Priceless

His gaze locked onto a meter-tall stone riddled with fissures. Through his penetrating vision, he saw the cracks extending deep into its core, the interior red and yellow jade shattered into fragments—rendering it virtually worthless.

Yet, at the very heart of this stone lay something extraordinary: a winter melon-sized solid sphere. Astonishingly, all the internal fissures curved around this sphere without penetrating it, creating a natural marvel that spoke of nature's artistry.

The sphere itself was divided—one-third consisted of high-ice "chicken-fat yellow" jade, an extreme rarity. The remaining two-thirds was icy-red jade, flawless in texture and vibrant in hue, equally exceptional.

In jade terminology, red hues were called fei while green hues cui. Though green traditionally held the highest prestige, fei with perfect texture and color could command even greater prices at auctions.

Maintaining perfect composure, Huo Xuan sighed, "This stone's ruined. What a waste."

The old man quickly interjected, "Young man, you can't be sure. There might still be treasures inside."

Huo Xuan feigned interest. "What's your asking price?"

"Three million!" the middle-aged man blurted.

A cold smile played on Huo Xuan's lips. "Three million? You can't be serious."

"Were it not for the surface cracks, I wouldn't sell for thirty million," the man retorted.

"Then by all means, keep it." Huo Xuan turned to inspect other stones.

The warehouse proved a trove of quality material. After a seemingly casual circuit, he pointed decisively at sixty-seven stones. "I'll take these. Name your price."

Both men startled at the scale of purchase. The old man recovered first: "Each stone has its tagged price. Let me calculate..."

After tallying and rounding, the total came to forty-one million yuan.

"Forty million flat," Huo Xuan countered, "and throw in that big cracked stone."

The old man frowned. "That stone alone is valued at three million. With the discount, we're conceding four million total. Your terms are too harsh."

Huo Xuan's voice turned icy. "I'm a straightforward buyer—take it or leave it. The choice is yours." He turned toward the exit.

At forty million, their profit remained substantial. The old man forced a smile. "Very well. For our first transaction, consider this friendship pricing."

With the deal struck, workers began loading the stones. Some boulders required forklifts. As the trucks finished loading for Jiangzhou, Li Yunfei's team arrived—remaining concealed outside Jade City.

When the convoy departed, a black BMW trailed discreetly. Li Yunfei's group followed further back, shadows preparing to pounce.

After securing the raw stones, Huo Xuan decided to lay low for a while to avoid suspicion. He returned to the hotel with his team to await Li Yunfei's update.

Meanwhile, at the city police bureau's Criminal Investigation Division, a major operation was underway. Shen Rong, recently promoted to deputy captain, led over twenty officers in cornering several suspects on a remote hillside on the city outskirts.

The hill was overgrown with thorny bushes and dry grass—perfect for concealment. As dusk approached, the team hesitated to advance recklessly, wary of letting the suspects slip away.

"Captain Shen, where are our reinforcements? It'll be even harder to track them once it's completely dark," a middle-aged officer grumbled, his expression tense.

Shen Rong replied firmly, "We need to wait. We're short-handed, and charging in could lead to casualties. Safety comes first—we can't act without absolute certainty."

The team understood her reasoning, but every passing minute increased the risk of the suspects escaping under cover of darkness—a failure none of them could afford.

A young officer muttered, "If only Captain Qin were here... Too bad he's recovering at home." Realizing his gaffe, he quickly added, "Not that Captain Shen isn't doing a great job leading us."

Shen Rong bit her lip. Her recent promotion had left some questioning her capabilities. If she failed to apprehend the suspects today, her authority as deputy captain would be undermined.

Suddenly, she thought of Huo Xuan. He took down five or six opponents single-handedly in an instant... If only he could help now.

Glancing at the darkening sky—just thirty minutes until nightfall—she wrestled with her pride before finally dialing his number.

At the hotel, Huo Xuan was practicing the Hunyuan Stance when his phone rang. "Shen Rong? What's up?"

Hesitant to ask for such a dangerous favor, she stammered, "Huo Xuan... We're closing in on some suspects, but reinforcements are delayed. If we don't move soon, they might escape."

Huo Xan immediately grasped her unspoken request. "How many suspects, and what weapons do they have?" he asked cautiously.

If firearms were involved, he had no intention of risking his life—he wasn't a professional cop, after all.

