Chapter 9

When Yuan Dian took out all the items that met Fire Lord's requirements, a great sense of injustice welled up in Fire Lord's heart. He howled and cursed a few times, and finally, almost sobbing, he muttered:

"Ziyun, Ziyun, if it's like this, when will Fire Lord be able to recover and reshape his body! When will I be able to return home and meet you! Ziyun... Hong Ling old man, you've really done me in, you... "

Hearing Fire Lord constantly mention 'Ziyun' and 'Hong Ling old man,' and seeing the utterly grief-stricken look on Fire Lord's face, Yuan Dian felt a bit of sympathy and thought to himself: "It seems that Fire Lord and the Ziyun he mentioned really have deep feelings for each other. Perhaps Hong Ling old man is Fire Lord's future father-in-law, who doesn't quite approve of him."

Thinking this, when Fire Lord's howling voice began to diminish, Yuan Dian gently advised: "Fire Lord, if Hong Ling old man doesn't allow his daughter to be with you, you can try to persuade him. As long as you and Senior Ziyun have deep feelings for each other, he can't do anything to you. If it really doesn't work, you can always elope with Senior Ziyun."

Just as Yuan Dian finished speaking, Fire Lord was momentarily stunned, then he reacted and flew into a rage, shouting at Yuan Dian so loudly that it made his ears ring:

"What, what, damn brat, what did you say? I'll tell you today, that Hong Ling old man has nothing to do with Ziyun. They are completely different matters. Damn, don't spout nonsense, you... However, what you said does make some sense. As long as I and Ziyun have deep feelings for each other, what's there to fear?"

"Alright, alright, why am I wasting time talking about these irrelevant things with you? I should be thinking about how to quickly heal my injuries and return home."

After regaining his composure, Fire Lord looked at the two low-grade first-tier spirit weapons and three ordinary refining materials on the table, and finally muttered: "A tiger in the plains is bullied by dogs, a plucked phoenix is worse than a chicken! Forget it, forget it, even a mosquito's nail is meat; something is better than nothing."

As he spoke, the three refining materials and the small black shield disappeared, leaving only the low-grade first-tier spirit sword. Seeing this, Yuan Dian said with a pained heart: "Fire... Fire Lord, that black iron shield is a treasure for my battles. Can you return it to me? Without it, my combat ability will be greatly reduced."

Yuan Dian was indeed heartbroken. The Green Light Sword and the black iron shield were his main tools for cultivation and battles. They had been perfectly coordinated in both offense and defense. Now, without the black iron shield, he would suffer significant losses in future battles.

"Phew, phew, phew, such a shoddy thing to call a treasure? It's a disgrace to Fire Lord's character and reputation as a Master of Artifacts. It seems Fire Lord needs to broaden your horizons today."

After mocking Yuan Dian, Fire Lord continued: "Brat, watch carefully. With one breath, Fire Lord can transform this shoddy low-grade first-tier spirit weapon."

As he spoke, a red glow suddenly appeared in the air and then entered the Green Light Sword on the table. The red glow circled the sword once, and the Green Light Sword immediately transformed from a low-grade first-tier spirit weapon to a high-grade first-tier spirit weapon, shining with a brilliant green light, its quality improved by a thousandfold.

Seeing this, Yuan Dian's eyes widened instantly, and he exclaimed in shock: "Fire Lord, you are truly a master, you... how did you do it?"

Hearing Yuan Dian's heartfelt praise, Fire Lord smiled with disdain and thought about striking a pose on the Master of Artifacts Cauldron, but he quickly coughed twice, his face turning even more ruddy, and he said with a carefree tone: "Cough, cough, this is nothing! It's just that Fire Lord is currently severely injured. If Fire Lord were at full strength, even a spittle transformed into a spirit weapon would be a thousand times better than this. It seems Fire Lord needs to educate you about the basics of artifact refinement."

"Brat, tell me your understanding of artifact refinement. Let Fire Lord hear it and see what kind of spirit treasures the cultivators in this almost negligible place use."

As he spoke, a hint of pride appeared on Fire Lord's ruddy face. After a moment of consideration, Yuan Dian replied:

"My cultivation is limited, but I have heard from fellow cultivators and my grandfather about the weapons of cultivators. In our world, one's own cultivation is the foundation, but weapons are the best companions to assist cultivators."

