Chapter 44: I Will Choose One
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Thaddpole&Tortex
“What?”
“That little fellow dares to say that of Master Mo Yang?”
“Master helped him pick out a treasure our of goodwill, and yet he claims that the master is trying to deceive him?”
“What an arrogant lad!”
Hearing Zhang Xuan’s words, the crowd is dumbfounded for an instant before bursting into commotion.
Is that lad’s head alright?
The master went through so much difficulty to help him choose a treasure, and yet he says that… Fraud, acting cool?
“What did you say?” Apparently, he didn’t expect the young man to respond in such a manner. ‘Master Mo Yang’s’ face darkens. “Little friend, do you have some kind of misunderstanding against me?”
“Misunderstanding? You should be more than aware of what I am saying. If you want to scam someone, go ahead. It’s none of my business, and I am not interested in interfering in your affairs as well! I choose my own artifacts while you scam your victims, let’s stay out of each other’s path. So, stop putting on that haughty look of yours in front of me!”
Zhang Xuan waves him away, annoyed.
He had never bore any goodwill towards scammers. Even so, as long as the other party doesn’t get on his nerves, he is willing to let the issue slide. Yet, this fellow intends to make use of him to act cool, he is truly courting his death!
“What audacity!” ‘Master Mo Yang’s’ face pales and he flings his sleeves, his actions carrying an aura of righteousness with it. “I have attained the qualifications of an appraiser 30 years ago, and I have helped numerous people out of difficulty. My conscience is clear! There has never been a single person who had accused me of scamming them. Everyone here can bear testimony to that, when had I ever scammed anyone of you?”
“Master Mo Yang is compassionate and saves those who are in precarious situations. How could he possibly be a fraudster!”
“That falsifying youngster over there, you must be tired of living!”
“Master, don’t get angry. I will teach that fellow a lesson in your place so that he will learn to not to spout lies in the future…”
…
With just a few words, ‘Master Mo Yang’ manages to stir up the rage of everyone here. Every single of them looks at Zhang Xuan as though he had murdered their family.
“Attained the qualifications of an appraiser 30 years ago? Conscience is clear?”
Zhang Xuan is speechless.
You are just a small apprentice appraiser, must you try so hard to act as though you are bigger than that?
Your skin is much thicker than I thought.
No wonder you are able to become scammer wanted by the Liuzhu Kingdom. Not only is your skin unbelievably thick, your ability to adapt to abrupt changes is truly frightening.
Other scammers will panic when they are exposed before others. Yet, this fellow skillfully reverses the tip of the arrow back towards him, making it hard for him to step down from the current situation.
If Zhang Xuan doesn’t possess the Library of Heaven’s Path, upon seeing how righteously the other party is acting, he would have surely suspected that he might be making a mistake. However, with the library in his hands, since it is stated on it that he is a scammer, then he is definitely one!
“Everyone, calm down!” Seeing that everyone’s anger is stirred and that he is on the offense now, ‘Master Mo Yang’ waves his hands and says, “I am a forgiving person. If you can apologize for the words you said a moment ago, I can choose to not pursue the matter. Otherwise, you should be well-aware of the punishment awaiting you for intentionally slandering me!”
“Punishment?” Zhang Xuan shakes his head. “It isn’t that hard to verify whether you are a scammer or not and whether I am lying or not. As long as they clean the outer coating off the artifacts they just bought, we will know the results instantly! What is the use of speaking so much nonsense here?”
“Clean it?” ‘Master Mo Yang’ seems to have predicted that he would say such words. He replies calmly, “I have already said previously that I will be leaving Tianxuan City by tonight. The artifacts that I have chosen for them are all large in size and will require at least half a day before their true form emerges. I still have urgent matters to attend to, and I cannot delay my departure for that long a time! Why, are you going to say that the reason why I am unwilling to stay here any longer is because I feel guilty so that you can make use of this to accuse me?”
At this point, the elderly swings his arms and exudes a haughty disposition. “I, Mo Yang, lived an upright life, so there’s no reason for me to fear your accusations! However, I had helped you pick out an artifact out of goodwill on my part, only to have you accuse me of scamming you. Since you don’t have concrete proof, it is an act of slander. Do you know the consequences of slandering a master appraiser?”
Hearing these words, Zhang Xuan realizes that he is still underestimating the shamelessness of the other party.
As expected of a professional scammer, to have already thought of a plan to back away if the situation were to turn awry.
He had already clearly expressed that he will be leaving Tianxuan Kingdom tonight, thus paving an escape path beforehand. Before Zhang Xuan could even speak, he was already counterattacked. Right now, even if he were to say that he is afraid of waiting until the artifacts are cleaned thoroughly, no one will believe his words!
Furthermore… Zhang Xuan really doesn’t have any evidence to prove that he is a scammer!
The secret on the Library of Heaven’s Path cannot be revealed. Even if it is revealed, there must be at least someone here who is willing to believe him!
“Lad, kneel down and apologize to the master now!”
“To dare to say that the master is a scammer, do you think that I dare not to kill you right now?”
“Where did this audacious beast come from, to dare to lay doubt upon the master’s innocence?”
…
Upon seeing how righteous and indignant the ‘master’ is, many people choose to believe in him instantly, and the lot of them start to chastise Zhang Xuan.
These people are completely furious.
Those who were scammed had self-hypnotised themselves due to their reluctance to accept the claim that they have been scammed. No matter who it is, if someone dares to interrupt their beautiful dream, they will be refuted adamantly and rebuked.
