Library of Heaven’s Path - Chapter 666

Chapter 666: Weapon Smithing (1)

It had been twelve hours already, and despite consuming a recovery pill, the other party hadn’t fully healed from her injuries. This was a little… way too slow!

Halting her meditation, Luo Qiqi lifted her head and replied, “My injuries are too severe… Even though I’ve consumed medicine, I’ll still require around three days to make substantial recovery, and half a month to recover to my peak state.”

She had incurred serious injuries from the previous battle, and to be able to heal within three days was already an incredible feat.

After all, recovering from one’s injuries wasn’t like eating, where one could speed up just because one wanted to.

Hearing that she would still require such a long period of time, Zhang Xuan frowned. “The longer we wait, the more danger we are in.”

While they were currently hidden by the formation, no one could guarantee that there wouldn’t be any abrupt changes, especially not in a foreign place like this. Time was a luxury for them at the moment.

After a moment of hesitation, Zhang Xuan asked, “Do you have a Qi Regeneration Pill?”

“Qi Regeneration Pill? I do,” Luo Qiqi replied.

Qi Regeneration Pill was one of the most common medicaments that cultivators used to recover their zhenqi. Naturally, there were different tiers to cater to those of different cultivation realms.

Similar to Spirit Gathering Formations, a single leap in the tier of the pill would spell a world of difference in its effectiveness.

The Qi Regeneration Pill in her possession was at grade-5 primary. Even if her zhenqi were to be sapped dry, by consuming one, she would be able to recover around fifty percent of her zhenqi for a short moment to cope with any danger before her.

Flicking her wrist, she took out one.

“Un.”

Grabbing the pill, Zhang Xuan circled it around his fingers before passing it back. “Eat it.”

“Yes!” Even though Luo Qiqi was perplexed, she still swallowed the pill.

Qi Regeneration Pills were only used to recover one’s zhenqi. Given that her zhenqi was currently full at the moment, what was the use consuming it?

Just as she was bewildered by Zhang Xuan’s actions, the Qi Regeneration Pill she swallowed slowly melted, and a warm surge of energy flowed through her entire body.

Wherever the energy flowed, her injuries, be they internal or external, healed at a noticeable pace. A few breaths later, she felt completely re-energized, as though a phoenix rising from the ashes.

“This…”

Luo Qiqi stood up and moved her body around, and her eyes immediately widened in disbelief.

The injuries that should have taken at least half a month of recuperation actually healed right after consuming a single Qi Regeneration Pill!

“Teacher, this Qi Regeneration Pill…”

No matter how slow she might be, it was clear that her teacher had done something to the Qi Regeneration Pill to turn it into such an incredible recovery medicine.

Without even using a cauldron or adding in any medicinal herbs, just by touching it, he was able to change the property of a pill… How in the world did he do it?

Zhang Xuan waved his hands casually and instructed, “Alright, prepare yourself. We will start smithing soon!”

If they were to depend on Luo Qiqi’s means of recovery, it would have been a long while before they could have started smithing anything. The only way to have healed her injuries so swiftly via his Heaven’s Path zhenqi.

However, this type of zhenqi was too peculiar, and the other party was a 5-star master teacher as well. If he had infused it into the other party’s body directly, there was a high chance that the other party would have noticed the peculiarity in his zhenqi. Thus, he decided to make use of an intermediary.

The Qi Regeneration Pill, which contained rampaging spiritual energy, was the best intermediary for him to store his zhenqi in. It helped to conceal the presence of his zhenqi at the initial phase, and by the time the other party realized that something was odd, his zhenqi would have already melded with the other party’s zhenqi, thus making it impossible for her to investigate the matter.

In essence, it worked the same way as his Saint recovery medicinal wine as well.

Due to the spiciness of the wine, it drew one’s attention away from the already nearly indiscernible Heaven’s Path zhenqi.

“Un!”

Knowing that her teacher was unwilling to speak about the topic, Luo Qiqi also knew better than to probe the other party’s secrets. Thus, she stepped up to the Crimson Blaze Cauldron.

There were all kinds of materials around the cauldron, be it coal or ores, allowing her to start smithing any time she was ready.

“Let’s begin!”

Taking in a deep breath, Luo Qiqi flicked her wrist and placed the coal into the cauldron before lighting it up using a unique zhenqi infusion method. Under the infusion of her zhenqi, it didn’t take long for the cauldron to grow fiery hot.

The temperature required for forging a weapon was much higher than that required to forge a pill. The surroundings were scorching, and it felt as though any sword would melt as soon as it was thrown in.

“What is the highest tier of weapons you have forged?”

Judging from the fluid movements Luo Qiqi made as she lit up the flame within the cauldron, Zhang Xuan could tell that she had a good foundation and nodded in commendation.

“Teacher, the best weapon I’ve ever forged is a Spirit low-tier weapon… I’ve never succeeded in forging a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon before…” Luo Qiqi said with a reddened face.

The basic requirement to becoming a 5-star blacksmith was to be able to forge a Spirit low-tier weapon. It seemed like she barely reached the mark.

“5-star primary blacksmith… It’ll indeed be difficult for you to forge a Spirit high-tier weapon.”

Zhang Xuan frowned.

Unlike pill forging, the cultivation requirement for smithing was far stricter.

For the former, as long as one refined and fused the medicinal herbs in the most accurate manner, there would be a high chance of forming a pill.

On the other hand, in smithing, if one’s cultivation wasn’t sufficiently high, one would be unable to bring out sufficient heat from the coal, thus making it difficult to even melt the ores. Under such circumstances, it would be difficult to forge a good weapon.

Given that Luo Qiqi had never succeeded in forging a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon, chances were that there was a huge flaw in her control over the flames. Her current cultivation realm didn’t help either. If she couldn’t even generate sufficient heat to melt the ores properly, how could she succeed?

With a dark expression, Zhang Xuan began scanning through the various materials which Wu Yangzi had left behind.

“Crimson Flower ore, Gild Violet ore, Cold Emerald Stone…”

Every single ore that Zhang Xuan saw only made his complexion darken further.

All of them were hard to process, and even the easiest Cold Emerald Stone demanded a minimum cultivation of Transcendent Mortal 7-dan to melt. As for Crimson Flower ore and Gild Violet ore… these would require one to be Transcendent Mortal 8-dan or even 9-dan to process!

In other words… putting aside smithing, just melting these ores would be nigh impossible for them!

After a long moment of thought, Zhang Xuan finally said, “Given your current capability and cultivation realm, forging a Spirit high-tier weapon is impossible… However, if it’s just upgrading an existent weapon, it might still be possible!”

If they were unable to melt the ore, they would be unable to form metal ingots to smith weapons.

However, if it was just raising the tier of an existing weapon, the job should prove to be significantly easier.

As it was already a completed piece, they wouldn’t need to melt the ores entirely to upgrade it.

Since upgrading an existing weapon could be considered as forging as well, there was unlikely to be any fuss on this aspect.

“Upgrade?” Luo Qiqi questioned a little awkwardly. “Upgrading an existing weapon would indeed be easier, just that… I lost my only Spirit intermediate-tier sword in the previous battle… not to mention, none of my weapons are upgradable!”

Upgrading a weapon may be easier, but there were specific prerequisites for a weapon to be upgradable.

She did have a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon, but it was smashed into the ceiling in the battle at the stone room earlier, and she hadn’t gotten a chance to retrieve yet.

More importantly, these weapons were completed products. If they were to be tempered any further, they might exceed their limits, resulting in a fall in quality instead.

Only specific upgradable weapons could be further forged and refined.

But these types of weapons were incredibly rare, even she had hardly seen any of those. How could they find any all of a sudden, especially given that they were trapped here?

“Let’s use mine then.”

Flicking his wrist, Zhang Xuan took out his Glacier Rain Sword.

He had obtained this sword from the Mystical Treasure Hall back then, and it was an upgradable Spirit intermediate-tier pinnacle weapon.

“This… Alright then!”

Seeing how her teacher offered to use his own personal weapon despite the risk of having its quality lowered, Luo Qiqi felt a surge of warmth flowing through her heart.

Noticing the other party’s lack of confidence, Zhang Xuan encouraged her. “There’s no need to be nervous. Just do as I say, and it won’t be too difficult to raise the Glacier Rain Sword to Spirit high-tier.”

Having learned from the six books of Heaven’s Path Smith Art, his understanding of smithing had reached a level surpassing that of even Wu Yangzi.

Even though he was unable to melt most ores due to the limitation of his cultivation, it wouldn’t be too hard to raise the Glacier Rain Sword, which was already a step away from a breakthrough, to Spirit high-tier.

“However… our current goal isn’t Spirit high-tier but… pinnacle!” Zhang Xuan said grimly

“Pinnacle?” Luo Qiqi was taken aback.

Reaching high-tier would meet Wu Yangzi’s requirement, and they would be able to obtain the heritage already. Was there really a need to reach pinnacle?

Even ordinary 6-star blacksmiths would find it hard to craft a Spirit pinnacle weapon.

For her to do so… even if it was just upgrading, she didn’t think that it was possible at all.

“Indeed!”

Zhang Xuan nodded. “I don’t know what kind of ores that puppet was coated with, but ordinary weapons can hardly scratch its skin. The only way to kill it is to wield a weapon of that tier…

“Even if we obtain Wu Yangzi’s heritage and find the exit, we will still be in danger as long as we are unable to get rid of this fellow. Instead of risking it, we should just forge a Spirit pinnacle weapon and slay it!”

A sharp glint flashed across Zhang Xuan’s eyes as he clenched his fists tightly.

After fighting against the puppet, he realized that the only way to injure the puppet was to wield a Spirit pinnacle weapon.

Since there was a chance to upgrade his weapon now, it was best that he made full use of this opportunity and get rid of the threat looming before them.

“This…”

Luo Qiqi’s face twitched.

She didn’t even have the confidence to upgrade the weapon to Spirit high-tier, but now she had to upgrade it to Spirit pinnacle? How was that possible?

Unconfident, Luo Qiqi said, “Teacher. Given my current capability, I can only soften the Cold Emerald Stone and refine it slightly. I won’t be able to melt it entirely… As such, I don’t think I’ll be able to forge a Spirit pinnacle weapon!”

“Don’t worry, that’s enough!” Understanding her worries, Zhang Xuan smiled and reassured her.

“Enough?”

Luo Qiqi blinked her eyes in confusion.

Cold Emerald Stone was indeed a rare and valuable ore, but it was significantly inferior to the Crimson Flower ore and Gild Violet ore.

Not to mention, her inability to fully melt the ore would make it harder to fuse it with the Glacier Rain Sword. Given that, it would be already difficult to raise it to Spirit high-tier, needless to say, pinnacle.

How could she possibly succeed?

“Of the entire smithing process, what is the most important step to making a weapon sharper and harder?” Zhang Xuan asked.

“It’s… quenching!” Luo Qiqi replied.

Quenching could induce a qualitative change in a weapon through fusing the various materials within it better.

Performing the quenching process well could cause a significant quality difference in two weapons forged using the same materials and smithing techniques.

Using pill forging as an analogy, the more thoroughly the various medicinal herbs were fused together, the higher the quality of the formed pills.

As such, quenching was an extremely important process that would determine the ultimate tier of the weapon.

It was a technique that countless blacksmith dreamt of mastering, but very few succeeded.

Zhang Xuan chuckled.

“Indeed, it’s quenching! Under normal circumstances, the greater the difference in temperature, the better the effects of the quenching. However, given the limitations of your cultivation, it’ll be impossible for us to raise the temperature to a satisfactory level. Since that’s the case… we can always lower the temperature required for quenching!”

Chapter 667: Weapon Smithing (2)

“Lower the temperature required for quenching?” Luo Qiqi was taken aback.

Weren’t weapons quenched with water? There was a limit to how cold a water could be before it would turn into ice, so how could the temperature required for quenching be reduced?

Besides, Zhang Xuan was viewing the matter too lightly. The difference in the temperature wasn’t all that mattered. More importantly, quenching had to be done within the durability limit of the weapon. Otherwise, the weapon might be unable to endure the abrupt change in temperature and shatter!

There were many blacksmiths who had tried to change the substance used for quenching so as to further raise the tier of their crafted weapon, but more often than not, the quenching fluid ended up reacting with their weapon instead. As a result, the weapon they had forged with great difficulty shattered, resulting in a waste of their effort and precious ores.

Smithing was a very complex art—the proportion of ores, temperature, type of quenching fluid, timing… All of these factors played a crucial role in determining the quality of the ultimate product, and a shortcoming in any of them could easily lead to a subpar product or even failure. As such, the difficulty of smithing could be considered to be on par with pill forging. It was also due to the profoundness behind the art that blacksmith was classified as an Upper Nine Paths occupation.

“Indeed.” Zhang Xuan nodded in agreement. “Did you bring your pill cauldron here?”

“Pill… cauldron?” Luo Qiqi repeated in astonishment, thinking that she had heard it wrong.

Aren’t we going to forge a weapon? Why will we need a pill cauldron?”

Zhang Xuan looked at her calmly and said, “I want you to forge Ice Soul Pills!”

“Ice Soul Pills?” Luo Qiqi was taken aback. Then, coming to a realization, her eyes widened. “Teacher intends to… use the frigidity from Ice Soul Pill to quench the weapon?”

