From Celestial Official to Great Celestial Venerable

Chapter 9 Calligraphy and Painting
After finishing his meal, feeling restless, he decided to try his luck at the secondhand market on Sifu Street.

The "Thirteen Transformations of the Divine God" he obtained from the stone lion yesterday had given him a taste of success. The Heavenly Essence Furnace's ability to identify and distinguish rare and precious items among countless old objects filled him with longing.

Especially stone lions, which are far from being magical treasures, can be turned into gold by him simply because they are imbued with the essence of the previous master's teachings.

Such old objects, existing somewhere between the mortal and the immortal realm, are disdained by true cultivators and unknown to ordinary people. Yet, in his hands, they can be transformed from decay into wonder.

Wandering through the streets and alleys, I stepped into the Sifu Street market once more. The familiar cries of peddlers rang out: "Rattle drum, needle and thread..."

How much is this potted plant?

Qin Chuan noticed something and his heart stirred.

The He family's house he's currently renting doesn't have a latrine, unlike in the countryside where one can relieve oneself at will.

Here, one has to go out into the alley at night to use the public toilet, which is extremely inconvenient.

The chamber pot was precisely what he hadn't brought with him when he came.

Three coins.

After some haggling, the deal was finally struck at two spirit coins.

He tucked the newly bought basin under his arm and headed straight for the secondhand market around the corner.

"Hey, young man, you're here again?" The vendor who sold the melon-shaped hat yesterday actually recognized him.

Qin Chuan rummaged through the stall for a while, then shook his head and said, "Why are there still these old items? No new stuff?"

The vendor selling melon-shaped hats chuckled: "In our line of work, how can we restock so quickly? We haven't even sold out these yet, how dare we bring in any new ones?"

"So you're admitting these are newly arrived goods?" Qin Chuan chuckled.

"They're imported, but not new! They're all old stuff!" the stall owner hurriedly denied.

Qin Chuan smiled and said, "Then I'll come again next time."

After wandering around the flea market for a while, it seemed to confirm what the melon-hat vendor had said: new goods were arriving very slowly, and most of what I saw were still yesterday's old items.

Just as I was feeling disappointed and about to turn away, I suddenly heard someone laughing and asking from a nearby calligraphy and painting stall:

"Boss, you're really bold! That deputy county magistrate is already in jail, and you still dare to sell his calligraphy here? Tell me honestly, from which courtyard's trash can did you rummage through? Aren't you afraid of getting into trouble?"

"What trouble could I possibly cause? I'm just an ordinary citizen, who's going to arrest me for this? Besides..."

The calligraphy and painting stall owner smiled with narrowed eyes.

"If it weren't for Vice County Magistrate Zhao being imprisoned, how could people like us ever see the handwriting of such an official? To tell you the truth, last night I was passing through Yongkang Street when I saw a pile of calligraphy and paintings burning. Upon closer inspection, I realized it was Zhao Zhongji's calligraphy! I risked my life to snatch this piece from the fire. Take a look..."

"The calligraphy is indeed authentic. Although Zhao Zhongji has been imprisoned, his calligraphy skills have always been excellent. However..."

The guest laughed and cursed.
"But now it's worthless! Who would still collect the calligraphy of a corrupt official?"

Before Zhao Zhongji fell from power, one of his calligraphy and paintings was worth nearly a thousand spirit dollars and was still hard to come by.

Now that he's imprisoned, those who were once close to him are avoiding him like the plague, so they've secretly either thrown away or burned his calligraphy, rendering it worthless.

"This... it's the handwriting of the Deputy County God of Jiuchuan County, a Golden Core cultivator! You should at least name a price, and if it's suitable, I'll let you have it," the stall owner urged.

"I'd rather look at something else. This painting, even if given to me for free, would take up too much space." The customer said without hesitation, shaking his head and leaving.

Qin Chuan, standing not far away, narrowed his gaze slightly, fixing it on the calligraphy and painting:
"Calligraphy personally written by a Golden Core cultivator? Could it contain magical essence?"

With a thought in mind, he couldn't suppress his curiosity and strolled over to the calligraphy and painting stall.

"Young man, buying a painting?" The stall owner greeted the new customer with a beaming smile.

Qin Chuan remained noncommittal, silently reaching out to brush over the calligraphy and paintings on the stall one by one, finally placing his fingertips on Zhao Zhongji's inscription.

Above the painting are four large characters:
Great ambitions will unfold.

