Although Yi Shuyuan's words were just what the Southern Sea Dragon Lord had expected, they still filled him with delight.
"Hahahahaha! Only a fellow Daoist like you could appreciate such a treasure. What would some ordinary, vulgar visitor understand? How could they deserve to have me bring it out for their appraisal? To my shame, even I am a shallow man before this treasure!"
The old Dragon Lord rose as he spoke, gazing beyond the hall with feeling. Within the treasure pavilion, which hovered between illusion and reality, everything gradually became more substantial, and the Alchemy Furnace's heat grew more pronounced with that change.
"Over four hundred years. I have possessed this treasure for over four hundred years, and I have come to understand its extraordinary nature all the more."
As he spoke, the old dragon looked toward Yi Shuyuan, who was also staring at the Immortal Dao Alchemy Furnace outside the hall.
"In the world today, I fear you alone can recognize this treasure, appreciate it, understand it, and even put it to use!"
These were words of truth. No one present disputed the Southern Sea Dragon Lord's statement, nor did the thought even occur to them. Even in the Heavenly Realm, in immortal abodes everywhere, at the sanctuaries of gods and Buddhas, or anywhere beneath heaven, it remained a fact.
Yi Shuyuan shook his head at this and turned toward the Southern Sea Dragon Lord, speaking with both feeling and sincerity.
"Dragon Lord, do not belittle yourself. For this treasure to remain in such outstanding condition, you must have devoted a great deal of thought to it. If you truly had not studied it carefully and understood nothing at all, how could the Immortal Furnace shine with such splendor now?"
This was by no means a deliberate compliment