Alchemy Emperor of the Divine Dao

As layer after layer of stone was scraped off, there still was nothing unusual to be seen.

A scrap stone.

Finally, the raw stone was only about the size of a pellet, and the stone cutter finally sliced the stone in half. It was still only white stone material on the inside, proving that this was only a scrap stone.

“Hehe.” Niu Buqun laughed, his expression very arrogant, but he did not speak.

There was no need to speak; reality spoke louder than any words.

Ling Han naturally would not be concerned. This was equivalent to two people playing cards, and he gathered his own hand of cards under the circumstances that he could see what his opponent’s trump card was. How could he not win in this situation?

…Unless his opponent had heaven-defyingly good luck, and had chosen the best for all 10 raw stones. Then, even if Ling Han could cheat, there was still no way he would win.

Clearly, Niu Buqun had not gained this ability yet.

“Continue.”

Both stone cutters took the second raw stone, and continued cutting. They were both very experienced. It was clear that the first person had long since finished cutting, but he had not immediately proceeded to cut the second raw stone.

Why was this so?

Of course, it was for the sake of suspense, and to keep the audience hanging.

“Anyone fancy a bet?” someone suddenly said. “I will be the dealer. Those who bet on Niu Buqun winning have stakes of 10:12, and those who bet that Ling Han will win have stakes of 10:15, and anyone who bets that the both of them will tie will also have stakes of 10:15.”

“I will.”

“Me too.”

“…”

This instantly drew the response of a great many people. Even if the stakes for Niu Buqun’s win was only 1:1.2, practically everyone was betting that he would win.

It could not be helped. He had already established a reputation. Moreover, was it not clear that he had already produced a piece of Divine Metal?

This was a sure win.

The Empress looked towards her daughter, and Ling Xi responded with an exasperated expression.

The one who was acting as dealer… was Fu Tianxing.

Otherwise, who else would become a dealer while clearly knowing that they would be losing money?

Though Fu Tianxing did not know his master’s accomplishments in stone gambling, he was familiar with Ling Han’s character. If Ling Han did not have enough certainty, how could he dare to take on such a massive gamble?

Since his master was filled with such confidence, what did he have to worry about?

He would take bets and earn some profit.

The second raw stone was soon completely cut open. Both of them produced scrap stones, and there was no treasure.

This was very normal. Grandmasters of raw stone were not that amazing that they produced treasure at every turn.

When it was the third pair of stones… They were still scrap stones. The fourth pair of stones was scrap stones as well.

Now they were on their fifth.

“Hey, there is treasure again!” When the stone cutter sliced down with his blade, someone immediately called out loud.

“Th-th-th-this, this is a Great Herb!” Someone’s voice was already trembling.

“Careful! Careful!” the others warned hurriedly. They were not just simply watching. If there was any valuable treasure, they would scramble to buy it on the spot. If the owner wanted to sell, they would then be able to buy it off him at the first instance.

There was no need for their warnings. The stone cutter was already beginning to be very careful. This Great Herb was too fragile, and could be very easily damaged.

“As expected of Grandmaster Niu.”

“Here’s some more treasure.”

“And it’s a Great Herb at that. This is a huge profit.”

Everyone was musing ruefully. A grandmaster of raw stone was really not just empty boasting.

Niu Buqun smiled, looking sage-like and extremely proud. Only his heart was throbbing wildly because he could just barely determine whether there was treasure or otherwise inside a raw stone with his accomplishments, but he completely had no idea how much the value of its contents would be.

Even so, his rate of accuracy was not very high. Usually, his rate of accuracy would be only 10%, and two out of the five raw stones he had chosen this time had actually revealed treasure. This was indeed lucky.

He naturally would not say this. He looked proud, as if everything was under his control.

On the other side, Ling Han’s raw stone was still scrap, and it had turned into bits of stone very soon.

Leng Xiuran was even prouder now, and said to Ling Han, “You can still forfeit now, but the number of times you will have to kowtow will have to increase to five.”