Ice Soul Pill was a unique medicine that was used to awaken the Ice Soul Constitution. Should an ordinary human consume it, the special frost aura harnessed within it would freeze him to death instantly

“But no matter how cold the Ice Soul Pill is, how could it be used to quench the sword, especially considering its size…” Luo Qiqi was bewildered.

An average Ice Soul Pill was around the size of a grape whereas the Glacier Rain Sword was nearly a meter long. How could a small pill possibly be used to quench an entire sword?

One must know it was imperative for the entire blade to be plunged into the quenching fluid simultaneously so that it would undergo the quenching process simultaneously.

Otherwise, the blade could end up with differing degrees of hardness across it, and the imbalance would end up introducing vulnerabilities to it instead.

Using a pill to quench an entire sword… Why did it sound completely inconceivable to her?

Interrupting the other party’s queries, Zhang Xuan asked, “Put that aside for now. You just have to tell me whether you have a pill cauldron and medicinal herbs to forge an Ice Soul Pill now.”

After a moment of hesitation, Luo Qiqi said, “Ice Soul Pill is an uncommon pill, and it is rarely forged by apothecaries as well. As such, I don’t have the complete set of medicinal herbs to forge it. However, a while ago, I promised someone to forge a Frigid Yin Pill for her, and I prepared three portions of the medicinal herbs for it…”

Ice Soul Constitution was an extremely rare unique constitution that only handful of people of the entire Master Teacher Continent possessed. As such, Ice Soul Pills were rarely forged. Even if one were to search through the entire Apothecary School of Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, one would probably be unable to find even a single Ice Soul Pill.

“Frigid Yin Pill?”

Zhang Xuan frowned. “The effects of Frigid Yin Pill is inferior to Ice Soul Pill. However, if we were to use the three portions together, we might be able to make up for the qualitative difference through quantity…”

Frigid Yin Pill was a medicament used to treat injuries incurred from fire attribute cultivation techniques. Even though there was the difference of a grade between it and the Ice Soul Pill, if they were to use the three portions of medicinal herbs properly, they should be able to bridge the difference.

“Alright, we’ll forge the pill and the weapon simultaneously!”

Zhang Xuan contemplated for a moment to further analyze his plan and refine the details, and after which, he waved his hands, gesturing for Luo Qiqi to start.

“Yes!”

Knowing that her teacher must have already worked out the details, Luo Qiqi decided to just go along with him. With a flick of her wrist, she took out her pill cauldron and lit it up. At the same time, she also lit up the Crimson Blaze Cauldron

As an apothecary, she carried the materials she needed to forge a pill everywhere she went, be it the medicinal herbs, cauldron, or coal. As such, it didn’t take too long for her to get ready.

Not too long later, the flames surged, and searing heat emanated from the cauldrons.

“Teacher…”

After laying out the medicinal herbs required for the forging of Frigid Yin Pill neatly on the table not too far away, Luo Qiqi turned her gaze to her teacher.

While she didn’t know what Zhang shi was up to, after witnessing the various miraculous feats he had accomplished, she possessed a near equivalent of blind faith in the latter.

Perhaps… with the other party’s guidance, she might just be able to upgrade a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon to Spirit pinnacle!

On the other hand, Zhang Xuan took a glance at the cauldrons and instructed, “The cauldrons still aren’t hot enough, continue raising the temperature!”

“Frigid Yin Pill is a cold attribute medicine. If the pill cauldron is too hot, I fear that we might deprive it of its cold properties…”

Upon hearing the instruction to continue raising the temperature, Luo Qiqi’s lips twitched.

Even the current temperature was already too hot for the forging of Frigid Yin Pill. Any further than that and the Frigid Yin Pill would melt before its formation, thus evaporating any frigid aura it should harness.

But instead of explaining, Zhang Xuan simply reiterated his instruction, “Continue raising the temperature!”

“Yes!” Gritting her teeth, Luo Qiqi drove her zhenqi and infused it into the coals.

Xiong xiong xiong xiong!

Huge flames burst forth from the cauldrons, threatening to melt down the pill cauldron.

“Place the Glacier Rain Sword and Cold Emerald Stone into the Crimson Blaze Cauldron!”

“Un!”

Perplexed as she was, Luo Qiqi decided to just follow Zhang Xuan’s instructions. She picked up the sword and Cold Emerald Stone and placed it in the smithing cauldron.

Upon contact with the searing cauldron, the Glacier Rain Sword immediately glowed crimson as the intense heat whittled down its flexibility and durability. If it were to be retrieved from the cauldron right now, it would surely suffer a sharp fall in tier.

At the same time, the Cold Emerald Stone also started to soften. However, the temperature of the cauldron seemed to be too low to melt it entirely.

“In the pill cauldron, add three stalks of Crimsontail Grass. Three breaths later, add a stalk of Frigid Yin Grass. After which, use the Seven Leaves Forging Technique to add in half a stalk of Void Severing Grass and three qian of Purplestar Smoke…” Zhang Xuan instructed swiftly.

Frowning, Luo Qiqi’s hands flew around the place as she added the medicinal herbs precisely according to Zhang Xuan’s instructions.

As a famous genius of the Apothecary School, her talent in pill forging far surpassed that of her smithing. Zhang Xuan’s instructions may have been swift, but she could still follow them with ease.

But as she continued to add medicinal herbs into the pill cauldron, amazement swiftly built up within her.

She found that she actually knew every single forging technique that the other party instructed her to utilize! There were even some of them that she learned coincidentally or secretly, and very few in the academy knew that she was aware of them. Yet, the other party included those in his instructions as well.

She didn’t think that it was a mere coincidence or that she was knowledgeable. Most likely, Zhang shi had grasped the full extent of her capabilities and designed a forging method tailored for her!

How profound must one’s understanding of pill forging be in order to achieve this?

This feat far exceeded the boundaries of incredible; it was terrifying!

Even her teacher, School Head Lu of the Apothecary School, would be incapable of such a feat!

‘To think that the Purplestar Smoke and the Void Severing Grass could be added into the cauldron simultaneously. Based on my previous conjecture, the two medicinal herbs would react violently with one another, inducing an explosion. Yet, there isn’t the slightest instability in the cauldron due to it now. If I’m not wrong, this has something to do with the intensity of the flames…’

While Luo Qiqi was astonished, she was also ruminating on the various steps of the forging process.

The sequence at which Zhang shi instructed her to add the medicinal herbs in was completely contrary to the Frigid Yin Pill formula that she learned in the past… On top of that, the speed of the forging this time round was so swift that it was mind-boggling.

Typically, it would take at least three to four hours for her to finish forging the Frigid Yin Pill. However, in less than half a minute, she had already added in half of the three portions of medicinal herbs.

A thought suddenly came to her, and her eyes narrowed in shock.

‘Wait a minute… Does Zhang shi intend to forge the three portions of medicinal herbs simultaneously? B-but this is impossible!’

The reason why three portions of medicinal herbs were usually prepared was to serve as a backup should the pill forging fail.

In other words, the medicinal herbs were intended to be used in three separate forging process… And yet, Zhang shi actually instructed her to throw all of them into the pill cauldron…

Putting three portions of medicinal herbs into a single cauldron… To make an analogy, it was similar to a person driving three horses at once.

Was that even possible?

Worried, she quickly turned to her teacher for reassurance, only to see the latter continuing to issue instructions nonchalantly.

“Use the Cascading Silk Forging Technique to add in three stalks of Tricoin Grass and two petals of Red-leafed Flower…”

‘Never mind, there is definitely no mistake in listening to teacher’s instructions!’

Clenching her jaws in resolution, Luo Qiqi continued adding more medicinal herbs into the cauldron according to Zhang Xuan’s instructions.

Back then, in the Apothecary Guild, she was also worried that the cauldron would explode at any moment. However, following the other party’s instructions, not only did she succeed, she even managed to forge a grade-6 medicinal solution, gaining precious experience in the midst of doing so.

After witnessing the many eye-widening, tongue-tying means of Zhang shi, surely this should be nothing for her to worry about as well.

The further she progressed into the forging process, the faster the pace at which medicinal herbs were thrown in. As such, it didn’t take long before the cauldron was teetering before its breaking point.

She wasn’t able to overcome her anxiety the previous time, but after having experienced it once, she learned to let go of her fears.

Just as she was busy adding more medicinal herbs into the pill cauldron, Zhang shi’s instructions suddenly sounded again.

“Intensify the flames for the Crimson Blaze Cauldron!”

“Yes!”

The rapid pace at which the forging was going at currently had left her a little flustered. Upon hearing that the flames of the Crimson Blaze Cauldron had to be intensified, Luo Qiqi hurriedly drove her zhenqi and infused it over frenziedly through her left hand.

Hu la! The flames immediately intensified with zeal.

Using zhenqi to control the temperature of the flames was the most fundamental skill that every apothecary and blacksmith would learn as soon as they come into contact with the art. As a talented apothecary, Luo Qiqi had no problem doing so. What she was truly struggling with at the moment was multitasking.

With a hand busy with the medicinal herbs while the other infusing zhenqi into the Crimson Blaze Cauldron, it didn’t take long for her entire face to be drenched with sweat. The cauldrons before her also kept rocking non-stop, threatening to explode on her at any moment.

“Teacher…”

Flustered, Luo Qiqi quickly turned to look at Zhang Xuan.

While the explosion of the Frigid Yin Pill would be much weaker than the explosion of the grade-6 medicinal solution they concocted before, given the current cultivation of the duo, it still wasn’t a force that they could withstand.

Not to mention, the Crimson Blaze Cauldron was also in an unstable position at the moment.

The explosion of the pill cauldron would surely agitate the Crimson Blaze Cauldron as well, and the combined might of the two cauldron explosions would kill them even before the puppet could.

It could be said that they were in far greater danger than they were back in the Apothecary Hall!

When they forged the grade-6 medicinal solution back then, the head of the Apothecary Guild was around, and the forging was done within the Apothecary Guild as well. Even if an explosion were to occur, the guild leader and the formation within the guild would surely suppress the explosion as soon as possible, thus minimizing the damage. However… there was no such insurance here!

“Don’t panic. Add a stalk of Mintaroma Flower into the pill cauldron!” Zhang Xuan continued instructing calmly.

In truth, he was also anxious at the sight of the rocking cauldrons, but he knew that this was the only way they could survive the dire situation they were in.

If the Glacier Rain Sword didn’t reach Spirit pinnacle, they would be unable to kill the puppet. Even if they were to find the exit, they would surely be unable to escape!

Having experienced the fearsome might of that puppet firsthand, he knew that they would never be able to outrun it given their current cultivation.

Thus, this was their best and possibly only shot at survival.

Seeing her teacher’s nonchalant attitude to the matter; Luo Qiqi felt reassured. Nodding, she continued intensifying the flames in the Crimson Flame Cauldron with her left hand while grabbing the Mintaroma Flower with her right.

Hu la la!

As soon as the Mintaroma Flower was thrown into the pill cauldron, the energies within it seemed to abruptly calm down. Luo Qiqi heaved a sigh of relief. However, at that moment, she suddenly felt a bizarre sensation in her left hand, so she hurriedly turned her head to take a look. With a glance, her eyes immediately narrowed.

“Teacher, bad news! The Glacier Rain Sword… is melting!”

Unknowingly, the fiery-red Crimson Rain Sword had softened, and it was just a matter of time before it would be reduced to mere metallic fluid.

Chapter 668: Third Acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher

Even though the Glacier Rain Sword was a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon, due to its cold attribute, its melting point was significantly lower than other weapons of the same tier.

The crux behind upgrading a weapon was to fuse one or a few rare metals into the original weapon. One of the greatest taboos in this process was to melt the original weapon.

If the original weapon were to lose its original shape, it would lose its original attributes, and the weapon would have to be reforged from scratch. That would mean an increase in the difficulty by severalfold!

As Luo Qiqi had been multitasking, she hadn’t been paying attention to the Glacier Rain Sword. Who knew that while she was preoccupied with placing a few medicinal herbs into the pill cauldron, the Glacier Rain Sword would actually reach its melting point!

Upgrading a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon to high-tier was simple, but forging a Spirit high-tier weapon from scratch… At the very least, given Luo Qiqi’s current capability, she didn’t think that she was capable of it!

Just as she was completely flustered by the sudden situation, Zhang shi confident voice sounded, “Add a droplet of Purplestar Grass’s medicinal extract onto the Glacier Rain Sword.”

“Purplestar Grass’s medicinal extract? Alright… Hmm?”

As soon as she took out the medicinal extract, she suddenly froze as she came to a realization. “Onto the Glacier Rain Sword?”

What kind of insanity was this?

Glacier Rain Sword was a weapon whereas the Purplestar Grass’s medicinal extract should be used for pill forging!

Adding the medicinal extract to the weapon? That was no different to adding some minced meat and tomato ketchup on a metal ingot while trying to cast a metal pot! Are you sure you are forging a weapon and not barbecuing it to eat?

Are you certain you didn’t issue the wrong instruction?

“That’s right, hurry up!” Zhang Xuan urged.

“Alright!”

With twitching eyelids, Luo Qiqi flicked her wrist, and the medicinal extract immediately fell on the melting Glacier Rain Sword.

Tzz la!

The sizzling sound reminiscent of barbecued meat echoed in the air. The medicinal extract flowed down the sword as it gradually turned into a white mist, emanating a deep aroma.

“How fragrant…”

The aroma wafting in the air made Luo Qiqi subconsciously draw in a deep breath.

