Chen Chuan looked at the box. It was about two feet square, fairly large. "Is this the trophy your magazine is awarding?"
"Yes." Stomark had been holding it for a while, but it was so heavy that his grip was slipping. Feeling a bit embarrassed, he hurried to place it on the table in front of him at Chen Chuan's gesture.
He pushed up his round-framed glasses and continued, "Section Chief Chen, by tradition, our magazine places a relic inside the trophy. It won't be very high in class.
"Oh, these are donated by old families. We don't participate in testing them; we simply place them into the trophy upon receipt. So even we don't know what each relic does in advance—it's meant as a surprise. Of course, of course, if Section Chief Chen doesn't want it after opening it, you can return it to us, and we'll handle it."
He said this because relics were not necessarily useful. Sometimes they could even bring trouble. Even if such trouble meant little to a martial artist, it was still unpleasant.
Yet there was no helping it; this was their publication's rule, set down by the boss himself, who believed that only an award given this way had a true soul and was sufficiently interesting.
Chen Chuan smiled faintly. "Thank you for the honor. I accept the award. If there are any issues, I will handle them myself—no need to trouble your publication."
Stomark said delightedly, "That's wonderful!" Then he hastily added, "I mean, regarding you winning the award—congratulations!"
Chen Chuan nodded. "Thank you."
Stomark exchanged a glance with his partner, and both breathed a sigh of relief. If they hadn't been in Chen Chuan's presence, they might have jumped up and high-fived.
With Chen Chuan accepting it, their mission was complete. Heaven knew how much hardship they had suffered on this trip to Jibei Dao.
It was the first time abroad for both of them. Originally, after arriving in Great Shun, they had wanted to do some sightseeing on the side. Unexpectedly, they had arrived right when the Investigation Delegation took up residence in Jibei Dao Center City. As a result, security everywhere had been raised to maximum alert. Foreigners like them faced restrictions wherever they went, requiring a mountain of troublesome passes just to enter or leave. They had been practically immobilized, unable to move around normally until the public meeting concluded.
Their expense stipend from the publication had been wasted for nothing. If they stayed any longer, they would have to pay out of their own pockets.
At that moment, they remembered one more thing: they needed Chen Chuan to sign a liability waiver stating that no matter what came out of the trophy, he would not hold the magazine responsible, as well as an authorization permitting the magazine to publicly announce that the award had been presented to him.
Chen Chuan had no objections. He signed the waiver and authorization on the spot, then treated the two to afternoon tea. He asked a few questions about Flying Wing Magazine and learned that it had been founded by a retired, centenarian martial artist.
A hundred years of age was extraordinarily advanced for an ordinary person, but so long as martial artists did not mutate, their condition was virtually no different from their youth. Still, remaining unmutated at a hundred while having once fought at the forefront of the world was truly extraordinary. To be permitted to retire, he must have made outstanding contributions.
Stomark mentioned that if Chen Chuan ever had the time, the magazine would welcome his visit. Every martial artist who won and accepted the award became an honorary member of the magazine, and a bust of them would be erected there.
The magazine had been founded seven years ago; two recipients had declined, so four statues stood there at present.
It seemed as though they gave out a relic every year, but in truth, Class 5 relics were quite numerous and could be found in Confluences across the world. Moreover, they were usually pure consumables that were not necessarily useful to martial artists—mere trinkets, not particularly valuable. However, there was also a chance of receiving a Class 4 relic, which was somewhat better.
The uncertainty of the relic's class and function subtly heightened the recipient's anticipation.
Chen Chuan said that if he had time, he would pay a visit to this senior at the magazine. After chatting pleasantly for more than two hours, the two stood and took their leave, mentioning that they would remain here for three more days and could be reached if there was anything he needed.
After seeing them off, Chen Chuan carried the box into the storage room and took out the securely sealed trophy.
Stripping away the wrappings revealed a trophy ground from jade. On either side were Eastern-style "crouching dragon and tiger" shaped handles, carved from the relatively precious yellow jade of the Eastern Continent.
According to the two journalists, each trophy was crafted to match the style of the recipient's country, with essentially equivalent value.
Chen Chuan nodded. While yellow jade was not the pinnacle of jade in the Eastern Continent, carving an entire piece of this size was far from cheap. Not to mention the cloud patterns carved into the trophy, which brimmed with Eastern charm. They had definitely put thought into it.
He glanced into the bottom of the trophy, saw something resting underneath, and tipped it upside down.
A rolling sound came from inside, followed by a heavy weight falling into his hand. Bringing it up to his eyes, he found an egg-sized, pitch-black stone sphere.
Its surface was smooth, but it felt solid and dense in the hand, making one want to roll it between the fingers. Beyond that, it seemed to have nothing peculiar about it.
