Chapter 162: Li Tianzheng

Two years passed quickly, as spring turned to autumn.

The artifact refining room in the Spirit Weapon Pavilion.

Wang Changsheng sat cross-legged on a green cushion. In front of him, a gleaming golden short sword, shimmering with spiritual light, floated in the air. He withdrew his incantation, and with a wave of his hand, the golden short sword flew into his grasp. He held the hilt and gently swung it. The blade sliced quickly through the air, emitting a faint swishing sound.

It was the Golden Sun Sword, a low-grade magical artifact.

Over the past year, Wang Changsheng had refined numerous low-grade magical artifacts, delivering one every three months. Additionally, he had also crafted two second-tier low-grade puppet beasts. Naturally, he experienced many failures initially, even losing spirit stones in the process. However, as he refined more artifacts, his skill gradually improved, and his profits steadily increased.

Despite cultivating with the Black Yin Cold Water for two years, he remained at the third level of Foundation Establishment. Nevertheless, his cultivation base showed signs of loosening, indicating he was not far from reaching the fourth level. During this year, he contacted his family once and learned that Wang Mingjiang had successfully established his foundation, while Wang Mingzhong had failed in his attempt. The four major sects of Great Song had opened their gates to accept new disciples, recruiting a considerable number. The Wang family sent representatives to participate in the Immortal Ascent Assembly, but it was merely a formality; none of their clan members were accepted into the four major sects of Great Song.

Wang Changsheng put away the Golden Sun Sword and left the artifact refining room.

Wang Shuchong and Wang Qingze were drinking and chatting. Wang Qingze had attempted to read the artifact refining insights Wang Changsheng had given him but couldn't comprehend them. Wang Changsheng had repeatedly tried to explain artifact refining knowledge to him, but it didn't sink in. However, Wang Qingze excelled at interpersonal relations. Aside from Wang Ruyan, he had become quite close with other members of the Wang clan and they all got along very well. Wang Changsheng mused that he should assign Wang Qingze to handle all external communications in the future.

“Ninth Uncle, are you heading back?” Upon seeing Wang Changsheng, Wang Qingze stood up.

“No, you two carry on. I need to speak with Immortal Maiden Wang.”

Upon reaching the third floor, Wang Changsheng found Wang Ruyan and Song Yihang engaged in conversation over tea. Seeing Song Yihang, Wang Changsheng's brows furrowed slightly. For the past two years, Song Yihang had frequently visited the Spirit Weapon Pavilion to speak with Wang Ruyan. It was obvious to anyone that Song Yihang harbored feelings for her. Fortunately, Wang Ruyan's demeanor towards Song Yihang remained generally neutral, and she showed no signs of intimacy.

Upon seeing Wang Changsheng, a flicker of delight passed through Wang Ruyan's beautiful eyes. She then said to Song Yihang, “Fellow Daoist Song, I have matters to attend to. Let’s chat again another time.” Hearing this, Song Yihang felt a pang of disappointment but smiled and agreed. He looked at Wang Changsheng, frowned slightly, then offered a polite nod and smile before heading downstairs.

“Immortal Maiden Wang, this is the Golden Sun Sword, a low-grade magical artifact I just finished refining.”

Wang Changsheng took out the Golden Sun Sword and handed it to Wang Ruyan. Wang Ruyan examined it carefully, then gripped the hilt with her right hand and lightly swung it a few times. A crisp, sharp whistling sound immediately filled the air. Her face lit up with delight as she praised, “What a fine sword! It would be even better if it could be refined into a mid-grade magical artifact.”

Wang Changsheng smiled faintly. “That’s exactly what I was about to tell you! I’m preparing to refine a mid-grade magical artifact. I’ll need second-tier mid-grade materials and the corresponding refining blueprints.”

“No problem. I’ll send someone to acquire them shortly.”

“Immortal Maiden Wang, today is my birthday. I’d like to invite everyone for a casual meal. Would you be available?”

Wang Ruyan pondered for a moment, then smiled and accepted the invitation. Wang Changsheng beamed with delight. “Excellent! Please inform the others that we’ll meet at the Hundred Fragrance Restaurant at *xushi*.”

“Alright, I’ll see you at the Hundred Fragrance Restaurant.”