The Purplestar Grass did leave a pleasant smell upon contact with flames. Perhaps she could make something to eat with it in the future…

Just as she was harboring such thoughts, intense vertigo suddenly assaulted her, and her legs began wobbling weakly.

“This is bad!”

Luo Qiqi’s eyes narrowed as it suddenly dawned on her what she had just done, and her heart froze.

The Purplestar Grass was an extremely rare medicinal herb. Its name originated from the purple spots reminiscent of little stars on its surface. The medicinal herb usually served as a mediating factor to facilitate the forging process of other pills, but if used individually, it carried a slight poison that could induce hallucination and dizziness!

Mesmerized by the pleasant scent, she actually neglected this!

They were currently at a crucial moment in the pill forging and smithing. If she were to faint, there was little doubt that a cauldron explosion would occur!

To be killed by a simultaneous explosion of a pill cauldron and a smithing cauldron… Should their bodies be found, they would probably go down as the first to do so in the long history of Hongyuan Empire!

Luo Qiqi attempted to gather her concentration, but her eyelid kept drooping down persistently. As hard as she struggled, drowsiness clung to her tightly, unwilling to relinquish its grasp over her.

Zhang Xuan’s face darkened.

“This is bad!”

He had refined his plans in anticipation of the many different things that could possibly go wrong in the forging process, but how could he have expected Luo Qiqi to be so careless as to inhale the poisonous fume of the Purplestar Grass!

It was unbecoming of a 5-star apothecary to be so careless!

But still, Luo Qiqi couldn’t be entirely blamed for the matter. The Purplestar Grass was a rare medicinal herb that was hardly used by apothecaries, and even on occasions that it was required, it would usually serve as a mediating factor. As such, it wasn’t too surprising for her to neglect its other properties.

Furthermore, with her attention devoted to multitasking between the smithing and the pill forging, she had little capacity to process other thoughts either. It was the unfortunate combination of such factors that made her fall prey to the poisonous fumes.

If Luo Qiqi were to lose consciousness, they would be doomed. Even though Zhang Xuan had vast knowledge of pill forging and smithing, he was unable to translate them into practical skills for his own use… Under current circumstances, a double cauldron explosion would be inevitable!

Or perhaps… could the formation be retracted so that they could draw the puppet over to kill it through the explosion?

But Zhang Xuan couldn’t control the timing and might of the explosion accurately either. If the explosion proved to be too strong, even if they were to survive the primary impact, there was a chance that the ceiling might collapse inward, burying them alive.

More importantly, the puppet possessed extraordinary defensive ability. The might of the explosion might be fearsome to them, but there was no guarantee that it would be fatal to that fellow.

Gu gu gu gu!

Anxious, Zhang Xuan was just about to rush forward to wake Luo Qiqi wake up when the cauldron before him shook intensely once more. Violent energies rampaged within it, and an explosion was imminent.

The essence of the Limit Revolving Pill Forging Technique was to keep the cauldron teetering just before the breaking limit. As a result, even the slightest lapse in concentration could easily result in an explosion.

With the sudden onslaught of the drowsiness spell, the forging sequence was already delayed by nearly two breaths. If the medicinal herb wasn’t added in at this very instant, an explosion would really occur!

But given Zhang Xuan’s current proximity to the medicinal herbs, even if he were to dash forward at this very instant, he still wouldn’t make it in time!

“Add the Red-leafed Beard into the cauldron…”

Overwhelmed by anxiety, Zhang Xuan shouted. But this time, perhaps due to his sheer determination willing it to happen, his voice was subconsciously imbued with Impartation of Heaven’s Path.

Hu!

Despite her lack of consciousness, Luo Qiqi’s movements remained as fluid as ever. She stretched her hand forward to grab the Red-leafed Beard and threw it into the cauldron.

Huala!

As the medicinal herb fell into the cauldron, the signs of explosion finally calmed down.

“This…”

Surprised by the turn of events, Zhang Xuan blinked in a daze for a short moment before excitement gushed through his body.

Why didn’t he think of this from the very start?

As long as one’s words were aligned with the quintessence of nature, one could induce another to follow one’s instructions, willingly or not. Luo Qiqi might have fallen into a semi-conscious state, but this didn’t hinder the effects of Impartation of Heaven’s Will on her!

In fact, with her emotions out of the equation, the pill forging was progressing smoother than before!

“Place the Cold Emerald Stone beside the Glacier Rain Sword. Following which, use the Bamboo Drawing Forging Technique to add a blade of Frozen Yin Grass into the pill cauldron…”

Having succeeded once, Zhang Xuan continued using his Impartation of Heaven’s Will.

Before this, Luo Qiqi still had to process the differing sets of instructions for the two cauldrons and work simultaneously, and this had caused her to fall into a fluster. However, under the effects of the Impartation of Heaven’s Will, her hands could operate freely from one another—one focused on smithing while the other focused on pill forging.

In an instant, her efficiency doubled.

Tzzzzz!

As the Cold Emerald Stone was placed with the Glacier Rain Sword, ‘tz la!’, the two began fusing with one another.

Frowning, Zhang Xuan said, “Take out the sword and use the Layered Tempering Technique to hammer it 779 times!”

Hearing the instructions, Luo Qiqi shook her left hand, and the sword immediately fell onto a stone platform. She grabbed the hammer that Wu Yangzi had left behind and started hammering the sword.

Zhang Xuan continued instructing her.

“Add the Leisure Flower Stem and Baoxing Extract into the pill cauldron and raise the intensity of the flames by 30%. After that, use the Lucid Pitching Hands to shake the cauldron seven times!”

Hua hua la la!

Luo Qiqi followed his instructions calmly, without the slightest error.

Humans are subordinate to their emotions. Never having forged a pill and smithed simultaneously before, it was natural that Luo Qiqi had felt trepidation upon seeing the pill cauldron being brought to the verge of explosion. With this kind of fear plaguing her, her movements had become restricted, thus making it hard for her to succeed.

Who could have known that her losing consciousness would turn out to be a blessing in disguise, raising the effectiveness and efficiency of the entire forging process altogether?

Zhang Xuan’s instructions grew more and more rapid, and Luo Qiqi’s movements became faster and faster as well. The both of them were working together with such harmony that it seemed as though Zhang Xuan was forging the weapon and the pill himself.

Even though the cauldron seemed as though it would explode at any moment, under Zhang Xuan’s astute instructions, it was actually extremely safe.

After hammering the Glacier Rain Sword, which was fused with Cold Emerald Stone and Purplestar Grass, it regained its form as a sword, and it looked much sharper than before.

After an unknown period of time, Zhang Xuan’s eyebrows suddenly shot up. Driving his Soul Depth to its maximum, he instructed, “Alright, open the pill cauldron!”

Hu!

Luo Qiqi’s right hand reached forward and opened the lid of the pill cauldron. The concentrated bulk of medicinal energies immediately gathered, and a pill was about to form at any moment now.

“Place the Glacier Rain Sword into the cauldron!”

Upon hearing the instructions, the young lady subconsciously threw the long sword into the pill cauldron.

Weng!

A sharp buzzing sound reminiscent of a melody hummed by the dragons echoed in the stone chamber. It sounded so melodious that one could get drunk on it.

Hu!

Following which, the Glacier Rain Sword flew out from the pill cauldron and danced in the air, as though a bird which had just fled from its cage, releasing an excited call.

A cold gleam flashed from the body of the sword, and it felt as though it could easily tear apart any metal or jade. Just by looking at its sharp edge, one would feel as though one’s eyes might be pierced through by it.

“Come here!”

Beckoning with his hands, the sword immediately flew over and landed in Zhang Xuan’s outstretched hand.

Lowering his head to examine it, the Glacier Rain Sword was still of the same length. However, it looked much lighter, and its previously clear surface was now twinkling with stars. It felt as though the power of a celestial was infused into this blade, bringing an extraordinarily majestic disposition to the blade.

Flicking his finger on the blade lightly, the sword immediately released a loud metallic call. It seemed as though it would transform into a mighty dragon and rule the heavens.

“This is… Half-Saint?”

Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes in shock.

Having mastered the knowledge contained within the six Heaven’s Path Smith Art manuals, his eye of discernment for weapon had reached a new height. Even without the Library of Heaven’s Path, he could easily tell that the Glacier Rain Sword had exceeded the boundaries of Spirit pinnacle to reach Half-Saint!

Weapons could be divided into God, Saint, Spirit, Phantom, and Mortal.

Even though a Half-Saint weapon hadn’t truly reached Sainthood yet, it had already broken free from the shackles of Spirit, reaching an entirely different level of existence.

Even a 6-star pinnacle blacksmith like Wu Yangzi couldn’t hope to successfully forge a sword of this quality!

Only a 7-star blacksmith could possibly forge such a masterpiece!

In other words, using the Impartation of Heaven’s Will, Zhang Xuan actually forged a Half-Saint weapon through Luo Qiqi’s hands. If word were to spread, innumerable people would surely die of shock!

Weapons of such a tier were rare even within Hongyuan Empire!

Flicking his wrist, Zhang Xuan put away the sword before turning to Luo Qiqi.

At this moment, she was meditating on the floor with her eyes closed, seemingly in a state of enlightenment.

Even though she was unconscious during the forging process, the experience she gained from forging the Frigid Yin Pills and upgrading the weapon through the Impartation of Heaven’s Will remained with her as her muscle memory.

With this, both her pill forging and smithing techniques would advance to greater heights.

Seeing the other party’s state, Zhang Xuan fell into deep thought.

‘Even though she was unconscious throughout the forging process, her movements and her zhenqi circulation will stay with her as her muscle memory, forming a much stronger impression. The benefits she obtained from this were even greater than the guidance back in the Apothecary Guild!

‘It seems like Impartation of Heaven’s Will doesn’t only impart the way of cultivation to others. It also encourages them to cultivate and tempers their mental resilience, thus paving their way for improvement in the future!

‘Indolence and fear are a part of human nature, and inevitably, it is such. Should words fail to persuade them, enforcement will be necessary. Through forming muscle memory, this will pave the way for their future growth…”

Coming to an enlightenment, the underground chamber suddenly shook. A unique aura descended from the sky and shrouded Zhang Xuan entirely.

The third acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher!

Chapter 669: Mind of Void

Back in Huanyu Empire…

At this moment, the collapsed infrastructure and cracked ground around the Cleansing Lake had already been fixed, and while the spiritual energy in the Cleansing Lake still wasn’t as concentrated as before, it was showing signs of recovery.

By the side of the Cleansing Lake, a huge stone tablet was erected, and five words were inscribed on it—Yang shi Throws His Shoe!

These words carried a majesty that seemed to draw one’s eyes to them. With just a glance, one could tell that it was the work of a 5-star painter.

Not too far from the stone tablet was where Zhang Xuan rose from the top of a fire dragon and threw his shoe.

By throwing the shoe, Zhang Xuan was just seeking the point where the three energies intersected—it need not necessarily be a shoe.

Nevertheless, the shoe was still taken by the Huanyu Empire as its national treasure, and a stabilizing formation flag was put in its place.

As long as the flag remained in place, the colliding spiritual energy would reach a state of equilibrium, thus providing energy to the Cleansing Lake, allowing Huanyu Empire to groom even more talents.

It was truly a blessing in disguise for Huanyu Empire.

Standing before the stone tablet, a historian recorded, “Huanyu Empire, 67th Year of Wentian’s Reign, Winter. The spiritual energy from the Verdant Mountain, Dragon-scaled River, and earth vein collided, destroying the Cleansing Lake and threatened to lay ruin to the capital. However, Yang shi descended from the sky and broke out of the perilous situation with a single shoe…”

While the historian was in the midst of writing, the water in the lake suddenly grew agitated, and bells chimed in the distance. Countless birds soared into the sky, shrouding the heavens.

“What is happening?”

“I have no idea…”

…

Upon seeing this situation, the guards in the region stared at one another in confusion.

“Pavilion Master Wei, what is going on?”

Emperor Ye Wentian, who hadn’t left the region, noticed the commotion as well and immediately rushed out from his room. Standing beside him was Pavilion Master Wei Jiang.

Pavilion Master Wei suddenly recalled a certain ancient record he had read in the past and froze.

“Blessings of the Hundred Birds… Someone is being acknowledged for a Celestial Occupation!”

Ye Wentian froze as well.

“Celestial Occupation? You mean someone has reached a proficiency in an occupation which even the heavens recognize?”

A Celestial Occupation represented the acknowledgement of the heavens for one’s contribution and proficiency in a certain occupation. Those who could bring forth such a phenomenon were all top-notch geniuses who would surely achieve incredible feats in the future.

For such a situation to occur here, doesn’t that mean that there’s a top-notch genius emerging in Huanyu Empire?

“That’s right!”

Pavilion Master Wei nodded. “Celestial Occupation means that one’s blessed by the heavens… Don’t worry, I’ll go and investigate it right now to see what occupation it is and who the one who triggered it is!”

“Un, you should. Tell me after you uncovered that person’s identity; I must pay that genius a visit personally…” Ye Wentian replied.

“Alright!” Pavilion Master Wei leaped onto the back of the savage beast and flew off to the Master Teacher Pavilion.

However, before he could even enter the pavilion, an elder suddenly rushed over with a fearful expression on his face and reported, “Pavilion master, something bad has happened… The Teacher Acknowledgement Hall has collapsed, and all of the ancestral tablets… have fallen!”

“The Teacher Acknowledgement Hall has collapsed?”