Ling Han glanced at him. “If you want to die, you can just be frank. I can oblige you.”

Leng Xiuran wanted to retort, but remembering Ling Han’s terrifying strength, he forcefully swallowed the words that were right at the tip of his tongue.

What was there to argue about this? When Ling Han knelt and kowtowed later, wouldn’t Leng Xiuran then have earned back all his pride?

‘At that time, I’ll see what else you have to say.’

Very quickly, this Great Herb was completely removed from the raw stone.

“Seems like it is not mature enough. Judging by those Great Herbs that had previously been revealed, this is a Great Herb to boost cultivation level, but it looks bluish, so it is very young.”

“Even so, this is still a supreme treasure!”

“This piece of Divine Metal was really worth spending.”

Everyone was rueful. Some were even directly making bids, hoping that Niu Buqun could sell this Great Herb off to them.

Niu Buqun did not speak yet when Leng Xiuran spoke up. “Everyone, I am really sorry. It was I who invited Grandmaster Niu, and he is also helping me to choose raw stones. At present, I have no plans of selling this.”

At this, everyone made no further bids. He had paid exorbitantly to invite a grandmaster of raw stone, so whatever was cut out of the raw stones naturally belonged to him.

...

“Continue,” Ling Han said indifferently.

For the sixth pair, both were scrap stones. For the seventh pair, both were scrap. For the eighth, scrap for both. For the ninth, they were both still scrap.

Only the last pair was left.

At this, even Fu Tianxing was getting nervous. ‘Master can’t have gambled too big this time, and trapped himself as well, right?’

Everyone shook their head. Only one more raw stone was left, so what would Ling Han have to get out of it to turn the situation around?

“Unless it is an even higher-grade Great Herb.”

“A prehistoric beast would work as well. It can advance to the Heavenly Venerable Tier in just tens of thousands of years, which is truly frightening.”

“Why don’t you say that it is a Heavenly Venerable Seal? Wouldn’t that be even more amazing?”

“Hehe, this is just speculation in any case, so mere words are harmless.”

No one believed that Ling Han could turn this defeat around. This was the low-grade area, and the chances of producing treasure were already very slim, what more when it came to a supremely valuable treasure.

“There is something again!” With another few slices, everyone gasped loudly.

...

Of course, it was Niu Buqun’s raw stone again. The grayish white stone material revealed a hint of crimson, flickering just like flames.

“Divine Metal.” Everyone nodded.

Divine Metal was not much, but it undoubtedly added even more brilliance to Niu Buqun’s halo.

“Sigh, just forfeit,” someone suggested to Ling Han.

There was definitely no point to proceed any further.

Ling Han naturally was unmoved. He said to the stone-cutter who had stopped. “What are you standing around for? Continue.”

The stone cutter scoffed mentally. ‘Could it be that you are still hoping that some incredible, amazing treasure will be cut out of this raw stone, and completely reverse the situation in a single stroke?’

That was too naive, right?

He naturally was not qualified to lecture Ling Han, and could only obediently continue to cut through the stone.

“Ling Han, if you admit defeat now, you only have to kowtow nine times.” Leng Xiuran laughed loudly. Everything was already settled now.

“Grandmaster Niu, you are truly extraordinary!” Someone expressed goodwill towards Niu Buqun. “Could you also help me choose a few stones in these few days?”

Niu Buqun stroked his beard, showing a hint of pride in his expression. “Allow me to rest a few days. After all, choosing raw stones is still very tiring. I have already worked for a day, and I need a good rest.”

This was putting on airs.

Everyone understood this, but it couldn’t be helped, because the guy was amazing. They could only continue to suck up to him.

“Yi!” A soft exclamation rang out, and the stone cutter stopped moving the blade in his hand.

“What is it? Could it be that there is some treasure?” someone asked laughingly.

The stone cutter had a strange expression. “There really is treasure.”

“What?!”