Chapter 505: Chapter 443: Appraising the Magic Treasure

"Please, Elder Liu, I’d like your expert opinion."

Zhao Lin took the Silver Flood Dragon Whip from his storage pouch, placed it on the table, and made an inviting gesture.

The Silver Flood Dragon Whip coiled itself a dozen times, resembling a long, slender silver snake.

Upon seeing this, the relaxed and casual expression on Liu Chaoyuan’s face vanished, replaced by a solemn gaze.

He picked up the Silver Flood Dragon Whip, observed it carefully for a moment, and infused a bit of Spiritual Power into it.

Suddenly, with a SNAP, the Silver Flood Dragon Whip seemed to come alive. It instantly straightened and unfurled, extending to over a zhang in length.

"Just as I thought..."

Liu Chaoyuan nodded, his tone filled with admiration.

"Just as you thought what?"

A sliver of anticipation bloomed in Zhao Lin’s heart, and he pressed for an answer.

Liu Chaoyuan retracted the Silver Flood Dragon Whip, looked at Zhao Lin, and slowly explained, "On the shores of the Eastern Sea, there is a type of Tier Three Demon Beast called the Silver-Scaled Flood Dragon. It is born in water yet can breathe scorching flames, making it a rare dual water-and-fire-element Demon Beast."

"The Silver-Scaled Flood Dragon has a long lifespan. After reaching adulthood, its body is over a zhang long, and it grows an inch every year."

"Along the Silver-Scaled Flood Dragon’s spine is a great tendon that fears neither water nor fire. It cannot be cut by blades or broken by hammers. Without any refining, it can be used as a whip-type magic artifact."

"However, this great tendon grows extremely slowly, only one inch every three years. This Silver Flood Dragon Whip is over a zhang long, meaning it must have taken at least three hundred years to grow to this size."

’The great tendon of a Tier Three Spirit Beast?’

Hearing the awe in Liu Chaoyuan’s tone, Zhao Lin realized the Silver Flood Dragon Whip was something extraordinary. He asked, "Elder Liu, are you saying this magic artifact is quite good? What grade would it be?"

Liu Chaoyuan chuckled lightly. "Quite good is an understatement! Most whip-type artifacts made by Artifact Refiners are Nine-Section Whips or Thirteen-Section Whips forged from refined metals."

"No matter how well they’re refined, they are ultimately inanimate, mundane objects. The Silver Flood Dragon Whip is taken from a Demon Beast and is inherently spiritual, making it far more compatible with one’s Divine Sense than crude materials like refined metal."

"There’s another benefit. When you pour Spiritual Power into the Silver Flood Dragon Whip, its body will pull taut and become incredibly hard, transforming into a long spear. By manipulating your Spiritual Power, the whip’s body can be flexible or rigid. Its uses are endless."

He paused for a moment before continuing, "The grades of magic artifacts have always been difficult to define, as the standards aren’t uniform. Common systems include Heaven, Earth, Mystic, Yellow, or Low, Medium, High, Earth Grade, Celestial Grade, and so on."

"But no matter which standard you use, the Silver Flood Dragon Whip can be classified as high-grade. You’d need to reach the Foundation Establishment Realm to unleash its true power. Even for a Purple Mansion cultivator, using it as a main artifact would not be an instance of a great talent being used for a minor task."

Zhao Lin hadn’t expected such a high appraisal from Liu Chaoyuan. ’It’s true that every profession is a world of its own,’ he thought. It seemed this whip was a real treasure.

"Elder Liu, if I were to sell this Silver Flood Dragon Whip, how much would it be worth?"

Liu Chaoyuan pondered for a moment. "Speaking as a businessman, a magic artifact of this caliber isn’t suited for sale in a shop. The best place for it is an auction house."

"As you know, once something reaches the auction block, the price becomes hard to estimate."

"If I had to give an estimate, in my expert opinion, it should be no problem for it to sell for over ten thousand merit points and over ten thousand Spirit Stones."

Zhao Lin said in surprise, "That expensive? That’s almost as much as a Small Tai Chi Array."

Liu Chaoyuan gave a scornful laugh. "What did you expect? You must understand, to obtain this magic artifact, one must kill a Tier Three Demon Beast, the Silver-Scaled Flood Dragon. That is no easy feat."

"A magic artifact is a cultivator’s second life. There are plenty of people willing to pay the price."

Zhao Lin thanked him sincerely, put away the Silver Flood Dragon Whip, and then took out the Black-Cloth Pouch.

"Elder Liu, please take a look at this as well."

