Carrot and Stick

Shen Yue, Changqin Wuming, and the other island guardians stood on a small boat. The waters of Refining Lake were still, eerily tranquil.

Above, Chen Tong hovered in the air, his robes fluttering without wind.

The pressure of the late Qi Refining stage descended like an invisible mountain.

First, a wisp of breeze skimmed the water's surface, ripples spreading out.

Then, the wind intensified, and the small boat suddenly dipped. Water surged over the gunwales, soaking everyone's shoes.

"Listen up, from today onwards..."

Chen Tong's face held a mocking expression as he prepared to announce his newly formulated waste material recycling rules. However, the words stopped at his lips.

These people are ants, but they are also bargaining chips. Oppression is satisfying, but it doesn't truly showcase my power.

His eyes shifted, and he continued his proclamation:

"Effective immediately, there will be no minimum or maximum quota for waste material recycling. Based on the original system, it will now be 'more work, more reward,' with no upper limit."

As soon as this was said, the entire Refining Lake erupted.

"More work, more reward! No upper limit!"

In the past, exceeding the quota only offered a fixed reward with a cap, so most island guardians mechanically completed their tasks.

But the new rule was different; as long as they were diligent, they could earn more spirit stones!

Everyone rejoiced, thinking this new steward was much better than Chen Qiaoqian.

"Thank you, Steward!"

"Our Steward is peerlessly wise!"

"..."

Chen Tong looked at their excited expressions with satisfaction, but inwardly, he sneered.

As expected, a bunch of country bumpkins, grateful for any small favor.

However, the saying goes, "benevolence and might go hand in hand." The benevolence is given; now comes the might.

"Chen Qiaoqian seemed to favor someone named Shen Yue. Where is he... Found him."

Chen Tong's divine sense swept out, locking onto Shen Yue's location.

"Qi Refining fourth layer?"

He had expected Chen Qiaoqian to favor at least someone at the sixth layer, but it turned out to be just a seedling.

"Too weak. Killing a chicken to warn the monkeys won't be effective."

Chen Tong once again spread his divine sense, searching for a target to establish his authority.

"Qi Refining sixth layer. Good, it'll be you."

His figure flickered, and he shot straight towards Li Sheng on Clear-Turbid Island.

As the stream of light vanished, the oppressive aura that had weighed down on them finally dissipated.

"Compared to the late Qi Refining stage, there's still a gap."

Shen Yue felt a pang of displeasure.

Although he was already at the fourth layer of Qi Refining and also cultivated the second layer of Qi Absorption and divine sense, his overall strength should surpass Zhou Chongwen, who was at the sixth layer. Yet, he couldn't reach the level of cultivators like Chen Tong, who came from a prestigious immortal cultivation family and were in the late stage.

"More work, more reward... This person's methods are extraordinary, but General Shen, as I said before, don't stick your neck out. Let others test this new rule first."

Changqin Wuming gave a few instructions and left. Shen Yue piloted his small boat, loaded it with waste materials, and returned to his small courtyard to sort them.

Nowadays, recycling waste materials posed no difficulty for him. In five days, he could complete a month's worth of tasks.

As for the excess waste materials, he naturally had no intention of handing them in.

He needed them for his own artifact refining, and also for unlocking the golden pages of the Nine Heavens Profound Mirror.

He purchased an isolation talisman, took out the Green Fire Cauldron, dragged over a basket of waste materials, and began his true artifact refining.

Green flames leaped from the belly of the cauldron, licking the cauldron walls, radiating heat.

"First, refine fire control..."

When engrossed in a task, time always flies.

When Shen Yue emerged from his room, it was already the next morning.

"Captain Li and Lu Yi from Firewood Island both fell victim to Chen Tong's cruelty. Two other Qi Refining fifth-layer cultivators were crippled by Chen Tong and thrown out of the market."

Changqin Wuming stood at the bow of the boat, speaking to Shen Yue with a grave expression about how Chen Tong used people to establish his authority.

"Benevolence and might go hand in hand. Things are going to be difficult from now on."

Changqin Wuming somewhat longed for the days when Chen Qiaoqian basically did nothing.

The same was true for most of the island guardians on Refining Lake.

The new regulations were fine, but Chen Tong, the newly arrived steward, was clearly no pushover.

However, some felt it was a good thing; under the new steward and his new rules, they had a better chance to stand out.

Chen Tong naturally took note of everyone's reactions; this was exactly the effect he wanted.

"With my great talent, I will surely reach Foundation Establishment in the future. I will catch the Old Ancestor's eye, become a pillar of the clan, the future face of the Chen Clan, and perhaps even achieve Golden Core!"

