Chapter 434: Pure Yang Energy

Chen Mobai had already informed Che Yucheng that the Faceless Puppet was nearing completion, which meant he would undoubtedly be first in the graduation design. Coupled with his status as the public face and top student of the Daoist Academy of Artifacts, the matter of refining a magic treasure embryo was virtually guaranteed.

However, Chen Mobai hadn't seriously considered this issue. After all, due to resource scarcity and lack of conflict in the Immortal Sect, many Golden Core cultivators didn't even possess magic treasures. Consequently, the Immortal Sect didn't place much emphasis on researching magic treasures. Instead, large-scale machinery and equipment used in daily life had flourished.

In this environment, the Daoist Academy of Artifacts could be considered the ancestral hall for artifact crafting within the Immortal Sect. The Artifact Refining Department claimed to be the best in the Immortal Sect, and Revered Chen Xuan was its director before achieving the Nascent Soul stage.

"Teacher, I haven't decided yet. Could you give me some advice?" Chen Mobai, always humble and eager to learn, immediately asked Che Yucheng.

"There are various schools of thought when it comes to choosing magic treasures, but our Daoist Academy of Artifacts categorizes them into two types, known as 'Leveraging Strengths and Mitigating Weaknesses'."

"Leveraging strengths means refining a magic treasure that perfectly complements your cultivation method and physique, allowing you to maximize your best abilities."

"Mitigating weaknesses, on the other hand, involves using a magic treasure to compensate for the flaws in your cultivation method, making potentially fatal issues less so."

Che Yucheng concisely explained the Daoist Academy of Artifacts' understanding of magic treasures. After drinking enlightenment tea and numerous Snow Needle Immortal Buds, Chen Mobai was quite a genius; he grasped these words intuitively, even having a sudden realization that 'Leveraging Strengths and Mitigating Weaknesses' truly summarized the two main uses of magic treasures.

"So, Teacher, do you think I should 'leverage my strengths' or 'mitigate my weaknesses'?" Chen Mobai asked again, but Che Yucheng shook his head, telling him to make the choice himself.

"A magic treasure is a part of your cultivation's fruition for the latter half of your life; no one but you can make this decision," Che Yucheng's words plunged Chen Mobai into contemplation.

Just then, two people dressed in Azure Cloud Robes of the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy approached. One was an acquaintance of Chen Mobai's, the former chief of the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy, Daoist Master Ling. The other was a refined, scholarly middle-aged man with grayish-black hair and glasses, none other than Fu Borong, a Golden Core cultivator from the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy.

"Long time no see, you seem to have aged a bit?" Che Yucheng stood up, shook Fu Borong's hand, and uttered a remark that made the latter shake his head with a bitter smile.

"The academy's ranking dropped to fourth under my tenure, and the principal is about to emerge from seclusion. I'm racking my brain trying to figure out how to explain this to him; I haven't slept well these past two years."

During the offline sparring exchange at Jumang Daoist Academy, Chen Mobai defeated all challengers with a single sword stroke, forcefully bringing the Daoist Academy of Artifacts, which had long been in fourth place, to the top. As for Wenren Xuewei, because she had mastered the Evergreen Art, neither Kunpeng nor Heaven-Mending could suppress her, which surprisingly resulted in the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy ending up last.

Fu Borong was still the director of academic affairs at the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy. Since he took office, the academy's ranking had always been second, vying for first. This sudden drop to last place was too significant a disparity for him to accept.

"Hahaha, I've been sleeping wonderfully," Che Yucheng chuckled loudly upon hearing this, unafraid of offending Fu Borong.

"This must be your esteemed disciple, then," Fu Borong rolled his eyes at him, then turned to Chen Mobai and extended his hand.

"Greetings, Teacher Fu. I am Chen Mobai, Teacher Che's student." Chen Mobai was always well-behaved in front of Golden Core cultivators. Seeing Fu Borong's gesture, he immediately extended both hands to shake.

"A formidable young man indeed," Fu Borong smiled at Chen Mobai. After saying this, he resumed his old acquaintances' talk with Che Yucheng.

"Long time no see, Senior Disciple Ling." Seeing the two esteemed figures chatting happily, Chen Mobai noticed Daoist Master Ling standing aside and took the initiative to greet him, completely forgetting how he had beaten him bloody back at Jumang Daoist Academy.

"Hello," Daoist Master Ling replied indifferently. After graduation, he had also chosen to take the civil service exam and, through the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy's arrangements, was now a civil servant responsible for auditing various R&D resources between the Immortal Sect and the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy. He accompanied Fu Borong this time because a long-running project between the Daoist Academy of Artifacts and the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy needed to be settled, requiring him, as an auditor, to witness it for the year-end accounts.

