Treasure-hunting: Into the Unknown

Everyone looked shocked. Most of the people in the audience had heard of the Five-colored Magic Jade and knew that it was no ordinary refining material, so Jaxon's pronouncement was astonishing. The Five-colored Magic Jade was a scarce casting material at the Imperial Level that had capabilities comparable to even rare materials, and it could be used to refine any weapon with an element below the Sage Level without any limitations. It was also a piece of necessary material in order to refine rare Imperial Level weapons.

"You have sharp eyes to have recognized it so quickly. You're right. It is indeed the rare Five-colored Magic Jade," Zachary admitted calmly.

The crowd around the square burst into an uproar at Zachary's confirmation. How could Zachary, at his current strength level, be capable of possessing such a rare jade? It was unheard of.

Even the Silver Demonic Scale that Miles had brought out, which had impressed everyone watching, was less powerful than Zachary's Five-colored Magic Jade. Miles' scale was also a scarce Imperial Level refining material, but somehow Zachary had an even scarcer and more potent treasure.

The jade was a game-changer. There was no doubt now that Zachary would win the first round.

Miles wore a sour expression on his face. He had not expected Zachary to be so well-prepared. He wondered where Zachary had gotten his hands on an item as precious as the Five-colored Magic Jade. Miles shook his head. Now was not the time for speculation. He had to focus on finding a way to beat Zachary—as an Imperial Level warrior of the Shura College, it would be an enormous embarrassment for him to lose.

"Big deal. So he has a Five-colored Magic Jade. I have a few tricks of my own," Miles muttered under his breath. He opened his Virtual Air Space again. Another box flew out. It opened, emitting a beam of radiant light, and even the most distant people in the audience felt the wave of essential energy which emanated from the box. It had a distinctly different, stronger energy than the Five-colored Magic Jade.

Everyone turned to watch what Miles was doing. There was a stone inside the box in his hands. It seemed like it was also a jade.

"This is the Dragon Soul Stone. It comes from the Dragon Sea, where it has gathered a very strong spiritual energy for at least a hundred years. We'll see if your jade is better or worse than mine!" Miles said, casting a disdainful look at Zachary.

Like the Five-colored Magic Jade, the Dragon Soul Stone was familiar to most of the people in t

aysayers in the audience couldn't help but mock Zachary. There were some who openly laughed at him, glad to see him defeated at last.

"Whatever that is, it will not change anything. I'm sure you know how this will turn out, so again, I advise you to quit this round instead of disgracing yourself any further," Miles said, curling his lips at Zachary.

Jaxon shook his head, feeling slightly disappointed. After all the hype, he had expected Zachary to perform better, but it seemed Zachary had at last reached the limit of his abilities. Of course, it was always a long shot for him to win this match, since Miles was so much stronger than him.

The leaders and representatives of the various powerful forces in the audience also felt dismayed at this turn of events. They too had expected Zachary to put on another display of power and win another impressive victory, but it seemed he was doomed to lose in the second round.

Zachary ignored all the noise around him. He fixed his eyes on the black stone and crushed it forcefully in his hands. It crumbled into pieces. In that instant, streaks of vivid, brilliant, blood-red light shot out from the fragments of the stone.

The bright red rays shining from the stone silenced everyone in the crowd. They were on the edge of their seats, wondering if there was something special about that black chicken-shaped stone after all. No one moved or made a sound, staring intently at Zachary and wondering what he would do next.

After a few moments, a flash of amber appeared within the fragments of black stone. It was also a stone, glowing with its own light, and there seemed to be currents of energy flowing within it. Everyone was amazed.