"Offset them with ores?" Lin Yichen was stunned. He remarked, "Master Ou, I'm afraid that it's inappropriate, isn't it?"

Ou Yangming stared at him and asked, "Why is it inappropriate?"

Lin Yicheng explained with a bitter smile, "Master Ou, I'll be honest with you. These ores are of exceptional conditions, so they're going to be sent to the prefecture along with the pieces of equipment. That said, I'm not having too high an opinion of the ores because I'm reluctant to sell them to you, but because the ores' path isn't simple at all. Before stone-cutting is carried out, even a deity can't confirm if they actually carry gems!"

Ni Yinghong was still pale at the moment, but she advised as well, "Master Ou, Head Shopkeeper Lin is right. There's no harm in taking a few of these raw gemstones for fun, but if you insist to gamble on them, you'll be putting the non-essentials before the essentials. Even if one has hundreds of millions to spend, one shouldn't misuse money like that!"

"Thank you for your kindness, but it's my first time encountering raw gemstones, so I'd like to try it," Ou Yangming replied to them after some thought, and added after a pause, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, please fulfill my wish."

"Master Ou, if you'd like to try stone-cutting, you should go to the prefecture in the future, there are raw gemstones of better grades there!" Zheng Ziwen shook his head and commented. He sounded as though he made little of the ores in the basement.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming also shook his head and insisted. "I'll go to the prefecture next time, but I'm already thrilled upon seeing these stones, so I'm really eager to try now."

Lin Yichen responded helplessly, "Okay, if you insist… Please choose thirteen raw gemstones."

Based on Ou Yangming's current rewards, he could actually obtain only ten raw gemstones, but since Lin Yichen had said that he would give Ou Yangming three stones as gifts, it would be disrespectful of Ou Yangming to reject the offer.

Ou Yangming nodded slightly, then proceeded to pick from the pile of ores.

On the other hand, Lin Yichen brought the exhausted Zheng Ziwen and Ni Yinghong out of the basement to rest. They knew that Ou Yangming would take more than just an hour or two to be satisfied with his selection.

Ou Yangming naturally hoped that nobody would watch him from the side, so he quickly started choosing once they left.

When other people inspected raw gemstones, they would carefully observe a stone's surface, veined patterns, as well as its shape. In fact, they even gave top priority to stones that had blemishes. Therefore, a considerable amount of time was required to identify a raw gemstone's quality, and even then, nobody could guarantee that the process would be effective.

It was very likely that a bunch of old masters had their eyes set on a certain raw gemstone and had a good feeling about it, but realized after stone-cutting was done that it was just a worthless ore.

On the contrary, an ore that did not catch anyone's attention at all was the one that contained a stunning and wonderful gem.

Hence, though experiences were important in picking an ore, the most important aspect was luck — unbeatable good luck.

Nevertheless, none of those were Ou Yangming's concern.

His way of identifying a raw gemstone was extremely simple. He could easily find out the truth by touching one and using his Military Fire.

Ou Yangming used an hour to scan every stone in the basement.

It was worth noting that the people from the Yi Pavilion had good vision because Ou Yangming found quite a number of bright ones after checking everything. In terms of the ratio, basically one in every eight or nine ores contained a gem.

Of course, the gems' quality remained unknown.

Ou Yangming pondered for a while, then picked two ores that gave him a deep impression.

One of them was full of energy, whereas the other one was like a deep black hole as though it could not be filled no matter how much energy was inserted.

He had never stumbled upon anything like them before, so he decided to choose them.

Later, he randomly took ordinary ores to make up the number.

While Ou Yangming had the ability to pick eleven impressive ores, if he actually did that, even a fool would know that something was wrong with him.

On the other hand, it would not seem suspicious if he achieved a two-in-thirteen success rate as he would only be considered lucky.

Once Ou Yangming was done with his selections, he pulled the calling bell, and a servant came down to carry the ores upstairs.

Following that, he had a good rest thanks to Lin Yichen's arrangements. The next morning when he awakened, he felt refreshed as his body had recovered to the best state.

When Ni Yinghong and Zheng Ziwen showed up, they seemed to be in a much better condition too. At the very least, they had a good complexion.

Zheng Ziwen smiled when he noticed the ores picked by Ou Yangming. "Master Ou, do you want to carry out the stone-cutting process here? If you'd like to, let us join the fun! I believe that you'll gain something!"

Ou Yangming agreed without any hesitation. "Okay, I'll count on that."

Since they were Lin Yichen's guests, someone brought the stone-cutting tools once the order was given.

