"Do not rush, there is more."
Wang Yu had always adhered to the principle of 'offer me a peach, and I will require it with a plum.' Since Situ Hong had helped him resolve a significant difficulty, he saw no reason to be stingy with resources in return.
Even if the assistance came later than ideal, it was far better than none at all.
Besides, maintaining a degree of wariness was the norm within the demonic path. Wang Yu still harbored hopes of obtaining legacies from the Five Yin Peaks through him; he simply hadn't found the right opportunity to broach the subject yet.
Rifling through the numerous storage pouches concealed beneath his robes, Wang Yu retrieved five of them. Their contents consisted of corpses, magical instruments, and miscellaneous items, with a total value of approximately thirty thousand spirit stones.
"Sell this batch of goods for me," Wang Yu instructed. "I only require twenty thousand spirit stones from the proceeds. However, you must continue to help me acquire more Yin Marrow Liquid."
Situ Hong remained silent, meticulously inspecting the contents of each storage pouch before finally nodding. "No problem. Senior Brother Wang, focus on your cultivation with peace of mind. These miscellaneous tasks can all be entrusted to me."
There was a time when the dynamics of their relationship were completely reversed. Back on the Profound Bone Mountain, he had been nothing but an insignificant ant~
Time was indeed the most potent force in the world, capable of altering everything.
After Situ Hong departed, Wang Yu immediately retrieved the Yin Marrow Liquid and eagerly applied it to his hands. Since only one portion had been delivered, it was sufficient for a single cultivation session. However, it would undoubtedly greatly advance the realm of this technique.
At the Initial Mastery stage, the Profound Yin Hand was small, barely larger than a fist.
At the Minor Achievement stage, one could condense two Profound Yin Hands, which would attach to and fight alongside the user's own arms. They could leave the body but had to remain within a certain range.
At the Major Achievement stage, aside from a massive increase in size, the forearms could also be condensed. The range restriction vanished entirely—wherever the divine sense could reach, the hands could go! Furthermore, they could fuse with the user's own physical strength, significantly raising their upper limit.
And at the Perfected realm, everything would return to a state of simplicity and truth. Wang Yu could choose to continue along the previous path, adhering to the philosophy that 'bigger is stronger, larger is more beautiful,' or he could condense and shrink them, concentrating all their power into the next palm strike, capable of slaying a man with a single slap!
The compatibility between the Yin Marrow Liquid and the Profound Yin Hand was simply maxed out. After application, no matter how Wang Yu practiced or sought enlightenment, the informational feedback flooding his mind far surpassed what the Placement Columns could provide. In just half an hour, the final progress bar surged by one-third. This meant that a minimum of three portions would allow him to perfect this magical technique, thereby freeing up a column specifically for the Icy Qilin Alchemy Art.
A long time later, after fully absorbing the medicinal efficacy from his arms, Wang Yu devoted himself to other aspects of his cultivation, awaiting Situ Hong's next visit.
And so, time once again seemed to press the fast-forward button. From that day onward, Situ Hong visited every month, delivering the Yin Marrow Liquid he had managed to acquire. Each portion cost five thousand spirit stones—a reasonable price.
It took Wang Yu five months and a total of five portions of Yin Marrow Liquid to finally push the Profound Yin Hand to the Perfected level, completely freeing up the third Placement Column. Without a second thought, he assigned the Alchemy Art to it. Although completing the deduction would require fifteen years, the continuous stream of information transmitted during the process would be sufficient to elevate him to a second-grade alchemist. One didn't necessarily need to wait for perfection to begin utilizing the knowledge; he could fully exert his subjective initiative.
