Chapter 1801: Fist Gloves and Sword Weapons

The Human World

The Human World

Baishi Zhi.

Xuyi Jing.

Master Lingxu's Residence.

Qin Sang left the North Pole Exorcism Academy and headed straight for this place. Upon meeting Master Lingxu, he received good news.

"It's only been a few years, yet I didn't expect you to have joined our ranks, fellow Daoist! Congratulations! Congratulations!"

Master Lingxu exclaimed in admiration upon seeing Qin Sang.

"Thank you, Master Lingxu, for assisting me back then by inviting True Lord Xingqiong out of seclusion. Only then could I achieve what I have today."

Qin Sang's words were true.

If it weren't for Beigong Nandou's preserved refining talismans that aided his Star Essence infusion, he wouldn't know how much effort it would have taken to break through, and his tribulation wouldn't have been so smooth.

"This is simply part of an old Daoist's duty; there's no need to be so polite, my friend."

Master Lingxu pulled Qin Sang to sit, his expression warm and eager. "After you left last time, my friend, I shamelessly wrote to a few old acquaintances to inquire about the Hundred-Joint Earth Bamboo, and indeed, there's news."

"Oh? Which fellow Daoist currently possesses the Hundred-Joint Earth Bamboo?"

The Sky-Eyed Butterfly broke through on its own and no longer needed the Azure Frost Elixir.

Qin Sang had been collecting for so long, and the elixir formula was only missing one spiritual herb. Naturally, he didn't want to give up halfway. Refining the Azure Frost Elixir would allow him to save it for the Fire Jade Centipede.

"That old fellow's Daoist name is Gu Zhen. He comes from the Heavenly Physician Department of the Tianshu Academy. His attainments in alchemy far surpass mine, but he rarely sets up his furnace outside the Daoist Court, which is why his reputation isn't widely known. You probably haven't heard of him."

Master Lingxu briefly introduced the person.

"Someone from the Daoist Court?"

Qin Sang's expression slightly hardened.

In this world, Daoism flourished, with the Daoist Court holding supreme respect. Whether in terms of strength or various unorthodox paths, the Daoist Court surely had no shortage of masters.

Visiting these individuals would likely resolve all of Qin Sang's problems with ease.

However, Qin Sang deliberately avoided the Daoist Court. Both Master Lingxu and Master Gu came from the Palace and Temple lineage.

Although the Palaces and Temples shared a common spirit with the Daoist Court, prolonged interaction revealed discernible differences.

The Daoist Court's rigid structure and vast power exerted immense pressure, and Qin Sang always avoided it when possible.

"Is Master Gu Zhen willing to part with it?" Qin Sang asked, frowning.

Master Lingxu nodded. "The Hundred-Joint Earth Bamboo is valuable primarily because of its rarity. The Daoist Court possesses countless spiritual herbs far more precious than it. Old Daoist Gu Zhen is well-traveled and knowledgeable, so even offering him better treasures would be difficult to move him. However, Old Daoist Gu Zhen has some interest in the Azure Frost Elixir formula. Without your approval, my friend, I wouldn't dare to make the decision on my own."

He and Qin Sang had an agreement that the elixir formula should not be disseminated.

So that's how it is.

Qin Sang thought to himself, "Isn't this like selling one item multiple times? One elixir formula in exchange for both a Hundred-Joint Earth Bamboo and Master Lingxu's service to refine the elixir."

Whether it was worth it or not depended entirely on himself.

As long as he didn't reveal the "Panhu True Scripture," selling a few elixir formulas shouldn't bother Ghost Mother.

Qin Sang pondered for a moment and said, "Master, please don't reveal my origins. Just say that you stumbled upon the elixir formula by chance."

Master Lingxu paused slightly, discerning Qin Sang's wariness towards the Daoist Court.

This was normal; anyone facing a behemoth like the Daoist Court would exercise extreme caution, let alone Qin Sang, who hailed from Jushan Zhi.

"Alright!"

Master Lingxu nodded, then suddenly looked at him with great anticipation. "My friend, have you made any new discoveries in your search for similar elixir formulas over the years?"

The old Daoist priest before him now had an expression like a child anticipating a new toy. Qin Sang couldn't help but marvel at the allure of elixir formulas to alchemists.

