Chapter 1036: The Imperial Ancestral Cauldron
Chapter 1036: The Imperial Ancestral Cauldron
After Lu Hai Kong and Zhang Dao Yi finished discussing the Enigma Gate and Kunlun City, Lu Hai Kong didn't leave the North Gate Tower again.
Since the items brought from the Mysterious Cabin had already been sent for appraisal, and Princess San was currently in secluded cultivation, there was no point in asking about Kunlun City at this moment. With nothing else to do, Lu Hai Kong decided to stay and immerse himself in his work with renewed vigor.
Having just defeated the Three Heroes, Bingzhou was in a state of economic recovery and rapid development, and there were still many tasks that required Lu Hai Kong's attention.
He worked diligently until late into the night, only then taking a break.
Coincidentally, as Lu Hai Kong finished his work and returned to the City Lord's Mansion, the appraisers from the Artifact Auction had finally completed the appraisal of all 999 artifacts and categorized them in detail. Following Lu Hai Kong's instructions, they kept some less important items and sent the valuable ones, including those they couldn't identify, to Lu Hai Kong.
However, Lu Hai Kong had sent 999 artifacts to the auction house, but only a few dozen were returned, along with a list of all the items.
Lu Hai Kong picked up the list and frowned as he scanned it.
"I didn't expect there to be so many useless artifacts!"
From the list, Lu Hai Kong could see that over ninety percent of the 999 artifacts were of little value.
Most were basic firearm manuals or broken iron guns.
It could be said that Lu Hai Kong was at a loss with over ninety percent of the items, with each one costing him thousands of gold. At a glance, he had wasted millions of gold.
Fortunately, Lu Hai Kong's financial strength was growing daily. Not long ago, he had defeated Dong Zhuo and his allies, claiming over 1.1 billion in war reparations. As a wealthy individual, Lu Hai Kong wasn't too concerned about this loss, but he was dissatisfied with his luck.
After glancing at the list, Lu Hai Kong tossed it aside and turned his attention to the items sent by Luohuo.
A significant portion of the items was books of various kinds.
There were pure military treatises, inner cultivation methods, and even some mysterious martial arts techniques. Lu Hai Kong quickly browsed through them and found that most were quite valuable, each worth around several hundred thousand. This small stack of about thirty to forty books somewhat compensated for his losses.
However, Lu Hai Kong was still dissatisfied. He wasn't looking to merely cover his losses; he had spent over a thousand gold in hopes of finding something extraordinary, and only one book among these few dozen gave him a pleasant surprise.
This book wasn't a cultivation method or martial art technique but a simple travelogue without even a title or author.
Lu Hai Kong flipped through it and found it quite intriguing.
What's more, reading this book seemed to require a certain amount of spiritual power. Even with Lu Hai Kong's strength, he had only read a few hundred words in over ten minutes before feeling dizzy.
But the most astonishing thing was yet to come. When Lu Hai Kong put down the book and looked away, his dizziness subsided, and his mind became clearer. It seemed that his spiritual power had received a slight boost in that short moment.
This naturally piqued Lu Hai Kong's interest. After playing with it for a while, he put the book away and continued inspecting his haul.
Among the items they sent were not only books but also some small artifacts. However, these artifacts were trivial and of little use to Lu Hai Kong, so he put them aside after a quick glance.
If these were all he had received, Lu Hai Kong would have undoubtedly suffered a loss. But if the mysterious travelogue was included, he should have made a profit. Still, the outcome fell short of his expectations.
Lu Hai Kong had initially thought that by spending on 999 artifacts, he would acquire many valuable items, perhaps even solving his Marquis artifact problem in one go. However, reality often falls short of expectations.
Lu Hai Kong wasn't entirely disappointed, though. In addition to the items he had already inspected and those appraised by the auction house, there were three artifacts that the appraisers couldn't identify. These were placed in three separate boxes.
【Artifact Auction】— the group of appraisers there had skills that Lu HaiKong was well aware of. If even they couldn't appraise these items, then their value must be extraordinary.
Hoping to make a fortune from these last three items, Lu HaiKong took them out one by one for appraisal.
To his surprise, two of the items were familiar to Lu HaiKong. The first was the Substitute Puppet, which he had already used twice, a one-time-use item that could protect its owner from fatal damage.
Besides the Substitute Puppet, there was another item Lu HaiKong had used before—the Artifact Repair Token. It was the item Ye Xun had traded for a legendary longsword during Lu HaiKong's first Artifact Auction.
Both were excellent items; one could save a life, and the other could restore an artifact.
Although neither was what Lu HaiKong desired—an item capable of transforming a Marquis Artifact—their value was still considerable. With these two items and the travelogue he had obtained earlier, Lu HaiKong had not only recouped his investment of over ten million but had also made a substantial profit!
However, there was one last item that Lu HaiKong couldn't identify.
He didn't hold high expectations for this final item, knowing it was impossible for it to be a Marquis Artifact, as it was merely a piece of paper.
Clearly, this paper wasn't an artifact, nor could it be one. Despite its ancient and weathered appearance, it was likely just a blueprint or a formula for a pill.
Lu HaiKong usually wasn't interested in such items, but since it was already in front of him, he had to appraise it.
A golden light flashed in Lu HaiKong's eyes as he activated Celestial Insight once more.
He initially thought that appraising a simple blueprint would be easy for his Celestial Insight, but to his surprise, the skill faltered before this piece of paper.
A 1691 book, a bar, and a look without a single mistake!
It wasn't that Lu HaiKong couldn't appraise the item at all; rather, there was an obvious protective force on the paper, requiring him to exert some effort.
This piqued Lu HaiKong's interest. Initially, he wasn't particularly intrigued by the paper, but this development sparked his curiosity. He wanted to see what kind of item had this self-protective ability.
Celestial Eye Detection
Lu HaiKong directly activated the skill of Celestial Insight, and in an instant, the light in his eyes intensified as if all the light in the world was drawn to his gaze.
Despite using Celestial Eye Detection, the power on the paper remained resistant, and Lu HaiKong couldn't penetrate the mist.
This frustrated Lu HaiKong, and he was determined to figure it out.
The light in his eyes dimmed, and he used Celestial Eye Penetration, a skill he rarely employed since upgrading Celestial Insight in Luoyang.
A golden light shone from Lu HaiKong's eyes, and ripples appeared on the paper. The protective force guarding the paper quickly dissipated.
"Success!"
A hint of joy flashed in Lu HaiKong's eyes. Indeed, a moment later, the attributes of the paper appeared before him.
Imperial Ancestral Cauldron (Blueprint)
Blueprint Level: Divine Artifact (???)
Blueprint Description: Legend has it that the design was conceived by Emperor Xuan Yuan, originally intended as a national treasure. However, due to the threat of Chi You, the idea was abandoned, and the Xuan Yuan Sword was forged instead.
P.S.: This claim is unverified, and its authenticity is questionable.
When Lu HaiKong saw the attributes of this blueprint, he was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected such attributes, and what surprised him even more was that, as the attributes appeared, a familiar mechanical system voice he knew well sounded.
(End of Chapter)
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