"Your father... was Master Wu's senior brother..."
Lu Li paused slightly. He hadn't expected Xu Xiong to have such a family background.
"That's right. My father and my master studied under the same master back then, and both practiced the art of artifact refining..."
"My father even had a chance of becoming a second-tier artifact refining grandmaster!"
"Unfortunately... he later left the sect to search for materials and ran into Bandit Cultivators. They killed him on the spot."
"That year... I was only a little over ten. It's been nearly twenty years now."
Xu Xiong's voice was desolate, his tone low.
"I... please accept my condolences, senior brother..."
"It's all right. It's been many years, and I've made it through all this time."
"It's just... I always feel I've let Master and my father down..."
Xu Xiong's meaning was clear.
His father and Master Wu had studied under the same master, and Master Wu was only a second-tier artifact refining master.
His father had been even more accomplished, with a chance of becoming a grandmaster.
Even a Golden Core True Lord would have to treat a second-tier grandmaster with deference.
The entire Azure Pool Sect didn't have a single one. What extraordinary talent such a person must have had.
But when it came to his only son's artifact refining...
Remembering the bizarre spectacle of Xu Xiong refining an artifact, Lu Li couldn't stop the corner of his mouth from twitching.
What was this?
A hero for a father, a fool for a son?
No wonder Xu Xiong was so afraid of Master Wu.
No wonder he also liked taking on tasks that let him keep a low profile.
No wonder... he didn't take Master Wu's tasks...
Presumably, he felt uncomfortable too...
Shaking his head, Lu Li was just about to offer him a few more words of comfort.
But Xu Xiong composed himself and gave Lu Li a deep fist-and-palm salute.
"Junior Brother Lu, you were a great help to me today."
"If you hadn't been there, the best I could have done was refine a first-tier low-grade suit of enchanted armor."
"Now I've been fortunate enough to obtain a first-tier mid-grade Law Artifact. You made a great contribution in helping me, Junior Brother Lu, so I won't take advantage of you for nothing."
With that, Xu Xiong flipped his wrist and produced ten pale-blue crystals, each the size of a fist.
"Junior brother, you should take these ten Spirit Stones as your payment."
"Sp... Spirit Stones... this..."
"Don't refuse, junior brother!"
Before Lu Li could hesitate, Xu Xiong simply stuffed them into his arms.
A first-tier mid-grade suit of enchanted armor was worth more than forty Spirit Stones in the sect, whichever way one reckoned it.
Converted into contribution points, that came to more than twenty.
Giving Lu Li ten was entirely reasonable.
"Well... thank you, senior brother."
Lu Li was genuinely short of money right now, so he didn't make any further fuss.
After thanking him, he tucked the Spirit Stones into his Storage Bag.
"Mm, you deserve them, junior brother. There's no need to thank me."
"I understood what Master meant just now too. Perhaps he wants you to accompany me as I study artifact refining, Junior Brother Lu..."
"That would be a great benefit to both of us, so I won't stand on ceremony. But if I refine artifacts again in the future, I hope you'll give me more help."
"Don't worry, junior brother. I'll never have you help me for nothing."
Xu Xiong looked at Lu Li expectantly.
It took Lu Li by surprise.
He hadn't expected to land another part-time job.
I'm completely broke right now, with no resources, tools, or materials. Even if I wanted to refine artifacts, I couldn't.
Helping Xu Xiong will earn me Spirit Stones, and I can also watch him refine artifacts and gain experience...
I'll gain several benefits in one stroke!
How could Lu Li fail to see the pros and cons?
For him, it was immensely beneficial. As for the cost... it was only a little time and effort.
He immediately cupped his fists.
"In that case... it would be disrespectful to refuse, so I'll accept."
"Good! Junior Brother Lu, you really are straightforward! I won't disturb you while you're busy."
"Let's exchange our Jade Slips. We can come to the lesson together in half a month."
