Director Maia

Not long after the Ernst Institute had opened for the new term, Hillman came to the magic academy to look for Lin Feng.

Outside the Ernst Institute, Hillman paced back and forth with a frown, clearly burdened by worries. The institute's rules were strict, and as an ordinary outsider with no influence, he wasn't allowed to enter the grounds.

After a while, Yale and Reynolds, both dressed in sky-blue robes, came over.

"Uncle Hillman, are you here to see Lin Feng again?" Yale greeted him warmly.

Hillman had met Lin Feng's three brothers before. Seeing Yale and Reynolds, he immediately went over and asked, "How are you both? Why didn't Lin Feng come home for the New Year this time?"

Reynolds was quick to respond. Grinning, he said, "Uncle Hillman, Lin Feng is completely devoted to cultivation. He reached the level of a sixth-rank mage before the tests at the end of last year. After that, he went to the Magical Beast Mountain Range for another trial. He's so eager to cultivate that he didn't even take the year-end tests. Dixie, on the other hand, reached the sixth rank this time, and people are saying he's surpassed Lin Feng."

As Lin Feng's close friend, Reynolds knew that Lin Feng had long since reached the level of a ninth-rank magus. But without Lin Feng's permission, he wouldn't dare reveal such a shocking secret. If word got out, it would cause an enormous upheaval.

"Our third brother doesn't care about that sort of thing. By the way, Uncle Hillman, Lin Feng went to the Magical Beast Mountain Range in mid-April last year. He should be back before long. Is there something important you need? If so, tell me, and I'll pass it on to him as soon as I can," Yale said politely.

Hillman pondered for a moment, then forced a smile and shook his head. "No, nothing important. Lin Feng always came home for the New Year before, and when he didn't this time, his family worried something might have happened, so I came to ask. Now that I know he went to the Magical Beast Mountain Range for a trial, that's all I needed."

"Don't worry, Uncle Hillman. When our third brother comes back, I'll make sure he returns home soon to put your minds at ease," Yale said at once.

Hillman shook his head. "No need. Don't rush Lin Feng back. Let him focus on his cultivation, and he can come home when he has time. We don't have anything pressing to do in the countryside, anyway. Thank you both. I'll be on my way."

Yale and Reynolds watched Hillman leave, then turned and walked away with a smile.

Suddenly, a warm voice rang out from a distance. "Young Master Yale! Young Master Yale!"

Yale and Reynolds turned to look toward the road outside the institute. A carriage was parked there, with four armored knights beside it. Yale frowned in confusion. "Who's calling me? Oh, it's Austoni." He recognized the face peering out of the carriage window.

Austoni was the first to jump down from the carriage. He smiled respectfully at Yale, then stood deferentially to one side. At that moment, the carriage curtain was lifted, and a bald old man slowly climbed down, leaning on a cane.

Yale and Reynolds exchanged puzzled glances.

"Who's that old fellow? He looks pretty important," Reynolds whispered.

Yale shook his head and whispered, "I don't know him either, but judging by Austoni's manner, he must be someone important. Austoni is a senior administrator at the Proulx Gallery. He holds a very high position."

Accompanied by Austoni, the bald old man smiled and walked over.

"Hello, young Yale," the bald old man said with a smile. "I met your father recently, and he had plenty of praise for you. Haha, Dawson certainly has reason to be proud of having a mage for a son."

Yale looked at the bald old man in confusion.

He said he knew my father? Was he just trying to ingratiate himself with me?

Austoni immediately spoke up beside them. "Young Master Yale, this is the director of the Proulx Gallery. You can call him Director Maia."

"No need. Just call me Uncle Maia. Your father and I have been friends for decades," the bald old man said with a genial smile.

Yale was secretly startled.

The Proulx Gallery was a sanctuary of art. It had branches in several of Yulan's great cities. Even if one looked no farther than the gallery in Fenlai City, the stone sculptures it housed were collectively worth an astonishing sum.

