His cheeks were tinged with confusion, his dark eyes filled with surprise.
"This nanmu coffin seems to have a hidden mechanism. It should have a false bottom. Otherwise, a nanmu coffin alone wouldn't be this heavy," Elder Lei muttered to himself, tapping on the coffin with his hand.
A smile then spread across his face. Just as he suspected, the coffin produced a solid sound when tapped, not a crisp one. It definitely contained something else.
Ye Fan nodded with a smile, his gaze full of admiration. As expected of Elder Lei; once he settled down and examined it carefully, he indeed discovered something unusual.
"No wonder people in the Jiangnan antique circle call Elder Lei a living fossil of the antique world. I didn't believe it before, but now I do. Elder Lei's eyesight is indeed sharp."
Ye Fan's words affirmed Elder Lei's speculation. Praised by Ye Fan like this, Elder Lei could only offer a wry smile. This young man was clearly mocking him, yet he couldn't do anything about Ye Fan.
"Although I can see that there's a false bottom in this coffin, I can't discern what's inside. Therefore, I'll have to rely on young friend Ye to reveal the mystery." Elder Lei offered a faint smile, a smile laced with many complex emotions. It wasn't that he was unwilling to continue his appraisal, but rather that at this crucial juncture, it was most appropriate for Ye Fan to unveil the secrets of the nanmu coffin. What Ye Fan lacked most at the moment was recognition. While he was the king of the antique world in Jiangcheng, he was far from it in Jiangnan. Therefore, this competition was an excellent opportunity for Ye Fan to build his reputation.
Upon hearing Elder Lei's words, Ye Fan naturally understood his intention and cast a grateful glance. "Thank you, Elder Lei." In a voice only they could hear, Ye Fan spoke softly before turning to face the crowd. He had already dismissed Elder Zheng and Feng Xiao, as they had been defeated and were no longer a threat. However, Elder Zheng was currently gritting his teeth, staring at Ye Fan.
"I want to see what you can come up with. Let me tell you, if you can't provide solid evidence, no matter how eloquently you speak, it will be useless." Clearly, Elder Zheng was angered. He and Elder Lei were both Level One appraisers, and Elder Zheng's status was even higher, being Elder Lei's senior brother. The fact that Elder Lei could detect the false bottom in the coffin while he couldn't was a direct slap in his face. How could he accept this?
Hearing Elder Zheng's words, Ye Fan let out a dismissive snort. "Do losers have the right to make demands now? How ridiculous." Indeed, Ye Fan had no good impression of Elder Zheng's arrogant demeanor. An appraiser should be calm, rational, and serene, with a mind as still as water – these were the most basic requirements. Yet, Ye Fan saw none of that in Elder Zheng. He only saw Elder Zheng's greed, his insidious cruelty, and his arrogance. Such a person was utterly unfit to be an appraiser. Therefore, Ye Fan was determined to teach him a lesson today, and to cleanse the antique world of such a person.
Ignoring Elder Zheng further, Ye Fan swept his gaze across the faces of the people below. "Elder Lei's guess just now was correct. This golden nanmu coffin does indeed have a false bottom, and this false bottom encloses the entire coffin."
"Enclosing the entire coffin? What does that mean?"
"But I've looked several times and haven't found anything unusual on the exterior of the coffin."
"What's going on? Please explain it clearly to us."
Facing the doubts and urgings of the crowd, Ye Fan calmly held the coffin in his palm and tapped rhythmically on the wood with his other hand. Tap, tap, tap, bang... After more than ten taps, Ye Fan's gaze sharpened. He then shouted, "Open." As if understanding human speech, the coffin slowly slid open. However, it wasn't the entire lid that slid open, but rather the uppermost layer. As this layer of the lid opened, a piece of crystal-clear jade was revealed.
This jade was as green as deep water, its core completely obscured. It even emitted a faint luminescence, sending a chill down one's spine. Most importantly, no one could discern the origin of this jade. It was known that there were only a few famous jade production sites in China, but none had yielded jade of such quality. This meant that this jade did not belong to any known production area.
Elder Zheng stared intently at the jade, his mind seemingly captivated. His eyes became unfocused, then began to concentrate. No one had expected Elder Zheng to undergo such a transformation, and everyone anxiously stepped forward. "Elder Zheng, what's wrong?" But Elder Zheng showed no response, as if he were frozen. Only Ye Fan looked at him indifferently, understanding what had happened. However, the animosity between him and Ye Fan was too deep. Ye Fan had no intention of waking him, and even if he were to save him, it would be only after he had suffered sufficient punishment.
"Bang." The next moment, Elder Zheng fell heavily to the ground, his eyes still open but without focus.
"Ye Fan, what exactly is going on?" Elder Lei asked in a low voice, leaning closer to Ye Fan. He knew very well that all of this was Ye Fan's doing. Only Ye Fan had the ability to make Elder Zheng fall victim to it so secretly. Ye Fan, with a somber expression, glanced indifferently at Elder Lei before replying in a deep voice, "He deserved it." This jade was called a soul-capturing jade, existing only in extremely yin places. It had been set in the golden nanmu coffin and buried deep underground with its owner for countless years, absorbing a large amount of yin energy, hence its chilling effect. Having been in the company of the dead for years, this soul-capturing jade had long possessed the ability to draw out souls. If one was not on guard, it was easy to fall victim to it.
Seeing Ye Fan's stubbornness, Elder Lei sighed helplessly. He knew his senior brother's character and that he should never have provoked Ye Fan, the malevolent star. But was it of any use to say anything now? "Brother Ye, although Elder Zheng's character is not good, he is still a member of our antique association. If something happens to him here, we might also be implicated. For my sake, please let this matter go, won't you?" It was rare for Elder Lei to beg someone so humbly.
Upon hearing Elder Lei's plea, Ye Fan quickly said, "Elder Lei, please don't say that. I'll let him go." After all, Elder Lei was his close friend, and if he made the elder beg him like this, it might hurt the old man's pride. Elder Lei then nodded with a smile. Following that, Ye Fan raised his hand and tapped the coffin again. With a series of thudding sounds, Elder Zheng let out a pained cry. He then spat out a mouthful of blood, his face as pale as paper, and gasped for breath.