221: Hundred Arts Road to Heaven - Restoration

Several low chuckles came from the surroundings.

Zhang Lie sat high on the Main Viewing Platform, his gaze coldly sweeping over this area, but he said nothing.

Su Ming put down his pen. “Reporting to the Steward, this Disciple is not unfamiliar with it, but dare not confirm it.” He pointed at the Brocade Box. “The appearance and Spiritual Pressure of this object are indeed identical to the ‘melting fire gold crystal’ recorded in the ancient texts.”

Zhao Yin's smugness intensified: “Then it is...”

“However,” Su Ming interrupted him, his voice clear, “when this Disciple was organizing the annual records in the Repair Hall, I saw a document. Three years ago, a batch of ‘Fire Spirit Jade’ was recalled by the Artifact Hall for certain reasons. The appraisal summary mentioned an extremely clever Counterfeiting Technique: using Flowing Fire Jade as the skin, Red Flame Stone as the core, supplemented by specific Fire Restrictions, it can mimic a high-grade fire spirit object. However, if it encounters the ‘Samadhi Gentle Fire’ and is burned at one point, the skin will scorch, the core will be exposed, and the Spiritual Power will dissipate.”

At some point, his fingertip had pinched a low-grade 'Fire Gathering Talisman'. With a slight expulsion of Spiritual Power, the Talisman ignited without wind, transforming into a small, pale yellow flame with constant yet extremely concentrated temperature.

“What are you doing?!” Zhao Yin's expression changed, and he reached out to stop him.

Su Ming moved faster. The small flame was already hovering an inch above the 'melting fire gold crystal', gently burning a specific point with the gentle fire.

“The true melting fire gold crystal is Extremely Yang in nature and stable in quality. When encountering this gentle fire, its brilliance should be contained within, and Golden Radiance should naturally emerge,” Su Ming said calmly. “But if it is the fabricated object mentioned in the records...”

Before he finished speaking.

“Sizzle...”

A slight sound, like hot oil hitting water, was heard.

At the spot where the crystal clear object was continuously burned by the flame, a wisp of almost invisible black smoke rose, and the originally perfect surface quickly scorched and cracked!

Immediately afterward, the cracks spread. The colorful 'shell' of the outer layer peeled off piece by piece, revealing a dark red stone core inside—dull in color, rough in texture, and weak in Spiritual Qi—it was precisely the cheapest Red Flame Stone!

Silence.

A deathly silence.

The muscles on Sun Tong's face twitched, and Zhao Yin's smug sneer completely froze, turning into disbelief, astonishment, and a hint of panic.

The surrounding Candidates who had been waiting for a spectacle were all dumbfounded.

“Fake... it's fake?!”

“My heavens, the Materials used for the assessment are actually fake?!”

“How dare Su Ming... How did he recognize it?!”

Su Ming gently blew out the flame and cupped his hands toward Zhao Yin and Sun Tong, whose faces had suddenly turned pale. “Stewards, it seems this object is not ‘melting fire gold crystal,’ but rather the fabricated item described in the records—the ‘Fire Jade Skin, Red Flame Core.’ I wonder if the examination question has a deeper meaning, or if...” He paused, leaving the rest unsaid.

But the unspoken words had already plunged Zhao Yin into an ice cellar.

On the Main Viewing Platform, Zhang Lie's eye twitched violently.

His gaze was like a knife, first sweeping over the heap of scorched, peeled-off waste, then coldly fixing on Zhao Yin, and finally settling on the calm-faced Su Ming, his eyes flashing with shock and a hint of forcibly suppressed anger.

“Second stage, first question, Su Ming: Grade A Top.” Zhang Lie's voice was dry and cold, echoing throughout the venue.

Immediately, he turned his gaze to the ashen-faced Zhao Yin, enunciating every word: “Zhao Yin, failure to properly inspect the chosen topic, ten days of confinement, and half a year's salary docked. This question is nullified. Change it!”

The incident concerning the material identification was like a resounding slap, fiercely hitting certain people across the face.

The expressions of those who had originally looked down upon Su Ming had now changed when they looked at him again. It was no longer the gaze reserved for a lucky young man, but for an unfathomable prodigy.

“This kid is a little strange.”

Zhao Yin stood by the side, his eyes malicious. “Brother-in-law, in the next stage, ‘Repair,’ we absolutely cannot let him steal the spotlight again. That ‘Nine-Bend Blazing Sun Formation’...”

“Shut up,” Zhang Lie interrupted him coldly. “Haven't you caused enough shame? The Formation has already been set up. Whether he can pass depends on his fate. If you try any more tricks and get caught, even I won't be able to protect you.”

Zhao Yin shrank his neck, but a trace of unwilling ruthlessness flashed in his eyes... “Second question: Repair.”

As the new instruction was given, the platforms in front of the Candidates sank again, replaced by miniature Formation Plates, each the size of a Millstone and dimly lit.

Su Ming looked at the Formation Plate before him, a subtle curve forming at the corner of his mouth.

Sure enough, it was this.

The Nine-Bend Blazing Sun Formation.

This Formation Plate had clearly been deliberately damaged.

Seven of the nine main Spiritual Power circuits were broken, and the core ‘Blazing Sun Convergence Point’ had been thoroughly messed up by a surge of savage, Foreign Spiritual Power.

According to the conventional method, the repairer would need extremely sophisticated Fire Control Techniques to gradually remove the Foreign Spiritual Power, and then re-engrave the 'Blazing Sun Runes' to repair the circuits. This would not only be time-consuming and exhausting but also highly prone to triggering a Formation Backlash, resulting in an Explode the Furnace if one was careless.

Su Ming did not attempt to forcefully reconnect the broken and violent 'Blazing Sun Runes'.

The faint blue Spiritual Power at his fingertip was like silk, probing into several abandoned Auxiliary Nodes at the edge of the Formation Plate, swiftly outlining a complex set of 'Vortex Spiritual Runes' that implied watery circulation.

“He actually intends to use water to aid fire?” Sun Tong stared wide-eyed.

Su Ming was seen pressing his self-made 'Primal Suppression Disk' into one of the nodes.

Instantly, the rampant, savage fire power inside the Formation Plate was guided by a flexible, faint blue spiritual light and diverted to the edges.

Just as the water and fire spiritual energies were on the verge of collision, the 'Vortex Spiritual Runes' suddenly lit up!

The savage fire Spiritual Power rushed into them, but instead of being extinguished, it was driven and tamed by the rotating Water Spirit Power, turning rigidness into flexibility. It formed spiraling Spiritual Power Vortexes of interwoven purple and red, settling stably on the periphery of the Formation Plate. The pressure at the Formation's core suddenly decreased, and the originally dim Core Runes spontaneously mended somewhat, emitting an aura of harmony where water and fire merged and Yin and Yang balanced each other, achieving Perfection.

“This is... using water as a guide to turn Fire Malevolence into a cycle? He can actually repair and improve the ‘Nine-Bend Blazing Sun Formation’ to this extent?” Luo Feng, who had approached unnoticed, exclaimed in a low voice, his eyes shining with wonder.

“Merge.”

As the last stroke fell, the Formation Plate chimed clearly, its radiance reaching Perfection.

The entire venue was silent.

Zhang Lie took a deep breath, looking at Su Ming with a complex gaze for a long time before slowly announcing:

“Second stage, second question, Su Ming... Grade A Top. His method may be included in the ‘Record of Anomalous Formation Interpretations’ for future reference.”