PCJ – Chapter 718 Did a Hundred Million Go Down the Drain?

This time, the man in the corner did not continue bidding—after all, Kong Fangzhou’s price made it clear they were determined to win the sword at any cost. Perhaps the man never intended to secure it no matter what.

“One hundred million, once.”

“One hundred million, twice!”

“One hundred million, three times! Sold!”

Luo Aiqi brought the gavel down heavily.

Zhang Jiaohua and Kong Fangzhou both finally let out a long sigh of relief. Neither of them were skilled in auctions, so they could only use this brute-force method to secure the ancient sword. Although they spent a lot, the sword was in their hands now—that was what mattered most.

Before long, the ancient sword was delivered to their private room. When Zhang Jiaohua held it, a surge of icy coldness spread from the hilt into his hand. This chill was no ordinary sensation—even Zhang Jiaohua had to quietly channel spiritual energy to resist it.

“One hundred million well spent!” Zhang Jiaohua said with delight.

The subsequent auction lots no longer held any meaning for him or Kong Fangzhou.

Xu Xiaoting smiled helplessly. If it had been her bidding, she would have raised the price step by step—maybe the sword could have been bought for less than ten million. She even suspected that the other bidder might have been a plant from the seller’s side. But she kept that thought to herself.

“Are you two leaving already?” Xu Xiaoting asked.

Zhang Jiaohua really did intend to leave, but seeing Xu Xiaoting, he scratched his head a little awkwardly.

Xu Xiaoting could tell that Zhang Jiaohua and Kong Fangzhou were eager to return and study the sword.

“You’re in such a hurry to go?” she asked, a little disappointed.

Zhang Jiaohua noticed the faint disappointment on her face and quickly said:
“This ancient sword is very important to us—we want to study it first. Xu Xiaotong, are you interested in coming to Bijiang City? Our pharmaceutical company really needs young scientists like you. Right now, Dr. Mei Qing is leading a research team there. If you’re interested, you could join her team. Later on, you might even build your own.”

Of course Xu Xiaoting was tempted—Mei Qing was now a world-renowned scientist. Mei Qing and Zhang Jiaohua had once been in the same team. Going to Bijiang would mean access to cutting-edge research—and more importantly, a chance to be closer to someone. Xu Xiaoting now regretted her earlier choice; had she decided differently back then, she might already be part of Zhang Jiaohua’s team.

At present, Xu Xiaoting had only just finished her combined Master’s and PhD coursework and was about to begin her dissertation research. Her advisor had planned to put her on a lab project, but she had hesitated. She didn’t agree with some of her advisor’s projects, feeling they lacked real value and innovation. In truth, they didn’t interest her. Still, she hadn’t had a better option—until now.

“I still need to discuss this with my advisor,” Xu Xiaoting said nervously.

“No problem. You can come anytime. I’ll talk to Dr. Mei and have her prepare a researcher’s position for you. You can get used to the lab environment first, and later conduct your own independent research,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

“Zhang Jiaohua, why did you go back into government work?” Xu Xiaoting asked—she had never understood that.

“I want to experience everything,” Zhang Jiaohua said with a smile.

Since they were eager to examine the sword, Zhang Jiaohua and Kong Fangzhou quickly said their goodbyes. That very night, they rushed back to Bijiang City.

Inside the Giant Sword Tower, a very unique instrument stood in the center of a room. It was a special device—an analyzer based on bio-energy, somewhat like an atomic absorption spectrometer, but instead of using electricity, it used bio-energy.

This was developed by scientists of the Meishan Group—bio-energy–based instruments with far stronger detection capabilities than conventional devices. Many researchers here were conducting all sorts of experiments, constantly refining these new bio-energy instruments.

“Look—this ancient sword contains several elements that don’t even exist on Earth. These elements are precisely what give the sword its extraordinary performance. But I suspect that with modern science, it would be impossible to forge such a blade. I believe this is the product of refining arts,” Kong Fangzhou said after careful testing.

“Can you forge one?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

Kong Fangzhou shook his head. “We lack the materials. I suspect this sword was forged from a meteorite. Even if we had the materials, I’m not sure I could replicate it. Whoever forged this sword—whether Ganjiang or not—was surely a powerful cultivator who even used some secret technique.”

“Where could these materials come from?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“Sometimes meteorites like these are sold in the marketplace, but not all meteorites contain such elements unknown to Earth. We don’t know exactly where they come from. But I think the Moon might have many such meteorites—since they’d be better preserved there. Maybe the Meishan Group should expand into space research. Who knows, maybe someday we’ll get the chance to pick what we need from the Moon,” Kong Fangzhou joked.

“So that hundred million was wasted?” Zhang Jiaohua laughed.

“Not wasted. I think this sword is worth the price,” Kong Fangzhou said, treasuring it above all else.

“Good. Learn the refining techniques behind this sword. Maybe someday we’ll obtain the right materials, and then you’ll have the chance to forge a peerless sword like this yourself,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

Just then, Ji Jiaxin came to find him. All the approvals for their automobile project had gone through—the new energy cars were about to launch. The industrial park had completed its trial production, and now full-scale production was underway.

“Mayor, our new energy vehicles are about to launch. We’re preparing a release conference. You’re the supervising leader, and you’ve always supported this project wholeheartedly. Naturally, you must attend,” Ji Jiaxin said.

“What would I go for? This is your responsibility. I’d rather not steal the spotlight,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

“No way. I’ve decided—you must go. Whether you want to or not,” Ji Jiaxin insisted.

In the end, Zhang Jiaohua had no choice but to agree to her demand.