"By the name of the Human Race's leader, I gather the Human Race's destiny, temper bronze weapons, and give them form!"
Without hesitation, Huang Tian formed several seals in quick succession, pouring his blood essence into the Heaven and Earth Melting Furnace.
The golden liquid split apart again and again, turning into one small bronze artifact after another.
Swords, spears, blades, halberds, axes, battle-axes, hooks, forks—every kind of weapon was there.
"Sss! Sss! Sss!"
With a wave of his hand, he scattered his own blood essence over the weapons, further tempering the bronze.
Sui Ren Shi, standing nearby, was stunned.
Various bronze weapons appeared, radiating a fierce aura of slaughter.
Once infused with his blood essence, they could nurture Sha Spirits within themselves. With every attack, they could gradually affect an enemy's Nascent Soul.
"Rumble!"
Just then, thunder rumbled once more across the heavens, and waves of destructive energy swept outward.
This time, Huang Tian did not bring out the Kongtong Seal to withstand the heavenly thunder.
The Dao of Artifacts was a postnatal path. The first batch of bronze weapons he forged were the earliest postnatal artifacts.
Anything that was not innate had to undergo the cleansing of heavenly thunder.
If it survived, it could exist in the world.
If it failed, all was lost.
Huang Tian raised his hand, and the bronze weapons surged into the thunderclouds, wrapped in his blood essence.
"Leader, why is there another tribulation?"
Standing beside Huang Tian, Sui Ren Shi asked in confusion.
Zi Yi Shi and You Chao Shi were equally puzzled as they watched Huang Tian.
"Great God Pangu created heaven and earth, and order took shape naturally. The number of innate treasures is fixed."
"But the bronze weapons I forge can be produced in limitless quantities through postnatal means."
"That does not conform to the laws governing the operation of heaven and earth."
"So they must pass through a tribulation and earn the world's recognition before our Human Race can forge bronze weapons in unlimited quantities."
"Of course, bronze weapons alone aren't much stronger than stone tools. That is why the tribulation is only a minor trial, and easy to overcome."
"The key is to combine the bronze weapons with the Martial Dao Blood Essence of our Human Race's Martial Dao inheritance. Only then can they wield power comparable to Innate Spiritual Treasures."
"Of course, every advantage comes with a drawback."
"The price of bronze weapons possessing offensive power comparable to Innate Spiritual Treasures is that their defenses are weak. They also cannot suppress destiny; they are made for slaughter."
"Clansmen with weak resolve might even have their Nascent Souls corrupted by baleful energy if they forge bronze weapons into their life-bound divine weapons and kill too much."
"But none of that matters as much right now. For our Human Race, survival is what counts."
"The problem of bronze weapons being overly focused on slaughter can be solved gradually later."
Huang Tian's gaze burned brightly as he calmly explained it to Sui Ren Shi and the others.
"We understand, Leader."
Sui Ren Shi and the others nodded, watching the tribulation with rapt attention.
By the time Huang Tian finished explaining, the tribulation for the Dao of Artifacts had already gathered.
"Rumble!"
The thunderous roar of raging lightning enveloped a vast stretch of the Shore of the East Sea, extending for hundreds of millions of miles. But Huang Tian concealed the disturbance from the Heavenly Dao with the Kongtong Seal.
"Crack!"
Bolt after bolt of enormous lightning crashed down, scorching the bronze weapons black.
There were seventy-two strikes in all, corresponding to the number of Earthly Fiends.
The bronze weapons that survived the tribulation even contained traces of thunder and Earthly Fiend energy, making their offensive power even sharper.
Each lightning strike further refined the impurities in the bronze weapons.
Every two strikes formed one postnatal restriction within them.
After all seventy-two strikes had passed, the bronze weapons became Postnatal Spiritual Treasures, each containing thirty-six postnatal restrictions and reaching the upper grade.
After a long while, the seventy-two strikes finally ended. The charred black coating peeled away from the bronze weapons, which shone with dazzling radiance.
"Hiss!"
Sui Ren Shi, Zi Yi Shi, and You Chao Shi couldn't help drawing in sharp breaths, shaken to the core.
There were artifact craftsmen among the Human Race, but they only crudely shaped stone tools.
None of the Three Ancestors had ever seen anyone like Huang Tian, capable of forging hundreds of thousands of Postnatal Spiritual Treasures in a single go.
"Principle is the Dao above form, the root of all things."
"Qi is the tool beneath form, the means by which all things are made."
"By the name of the Human Race's leader, I proclaim to heaven and earth: I establish the Dao of Artifacts!"
Without hesitation, Huang Tian unleashed his surging blood essence and proclaimed it to heaven and earth.
Rumble!
