Chapter 288: Superior Magic Sword, Woeful Frost

Su Qiuning was stunned.

Pointing to the crude dagger in her hand, she asked doubtfully, "Senior Brother Ouyang, are you talking about this dagger?"

That couldn't be right!

Neither its appearance nor its quality was as good as the small silver dagger she had just chosen.

How could Jiang Fan be considered discerning for choosing this dagger?

Ouyang Jun smiled faintly and said, "Try infusing spiritual energy into it."

Su Qiuning was skeptical.

She circulated her spiritual energy, activating the dagger.

*Clang!*

The dagger vibrated violently, and layers of impurities peeled off its surface.

It revealed a smooth and lustrous, entirely crystal-colored dagger.

The spiritual glow it emitted even reached the level of a mid-grade magic artifact.

"Ah? This..." Su Qiuning looked at the transformed dagger in astonishment.

Both its style and quality were a notch higher than the previous silver dagger.

"This was the only mid-grade magic artifact in the basket," Ouyang Jun said, smiling as he observed them and speculated about their relationship. "This brother has sharp discernment, and he clearly cares for this junior sister."

Only then did Su Qiuning realize that the mysterious person beside her, who seemed overbearing, was actually looking out for her.

But this only made her more afraid.

Such unprovoked kindness—could he have some ulterior motive towards her?

Thinking of this, she was so frightened that she quickly returned the dagger to Jiang Fan: "I... I can't accept it, here, take it back."

Seeing her anxious demeanor, Jiang Fan decided to tease her, feigning indifference:

"No one can refuse something I give!"

"Take it!"

The unyielding tone made Su Qiuning shiver.

She quickly pulled her small hand back.

She held the dagger, wanting to discard it but not daring to, wanting to keep it but feeling like it was burning her hand.

She was as anxious as ants on a hot griddle.

Ouyang Jun looked at Jiang Fan with a hint of wariness.

This person was not only mysterious but also very overbearing.

His demeanor didn't seem like that of a disciple from the Nine Sects.

After a deep gaze at Jiang Fan, he cupped his hands with a smile and said:

"Brother, why don't you pick something as well?"

Jiang Fan glanced at the basket and said, "No interest."

He had countless items, big and small, on him.

There was simply no room for another useless low-grade magic artifact.

Ouyang Jun lost a bit of face.

His reputation was well-known; many people who desired a magic artifact personally crafted by him had to pull strings and find connections.

Yet, despite proactively trying to win over elites from various sects, he was met with a snub from this person.

However, as this person's background was unknown, he found it difficult to react.

He pretended nothing had happened and instructed someone to carry the basket, continuing to offer items to the remaining people.

Everyone except Jiang Fan received a small gift.

Only then did he say, "Everyone, time is pressing, so I won't delay you any further."

"Let's begin the exchange convention now."

"I'll start."

With that, he took out an iron box.

Even through the box, one could feel the biting chill emanating from within.

Ouyang Jun didn't keep them in suspense.

He opened the iron box.

A three-foot-long sword, entirely ice-crystal in color and seemingly carved from ice, appeared before everyone's eyes.

Intense cold mist billowed from its surface.

Its blade gleamed with a sharp edge.

Ouyang Jun grasped the sword, stroked its body, and revealed a look of satisfaction:

"This is one of the three proudest creations of my life, named 'Mourning Frost'."

Many of those present were swordsmen.

Gazing at the sword, they slightly furrowed their brows and voiced their doubts:

"Is this a sword, or an ice sculpture?"

Swords are meant to defeat enemies, not for display or decoration.

Ouyang Jun smiled faintly and said nothing more.

Holding the hilt, he casually swung it towards the wall beside him.

An astonishing cold current surged from the ice sword, instantly covering the entire wall with a layer of ice as thick as a finger!

If it struck a person, they would be instantly frozen into an ice sculpture!

*Gasp!*

Many martial artists stood up in surprise.

"Such power without even using spiritual energy?"