With his immediate need for Yin Marrow Liquid temporarily satisfied, Wang Yu sent Situ Hong off to enter secluded cultivation, arranging to meet again only after the latter had broken through to Foundation Establishment. Wang Yu, meanwhile, found time to visit the [Legacy Transmission Hall]. He used all his remaining contribution points to exchange for a single lower second-grade magical technique:
**Flame Form Technique!**
This technique was intended to replace the Breath Flame Technique, acquired specifically to better utilize the potency of his evolved Cold Flame. His second-grade Cold Flame naturally required more advanced techniques to unleash its full potential. The Flame Form Technique could condense beasts of flame, its attack range vastly exceeding that of the Breath Flame Technique. It was also far more effective than the diffuse breath attack at concentrating the Cold Flame's power, thereby raising its upper limit. Furthermore, due to the trace of Ice Python essence he had refined from the Icy Qilin Pill years ago, when Wang Yu employed the Flame Form Technique to shape the Cold Flame into an Ice Python for combat, the technique's power would increase dramatically. If cultivated to perfection, its potency would be no less than a mid second-grade technique, making it entirely suitable as a conventional combat method for him.
After filling this gap, Wang Yu discovered that the Steward Token issued by the sect came with numerous benefits he had previously been unaware of. For instance, a ten percent discount on all exchanges for legacies or items from the treasure vault. Also, serving in the Enforcement Hall came with an annual salary of three thousand contribution points, disbursed by the General Enforcement Pavilion overseeing all halls and market districts—something he hadn't known before. Additionally, he gained access to the General Enforcement Pavilion's repository. The "contraband" stored there was far more extensive than that in the Maleficent God Quarter's vault. Wang Yu spent time browsing within and acquired a wealth of rare, advanced knowledge.
Examples included: *"Compendium of Hundred Herbs - Core Formation Chapter," "Compilation of Spirit Metals in the Cultivation World," "Hundred Explanations of Spirit Fruits," "Talisman/Formation Identification," "Ranking of Fierce Demons," "Ranking of Exotic Insects," "Analysis of Demonic Path Factions,"* ...and so on.
Some of this knowledge originated from the Taihu Spirit Domain, some from ancient ruins—all of it was substantial, detailed, and of significantly higher quality than the texts found in the Scripture Exposition Hall. As for techniques, secret arts, and extraordinary arts, he found himself powerless. For one, he still had too many inherited legacies he hadn't fully digested. Secondly, the costs were not low. Some that caught his eye even required contribution points for exchange; those purchable with spirit stones simply didn't meet his standards.
After this flurry of activity, life gradually returned to a state of calm.
...
...
Time always passes most swiftly when one is busy.
In the Artificers' Hall of the various halls and market districts, Wang Yu, who rarely visited this area, felt distinctly uncomfortable under the impact of the terrifying fire灵气 (língqì - spiritual energy) roaring up from the depths below. He worked with ice, after all~
The place was filled with massive, furnace-like structures covering an area approximately half the size of a market district. At regular intervals, these furnaces would tilt, pouring liquefied metal into molds, forming initial component products. Puppets of various kinds then transported these high-temperature blanks to different earth fire chambers. Occasionally, explosions would rumble from within.
He wasn't very knowledgeable about the Artifice path. Based solely on the context of the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect, almost all artificers were also proficient in puppet crafting. Compared to flesh-and-blood apprentices, spirit metal puppets were more suitable as their assistants. He surmised that the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect's artifice legacy must be rather unique. Just as alchemy had water and fire refinement methods, artifice also had masters specializing in different types: Fire Refinement, Thunder Refinement, Earth Refinement, Blood Refinement... and so on. Some excelled in weapons of slaughter, others in weaving and spirit fusion, some utilized earth veins to transform artifacts, while others invoked thunder to forge implements of destruction. The variety was staggering, even more so than in the Alchemy Hall.
Following the directions, Wang Yu found a three-story building, above which a plaque read—**[Thunder Pivot Artifice Workshop]!**
This was the place. Holding the letter of introduction provided by Zhuo Shouqing, Wang Yu cautiously entered the workshop, its main gate standing wide open.
"Whoosh—"
A white-bearded elder suddenly materialized before him.
"Who referred you?"
