Death Invitation

For some reason, even though Third Appraiser's smiling eyes had swept over everyone, Chen Shaojun felt that more of the man's attention had fallen on him.

What did that mean?

Did he want him to make a move?

Chen Shaojun guessed at it, yet he remained where he was, utterly unmoved.

A special treasure?

He wanted someone to help appraise it?

Did they not know that in the pawnshop appraiser trade, what mattered was one's mastery of the Divine Gaze Technique, the appraiser's own mental strength, and even the life-preserving ability to guard against Killing Intent's backlash?

Third Appraiser Zhang Gao was a Certified Appraiser of the Lin Clan Pawnshop. He had long cultivated the Divine Gaze Technique to the minor mastery stage and also practiced martial arts. Though he looked short and fat, he was still countless times stronger than a group of scrawny Appraiser Apprentices.

If even he found the treasure difficult to appraise, how could ordinary Appraiser Apprentices possibly meddle in it?

Though all of this was merely his speculation, as long as there was even the slightest risk, he would not be willing to take it.

He already possessed the Spirit-Seeking Treasure Mirror. He had no need for anyone else's recognition.

If he had not feared that others would discover his abnormality, he would not even have revealed the secret that he had raised his Divine Gaze Technique to the proficient stage.

Right now, he was still lying low.

Blending into the crowd was what suited him best.

Another thing worth mentioning was that Chen Shaojun noticed that, aside from himself, there was one other person who had not shown much enthusiasm either.

That person ought to have been here the longest. Usually, he was exceedingly taciturn and easily overlooked. His name seemed to be Ayong. As for his surname, no one had asked, and he had never said.

"Then you. Come to my Water Cloud Retreat tomorrow."

Zhang Gao glanced over the group, then pointed at the one who had acted most eagerly.

Water Cloud Retreat was Zhang Gao's own appraisal room.

Naturally, its conditions were countless times better than the appraisal rooms in the pawnshop.

It was said that not only did it contain treasures that assisted with appraisals, it also had a study and a resting room. It was exceedingly spacious.

"Yes, thank you, Third Master, for giving me this opportunity."

The selected Zhang Ke hurriedly answered loudly, his voice brimming with excitement.

Then he looked at the others with a somewhat arrogant expression.

Especially when he looked at Chen Shaojun, he could not help but snort.

It was as though he were saying that he was not the only one who could earn their master's favor...

Chen Shaojun looked utterly baffled, but said nothing.

He also noticed that Ayong shook his head, a trace of pity seeming to appear in his eyes.

"Pity?

What does he know?"

Chen Shaojun frowned.

Second Master and Third Master both left.

Next, the Appraiser Apprentices naturally dispersed.

One after another, they stood before Shen Piaotai, waiting to receive their assignments.

What they were to appraise today was still the batch that the shopkeeper had brought back from the yamen yesterday.

Among them was the Jade Ruyi, wreathed in overbearing yin energy and haunted by coiling ghostly shadows.

Fortunately, there were indeed rather a lot of "raw materials" in this batch. The Jade Ruyi had been placed near the back, so it had not yet fallen into the hands of the Appraiser Apprentices.

"Still, even so, in two or three days at most, that Jade Ruyi will fall into the hands of us Appraiser Apprentices."

Chen Shaojun estimated, feeling increasingly uneasy.

At present, he had no means of facing a "ghostly entity" head-on.

After putting away the "raw material" handed to him, Chen Shaojun headed toward his appraisal room together with the other Appraiser Apprentices.

Outside Appraisal Room Seven.

Chen Shaojun saw Ayong.

Ayong's appraisal room was Number Ten, not far from his own.

Seeing this, Chen Shaojun hurriedly stopped him and asked, "Do you know something?"

"What?"

Ayong looked at him in confusion.

"About Third Master asking someone to help."

Chen Shaojun gave him a hint.

Ayong fell silent and glanced around. By now, the other Appraiser Apprentices had all entered their own appraisal rooms.

After thinking for a moment, however, he still pulled Chen Shaojun into his appraisal room.

Ayong's appraisal room was not much different from Appraisal Room Seven, except that several black stones had been placed in every corner.

The stones were arranged in a peculiar pattern, giving off a somewhat mysterious air.

Chen Shaojun could not help looking at them several more times.

"These stones are White-Cut Stones. They have a certain ability to absorb Baleful Intent.

I found a Four-Square Formation in an ancient book that absorbs Baleful Intent, so I deliberately arranged it in this appraisal room.

Don't be fooled by how grayish-black these stones are.

At first, they were white.

They turned this way because they have absorbed Killing Intent year after year."

Ayong spoke with faint pride.

"So that's how it is."

Chen Shaojun came to a sudden realization.

It seemed that veteran handyman apprentices like Ayong truly had their own methods.

Ayong did not say much more about the Four-Square Formation, clearly unwilling to reveal too much. Changing the subject, he swiftly returned to what Chen Shaojun had asked before. With a cold laugh, he said, "I don't know what treasure Third Master wants us to help with. Perhaps it truly is a form of patronage.

But..."

After a slight pause, he continued, "But you should know that before you all arrived, I had already been here for more than half a year.

At that time, there were even more Appraiser Apprentices than there are now—more than twenty of them. And every so often, new Appraiser Apprentices would be brought in.

But after half a year.

By the time you came, only three remained.

Some of them, like Zhang Wang, met with accidents after appraising treasures and left after Killing Intent entered their bodies.

But in fact, many more were called away by Second Master, Third Master, and the others to help... and then, there was no more news of them."

Ayong's tone was calm, but a ripple still surfaced in his numb eyes.

That period had absolutely been the time when he was most terrified.

"This..."

Chen Shaojun was stunned.

Though he had previously guessed that Third Master's request for help was suspicious, he had not expected such enormous hidden implications behind it.

"What exactly are they doing?"

Chen Shaojun asked.

"What are they doing?

Of course, they're using us to test for errors.

They are all Certified Appraisers, and the treasures they receive for appraisal are mostly extremely valuable.

Likewise, they are also extraordinarily dangerous.

Some treasures contain dangers that even they cannot be certain of escaping from unscathed.

So they ask Appraiser Apprentices to test the waters.

The Killing Intent within a treasure is, after all, water without a source. The more it is depleted, the less remains.

By relying on Appraiser Apprentices to act, even if they cannot appraise the treasure in one go, they can still reduce its Killing Intent and weaken the danger.

You should know that at the craziest point, no fewer than five Appraiser Apprentices died in a single day."

Ayong recalled.

"Then why did it stop afterward?"

Chen Shaojun asked in confusion.

This was indeed the first time he had heard such information. Moreover, in the half year since he had arrived, he had not heard of anyone being summoned by Second Master or Third Master to help.

That was also why those Appraiser Apprentices had been so eager.

Who would have known it was an invitation to death?