At the same time, onlookers felt utterly bewildered watching Wang Guan actually cleaving the already exposed jade rough. What was the point of cutting an open-faced stone in half again?

Perplexed, everyone patiently watched, occasionally speculating about Wang Guan’s intentions. Suddenly, someone declared with certainty, “I think he’s trying to control his luck…”

“Control luck? What does that mean?” Naturally, the bystanders didn't understand.

“You don’t even get that? It means manipulating fortune,” the person said smugly. “He’s won four stones in a row. While his luck is indeed soaring, everyone knows the principle that too much rigidity leads to breakage. So, he must make an adjustment to avoid a complete loss on the fifth cut, which would cause his fortune to drain away instantly.”

“Anyway, this is an open-faced stone, so no matter how he cuts it, it’s only profit, no loss. Knowing he won’t lose means he can relax his nerves, adjust his mentality, and then press on. It’s a perfect combination of work and rest, killing two birds with one stone.”

Hearing this, some scoffed, some were half-convinced, and others genuinely believed it.

Regardless, the stone cutting continued. And compared to the previous few rough and crude attempts, Wang Guan’s process for cutting this piece of jade was notably more cautious. Perhaps because the last few stones were merely the outer crust, where he didn't need to worry about loss, cutting the actual jade now naturally brought a degree of restraint.

Of course, there was surely another reason…

Soon after, Wang Guan split the exposed jade, then immediately switched off the cutter and began scooping water to clean one of the newly cut surfaces. The crowd gathered around curiously. After just one look, they were all stunned into silence.

“Ah, how can this be?”

“It looks like… a Cloud Dragon.”

Amidst the gasps of astonishment, on the cut surface of the jade, the naturally occurring cloudy white substance, caused by the wrapping of the fibrous bands, presented an astonishing sight. Normally, this white mist-like material would be worthless white stone, but at times, one had to marvel at the sheer artistry of nature, transforming the mundane into the magnificent.

At this moment, across the relatively wide and long jade surface, the misty white substance resembled a Cloud Dragon, all teeth and claws, spiraling and soaring through the air. The fuzziness of the mist was key; this quality of being vaguely present made the dragon appear as if it were truly riding the clouds, imbued with an ethereal and mysterious aura.

This Cloud Dragon pattern wasn't exactly photorealistic—perhaps only seven or eight parts similar. Despite this, through their own imaginations, the onlookers perceived the Cloud Dragon as incredibly lifelike. Especially the posture, with its claws brandished, it seemed as if it were suppressed and sealed within the jade, fighting fiercely to break free from the stone…

“Everyone look at the eyes!”

Just then, someone spotted something even more miraculous and let out another gasp. The crowd followed their gaze. The Cloud Dragon was in a posture of soaring flight, and its head was twisted back, looking behind it.

The Dragon turning its head possessed a certain fierce majesty. But that wasn't the main point. The focus was that the position of the dragon’s eyes was completely clear of the misty fibers, revealing the green of the jade beneath, forming two distinct dots. Precisely these two dots provided the effect of 'dotting the eyes for the dragon,' bringing the image to life.

It must be remembered that the Cloud Dragon was merely an ethereal mist. While the clawed body had a seven or eight-tenths resemblance, the dragon's head felt vague, achieving only a spiritual likeness. But with the addition of two eyes, the head instantly became vibrant, giving the impression of a real dragon.

Eyes are not only the window to the human soul but also the source through which all beings express emotion. If the eyes are dull and lifeless, people will certainly describe them as 'dead fish eyes,' and there will be no affection for them. But if the eyes are lively and expressive, viewers will feel an inherent fondness and affirmation.

Now, this Cloud Dragon had two corresponding points where its eyes should be, and under the sunlight, they even emitted a faint greenish sheen, as if the Cloud Dragon, struggling to ascend, could not break the jade's confinement, causing its eyes to shoot forth rays of anger. This effect instantly elevated the artistic quality of the Cloud Dragon pattern to a higher level.

After observing for a moment, someone sighed, “If we find a renowned master carver to add a little refinement, and then submit it to the Tiangong Award competition, it could definitely win a gold medal.”

“Refinement?” Someone immediately retorted, “This is the marvelous creation of nature; it’s already perfect. Why refine it? Isn't letting nature take its course better?”

“A little refinement would make the form more lifelike, increasing its artistic value. What’s wrong with that?”

“Art? Destroying natural beauty—that is the true defilement of art…”

For a moment, two middle-aged men with a slightly artistic sensibility began to argue. However, the others paid no mind to the quarrel; instead, they crowded around Wang Guan, starting a new round of bidding.

Of course, since the quality of the jade wasn't top-tier, the initial prices were understandably low, with figures like two million and three million being thrown out one after another.

To this, Wang Guan merely smiled and said calmly, “As I said before, anything under ten million, please don’t bother opening your mouths.”