An ordinary person might struggle to understand what it did, but for a martial artist, it was no great challenge—especially with a low-class relic, which was even easier to discern.
He reached out with his spirit to sense it for a moment, and the stone sphere trembled slightly.
He raised an eyebrow. This thing... was somewhat interesting.
After a moment's thought, he walked outside carrying the stone sphere. Descending to the first floor, he made his way toward the back of the villa and stepped through a glass-enclosed corridor. Out back lay a large lakeside terrace equipped with a pleasure boat for leisurely excursions on the water. It was August now, and the scenery was quite pleasant.
Once on the platform, he called out. With a soft chirp, Chaoming, who had been preening its feathers atop the villa, leaped down and flew out over the lake at his command.
Chen Chuan tossed the stone sphere into the water. Instead of sinking to the bottom, the moment it made contact with the lake surface, it dissolved into a pool of inky fluid, which began swimming swiftly like a living creature.
Before long, it caught up with Chaoming's reflection on the water's surface, seeped into it, and quickly merged as one. Whatever movement Chaoming made, the reflection mimicked accordingly, expanding or shrinking depending on its altitude.
Chen Chuan called out once more. Chaoming flew back and landed beside him. At the exact same instant, the creature emerged onto the shore, adopting the same posture as Chaoming.
Chaoming tilted its head, leaning forward curiously to take a look, and the creature mirrored the gesture, looking just like its shadow.
Of course, if that were all it did, it would not amount to much—at most an amusing novelty. Chen Chuan signaled Chaoming to stay still, then placed a hand on the motionless shadow and gave it a push toward Chaoming.
The instant the two made contact, the dark shadow immediately wrapped around Chaoming and swiftly sank into its body.
Chaoming padded around in a few circles, seemingly sensing something. As it ruffled its body, a layer of dark shadow surfaced beneath its feathers.
Chen Chuan nodded slightly. Whether the magazine's gifted relics were Class 4 or Class 5 was entirely a matter of chance, but the one he had received was clearly Class 4.
When draped over something, this object could form a protective membrane with considerable defensive strength, shielding a creature or a person. However, the prerequisite was that the target had mutated tissue for it to adhere to; it was useless on ordinary people.
He had no need for it himself, making Chaoming the perfect recipient. Aside from some simple protective suits, Chaoming had little protection, and this would greatly enhance its chances of survival.
All in all, accepting this award had been well worth it.
Chen Chuan left Chaoming to play with its new gift and returned to his room. After sitting down, he took out the jade card "Old Feng" had given him and pressed it against his boundary credential.
After a moment, detailed information regarding that secret hoard appeared on the credential's light screen.
The site was located in Longyou Dao, at Dayeyuan. Reaching it by airship would take four to five days at most.
The existence of this secret hoard was not actually a secret. People had attempted to enter it since ancient times, but because the ritual originally laid down still persisted, those who successfully came and went had always been exceedingly rare.
The information on the jade card told him that entering required specific timing—namely, the seventeenth day of the third month and the twentieth day of the ninth month of certain years. Furthermore, one had to enter from a precise location. It could be accessed within the next five years; miss the window, and one would have to wait another five years.
Chen Chuan thought it over. Looking at the dates, going next month would be just in time. In the interim, he could also make time to visit the Confluence hunting grounds to prepare.
After considering it, he stood and placed a call to his teacher, Cheng Zitong, informing him that most affairs in Center City were back on track and asking when he would arrive. Cheng Zitong replied that he would arrive roughly before November and planned to spend the New Year in Center City.
In that case, the trip would not interfere with anything.
After chatting for a few moments, Chen Chuan hung up, tapped his boundary credential, and looked up the location on a historical database.
Upon Dayeyuan stood an ancient palace from over one thousand three hundred years ago, constructed by Emperor Ying of the old dynasty.
Emperor Ying's father, Emperor Gao, had bridged the divide between north and south, ending nearly two centuries of fragmentation and warfare across the Eastern Continent to reunite the realm. After Emperor Ying ascended the throne, he selected a site upon these ancestral lands to construct this palace complex.
According to historical records, Emperor Ying cherished fraternal bonds so deeply that after his two brothers died, he had golden statues made of them, buried them with imperial rites, and endowed secret hoards to be bestowed upon their descendants.
One of the secret hoards had been discovered more than a century ago near Mount Luoying in Longyou Dao. Once the Last Emperor learned of it, he ordered it excavated to replenish the state treasury.
The other was rumored to lie beneath Dayeyuan. The master of that hoard was Emperor Ying's younger brother—a fierce general renowned throughout Eastern Continent history: Yuwen Yuanqi.
Chapter 954