Chapter 11: A Peak First-Grade Magical Artifact
After leaving the hotel, Ye Feng opened his navigation app and headed toward the nearest antique market.
It was only about two kilometers away.
A short taxi ride of just a few minutes brought him there.
His plan was to search for valuable treasures—some to sell for money, and others to use in crafting magical artifacts.
A magical artifact, as the name implied, was an object imbued with spiritual power. There were offensive artifacts and defensive artifacts.
Among the many types, defensive artifacts were by far the most practical.
Offensive artifacts could only be used by cultivators. Ordinary people couldn’t use them because they were incapable of storing or channeling spiritual energy, making it impossible to activate the artifact’s effects.
Defensive artifacts, however, were different.
As long as the creator infused them with spiritual energy and engraved them with a formation, the energy could be preserved within the item. The wearer simply needed to carry or wear it, and when attacked, the artifact would automatically activate.
That meant even ordinary people could use defensive magical artifacts.
Ye Feng intended to make one for his girlfriend, one for each of his three best friends, and one for the old director of the orphanage.
That way, their safety would be guaranteed, preventing unexpected accidents. Compared to ordinary insurance policies, these artifacts were far more reliable.
Moreover, wearing such a defensive artifact allowed the body to be nourished by spiritual energy. It could prolong life, ward off illness, improve one’s complexion, and slow the aging process.
In short, it brought countless benefits with virtually no drawbacks.
Ye Feng was currently in the northern part of the city center, commonly known as the North District.
Several antique markets were located there, but the one he chose was the most famous and the busiest.
It was called North King Antique Market.
The moment he stepped into the market, he was struck by its lively atmosphere.
People crowded every corner, many hoping to strike it rich by discovering hidden treasures.
However, Ye Feng noticed that most visitors were over thirty years old. There were very few young people around.
He guessed that the younger generation simply wasn’t interested in this kind of thing.
Rather than gambling their money on the slim chance of finding a priceless antique, they’d rather spend it enjoying themselves at nightclubs, bars, or shopping malls.
Walking deeper into the market, Ye Feng looked around.
The place resembled a massive plaza, filled with countless vendors neatly arranged by category.
Most of them were street stalls. Large cloth mats were spread out on the ground, displaying all sorts of strange and curious objects. Covered with a thin layer of dust, they genuinely looked like ancient relics that had weathered countless years.
Thanks to his divine sense, Ye Feng could see through all illusions and deceptions.
Whether something was genuine or fake, he only needed a brief scan to know the truth.
Of course, maintaining such a wide-ranging spiritual perception consumed a fair amount of mental energy. After using it continuously for about ten or fifteen minutes, he needed to rest for several minutes to recover.
As he wandered through the market, he continuously extended his divine sense, examining the various “rare treasures” on display.
Some were fake, while others were authentic.
In one trip alone, Ye Feng bought seven or eight items that were absolute bargains.
He paid only a few hundred yuan for each, but if he sold them to knowledgeable collectors, they could easily fetch tens of thousands—or even over a hundred thousand—yuan.
Unfortunately, although these antiques were valuable, not a single one was suitable for crafting magical artifacts.
After making several rounds through the market, Ye Feng couldn’t help but shake his head.
It seemed there was nothing here that could serve his purpose.
Still, he had carefully selected more than a dozen antiques along the way. Most were small jade pieces and ceramic items, filling only about one-third of a nylon bag.
Without a storage ring, carrying things around was rather inconvenient.
Ye Feng silently decided that after returning home, he would craft a storage ring first. It would make transporting items much easier in the future.
Just as he was about to leave the market with his purchases, his gaze seemed to be mysteriously drawn toward a small stall tucked away in a corner.
An elderly man with white hair sat quietly there.
His eyes were half-closed, and beside him rested a mysterious long object wrapped in black cloth.
Several items were displayed on the green fabric spread out before him.
Among them was an iron bracelet.
Compared to the other objects, it wasn’t particularly eye-catching.
Yet the moment Ye Feng saw it, his heart skipped a beat.
He released his divine sense and examined it.
The instant his perception touched the iron bracelet, his eyes lit up.
Just as he had suspected.
There was spiritual energy attached to it.
It was actually a magical artifact!
Judging from its condition, however, it appeared to have been sealed.
Ye Feng quickly walked over.
His dark eyes fixed firmly on the bracelet as his divine sense penetrated deeper.
Inside, he could clearly see a faint yellow glow flickering.
His heart stirred.
It really was a magical artifact.
And judging by the intensity of that yellow light, its rank wasn’t low at all.
It had reached the peak of the First Grade.
Magical artifacts were divided into seven grades.
Each grade was represented by a different color.
From the First to the Seventh Grade, the colors were:
Yellow, Purple, Blue, Green, Cyan, Black, and Red.
First Grade was yellow.
Second Grade was purple.
And so on.
Above magical artifacts were treasures known as Spirit Treasures.
As for those…
Ye Feng knew they simply couldn’t exist on Earth.
Returning to his senses, he looked at the old man and asked,
“Grandpa, how much are you selling this iron bracelet for?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the white-haired elder slowly opened his eyes and looked up at him.
The instant their gazes met, Ye Feng sharply sensed a mysterious energy circulating within the old man’s dantian.
He was certain of one thing—
It wasn’t spiritual energy.
Could it be…
Were there actually martial arts masters on Earth like those described in wuxia novels?
Although the old man was clearly unusual, Ye Feng paid little attention to it.
That level of strength meant nothing to him.
Besides, his only interest was the bracelet.
Everything else was irrelevant.
The old man studied him for a moment, a trace of surprise flashing across his eyes.
“Young man, you don’t seem like an ordinary person. You can actually recognize this object.”
Ye Feng smiled calmly.
“You’re flattering me, Grandpa. I just think it looks nice and want to buy it. Isn’t it just an iron bracelet? What’s there to recognize?”
Outwardly, he remained composed, but inwardly he grew suspicious.
Could this old man also know that this thing isn’t ordinary?
No… that can’t be right.
How could he possibly know? Magical artifacts shouldn’t be known to anyone on Earth.
Besides, even if the old man did know it was a magical artifact, why would he put it up for sale?
Therefore, Ye Feng concluded that the elder only knew it was somewhat unusual but had no idea what it actually was.
Naturally, Ye Feng wasn’t foolish enough to reveal its true value himself.
Doing that would only drive up the price.
The old man gave him another strange look.
“You really don’t know what this is?”
Ye Feng frowned slightly.
Is this old man really trying to sell something? Why does he keep asking questions?
He shook his head, his tone growing impatient.
“I’m just saying, why are you asking so many questions? I think it looks good, so I want to buy it. How should I know what it is? Are you selling it or not? If not, I’m leaving.”
“In that case…”
The old man slowly shook his head.
“I’m not selling it.”
“Huh?”
Ye Feng froze for a second, then frowned.
“Old man, are you messing with me?”
“You put this thing out here to sell, didn’t you? But just because I don’t know what it is, you won’t sell it to me? What kind of logic is that?”
His patience was limited.
If the old man truly refused to sell it, Ye Feng was prepared to simply leave the money behind, take the bracelet, and walk away.
After all, he absolutely had to obtain this artifact.
It had taken him so much effort to finally find one, and he wasn’t about to give it up.
Besides, this iron bracelet happened to be a defensive magical artifact.
Once he removed its seal and engraved a new formation into it, he could give it to Wan’er for protection.
In just a couple of days, it would be Wan’er’s birthday.
It would make the perfect gift.