"After I returned, I carefully searched and managed to compile an elixir formula, though I'm unsure if it can be successfully refined," Qin Sang said, taking out a jade slip he had prepared earlier.

The jade slip recorded an elixir called the "Yinghua Elixir."

The Yinghua Elixir was one of the elixirs recorded in the "Panhu True Scripture." Its medicinal effects were slightly weaker, but it was the easiest to refine. When consumed by a spiritual insect at the fifth transformation stage, it could significantly boost its cultivation.

However, this effect was secondary. The elixir's greatest benefit was its ability to gradually weaken the barriers between minor realms as the spiritual insect continuously consumed it, laying a solid foundation for future breakthroughs.

This elixir needed to be used in conjunction with the "Panhu True Scripture" to achieve its maximum efficacy; otherwise, its effects would be greatly diminished.

Previously, with the help of his avatar, Qin Sang had delved into alchemy and achieved some proficiency. If he truly dedicated himself to further study, he could someday refine the Yinghua Elixir himself.

After weighing his options, Qin Sang decided to temporarily abandon alchemy, as his accumulated knowledge in it was far less profound than in artifact refining.

His avatar was still active and might be able to handle both, but he himself found it too difficult to multitask.

Refining his avatar again and aiming for Nascent Soul cultivation would take an unknown amount of time, and without sufficient cultivation, he would struggle to achieve anything significant.

To find the path to ascension, he needed to quickly improve his strength. Comprehending alchemy, collecting spiritual herbs, and setting up a furnace to refine elixirs would all consume vast amounts of time and energy. It was better to delegate these tasks.

Master Lingxu was overjoyed. He took the elixir formula and eagerly began to examine it.

"It's all spiritual flowers; this one should be the Nine-Layered Snake Stamen. Hmm, the spiritual flowers required for this formula are more precious, but fortunately, they aren't rare..."

Master Lingxu was immersed in it, muttering to himself, as if he had forgotten Qin Sang's presence.

When he came back to his senses, he noticed a jade box on the table in front of him. He opened it to find a demonic core.

"This is..."

Master Lingxu showed a look of surprise.

The aura of the demonic core indicated that its owner had been a great demon at the Cavernous Profound mid-stage during its life. Furthermore, there was no residual fierce intent characteristic of fierce beasts within the core.

It was precisely because of this difficult-to-erase ferocity that the demonic cores of fierce beasts were less valuable than those of regular demonic beasts.

The owner of this demonic core was a Demon Marquis in life!

Master Lingxu looked at Qin Sang with an expression full of shock. "My friend, you killed a Demon Marquis at the Cavernous Profound mid-stage?"

It was precisely Li Hou's demonic core.

"It was pure luck; I encountered a heavily wounded Demon Marquis," Qin Sang said calmly. "How many spiritual herbs from the elixir formula can this core be exchanged for?"

"This..."

Master Lingxu couldn't answer immediately.

Qin Sang decisively said, "Could I trouble you, Master, to help me exchange this for spiritual herbs, and use all of them to refine Yinghua Elixirs? Get as many as you can! If this demonic core isn't enough, I'll go hunt fierce beasts in the Sinister Plains again."

Cultivating the "Panhu True Scripture" could help his soul-bound spiritual insect grow rapidly while simultaneously improving his own cultivation. However, bottlenecks between realms still existed, and the master could only provide limited assistance to the spiritual insect. With a sufficient supply of Yinghua Elixirs, he wouldn't need to worry about the Sky-Eyed Butterfly before its sixth transformation.

Qin Sang's tone carried immense confidence, as if demonic cores of fierce beasts were readily available to him.

Master Lingxu was perplexed. Was he really just a newly advanced Cavernous Profound cultivator?

Studying Qin Sang, Master Lingxu thought to himself that he needed to re-evaluate this friend. Since he was going to personally refine this elixir anyway, there was no reason to refuse.

Qin Sang had intended to discuss the remuneration for refining the elixir with Master Lingxu, as he wouldn't just open one furnace; he might need to continuously request Master Lingxu's assistance in the future.

Customarily, when requesting an alchemist to refine elixirs, it was implicitly understood that the elixir formula would be offered as part of the deal.

Unexpectedly, Master Lingxu outright rejected it.

With their discussion concluded, Master Lingxu decided to visit Master Gu Zhen soon to retrieve the Hundred-Joint Earth Bamboo and begin refining the Azure Frost Elixir.

