“Not everyone can control the AZURE SWORD. It comes with an ancient swordsmanship manual. I spent over ten years to grasp even a fraction of it, which allows me to barely control the flying sword,” said Kristian. He then shifted his tone, “Ten years might not even guarantee success. Who would be willing to put in such hard work to study this?”
Hearing Kristian, everyone nodded in agreement. If the flying sword fell into their hands without mastering the swordsmanship, it would be as worthless as scrap metal. Without being able to wield the sword’s mysteries like Kristian, no one would believe in its magic. This thought brought a sense of balance to their minds.
After Ollie James and Kristian showcased their treasures, it was Karson Ballard and Ashton Lowe’s turn. The previous treasures had set the bar high, and everyone wondered if Karson and Ashton would present something even more astonishing.
Ashton took a sip of tea to moisten his throat and then retrieved his treasure from his bag. When he unveiled it, it was a painting titled “Dwelling in the Zhichuan Mountains.”
“It’s actually ‘Dwelling in the Zhichuan Mountains’! Ashton, you’re amazing! How did you get your hands on this?” Ollie James exclaimed with shining eyes. As the CEO of RH Auction Company, he knew the market value of this painting was not in the millions but in the tens of millions.
Ashton not only displayed the painting but also introduced its special features to everyone. After Ashton’s presentation, all eyes turned to Karson.
“Karson, let me warn you first. Don’t try to fool us with your strange stones again. Show us something substantial!” Kristian preemptively cautioned Karson.
Karson laughed, “Kristian, how did you know I was going to bring a stone? Since you’re so eager, I’ll satisfy your curiosity.” With that, Karson pressed something on the table, and a slight mechanical sound was heard. To everyone’s surprise, a section of the large sandalwood table opened, and something rose from within.
Covered by a yellow cloth, Karson stood up and unveiled a massive stone. The stone had scales like wood grain, with two eyes on either side-one larger than the other. The larger eye was about three or four fingers wide, while the smaller one could only fit a finger. The eye sockets seemed to glow as if stone milk was dripping out.
Ollie James, who was most familiar with stones among the four except for Karson, immediately recognized it and exclaimed, “Dragon manna stone!” He then looked at Karson in disbelief, “Did you really go to Krumery and buy it?”
Karson proudly nodded. He had seen a Dragon manna stone before but couldn’t afford it due to its high price. After three sleepless nights, he flew to Krumery and bought it.
Kristian wasn’t interested in stones and only glanced at it briefly before looking away. Ashton, who excelled in both calligraphy and painting, especially loved painting stones. He stepped forward to feel the stone’s texture from top to bottom, his eyes showing a look of fascination.
Ethan watched from the side, feeling annoyed. Except for Kristian’s flying sword which surprised him a bit, he didn’t care for the items presented by Karson and others. Even Ollie James’s blue and white plate was just a natural talent, nothing special compared to his Colorful Five-Beast Eight Diagram Bowl.
Ethan glanced at Leo and his companions sitting opposite him. They were all intently looking at the stone. Ethan thought to himself: “Wait until I bring out my Colorful Five-Beast Eight Diagram Bowl; it’ll blow your minds!”
Thinking about how Bonham Auction House’s reputation could soar from this treasure exhibition and overshadow Spirit Moon Antiques forever, Ethan couldn’t help but smile. He exchanged a knowing look with Ryan, and they both smiled knowingly.
Ethan was focused on undermining Arlene and her group and found the stone discussion boring. After some discussion, Ashton suggested, “Karson, why not take a gamble?”
Ashton meant for Karson to cut open the stone. Karson shook his head, “Those days are behind me. I can’t handle that kind of excitement anymore. Let’s just leave it as it is.”
Ollie James turned his teacup and appraised it with his auctioneer’s eye, “This piece should be worth around four million.”
Karson glanced at Ollie James and couldn’t help but acknowledge his sharp eye. He had bought the stone for over two million, and if auctioned, it could indeed fetch around four million.
Ashton sighed, “Karson, you should think about it. If there’s purple gold or blue crystal inside, this piece could be worth tens of millions!”
“Ashton, we’re not antique dealers. Stop talking about money all the time; it’s vulgar!”
Leo and his companions found their banter amusing. After laughing, Arlene felt a bit disheartened. Their purpose today was to network with experts and hopefully boost Spirit Moon Antiques’ reputation. But seeing the high-value items presented by others made their own offerings seem insignificant.
Christine felt similarly and glanced at Ethan subconsciously. Ethan still wore that smug look on his face. Noticing Christine looking at him, he smirked proudly.