Chapter 22: Essentials of Refining Instruments

"Brother has advanced to Qi Refining Level Seven?" Wang Changsheng was a little surprised, a hint of envy appearing on his face.

There are nine levels of Qi Refining. All members of the Wang family's "Chang" generation are below Qi Refining Level Seven; those with poor aptitude remain at Qi Refining Level Two.

Wang Changfeng is the eldest son of Wang Changsheng's uncle, Wang Mingzhi. He is twenty-five this year, and his Fire Spirit Root sensitivity has reached seventy-five, indicating better aptitude than even Wang Mingzhong. He is considered the foremost among the younger generation of the Wang family, which is also the main reason Wang Mingzhong is out working. After all, Wang Changfeng is still young, and his chances of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage are higher.

Among cultivators, one spiritual root often holds an advantage. Sensitivity refers to a cultivator's ability to perceive the strength of a certain elemental spiritual energy. The spiritual root with the highest sensitivity is called the primary spiritual root. Generally, cultivators choose cultivation methods corresponding to the attribute of their primary spiritual root. The higher the primary spiritual root's sensitivity, the more spiritual energy of that attribute can be absorbed, leading to faster cultivation. Regardless of how many types of spiritual roots a cultivator possesses, the sum of all their spiritual root sensitivities is always one hundred.

Wang Changsheng's Water Spirit Root sensitivity is only sixty, which is considered good among the "Chang" generation, but still far inferior to Wang Changfeng's.

Due to his excellent aptitude, Wang Changfeng is not required to work; he can focus solely on cultivation at home. Even with the family currently operating at a deficit, the resources provided to Wang Changfeng have not only not decreased but have actually increased.

Wang Yaozong is advanced in years, and the Wang family urgently needs a new Foundation Establishment cultivator. Without a Foundation Establishment cultivator guarding them, the Wang family would be like a child holding gold in the marketplace, attracting countless covetous eyes.

If Wang Changfeng successfully reaches the Foundation Establishment stage, he can ensure the Wang family's security for two hundred years.

No matter how difficult the family's circumstances become, Wang Changfeng's cultivation resources must not be reduced. This is a consensus among Wang Mingyuan and the clan elders.

"Indeed! Heaven rewards diligence. Although your aptitude, Sheng'er, is not as good as Changfeng's, you must work even harder than him. Once your term is up, I'll have your father transfer you back to Qinglian Mountain. You've endured four years of hardship in Ping'an County; it's time for you to return to Qinglian Mountain to cultivate. Furthermore, given your great contribution this time, discovering a Profound Gold ore vein, your transfer back to Qinglian Mountain would be perfectly justifiable, and even your father wouldn't object."

"Mother, as long as I'm contributing to the family, it doesn't matter where I work. Let's not make things difficult for father."

"What's difficult about that? Your father is the patriarch; he needs to be fair. How can he assign the hard work to his own son and push him aside when there are good opportunities? By the way, have you looked at the 'Artificing Compendium' I gave you?"

Wang Changsheng felt a little guilty and stammered, "I've looked at some of it, but the content is quite complex; I don't understand it."

Three years ago, when Wang Changsheng left Qinglian Mountain, Liu Qing'er gifted him an Artificing Compendium and urged him to memorize its contents.

The Artificing Compendium is a book on artifact crafting, introducing hundreds of first-tier crafting materials and basic artificing knowledge.

Wang Changsheng initially read it for a while, but over time, he simply left the book in his storage bag and never looked at it again.

He struggled even to maintain his own cultivation, wishing he could split a single Spirit Stone in two to spend it. How could he have spare Spirit Stones to learn artificing?

When the Wang family was first established, they had a first-tier superior artificer who could forge over ten types of first-tier spiritual artifacts. However, the family later fell into decline and could no longer afford to train artificers.

It wasn't that Wang Mingyuan hadn't considered training artificers, but the cost involved was too great. First-tier crafting materials weren't excessively expensive, yet training an artificer required hundreds, even thousands, of practice sessions. If one were unlucky, even spending thousands of Spirit Stones wouldn't guarantee an apprentice could forge a low-grade spiritual artifact.

This also reflects the reality of survival for minor cultivation families. The four most sought-after professions in the cultivation world are talisman makers, artificers, alchemists, and formation masters. It's considered good if a child from a minor cultivation family can master just one of these. Most minor cultivation families rely on selling spirit grains and raw materials to barely sustain their operations.

Besides the Wang family, Changping County also has two other minor cultivation families: the Huang and the Chen. The most powerful among them, the Chen family, opened a Talisman Hall specializing in selling first-tier talismans. Their business is quite prosperous, making the Wang and Huang families extremely envious.

Ten years ago, the Huang family discovered a small Profound Iron ore vein, and their situation improved somewhat. However, they also failed to train an artificer, though the exact reasons are unknown to outsiders.

The Chen, Huang, and Wang families jointly established a small market town. The market includes a weapons shop, but the spiritual artifacts sold there are all procured from larger markets, allowing them to earn a small profit margin. The prices aren't high, but the quality is moderate.

All three families recognized the void in the weapons industry and wished to monopolize this lucrative sector. However, currently, the financially stronger Chen family has the highest probability of training an artificer.

The Wang family also saw this business opportunity, but regrettably, they lacked the resources. Nevertheless, Liu Qing'er had always kept this matter in mind, believing that the Wang family would eventually train its own artificers. Therefore, ever since Wang Changsheng began learning cultivation knowledge in the Lecture Hall, Liu Qing'er purposefully instilled artificing knowledge in him, hoping he would become an artificer in the future and receive strong family support.

Wang Changsheng struggled just to maintain his own cultivation; how could he have the mental energy or financial resources to learn the art of artificing?

Upon hearing Wang Changsheng's reply, Liu Qing'er's eyebrows subtly raised, and she was about to scold him. However, realizing her son had spent three years in the mortal world, lacking proper clothing and food, she swallowed her words.

"These next few days, you must thoroughly read the Artificing Compendium. I want you to know it by heart. If there's anything you don't understand, I'll explain it to you. Do you hear me clearly?" Liu Qing'er instructed earnestly.

"Your son understands," Wang Changsheng honestly replied.

Soon after, the meal was ready.

A steaming bowl of noodles with a layer of oil floating on the soup, two large steamed buns, and a dish of stir-fried purple bamboo shoots with meat. The aroma was enticing and truly inviting.

Wang Changsheng took a light sniff, a look of intoxication appearing on his face, and he smiled, "It smells so good! It's been so long since I've had mother's cooking."

"As long as you like it, I'll make it for you every day. Hurry and eat! The noodles won't taste as good if they get cold," Liu Qing'er said, her face beaming with joy at her son's compliment.

"This is too much; I can't eat it all. I'm not as big an eater as a Mountain-Pushing Beast. Mother, you should eat too!"

Liu Qing'er shook her head, her eyes filled with doting affection, and said, "I've eaten already, I'm not hungry. You eat."

At Wang Changsheng's insistence, Liu Qing'er brought a small bowl and scooped some noodles into it, refusing any more.

"It's so delicious! Mother's... cooking is the best," Wang Changsheng mumbled between mouthfuls of noodles.

Watching Wang Changsheng eat heartily, a look of happiness appeared on Liu Qing'er's face.

Wang Changsheng thoroughly enjoyed this meal, and Liu Qing'er was equally happy.

After eating his fill, Wang Changsheng returned to his dwelling, bathed, changed into the clothes his mother made, and took out a blue booklet with the large characters "Artificing Compendium" on its cover.