MTLNOVEL Chapter 17: Chapter 17: The Appraisal Skill, 100% Accuracy
"Take you up Sunlight Mountain?"
Mo Tie's brow furrowed in hesitation. It wasn't that there were any rules against it, but he wanted to understand Si Shu's reason for wanting to climb the mountain.
"I have a special ability," Si Shu began, a faint, knowing smile playing on his lips. "It allows me to appraise the quality of Tamahagane ore right through the surface of the rock."
He leaned in slightly. "Of all the ore we mine, I only ask for three pieces. The rest will be yours, Uncle."
Si Shu was confident. He didn't believe Mo Tie could refuse such an offer.
Appraising the quality of Tamahagane ore without even breaking the rock?!
Mo Tie's large, bell-like eyes went wide with disbelief.
"Of course," Si Shu added calmly. "If you don't believe me, we can test it once we're on the mountain."
"Fine. In three days, we'll go to Sunlight Mountain," Mo Tie declared without further questions. Doubting Si Shu here was pointless; the truth would be revealed on the mountain.
"Excellent. I'll come find you in three days, Uncle." With that, Si Shu stood up and left Mo Tie's house.
Three days wasn't a long time, but it was enough to get things done.
Bang!
Si Shu kicked open the door to Xiao Gang's room, startling him awake.
"Brother Xiao Gang, time to wake up and study!"
"Noooooo!"
With a pained howl, Xiao Gang was dragged from his bed. Despite his struggles, Si Shu hauled him into the study. For another three days, with Xiao Gang's help, Si Shu fully integrated all the knowledge he had memorized. If the old Si Shu had merely stored the information in his brain, the current Si Shu had become a true master in theory. He could now smelt ore himself without any issue.
The price, of course, was that Xiao Gang had fainted from exhaustion in the middle of the study.
"Ready to go?" Mo Tie asked, tossing one of two large backpacks to Si Shu. "We'll be on the mountain for about a week. I've packed some supplies for you."
"Thank you, Uncle Mo Tie." Si Shu swung the pack onto his back. "By the way, do you have a Nichirin Blade here?"
"No, only the Swordsmith Village produces those," Mo Tie replied, "but I do have a sharpened blade here." He tossed a sword to Si Shu, looking puzzled. "What do you need a sword for? There are no demons on Sunlight Mountain."
Si Shu just grinned without answering. Mo Tie scratched his head but didn't press the matter. He simply led Si Shu towards the nearby mountain.
Although it looked like their village was at the foot of Sunlight Mountain, it was actually a half-day's journey away. The closer they got, the hotter the air became. By the time they reached the base of the mountain, Si Shu could feel that the temperature was at least five degrees higher than in the village.
"You can probably feel it," Mo Tie said, wiping sweat from his forehead and taking a swig of water. "The closer you get to Sunlight Mountain, the hotter it gets."
He pointed upwards. "And the closer you get to the summit, the faster the temperature rises. Legend says the peak reaches several hundred degrees! Although no one from the village has ever reached the top, our efforts haven't been for nothing."
Mo Tie pointed ahead. At the base of the mountain were three separate paths. Each trailhead was marked with several large rocks, and the paths winding up the mountain showed clear signs of artificial excavation.
"These three roads are the result of generations of work by the villagers. They are the safest routes. Xiao Gang and I took path number three last time. Let's take path number one today."
"You're the expert here, Uncle Mo Tie. You lead the way."
After a short rest, Mo Tie led Si Shu up one of the paths onto Sunlight Mountain.
Huff... huff...
The higher they climbed, the hotter Mo Tie felt.
"If you're tired, we can take a rest—" he started to say, but the words caught in his throat.
He saw Si Shu, looking completely unfazed, as if the oppressive heat meant nothing. Not only that, but Mo Tie couldn't see a single drop of sweat on his forehead.
"A-Aren't you hot?!" Mo Tie stammered, swallowing hard.
"Hmm? It's fine, just a little," Si Shu replied casually.
Hearing this, Mo Tie felt too embarrassed to suggest a break. He could only mutter to himself, Comparisons are infuriating.
After walking for some time, Si Shu suddenly pointed to a large boulder. "That rock ahead should contain Tamahagane!"
"Really?" Mo Tie was skeptical. Despite the mountain's size, only a small fraction of its rocks actually contained the precious ore. He walked over to inspect it.
"Well, I'll be," he admitted. "You're right. There's definitely Tamahagane in this one."
The moment Mo Tie confirmed his judgment, a voice echoed in Si Shu's mind.
[Congratulations to the Host for acquiring the skill: Novice-Level Appraisal (0/1000).]
[Appraisal: Allows the user to determine an item's quality, structure, internal materials, and all other information.]
[Points needed for next level: 1000.]
[Successfully used Novice-Level Appraisal on a rock (containing Tamahagane). +50 Points.]
[Novice-Level Appraisal: 50/1000. Points needed for next level: 950.]
[Detected that the Host unlocked Appraisal through his own efforts. Bonus +500 Points.]
[Novice-Level Appraisal: 550/1000. Points needed for next level: 450.]
Si Shu felt a surge of delight. He hadn't expected to unlock a new skill at that moment.
Just then, Mo Tie spoke up. "Hold on, kid. I remember you said you could appraise the quality of the Tamahagane, not just find it. Any experienced master in the village can find ore with some luck."
Mo Tie himself had a success rate of seventy to eighty percent. But judging the quality of the ore inside the rock? That was beyond anyone's known ability.
"This piece of Tamahagane is about a two-point grade," Si Shu stated directly.
"Two points?" Mo Tie was puzzled. He put down his backpack and began taking out a set of tools, planning to build a simple furnace to verify Si Shu's claim.
"No need for all that trouble."
Si Shu drew the sword from his waist and walked up to the boulder.
"Sun Breathing, First Form: Waltz!"
A fiery, arching slash flew from his blade, instantly shattering the large rock.
"What are you doing, kid?! You'll destroy the Tamahagane inside!" Mo Tie yelled, trying to stop him.
"Don't worry, the Tamahagane won't break," Si Shu called back as he stepped into the cloud of dust.
Whoosh!
A fist-sized piece of ore flew out and landed perfectly in Mo Tie's hands.
"Uncle Mo Tie, take a look," Si Shu's voice came from the dust. "Is that a two-point quality piece of Tamahagane?"
Staring at the ore in his hand, Mo Tie was stunned. "This... This really is a two-point grade..."
He blinked, trying to calm his racing heart. He grabbed Si Shu by the shoulders, shaking him with excitement. "How did you do that?! Such a fast, precise judgment and extraction!"
"Stop shaking me, stop shaking me!" Si Shu laughed. "It's because of my personal constitution."
He wasn't lying. From the moment he saw the rock, he could sense a faint energy within it. By judging the position and strength of that energy, he could naturally determine the Tamahagane's location and quality. As for using Sun Breathing, he was absolutely confident he wouldn't damage the ore.
After hearing Si Shu's explanation, Mo Tie's jaw dropped wide enough to fit a pineapple.
"No time to waste. Let's continue," Si Shu said, already walking toward another rock. "This one... three points."
Explosions echoed across Sunlight Mountain as one piece of Tamahagane after another was extracted by Si Shu. In just one hour, he had located and mined over twenty pieces.
And his accuracy was one hundred percent.
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