"This... what kind of sword is this?"

"Its properties are so terrifying?"

No one questioned its power anymore.

All of them showed expressions of astonishment.

Ouyang Jun placed the ice sword back into the iron box and said:

"How could something I, Ouyang Jun, consider a proud creation be a simple magic artifact?"

"This is a sword I forged using Ice Soul, which took me half a year to complete."

"Its grade is... a high-grade magic artifact."

At his words, a chorus of astonished gasps filled the hall.

High-grade magic artifacts were something only sect masters certainly possessed.

Even elders had to consider their status; elders lacking strong cultivation might not necessarily own a high-grade magic artifact.

Ouyang Jun had actually brought it to the exchange convention!

Jiang Fan's eyes sparkled.

He had already experienced the power of a high-grade magic artifact through Ming Youlian's zither.

Moreover, the quality of the sword before him surpassed that of the zither.

If he were to wield it with his swordsmanship, its power would directly increase by a level.

Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Ouyang Jun was highly gratified.

As an artifact forger, wasn't the greatest joy seeing one's creations appreciated by others?

Of course, he wouldn't sell it cheaply.

Closing the iron box, he cupped his hands and said, "For this Mourning Frost, I'd like to exchange it for some special forging materials."

This was within everyone's expectations.

Those who forged artifacts valued forging materials the most.

Many secretly pondered whether their forging materials would be enough to exchange for Mourning Frost.

It wasn't until Ouyang Jun stated the specific conditions that almost everyone simultaneously gave up the idea.

"I require one bone from a Demon Emperor, no less than three feet long."

As soon as these words were spoken, they sparked a wave of discussion.

"This must be a joke!"

"Are Demon Emperor bones something we are worthy of obtaining?"

"In the lands of the Nine Sects, the only known corpse of a Demon Emperor was that of a transformed tiger demon from the past."

"But after its death, its body was acquired by four powerful continent-level cultivators."

"Among our Nine Sects, only the Spirit Beast Sect Master received a bit of Demon Emperor essence blood because of his connection to an esteemed senior."

"No one has ever obtained a precious bone."

"As for exchanging for this bone, there's no hope in the lands of the Nine Sects."

Jiang Fan remained silent.

How could the young sect master of the Thousand Forging Sect not know whether Demon Emperor bones existed in the lands of the Nine Sects?

He deliberately proposed an impossible condition.

Either he had no sincerity in making an exchange, or he was asking an exorbitant price, waiting for others to bargain so he could hold the upper hand.

Sure enough!

After everyone had discussed for a while, he sighed and said, "Alas, this sword's value truly is worth a Demon Emperor bone."

"Selling it cheaply would be a great loss for me."

Hearing him concede slightly, everyone's thoughts became active again.

Sun Chaozong's eyes gleamed as he pulled out a long, stark white rib bone from a lengthy satchel behind him.

It exuded a lingering demonic aura.

"This is a bone from a late Core Formation stage demon beast that our sect once hunted."

"I wonder if it can be exchanged for Mourning Frost?"

Ouyang Jun was immediately tempted, but after a careful examination, he said regretfully:

"This bone is at least a hundred years old; its interior has already weathered and it's not suitable for forging high-quality magic artifacts."

Jiang Fan's heart stirred slightly.

It seemed Ouyang Jun's true objective was a bone from a late Core Formation stage demon beast.

Although the Silver-winged Thunder Roc was at the fifth level of Core Formation, classifying it as a mid-Core Formation stage demon beast, the claw Jiang Fan had severed was its most valuable part.

In terms of hardness, it was completely comparable to the bones of late Core Formation stage demon beasts.

It should satisfy Ouyang Jun.

"Brother, do you perhaps have a bone from a late Core Formation stage demon beast?"

Ouyang Jun suddenly looked at Jiang Fan, his eyes filled with a trace of anticipation.

Among everyone present, apart from Sun Chaozong, this mysterious person was the most likely to possess something suitable for exchange.