Wang Changsheng then went downstairs and left with Wang Qingze.

“Ninth Uncle, what good news is there? You’re smiling so happily. Tell me, so I can share in your joy.”

“Nothing special, it’s just my birthday today. I’ve invited everyone from the shop to dine at the Hundred Fragrance Restaurant, and Sixth Uncle and the others will be joining too.”

In a certain secret chamber, Li Tianzheng sat cross-legged on a cushion, his eyes slightly closed. His upper body was bare, enveloped in a layer of crimson spiritual light. Blood-red spiritual markings adorned his arms and face, and faintly visible on his chest was a lifelike blood-red wolf's head.

A moment later, the blood-red wolf's head on his chest seemed to come alive, opening its gaping maw and its eyes darting about. The crimson spiritual markings across Li Tianzheng’s body flared brightly.

“Roar!”

The blood-red wolf let out an eerie howl, and a colossal wolf materialized from Li Tianzheng's chest. This demonic beast was approximately ten feet long and five feet tall, covered in blood-red fur, with crimson eyes and golden pupils. Its gaping maw revealed a row of sharp fangs, exuding an intimidating aura.

As soon as the blood-red giant wolf left his body, Li Tianzheng's aura withered, and his complexion turned pale. Li Tianzheng produced a red porcelain bottle. He struck it with an incantation, and a large quantity of crimson liquid flew out. The blood-red giant wolf opened its mouth and spewed a crimson aura, enveloping the liquid and drawing it back into its maw. The crimson spiritual markings on Li Tianzheng's body intensified, and the blood-red giant wolf’s fur grew even more vibrant.

“Howl!”

The blood-red giant wolf began to race around the secret chamber. A profusion of crimson spiritual markings appeared on Li Tianzheng’s body, and his face contorted in a grimace, as if he were enduring immense pain. A short while later, the blood-red giant wolf transformed into a dazzling crimson light, returning to Li Tianzheng’s chest and reverting to the lifelike blood-red wolf’s head.

As soon as the blood-red giant wolf re-entered his body, Li Tianzheng’s aura significantly strengthened, reaching the fourth level of Foundation Establishment. He withdrew his incantation, and the crimson spiritual markings on his body, along with the blood-red wolf's head, vanished. He picked up the red porcelain bottle and shook it, his brow furrowing slightly. He muttered to himself, “The essence blood is depleted. I’ll need to find more blood nourishment.”

Outsiders would never have suspected that Li Tianzheng was, in fact, a demonic cultivator. He had originally been a Qi Refining stage disciple of White Cloud Monastery. By chance, he had slain a demonic cultivator and acquired a blood cultivation technique called the *Blood Wolf Art* from him. The *Blood Wolf Art* was a Profound-grade, second-tier cultivation technique that allowed cultivation from the first level of Qi Refining all the way to the ninth level of Foundation Establishment. It was extremely malevolent, requiring the consumption of other cultivators’ essence blood for practice, but it offered a significantly faster cultivation speed.

Having grown up in White Cloud Monastery, Li Tianzheng was well-versed in distinguishing right from wrong and naturally wouldn’t have cultivated such a technique. However, he coveted a secret art that came with it and thus did not hand the cultivation technique over to his sect. His aptitude was mediocre, so he had to diligently undertake tasks to accumulate contribution points. In the year he turned thirty, he finally gathered enough points to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill. Unfortunately, he failed to establish his foundation. His former fellow disciples, meanwhile, had all successfully established theirs, and when he met them, he was compelled to address them as ‘Martial Uncle’ or ‘Martial Senior,’ which left a bitter taste in his mouth. To make matters worse, a fellow disciple he had previously offended had also established his foundation. This individual repeatedly used his new position to make things difficult for Li Tianzheng, leaving him in a wretched state.

After much internal struggle, he finally chose to cultivate the *Blood Wolf Art*. He traveled to a remote area and consecutively slew over fifty rogue cultivators at the Qi Refining stage. Using their essence blood to practice the *Blood Wolf Art*, he successfully established his foundation in less than five years, finally feeling a sense of vindication. Naturally, he falsely claimed that he had acquired Earth Fiend Qi and successfully established his foundation by using it.