Under the new rules, the island guards either fought bravely or kept a low profile.

Aside from his daily recycling duties, Shen Yue practiced and refined artifacts in an orderly fashion.

"I am about to break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining. When that happens, I can take you to Clear-Turbid Island, General Shen. As for artifact refining, you should give it up; we simply don't have the talent for it," Changqin Wuming advised.

"Congratulations, Your Highness." Shen Yue offered no further explanation.

Changqin Wuming tried to persuade him a while longer before finally taking his leave.

Upon returning to his quarters, a graceful figure suddenly appeared.

"Why are you here?" Changqin Wuming looked at Changqin Wuxuan in surprise.

His imperial sister was gifted with extraordinary talent and had long since become an artifact refiner. Usually, he was the one who went to pay his respects; she rarely visited his small courtyard.

"Is Shen Yue learning to refine artifacts?" Changqin Wuxuan wore a white dress, her dark hair draped over her shoulders, her nose bridge high and sharp, bordering on cold.

"Yes, he's about to succeed."

"Succeed?" Changqin Wuxuan gave a cold laugh, tossed a bottle of pills, and left.

She possessed superior talent for artifact refining, yet she knew how much suffering she had endured to reach where she was today.

A scavenger at Refining Lake with no resources and no heritage, dreaming of refining artifacts?

If it were that easy, everyone would be an artifact refiner.

Still, it had little to do with her; she had only asked in passing.

Had Changqin Wuming not failed to visit her for some time, causing her to worry that something had happened, she would never have come here.

Time flew like an arrow, the sun and moon like a shuttle.

Two months had passed since the new rules were implemented, and Shen Yue had been refining artifacts for two months.

"Select materials with precision, measure ratios accurately, smelt with purity, cast shapes steadily, quench for hardness, temper for toughness, engrave runes with clarity..."

He hammered away at a glowing red blade, whispering to himself.

The preliminary artifact refining of the Heavenly Cauldron True Fire Hundred Refinement Scripture consisted of seven major steps, and he had now reached the final one: rune engraving.

Yet, the records in the jade slip regarding this step left him stumped.

"Rune engraving..."

During this time, Shen Yue had inquired about the methods used by the Chen Clan's artifact refiners. The preceding steps were similar, but their final method for completing an artifact was "spirit infusion," not "rune engraving."

What was rune engraving?

According to the Heavenly Cauldron True Fire Hundred Refinement Scripture, carving arrays into a spirit artifact was called rune engraving.

"Arrays..."

Shen Yue looked at the hundreds of combinations of dots, lines, and planes in the jade slip, feeling as if he were reading a heavenly book.

He knew nothing about arrays.

"So, to truly refine a spirit artifact, I must also learn arrays?"

If artifact refining were compared to materials engineering and thermodynamics, then arrays were advanced calculus—the barrier to entry was equally high.

"Learn it sooner or later, I have to learn it eventually."

Possessing the Nine Heavens Profound Mirror, Shen Yue had always intended to master the four great arts of cultivation: alchemy, artifact refining, arrays, and talismans.

"Brother Zhou seems to know an array master..."

Half a day later.

"You want to learn arrays?" Zhou Chongwen feigned surprise.

He had long expected that Shen Yue wouldn't last long at artifact refining, but he hadn't expected that even after failing at that, Shen Yue would dare to attempt arrays, which had an equally high threshold.

Mortal martial arts... artifact refining... arrays... he was straying further and further down a crooked path.

But who hadn't walked that same road?

He sighed inwardly, yet said, "I do know an array master. He is at the 'Mystic Array Pavilion' on the east street of the market. If you want to learn, just go there and mention my name."

"Thank you, Brother Zhou."

The next morning, Shen Yue arrived early at the Mystic Array Pavilion.

The plaque above the pavilion was somewhat old, its paint mottled, but the brushstrokes were as sharp as if carved by a blade.

He walked inside to find a modest front hall. The four walls were covered in array diagrams, and a long table sat in the center, cluttered with jade stones, array flags, and jade tallies.

Shen Yue's gaze swept the room, but seeing no one, he was about to speak when a curtain was pushed aside just enough for a small face to peek through.

It was a girl of about ten, with delicate features but the look of someone who hadn't yet woken up.

"Who are you looking for?" she asked.

Shen Yue bowed in greeting. "I am Shen Yue. I was recommended by Senior Zhou Chongwen to visit the master of the Mystic Array Pavilion and seek instruction in the way of arrays."

"Master isn't here. He went to deal with the demon-folk," the girl said, rubbing her eyes.

"Demon-folk?"

Shen Yue's brow twitched. Could it be that demonic cultivators were invading the market?