Tempering the Precious Sword

"Hmm? Talismans?"

Su Shi'er had long seen introductions to talismans in the Sect Manual. He froze slightly, then quickly understood.

His gaze turned cold as he looked toward the menial disciple nearby.

The menial disciple had already been frightened limp, collapsed on the ground. Seeing Su Shi'er's sharp gaze sweep over him, before Su Shi'er could even speak, he produced a Level One Escape Light Talisman in his hand as well.

The talisman activated, and the next moment, the menial disciple vanished without a trace.

Su Shi'er frowned but did not pursue him.

Sect rules strictly prohibited disciples from fighting one another. The Waste Pill Room was remote and quiet; if they fought here, it would be as if ghosts and gods knew nothing of it.

But if he chased after them, there was no guarantee he would not run into someone else.

"Forget it. We'll talk about it if I run into them again. After this, they probably won't dare come back anytime soon."

"It's just a pity about my thirty high-grade Foundation Cultivation Pills!"

"Still, this sword is pretty good. It seems to be the Low-grade Magical Artifact recorded in the books. I wonder how much it's worth. Even if it can't compare to those Foundation Cultivation Pills, it shouldn't be worth too little, right?"

Muttering softly, Su Shi'er lowered his head to examine the precious sword in his hand. The two-foot longsword was dark bluish-green throughout, and he had no idea what material it had been made from.

Two small words were engraved on the hilt: White Mist.

The blade flashed with a cold gleam. One look was enough to tell how incomparably sharp it was.

Whether in appearance or texture, it was undoubtedly a Low-grade Magical Artifact.

Magical artifacts were treasures used by cultivators. Only the True Yuan unique to cultivators could activate them.

Above magical artifacts were spiritual artifacts, magical treasures, and more... but those were far too distant for Qi Refining Stage cultivators.

Whether magical artifacts or spiritual artifacts, they were divided by grade into low, middle, high, and supreme.

Recalling the descriptions in the Sect Manual, Su Shi'er tried channeling a wisp of True Yuan into it.

Fed by True Yuan, the longsword trembled slightly, and a gleam of light bloomed across its body.

In a flash of inspiration, Su Shi'er raised his hand and slashed with the sword.

Bang!

An invisible sword qi shot out like a sharp blade, leaving a striking gash in the ground.

"Not bad, not bad. It really is a fine sword! With this precious sword, my attack power can rise by quite a bit!"

Having witnessed the might of a Low-grade Magical Artifact, Su Shi'er felt his heart burst into bloom.

The gloom from losing the Foundation Cultivation Pills was swept away in an instant.

Returning to his room, Su Shi'er sat cross-legged on his bed and took a medicine bottle from his robes. Only when he saw that it was empty did he realize that he had used up all the Qi Gathering Pills he had refined last time.

He then took out another bottle of wasted Qi Gathering Pills and the mysterious Pill Furnace.

Just as he was about to toss the wasted pills inside, his gaze fell on the mysterious Pill Furnace, and Su Shi'er suddenly recalled how he had activated that Low-grade Magical Artifact earlier.

"This Pill Furnace must be a treasure. What would happen if I poured True Yuan into it?"

His eyes shifted. Holding the mysterious Pill Furnace in his hand, Su Shi'er began to mobilize the True Yuan within his body.

The instant his True Yuan touched the mysterious Pill Furnace, Su Shi'er's expression changed. In that instant, he felt a powerful suction arise, and the True Yuan in his body drained away at an astonishing speed, as though he were about to be hollowed out.

The sensation made him feel as though he had returned to the first time he used the Fire Control Technique.

Fortunately, the state lasted only a moment. Once his True Yuan was exhausted, the Pill Furnace flew from his grasp.

The instant it left his hand, the Pill Furnace doubled in size. In the blink of an eye, it became a full two feet wide.

Tilting his head, Su Shi'er studied the Pill Furnace before him. In his eyes, aside from its larger size, it looked no different from usual.

It was just as ancient, just as battered, with not the slightest trace of spiritual energy flowing through it.

If he had not personally watched it grow larger, he would have thought it was originally meant to look this way.

"Uh... it only got bigger? Or does it have some other use? Still, at this size, it can hold quite a few things!"

"I wonder whether this Pill Furnace can refine other things too?"

As Su Shi'er muttered to himself, his gaze landed on the longsword beside him.

"Should I try it?"

His brows lifted as he placed the flying sword into the enlarged Pill Furnace.

The moment the flying sword entered, it was covered in a layer of blue light. The next second, it rapidly began to shrink.

In the blink of an eye, it was only a little over a foot long. "This..."

Su Shi'er was startled. Just as he was about to take out the flying sword, he looked closely—and was instantly overjoyed.

"This... in such a short time, the flying sword has actually become a high-grade magic artifact?"

"What if I keep refining it?"

