A few people hastily rose, following the young man upstairs in no particular order, arriving before a heavily secured room. The youth then produced a key, unlocked the door, switched on the interior light, and ushered them inside.

Stepping in, Wang Guan immediately noticed the room was vast, easily spanning fifty or sixty square meters, likely occupying half the entire building. Within this spacious area were numerous counters and bookshelves.

Yet, at this moment, these counters and shelves felt somewhat empty. Seeing this, the group frowned, realizing they were probably among the last batch of bargain hunters to arrive.

"Alas... we came too late."

Boss Tan sighed softly. "The good stuff has all been taken."

The youth smiled casually. "Take your time looking around. If you spot anything you like, bring it downstairs to discuss with me."

They nodded, watching the youth leave. Boss Lü shook his head. "Forget it; some leftover scraps are better than nothing. We'll search carefully; maybe we can still unearth a treasure. Let's agree now: whoever sees it first claims it; no snatching."

"Don't worry, we all know the rules," Boss Tan replied with a laugh, quickly moving toward one counter. Boss Lü was not far behind, hurrying in the opposite direction.

Seeing this, Lei Yunzhang smiled. "Wang Guan, you should look around too, though there probably aren't any good items left."

Wang Guan nodded and also steered clear of the trio, moving to examine a shelf. This shelf, three tiers high, had been completely cleared, with only a few solitary books remaining on the bottom level.

Wang Guan bent down and picked up the few books, noticing they were all printed in simplified characters. The titles were similar, nothing more than Yanting County Gazetteer, Yanting Local History, Yanting Geographic Atlas, and so on.

"No wonder these things were left behind, untouched."

After a quick glance, Wang Guan lost interest. He flipped through them briefly, set the books down, and moved toward the adjacent shelf.

Approaching it, Wang Guan saw that this shelf still held a fair number of items. However, their condition was poor; they were obviously rusted, clearly indicating they were made of iron.

Moreover, these iron artifacts were nothing more than arrowheads, stirrups, and spear tips—items of low cultural value, which explained why no one had bothered to buy them. But amidst these odds and ends, several swords and blades were displayed on the shelf.

Wang Guan, intrigued, picked up a longsword and attempted to draw it with both hands, only to find the scabbard wouldn't budge an inch.

"You have got to be kidding me..." Wang Guan paused, looking down closely, only to realize the hilt and scabbard had been sealed together seamlessly by thick layers of rust, leaving no gap whatsoever.

Wang Guan stubbornly tried pulling a few more times, but the blade and scabbard remained firmly stuck, impossible to separate. After some struggle, a faint sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead. The rusted sword remained as it was, forcing him to give up.

"Junk like this is no wonder nobody wants it," Wang Guan grumbled, feeling a flicker of inexplicable annoyance. He carefully examined the remaining blades, reaching for a long dao that appeared relatively cleaner.

Then, Wang Guan gave a sharp tug. With a clack, the long dao slid effortlessly out of its sheath, presenting itself clearly before him.

This outcome surprised not only Wang Guan himself but also the three others nearby, who were startled by the sound and looked over. However, upon seeing the heavily rusted long dao in Wang Guan’s hand, they immediately lost interest and returned to their own tasks.

At this moment, Wang Guan withdrew the blade and examined it slightly. He noticed that this long dao was not only rusty but also sported numerous nicks along its edge. Clearly, this was a genuine ancient battle weapon, not one of the common decorative knives found on the market today.

Gazing closely at the pitted, rusted surface, bearing the traces of long-vanished years, Wang Guan could almost feel the scenes of clashing metal, charging horses, and swirling smoke of war.

Every man harbors a latent wuxia dream in his heart, possessing an almost innate fondness for cold steel. However, this long dao was excessively worn. If it had been intact and in better condition, he wouldn't have minded purchasing it for appreciation.

"What a shame... wait!" Wang Guan gently shook his head, admiring it for a moment longer, when he suddenly noticed faint seal script characters dimly visible on the blade. These characters were obscured by rust, easily missed unless one observed very closely.

"Seven Stars... Precious Sword... Cao Cao... Luo!"

Wang Guan painstakingly deciphered the characters and murmured them aloud, instantly feeling a sense of wry amusement.

He was well aware of the provenance of the Seven Stars Precious Sword, thanks to Luo Guanzhong’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which popularized the name. In the novel, however, the blade was named the Seven Treasures Sword. Somewhere along the line, it had morphed into the Seven Stars Sword or Seven Stars Precious Sword.

Wang Guan certainly didn't believe this long dao was the actual treasure Cao Cao used to attempt the assassination of Dong Zhuo. He merely found it amusing, surprised that the phenomenon of celebrity endorsement existed even in ancient times.

Simultaneously, Lei Yunzhang, who had found nothing, walked over. He casually inquired, "Wang Guan, did you find something good? You're smiling so brightly."

"A very interesting knife," Wang Guan replied with a smile. "Uncle Lei, come take a look, and you'll see."

"An interesting knife? I must take a look then," Lei Yunzhang said curiously. He walked over, and following Wang Guan's gesture, upon seeing the seal script on the long dao, he immediately burst into hearty laughter as well.

"Uncle Lei, what do you think of it?" Wang Guan asked, smiling. "Judging by its ancient and worn appearance, this knife must be quite old. Even if it's not Cao Cao's Seven Treasures Sword, it should be from the Ming or Qing dynasty."

The Seven Treasures Sword was a fabrication by Luo Guanzhong. But Romance of the Three Kingdoms only began to widely circulate among common folk during the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Much like how popular modern works inspire many fans to imitate plot points, the widespread fame of the Three Kingdoms tales during the Ming and Qing periods must have attracted a large following who emulated the stories.

This Seven Stars Precious Sword was likely a product of that era.

Lei Yunzhang agreed with this assessment. After taking the blade from Wang Guan’s hand and examining it closely for a moment, he smiled. "The creator certainly put some thought into this; they imitated the style of the Han dynasty Ring-Pommel Sword when forging this Seven Stars Precious Sword."

In modern terms, the person who copied the Seven Stars Precious Sword was probably a stickler for historical accuracy. Perhaps they had thoroughly researched that period and knew that the sword Cao Cao used in the late Eastern Han period should have been in the form of a Ring-Pommel Sword.

"The item isn't worth much,"

After the laughter subsided, Lei Yunzhang offered his professional critique. "The edge is nicked and damaged. If this were a Ming or Qing piece, it might fetch a little money. If it’s from the Republic era, it can be sold as scrap iron."

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