From their viewpoint, ‘Master Mo Yang’ is an upright person, so how can he possibly be a scammer?
What kind of joke is this!
“Since this fellow dares to claim that the master is a scammer, he should be skilled in appraising, right? If you are that capable, why don’t you choose one artifact out for us to see? If the one you chose turns out to be trash, you shall stop putting on an act here and scram!”
A voice from the crowd snorts.
“Indeed. Since you said that I am a scammer, and you are unwilling to accept the artifact I chose out for you, I’m sure you must be knowledgeable in appraising as well!”
At this point, ‘Master Mo Yang’ nods his head and looks over, “How about this, I will give you a chance! We will each choose a simple and small artifact together so that we can clean it quickly for appraisal! As long as you are able to profit out of the object you chose, I will acknowledge that you are skilled and I will let the issue drop! But if you choose a useless trash, then I’m sorry, but you will have to buy the treasure I just picked out for you, kneel down and apologize to me!”
“You want to compete with me in a battle of appraisal?” Just a moment ago, Zhang Xuan was still in a dilemma on coming up with evidence against him. However, hearing his words, he is slightly taken aback and he almost laughs on the spot.
This fellow must have a screw loose!
Zhang Xuan himself possesses the Library of Heaven’s Path. If he were to claim that he is second in appraising, no one would dare to claim that they are first in the world… Are you sure that your head didn’t get jammed between doors?
However, after giving it some careful thought, he is also able to comprehend the rationale behind the other party’s action.
In the other party’s perspective, Zhang Xuan is only an eighteen or nineteen year old youth, so what can he possibly know about appraising? Besides, since he was able to help others profit a few days ago, he must have prepared several means beforehand. If the both of them appraise concurrently and Zhang Xuan was to choose a useless artifact, he is able to make use of this opportunity to further build up his prestige. Perhaps, he might even be able to attract a few fools to invest frenziedly.
“Why? You don’t dare to accept the challenge?”
‘Master Mo Yang’ is resolute to eat Zhang Xuan whole.
“Fine!” Since the other party is seeking some thrill, how can Zhang Xuan bear to refuse him?
“Alright, then I’ll go first!” ‘Master Mo Yang’ flings his robe and walks along the long elevated platform with large strides. He quickly stops before a palm-size artifact and picks it up.
This object is covered by a thick layer of rock, such that even the shape of the object inside cannot be ascertained, needless to say, to determine whether it is valuable or not.
“Dealer, how much does this cost?”
Picking up the object, ‘Master Mo Yang’ enquires.
“This object is small in size and there isn’t much spirit energy movement that can be felt from it. 200 gold coins!” The dealer replies and he walks over to Master Mo Yang.
“Alright, find someone to help me clean this up!”
Passing over the money, ‘Master Mo Yang’ says calmly.
“Yes!”
The dealer grabs hold of the treasure and sends it to the hall at the back. A moment later, he comes out with a golden toad in his hands. With an excited look, he says, “Congratulations, master. It is the shed skin of 【Spirit Horned Golden Toad】!”
“What is a Spirit Horned Golden Toad?”
“Spirit Horned Golden Toad is a tier-6 savage beast. Of its entire body, its most valuable part is its skin. It only molts once in its entire life. This object can be used in medicine and it is extremely valuable!”
“As expected of Master Mo Yang, to be able to pick out a treasure amidst everything else. Your ability of discernment is incredible!”
…
Upon hearing that it is the shed skin of the Spirit Horned Golden Toad, the hall bursts into commotion.
“Many people may not know of this item, so why don’t you just state a price! It will be much more spectacular that way!” With his head up high, ‘Master Mo Yang’ constantly exudes an acting cool aura as he speaks flatly.
“This object is worth… 2000 gold coins!” The dealer exclaims.
“2000 gold coins?”
“After buying it with 200 gold coins, the price grows to 2000 gold coin in an instant? A revenue of tenfold?”
“This is too incredible!”
“As expected of the master. If you can profit so much through a small object, then surely I will be able to make a killing over that giant artifact you chose for me previously!”
…
Upon seeing this sight, the eyes of the slightly worried crowd starts burning fanatically again.
A master isn’t just for show, a clear difference in standards shows the moment he makes a move!
“Alright, it’s your turn!”
‘Master Mo Yang’ gestures with a cold gaze.
“I…” Zhang Xuan nods his head.
Knowing that the other party is a scammer, he is aware that he would surely have a contingency plan. Even so, he didn’t expect his contingency plan to be so incredible!
He has to choose something at least of the same level as him.
“Can I choose the artifact first and decide on a price after the artifact has been cleaned?”
Stepping forward, Zhang Xuan suddenly recalls something and looks at the dealer.
“No way! You have to pay first before cleaning it! This is a part of the rules. Otherwise, what if it turns out to be a trash after you clean it and you no longer want it, or if it turns out too valuable and we no longer want to sell it? It would be impossible to resolve such situations!”
The dealer states coldly.
In order to prevent such contention, one has to pay upon after deciding on an artifact in treasure speculation. This is equivalent to signing a contract, no one will be able to turn their back on it.
“Alright then…”
After being informed of the rules, Zhang Xuan can only nod his head. Then, turning over to look at the artifacts, he says without blushing, “Come, point out for me which artifacts are worth less than eight gold coins in this pile! I will choose one from them…”