Su Shi'er's eyes lit up, and he stared at the Pill Furnace without blinking.

But after becoming a high-grade magical artifact, the precious sword underwent no further changes.

Instead, a few minutes later, the Pill Furnace began to shrink.

Seeing this, Su Shi'er hurriedly took out the flying sword.

He tucked the Pill Furnace, which had returned to its original size, back into his robes, then turned his gaze to the flying sword.

"It can only be refined to the level of a high-grade magical artifact? Could it be that this flying sword's potential only goes this far?"

After examining it for several minutes, Su Shi'er came to what he considered a fairly reliable conclusion.

Smiling, he put away the flying sword and resumed his cultivation.

At the same time, beneath Cuihuan Mountain, two figures were huddled together.

The moment he saw the menial disciple, the Sword-Bearing Youth who had lost his sword rushed up and gave him a vicious beating.

"Fatty Huang, this is the useless trash you said was no match for anyone? Mixed Spiritual Roots? Easy to deal with?"

The more the Sword-Bearing Youth spoke, the angrier he became, and the angrier he became, the heavier his blows fell.

The menial disciple lay on the ground and was beaten black and blue in the blink of an eye.

"Martial Brother Zhao Yu, spare me! I... I never expected that brat to be so strong!"

The menial disciple hugged his head, feeling incomparably wronged.

In his view, Zhao Yu was a second-level Qi Refining Stage Qi Refiner who had failed to defeat a first-level Qi Refining Stage Qi Refiner. What did that have to do with him?

"Spare you? That White Mist Sword is a Low-grade Magical Artifact. I traded a full fifty high-grade Foundation Cultivation Pills for it. How am I supposed to spare you?" Zhao Yu planted his foot on Fatty Huang's body, grinding his teeth in fury.

His furious eyes flashed with a killing intent that seemed ready to choose someone and devour them.

Fatty Huang's heart jolted. Shuddering, he hurriedly cried, "Martial Brother, don't be hasty. There's something strange about this!"

Zhao Yu stared coldly at Fatty Huang. "What's strange?"

"That brat is definitely a Mixed Spiritual Roots cultivator. The Peak Master said so personally; there can't be any mistake. Otherwise, the Peak Master would never have sent him to guard the Waste Pill Room."

"Yet he actually cultivated to the first level of the Qi Refining Stage in such a short time, and he even possesses such strength. I suspect he must have some extraordinary treasure on him!"

Fatty Huang's eyes rolled as he spoke rapidly.

"An extraordinary treasure?!" A gleam flashed through Zhao Yu's eyes.

"Exactly! Otherwise, how could a Mixed Spiritual Roots piece of trash be so formidable? Why don't we find a few more people and quietly cut him down? Then the treasure will be ours, won't it?" Fatty Huang nodded repeatedly. As he spoke, his gaze turned cold, and he made a throat-slitting gesture.

"Hmm... your guess isn't without reason. But don't spread word of this yet. We'll discuss everything after I return." Zhao Yu's eyes shifted as he lifted his foot from Fatty Huang.

Since it involved an extraordinary treasure, he had no intention of letting others profit so easily.

"Martial Brother, you're leaving?" Fatty Huang finally let out a breath and hurriedly asked.

"That's right. Elder Song from the Hall of Teachings has gathered twenty disciples for intensive training for this year's Newcomer Trial. We have to report in tomorrow morning. I'm one of them." Zhao Yu narrowed his eyes and spoke with some pride.

"Intensive training for the Newcomer Trial? Aren't menial disciples from previous years barred from participating?" Fatty Huang was stunned and confused.

"I don't know the exact details either. I only know that the rules have changed this year. Aside from newcomers, menial disciples who were eliminated in previous years can also register. As long as they complete the trial, they can likewise obtain the status of Official Disciple." Zhao Yu explained impatiently.

"So that's how it is. Congratulations, Martial Brother! With your potential, after intensive training, your strength will surely soar. It seems this year's newcomers will face enormous pressure!"

Fatty Huang hurriedly cupped his hands and smiled. Hearing this news, his heart also stirred.

Though his strength was poor, there were still several years before the Newcomer Trial. According to what Zhao Yu had said, he actually had a chance to complete the trial and become an Official Disciple.

"Enough, spare me the congratulations. You should register too. Once the trial begins, I'll call my elder brother Zhao Yan along as well." Zhao Yu curled his lips.

"Martial Brother Zhao Yan? He's the strongest among all us menial disciples. If he joins us, then success will be guaranteed beyond all doubt. But... are we going to act during the Newcomer Trial?" Fatty Huang's spirits rose before he asked.

"That's right! Elder Song's training won't end until the Newcomer Trial begins. Besides, what place could be more suitable for making a move than the Newcomer Trial?" Zhao Yu's gaze turned cold. After speaking, he turned and left.