and bait using true energy, enhancing the effectiveness of catching spirit fish.

This kind of fishing may sound very ordinary and useless, but if used to catch fish in rivers, lakes and seas, it may be very effective.

After much deliberation, Fang Shu still sold the item. After all, he was a Gu Master, not a fisherman, and it was better to exchange it for spirit stones.

In addition, he lowered his head and opened a book that was three feet thick and could be used as a stool, and began to read it word by word.

The contents of this book were all written with a rat-tail pen, densely packed. It was precisely what he bought from Duobaotang, or rather, from that old immortal surnamed Qian.

The book contains many experiences and principles regarding the identification of magical artifacts. Although it doesn't contain a single secret text and can't be considered a celestial manual, it is still quite comprehensive.

But the book contained very comprehensive information and was richly illustrated. The old master Qian even boasted that if one could master these millions of words, one could also enter the appraisal business, so Fang Shu bought it to give it a try.

Even after haggling, the book cost him ten low-grade spirit stones, which was equivalent to the price of a golden nitrate cloud.

"Huh!" Fang Shu read on, letting out a soft exclamation: "This old immortal might not actually be lying."

He found that although the contents of this massive book were complex, the various accounts and information were fragmented and lacked any coherence. Even with the memory abilities of immortals, reading it would be dizzying and incomprehensible.

However, with the inclusion of Daoist scriptures, these trivial pieces of knowledge were mobilized, and Fang Shu truly glimpsed some of the secrets to appraising magical treasures.

He was slightly pleased and immediately put away the spirit stones, immersing himself in reading the three-foot-thick book with tiny characters.

Perhaps after he has read through this book and completed its analysis, he will no longer need to risk having someone else appraise it, but will be able to appraise the Taoist's ancient treasures on his own.

In this way, if he obtains a powerful treasure, he can keep it for himself and only need to sell the less useful treasures, which can greatly reduce the risk.

For a while.

Fang Shu was so engrossed in the book that more than ten days passed in the blink of an eye.

He spent his time reading, cultivating, and training Gu worms, living a comfortable life.

Until this day, the sign at his waist suddenly trembled, waking him up prematurely.

Fang Shu's heart skipped a beat. He thought it was Senior Sister Fang Lu or his friends looking for him, but when he picked it up, the character "Gu" appeared on the waist tag, along with a time note.

This is a summons from the Gu Hall, and it's most likely his cheap master who is summoning them, his cheap disciples.

Fang Shu immediately composed himself and put the large book in his hand into his storage bag. Perfect timing, he also had something to discuss with his nominal master.

For example, his friendly fifth senior brother, and for example, the two Gu pits of Yin and Yang under the fifth senior brother's command!

Fang Shu carefully prepared in the cave, then stepped out and hurried towards the location of the Gu Hall.

When he entered the main hall of the Gu Hall with practiced ease, several other people had already arrived.

These people looked at Fang Shu with either friendly or cold gazes, and one of them had a particularly obscure look in his eyes, but on the surface he showed no sign of anything amiss.

Fang Shu didn't notice anything amiss, but he smiled at the person, which made the other person pause and start thinking about various things, thus revealing a clue.

Soon, the Dragon Maiden appeared.

Unlike the previous times, although the other party also came to inquire about the situation in the Gu Hall, this time not only did they arrive earlier, but their mind also seemed to be elsewhere from the affairs of the hall.

After the usual questioning was completed, just as the Dragon Maiden was about to announce her departure, Fang Shu bowed and stepped forward.

(End of this chapter)