Qin Sang decided to wait until the elixir was complete before departing, so he asked Master Lingxu to borrow a fire chamber. Master Lingxu readily agreed.

Inside the fire chamber.

Qin Sang sat in quiet meditation for a long time.

Master Lingxu was no longer in the residence, and Daoist apprentices stood guard outside the door, ensuring Qin Sang remained undisturbed.

Several items were placed before him.

The Returning Wind Armor.

Scales of the Wood Dragon.

Li Hou's transverse bone spine and a pair of claw gauntlets.

Additionally, there were some spiritual materials and fierce beast bones that Li Hou had found from his storage artifacts.

He pondered how to refine these items for his own use.

The claw gauntlets and bone spine had been refined by Li Hou for many years. The auras of the two treasures were similar, presenting an opportunity to fuse them together using artifact refining techniques.

The bone spine alone possessed power comparable to a pseudo-spiritual treasure.

Qin Sang possessed the Grey Oriole Sword and the Four-Chariot Teng Snake Seal, and his Wandering Cloud Sword was also nearing completion. He decided to refine a pair of gauntlets powered by vital energy and blood, as he couldn't always rely on his bare fists in battle.

On this matter, he had consulted Master Gu and already had a general idea.

Crafting the gauntlets himself, consulting Master Gu, and later personally repairing the damaged drum—all these actions were aimed at improving his artifact refining proficiency.

His ultimate goals were, firstly, to quickly complete the Wandering Cloud Sword, and secondly, to repair the Grand Unity Star Chariot as soon as possible.

He might still need to rely on this treasure when searching for the path to ascension and the Dao Beacon Gate.

He frowned in thought, outlining the gauntlets in his mind. His gaze swept over the various treasures before him, finally putting away the Returning Wind Armor.

Originally, he had planned to integrate the Wood Dragon scales into the Returning Wind Armor. After some thought, Qin Sang decided to use all of them to refine the gauntlets.

The first step was shaping.

Qin Sang activated the spiritual fire in the fire chamber, first refining all the spiritual materials to remove impurities.

When encountering materials difficult to temper, he would summon the Nine Nether Demonic Flame.

Gradually, various-sized spherical masses floated within the fire chamber; some were liquid, others pure orbs.

Only the Wood Dragon scales, bone spine, and claw gauntlets remained.

One by one, the green scales flew into Qin Sang's palm, gradually shrinking under the spiritual fire's tempering, yet becoming even more dazzling.

Next were the bone spine and the claw gauntlets.

These three items were melted and fused, forming the structure of the gauntlets. Finally, a pair of initially formed gauntlets appeared before Qin Sang.

The gauntlets were only fist-sized, with a flowing green light on their surface, displaying beautiful fish scale patterns, as if composed of stacked fish scales.

At the knuckles of each gauntlet, three sharp spikes protruded. These spikes were slightly curved, glinted coldly, and were exceptionally sharp, capable of easily breaking through enemy defenses—a true weapon of destruction!

Looking at his work, Qin Sang made some more adjustments and nodded with satisfaction. He then directed the floating spherical masses to merge into the gauntlets, strengthening their structure and enriching their details.

With the shaping complete, the next crucial step was to inscribe restrictions and runes, which would determine the gauntlets' power.

This step was equivalent to establishing meridians for the gauntlets, with the restrictions and runes acting as channels. Artifact refiners called this "connecting the qi-meridians."

The choice of restrictions and runes, how to combine them, and whether they suited the user all required careful and cautious consideration.

As Qin Sang was refining them for himself, it was relatively simpler, but progress was extremely slow. Several months passed, and he only managed to create an artifact embryo.

During the refining process, Qin Sang gained many insights and had much to ponder. Knowing it wouldn't be achieved overnight, he paused the refining.

Master Lingxu had returned at some point. Upon seeing Qin Sang emerge from seclusion, he immediately pulled him into the hall, presented a jade bottle, and stroked his beard with a smile. "I'm glad I didn't fail my mission!"

The jade bottle contained three elixirs.

The surface of the azure elixirs was covered with a thin layer of fine white frost, resembling faint white clouds drifting across a clear sky.

Three Azure Frost Elixirs!

Qin Sang was both surprised and deeply impressed by Master Lingxu.