Shen Rong replied, "According to our informant, there are seven of them—no firearms, but they're armed with knives."

Huo Xuan said decisively, "Send me the location. I'm on my way."

"Thank you, Huo Xuan!" Shen Rong exclaimed in relief.

Hanging up, he immediately drove toward the specified location. When he'd first arrived in Kyoto, he'd transported his Volvo in one of the trucks for precisely such contingencies.

About thirty minutes later, he arrived at the base of the hill. Seeing his headlights, Shen Rong rushed over. "Reinforcements will be here in ten minutes. Should we wait?"

Huo Xuan grinned. "Now that I'm here, might as well wrap this up." He glanced at the sky—though night had fallen, darkness posed no obstacle to his vision.

Shen Rong nodded. "Alright, we'll go together!"

He waved her off. "No need. Secure the perimeter—too many people will just complicate things in the dark."

A young officer approached and scoffed, "Listen to you, acting all high and mighty. We're the professionals here—you should follow our lead."

Shen Rong's temper flared. This rookie, Wang Cheng, fresh out of the police academy and unaware of Huo Xuan's takedown of armed robbers at the jewelry store, clearly didn't know whom he was dealing with.

"Wang Cheng! Shut your mouth!" she snapped. "Huo Xuan subdued five armed criminals in three seconds flat. Think you could do better?"

The young officer froze, rendered speechless—though his resentful glare lingered as he stepped back.

Unfazed, Huo Xuan asked, "Any intel on their exact position?"

"They should be on the upper northern slope," Shen Rong answered promptly.

Nodding, Huo Xuan instructed, "Stand by down here." With that, he strode up the hill and vanished into the darkness.

His night vision pierced the blackness as clearly as daylight. Moving with preternatural speed, he covered dozens of meters in seconds, his Dragon-Riding Stance carrying him effortlessly over the terrain.

As he advanced, his sharp eyes scanned the surroundings. Reaching the hillside, he began traversing laterally. Within three minutes, he spotted trampled grass and snapped thorns—clear signs of recent passage.

This must be the spot—following these traces will lead me straight to them, Huo Xuan thought, beginning his ascent up the slope.

This time, he moved deliberately slow, his footsteps soundless. Five minutes later, heavy breathing reached his ears from ahead. Immediately slowing further, he dropped into a crouch, catlike, scanning the darkness.

Thirty meters ahead, three figures sat cross-legged atop a massive boulder, their eyes sweeping the surroundings. Four more men patrolled the perimeter below.

Among the three on the boulder was a dark, lean youth who spoke in a low, oddly accented voice: "Five more minutes, then we break out in four directions."

His unnatural cadence marked him as non-local.

A yellow-haired young man muttered, "Lao Ruan, in this darkness they'll never see us. The hard part's over. We should retrieve the money first—no point risking complications. Where exactly did you stash it? The brothers deserve to know."

The dark youth's eyes gleamed with a deathly gray chill. "The money is none of your concern."

The yellow-haired man shrugged. "You're Thai, Lao Ruan. You don't know Kyoto like we do. What if you forget the location? That'd be one hell of a loss."

The dark youth ignored him, focusing intently on their surroundings. "Three minutes. Prepare to move."

Realizing delay would mean their escape, Huo Xuan observed a moment longer before ghosting toward the easternmost sentry. His movements left no sound—in the inky blackness, even at point-blank range, he'd appear as nothing more than a shifting shadow.

Closing within a meter undetected, Huo Xuan tapped the man's occipital nerve. The sentry crumpled without a sound.

Methodically, Huo Xuan neutralized all four perimeter guards with identical precision before approaching the boulder. Just as he arrived, the dark youth barked, "Now!"

The three leaped down in sequence. The yellow-haired man and a lanky companion barely touched ground before neural strikes dropped them unconscious.

The thuds of collapsing bodies alerted the dark youth. With a roar, he launched himself airborne, elbows raised like twin hammers aimed to crush Huo Xuan's skull.

Huo Xuan's eyes narrowed—this strike carried terrifying force, enough to shatter bone. He sidestepped swiftly, countering with a devastating punch as his opponent landed.

The dark youth executed an uncanny sidestep, shifting a full meter laterally before pivoting with another elbow strike.

Curious about his adversary's limits, Huo Xuan met this blow head-on.