Wang Yu hurriedly presented the letter of introduction, replying respectfully, "This junior pays his respects to Elder Lei. Zhuo Shouqing referred me."
"The young master of the Zhuo family?" The old man appeared unremarkable at first glance, but he was actually a late Core Formation cultivator, with artifice skills reaching the upper third grade. Within the Artificers' Hall, he held a position of considerable authority. Given the right机缘 (jīyuán - opportunity/fate), he might advance further in the future, perhaps even touching upon the Nascent Soul realm—a stage 90% of cultivators could hardly hope to witness!
Securing his services came at a high cost, but this was a favor earned through Zhuo Shouqing's influence, requiring not a single spirit stone from Wang Yu—though it might incur significant debts to be repaid later.
"Take out the materials and let me see them," Elder Lei Shu said.
Wang Yu promptly produced the refining method for the Ghost-Weeping Flute and the precious Ghost Bamboo material. After scanning them quickly, Elder Lei Shu looked exasperated. "A third-grade Marvelous Treasure, to be refined into a second-grade peak instrument? Is this Zhuo Shouqing's idea?"
"No, it is this junior's requirement," Wang Yu hastily clarified, lest he be misunderstood as squandering a precious treasure. He quickly laid out his specifications: "This junior wishes to fuse this piece of 'Earth Spirit Gold' to grant the finished product sufficient hardness, enough to contend with blades and swords of the same grade. Furthermore, I hope that during the refinement, Senior can preserve a thread of potential for future advancement. Should suitable materials be found later, it could be elevated to the treasure level."
Upon hearing this, Lei Shu still chuckled, a tone of regret coloring his words. "Even so, it would be difficult to fully utilize the inherent effects of this
This Elder Lei Shu seemed affable enough, tirelessly advising him against such a waste of a natural treasure. However, the profound greed deep within his eyes caused Wang Yu to sigh inwardly.
*This damned demonic path, why is it full of people like this!* Whether it was something useful to them or beneficial to their descendants, they all displayed this covetous attitude. Fei Xue from last time was like this, and now Lei Shu was the same. They didn't even bother to conceal it, their emotions displayed for all to see, utterly unafraid of being perceived.
This was manageable with artifacts, but if he encountered a malicious or pathologically greedy alchemist, Wang Yu wasn't sure how he would cope. Fortunately, he had learned alchemy early, and there was still hope for the Artifice path.
According to ancient texts, as long as it was a treasure refining method配套 (pèitào - matching/supporting) one's cultivation technique, one could refine it even without proficiency in artifice. The prerequisite was that one's mastery of the technique must at least reach the Major Achievement stage, and the refining must follow the specifications for a life-bound treasure. This was an extremely crucial step that could not be entrusted to others. If one was fortunate enough to obtain another cultivator's life-bound treasure, there was a certain probability of comprehending the original owner's primary cultivation technique from it. The mysteries involved were too numerous to explain in a short time; one would naturally gain insights upon attempting it personally.
Faced with Lei Shu's ill intent, Wang Yu couldn't very well change his request now. A thought struck him, and he decided to raise an even bigger banner. He glanced around shiftily, lowered his voice cautiously, and let out a mournful sigh.
"Ah, it seems Senior has seen through it. The refinement of this treasure is indeed not my idea. With my mere first-layer Foundation Establishment cultivation, how could I possibly be worthy of possessing a treasure of such grade?"
Seeing Wang Yu change his tune, Lei Shu smirked derisively; he didn't believe a single word.
But his perspective soon shifted.
He heard Wang Yu continue, "This item belongs to the victor of the current Celestial Corpse Peak's Corpse Duel Grand Conference. His Lifebound Corpse, through the ritual, obtained the traits of a Corpse King, granting it the potential to possess a single Lifebound Corpse Treasure. He seeks to borrow Senior's skill to handle half of the refinement. Lord Jiang will later perform a joint refinement with his own Lifebound Treasure, thereby enabling him to possess *two* life-bound treasures."
(End of Chapter)