Third update,

...

"Do you want to continue, or sell it?"

After Master Jieshi had described the quality of the rough stone, he directly asked Cai Pingyuan, who was beside Qin Fang.

Although it wasn't of the icy variety, but rather of the icy glutinous type, there was no doubt that, considering the raw material's price of two hundred thousand, it had already appreciated in value.

"I bid three hundred thousand!"

"I bid three hundred and fifty thousand!"

"I bid four hundred thousand..."

Almost at the moment Master Jieshi spoke, a few jade merchants at the scene started to bid, and the price soared quite fiercely. In a short time, it jumped from three hundred thousand to seven hundred thousand. This showed that such good materials really didn't struggle to be sold; there were always people willing to pay a high price.

If it were Qin Fang, he might really not take this gamble after all, mainly because he was uncertain about the actual size of a "Level 2."

"Continue..."

Cai Pingyuan didn't even glance at those bidders and just said indifferently, his demeanor and posture as if the high prices they were calling out were mere tens of yuan instead of hundreds of thousands.

"Another one who doesn't care about money!"

Qin Fang quickly made his judgment. When Cai Pingyuan paid that two hundred thousand, he didn't even blink, and now it was the same. Naturally, he didn't consider those hundred thousands to be significant.

"Then I'll continue. I really can't guarantee it'll appreciate like that time with the young man; I can't promise it will go up..."

Master Jieshi simply said a word and then immediately prepared for the second cut.

"Won't you consider selling this piece? At this price, it should be very reasonable. If the quality of the material inside isn't good, you might..."

Perhaps because the old man gave Qin Fang a favorable impression, appearing rather amiable, Qin Fang couldn't restrain himself from reminding him once more before the cut.

"Hehe, no need. Since it is a gamble, one must have the courage to face the result!"

Cai Pingyuan didn't seem to care at all and simply responded with a phrase.

Qin Fang nodded and didn't say any more. Since the owner of the rough stone didn't care about the hundreds of thousands, he, an outsider, really didn't need to worry. Besides, he was quite eager to see how big a "Level 2" actually was.

ZZZZZ~~~

The grinding wheel started up again, cutting along the marked line for the second cut, very slowly and meticulously.

This time it took quite a long time. This cut would basically reveal the outcome.

"It's a bust! Ah... What a pity!"

When the cross-section was revealed, many people's faces showed a hint of regret. It wasn't as they had anticipated; the cut was clean because nothing had appeared.

"Continue, take the entire stone out!"

Cai Pingyuan was still the same as before, as if not regretful at all about the bust, as though the stone was not his to begin with, merely calmly instructing Master Jieshi.

The remaining work seemed rather mundane. However, Qin Fang and Cai Pingyuan still watched the process throughout, spending quite a bit of time to extract the entire piece of Level 6 icy glutinous material, which was only as large as a quail's egg.

"The material is not very large. It's enough for two ring faces or a small ornament. It could probably sell for six to seven hundred thousand. Compared to the purchase price of two hundred thousand, that's quite an appreciation..."

Master Jieshi said to Cai Pingyuan, holding the material in his hand.

"Mm, not bad! Xiao Qin, your judgment is indeed good..."

Cai Pingyuan smiled and couldn't help but praise Qin Fang, which caused him to smile wryly. However, he was quite happy inside, at least now he knew how big a "Level 2" was. By comparison, Qin Fang's previous piece of bean-type material was probably around Levels 4 or 5.

The size of a jade piece doesn't determine its price in a simple proportional relationship. Take this icy glutinous jade, for instance. A small piece like this costs about seven hundred thousand. If it were twice as large, it would definitely be worth more than one point four million; even two million wouldn't be surprising at all.

That's why Qin Fang's bean-type stone was only worth three hundred thousand at the first cut. After the second cut, when the material was nearly fully revealed, its value increased three or fourfold, significantly due to its larger size.

"Master Cai, you are too kind. It was you who first took a liking to it. I simply thought it had the potential to appreciate based on the marked price..." Qin Fang humbly responded, not wanting to draw attention from those around him.

"Hehe! Won't you choose a few pieces for yourself?"

Cai Pingyuan asked indifferently.

"Since I'm here, I can't leave empty-handed... I'll go pick out a few pieces. Excuse me!"

Of course, Qin Fang was going to select some materials. The reason he delayed for so long was primarily to get a clear idea of the size of a "Level 2." Now that he knew, it was naturally his turn to start selecting materials.

"Then you go ahead with your tasks..."

Cai Pingyuan smiled, "I'll take my leave now. Do visit my place when you have time..."

As he spoke, he pulled out a business card from his pocket and handed it to Qin Fang, who promptly received it with both hands. Upon seeing the address on it, his expression turned peculiar.