Pavilion Master Wei was stunned. At that moment, he suddenly recalled another matter, and his body trembled in disbelief. “Trembling of the Myriad Tokens, Harmony of the Chimes… Could the Celestial Occupation be… Celestial Master Teacher?”

Celestial Master Teacher was an honor which only Empyrean Kong shi had undergone in the past. Even his direct disciples and the innumerable geniuses who rose after him had never been entitled to such honor before.

For such an incredible phenomenon to occur in the Huanyu Empire Master Teacher Pavilion… Who in the world was it?

A figure suddenly surfaced in Pavilion Master Wei’s mind.

“Could it be… Yang shi?”

The only plausible candidate in his mind was that unfathomable master teacher whom Pavilion Master Mo ordered a silence restraint for, Yang Xuan!

The image of how that elder descended by the sky and sealed the impending calamity with just a single shoe was still deeply-rooted in his mind.

Recalling the order from Pavilion Master Mo, Pavilion Master Wei swiftly issued an order.

“Inform all of the master teachers to remain silent on this matter! Those who defy this order shall be stripped of their master teacher qualification!”

Regardless of whether it was Yang Xuan or a Celestial Master Teacher, both of these were matters beyond them. It was best for them to remain silent on this matter, or else… they might just end up being wiped clean from the map.

Besides, there had only been a single Celestial Master Teacher in the entire history of the human race, Kong shi. While his affairs were recorded by historians afterward, no one could say for sure whether the records were accurate, and if this phenomenon really represented the acknowledgement from the heavens.

“Yes!”

Even though the elder was bewildered by the situation, he still quickly nodded in response before returning to carry out Pavilion Master Wei’s orders.

…

In Myriad Kingdom City…

Stretching her back lazily, Zhao Feiwu walked out from her room.

After cultivating in seclusion for a full month, she was feeling a little stiff all over.

But even so, she knew that this was the only way she could catch a glimpse of that man’s back, albeit the distance between them would only continue to increase.

“You’re done with your cultivation? Not bad, you have improved immensely!”

Pavilion Master Kang walked over, and after taking a look at Zhao Feiwu, he nodded in commendation.

Zhang shi had entrusted Zhao Feiwu to him before departing, so Pavilion Master Kang had been focusing his attention on her throughout the past month, and the latter had benefited greatly from his guidance.

Hong long!

At that moment, Pavilion Master Kang suddenly felt the ground beneath him tremble, and bells chimed furiously from the direction of the Master Teacher Pavilion.

“This is… Celestial Master Teacher? Again?”

Pavilion Master Kang widened his eyes in shock.

It had just happened just a while ago, why would it happen once again all of a sudden?

When did the anticipated Celestial Master Teacher become so recurrent, as if it were an annual festival?

Zhao Feiwu was taken aback. She suddenly recalled the bits and pieces of the young man whom she spent several months with, and she couldn’t help but ask, “Could it be Zhang shi?”

“Zhang shi? Impossible! He has already gone ahead to Huanyu Empire, and that is almost a million kilometers away from here. How could it be him?” Pavilion Master Kang shook his head.

Even the phenomenon of a Celestial Master Teacher’s acknowledgement had a fixed range to it. Considering how Zhang shi wasn’t in the Myriad Kingdom Alliance, how could he possibly trigger the phenomenon in here?

“I once read an ancient text, and it was said that when Kong shi became a Celestial 9-star Master Teacher, the entire continent celebrated his achievement. Phoenixes and true dragons arrived to offer their blessings, and rays of brilliant light fell from the heavens… Could the range of the phenomenon increase along with the rank of the Celestial Master Teacher?” Zhao Feiwu analyzed.

Even though she wasn’t a master teacher, due to her disability, she’d spent her entire youth reading books. Not to mention, as an empire, the Myriad Kingdom Alliance did contain many confidential texts depicting the history and numerous secrets of the continent. In terms of general knowledge, she was comparable to Pavilion Master Kang.

“This…” Pavilion Master Kang was stunned.

It was reasonable to assume that the phenomenon behind a Celestial 1-star Master Teacher would be different from a Celestial 9-star Master Teacher.

Could this huge commotion really have been caused by that fellow?

…

Xuanyuan Kingdom.

Dressed in resplendent robes, Mo Yu sat majestically on a throne.

After several months of reorganizing, she had managed to bring the entire kingdom under her control.

After the news that Zhang shi had become a 4-star master teacher reached this region, no one dared to utter the slightest complaint against Mo Yu’s sovereignty anymore.

There was no one in this kingdom who didn’t know of the intimate relationship between Empress Mo Yu and Zhang shi. If anyone were to be so blind as to incite a rebellion, putting aside the impressive fighting force that Mo Yu had under her command, even the Master Teacher Pavilion would surely step in and teach that person a lesson!

Dang dang dang dang!

The officials were currently in the midst of reporting on the various affairs across the kingdom when the loud chiming of bells sounded from the direction of the Master Teacher Pavilion.

“This…” Astonished, Mo Yu subconsciously stood up. The other officials also turned their gazes over.

Every single master teacher across Xuanyuan Kingdom immediately rushed over to the Master Teacher Pavilion.

Everyone was bewildered by the sudden commotion, unable to comprehend what was going on.

…

The same situation also unfolded in Tianwu Kingdom and other regions as well.

It could be said that the phenomenon occurred in every single Master Teacher Pavilion under Huanyu Empire.

Most people had no idea what was going on, but even those who did had no idea who was the one who had incited it.

At the current moment, the culprit behind the uproar finally got to his feet.

After the Third Celestial Master Teacher came to an end, even though his cultivation was still capped at Consonant Spirit realm pinnacle, his comprehension of battle techniques and cultivation had grown even deeper.

At the same time, the consonance between his soul and his physical body had become even more perfect as well. Naturally, his fighting prowess had been brought to new heights too.

‘Even though I am still no match for Perfect Harmonization realm intermediate stage cultivators, there isn’t anyone in the primary stage who can rival me anymore!’

Sensing the difference in him, Zhang Xuan chuckled lightly.

Even though Celestial Master Teacher didn’t affect one’s cultivation, it broadened one’s mind and analytical capability, allowing one to see past the superficial.

In a way, it was due to the previous two Celestial Master Teacher acknowledgements that Zhang Xuan was much calmer than Luo Qiqi when facing the puppet earlier.

‘My Soul Depth actually increased by 3.0!’

Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

His Soul Depth had actually increased by 3.0, more than it had done the previous two times.

In other words, his current Soul Depth was 19.1, which was comparable to even a 6-star master teacher!

To possess the Soul Depth of a 6-star master teacher despite being in one’s twenties… Just the thought of it was frightening!

A Soul Depth increase of 3.0 was equivalent to the leap of an entire master teacher rank. If it had been anyone else, it would have taken dozens of years of cultivation to achieve the same breakthrough.

Along with the rise in Soul Depth, Zhang Xuan’s Impartation of Heaven’s Will and Eye of Insight had grown even more powerful as well.

In the past, Zhang Xuan could only view things that were two small cultivation realms above of him. After the rise in his Soul Depth, it had increased to three small cultivation realms.

In other words, given his current zhenqi cultivation of Consonant Spirit realm pinnacle, if a Cosmos Bridge realm advanced stage cultivator were to appear before him, he would be able to see through the flaws in the other party’s moves through the Eye of Insight even without tapping into the Library of Heaven’s Path.

The improvement in Zhang Xuan’s Impartation of Heaven’s Will was even more fearsome. Even if it was a 6-star middle-tier master teacher, he was confident he’d be able to beguile the other party with his words.

‘The greatest gain from this acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher is not the increase in my Soul Depth or the enhancement of my Impartation of Heaven’s Will and Eye of Insight… It is Mind of Void!’

After checking his physical condition, Zhang Xuan clenched his fists tightly together in agitation.

The acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher had furthered his various abilities as a master teacher, but what left him the most delighted was that his physical body had gained the ability of Mind of Void.

Mind of Void, this was a state where one’s physical body could move solely on habit, even without a soul or intent driving it.

Back when Zhang Xuan was in the Cleansing Lake, his soulless body was reduced to a state reminiscent of a corpse, unable to be controlled or moved.

However, with the Mind of Void, his physical body was now able to cultivate or even fight without a soul!

In fact, without having to go through his mind, the reflexes of his body would be faster than ever!

If he were to face that puppet from before once more, he would be able to divide his body and soul to fight separately, thus exerting a far greater prowess than before!

‘This is incredible! With this ability, I’ll be able to multitask easily!’

Zhang Xuan smiled in delight at his immense gains. At that moment, he suddenly heard a moaning sound beside him. Luo Qiqi had recovered from her state of enlightenment.

Chapter 670: Genocide

“Teacher!” As soon as she recovered, Luo Qiqi immediately got up and clasped her fist.

Immersed in her previous state of enlightenment, she was unaware that Zhang Xuan had gone through a Celestial Master Teacher acknowledgement. However, her understanding toward pill forging and smithing had improved significantly.

Her previous talent in smithing could only be considered as slightly above average, but with her current understanding, she was confident that she would be able to best those famous geniuses from the Blacksmith School as well!

“Not bad!”

Seeing the other party’s spirited gaze, Zhang Xuan knew that the other party must have benefited greatly from her state of enlightenment, so he nodded in satisfaction.

No matter what, the other party was his student. As her teacher, he would feel pride at her improvement.

“Teacher, thank you for your guidance!”

Luo Qiqi knelt down and kowtowed in gratitude.

Hu!

Just as Zhang Xuan was about to help the other party up, the Library of Heaven’s Path jolted, and the Book of Heaven’s Path appeared.

A golden page was within in.

Zhang Xuan had tried to create it previously when he was attacked by the puppet but to no avail. To think that it would appear now!

‘This is great…’

With this golden page, he would surely be able to turn that puppet into minced meat and escape without worry.

‘It seems like my conjecture was right. Only gratitude derived from the impartation of knowledge can induce the golden page!’ Zhang Xuan nodded.

He had won Luo Qiqi’s gratitude previously by stalling the puppet and allowing her to get away, but the golden page hadn’t been produced.

All of this was pointing to one fact—only gratitude earned from accomplishing his duty as a teacher would trigger the golden page. Anything other than that was ineffective.

“Stand up. Since you have managed to smith a weapon with quality exceeding Spirit high-tier, let’s see if you can receive Wu Yangzi’s heritage and find the escape route!”

Seeing the golden page, Zhang Xuan’s mood lifted. He hurriedly helped the lady up, before flicking his wrist and placing the Glacier Rain Sword on the platform before the Crimson Blaze Cauldron.

Jiyaya!

Having seemingly assessed that the quality of the sword had met the standard, the stone platform shook, and the voice from the Mechanical Recorder sounded once more.

“Congratulations, you have forged a weapon exceeding Spirit high-tier. As such, you’re qualified to become my student, and I’ll impart my life’s work to you!”

Hu!

As he spoke those words, the ground before him trembled, and a stone pedestal slowly surfaced.

To think that there was a mechanism below the stone chamber as well!

“On the stone pedestal, there’s a total of three objects. First, there is a manual on the forging technique that I created through consolidating the essence of my understanding of smithing, Zither Forging Technique. Second, there is my physical body cultivation technique, Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body. Last but not least, my experience here and the exit route!

“Even though I was trapped here, I didn’t feel the slightest anger or hatred at all. Instead, by devoting all of my attention to smithing, I was able to forget my sorrows instead… However, it was a pity that there is a limit to a man’s lifespan. My ultimate goal of forging a Saint weapon remains out of my reach even as I approach the end of my life, and it will forever remain my greatest regret.

“I hope that after receiving my heritage, you can accomplish my wish and smith a Saint weapon using my ‘Zither Forging Technique’ so as to appease my soul in the heavens above. This way… I’ll be able to rest in peace.

“If you are willing, make a vow and I’ll reveal an important piece of information to you. This information concerns a treasure left behind from ancient ruins, and if you manage to obtain it, there will be no problem reaching Sainthood!”

“Reaching Sainthood?”

Glancing at one another, Zhang Xuan and Luo Qiqi’s breathing hastened.

Transcendent Mortal 9-dan Chrysalis realm was also known as the Embryonic realm, Nascent Heart realm, or Golden Core realm.

The main purpose of that realm was to gather the entirety of one’s cultivation to form an Origin Embryo. Once the formation of the Origin Embryo was complete, one would be able to surpass one’s limitation and achieve Sainthood.

The formation of the Origin Embryo was the final, as well as the greatest, hurdle that Transcendent Mortals would face, and many found themselves unable to overcome this challenge.

Considering how this object provided a ticket to reaching Sainthood, its value was indeed immeasurable.

“I agree!”

After glancing at Zhang shi and receiving his approval, Luo Qiqi stepped forward and bowed deeply to the pedestal to signify that her acknowledgement as of Grandmaster Wu Yangzi as her teacher.

Zhang Xuan was Luo Qiqi’s apothecary teacher. While he did impart the art of smithing to the latter as well, he didn’t accept the latter as his disciple, so there were no qualms with her acknowledging another as her teacher.

Not to mention, a precious treasure and a heritage were at stake here.

After making her vows, the voice in the Mechanical Recorder finally continued speaking.

“Since you have made a vow, I will reveal the secret to you now. I have left most of my treasures and the information beneath my old mansion. At the Three Stars of the Earth Dragon, you just have to put down three formation flags according to the Three Stars, and the items will surface automatically!”

