At the same time, the system's notification rang out in Zhao Gongming's mind once again.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, on successfully crafting a Conceptual Level Magic Treasure!] [Recipient: Grand Master Xuandu (First Disciple of the Human Teachings)] [Critical reward triggered!] [Congratulations, Host, you have obtained: Lunar Sacred Fire!]
A silvery-white flame, supremely yin and gentle yet containing the power to freeze time and space, quietly merged into Zhao Gongming's primordial spirit.
"Lunar Sacred Fire?"
Zhao Gongming was overjoyed.
"I have True Sun Fire, the supreme yang flame. Now I've obtained Lunar Sacred Fire, the supreme yin flame as well."
"Yin and yang in harmony, water and fire in accord."
"From now on, whether I'm crafting artifacts or fighting enemies, my methods will be even more unpredictable!"
Holding the gloves, he walked up to Xuandu and Suiren Shi and said solemnly,
"Mission accomplished!"
"This treasure is called the Helan People's Gloves."
"Just put them on, and whatever you touch will turn into a treasure. Even wild grass can become a Ganoderma!"
Suiren Shi was delighted.
"Really? That's wonderful!"
"However..." Zhao Gongming cleared his throat.
"The incantation is, well... a little... distinctive."
"And it changes the way you speak, too."
Zhao Gongming looked at Xuandu.
"Senior Disciple Brother, since this is for the Human Race, how about... you give it a try first?"
Xuandu looked at the orange gloves, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
"Junior Brother... are you sure this magic treasure is legitimate?"
"No. Absolutely not!"
Xuandu took three steps back, looking horrified.
"Junior Brother, I'm the first disciple of the Human Teachings. I represent the dignity of the Taiqing Saint!"
"You want me to do something... something cutesy like this, and chant 'Hulatang Guai Guai'?"
"If word gets out, how am I supposed to show my face in the Primordial Era? My master will refine me into a pill!"
Seeing this, Zhao Gongming immediately switched into persuasion mode.
He grabbed Xuandu's hand and spoke earnestly, his heart aching with sincerity.
"Senior Disciple Brother, how can you think that way?"
"What matters more, your dignity or the future of the Human Race?"
"This is a top-tier magic treasure that can let the entire Human Race develop by leaps and bounds!"
"It can turn the rotten into the miraculous, transforming trash into treasure!"
"Think about how hard life is for the Human Race right now. They don't even have a single decent spiritual herb!"
"Don't you want the Human Race to rise to greatness in the Primordial Era, too?"
"Can you bear to watch your people suffer and be bullied because they lack resources?"
"One man's sacrifice brings happiness to countless families, Senior Disciple Brother!"
That righteous speech left Xuandu with no way out.
Zhao Gongming simply shoved the gloves into his hands.
"For the Human Race, for our brotherhood!"
Xuandu looked at the ragged, gaunt members of his people in the distance. His sense of duty surged.
"For the Human Race..."
Xuandu gritted his teeth, a trace of tragic resolve flashing in his eyes.
"Fine! I'll do it!"
"It's just acting cute. For the rise of the Human Race, I, Xuandu, will give it everything I've got!"
Zhao Gongming looked at him expectantly and asked,
"Can you do it?!"
Xuandu looked at the eager faces all around him.
He took a deep breath and, as if facing his own death, put on the gloves.
The next second, Xuandu's whole demeanor changed.
He opened his mouth and said,
"These gloves... sure are somethin'! They're the real deal!!!"
A moment later, the Human Race's plaza was piled high with the resources Suiren Shi and the others had gathered.
In truth, it was just weeds from the roadside, a few stones with a trace of spiritual energy, and some unknown wild fruit.
Xuandu stood in front of the pile of junk, wearing the orange gloves. He took a deep breath, making one final effort to prepare himself mentally.
Not far away, Zhao Gongming, Lu Ya, Huang Long, Cihang, and Medicine Master stood neatly in a row.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Five top-grade Recording Stones rose into the air at once, gleaming with anticipation.
Xuandu turned to look. His expression darkened, and a vein throbbed at his temple.
"You guys..."
"You're really taking this too far!"
"You're always recording embarrassing stuff about me. Can't you show a little sympathy?"
