Unexpectedly Effective

"Heaven and earth in their natural order, foul qi disperse. Within the cavern, profound emptiness; radiant clarity of the primordial... obey with all haste!"

Tang Zhixue recited the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra under his breath, his eyes fixed on the wooden door, not daring to relax in the slightest.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly, and Tang Zhixue successfully recited the mantra once.

"Roar!!"

As the Shelter's temporary purification effect appeared, a shrill howl of agony suddenly rang out outside.

But Tang Zhixue's expression did not improve at the sound. Instead, it grew increasingly grim.

[Shelter: Blazing Sun (under Weird Erosion)]

[Level: 2 (0/1000)]

[Function: Regional trading]

[Buildings: Martial Arts Space, Planting Cottage]

[Effects: Door God Protection · First Tier, Clear Spirit Evil-Repelling, Purification · Temporary]

The purification effect was indeed working, but the problem was that the Shelter was still suffering Weird Erosion!

"This is going to be tricky..."

Faced with this problem, Tang Zhixue did not know what to do for the moment.

He was not so arrogant as to think he could face the supernatural creature outside, which could withstand the purification effect.

Left with no choice, Tang Zhixue could only stand in the smithy and desperately recite the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra.

"Roar!"

As Tang Zhixue kept reciting, the howls of agony outside never stopped, yet the Shelter's Weird Erosion status remained.

This inevitably made Tang Zhixue feel that the supernatural creature outside was toying with him.

"Goddammit, I refuse to believe this!"

Tang Zhixue steeled himself, and his recitation immediately sped up.

Meanwhile, where Tang Zhixue was not looking, the piece resting on the anvil was gradually cooling into a blue-black iron ingot with golden patterns.

As Tang Zhixue continued reciting the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra, a few white patterns appeared on its surface.

But as the Iron Ingot cooled, fewer and fewer white patterns appeared on its surface, until no more appeared at all.

Suddenly!

"Roar!"

A roar filled with rage abruptly rang out outside the smithy.

"Bang!"

Immediately afterward, a tremendous force struck the wooden door. Fortunately, it was sturdy enough that nothing broke through for the time being.

"Shit!"

Tang Zhixue shuddered in fright at this sudden development, and the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra on his lips stopped as well.

Just then, he caught sight of something unusual about the iron ingot out of the corner of his eye.

"If I remember correctly, this Iron Ingot didn't have any white patterns before, did it?"

Driven by curiosity, he began reciting the mantra again while tentatively reaching toward the Iron Ingot with his left hand.

He first tested it with a finger. Only after finding that it had cooled did he feel safe picking it up to inspect its information.

There was no other way. At present, to learn an item's information, he had to touch it with his hand within the Shelter's boundaries.

[Item: Purification Golden-Pattern Iron]

[Tier: First Tier]

[Description: Forged from Golden-Pattern Iron Ore. Influenced by the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra, it carries the power of purification and can affect supernatural creatures.]

"Purification Golden-Pattern Iron?!"

Tang Zhixue froze, even stopping his recitation once more.

"If I remember correctly, I forged this from Golden-Pattern Iron Ore, didn't I? How did it get influenced by the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra?"

He suddenly paused, then thought of everything that had just happened.

"Could it be..." A guess formed in Tang Zhixue's mind. "Because I was reciting the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra?"

This discovery made him eager to put the Iron Ingot back into the Forging Furnace to reheat it, but the current situation did not allow it. The monster outside was still pounding on the wooden door.

Gripping the Iron Ingot in one hand, Tang Zhixue slowly approached the wooden door with the forging hammer in his right.

Of course, he began reciting the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra again as he did so.

Although he did not know whether the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra could currently affect that supernatural creature, it was still a source of power. If he could use it, he would.

"Roar!"

As a familiar howl of agony rang out, Tang Zhixue yanked open the wooden door and swung the forging hammer straight ahead without even looking.

"Squelch!"

"Roar!"

Tang Zhixue felt as though he had struck a mass of soft flesh. The instant he swung the hammer, the creature successfully dissipated its force.

"So disgusting!"

Only then did Tang Zhixue get a firsthand look at the culprit pounding on the wooden door.

It was a humanoid supernatural creature, its entire body like a bloated corpse swollen from soaking in water. The hammer Tang Zhixue had just swung struck its body, sending up a small splash of water.

"Roar!"

Upon seeing Tang Zhixue, the bloated-corpse creature's eyes seemed to overflow with venomous hatred, and it lunged at him with both hands.

"Try this!"

Already prepared, Tang Zhixue quickly stepped back and hurled the Iron Ingot with his left hand.

At the same time, he began rapidly reciting the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra.

He refused to believe that, with so many effects stacked together, the supernatural creature would still remain unaffected!

"Roar!"

Tang Zhixue's prediction was correct. His plan worked, and even better than he had expected.

The instant the Iron Ingot touched the bloated-corpse creature, it burst with white light.

However, the creature soon suppressed that white light, until Tang Zhixue successfully finished reciting the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra once.

In an instant, the Iron Ingot's white light blazed brightly, completely enveloping the creature.

"Sizzle~"

"Roar!"

Streams of pitch-black gas reeking of fish continuously emerged, accompanied by the creature's howls of agony.

"Phew~"

Watching this from a distance, Tang Zhixue immediately breathed a sigh of relief. As long as it worked.

After resting briefly, Tang Zhixue immediately continued reciting the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra.

He had to admit that this divine mantra had been an enormous help. Not only had it brought the Shelter a purification effect, but it had now also let him discover a way to make a new special item.

The scene before him could be called the perfect item-testing site.

Of course, Tang Zhixue also knew that the Iron Ingot could produce this effect entirely because it was stacked with the effects of the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra, especially since the Shelter further amplified the mantra's effects.

But that did not stop him from being optimistic about combining the Pure Heaven and Earth Divine Mantra with forging.

"Roar!"

The supernatural creature shrouded in white light roared again and again, struggling to step closer to Tang Zhixue.

A final counterattack?

Tang Zhixue watched the mass of white light warily, his body very honestly retreating several steps, while he dared not stop his recitation.

"Roar!"

Finally, with one last unwilling roar, the mass of white light rapidly dissipated.

All that remained on the spot was a peculiar iron ingot bearing golden and white patterns, along with a pile of black ashes.

Tang Zhixue did not let his guard down. Instead, he first opened the Shelter's information panel. Only after seeing that the Weird Erosion status had disappeared and its energy had risen from 0 to 10 did he relax.

He picked up the Iron Ingot, then pinched up a little of the ashes and held them before his eyes to inspect them.