Lu Family Artifact Refining Workshop

"Th-this! Are you going back on your word?"

Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Liu asked somewhat nervously.

"See that building over there? That's the warehouse. There are still plenty of unused raw materials inside—mineral materials worth at least three hundred Spirit Stones. There are also several magical artifacts on the shelves, worth at least another hundred Spirit Stones or so. And this workshop is quite large, with a courtyard out back that can be used for work as well."

"It's fine, I know. We won't go back on our word. Just follow the proposal I made earlier—give me the deed and all the related documents."

Lu Wanyuan immediately took out one thousand Spirit Stones from his Storage Bag and handed them to the other man.

At the sight of this, Shopkeeper Liu was overjoyed. After all, who knew what the outcome would be if he kept waiting? Now that someone was willing to pay the price he had hoped for, it was naturally a good thing. He had waited so long and negotiated so many times, yet no one had been willing to offer this price.

Now that someone had made such an offer, he naturally had to settle the matter at once.

He quickly accepted the Spirit Stones and put them into his Storage Bag. Then he took out a sheet of Demon Beast Hide, a tattered yellowed book, and a ledger from his Storage Bag, handing them to Lu Wanyuan.

"Mm, this is the deed. The other is the ledger from my old workshop; it contains all my supply channels, contacts, and so on."

"And there are also some of my artifact-refining experiences later in there. Most importantly, this book is a damaged Second-tier Artifact Refining Legacy!"

"I'll give all of these to you. You were right—now that I'm heading into the Mortal World, it wouldn't be suitable or meaningful to take these things back with me. I'm giving them all to you now."

Lu Wanyuan immediately accepted the items handed over by the other party. After briefly checking them and finding nothing unusual, he put them into his Storage Bag.

"Then many thanks, Shopkeeper Liu."

Shopkeeper Liu nodded at that. "All right. From now on, this place is yours. I hope you won't let it down!"

After saying that, he walked outside the courtyard and stopped. His eyes swept over the Artifact Workshop, his face filled with reluctance.

Then he took a deep breath, as if he had made up his mind. Without another word, he turned and left without looking back.

After all, he had long been prepared to leave. Now that it had been sold, there was nothing left for him to cling to.

Watching the man's retreating figure, Lu Wanyuan finally let out the breath he had been holding.

This time, the Lu family was secure. For the first time, the Lu family had a business of its own—and one in artifact refining at that.

Although this workshop was not much in scale for now, it was still the Lu family's first workshop. As long as they had a workshop, they could slowly build it up and make it stronger—provided they managed it well.

All things are difficult at the beginning. Once they got the hang of it, it would surely bring enormous gains to the family.

"Wanshan, I'm leaving this to you from now on. You're now the shopkeeper of our Lu Family Artifact Refining Workshop. You must work hard!"

Lu Wanyuan looked at Lu Wanshan beside him and reminded him.

Lu Wanyuan looked at the Lu Wanshan before him, whose face was full of astonishment.

"Eldest Brother, there definitely won't be a problem leaving it to me. I'll make this workshop thrive and do my part to build up the Lu family!"

Lu Wanshan vowed solemnly.

"Mm, it's good that you understand. Running an Artifact Workshop is no easy task. Aside from the quality of your products, you'll also need sales and management. There are many tricks to it. Perhaps only when you get this Artifact Workshop on the right track and turning a profit can you truly be considered an Artifact Refiner."

"Not only must you ensure that your artifact-refining skills surpass those of your peers, but you also have to manage the workers under you. After all, if you want to grow big, you certainly can't do without others helping you."

"Therefore, you'll definitely need to hire people. And once you hire them, wages and the costs of refining magical artifacts will naturally come into play. Both of those aspects will test you greatly."

After a moment of silence, Lu Wanyuan cautioned him.

"Mm, Eldest Brother, I understand. I'll handle this properly!"

"Good. Since that's the case, I won't say more. Here are his ledger and artifact-refining legacy. I think this should be a Second-order Artifact Refining Inheritance, though it's somewhat incomplete. Still, it's enough for what you need to learn right now. Fortunately, we already have a first-order artifact-refining inheritance as a foundation, and now we have this as well. It's simply icing on the cake!"

Lu Wanyuan said with a smile. Speaking of it, he felt that this Artifact Workshop had been well worth the one thousand Spirit Stones.

"Hehe, Eldest Brother, you're amazing. I never thought you'd really secure this place for just one thousand Spirit Stones. I thought we were taking a loss. But now we have this Second-order Artifact Refining Inheritance."

"And this artifact-refining experience—most importantly, those sales and supply channels. With these, as long as our workshop can produce quality products, we'll surely have a market of our own!"

Looking at the Second-order Artifact Refining Inheritance and the artifact-refining ledger in his hands, Lu Wanshan spoke excitedly.

"All right, clean this place up. Of course, the first thing to do is change the workshop's name. I think we should call it the 'Lu Family Artifact Refining Workshop.' What do you think?"

"Brother, of course we can. I think it's very fitting. This is the Lu family's first business, and we only managed to get it with great difficulty. I'll definitely cherish it!"

"Mm, it's good that you understand. Here are three thousand Spirit Stones in Startup Funds provided by the family. If it isn't enough, tell me. Also, my personal suggestion is that you shouldn't rush to recruit new apprentices yet."

Lu Wanyuan immediately took out three thousand Spirit Stones from his Storage Bag and handed them to him, then continued:

"Your most important task right now is to improve your artifact-refining skills. Once you're confident enough, you can start refining products for sale."

"Of course, later on, if you can truly control the quality of the products, it would be best to refine the artifacts here on a large scale. That would not only increase output, but also reduce unnecessary trouble at every stage."

"The key is to standardize the products at every stage, reducing the chance of leaks between them. Then any ordinary person could follow the products from each stage and assemble them together uniformly to refine the finished product."

"Of course, such modular arrangements are matters for later consideration. Your current task is to improve your artifact-refining skills and ensure that this workshop can turn a profit and survive..."

Lu Wanshan watched Lu Wanyuan's explanation with an earnest expression, nodding continuously in agreement. At times, he was beside himself with joy at what he heard; at others, his brows were tightly furrowed as though he found it difficult.

Yet after hearing it all, he suddenly felt completely enlightened. "Eldest Brother, how do you know so much? If I hadn't been by your side ever since we were little, I'd think you were some old monster who had taken possession of your body!"

"Hehe, where would there be so many body possessions? You should focus on doing what's before you well. And the courtyard and buildings of this workshop need to be cleaned up too—make them look brand-new. This is the Lu family's first business, after all!"

"You must manage it well, make a good start, and set a good example for the others. Otherwise, I won't let you off!"

Lu Wanyuan warned him at once.

Lu Wanshan immediately nodded upon hearing that.

"Mm, if there's anything you need our help with, or if you run into any difficulties, remember to tell us at the first opportunity!"

Even after Lu Wanyuan had walked outside the courtyard, he did not forget to turn back and carefully remind him.

"I will. If there's any problem I can't solve, I'll definitely tell everyone!"

Lu Wanshan replied as he stood at the courtyard entrance and watched Lu Wanyuan's departing figure. Then he returned to the courtyard.