Cihang said with a cheerful smile,
"Senior Disciple Brother, don't get the wrong idea. We're recording this historic moment in the rise of the Human Race."
Medicine Master chimed in, too.
"Exactly, exactly. This is precious visual material. It'll go in the textbooks someday."
Xuandu sighed, knowing he couldn't count on these rotten friends.
"Phew..."
He closed his eyes, fighting down his embarrassment as he began to activate the magic treasure.
The next moment, Xuandu's eyes flew open. He cupped his cheeks with both hands.
He struck an absurdly adorable flower pose, swaying his body from side to side.
In a thick, unmistakable Henan accent, he shouted,
"Energetic Magic (,,＞᎑＜,,)!!"
"So fragrant it'll make your nose tingle~★!!"
"Even the immortals will praise it~ piping hot♡ fragrant and spicy♡ Hulatang Guai Guai૮₍♡♡₎ა!!"
"It'll taste even better~★!!"
"Can you do it˃̶͈ꇴ˂̶͈?! It's so good, there's no way to describe it૮₍ᵔ⤙ᵔ₎ა!!"
When he finished the whole routine,
the entire place fell silent.
The Three Ancestors of the Human Race and the countless people watching all stood there with their mouths agape, their jaws practically hitting the ground.
The Sacred Fire in Suiren Shi's hand nearly fell from the shock.
"This..."
"Is this the supreme Dao Xuandu learned from the Saint?"
"This is... this is a little... unbecoming of a gentleman!"
"Still... that Hulatang Guai Guai does sound delicious."
As everyone's worldview crumbled,
Zhao Gongming and the others happily put away their Recording Stones and high-fived each other.
"Yeah!"
"This is great!"
"We finally got to see Senior Disciple Brother Xuandu suffer a Social Death, too!"
Cihang and Medicine Master laughed the hardest. After all, they'd been through it themselves.
As the saying went, if you'd been caught in the rain, you didn't just tear up other people's umbrellas—you watched them dance in the rain, too!
In the chaos, at Wa Huang Palace,
Empress Nuwa had been keeping a close eye on the Human Race.
When she saw Xuandu's hands-on-cheeks pose through the water mirror and heard him say "Hulatang Guai Guai," she was completely dumbfounded.
"What..."
"What are those little fellows doing?"
"How did the disciples taught by Senior Disciple Brother become so... so down-to-earth, too?"
The next moment, however, Nuwa's beautiful eyes flew wide open.
As Xuandu's incantation rang out, the utterly ordinary weeds and stones burst into brilliant spiritual light!
The weeds became century-old spirit herbs!
The worthless stones became spirit stones brimming with spiritual energy!
Even the wild fruit became vermilion fruits that could increase one's cultivation!
"What?!"
Nuwa shot to her feet in shock, staring at the scene in disbelief.
"It really did enhance them?"
"Turning the rotten into the miraculous—that's an advanced application of the Law of Creation!"
"That child Zhao Gongming's talent in the Dao of Artifacts... is actually this terrifying?"
"He can even craft something this heaven-defying?"
The process had been a little hard to watch, but the results were nothing short of a lifeline for the Human Race!
Back at the Human Ancestral Land, Xuandu stared at the heaps of heavenly treasures and earthly gems scattered across the ground, dumbstruck.
"It really... really worked?"
"It worked! It worked like a charm!"
Xuandu was overjoyed, but then he noticed several unfriendly gazes from nearby.
He turned his head and saw Zhao Gongming and the others pointing at him with their Recording Stones, grinning like a bunch of creeps.
A powerful wave of embarrassment surged through him.
Xuandu's face turned as red as a monkey's backside. He wanted to tell them to delete the Recording Stones.
But under the magic treasure's side effects, the moment he opened his mouth, his tone changed completely.
"Hey~!!!"
"No, no, that won't do!!"
"How can you do this to me?! (What's wrong with you guys?!)"
"Give me that stone and delete it, you hear? You can't keep it!!!"
His thick accent, combined with Xuandu's furious expression,
made Zhao Gongming and the others burst out laughing. They collapsed to the ground, pounding it as they roared with laughter.
"Hahahaha, 'How can you do this to me?!'"
"I can't take it anymore, Senior Disciple Brother Xuandu! That accent of yours is just too good!"
The air was filled with cheerful laughter.
Before you continue