Seeing Daoist Master Ling's indifferent reaction, Chen Mobai decided not to press the issue. He smiled and stood aside, mimicking him, watching the two esteemed figures converse.

"We chatted so much I almost forgot about this," Fu Borong suddenly remembered the third-tier chip. With a void grasp of his right hand, a sealed transparent plastic box appeared in his palm amidst a slight distortion.

"Is this a Golden Core Domain?" As Chen Mobai pondered this, Che Yucheng had already taken the custom-made chip for the Faceless Puppet. He sent out his spiritual sense, inspected it carefully, and nodded with satisfaction.

"Consider it a favor for you, young man; this item is of superior quality," Che Yucheng said, then handed the item to Chen Mobai, who immediately thanked Fu Borong.

"The new generation surpasses the old. When I was his age, I had just passed the third-tier qualification exam," Fu Borong expressed his astonishment that Chen Mobai could complete the Faceless Puppet during his schooling. However, Chen Mobai knew his true capabilities and merely smiled modestly.

"It's just so-so; mainly, I taught him well," Che Yucheng, at this point, started taking credit, knowing that Chen Mobai had been receiving too much attention recently and feeling it necessary to share some of the burden with his disciple. After all, the higher one is praised, the harder they fall.

"You can boast all you want," Fu Borong didn't humor Che Yucheng, as Chen Mobai's talent had been one of the hottest topics in the Immortal Sect for the past two years.

After leaving the airport, the group of four quickly arrived at Mount Chicheng.

Although Chen Mobai was no longer the student council president, he was still perfectly capable of arranging things. After leading Fu Borong and Daoist Master Ling to their accommodation, he was about to leave.

"Little Chen, do you have any plans to come and study at our Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy for a few years?" Fu Borong suddenly called out to him and asked.

"Teacher Fu, I don't have plans for postgraduate studies yet."

"Oh, that's truly a pity. With your aptitude, if you were to further your studies at our Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy, it wouldn't be impossible for you to become one of the Three Palace Lords in the future."

Fu Borong's words made Chen Mobai's heart pound.

Since the founding of the Immortal Sect, the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy had produced the most Three Palace Lords. The current Lord of the Immortal Affairs Palace and Lord of the Righteous Law Palace were both graduates of the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy. Moreover, Patriarch Qian Xing, one of the Twin Sages of the Immortal Sect, also laid the foundation for his God Transformation stage after entering the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy for advanced studies through a test.

The Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy had always been the most popular academy in the Immortal Sect.

Chen Mobai's childhood dream was to enter the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy and eventually become the Lord of the Immortal Sect.

"Teacher Fu, I appreciate your kindness. I'll go back and give it serious thought," Chen Mobai considered, his tone softening slightly, no longer immediately refusing.

"I heard you cultivate the Pure Yang Scroll. Patriarch Yuanyang also graduated from our Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy, and we still preserve many things related to him, including a wisp of Pure Yang Qi. Nangong Xuanyu sought it for a long time, but the principal never agreed. If you come, I can mention it to the principal for you."

Fu Borong's words made Chen Mobai's pupils tremble slightly. Pure Yang Qi was true qi that could only be refined by a perfected Golden Core, containing the true essence of the Great Dao. Generally, being able to refine true qi indicated that one could begin attempting to form a Nascent Soul. For example, Zhou Shengqing of the Divine Wood Sect, with perfected Golden Core cultivation, was already refining Longevity True Qi. For a Pure Yang Scroll cultivator, having Patriarch Yuanyang's Pure Yang Qi as a reference would undoubtedly provide the correct direction for forming a Nascent Soul. No wonder even Nangong Xuanyu had made requests to the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy.

"For this matter, I need to discuss it with Teacher Che." Chen Mobai was undoubtedly tempted, but he also knew that such a thing wouldn't be easy to obtain. To avoid being misled, he still needed to ask Che Yucheng.

"Alright, let's exchange contact information. If you decide to come to our Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy, let me know in advance, and I'll help you arrange it." After adding Fu Borong as a contact, Chen Mobai immediately went to Che Yucheng's office and informed him of the matter.

"Fu Borong already mentioned this to me, but my stance remains the same: it's best for you to make decisions about your own life."

"What I can confirm for you is that the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy indeed possesses a wisp of Pure Yang Qi left by Patriarch Yuanyang."

"However, this wisp of Pure Yang Qi is in Revered Yuan Xu's possession. Whether it can be given to you isn't up to Fu Borong; Revered Yuan Xu must approve it."

"Consider it carefully yourself." After thanking Che Yucheng, Chen Mobai left Building One.