The voice came to a halt.

“Three Stars of the Earth Dragon? Old mansion?”

Zhang Xuan and Luo Qiqi stared at one another, and they nearly fainted from anger.

Are you taking us for a fool?

It has been two thousand years since you died, who in the world would know where your old mansion was? Also, what the heck is the Three Stars of the Earth Dragon?

Given that this cryptic message was left behind on a Mechanical Recorder, there was no way they could ask about it, and this only left them even more frustrated.

To reveal the existence of a treasure to them but not identify the location clearly, just the thought of it left the duo light-headed.

“Considering how Wu Yangzi was captured and brought here, there’s no way of telling who would challenge his trial and obtain his heritage. As such, it’s understandable that he would speak in riddles!”

Even though Zhang Xuan was frustrated, he could understand the rationale behind the other party’s actions.

Given that Wu Yangzi was brought here against his will, any precious treasures that were on him must have been already taken away by his captors. Considering how his captors had the easiest access to this stone chamber, there was a high chance that they would have uncovered this information and claimed the treasure for themselves should the clue be too direct.

Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but ask, “But… where is his old mansion?”

“I have no idea either. However, if I recall correctly, Grandmaster Wu Yangzi used to live in Hongyuan Capital, the city where Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy is located.” Luo Qiqi thought for a moment before continuing. “I’ll check the records after I return to the academy. It has only been two thousand years, so I should be able to uncover some traces of it!”

“Un!”

Zhang Xuan nodded.

Two thousand years might be a long time to a small kingdom like Tianxuan Kingdom, and immense changes could happen to it in that timeframe, but to a massive behemoth like Hongyuan Empire, the effects of the passing of two thousand years wasn’t as obvious.

Tier 1 Empires had Saint realm experts, and considering how they possessed a lifespan of around a thousand years, a span of two thousand years could only be considered as the passing of two to three generations. Thus, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find Wu Yangzi’s old mansion.

“Let’s take a look at his heritage.”

Since they couldn’t access the treasure stuck in this underground chamber, there was no use thinking about it for now. Thus, Zhang Xuan gestured for Luo Qiqi to look at the items on the stone pedestal.

Luo Qiqi nodded and walked toward the stone pedestal.

Of the three items that Wu Yangzi left behind, she reached out for the third one immediately—the way to escape from here.

Naturally, their survival took precedence over everything else.

“Teacher!”

Luo Qiqi passed the book over.

“Un!” Taking the book, Zhang Xuan flipped through it casually before a bizarre expression appeared on his face.

Seeing Zhang Xuan’s expression, Luo Qiqi’s face tensed.

“What’s wrong, teacher? Is there no way to leave here?”

It would truly be a disaster if they couldn’t get out, but Zhang Xuan smiled reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, there’s a way out. It’s just that I saw something interesting. It seems like Grandmaster Wu Yangzi is a very different person from how we thought he was…”

“Different?” Luo Qiqi was perplexed.

“You should take a look yourself.”

Zhang Xuan passed the book over to Luo Qiqi.

Confused, Luo Qiqi took the book and browsed through it. After she was done, a bizarre expression appeared on her face as well.

Having expected this, Zhang Xuan chuckled softly.

Wu Yangzi was captured and brought to this underground chamber by the Otherworldly Demons.

In other words, this underground chamber was a lair for the Otherworldly Demons!

The Otherworldly Demons had once enjoyed great prestige ruling over the other races, including the humans. Yet, they had been forced to hide within remote places where the sun didn’t reach just to survive. Naturally, they would seek to return to where they had once stood.

As such, the first stone tablet inscribed with ‘Yearning Abode Lodge’ actually reflected their wish instead of Wu Yangzi’s.

This was the reason why the three words carried the unique killing intent of Otherworldly Demons.

This underground chamber was constructed by the Otherworldly Demons to avoid the pursuit of human cultivators, and it housed dozens of their brethren. Due to the skillful construction of the underground chamber, it didn’t feel stifling despite the size of their group.

As for why they had chosen to capture Wu Yangzi, the reason was simple. This bunch of Otherworldly Demons had hidden from the Master Teacher Pavilion for many millenniums, but due to their limited populace, they could only cross-marry, and this resulted in a degeneration in their genes, thus limiting their ability to reproduce. As such, their populace declined steadily, and they slowly approached extinction.

To resolve this problem, they decided to capture Wu Yangzi, who was renowned for his proficiency in smithing and mechanisms then, to temper their bodies and prolong their lifespan.

The idea was good, but… how could tempering one’s body and prolonging one’s lifespan be easy?

Putting aside how Wu Yangzi was only a 6-star blacksmith, even an 8-star or 9-star blacksmith wouldn’t be able to achieve this feat!

Otherwise, that person would surely become renowned across the entire Master Teacher Continent, and countless people would flock to him in hopes of prolonging their lifespan.

Who would willingly accept death when there was an opportunity to live on?

As such, Wu Yangzi was captured and locked within this stone chamber. While it was vast, it did little to reduce the fact that it was a prison. The only way to escape this stone chamber was through the narrow stone door, but so long as someone was guarding it, it was impossible to escape.

Losing his freedom, even if he had smithing to accompany him, frustration and loneliness would surely slowly gnaw at him. As such, ‘Burying Sorrow’ was incomprehensible.

But through this book, Zhang Xuan learned why Wu Yangzi granted this stone chamber such a name.

The Otherworldly Demons who captured him wanted Wu Yangzi to temper their bodies and prolong their longevity… and that fellow was indeed tenacious. He went through all of the trouble and used every means at his disposal to temper their bodies to make them nigh indestructible…

But at the same time… while tempering their bodies, Wu Yangzi also robbed them of their consciousness, turning them into puppets who could only obey orders.

In other words… the puppet outside was actually one of the Otherworldly Demons who kidnapped Grandmaster Wu Yangzi, and it ended up being forged into nothing more than a puppet!

Wu Yangzi knew that the Otherworldly Demons would never allow him to escape, so he designed a mechanism to secretly release the weapons he forged out into the world. He intended for them to trace his location through those weapons and organize a party to save him… but who knew that this wait would take him more than two thousand years!

In these two thousand years, all of the Otherworldly Demons, except for those who had been tempered into mere puppets, had all died. This was the reason why the underground chamber seemed to be completely empty when their group entered.

Eventually, as Wu Yangzi’s lifespan approached its limit, he began to accept the fact that he might not be able to escape, so he decided to leave his heritage here. As for the puppet outside, it was probably the guard in charge of looking after Wu Yangzi’s chamber and preventing him from leaving. Considering how all of the Otherworldly Demons had died out, it was probably still in the midst of fulfilling the last command issued to it.

“This…”

Luo Qiqi was in disbelief.

Wu Yangzi was known to be an upright and honorable man. Who would have thought that he could be so scheming?

To actually turn the Otherworldly Demons that had captured him into puppets… he sure was vicious!

In a sense, this was as good as committing genocide!

Chapter 671: Slaying the Puppet

“To forge the Otherworldly Demons into puppets and implant commands into them such that they would function as ordinary living beings… it would indeed be difficult to tell the difference in the short run. Grandmaster Wu Yangzi probably derived joy from seeing how the Otherworldly Demons slowly fell into his trap, and gradually, this source of entertainment allowed him to forget his sorrows!”

Zhang Xuan chuckled.

The human race and the Otherworldly Demons were mortal enemies. As a renowned blacksmith, Wu Yangzi understood this logic.

When he was first captured, he would have surely been filled with indignation and rage. However, as he killed all of them slowly by converting them into puppets, he was surely filled with exhilaration.

After all, none of these ancient Otherworldly Demons were weaker than him… and yet, singlehandedly, he turned them into puppets, thus eradicating every last one of them. Just the thought of it could send one’s heart pumping in excitement…

With such a mission in life, it was no wonder he could forget his sorrows!

Judging from the joyful tone in his handwriting, it could be seen that the other party was so elated that it was almost as if he would float into the sky.

As for how he managed to convince so many Otherworldly Demon to be willingly tempered under his hands, thinking that they would become immortal… nothing was written in the book about it, so it was impossible to tell for sure.

Nevertheless, Zhang Xuan deduced that it was probably a gradual change.

For example, Wu Yangzi would temper the other party’s arms first. Tempering the arms had little impact on one’s ability to think, and the primary success would convince everyone else to do it too.

Following which, he would move on to the legs, spine, and body…

And finally, when everyone had let down their guard, he would temper their heads, thus successfully converting them into puppets…

But of course, this was only Zhang Xuan’s conjecture. Without seeing it for himself, there was no way of confirming it.

Under the perseverance of Wu Yangzi, the Otherworldly Demon who sought to lengthen their lifespans… ended up being eradicated instead.

“According to Grandmaster Wu Yangzi’s records, there are at least twenty Otherworldly Demon in this underground chamber that fell for his ploy, thus ending up as puppets. If this merit were to be reported to the Master Teacher Pavilion, the reward obtained would be so great that it could ensure the prosperity of a clan for several generations to come,” Luo Qiqi said.

Killing Otherworldly Demons was a huge merit to the human race, and the Master Teacher Pavilion offered rewards for it.

The higher the cultivation realm and quantity of Otherworldly Demons killed, the greater the reward. Considering how Wu Yangzi had managed to slay over twenty Otherworldly Demons of nearly equal cultivation as himself, that was sufficient for his name to go down in history, and the Master Teacher Pavilion would help look after his descendants for generations to come in reciprocation for his contribution!

In fact, so long as he said the word, they could allow one of his descendants to become the emperor of Hongyuan Empire.

“Un. We’ll report this matter to the Master Teacher Pavilion honestly. As for how they will reward his descendants, that is none of our business!” Zhang Xuan chuckled. “Let’s leave first before talking about other matters!”

Luo Qiqi nodded.

“Based on Grandmaster Wu Yangzi’s description, we have to return to the path we came from. Even though we can’t break the Dragon Severing Lock, there is a mechanism installed on it that we can make use of… In other words, if we wish to break out of this underground chamber, we’ll have to get rid of that fellow outside first!” Zhang Xuan said.

The method of leaving this place was recorded in the book.

This was a prison, a place to incarcerate Wu Yangzi. Naturally, there wouldn’t be side exits installed in this place. Thus, the only way to leave was through the Dragon Severing Lock.

As a grandmaster blacksmith, Wu Yangzi seemed to have left some kind of mechanism on the lock such that it would be easy for him to get away in the future.

However, it’s a pity that he never succeeded.

“Get rid of that fellow?”

Recalling the fearsome Otherworldly Demon puppet, Luo Qiqi’s face paled.

Even just thinking about it now was enough to send shivers down her spine!

It was swift, strong, and possessed impenetrable skin; there was no flaw that they could exploit against it!

Seeing through Luo Qiqi’s thoughts, Zhang Xuan chuckled.

“Don’t worry. We might not have been able to deal with it before, but now… we do have a weapon in our hands!”

Previously, even though the Library of Heaven’s Path reflected the location of the flaws of the puppet, Zhang Xuan had still been unable to exploit them due to his low cultivation realm.

It was similar to an ant attempting to kill a divine dragon. Even if the ant knew the flaws of the dragon, how could it possibly land a fatal blow when it couldn’t even bite through the other party’s skin?

While Zhang Xuan knew that the puppet would fall once its head was lopped off, its astounding defense covered for its flaws. Even an attack with Zhang Xuan’s full might and using his strongest weapon could only leave a shallow cut on the other party’s neck. So, how could he possibly defeat the other party?

While the Library of Heaven’s Path allowed Zhang Xuan to rival opponents stronger than him, there was a limit to how wide a gap it could bridge… Sometimes, even the opponent’s flaw could be way beyond his current cultivation.

However, that was then. Now that the Glacier Rain Sword had advanced to become a Half-Saint weapon, everything was simple.

Seeing Zhang Xuan pick up the Glacier Rain Sword, Luo Qiqi was stunned.

“Teacher means to… fight against it?”

She knew that the Glacier Rain Sword had exceeded Spirit high-tier, but how far beyond that still eluded her.

Her ability in appraising weapons was still far beneath that of Zhang Xuan. Not to mention, given her current cultivation realm, it was perfectly normal for her to have never encountered Half-Saint artifacts before.

“Un. I’ll tear away the formation later on. You’ll have to attract its attention from the front while I sneak to its back to attempt killing it with a single blow!”

Zhang Xuan began going into details regarding the plan of how they would deal with the puppet. “This is what you have to do…”

“Alright!” Hearing her teacher’s instructions, Luo Qiqi nodded without any hesitation.

To guide her to forge a pill and smith simultaneously, and for it to be a success at that, what else could her teacher possibly be incapable of?

She walked up to the Crimson Blaze Cauldron and put it in her storage ring. Following which, with a flick of her wrist, she took out a bow and drew an arrow.

As the bow she used previously was destroyed by the puppet, she was currently wielding a lower tier one.

There was no other choice. This was the only long-range Spirit weapon she had in her possession.

Seeing that Luo Qiqi was ready, Zhang Xuan took a deep breath and pushed himself up to the sky.

After looking around for a moment, he finally stopped at a certain position before driving his zhenqi and grabbing downward.

Wuwuwuwu!

The formation flags were pulled out of the ground, and the originally pitch-black portion of the stone chamber gradually lost its darkness under the radiance of the Night Illumination Pearls. Slowly, the Otherworldly Demon puppet’s huge silhouette came into appearance.

ROAR!