"What's wrong?"

Noticing Qin Fang's strange expression, Cai Pingyuan curiously asked.

"Do you happen to know Cai Qing?"

Qin Fang asked tentatively. This Cai Qing was the classmate and good friend of Ning Yumo whom she had once introduced to Qin Fang.

"That's my granddaughter. Do you know her?"

Cai Pingyuan was also slightly taken aback and asked even more curiously.

"We haven't met. It's just that a sister of mine is classmates with Miss Cai, and she also suggested that I should visit your martial arts hall to learn something when I'm free..."

Now that Cai Pingyuan had personally confirmed it, Qin Fang understood why the old man seemed so vigorous—it turned out he was a martial artist, perhaps one who had been practicing martial arts his entire life. His health couldn't be anything but excellent.

It was at this moment that Qin Fang remembered he hadn't used his Scouting Skill on Cai Pingyuan. As he was speaking, he quietly used the skill.

Just as Cai Pingyuan was about to speak, he suddenly sensed that something was amiss, and his sharp senses made him look in Qin Fang's direction, then around the surroundings. He didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, so he continued with some confusion, "What a coincidence! Xiao Qin, make sure you visit when you have time. It seems you have some foundation in martial arts. If you study earnestly, you might well become a grandmaster-level expert!"

"You flatter me too much, Master!"

Qin Fang humbly replied to Cai Pingyuan while feeling a bit nervous inside, as the results of the scouting were quite astonishing to him.

"Cai Pingyuan, level unknown, master of Xingyi Martial Arts Hall, Neutral Camp, Personal Ability: Cai's Xingyi Fist..."

Qin Fang could ignore everything else, but the 'level unknown' part alone made him feel quite uneasy.

With his current Intermediate Detection skill, he could directly see the level of anyone below Level 6. Yet, the level of Cai Pingyuan, who appeared to be in his sixties or even older, was above 6, which was truly surprising.

Qin Fang speculated that if he were to get into a fight with Cai Pingyuan, the latter could easily cripple him with just one hand.

"It's good that the relationship is quite friendly..."

Qin Fang felt relieved that they weren't on hostile terms, which made him feel much more at ease.

"Rest assured, Master. I will definitely come for a visit when I have the time," Qin Fang quickly responded with a smile to the grandmaster-level expert, who was completely unaware of Qin Fang's thoughts.

"Then I shall await your visit at home, farewell!"

Cai Pingyuan smiled, graciously bowed with a clasped fist, and then left the Bizarre Stone Archway.

Qin Fang watched the elder leave, then dove into the back courtyard of the Bizarre Stone Archway, and started selecting the raw jade materials he wanted.

With over a thousand pieces of raw material at the Bizarre Stone Archway, even a cursory examination by Qin Fang would take a considerable amount of time, so he had to selectively focus on those pieces that weren't highly favored.

These materials didn't look very appealing and the chances of yielding jade were significantly lower, but they were cheap.

Although Qin Fang wasn't as strapped for cash as the first time he gambled on stones, he didn't have enough to buy many pieces with less than two hundred thousand in funds. He focused on selecting materials that he could afford, skipping over those priced above one hundred thousand.

"Jade raw material with no value whatsoever..."

"Jade raw material with no value whatsoever..."

"Slightly valuable jade raw material, contains jade, size 3, quality 4..."

After searching for a while, Qin Fang finally found a decent piece priced at only three thousand. He immediately bought it and then continued his search.

"Jade raw material with no value whatsoever..."

"Jade raw material with no value whatsoever..."

"Quite valuable jade raw material, contains jade, size 4, quality 5..."

When Qin Fang saw this piece, he nearly lunged at it on the spot. If quality 6 was considered ice glutinous kind, then quality 5, he guessed, might be similar to the bean-kind material he sold last time. Considering the size was 4, without a doubt, and fairly similar in size, it could sell for at least a million.

Looking at the price, Qin Fang frowned slightly; it was valued at eighty thousand. It seemed that the Bizarre Stone Archway also had high hopes for this piece.

However, without any hesitation, Qin Fang still made the purchase, even though it meant his wallet would be half as light.

Then Qin Fang continued his endeavors, consistently screening through piece by piece of raw material, and he collected several quality 3 pieces with sizes over 4 that were not too expensively priced. Qin Fang didn't overlook any of these, because truly good materials were very rare, and these few were what he had selected from several hundred pieces.

But just as Qin Fang's finances were about to take another hit, he suddenly discovered such a piece—"An extremely rare treasure of jade raw material, contains jade, size 1, quality 9..." (To be continued, for the continuation of this story, please visit www.qidian.com. The website has more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)

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