Seeing this, Yu Feibai reached out to take it, but unexpectedly, Gao Dequan was faster, snatching the crimson bead first and examining it with deep concentration.

"Sigh..."

Yu Feibai sighed helplessly, then answered Wang Guan's question: "If this isn't an illusion, then this bead must be one of those legendary rare treasures."

"Rare treasures!" Wang Guan mused, thoroughly agreeing.

The bead floated halfway in the water, and the strange phenomenon of purple energy and rosy mist it displayed was beyond ordinary means. Perhaps, only a miracle could describe it.

"Wait a moment..."

Suddenly, Gao Dequan frowned: "Why is the Laozi's Journey to the West depiction from before missing from the bead?"

"What?"

Yu Feibai exclaimed in shock and quickly leaned over to look. Indeed, around the dark purple bead, there were many seemingly chaotic textures, completely lacking the pattern seen earlier in the water.

"I think... you have to put it in water to see the pattern," Wang Guan reminded him. In the span of one night, he couldn't have just stared at it; he must have conducted quite a few experiments. If nothing else, he had discerned a pattern to how the bead's imagery manifested.

"How magical!"

Yu Feibai and Gao Dequan were astonished again.

At the same time, Wang Guan poured another cup of clear water, signaling: "Gently place the bead into the water. Once it naturally floats, you will see the pattern."

"Plop!"

Gao Dequan didn't hesitate. He relaxed his fingers, and the dark purple bead immediately sank to the bottom of the cup, sending up a small string of bubbles. Moments later, the bead slowly floated up, gently rotating.

Then, a wisp of purple energy diffused and rose, twisting and dancing like a dragon and snake, coiling above the cup.

"That's it, that's it..." Yu Feibai gasped in excitement, his expression extremely tense. Holding his breath, he stared intently, unwilling to miss a single frame.

Suddenly, as the bead turned, a landscape of towering mountains and vast passes appeared on its left half, along with a middle-aged scholar gazing eastward from below the city gate, awaiting something. As the bead rotated slightly, against the backdrop of the water ripples, the scholar's expression, long beard, and clothing lines were clearly visible, vividly lifelike.

After about ten seconds, the right half of the bead seemed to glow with a purple radiance. Looking closer, one saw the purple light flash, revealing an azure ox walking with its head held high. Sitting on the ox's back was an old man with the bearing of an immortal, his expression serene and content, brimming with the aura of effortless action.

Gao Dequan and Yu Feibai watched in silence, slowly becoming engrossed.

After a long while, Gao Dequan snapped back to reality, blinking his dry eyes. He suddenly waved his hand over the rim of the cup, and the floating wisp of purple energy seemed sentient, wriggling and changing direction accordingly.

"Ah..."

Yu Feibai had just regained his senses, but seeing this scene, he was instantly dumbfounded, unable to believe his eyes.

For a moment, even Gao Dequan was stunned into silence, unsure of what to say.

"It truly is a miracle," Yu Feibai murmured. "This thing is definitely not ordinary. Could it be a Dharma treasure or an inner elixir belonging to a Daoist practitioner?"

"Nonsense," Gao Dequan frowned upon hearing this and couldn't help but rebuke, "Feibai, when you don't understand something, never jump to conclusions before examining it carefully."

"Then, Uncle De, what exactly is this bead?"

Yu Feibai’s eyes never left the bead as it rotated, exclaiming in awe, "If the Swastika symbol reflected by Fang Mingsheng's jade Buddha could still be explained by the physics of light and image projection, then how do we analyze and explain the bead's strange phenomenon and the purple energy floating in the air?"

Gao Dequan frowned and gently reached out, lifting the bead from the water. Instantly, the strange phenomena vanished; the purple energy in the air, and the vividly lifelike patterns, completely disappeared.

Wiping the water droplets from the bead's surface dry, Gao Dequan examined it closely, finding nothing remarkable about it besides its intensely bright crimson-purple color. The markings swirling around the surface were incredibly fine, varying in faintness, and showed absolutely no discernible pattern.

While Gao Dequan was appreciating it, Yu Feibai let out a long breath, his eyes shining brightly, and asked with intense curiosity, "Wang Guan, how did you acquire this treasure?"

"I bought it a few days ago; you were there at the time," Wang Guan replied with a slight smile, pointing a finger toward the broken Three-Legged Golden Toad by the bedside.

Yu Feibai's mouth fell wide open, large enough, it seemed, to fit a fist.

After a pause, Yu Feibai clutched his head and cried out in agony, "You're not going to tell me this bead is the one this broken toad was holding in its mouth, are you?"

"Heh, it seems that way," Wang Guan rubbed his nose, feeling slightly embarrassed. "You mentioned the camouflage technique of 'jade hidden within stone' to me yesterday afternoon. When I got back and saw this Three-Legged Golden Toad, I got the itch, cracked open its head, and took out this bead. I never expected it to be a treasure."

"Actually, when I took the bead out, its surface was covered in soot and was dark and unremarkable. I thought I had wasted my time." Wang Guan continued without batting an eye, "Later, when I washed it in water, a layer of film actually peeled off the bead, and then the patterns appeared. Truly lucky."

At this point, Yu Feibai was completely speechless.

Even Gao Dequan, who was studying the bead, sighed inwardly that Wang Guan's luck was defying the heavens.

After another long moment, Yu Feibai wailed, "Heavens above, Earth! A treasure was right before my eyes, and I missed it! If heaven would give me another chance..."

"Camouflage technique, jade hidden within stone!"

Ignoring Yu Feibai's miserable lamentations, Gao Dequan mumbled to himself, then suddenly strode back into the room, grabbed his phone, and dialed a number. After a brief conversation, he hung up.

"Old Qian is awake; let's go over right now," Gao Dequan announced, urging Wang Guan and Yu Feibai to quickly wash their faces, brush their teeth, change clothes, and then drove off.

It was around six or seven in the morning; the sky was already bright. The pace of modern life was fast; the streets were already filled with hurried office workers rushing to catch transport, the continuous sound of car horns signaling the start of another clamorous day.

In the car, Yu Feibai was still immersed in the shock of the massive blow, sighing constantly.

Wang Guan held the purple energy treasure bead in his hand and curiously asked, "Uncle De, do you have any idea where this thing comes from?"

"I have some leads, but the specific situation will require Old Qian's expert eye," Gao Dequan replied, focusing intently on driving. A short while later, they arrived at Fang Mingsheng's villa.

The car Gao Dequan was driving was lent to him temporarily by Fang Mingsheng. Upon arriving at the villa, the security guard at the gate recognized the license plate and also knew Gao Dequan and the others, so he let them pass directly.

They smoothly entered the villa and reached the exquisite courtyard, where Old Qian was already awake, practicing morning exercises on a small patch of lawn...

............................ Thanks to book friends "Kaixing Luoba, Xingkong de Baiyun, Xiexie 1972" for the tips. On the weekend, while enjoying yourselves, don't forget to favorite and recommend. C