As they saw the figure of the Otherworldly Demon puppet, the other party also caught side of Luo Qiqi. With a furious roar, it dashed forward frenziedly.

“Die!” Luo Qiqi cried out, and arrows immediately rained down upon the large puppet.

Ding ding ding ding!

However, due to the lacking might behind her arrows, it did little to impede the other party’s advance. In fact, none of the arrows pierced through the other party’s skin.

Not expecting her arrows to be shrugged off so easily, Luo Qiqi clenched her jaws and threw her bow at it.

Kacha!

The Otherworldly Puppet flung its arm, and the bow shattered. By this moment, it was already standing right before Luo Qiqi. With a booming shock wave, its steel fist crushed toward her.

If Luo Qiqi were to be struck by this outrageously powerful fist, she would surely die on the spot.

Seeing that the fist was about to strike her, Luo Qiqi’s eyebrows shot up, and she immediately flicked her wrist.

Dang!

With a metallic reverberation, the Crimson Blaze Cauldron which she had just placed in her storage ring appeared before her.

There was a small ventilation gap on the cauldron that was used to insert coal into it. The puppet’s punch struck precisely into the ventilation gap, and its fist was immediately trapped inside the cauldron.

The Crimson Blaze cauldron was an artifact that Wu Yangzi used to forge his weapon, and even he himself was unable to destroy it. Naturally, the puppet was unable to do so as well. With its fist trapped, the puppet thrashed around furiously, but there was nothing it could do.

“I succeeded!”

Seeing that the plan was working, Luo Qiqi’s eyes lit up.

When her teacher shared his plan with her previously, she thought that it would be very hard to put it into action. However, just by following the other party’s instructions strictly, she actually managed to do it easily.

It was a wonder to her how the other party managed to plan this far ahead.

That kind of analytical ability and battle sense was nothing short of monstrous!

Huala!

Just as Luo Qiqi was filled with awe, a cold gleam suddenly flashed across her eyes, and the puppet abruptly staggered. Following which, its head slowly slid to the ground.

Unknowingly, her teacher had appeared behind the puppet and lopped off its head with a single slash.

“How sharp…”

Seeing how the Glacier Rain Sword easily cut through the other party’s neck with a simple cut, Luo Qiqi’s eyes widened in shock.

Even though her appraisal ability wasn’t up to par with Zhang Xuan, she could tell that the might of the Glacier Rain Sword exceeded that of Spirit pinnacle weapons.

There was no Spirit pinnacle weapon that could achieve this feat so easily!

Luo Qiqi couldn’t help but ask, “Teacher, what is the current tier of the Glacier Rain Sword?”

“Half-Saint!” There was no reason for Zhang Xuan to hide it from her either.

“Half-Saint?” Luo Qiqi’s body trembled in astonishment.

Even 6-star blacksmiths would be unable to smith out such a weapon! And yet… in that groggy state, she actually succeeded in creating such a weapon?

“Alright. Gather everything that’s of any value, and let’s quickly leave this area!”

Seeing Luo Qiqi’s eyes widening in disbelief, Zhang Xuan shrugged nonchalantly. At the same time, he also felt a little perplexed… Considering the prestige of the Master Teacher Academy—after all, most master teachers view it as their aim—why did these few talented students that he met seem so ignorant?

After going through so much effort to quench the Glacier Rain Sword, while it was a surprise that the Glacier Rain Sword was able to reach Half-Saint, it wasn’t entirely unexpected. Was there a reason for her to make such a huge fuss out of it?

“Yes!”

Unaware of Zhang shi’s doubts, Luo Qiqi suppressed the astonishment deep within her and put everything that seemed to be valuable into her storage ring. At that moment, she suddenly recalled something. Turning around, she passed a book over to Zhang Xuan.

“Teacher, this is the physical body cultivation technique of Grandmaster Wu Yangzi, the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body, a Spirit pinnacle secret manual…”

The main reason why Zhang Xuan came with them was because he was seeking Grandmaster Wu Yangzi’s physical body cultivation technique. Since they had obtained it now, it was only right for her to present it to him.

“Un!” Zhang Xuan’s finger fell on the book for a moment before retracting it. “This isn’t right. Since this is Grandmaster Wu Yangzi’s personal cultivation technique, I don’t think I’ll take it after all. You should study hard so as to not let him down.”

Considering that the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body was a personal cultivation technique of Wu Yangzi’s and that he intended to pass it down only to his student, it would indeed be inappropriate for an outsider to learn it.

This was the basic respect among cultivators.

“This…”

Not expecting the other party to reject it, Luo Qiqi’s face reddened. She opened her mouth, but she couldn’t find any words to say.

Before such a precious physical body cultivation technique, others would surely toss aside their etiquette and take it for themselves. Yet, her teacher actually turned it down…

This professionalism and character were indeed worthy of respect!

‘Zhang laoshi, from now onward, you shall be my role model! I shall strive to emulate your behavior!’ Luo Qiqi vowed in her heart.

While she was completely impressed with Zhang Xuan, at this moment, the latter was currently staring at the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body manual in the Library of Heaven’s Path with a bitter face.

“78 flaws? The heck! Can this still be called a Spirit pinnacle physical body cultivation technique? You must be joking with me! To regard this kind of rotten book as your treasure and pass it down as an inheritance, screw this…”

Chapter 672: Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body

When Zhang Xuan’s finger came into contact with the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body earlier, he had already duplicated another one in the Library of Heaven’s Path. Thus, it mattered not to him whether he had the physical copy or not.

Initially, Zhang Xuan thought that given how high-tiered the physical body cultivation technique was, it must be extremely profound and powerful. Who would have known that it would be riddled with flaws…

If only he knew how trashy this cultivation technique was, he wouldn’t have wasted his time coming here. He would have just gathered the books at Huanyu Empire instead.

He was confident he could compile a far stronger physical body cultivation technique with the manuals in Huanyu Empire!

In other words, he had gone through so much trouble for nothing!

Zhang Xuan shook his head in disappointment.

However, it was too late for regrets. All he could do was to recoup his losses as much as possible. Thus, he stepped forward to the puppet and placed it in his storage ring.

Although the puppet had been incapacitated, considering how tough its defense was, it was likely to have been made out of some kind of valuable ore.

Thus, Zhang Xuan intended to take it back and examine it properly. Perhaps, he might be able to extract some precious ores from it.

Walking out of the stone chamber, Zhang Xuan and Luo Qiqi walked back through the passageway and into the stone room, where Luo Qiqi retrieved her sword. After which, they went back up the stairs, and soon, they were standing before the Dragon Severing Lock.

Zhang Xuan’s finger fell on the location written on the Dragon Severing Lock, and he pressed down lightly.

Kacha!

The creaking of a mechanism sounded, and following which, the Dragon Severing Lock shook.

“Is it done?” Luo Qiqi’s eyes lit up as she walked forward to push the lock. However, despite exerting so much force that her face was turning red, the Dragon Severing Lock showed no sign of moving at all.

Zhang Xuan frowned.

As a Transcendent Mortal 6-dan pinnacle expert, Luo Qiqi wielded strength exceeding 6,200,000 ding. It was one thing for her to be unable to open the Dragon Severing Lock when it was sealed, but given that the mechanism had been activated, why was she still unable to move it?

“Let me give it a try!”

Frowning, Zhang Xuan stepped forward and pushed with all his might.

Boom!

Harnessing the strength of his physical body, soul, and zhenqi together, a force exceeding 9,000,000 ding was exerted against the Dragon Severing Lock.

Hu!

But even so, the huge boulder still remained completely motionless, as though it was perfectly stuck to the ground.

“This…” Retracting his arms, Zhang Xuan frowned in confusion. “It can’t be that… the mechanism has stopped working after two thousand years?”

According to the book left behind by Wu Yangzi, as long as the mechanism was activated, the Dragon Severing Lock should have been able to be knocked open. But if that was the case, why wasn’t it budging even though they had put so much strength into it?

This shouldn’t be the case!

If the mechanism was really broken, the both of them would be doomed.

Even a Saint realm cultivator would find it hard to break the Dragon Severing Lock, let alone them.

Was their only way out gone… just like that?

“It is recorded in the book that even after triggering the mechanism, the Dragon Severing Lock still can’t be opened normally. One will have to exert pure physical strength to push it open. Once the mechanism senses the presence of zhenqi, it’ll automatically deactivate…”

Taking Wu Yangzi’s book out once more, Luo Qiqi read with a grim expression.

“Pure physical strength?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

“Indeed. The mechanism against the Dragon Severing Lock is made out of a unique material which is exceptionally sensitive to zhenqi… Grandmaster Wu Yangzi probably did it this way so as to prevent the Otherworldly Demon from noticing and exploiting the mechanism. The killing intent that the Otherworldly Demon emanates possesses properties similar to zhenqi, so even if they were to notice the mechanism, they would still be unable to open it,” Luo Qiqi said.

“I see!”

Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

Given Wu Yangzi’s meticulous personality, it was indeed possible for him to design such a mechanism.

Even if an Otherworldly Demon were to obtain his heritage, it would still be unable to leave this underground chamber alive, thus frustrating it to death.

“I’ll give it another try!”

With this conjecture in mind, Zhang Xuan retracted his soul and zhenqi cultivation, and using just the might of his muscles, he pushed the Dragon Severing Lock with all his might.

Geji! Geji!

The Dragon Severing Lock groaned, but Zhang Xuan was still unable to open it.

“I don’t have sufficient strength to open it.”

“I’ll help you!”

Luo Qiqi walked over, and the duo pushed the Dragon Severing Lock together. However, it still didn’t budge.

This meant that their combined strength was still insufficient.

However, the groaning sound did indicate that their line of thought was right, it was just that they were lacking sufficient strength to push open the Dragon Severing Lock.

“Even though we failed to open it, the mechanism seems to be working… the only option for us now is to quickly raise our physical strength!”

Zhang Xuan frowned.

Even though he could summon his clone, and with the combined might between him and his clone, it should be possible to open the Dragon Severing Lock. However… his clone was made of a God artifact, and he didn’t want anyone to learn of its existence yet.

Once his clone’s existence was made known, it was possible that others might doubt Yang shi’s existence, and the matter of him practicing the arts of a soul oracle would likely be exposed as well.

“Raise our physical strength? Teacher means that… we should cultivate the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body?”

Luo Qiqi was taken aback.

“Un. It is very likely that this is another test from Grandmaster Wu Yangzi—if we can’t even cultivate the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body, it is likely that we will be unable to fulfill his wish of forging a Saint weapon. And since our words are an empty promise… he would rather that we remain here to accompany him!” Zhang Xuan analyzed.

Wu Yangzi was indeed an extremely thorough person, having taken into account every single possibility.

But considering how he was the man who managed to dupe so many Otherworldly Demons into offering their heads to him, it didn’t really come as a surprise.

Otherwise, he would probably have been killed by the Otherworldly Demons.

“Cultivate right now?” Luo Qiqi’s face was plagued with dilemma. “A physical body cultivation technique cannot be mastered within a single day. It requires many years of hard work. Are we going to be trapped here for that long?”

Just like normal zhenqi cultivation techniques, physical body cultivation techniques also required many years of diligence for one to achieve mastery.

If they had to learn the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body before they could leave… how long would that take?

What if they never succeeded in it? Would this underground chamber really be their final resting place?

Seeing Luo Qiqi frown, Zhang Xuan hesitated for a moment before he asked, “Other than the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body, do you have any other physical body cultivation technique manuals on you?”

Not knowing why her teacher would ask such a question, Luo Qiqi was dazed for a moment before replying.

“Other physical body cultivation technique manuals? I do have quite a few, but none of them can be compared to the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body!”

Possessing a strong physical body was one of the requirements for becoming a 5-star apothecary and 5-star blacksmith. As such, she did possess quite a few physical body cultivation technique manuals on her. However, none of their grades could match the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body.

“Allow me to take a look.”

Zhang Xuan had only asked that question casually, not expecting to receive a positive answer. His eyes immediately lit up in delight.

“Alright.”

Knowing that her teacher must have an idea in mind for asking for them, Luo Qiqi flicked her wrist and placed a few piles of books on the stairs without any hesitation. There were probably around a few hundred books within the pile.

“There are so many of them…”

Not expecting the other party to be carrying so many books on her, Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up. He hurriedly brushed his fingertip across all of them.

“Actually… it was a friend who helped me collect all of these. Back then, when I was striving to become a 5-star blacksmith, my physical body was still too weak. So, a friend gave all of these to me…” Luo Qiqi said awkwardly.

Despite Princess Yu Fei-er’s difficult personality, she still had many pursuers. Given Luo Qiqi’s appearance, it was natural that she would have no lack of pursuers either.

Back then, when she failed the 5-star blacksmith examination, a senior in the Blacksmith School who was pursuing her gathered all of these physical body cultivation techniques and gave them to her.

She had been wanting to return them to the other party since then, but she hadn’t found an opportunity yet. Since her teacher needed them now, she brought all of them out.

“Good…”

After collecting all of the books into the Library of Heaven’s Path, Zhang Xuan stood up and muttered ‘compile’.

Hu!

A brand-new Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body appeared in the Library of Heaven’s Path.

Zhang Xuan quickly flipped it open, and amidst its content, there were only four errors.

“Great!”

Zhang Xuan chuckled in delight.

He was still troubled over the excessive flaws in the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body manual previously, but after assimilating the content from the other physical body cultivation technique manuals from Luo Qiqi, he was able to make up for most of the flaws. Even though there were still four flaws remaining, they were negligible.