But that wasn't the most important thing.

What mattered was its standing. As the director of an artistic sanctuary, Director Maia was acquainted with the most powerful people in Yulan. He even had ties to many experts of the Saint Realm. How could a person like that be taken lightly?

Besides, the Proulx Gallery itself had formidable armed forces. Otherwise, how could it protect so many priceless stone sculptures?

"Uncle Maia," Yale said respectfully.

The bald Director Maia looked at Reynolds beside him. "And who is this?"

"This is my good friend, Reynolds," Yale promptly introduced him. Reynolds greeted him courteously as well. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Director Maia."

Director Maia gave a slight nod. From Reynolds's every gesture, he could tell that the young man had received a fine upbringing.

"Uncle Maia, may I ask what brings you here?" Yale asked.

Though he asked, he had already guessed the reason. It's probably about our third brother's stone sculpture, Love. Before the Ernst Institute's last break, Lin Feng had gone some time without delivering any sculptures. Austoni had come to ask about it.

When Austoni visited Lin Feng's dormitory, he happened to see the stone sculpture displayed there.

The moment he saw it, Austoni was stunned.

As a senior administrator at the Proulx Gallery, Austoni had an exceptionally keen eye. At a glance, he was certain Lin Feng's work was one of the finest sculptures in the history of the art, fully deserving of a place among the "Ten Greatest Stone Sculptures."

Most importantly, Lin Feng's sculpture was huge—its size was equivalent to five ordinary works.

As with oil paintings, the price of a stone sculpture depended partly on its size. After all, a work of such immense scale required far more effort. And the five stone figures, each lifelike, had reached the point of possessing a unique soul.

Looking at the sculpture was like seeing five living beauties.

Stone sculpture masters were exceedingly rare throughout Yulan. Lin Feng's work had already surpassed the level of an ordinary master and was worthy of standing alongside the greatest sculptors in history, such as Proulx, Hopkinson, and Hoover.

The works of the sculptors recognized as "masters" were indeed excellent. They possessed a distinctive spirit and could move the heart.

Yet their works were still a little inferior to those of figures like Proulx and Hopkinson, who could be called "grandmasters." Though the gap was slight, it marked the difference in their status.

The history of stone sculpture stretched back hundreds of thousands of years. Most sculptures from that time had vanished into the river of time. Only a very few, made of unusual stone, had survived to the present. Thus, nine of the sculptors named among the "Ten Grandmasters of Stone Sculpture" had lived within the past hundred thousand years.

Since the Yulan Empire was unified, from Year 001 of the Yulan Calendar to the present, only two people had been deemed worthy of standing alongside those who came before: Proulx and Hopkinson.

And then there was Hoover. He had been a master ten thousand years ago. His work, Blood-Eyed Mane Lion, had survived because of its unusual material, securing Hoover's enduring fame.

In nearly ten thousand years, only two grandmasters of stone sculpture had emerged. Of course, Proulx was the greatest sculptor of all time; he alone had three works among the "Ten Greatest Stone Sculptures." Not every member of the "Ten Grandmasters of Stone Sculpture" had a work ranked among the "Ten Greatest Stone Sculptures."

That ranking was a later assessment of the artistic level of their works. Their sculptures were considered to be on par with the Ten Greatest Stone Sculptures.

A new grandmaster of stone sculpture had emerged—and he was only a seventeen-year-old boy!

It was an astonishing development. That was why the director of the Proulx Gallery had come all the way from the Proulx Gallery in the Dark Alliance.

"No rush. Let's find a private room at a hotel and have a proper, quiet talk," Director Maia said, not seeming particularly eager.

A grandmaster of stone sculpture?

What a joke!

Austoni had a good eye, but judging an art form with such a long history required an exceptionally discerning gaze. For example, the signature works of stone sculpture masters and grandmasters both possessed a distinct spirit and soul.

Determining whether this particular work merited elevating its creator to the rank of grandmaster was an exceptionally profound matter.