Xu Xiong excitedly took out his identity Jade Slip and exchanged spiritual power imprints with Lu Li.
The two could now transmit their voices to each other at any time.
Once that was done, Xu Xiong left the side hall.
Lu Li was left alone inside.
Phew... today's gains... were tremendous.
I never expected that simply taking a task earlier would set off such a chain of events...
Fortunately, the effects all seem positive so far, and I've begun to learn about artifact refining.
I've also gained Spirit Stones, and I can attend lessons for free and gain experience afterward...
Helping Xu Xiong will let me save up even more Spirit Stones... good, good... everything's going smoothly. At this rate, I'll master the art of artifact refining in time!
After taking stock of his gains and what he stood to gain in the future,
Lu Li was in excellent spirits.
But he didn't let his guard down.
Somewhere deep down, this chain of events gave him an impression.
In the cultivation world... the butterfly effect seems to be more pronounced.
It must be the legendary karma... if my taking the task hadn't been the cause, how could the subsequent effects have come about?
Although everything seems to be positive feedback for now... there's no guarantee something won't go wrong later.
Mm... in any case, staying cautious is the most important thing. It can't hurt to give things more thought before acting in the future...
After reviewing what had happened recently,
Lu Li's spirit of keeping a low profile grew firmer, and he became even more cautious.
Only after making sure there were no oversights did he circulate his magic and begin clearing out the slag.
As before, he put all the slag he pried loose into his Storage Bag.
He only had to wait until he returned tonight to send it back to Blue Star.
He would also record his recent affairs, including the Qi Refinement techniques he had seen today, and send them back together...
Time passed.
In the blink of an eye, it was late at night.
After spending more than half the day clearing slag, Lu Li finally returned to his cave abode.
"Swish!"
With a wave of his sleeve, the stone door swung wide open.
Lu Li walked wearily into the cave abode.
He slumped onto the stone bed.
For some reason, there had been considerably more slag today than last time.
Clearing it had left his meridians aching and swollen and his Dantian empty.
Now that he finally had a moment to rest, he couldn't help letting out a long breath.
"Phew... another two contribution points in hand."
"Besides the ten Spirit Stones Xu Xiong gave me, I also scraped out another hundred and thirty pieces of slag."
"I'll send them back now."
After catching his breath, Lu Li rummaged through his Storage Bag and took out a booklet.
He finished recording everything that had happened today, including all his insights and observations concerning artifact refining.
Only then did he take the fish-shaped jade pendant from his robes.
He fed spiritual power into it...
On Blue Star, in the outskirts of the capital.
Inside Bureau 749's base.
Although it was already late at night, the place was still brightly lit.
Countless researchers in white coats were hard at work.
Groups of fully armed soldiers patrolled ceaselessly.
When the jade pendant in the center of the command hall began to flash,
Wang Zhiwen and Li Yuanchao, who were still working overtime, immediately received word.
Excitement written all over their faces, they hurried over with a group of personnel.
"Hello, Comrade Lu Li. This is Li Yuanchao..."
"Hello, Director Li."
After exchanging greetings, Lu Li sent over his recent news and insights, along with the hundred-odd pieces of slag.
"Director Li, these are over a hundred and thirty pieces of the same slag as last time, along with my recent observations."
"Besides that, I was fortunate enough to encounter the art of artifact refining today. I wrote down some insights and sent them back as well."
Lu Li's voice came through the jade pendant and was amplified by Group 749's specially made loudspeakers, reaching everyone's ears.
Wang Zhiwen's expression immediately became a sight to behold.
He put everything else aside and hurriedly had someone record and upload the contents of the booklet Lu Li had sent.
Specialists from the various groups swiftly analyzed and compiled the information.
Some time later, a detailed report was placed in his hands.
But after reading it, Wang Zhiwen's expression suddenly turned exceedingly strange.
He couldn't help seeking confirmation from Lu Li.
"Artifact refining... this is artifact refining?"
"It's that simple?"