With this, he would surely be able to strengthen his physical body to the required level within two hours!

“Let’s return to the stone chamber first.”

The stone chamber was narrow, dark, and damp, which weren’t conditions suited for cultivating. Thus, the duo returned to the stone chamber, and sitting down, they began cultivating.

Understanding her teacher’s intentions, Luo Qiqi flipped open the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body.

An introduction to the technique was written on the first page.

“The Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body wasn’t created by me; I found it when I was roaming through ancient ruins. There is a total of five levels to the technique, and they are otherwise known as the Five Incandescence. Upon mastering the technique, one’s physical body will be imbued with a five-colored light, granting one immense might… However, this technique is extremely difficult to cultivate, and even I have only been able to reach the Third Incandescence.”

After taking a look, Luo Qiqi couldn’t help but feel impressed.

Honestly speaking, the person who created the cultivation technique was indeed a genius.

She had seen many geniuses and formidable master teachers in the Master Teacher Academy, and she had heard of many different physical body cultivation techniques as well. However, none of them seemed to be able to compete with this one.

But while the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body was indeed strong, it was difficult to cultivate as well.

Putting everything aside, to reach the Second Incandescence and beyond, one would require some supporting materials to temper their body with.

Even though Luo Qiqi had plenty of pills and medicinal herbs on her, none of them fulfilled the requirements.

‘Forget it. I shall cultivate the First Incandescence and leave this place first…’

Putting all other miscellaneous thoughts aside, she began to browse through the content of the First Incandescence.

“To master the First Incandescence, one has to be able to gather the full might of one’s body. It will take at least two years for a genius to achieve Major Accomplishment, while those who are less talented can easily take more than ten years!”

Such a sentence was written in the very first paragraph depicting the First Incandescence.

‘Two years?’

Luo Qiqi’s mouth twitched.

If she were to be trapped here for two years, the entire school would probably think that she was dead!

Furthermore, this was still assuming that she possessed an affinity for the cultivation technique. If she lacked talent in it, wouldn’t they be trapped here for ten years?

‘What am I thinking all of this for? I should focus my attention on cultivating. The faster I master the technique, the earlier I’ll be able to leave this underground chamber.’

Luo Qiqi shook away other miscellaneous thoughts from her head. Clenching her jaws, she began to memorize the formula for the First Incandescence. Soon, just after she managed to memorize the content and was just about to decipher and cultivate it, Zhang shi suddenly stood up.

“Let’s go!”

“Where?”

Luo Qiqi was taken aback.

She hadn’t even started cultivating yet, where were they heading to?

“To leave! Do you not want to leave?”

Zhang Xuan shot her a perplexed expression.

“I…”

Luo Qiqi was completely confused by the situation before her. “Of course, I want to leave… but we aren’t able to open the Dragon Severing Lock with our current combined strength! I have barely memorized the First Incandescence of the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body, and I haven’t started cultivating yet…”

Zhang Xuan shook his head. “It’s alright, I have already mastered it!”

“Mastered it?”

Luo Qiqi was taken aback. “What does that mean?”

At that moment, the duo was already standing right before the Dragon Severing Lock. Zhang shi raised his arm and abruptly exerted an immense force on the Dragon Severing Lock.

Weng!

A bright light emanated from his body, and with a ‘jiya!’, the Dragon Severing Lock opened.

“Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body… First Incandescence? What is going on?”

Luo Qiqi’s body trembled; she felt like she was about to go insane.

I thought you didn’t read that cultivation technique manual?

What in the world was going on?

Chapter 673: As Good as Dead

It was just a moment ago that she offered this secret manual to Zhang shi, but the other party turned it down, saying that it would be inappropriate for him to take a look at it. But right after, as she was completely impressed by such noble behavior, the other party actually exerted the might of the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body…

‘So, did you look at the book or not?

‘Wasn’t it written that even geniuses would require at least two years to master?

‘But how long has it been since we started cultivating?

‘To have remembered the content and finished cultivating within such a short period of time…

‘Teacher, are you Zhang shi or a reincarnation of Wu Yangzi?’

Luo Qiqi was completely dumbfounded by the sight before her.

It felt as though her understanding of the world was being overturned entirely.

Leaping by the Dragon Severing Lock, Zhang Xuan realized that the young lady was still dazing off within the passageway, so he turned around and beckoned her.

“What are you waiting for? Let’s go!”

Walking out of the passageway, Luo Qiqi couldn’t hold back her curiosity anymore, so she asked, “Teacher… did you just use the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body?”

“I guess it could be considered that way too.”

Shaking his head, Zhang Xuan explained with a displeased expression, “I didn’t intend to learn it, but due to the urgency of the matter, I had no choice but to do so. This physical body cultivation technique is rather troublesome to cultivate so I modified it a little. Even so, significant flaws still remain in it, so I’ve only cultivated to the First Incandescence!”

Zhang Xuan was truly frustrated. Initially, he was still delighted that there were only four flaws… but it turned out that he was sorely mistaken.

The four flaws just happened to be that he would require various rare materials in order to cultivate the Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth Incandescence.

For example, he would require the Earth Flame Heart to reach the Second Incandescence, and for the Third Incandescence, he would require Origin Heavy Water…

When cultivating the Heaven’s Path Golden Body, he only required Heaven’s Path zhenqi. When had he needed the support of external materials before?

To still require so many items even after compiling a few hundred physical body cultivation techniques with it, this was truly damned.

It was fortunate that he could master the First Incandescence through just using his Heaven’s Path zhenqi, or else he would surely have died of frustration.

While he was displeased by his situation, Luo Qiqi was about to go insane.

‘Modified it slightly?

‘Significant flaws still remain in it?

‘This is a Spirit pinnacle cultivation technique… or perhaps, it might even be beyond it! I have just barely finished reading through the First Incandescence, and you are already done understanding, modifying, and cultivating it…

‘To even pick on the flaws in the technique on top of that!

‘Are you teasing me?

‘I have seen many incredible geniuses and experts, but never have I seen one as absurd as you!’

Luo Qiqi’s mouth twitched violently as vertigo struck her.

She felt that there was nothing that Zhang shi was incapable of. It seemed as though doing the impossible was the norm for him.

“Hmm? They aren’t out yet? Have they left already?”

Just as Luo Qiqi was shocked speechless, she heard the voice of the young man. Shifting her gaze, she saw that Zhang shi had already walked ahead and was currently standing before the other stone door. A deep frown was etched on his forehead.

Yu Fei-er, Xing Yuan, and the others had passed through this stone door to enter another passageway. Considering how they spent almost sixteen hours inside their passageway, they thought that the others would be out by now. But contrary to their expectations, there was not a single face to be seen amidst the dim radiance from the Night Illumination Pearl in the vast underground chamber.

Had they left already, or were they still stuck inside?

Luo Qiqi’s heart skipped a beat. Tossing away all other thoughts, she hurriedly rushed up to Zhang Xuan.

After examining the area, her expression turned grim. “It seems like they aren’t out yet. Otherwise, they would have surely come to look for us. Furthermore, the locations where the Night Illumination Pearls are scattered are still the same… This means that it is highly likely they are still inside there!”

Given her understanding of Yu Fei-er, the other party would have surely have come to look for them as soon as she left the passageway, or at the very least, she would have notified them through the Night Illumination Pearls. However, given that there was no trace of them in this vast underground chamber, it could only mean that the four of them were still trapped beyond the stone door, unable to leave.

“Un!”

Since she was able to deduce this much, Zhang Xuan, who possessed the Eye of Insight, was naturally able to do the same as well. At this moment, he was staring at the stone door with a perplexed expression. “But this door isn’t locked with the Dragon Severing Lock. Why aren’t they out yet?”

“It’s not?”

Luo Qiqi walked forward to push open the door, and it opened up easily, revealing a flight of stone steps downward. Unlike their passageway, this one wasn’t sealed with a Severing Dragon Lock.

In other words… Luo Qiqi and the others could have left whenever they wanted!

But if that was the case, why weren’t they out yet?

A thought suddenly struck Luo Qiqi, and her eyes widened in fear.

“Grandmaster Wu Yangzi said that the stone chamber, where we were previously, was a cell used to incarcerate him, and this side was the living quarters of the Otherworldly Demon… Considering how a group of Otherworldly Demons were forged into puppets under his hands, could it be…”

Wu Yangzi had converted more than twenty Otherworldly Demons into puppets, but there was only a single one in the stone chamber previously. Assuming that all of them were still functional…

Zhang Xuan’s face twisted in shock as well.

“Let’s go and take a look!”

Even though he didn’t possess much goodwill toward Yu Fei-er and the others, he didn’t bear them any hostility either. He couldn’t just stand idly when they were at risk of being ripped into pieces by the Otherworldly Demon puppets.

“Un.”

Knowing that her close friend was in danger, Luo Qiqi dared not hesitate. She quickly followed behind Zhang Xuan and headed down the steps.

Just like in the other, this passageway was cold and damp as well.

The recording from the stone bridge earlier on said that one could only enter one door.

While this door wasn’t sealed by the Dragon Severing Lock, if one were to venture this path, one would be lynched by many Otherworldly Demon puppets simultaneously, making it impossible for them to return.

On the other hand, if one were to go through the other door and fail to obtain the heritage, one would be doomed as well. And if one managed to obtain the heritage, one would learn that the other passageway led to the Otherworldly Demon’s nest, and no sane man would possibly venture down this path after learning that.

In retrospect, the previous decision was actually a choice between life and death!

“I can only hope that they are fine.”

Grasping his Glacier Rain Sword tightly, Zhang Xuan slowly proceeded down the passageway.

Had he known that it was so dangerous, he would have surely stopped them no matter the means. If the four of them were to really die here, he would feel guilty his entire life.

After advancing a moment longer, they finally approached the end of the steps, and another huge underground chamber unfolded before them. Zhang Xuan turned to Luo Qiqi and said, “It’ll be too conspicuous if we were to enter together. You should wait for me up there, I will enter alone.”

“Teacher…”

Luo Qiqi was taken aback.

“You’re currently still too weak, and you don’t have any escape means either. If something really has happened to them, we will only be leaping to our doom pointlessly if the both of us enter together. But if they are fine… Trust me, I’ll surely bring them out!” Zhang Xuan said.

If someone were to follow him, he would be unable to utilize a lot of his secret means. Thus, it would be better if Luo Qiqi were to head up first.

After a moment of hesitation, Luo Qiqi clenched her jaws and nodded.

“This… Alright!”

She was indeed too weak to be of help at the moment. Considering how she couldn’t even wound the Otherworldly Demon puppet, all she could do was run for her life if she were to encounter one.

Not to mention, it was likely that they were going to face more than one this time around. If they were to get entangled with them, they might very well lose their lives here.

Even though Zhang shi managed to kill the previous Otherworldly Demon puppet, a huge part of the reason was due to the other party being immobilized by the Crimson Flame Cauldron. Otherwise, in a direct battle, there was no way that it would expose its neck to him!

“Teacher, you must be careful… No matter how the others are, you must first ensure your own safety!” Luo Qiqi said worriedly.

“Don’t worry, I can fly. Even if I can’t defeat them, fleeing isn’t a problem at all,” Zhang Xuan replied.

“Un. I’ll wait for you outside then.”

Hearing those words, Luo Qiqi suddenly recalled the various astonishing feats that Zhang Xuan had achieved, and her worry alleviated slightly. She nodded before turning around to leave. A moment later, she disappeared amidst the darkness.

After Luo Qiqi left, Zhang Xuan didn’t enter the underground chamber straight away. Instead, he sat down and took in a deep breath.

Hu!

His soul tore away from his body.

If there were really twenty or so of the Otherworldly Demons he met previously, it would be difficult for him to escape even if he was capable of flying.

After all, his flying altitude was severely limited by the ceiling. If all of them were to rush for him simultaneously, it would be nigh impossible for him to avoid them.

Thus, he decided to utilize his soul to scout the area instead.

Due to the intangible and invisible nature of a soul, it would be hard for even the Otherworldly Demons to notice it.

Hu!

As soon as Zhang Xuan’s soul left his body, he immediately rushed into the underground chamber.

There were a few Night Illumination Pearls in the underground chamber that Xing Yuan and the others had scattered. Despite the dimness, Zhang Xuan could still clearly see the situation around him.

Looking around, this underground chamber was much larger than the stone chamber Wu Yangzi had been locked in. Even when gazing across the horizon, the end couldn’t be seen.

As it was meant to serve as the living quarters of the Otherworldly Demon, infrastructures were positioned neatly alongside one another. If not for the gloomy darkness, one might have even thought that one had stepped into a city.

‘No wonder the Otherworldly Demons were able to survive for more than ten thousand years here…’

Zhang Xuan nodded.

In the end, the Otherworldly Demons did spend dozens of millenniums here. It would be hard to believe that it would be designed shabbily.

Thinking so, Zhang Xuan followed along the trail of light.

There was no doubt the Night Illumination Pearls were left behind by Yu Fei-er and her group. As long as he followed the source of light, it would surely lead him to them.

‘There are signs of battle…’

Proceeding a little further, Zhang Xuan’s face darkened.

Under the light of the Night Illumination Pearls, he could see many collapsed buildings and a slight trace of blood on the ground. Clearly, a fight had just occurred here recently.

‘Eye of Insight!’

Lines of insight flowed in Zhang Xuan’s eyes as he studied the battle traces.