The ores were not ordinary items, which was why they could not be handled with rough means. If ores that actually contained a gem were hammered, the consequence would be unbearable.

There were different types of stone-cutting tools, and one who was familiar with them could unleash different effects using different tools.

Zheng Ziwen rubbed his hand and volunteered. "Master Ou, how about I help you with it?"

Ou Yangming was surprised. "Master Zheng, are you interested in this too?"

"I've gambled on stones in the prefecture, but I was always unlucky so I haven't gotten any good gems!" Zheng Ziwen giggled.

Ou Yangming was stunned and he looked at the master strangely. If he had not confirmed that two of the ores bore a gem, he would never let Zheng Ziwen help him after hearing what he said.

Zheng Ziwen did not notice Ou Yangming's reaction. He took the biggest stone-cutting tool and asked excitedly, "Where should we start?"

Ou Yangming twitched his mouth, then handed him one of the ordinary ores.

"Master Ou, you have a good eye indeed. This ore's surface looks amazing, so you might acquire something good if you're lucky!" Zheng Ziwen nodded after taking a look at the ore.

"Is that so? What if he's unlucky?" Ni Yinghong questioned coldly.

"If he's unlucky, he obviously won't gain anything," Zheng Ziwen was startled, but he quickly replied to her.

Ni Yinghong asked, "Master Zheng, how's your luck then?"

Zheng Ziwen was instantly dumbfounded and was lost for words.

"Haha, Master Zheng, please excuse Master Ni, she's only joking!" Ou Yangming immediately said and urged. "Quickly begin the process."

Zheng Ziwen looked at him gratefully, then started working. However, he wondered as he found it strange, 'Why does the little devilish girl always pick on me?'

The ore was soon split into two in Zheng Ziwen's hands, but he cut it slowly instead of rushing it. If the master noticed something bright halfway, he would have stopped right away, but unfortunately, nothing was seen even after the ore was split completely.

Ou Yangming was aware of the result already, thus he was not surprised.

On the other hand, Zheng Ziwen was unwilling to give up. He tried using other tools as well, but no matter how hard he tried, the final outcome was already set.

Zheng Ziwen said apologetically when he looked at the bits on the ground, "Ah, the ore was of such good quality, but it actually didn't contain a gem. What a pity!"

Ou Yangming smiled and reached for the second ore. "Master Zheng, please continue if you're interested."

Zheng Ziwen nodded and continued working. By then, everyone could tell that he was actually very interested in stone-cutting.

Ni Yinghong approached Ou Yangming to suggest to him, "Master Ou, do you want someone else to take over?"

Ou Yangming shook his head without hesitation. "The ores are already here, and the outcomes were already set, so it's not something that'll change even if someone else takes over. If no gems are found, it can only mean that I'm not destined to gain such fortune."

Ni Yinghong was slightly taken aback, and she cast a deeper look at Ou Yangming.

She had seen many wealthy people in her life. Although 200 taels of gold simply meant nothing to those people, their expressions were ever-changing whenever they watched a stone-cutting process. It was hard for them to keep a straight face even if they were normally composed, and none of them could be as calm as Ou Yangming at the moment.

The fact that Ou Yangming was so resolute at such a young age truly surprised Ni Yinghong, and a sweet feeling brewed inside her. 'Indeed, I didn't lay my eyes on the wrong person.'

Before long, the second ore was turned into worthless bits again through Zheng Ziwen's hands, yet Ou Yangming handed him the third ore calmly.

Through Zheng Ziwen's relentless efforts, the fourth, the fifth, the sixth… And up until the tenth ore were discarded as worthless.

By then, as thick-faced as Zheng Ziwen was, he put down the stone-cutting tools embarrassedly and said, "Master Ou, my lucky today is really… Terrible…"

Ou Yangming chuckled. "Master Zheng, look at what you're saying. Hehe, there aren't many left anyway, so help me cut another one."

Zheng Ziwen was startled. "Master Ou, do you really want me to cut it?"

"Of course." Ou Yangming smiled. He handed the master another ore as if it was the first ore instead of the eleventh one.

Zheng Ziwen nodded and said, "Master Ou, I'm definitely keeping you as a friend."

After working together for the appraisals, Zheng Ziwen, who was almost exhausted to death, initially harbored a strong prejudice against Ou Yangming. However, the prejudice was now completely reversed because he decided to view Ou Yangming as an intimate friend instead.

Zheng Ziwen picked up a tool and inhaled deeply as he focused on the ore.

By using his professional knowledge, he quickly identified the cutting point and proceeded to cut the ore.

After a brief moment, his eyes suddenly glowed with luster as he exclaimed, "I got it…"