Experiment (Part 2)

Unable to figure out the key, Chen Lin simply began the second refinement.

Soon, it was time for the final array pattern connection stage.

After casting a Vajra Shield, he widened his eyes and watched carefully, then completed the array connection.

"Bang!"

It was still a failure.

The power generated was the same as before.

But this time, Chen Lin saw clearly that after he connected the array completely, the refinement was considered partially complete.

The array patterns on the two Thunderclap Beads, along with the array pattern on the dark silver, changed and became one.

At this point, the two Thunderclap Beads were no longer individual items but had formed a new semi-finished product, which was why the explosion was so weak.

This was the same principle as refining Thunderclap Beads before; the explosive power of a mid-process failure was incomparable to the power of a finished product.

This discovery made him overjoyed.

This way, he didn't have to worry about being blown up himself, and it also solved the problem of the explosion sound attracting attention. Given the depth of the cellar, it was uncertain if the commotion could even be heard outside.

With his worries gone, Chen Lin's refining speed began to increase.

By evening, he had already reached nine attempts.

The tenth attempt.

The process was still repetitive. When he reached the final step, Chen Lin rallied his spirits.

With a light flick of the inscription tool, the beginning and end of the array pattern were connected.

Unsurprisingly, as soon as the Magical Power began to circulate within the array pattern, it triggered the Thunderclap Bead, and the refinement failed.

A magical scene replayed.

Before the explosion could even sound, an invisible hand pushed back the exploding energy, and a bead one size larger than a normal Thunderclap Bead appeared on the wooden board.

"Haha, it worked!"

Chen Lin let out an excited laugh.

Although he had reasoned it out before and felt confident, it was still his own creation, and it was the first time, so he was quite uncertain.

He hadn't expected it to go so smoothly.

He took the bead in his hand and examined it carefully. He noticed that besides being larger, the array patterns on it were also more complex, and the energy fluctuations within were more subtle.

Chen Lin really wanted to go out and test its power, but he forcefully suppressed his curiosity.

Right now, if he went out, Ye Jingyun might be monitoring him in secret, or you could say she was protecting him.

And he didn't want anyone to know about this item, so he could only choose to unconditionally trust his own talent and not conduct any experiments.

Having been refining for so long, Chen Lin had become somewhat numb. He climbed up the ladder to the ground floor.

First, he went into the courtyard to stretch his body. This served two purposes: to check the situation and to show that he had been there all along and hadn't left.

After stretching for a while, he went back into the house and made himself something simple to eat. After eating, he took the opportunity to refine two First Origin Pills, creating some noise from the failed attempts, and then returned to the cellar.

He didn't come out for the entire night.

Early the next morning, before the sky had fully brightened, Chen Lin's figure reappeared on the ground.

At this moment, although his face was haggard, his eyes held an undisguised joy.

He walked to the table and reached into his Storage Bag. Four beads, one large and three small, appeared on the table.

The three smaller ones were also about a size larger than ordinary Thunderclap Beads, roughly the size of goose eggs. These were the products of stacking two Thunderclap Beads.

The large one, about the size of an ostrich egg, was the result of a second stacking, formed by combining two 'goose egg' Thunderclap Beads.

This behemoth exuded a sense of pressure just by being placed there.

Its power was unimaginable.

He decided to call the single-stacked Thunderclap Beads "Thunderclap No. 2" and the double-stacked ones "Thunderclap No. 3." He also decided to rest for a while before attempting to create a "Thunderclap No. 4"!

As for anything higher, he couldn't achieve it for now.

Firstly, he didn't have enough materials to refine Thunderclap Beads. Secondly, the power of failure was increasing with each attempt. Most importantly, the number of refinements required for Thunderclap No. 3 was already terrifying. Fortunately, he had some stock of Thunderclap Beads, and it wasn't always a one-in-ten success rate; his success rate had improved with practice. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to create them in a single night.

He didn't know how many refinements it would take to create Thunderclap No. 4. If the success rate couldn't be improved again, there was little hope.

Moreover, during the refinement of Thunderclap No. 3, the power of failure had already shattered one layer of the Vajra Shield. If it were Thunderclap No. 4, it would likely be at the limit of what the defensive shield could withstand.

As for No. 5, setting aside the refinement attempts, the defensive problem alone would be insurmountable. It was unlikely even the Six Ding Black Armor Talisman could block it, let alone anything higher.

After cleaning himself with the Cleanse spell and eating something, Chen Lin still took a stroll in the courtyard.

Yu Yuehai's room was quiet. He didn't know if anyone was inside.

This suited him perfectly. He hung a "Closed-Door Cultivation" sign on the door and installed a warning device inside before entering the cellar.

Time flew by.

Chen Lin became quiet, basically not leaving his room. When he occasionally went out, he would return quickly.

Another early morning.

Chen Lin opened the door and took a breath of fresh air.

He suddenly realized that the spring scenery was even more beautiful, and the air itself was filled with fragrance.

He used all the remaining Spirit Rice to make Spirit Rice, and took out a piece of Demon Beast meat he had stored to make shredded meat stir-fry.

Finally, he took out a bottle of strong liquor and poured himself a drink.

After so long since his transmigration, this was the first time Chen Lin had felt so relaxed.

But the relaxation only lasted for a while. After eating and drinking his fill, he became busy again.

First, he used up the materials for the First Origin Pill. Although he wouldn't get a pill without ten attempts, he could at least accumulate the attempts first, and refining it later would be faster.

What was regrettable to Chen Lin was that, including the previous attempts, he had accumulated nine attempts, just one short of successfully forming a pill.

Unfortunately, after Yu Yuehai's robbery, the city would surely become more chaotic, and there was no way he could gather the materials for the First Origin Pill anytime soon.

Moreover, after breaking through to Qi Refining Mid-stage, the effect of the First Origin Pill had begun to weaken and was not as effective as it was in the early Qi Refining stage. If he could leave safely, it would be best to find a new pill formula to advance his cultivation.

At this moment, the scene of him obtaining the Enlightenment Pill formula suddenly flashed in his mind. Yu Yuehai's robes had contained many pill formulas; he wondered if they were all real.

If they were real…

Immediately, Chen Lin shook his head.

Yu Yuehai was not as easygoing as Ye Jingyun. He shouldn't court disaster.

Shaking off this unrealistic thought, he took out the sword art Jade Slip he had traded from Xu Ruolan and immersed himself in it.

This sword art was not a sword art in the traditional sense; it was very peculiar.

The sword art had no name. Upon successful cultivation, a 'sword qi' would form in the Dantian, which was extremely sharp.

Calling it sword qi, it was actually a special kind of energy. If attached to a Flying Sword, it could increase the Flying Sword's attack power.

It could also be directly projected to attack enemies.

The peculiar part was that this sword qi had no power initially. It needed to be constantly nurtured in a special way. The longer it was nurtured, the greater its power would become.

This cultivation method was destined not to be used as a conventional ability, but only as a hidden trump card. Even so, it was a good hidden card that could produce unexpected effects at critical moments.

Another discovery also greatly surprised Chen Lin: this sword qi was an energy body and could move within the body.

This gave him a bold idea.