In an instant, the heavens sounded nine peals of thunder, and the Heavenly Dao acknowledged Huang Tian's proclamation.
From that day forward, not only the Human Race but all Ten Thousand Races could forge spiritual treasures by postnatal means.
Merit descended from heaven, signifying the birth of the Dao of Artifacts and further completing the Great Desolation Origin.
"Fuse!"
With a burning gaze, Huang Tian divided the merit into five portions and infused them into the five categories of weapons, covering all eighteen types.
The postnatal Dao of Artifacts could ultimately be reduced to five categories and eighteen types. All variations came from these fundamentals.
Short weapons—swords, blades, daggers.
Long weapons—spears, staves, halberds, lances.
Flexible weapons—whips, cords, chains, hooks.
Hidden weapons—darts, needles, crossbows, sleeve arrows.
Unorthodox weapons—axes, battle-axes, spades.
Boundless golden light shone across hundreds of millions of miles.
Celestial flowers rained down, Golden Lotuses Springing from the Earth, and wisps of Star Power descended, merging into the bronze weapons.
A storm of spiritual energy swirled, and the Human Race's destiny rose once more.
"What an unexpected blessing."
Five categories of weapons, encompassing all eighteen types, hovered in Huang Tian's palm. He could hardly contain his delight.
The eighteen weapons had been refined with merit and transformed into upper-grade Postnatal Merit Spiritual Treasures.
Given the qualities of the Human Race's Martial Dao, a Martial Emperor at the early Daluo stage could probably fight a late-stage Daluo cultivator.
The remaining hundreds of thousands of spiritual treasures could be bestowed on the Human Race's powerful cultivators, for them to nourish with their blood essence and turn into life-bound divine weapons.
Ordinary bronze spiritual treasures offered a smaller boost, but they could still let Martial Dao cultivators fight enemies one minor realm above their own.
"Fuse. Assemble!"
Without hesitation, Huang Tian used the remaining copper and tin ore to forge an upper-grade Postnatal Spiritual Treasure—the Hall of Weapons—and merged it into the Human Ancestral Hall.
In theory, the Postnatal Spiritual Treasures produced by the Human Race could continue absorbing the Human Race's destiny, further increasing their power.
"Sui Ren Shi, I leave these postnatal bronze spiritual treasures in your hands."
"There are one hundred and twenty-nine thousand six hundred lower-grade treasures, the same number of middle-grade treasures, nine thousand six hundred upper-grade treasures, and three thousand supreme-grade treasures."
"Set a system of merit points for obtaining these postnatal bronze spiritual treasures. Once they have enough, allow the clansmen to enter the Hall of Weapons and exchange their merit for them."
Without hesitation, Huang Tian gave Sui Ren Shi his instructions.
"I obey, Leader!"
Sui Ren Shi accepted the order solemnly, not daring to delay.
Zi Yi Shi and You Chao Shi were overjoyed.
During the bloody battle on the Shore of the East Sea, they had learned the hard way what it meant to have no spiritual treasures.
If every member of the Human Race had several postnatal bronze spiritual treasures, they wouldn't need Huang Tian to step in. They could slaughter any Demon Clan alliance on the Shore of the East Sea.
"Once postnatal bronze spiritual treasures are forged into life-bound divine weapons, they contain baleful energy that affects the Nascent Soul. Those with weak resolve may lose themselves."
"To be safe, we need exchange requirements in addition to merit points."
"Martial Emperors at the Daluo stage may exchange for supreme-grade treasures."
"Those in the Immortal Realm at the Taiyi stage may exchange for upper-grade treasures."
"Those in the Myriad Transformation Realm at the Golden Immortal stage may exchange for middle-grade treasures."
"Those in the Primordial Fetus Realm at the Profound Immortal stage may exchange for lower-grade treasures."
"Since our Human Race is currently expanding, every clansman in the Immortal Realm may receive one lower-grade bronze spiritual treasure for free."
"Every clansman at the Martial Emperor Realm may receive one middle-grade bronze spiritual treasure for free."
"Anyone who renders a special service to our Human Race may be granted a lower-grade bronze spiritual treasure for free."
In Huang Tian's view, slaughter was not the only way to serve the Human Race.
Making clothes and cooking also helped the Human Race, and those who did such work deserved rewards.
"We obey, Leader!"
The Three Ancestors solemnly accepted the order, then saw Huang Tian off as he left the Shore of the East Sea.
Eight hundred thousand years was a very short time in the Prehistoric World.
Huang Tian had to seize every second and build up the Human Race's strength before the first war between the Wu and Yao and before the Witch-Slaying Sword Tribulation.
The stronger the Human Race became, the more its destiny would flourish—and the faster Huang Tian would cultivate.
It brought benefits all around. What was there not to like?
Before you continue