With something on his mind, he was a little distracted when he took the chip to the workshop at Tiangong Artifact Factory.

"What's wrong?" Chai Lun, the rough and ready fellow, also noticed and asked.

Chen Mobai thought for a moment, deciding it was best not to bring his personal matters here. He shook his head, suppressed his emotions, then unsealed the chip and began debugging and inspecting it.

Although Che Yucheng had already checked it, for safety's sake, it was better to complete this task while Fu Borong was still at the Daoist Academy of Artifacts.

Soon after, Zhou Tiangong also arrived. His Tiangong Artifact Factory collaborated extensively with the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy, frequently customizing chips for large-scale machinery, and thus possessed various equipment for testing chip data. He was a great help to Chen Mobai.

After confirming the chip was fine, they prepared to install it into the Faceless Puppet. This was the most critical step, requiring linkage with all neurons to control the entire puppet. However, they still needed to wait for Wenren Xuewei to bring the remaining bionic materials.

Chen Mobai took the opportunity to rest for a few days, using the time to thoroughly consider his magic treasure embryo and whether to go to the Heaven-Mending Daoist Academy.

"Brother, it's been a long time since we've hung out," Chen Mobai and Ming Yihua each downed a drink at an outdoor barbecue stall. However, after setting down his glass, Ming Yihua seemed a bit downcast.

"Sigh, I worked so hard with the junior disciples from the Artifact Refining Department to repair a set of third-tier ancient treasures. I originally thought this graduation design would secure me first place, but I never expected you to be such a freak."

Knowing that Chen Mobai had chosen the Faceless Puppet and had largely completed it, Ming Yihua couldn't help but feel dispirited.

"Brother, the principal isn't only refining a magic treasure embryo for one person. With your achievements, you'll likely be second only to me, so you're definitely getting one too."

Chen Mobai consoled him, and as he spoke, he revealed the true purpose of inviting Ming Yihua for drinks that day.

"Brother, if it were you, what kind of magic treasure embryo would you have the principal refine? I've been troubled by this recently, so I came to you for advice."

"Me? Definitely an artifact refining cauldron."

"Don't you already have a top-grade second-tier Profound Yang Cauldron?"

"I'm planning to have the principal modify my Profound Yang Cauldron as a base, transforming this cauldron into my magic treasure embryo. This way, I'll save effort on future refining, avoid wasting time on re-sacrificing and breaking it in, and also save on material costs."

After hearing Ming Yihua's plan, Chen Mobai couldn't help but give him a thumbs up. Only an artifact refiner like him could have thought of that.

Should he ask Revered Chen Xuan to transform the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror into his magic treasure embryo? It didn't seem entirely impossible. After all, because he used the Spirit Artifact Co-Cultivation Art, he was already bound to this third-tier artifact, making it a sort of alternative natal artifact. Without mastering the 'Can Tong Qi' (Treatise on the Coincidence of the Three), it might be better to directly turn the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror into his magic treasure, as it would need to be upgraded eventually anyway.

Chen Mobai shared this idea with Ming Yihua, but the latter shook his head upon hearing it.

"After you used the Spirit Artifact Co-Cultivation Art, the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror is already equivalent to your magic treasure embryo. Having the principal work on it again would be a waste."

"Brother, are you saying I could have two magic treasures?"

"Not exactly. Even Golden Core cultivators can't sustain two magic treasures. I just think that would be too much of a loss for you; you might as well not have taken first place."

When Ming Yihua put it that way, Chen Mobai realized he was right. He had worked so hard to assemble his team; he couldn't let it all be in vain.

Furthermore, while others might not be able to sustain it, he could. Although his merit points account was in the negative, his storage bag was full of spirit stones. Chen Mobai felt that sustaining two, three, or even four items would not be a problem.

"Old Chen, I remember the ancient Pure Yang Scroll contains several refining methods for supreme Pure Yang treasures. You could try that," Ming Yihua suddenly recalled as they were parting ways after drinks. He slapped his forehead and suggested this to Chen Mobai.

The Pure Yang Scroll currently cultivated in the Immortal Sect was the revised version by Patriarch Yuanyang, containing only cultivation methods and the Pure Yang Dharmakaya. The original ancient version of the Pure Yang Scroll, however, was extremely abstruse and difficult to understand, containing additional refining methods for complementary supreme Pure Yang treasures.

This ancient text was located within the Daoist Academy of Artifacts. Upon hearing this, Chen Mobai immediately went to the library to search for relevant materials. He initially thought it would be very precious, requiring Che Yucheng's written approval to obtain, but unexpectedly, he found it easily in a corner.