Signed: Inscribed by Zhao Zhongji on the Spring Equinox of the Jia Chen year. It is a piece of calligraphy from last spring.

The moment my fingertips touched the rice paper, the words appeared in my mind:
Item: Calligraphy Inscription

[The Golden Core cultivator Zhao Zhongji wielded his brush, his strokes flowing like dragons and snakes, the ink imbued with magical power and containing profound spiritual essence. This could be refined into one unit of calligraphy cultivation, or recycled into two points of spiritual essence.] Qin Chuan's heart trembled slightly.

2 points!
Whether it's the mother-and-child mithril needles or the guardian stone lion, the result of refining them is merely a single point of spiritual essence. This inscription, however, contains two!
He remained expressionless and asked calmly:

How much is the painting?

The calligraphy and painting stall owner, seeing that the young man was getting straight to the point, was about to make an exorbitant demand when Qin Chuan preemptively spoke up:
"Boss, don't try to fool me. I heard it clearly just now. Zhao Zhongji has been thrown into prison. You picked up this painting from the fire."

The stall owner was taken aback, then smiled and said, "So what do you mean?"

Qin Chuan said, "To be honest, I practice calligraphy, and Zhao Zhongji's handwriting is unique and worth imitating. But if you ask for too high a price, I won't be a sucker. Give me a fair price."

The stall owner knew that this item was not what it used to be; he had picked it up for free, and selling it would be a profit. So he held up one finger and said, "Five hundred coins."

Qin Chuan shook his head: "Fifty spirit coins."

"You've bargained too hard!" the stall owner said with a bitter face. "Add a little more."

Qin Chuan said, "Fifty spirit coins. If you have anything else, I'll take it all. If you sell, I'll take it; if not, then forget it."

"Really? There are still a few, but they've all been burned. Look at this..." Upon hearing this, the stall owner's eyes lit up, and he quickly took out three burnt banners from under his stall.

"Are they all fragments?" Qin Chuan frowned.

Only three inscriptions remain, which can be pieced together to form only seven characters. Originally, they should have been "Heaven rewards diligence," "The sea accepts all rivers," and "Tranquility leads to far-reaching goals." Now, "Heaven rewards diligence" is reduced to "Heaven...diligence," "The sea accepts all rivers" is reduced to "The sea accepts...", and "Tranquility leads to far-reaching goals" is reduced to "Tranquility...to...".

He examined it closely while running his hand over it.

[Damaged Inscription]

[Inscribed by Golden Core cultivator Zhao Zhongji... It can be recycled into 1 point of Dharma Essence]

……

Qin Chuan was secretly delighted, for even the damaged pieces could be recycled to extract a bit of magical essence!
When the disgraced Deputy County God Zhao wrote the inscription, he did not do it perfunctorily. He put his heart and soul into every word, so even the incomplete characters contained the essence of the law.

He feigned disgust, saying, "Boss, you're really dishonest! It's burned to the ground, and you still want to sell it for money?"

Even the most thick-skinned stall owner couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed, so he coughed and said, "Young man, since it's just for practicing calligraphy, not for collection, and merely for copying, is that alright?"

"Do I look like a sucker to you?" Qin Chuan retorted.

The stall owner sighed: "How about this, you buy another piece from my stall, and I'll give you these few incomplete calligraphy pieces as a gift?"

In the end, Qin Chuan picked out an old almanac, priced at two spirit coins, and looked at the stall owner.

The stall owner's lips twitched slightly, and he turned his head away, conceding defeat: "Alright! Fifty-two spirit coins, please take it..."

Qin Chuan sighed inwardly.

With a heavy heart, he took out the spirit money and accepted the scroll of calligraphy and painting.

Although I know that no matter how you calculate it, I am making a huge profit, I still feel heartache seeing my money slip away like water.

Carrying several scrolls of calligraphy and paintings, Qin Chuan left Sifu Street, counting the three spirit stones he had left. He gritted his teeth and stamped his foot.
"If you come here again, I'll chop off your hand!"

He secretly resolved that he would not come here to squander money again for at least a month until he had a stable source of income.

I haven't started working yet and don't have a salary. If I continue to spend so lavishly, I'm afraid I'll really starve.

Back to the small courtyard outside Jianchun Gate.

Fortunately, no one was in the courtyard.

Qin Chuan breathed a sigh of relief, slipped into the room, closed the door tightly, and drew the curtains. He could finally try out the second function of the Heavenly Essence Furnace.

"Rework!"

He placed his palm on the scrolls of calligraphy and paintings.

(End of this chapter)