A Small Token of Appreciation

Li Ping'an gripped the Heaven-Tempering Hammer, glanced at the scattered pile of scrap beneath his feet, and drew a deep breath.

Waves of heat from the earthfire surged upward, baking his skin tight, yet he did not retreat a single step.

The hammer rose, then fell.

With a dull thud, there was no flash of fire and no other movement. Only the waste pills and scraps strewn across the ground visibly collapsed.

The last traces of spirituality lingering within those blackened medicinal dregs and shattered ores were completely drained by the Heaven-Tempering Hammer.

Li Ping'an could feel that power traveling down the hammer's handle, seeping bit by bit into the hammer itself.

Several of the obsidian crystals on the handle, which had been dark before, lit up one after another, giving off a warm, gentle glow.

It worked.

This basket of scraps looked insignificant, yet the power it had accumulated far surpassed those four low-grade spirit stones.

Heat surged in Li Ping'an's heart, and he nearly laughed aloud.

He had indeed chosen the right place.

What others saw as trash was all treasure in his hands.

He crouched down and picked out the five waste pills the stern-faced little senior sister had given him from the medicinal dregs, placing them separately on a scorching-hot stone.

The medicinal power within these five pills had originally been purer than that of ordinary ores, but they had been ruined in the refining process, their properties tangled into chaos.

In the past, they would have been poison.

But things were different now.

Li Ping'an aimed at the waste pills, lowered his wrist, and brought the hammer down.

Immortal Smelting.

Silently, the chaotic toxins and impurities within the five waste pills were instantly stripped away, turning into a puddle of medicinal powder.

He did not stop. Riding that momentum, his second hammer blow came crashing down right after.

Divine Casting.

An invisible force gathered the scattered medicinal power back together, compressing and condensing it.

Two smooth, round pills lay on the stone, glowing faintly.

Low-grade first-rank Body-Tempering Pills.

Five poisonous pills had been forcibly refined into two good pills fit for consumption.

Li Ping'an pinched the pills in his hand, weighed them, then glanced at the hammer in his other hand.

There was still power inside it.

The strength accumulated from that basket of scraps was far more than enough to refine just these two pills.

Then he could not waste it.

He carefully tucked the Body-Tempering Pills into his clothes, gripped the hammer handle again, and aimed it at his own chest.

He still remembered the feeling of those two hammer blows on the mountain path. They had truly hurt, but they had been worth it.

Li Ping'an gritted his teeth and brought the hammer down.

Thud.

After the dull impact, familiar agony and an intense itch surged over him at once.

Black water began seeping from every pore in his body again. The stench was even harsher than the strange smell in the Waste Hall.

Li Ping'an braced himself and endured it without collapsing.

Once the feeling passed, he examined his body inwardly.

Fifth stage of Body Tempering.

He had jumped another two stages, from the third stage to the fifth.

In the outer sect, ordinary disciples would not even come close to crossing those two realms without three to five years of effort.

For him, it was a single hammer blow.

Li Ping'an caught his breath and tried swinging the hammer again.

This time, nothing happened when it fell.

The crystals on the hammer handle that had lit up all went dark.

Its power had been exhausted.

Li Ping'an shook his head and returned the Heaven-Tempering Hammer to his sea of consciousness.

This thing was truly good, but it had quite an appetite. A whole basket of scrap had only been enough for him to make two leaps.

If he wanted to keep advancing in the future, he would have to keep saving up.

The moment he put away the hammer, a wave of dizziness crashed over him. Li Ping'an's legs went weak, and he nearly toppled into the fire pit.

He hurriedly grabbed the rock wall beside him and took quite a while to steady himself.

With only the foundation of the Body-Tempering realm, his body truly could not endure staying too long in this place where earthfire scorched the flesh.

Li Ping'an clutched the two Body-Tempering Pills tightly, not daring to linger any longer. He turned and headed for the main hall.

By the time he returned to the front hall of the Waste Hall, the disciples had all finished their work for the day. They sat listlessly beside the assembly line, each too dispirited to lift their heads.

When they saw Li Ping'an return, they looked at one another, but no one dared to speak first.

The young man named Wang Erniu opened his mouth, but in the end swallowed his words and lowered his head to pick at his nails.

Seeing them like this, Li Ping'an understood.

Supervisor Wang's speech had frightened this group badly.

He walked over and sat down on a long bench, his tone gentle.

"Don't all look so downcast."

"That Supervisor Wang is coming after me alone."

Several disciples raised their heads, though unease still filled their eyes.

Li Ping'an waved a hand.

"He wants to deal with me. It has nothing to do with you."

"You should all keep doing what you need to do. Keep sorting scrap as usual. No one will throw you out of the sect because of me."

"Don't worry."

He Lü listened from the side, leaning on his cane, and let out a sigh.

"Instructor Li, you make it sound easy."

"That job of destroying waste materials... it can cost people their lives."

Li Ping'an smiled and did not respond to that.

Whether it would cost him his life or not, he knew perfectly well. He simply had no way to tell them.

"Steward He, I'll be fine."

"I appreciate your goodwill. For the time being, everyone should stay away from me, so Supervisor Wang does not get hold of an excuse."

He Lü opened his mouth, but for a long while, no words came out.

The old man truly wanted to treat Li Ping'an well, but Supervisor Wang's words—pack up and get the hell out of the Heaven-Piercing Sword Sect immediately—weighed on him so heavily that he could barely breathe.

Without this place, the people of the Waste Hall truly had nowhere else to go.

Li Ping'an saw his dilemma and took the initiative to make things clear.

"Steward He, let's forget the welcome feast."

"It's better for everyone to keep their distance from me than anything else."

He Lü fell silent for a while. In the end, he leaned on his cane and shuffled unsteadily into the inner room.

When he came back out, he carried a jug of spirits and a glossy roast chicken, which he placed on the table before Li Ping'an.

"There won't be a feast."

"But you have to accept these small things."

"Your old brother here has no other talents, but I still have the sincerity to welcome you."

Li Ping'an looked at the jug of liquor and the chicken, warmth welling in his heart.

During this one day after entering the inner sect, people had despised him, plotted against him, and treated him as a joke.

Only this jug of rough liquor and this roast chicken made him feel like he was still a living person.

"Thank you, Steward He."

He did not refuse and accepted the items.

He Lü waved his hand, called to the disciples, and had them return to their rooms to rest.

Before leaving, Wang Erniu secretly glanced back at Li Ping'an. There was guilt in his gaze, along with an awkwardness he could not quite explain.

Li Ping'an nodded at him, and only then did the young man lower his head and run off.

The Waste Hall gradually fell quiet.

Carrying the liquor and chicken, Li Ping'an returned to the small room assigned to him.

The room was not large. It had a wooden bed, a battered table, and a pile of miscellaneous things in the corner. Compared to the drafty thatched shack in the menial workers' quarters, it was at least a proper place to live.

He set the liquor and roast chicken on the table, then sat on the edge of the bed.

He did not pick up his chopsticks, nor did he drink.

He simply sat there.

Waiting.

Outside the window, the moon slowly climbed higher, while the sounds in the Waste Hall gradually faded away.

He Lü's coughing came from the room next door. He coughed a few times, then fell silent.

After a while, the lights in the distant rooms where the disciples lived also went out.

Li Ping'an remained seated without moving.

The fragrance of the roast chicken drifted through the room. He swallowed, but still did not touch it.

It was not that he did not crave it.

He simply could not eat at a time like this.

He had to wait.

Wait until everyone was sound asleep.