Liu Chaoyuan let out a soft sound of surprise. He picked up the Black-Cloth Pouch, weighed it a couple of times, kneaded it with his fingers for a moment, then looked up and asked, "This pouch and the Silver Flood Dragon Whip belonged to the same owner, didn’t they?"

Zhao Lin was taken aback for a second. "How could you tell, Elder?"

Liu Chaoyuan, believing he had guessed correctly, smiled faintly. "First, the Black-Cloth Pouch is made from a blend of high-grade earth-silkworm silk and the fine scales of a Silver-Scaled Flood Dragon."

"I surmise that someone killed a Silver-Scaled Flood Dragon and used its materials to create two magic artifacts."

"Second, both the Silver Flood Dragon Whip and the Black-Cloth Pouch are considered unconventional, flexible magic artifacts. They must be controlled with a spell like the Spirit Whip Skill."

Zhao Lin nodded lightly. He hadn’t considered that connection before. An idea suddenly sparked in his mind.

’There’s still an empty slot for a Tier Two Fire Element Skill in my Spirit Cultivation Map. Maybe I can learn a whip skill? That way, I could use both of these magic artifacts.’

For an ordinary cultivator, learning a new magic skill just for the sake of two artifacts would be a case of putting the cart before the horse.

But Zhao Lin was different. With the Spirit Cultivation Map, learning a new magic skill wasn’t a problem.

Cultivator combat is like military strategy; there’s a saying: "Engage with the conventional, win with the unconventional."

With his Perfection-level Ice Blade Skill for direct confrontation, the whip and pouch would be perfect for surprise attacks.

Zhao Lin made up his mind, but he had one last question. "Elder Liu, what about this Black-Cloth Pouch? Is it comparable to the Silver Flood Dragon Whip?"

Liu Chaoyuan nodded, then shook his head. "The materials and craftsmanship of the Black-Cloth Pouch are superb, so it’s certainly no less valuable than the Silver Flood Dragon Whip, but..."

He changed his tone. "Pouch-type magic artifacts are difficult to control and have higher requirements for the magic skill used."

"Take the Spirit Whip Skill, for example. At the Minor Achievement Level, you could handle the Silver Flood Dragon Whip passably. But you would need to reach the Mastery level for the Black-Cloth Pouch to be truly useful in combat."

"Whether a magic artifact is good or not also depends on the user."

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Zhao Lin was delighted and put the Black-Cloth Pouch away.

After a moment of thought, he decided not to take out the eight-sided ancient mirror, to avoid attracting unnecessary trouble.

Unaware of the complex thoughts running through Zhao Lin’s mind, Liu Chaoyuan asked, "Anything else?"

Zhao Lin cupped his hands. "That’s all. Thank you, Elder Liu, for broadening this junior’s horizons."

Liu Chaoyuan laughed heartily and held out his palm. "Pay up!"

「A month passed in a flash...」

In his study, Zhao Lin sat upright at his desk, looking at three letters on the table.

The three letters were addressed to Lu Yuanxiu, Dean Zhou, and Chu Hongtian, respectively.

The path of cultivation isn’t just about fighting and killing; social connections are just as important.

These three were either Zhao Lin’s benefactors, his backers, or had a master-disciple relationship with him. Moreover, they were all powerful elders, so it was always a good idea to stay in touch.

Zhao Lin wrote to the three of them every month or two.

Lu Yuanxiu and Dean Zhou rarely replied. Even when they did, it was only a few words, mostly of encouragement.

Chu Hongtian, on the other hand, often wrote back, telling him about the situation on the islands.

From Chu Hongtian’s most recent letter, Zhao Lin learned that a major change had occurred in the Earth Dark Sect.

The Earth Dark Sect’s original Island Master, Jing Shigen, had been dismissed. A Purple Mansion cultivator named Banzheng Heng had become the new Island Master.

After taking office, the first thing Banzheng Heng did was to protect the nine pearl-producing shoals under his jurisdiction with an Array.

This meant that the Earth Dark Sect had entered a full defensive posture.

With the Array in place, cultivators from the Chenghua Sect certainly couldn’t get in, but the Clam Demons and other shellfish demons couldn’t enter the shoals to absorb Spiritual Qi either.

As a result, the Earth Dark Sect’s Spirit Pearl production was bound to decrease significantly.

’That’s fine by me. Saves me the trouble of going out to sea.’

Zhao Lin thought to himself. He checked the letters one more time to make sure there were no mistakes, then pushed open the door and left the study.

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