"Roar!!"
Despite receiving Lu Wu's permission, Little Fire still refused to devour it. Seeing this, Lu Wu stopped standing on ceremony.
"All right, give it to me."
Lu Wu held out his hand and began sacrificing the incomplete Earth Element Spirit Seed directly.
Watching the Earth Element Spirit Seed's rich elemental energy disappear, Lu Wu began to feel anticipation.
[Defective Earth Element Spirit Seed successfully sacrificed. Reward: Wind Element awakening]
The system notification rang through his mind, and Lu Wu felt streams of invisible energy pouring into his body.
Ever since he had awakened the Fire Element, gleaming Stars had roamed constantly through the crimson Stardust, bringing a little liveliness to the desolate world of nothingness.
Now, a patch of azure Stardust appeared on the other side of the Fire Element Stardust, the two facing each other from afar.
Not a single Star could be seen in the azure Stardust, forming a sharp contrast with the Fire Element Stars.
"I awakened the Wind Element!!"
Lu Wu was overjoyed.
This was the first time a sacrifice had rewarded him with an elemental awakening, and it was the Wind Element at that.
Once he cultivated to the Advanced Level, his Wind Element would grant him Wind Wings!!
At Lu Wu's signal, Little Fire disappeared into the swamp on his own.
Lu Wu was not worried about Little Fire's safety. After all, he possessed the ability Shadow Escape, something very uncommon among Demon Beasts.
It was even rarer among Servant-level Demons.
The higher the quality of the sacrifice, the greater the reward. Lu Wu was truly looking forward to it now.
Now that he also had the Wind Element, continuing his cultivation would give him magic skills for both attacking and evading.
Presumably, he would no longer be as helpless as he had been today.
However, he could not even see the Wind Element Stars yet. He needed to spend time making them emerge before slowly learning to control them.
That afternoon.
Lu Wu had already returned to camp. Everyone had learned about the Earth Element Spirit Seed, and Jiang Chun had agreed to accompany them to retrieve it in three days.
His own intention was simply to help; the five of them could split the proceeds from selling it among themselves.
Lu Wu said nothing when he heard this.
Little Fire had plucked the unripe Earth Element Spirit Seed before he had even had time to stop him.
Still, Little Fire's actions had benefited him.
No one had seen it, and Lu Wu would not be foolish enough to admit it.
"You three, come with me to melt Mystic Ice. Your break is ending early," Shen Shitian said after seeing that Lu Wu and Zu Yanzhi had recovered.
Lu Wu said nothing and went to melt Mystic Ice.
What should have been days of rest were instead spent melting Mystic Ice.
Although Shen Shitian was a Fire Element mage, he did not personally melt the water needed to refine the magical artifact.
Before Lu Wu and Zu Yanzhi, an old friend had done it, but they had fallen out over a month ago.
After Lu Wu melted it, Shen Shitian did not use it immediately, collecting it instead.
From the second day onward, Lu Wu and the other two continued melting Mystic Ice, but Shen Shitian did not use any of it.
Early on the third morning, while Lu Wu was processing Mystic Ice, he noticed Elder Luo, who had not been in the cavern, entering with Grandpa Shen.
"Jiang Chun has already taken the others away. You three need to stay here and melt Mystic Ice," Luo Long told them. "Once the Northern Plains Ice Vulture's demon blood is injected into the giant sword, your task will be complete."
"They've already left?" Lu Wu raised an eyebrow.
The magical artifact's refinement had reached a critical moment, so why had they sent everyone else away?
"If the disturbance is too great, it could attract powerful Demon Beasts," Shen Shitian explained.
They had cut the break short precisely because they were worried that further delays would breed trouble.
Shen Shitian's words made Lu Wu's heart tighten.
For some reason, Lu Wu recalled the presence he had sensed far in the depths of the cavern back then.
But that presence might have been his imagination.
"Don't worry. We won't let anything happen to you three youngsters," Luo Long assured them. "This is the final step of the refinement. Once it's finished, we'll send you away."
Shen Shitian gave Luo Long a long look at those words, but said nothing and walked toward the giant bone sword.
Countless intricate patterns had now emerged across the giant bone sword, with innumerable materials fused into it.
Noticing the change in Grandpa Shen's expression, Lu Wu began to worry.
In truth, he had harbored far too many questions since arriving here.
Leaving aside why there was a magma cavern beneath Hanging Coffin Swamp, Grandpa Shen and Elder Luo refused to reveal anything about it.
The giant bone sword itself somewhat defied the usual principles of magical artifact refinement.
There was no doubt that this giant bone sword was being refined for Elder Luo, but why had the person who originally melted Mystic Ice for Grandpa Shen left after four months of refinement?
Not only that, only when the refinement was nearly finished had they suddenly told everyone that it might attract Demon Beasts!!
They had never mentioned this before.
At most, when Demon Beasts attacked, they had simply killed them swiftly and cleared away every trace of scent and blood.
"Lu Wu, you're Master Shen's grandson. Do you know anything?" After watching Elder Luo finish speaking and approach the giant bone sword, Zu Yanzhi quietly asked Lu Wu.
Nangong Pei leaned over as well.
Each of the three currently had a specially made iron bucket and was melting Mystic Ice separately.
Now that Zu Yanzhi had asked, it seemed everyone was full of questions.
Everyone already knew that Master Shen had adopted Lu Wu. Lu Wu did not shy away from it. That was simply the truth; without Grandpa Shen, he would not be who he was today.
"I don't know anything about this. They won't reveal a thing." Lu Wu felt utterly helpless.
On other matters, the two old men would tell them everything they knew, holding nothing back.
But whenever it involved the giant bone sword magical artifact they were refining this time, neither would say much, as though they did not want anyone to know.
"If even you don't know, it looks like we won't learn the reason no matter how we ask. Hopefully, it won't attract any overly powerful Demon Beasts."
"Let's hope so."
"Once the Earth Element Spirit Seed is picked, could you let me have it? I'll pay you your respective shares at market price..." Nangong Pei said to Lu Wu and Zu Yanzhi.
The Spirit Grade Earth Element Elemental Seed should have ripened by now. If the people outside had already left, Jiang Chun would surely take them to pick it.
With the special vessel Master Shen had provided, the Elemental Seed would not dissipate or suffer damage, but Nangong Pei wanted it for himself.
He was an Earth Element mage. If he obtained that Earth Element Spirit Seed, the power of his magic would double or increase even further.
Although he could not afford it himself, he could still find a way.
If his family knew he had now made a connection with Master Shen, they probably would not sit idly by.
"Discuss it with the others when the time comes. I have no objections." Lu Wu glanced at the shadow beneath his feet.
Little Fire had returned late last night. Lu Wu did not know what he had been doing, but he seemed very happy, whatever it was.
As for Nangong Pei's request, Lu Wu was willing but powerless to help.
"I have no objections either," Zu Yanzhi added. "Let's melt the Mystic Ice first, then ask the others once things here are finished."
"All right." Nangong Pei nodded at her words.
Lu Wu, however, turned his gaze toward Grandpa Shen. Streams of purple-black flame appeared beneath the giant bone sword.
Those intricate patterns continuously absorbed the purple-black flames, whose intensity was terrifying.
Lu Wu knew full well that Grandpa Shen must have refined an extremely powerful Fire Element Elemental Seed, and its grade might be extremely high!!
Grandpa Shen drew the melted Mystic Ice away through thin air. With his powerful Space Element magic, such a task came as easily as turning his hand.
Buzz!!!
The giant bone sword trembled incessantly, releasing wave after wave of ripples that had never appeared before.
Luo Long stood beside it, his gaze somewhat tense.