Chapter Twenty-Seven: Artifact Refining

As Wu Jiao led Cao Yun into a side hall on the first floor, Cao Yun’s gaze drifted upward. Suspended high above was a silver plaque several feet long, upon which the characters for "Artifact Refining Hall" were engraved in shimmering gold. A faint, crystalline light seemed to ripple across the surface of the characters, making them quite striking.

"I have mentioned it to the Pavilion Master many times," Wu Jiao said, his brow furrowed in mild annoyance. "This Artifact Refining Hall is far too ostentatious. It is merely a plaque, yet they insisted on forging it into a magical tool."

"The Artifact Refining Hall—that sounds rather interesting," Cao Yun said, a look of intrigue curling his lips. "Brother Wu, let us go inside and take a look."

"Since Brother Cao is interested, let us proceed." With that, Wu Jiao stepped forward and led the way into the hall.

Cao Yun followed closely. The moment he crossed the threshold, a wave of intense heat surged toward him like a rising tide, causing him to instinctively knit his brows. Looking ahead, he saw Wu Jiao standing beside a red-faced elder, speaking in a respectful, hushed tone.

"This is Elder Gu, one of the three renowned artifact refiners of our Heavenly Star Wolf Sect, and currently the master of the Myriad Demon Pavilion’s Artifact Refining Hall," Wu Jiao said, gesturing toward the man, who appeared to be in his fifties or sixties. "Brother Cao, if you have any magical tools you wish to have forged, simply tell Elder Gu. I noticed you do not yet possess a suitable weapon; if you wish to have one made, the Pavilion Master will cover the costs."

Cao Yun quietly probed with his divine sense but could not gauge the depth of the elder’s cultivation at all. He mused to himself that this man must surely have reached the Foundation Establishment stage.

"As it happens, I have some materials here. I wonder if they are suitable for refining," Cao Yun said, his gaze sweeping past the red-faced elder.

"Bring them out and let me see. If it can be forged, I shall forge it; if not, then not. There is no such thing as 'suitable' or 'unsuitable' in my craft," the elder replied, his voice booming and blunt.

Cao Yun smiled faintly, tapped his storage pouch, and a delicate jade box appeared in his hand. He handed it to the elder and asked, "Elder Gu, I wonder if these materials could be fashioned into a set of spike-and-needle magical tools?"

The elder took the box and opened it. Upon seeing the contents, he could not help but let out a soft exclamation. "Are these the fangs of a serpentine beast?"

"They are," Cao Yun confirmed.

"Judging by the fire-attribute spiritual energy fluctuations, this beast’s cultivation was at least at the seventh or eighth level of Qi Refining," Elder Gu said after a moment of contemplation. "If I were to forge them, I could perhaps create a set of 'Blazing Parent-Child Spikes.' However, I must be clear: I cannot guarantee how many can be produced from these twenty fangs. I can only say that two fangs are sufficient to forge the 'parent' spike, but as for how many 'child' spikes the remaining twenty auxiliary fangs will yield, it is hard to say."

Cao Yun was overjoyed at the news. If he could truly possess a set of spike-style magical tools, his strength would undoubtedly increase significantly.

"Elder Gu, how long would it take to forge this set? If there is enough time, I would like to practice with them before the Martial Arts Tournament in the Myriad Demon Forest," Cao Yun asked.

The elder pondered for a moment. "If we have the people from the Formation Hall cooperate, five days should suffice."

"Excellent, five days it is. Elder Gu, I will handle the arrangements with the Formation Hall," Wu Jiao said, sounding even more excited than Cao Yun, as if the weapon were for himself.

"Oh, one more thing," the elder added. "The quality of these materials can only support the carving of mid-grade high-level formation runes. As for what specific functions you want to engrave, that is a matter between you and the Formation Hall. I am only responsible for the forging, not the runes."

"As Elder Gu says," Wu Jiao replied, turning back to Cao Yun with a helpless shrug. "Brother Cao, it seems we must pay a visit to the Formation Hall as well."

Cao Yun shrugged in return. "Let us go. I am curious to see what kind of functional runes can be engraved onto these tools."

By sunset, the dim, golden sun was slowly sinking behind the towering Heavenly Pillar Peak. A few wild geese streaked across the sky, their long, mournful cries echoing through the air as their silhouettes gradually vanished into the brilliant glow of the evening clouds.

Cao Yun was returning on his flying implement, framed against the picturesque sunset, looking every bit the graceful and ethereal immortal.

Initially, he and Wu Jiao had only intended to select a few basic runes for the Blazing Parent-Child Spikes. However, after delving into the subject, Cao Yun was astonished to learn how many wondrous functions these runes could provide. He immediately chose a rune that, when fueled by additional mana, could boost the speed of the magical tool by more than half. The formation master warned him, however, that the usage was limited; after three or four activations, the speed-boosting effect would fade.

Yet, the next thing the formation master said piqued his interest further. He explained that mid-grade high-level magical tools could not only bear a primary functional rune but also have two additional secondary function runes engraved. This meant Cao Yun could choose another effect to incorporate.

He immediately asked the master to explain the functions of the other available runes. When he heard of a rune that could increase the effectiveness of piercing defensive shields, he interrupted the master and asked for a detailed explanation.

High-level cultivators were notoriously difficult to kill precisely because their condensed golden light shields were so formidable. Unless one’s mana was superior or one possessed an exceptional magical tool, breaking through was nearly impossible. But if he had a shield-piercing rune, he could have the venom of a Black Vine Snake forged into the spikes. Once the opponent’s shield was breached, even if the attack did not kill them instantly, he could detonate the tool to inject the toxin directly into their body. He calculated that such a tactic would be impossible for any ordinary Qi Refining cultivator to withstand.

With this trump card, Cao Yun’s confidence soared. He believed that with such methods at his disposal, he would find few rivals among those in the Qi Refining stage.

He returned to the Artifact Refining Hall with Wu Jiao, and after much persistence on Wu Jiao’s part, Elder Gu finally agreed to infuse the Black Vine Snake’s venom into every one of the Blazing Parent-Child Spikes.

Back in his cave dwelling, Cao Yun lay down on the stone bed, savoring this rare moment of peace and quiet. A life without chains—he finally had the right to truly live. There are no natural-born prisoners in this world, only poor souls struggling in their confinement, yearning for freedom.