According to the elixir formula, one furnace of Azure Frost Elixirs, if all spiritual herbs were of superior quality and other conditions were nearly perfect, could yield four elixirs.

Qin Sang knew that the spiritual herbs he had collected were of varying quality. Master Lingxu successfully refined three elixirs, which clearly demonstrated his exquisite alchemy skills.

"Thank you, Master!"

Qin Sang expressed his gratitude, thinking to himself that if the Fire Jade Centipede still couldn't break through after consuming three Azure Frost Elixirs, then he would just have to let nature take its course.

Gathering the spiritual herbs needed for the Yinghua Elixir would take more time, so Qin Sang didn't linger and bade farewell to Master Lingxu.

Northern Zhongmao Zhi.

Zhengxing Jing, Miaotong Altar.

Leaving Master Lingxu's residence, Qin Sang arrived at this capital altar.

The power he intended to visit was called "Dianjin Mountain."

Dianjin Mountain was quite renowned within the Daoist sect for its expertise in artifact refining. Its affiliated enterprise, Dianjin Pavilion, operated in multiple Jing Altars.

However, Dianjin Mountain's main gate was not in a Jing Altar, but rather located under the jurisdiction of a relatively remote capital altar.

After making inquiries, Qin Sang chose Dianjin Mountain.

At this time, he had changed his appearance and flown from the Jing Altar, landing at the capital altar city gate. He entered the immortal city and found Dianjin Pavilion.

Stepping into the pavilion, Qin Sang merely stated that he wished to have a magical artifact appraised. A maidservant led him to the back hall, where he met an artifact refiner from Dianjin Mountain.

He saw through the other party's cultivation level with a glance.

Qin Sang sat down casually. "I hear the sect master of Dianjin Mountain is a Grandmaster of artifact refining. I came here out of admiration, hoping your esteemed sect master could appraise a treasure for me. But I'm unsure how I might meet him?"

The other party replied with an unchanging expression, "As long as your treasure is sufficiently rare, the sect master will certainly meet you personally."

Qin Sang took out a wooden box and placed it on the table. "If fellow Daoist wishes to see it, please take it."

The artifact refiner took it in his hands. Before long, sweat beaded on his forehead; he couldn't even break the restrictions on the wooden box. He immediately understood.

He looked at Qin Sang with reverence, quickly stood up, and respectfully said, "True Lord, please wait a moment. I will go invite the sect master out of seclusion!"

A maidservant brought fragrant tea.

Qin Sang waited in the quiet room for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. Then, the door was knocked, and a Daoist priest with a square face entered.

The Daoist priest was solemn and unsmiling, with a serious demeanor. Upon entering, he bowed and said, "My subordinates were disrespectful and neglected to treat you properly, True Lord."

Qin Sang rose and returned the bow with a smile. "It's only because this poor Daoist intruded without prior notice."

The Daoist priest was indeed the sect master of Dianjin Mountain. He sat opposite Qin Sang and, without asking about Qin Sang's identity or the treasure's origin, opened the wooden box after receiving permission.

The box seemed empty, allowing one to see directly through to the wooden grain at the bottom.

The Dianjin Mountain sect master's gaze narrowed slightly. He cautiously extended both hands and lifted out the Chengying Sword.

In his hands, the Chengying Sword's transparent blade was invisible to the eye, leaving only a faint shadow on the table.

"If I can acquire some more artifact refining classics from Dianjin Mountain and verify my previous findings, refining the gauntlets should be foolproof..."

Qin Sang sipped the spiritual tea, lost in thought.

He saw golden light emanating from the Dianjin Mountain sect master's palms, his hands appearing as if cast from gold and iron. The golden light spread over the Chengying Sword's blade, revealing its shimmering golden form, clearly a unique secret technique for examination.

Afterward, he continuously switched through several other secret techniques.

A flicker of doubt crossed the Dianjin Mountain sect master's eyes as he hesitated, saying, "This might not be a sword."

"Not a sword?" Qin Sang was surprised, a little confused.

The Dianjin Mountain sect master nodded. "At least it doesn't belong to any type of sword artifact this poor Daoist has ever seen, perhaps my knowledge is limited. But I suspect it's not a magical artifact or spiritual treasure at all, nor does it resemble the legendary true treasures. Instead, it seems to be a special kind of treasure. Perhaps... consulting a sword cultivator skilled in the Way of the Sword could reveal more."