Instantly, everyone was taken aback. Some even grumbled resentfully, “Ten million again? Why don't you just rob us…”

“Twelve million. I’ll take it.” Just then, a middle-aged man raised his hand and smiled, “I truly love this piece. I hope everyone will grant me some face and not compete with me.”

A high price of twelve million could indeed scare off many, but certainly not the managers of several jewelry companies or the wealthy tycoons who had heard the news.

However, after weighing the costs, they all backed down. Because the jade itself was certainly not worth twelve million; what was valuable was the Cloud Dragon depiction. But no matter how valuable a picture was, it couldn't possibly be worth twelve million. Feeling it wasn't worth the risk, everyone found it strange—where did this sucker come from, willing to throw away so much money?

“Ah, I remember now.” At that moment, someone in the crowd murmured softly, “He is the owner of the Cloud Dragon Pavilion. No wonder he is willing to pay such a high price for this Cloud Dragon Jade.”

“Cloud Dragon Pavilion?” The bystander looked confused. “Never heard of it.”

“It’s a newly opened jewelry store in the East City,” the person explained. “I happened to pass by and curiously went in. The quality of their gems is decent, but they just lack fame.”

“They lacked fame before, but that’s hard to say after today,” someone chuckled knowingly. “This owner is smart; by buying this Cloud Dragon Jade at a high price, he’s not just advertising, he’s acquired a living signboard.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. Cloud Dragon Pavilion, Cloud Dragon Jade—they complemented each other perfectly. Twelve million, it seemed, was not an unjust price. But in the next second, everyone realized they had underestimated the Cloud Dragon Pavilion owner’s shrewdness.

After confirming no one was competing with him, the owner of the Cloud Dragon Pavilion immediately wrote a check and handed it to Wang Guan, then asked with a beaming smile, “Young man, the one piece of jade you mentioned, does that include the other half, right?”

“Huh!”

The crowd started, then quickly realized they had overlooked a crucial point. Wang Guan had cut the exposed jade in half; one half had the Cloud Dragon pattern on its cut surface. So, did the other half also have something on its surface? Furthermore, when he asked for ten million, was that price for only half the jade, or for the whole piece composed of both halves?

Amidst everyone’s doubt, Wang Guan laughed heartily, “Of course, it includes both. Both sides are yours.”

The Cloud Dragon Pavilion owner’s eyes immediately lit up. He smiled at Wang Guan and, without even inspecting the other half, immediately signaled his assistants to move both pieces of jade out to the waiting vehicle.

“What great foresight,” someone sighed. “This way, someone is bound to be unable to suppress their curiosity about what the other side looks like, and they’ll definitely make a trip to the Cloud Dragon Pavilion. I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m definitely going to take a look…”

“Right.”

The others nodded in agreement, causing the few jewelry store managers to exchange glances, harboring a touch of regret. If they had known, they should have interfered earlier to block the sale, not letting their competitor secure such perfect advertising. But regret was useless now; one must look forward.

With this thought, the jewelry company managers, along with the others, turned their attention to Wang Guan. They knew there were many more stones inside the truck, and they desperately hoped Wang Guan would continue cutting. Having already experienced five consecutive fortunes, the question now was whether he would continue his streak of success or crash midway, ending the myth.

Under their expectant gazes, Wang Guan pulled out another rough stone from the truck bed. The cut surface of this rough stone showed a faint, pale purple sheen. However, the color was very indistinct, mostly white material, suggesting low gambling potential. But the others hardly cared about the potential; the moment they saw the purple, they became instantly excited and agitated.

“Lavender!”

“Maybe it’s Ice-grade material!”

“Not necessarily… could be Glass-type.”

Amidst a chorus of gasps, everyone’s reaction was strangely unified; it seemed no one suspected Wang Guan would fail the cut. Some were already calculating the liquid assets in their bank accounts and the maximum they could mobilize for bidding.

Soon after, someone discovered their guess was correct. When Wang Guan fully cut open the rough stone, inside lay a piece of Glass-type Lavender Jade emitting a crystalline luster.

Red jade, green jade, and purple jade are esteemed; lavender is the noblest variety in the jade family. Moreover, the purple hue of this piece was exceptionally pure—an elegant color, light and graceful like distant mist, suggesting auspicious purple energy rising from the east, full of subtle beauty.

Although lavender jade is generally considered more suitable for female wear compared to red or green jade, one must not forget that women’s money is the easiest to earn. The jewelry store managers understood this principle perfectly. Therefore, the moment they saw the lavender jade, the question wasn't if they should buy it, but how much they should spend to acquire it.

Not only the jade merchants, but also those great tycoons were fascinated by this lavender jade, full of mysterious elegance. Even if they didn't wear it themselves, they could gift it to their wives, daughters, or mistresses. Thus, right at the start, someone immediately called out a price of twenty million…