Xu Huo really did intend to pay the deposit at the price listed in the shop. He also asked roughly how convincing the forgery could be, but the old man poured cold water on his enthusiasm. "No matter how convincing it is, you still can't open it."
The Instance Authorization Letter contained information about the instance, and only the holder knew that information best. How could a forged Instance Authorization Letter have the information filled in? So it couldn't be opened. As for Xu Huo's idea of fooling the holder when the instance opened, that was basically impossible—unless something was wrong with the holder's mental state.
Xu Huo pressed down on the contract he was about to sign. "Old man, are you trying to swindle me?"
The old man's eyes bulged. "How am I swindling you? If you can't use it while the instance is open, then just use it when the instance is closed!"
"You hold an instance yourself, so you should know it doesn't stay open nonstop. There's always downtime. If you want to fool someone, just do it while the instance is closed and resting!"
The old man looked as if he were imparting wisdom.
"Is that so?" Xu Huo set down the pen and prepared to leave.
"Hey, hey!" The old man called after him. "Don't go! If you're willing to provide the funding, I could look into it."
"You think I'm an idiot?" Xu Huo smiled, picked up the forged authorization letter, and left.
The old man had probably realized that Xu Huo was well-off, and followed him out reluctantly. "I'm the best Artificer in District 001. No one would dare claim second place! You can't go wrong investing in me!"
Xu Huo waved him off and left the shop without looking back. He bought