‘Fourteen hours ago… It must have been left behind by them!’

The Eye of Insight was a technique triggered by driving his Soul Depth, so he was able to activate it even as a soul. Through studying the traces left behind here, he was able to deduce when it was left behind.

Most likely, Yu Fei-er and the others encountered something not too long after entering the underground chamber and fought against it.

‘But if that is the case, why is it so silent here? Are they already… dead?’ Zhang Xuan thought.

Since a battle had occurred, Yu Fei-er and the others should have encountered the Otherworldly Demons. If they were still alive, they should still be in the midst of a battle. Yet, the underground chamber was completely silent. Zhang Xuan’s face darkened.

He immediately examined the surroundings and saw a few sets of flurried footprints on the ground.

These footprints weren’t too big, revealing that they were left behind by a human.

‘These are their footprints!’

Having gone through the Third Celestial Master Teacher acknowledgement, Zhang Xuan’s Eye of Insight was stronger than ever, allowing him to easily notice the slight footsteps above the layer of dust on the ground. Zhang Xuan quickly traced the footsteps, but not too long later, he abruptly halted.

Geji! Geji!

The sound of someone’s footsteps sounded not too far away. Under the light of the Night Illumination Pearls, Zhang Xuan saw a massive Otherworldly Demon puppet walking over with large strides.

This fellow was around the same size as the puppet whom he slew not too long ago. Its skin was also gray, as if it was coated with a layer of metal alloy.

Zhang Xuan’s soul cultivated the Heaven’s Path Soul Art, so unlike other souls, his body didn’t emanate yin energy. As such, the Otherworldly Demon puppet didn’t notice him. It simply rushed by him. Following which, a few other Otherworldly Demon puppets also soon followed behind it.

‘There are so many Otherworldly Demon puppets here…’

To actually meet with eight Otherworldly Demon puppets before he could find Yu Fei-er and the others, Zhang Xuan’s heart pounded nervously.

Given how many Otherworldly Demon puppets were here, Yu Fei-er and the others were… as good as dead!

Chapter 674: Finding Yu Fei-er

These puppets were pulsating with immense energy that was equivalent to the one he had met in the stone room. Judging from the looks of it, even a Saint realm expert would be killed even if he came here.

Luo Qiqi and Zhang Xuan had nearly died dealing with just one. It took them careful planning and much effort just to get rid of it. To encounter eight at once…

With an awful complexion, Zhang Xuan proceeded forward.

Boom boom boom boom!

A while later, the ground suddenly started shaking relentlessly with a peculiar rhythm.

‘Hmm?’

Zhang Xuan frowned.

The shaking was forceful, reminiscent of shock waves emanated in a clash between experts. However, what was bizarre was the constant short interval between each tremor. Nevertheless, this trace of battle raised Zhang Xuan’s hopes.

‘Could it be that they are still holding on?’

Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

Even though the Otherworldly Demons had been forged into puppets under Wu Yangzi’s hands, they possessed no emotions or irrationality that would make them fight one another… The only possibility was that Yu Fei-er and the others were still alive, and they were still fending them off!

But… those were Saint realm puppets. How did Yu Fei-er and the others manage to survive for so long?

Speeding up, Zhang Xuan flew to where the tremors were originating from. In the midst of his journey, he saw yet another three puppets walking in a straight line, similar to the ones he had seen previously.

‘This is already the seventeenth one…’

Making a quick count of the puppets he had encountered, Zhang Xuan’s face darkened.

It was fortunate that he hadn’t come here in his physical body, or else it would have been no joke if he had been surrounded by these guys!

While his cultivation had advanced greatly in recent times, and he had the Library of Heaven’s Path behind him, he knew his own limits. He might have gotten past a Saint realm expert by hoodwinking the other party with his words before, but against lifeless puppets who only followed instructions… he knew that death would be the only outcome from an encounter with them.

‘Something is wrong! If Yu Fei-er and the others are still alive, why are these puppets walking away instead of encircling them?’

As Zhang Xuan encountered more and more puppets, a seed of doubt slowly sprouted in his mind.

After noticing that Yu Fei-er was still alive, those puppets should have been rallying one another to deal with them. Why would they be walking away instead in such an orderly fashion?

Even though Zhang Xuan was confused by the situation before him, he continued to advance at top speed.

Zhang Xuan didn’t dare to fly too fast for fear of inducing any significant reverberations in the air from his movement. After advancing for around another eight minutes, he finally arrived at the source of the tremors.

Along the way, he had seen many scars of battle as well, but they were of a relatively smaller scale compared to the first ones he encountered. Most likely, they were trying to fend off the Otherworldly Demon puppets as they retreated.

The fact that he had yet to see their corpses yet meant that there was a good chance that they were still breathing.

To be able to survive so long against so many Saint realm Otherworldly Demon puppets… they were indeed formidable.

‘Hmm? They are over there!’

After taking a detour around a high-rise building, Zhang Xuan noticed that the source of the tremors was right before him. Quickly raising his gaze to take a look, a vast square appeared before his eyes.

It covered an area of several dozen mu, and stationed at the very center was an altar. Most probably, it was a tool they used to pay respect to their ancestors or the heavens back when they were still alive.

(15 mu ≈ a hectare)

Bizarre symbols were inscribed on the altar, leaving one with overwhelming dizziness just by looking at it.

There were various peculiar statues erected around the altar. They resembled a fusion of various beasts, forming an extremely sinister sight.

A powerful killing intent emanated from the statues, inducing a cold shiver down one’s spine.

‘They are still alive…’

As Zhang Xuan’s gaze fell on the center of the altar, his eyes lit up.

Over there, a barrier of light was erected, and two Otherworldly Demon puppets were striking it ceaselessly. This was where the tremors were coming from.

In the barrier of light, Yu Fei-er, Xing Yuan, and the others were seated cross-legged at the very center. Their faces were pale, and their bodies were drenched in fresh blood.

It seemed like they had suffered grievous wounds while attempting to escape from the Otherworldly Demon puppets.

‘What an incredible trump card!’

Looking at the barrier of light, Zhang Xuan was impressed.

To be able to fend off the relentless attacks from two Saint realm puppets, the resilience of the barrier was indeed incredible!

‘It probably belongs to Yu Fei-er or Xing Yuan… Considering the standing of those two, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to possess such means up their sleeves.’

Realizing what was going on, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

As the princess of Hongyuan Empire, it was natural that she would carry a lot of defensive artifacts so that she could protect herself in face of danger. Otherwise, due to her exceptional identity, it was unlikely that her family would be willing to let her venture out alone.

On the other hand, given how Xing Yuan could pursue the princess so openly, his family background was likely to be exceptional as well.

While their artifacts might not be sufficient for them to fight against the Otherworldly Demon puppets, it was sufficient for them to stand their ground temporarily.

‘But this barrier of light seems to be on the verge of crumbling…’

Zhang Xuan frowned.

No matter how powerful an artifact may be, it was limited by the amount of energy stored within it. Taking his Dragon Scale Protective Amulet for example, while it was able to withstand an attack with the full might of a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan, it was only limited to three uses.

While the barrier of light that the four were in was able to withstand the relentless attacks from the two puppets, its light was dim, and it seemed like it was going to break apart soon.

And once it did, it would spell the moment of their doom.

‘I must find a way to save them…’

The current situation placed him in a dilemma. If he were to instruct them to dispel the barrier of light, the two Otherworldly Demon puppets would surely rush straight at them, and Zhang Xuan had no confidence in bringing all of them out alive with them on their trail. But if the barrier of light wasn’t dispelled, they would be trapped here…

What could be done at this moment?

Furthermore, what puzzled Zhang Xuan the most was that, judging from where the other Otherworldly Demon puppets which he’d encountered on the way here were heading from, they were probably at this altar before. Why did the rest march away, leaving only two of them here?

If all of them were to strike the barrier of the light together, it would have surely shattered by now!

Assessing the situation a while longer, Zhang Xuan was still unable to make sense out of the situation. Thus, he decided to drift a little closer to the barrier of light to get a better look.

‘Why is there a corpse in there?’

Moving forward, he saw Yu Fei-er, Xing Yuan, Wu Zhen, and Ye Qian were seated shoulder to shoulder in a circle at the center of the barrier of light, and seated at the center of the four of them was an old man.

Even though there was no visible damage to the body of the old man, his withered and emaciated body revealed that he was long dead.

A thought suddenly emerged in Zhang Xuan’s mind.

‘Could this be… Grandmaster Wu Yangzi?’

For a human corpse to appear here… Putting the clues together, the old man should be Wu Yangzi.

When Zhang Xuan couldn’t find Wu Yangzi’s corpse in the stone chamber previously, he had already been a little perplexed as to where it could be. From the looks of it now, the corpse had been here all along, and somehow, Yu Fei-er and the others had managed to find it, and they were currently guarding it.

Of course, it was also possible that the corpse was guarding them. It was impossible for Zhang Xuan to determine whether the barrier of light came from Yu Fei-er’s group or Wu Yangzi.

While Zhang Xuan was assessing the situation carefully, cold sweat was dripping down the faces of Yu Fei-er and the others.

Panting deeply, Xing Yuan said with a pale face, “Sixth Princess, it seems like we won’t be able to get out this time.”

There was a glaring wound on his chest. Even though he had already applied some recovery medicine, fresh blood still kept oozing from it, forming a rather frightening scene.

“We’ll probably die here…”

Wu Zhen’s face also darkened.

They had all thought that it would be a simple mission—all they needed to do was to confirm the existence of the underground chamber where Wu Yangzi once stayed in. Who knew that this seemingly simple mission would actually lead them to so many formidable puppets!

Chased all the way here, if not for Yu Fei-er’s ample supply of defensive artifacts, they would have already died a few hours ago.

“At the very least, we chose the correct passageway. This is indeed where Grandmaster Wu Yangzi lived previously, and we even found his corpse!”

Yu Fei-er harrumphed.

Amidst this despair, this was the only consolation she received. At the very least, she managed to best that smug Zhang Xuan once!

Since Grandmaster Wu Yangzi’s corpse was here, it could only mean that they had found the right place. Her greatest regret now was that she wasn’t able to see the smugness wiped out of that fellow’s face.

“You’re right.” Xing Yuan nodded weakly. Then, turning around to Yu Fei-er, he asked, “Sixth Princess, since we’re already on death’s door, can you tell if… you have ever liked me?”

Seeing as the barrier of light continued to grow thinner and thinner, Xing Yuan knew that it was a matter of time before it shattered. Thus, he was unable to suppress the greatest question in his mind anymore.

He had been pursuing this lady for a very long time already, but the other party had never reciprocated his feelings. Now that they were on the verge of death, he wanted to at least know the truth so that he could rest in peace.

Hearing those words, Ye Qian and Wu Zhen immediately turned their heads away awkwardly.

Not expecting Xing Yuan to ask such a question, Yu Fei-er opened her mouth, but she soon bit her lips. After a long moment of hesitation, she shook her head.

“I have already told you that before I become a 6-star master teacher, I’m not interested in engaging in any romantic relationship…”

She had an extremely competitive nature, and she had always wanted to prove herself to others. As such, romantic relationships were something at the back of her mind.

Even though Xing Yuan had been pursuing her for some time now, her heart had never skipped a beat for him.

“I knew it. I didn’t stand a chance from the start…”

Hearing such direct words from the other party, Xing Yuan shook his head and smiled bitterly. “Then, are you interested in Zhang Xuan?”

Recalling that shameless face on that detestable young man, Yu Fei-er clenched her jaws in anger.

“Zhang Xuan? How could I possibly be interested in that despicable and shameless fellow? I must be mad before I can possibly fall in love with such a guy!”

She was a princess, a member of nobility, and yet the other party dared to force her to become his maid and serve him tea…

If only that was all… When she went to reason it out with him, he even kicked her bottom twice!

She had never seen someone as ungentlemanly as him!

If not for the fact that she wasn’t able to defeat him, she would have long rushed over to crush that man with her hands.

‘I…’

Zhang Xuan, who was loitering around the barrier of light to find an opportunity to save the group, heard Yu Fei-er’s evaluation of him, and he staggered…

‘I am such an upright, kind, and magnanimous person. How in the world did I become a despicable and shameless man?

‘Just like the wise sages of the past once said, woman and hypocrite are the two most difficult species to please!

‘Such is indeed the case!’

Hearing her furious howls, Xing Yuan wasn’t delighted in the least. Instead, he shook his head in disappointment.

“The more ferociously you berate him, the greater the place he has in your heart. I have known you since we were little, and it has been more than twenty years since then, but have I ever occupied a space as big as him in your heart? When I said we weren’t able to leave earlier, the first thing that came to your mind wasn’t fear but that you have won a bet against him…”

Even in this desperate situation, all she could think of was Zhang Xuan…

From this fact, he knew that despite his years of pursuing her, his standing in the other party’s heart couldn’t even compare to that fellow she had just met.

“I…”

Yu Fei-er froze upon hearing those words.

Was she really in love with that fellow? But how could it be possible!

All she wanted was to rid herself of her identity as a maid and teach that shameless fellow a lesson!

Affirming her intentions inside once more, just as she was about to verbalize them to Xing Yuan, a voice suddenly drifted into their ears.

“Cough cough. This isn’t the time to be flirting with one another. You should be discussing how you can get away instead!”

Hearing that voice, Yu Fei-er eyes widened. “Zhang Xuan?”