"Cultivator weapons are standardized by the process of tempering and gathering spirit energy. According to legend, there are one to nine temperings. The first three temperings are spirit weapons, and those who can refine them are called spirit weapon masters; the middle three temperings are treasure weapons, and those who can refine them are called treasure weapon masters; the last three temperings are legendary immortal weapons, and the immortal weapon masters, which only exist in legends."

"These levels of weapons, based on their quality, are further divided into low, middle, high, and supreme grades. Since I entered the cultivation world, I once had the chance to witness a competition between two Core Formation seniors, and I was fortunate enough to see a low-grade third-tempering spirit weapon."

After Yuan Dian finished speaking, he let out a long breath. Fortunately, his grandfather had told him some of these basic cultivation world knowledge, or he wouldn't have been able to answer today.

Yuan Dian also knew that not only artifacts, but also elixirs, spirit talismans, and array formations, had been explained to him by his grandfather. Artifacts are standardized by the process of tempering and gathering spirit energy, with one to nine temperings, divided into spirit weapons, treasure weapons, and legendary immortal weapons.

Elixirs are standardized by the process of gathering spirit energy in the elixir furnace, with one to nine transformations. The first three transformations are spirit elixirs, the middle three transformations are treasure elixirs, and the last three transformations are immortal elixirs, which only exist in legends. Correspondingly, there are spirit elixir masters, treasure elixir masters, and legendary immortal elixir masters, with each transformation having four grades.

Spirit talismans are standardized by the number of strokes used in their creation, with one to nine strokes. Array formations are standardized by the number of flags used to set up the array, with one to nine flags. Of course, in the cultivation world, there are other items used by cultivators, but most of them follow this grading system.

Among artifacts, elixirs, spirit talismans, array formations, and other auxiliary items for cultivators, artifacts and elixirs are the main ones, while spirit talismans and array formations are also widely used. The others are less involved and have not formed a vast system.

These are the established common knowledge in the cultivation world that Yuan Dian already knew. However, after hearing his explanation, Fire Lord burst into a loud, disdainful laugh:

"Ha ha... short-sighted, truly short-sighted! Brat, today Fire Lord won't waste time with you, but when it comes to the artifacts used by cultivators, Fire Lord must tell you that the cultivator's own cultivation is the foundation, but artifacts are the most useful auxiliary tools for cultivators, surpassing elixirs, spirit talismans, array formations, and other treasures. Remember, there is no second, no second."

"Artifact refinement is standardized by the process of tempering and gathering spirit energy, and indeed, there are one to nine temperings, roughly similar to what you said. However, this is not the end. Similarly, elixirs, spirit talismans, and array formations are not the end. They have higher levels, and the path of artifact refinement is even more profound. In our world, there are even higher levels beyond everything, but these are far beyond your current level. Talking about them now is just nonsense. If you reach that level one day, I will tell you then."

"Now, I must tell you that I am the founder of the path of artifact refinement. In heaven and earth, as long as it is related to artifacts, any item used by cultivators must call me 'ancestor.' I..."

As he spoke, Fire Lord stood on the Master of Artifacts Cauldron, full of grandeur. However, when he saw Yuan Dian looking somewhat stunned, his interest waned, and he returned to his previous state of grandeur, then said with some regret: "Damn, why am I telling these things to a young brat like you? I'll tell you when you reach that level."

"Brat, you won't understand much of what I'm saying now. In short, Fire Lord can tell you that I am the founder of the path of artifact refinement. The four-legged, eight-eared square cauldron with cracks is called the Master of Artifacts Cauldron, but it has suffered severe damage, and its power is only a fraction of what it once was. It needs a large amount of artifacts and refining materials to recover. Its recovery is also my recovery."

"The faster I recover, the more I can help you. Spirit weapons are just toys, treasure weapons are a piece of cake. When your cultivation reaches the appropriate level and I am fully recovered, even immortal weapons will not be a problem."

"Moreover, Fire Lord will not only guide your cultivation, making your path to enlightenment possible, but also make you a master of the path of artifact refinement. Fire Lord is helping you with only one requirement: to obtain more artifacts and refining materials as soon as possible, so that I can recover quickly, recondense my true body, and return home to meet my beloved. Do you understand?"

Hearing Fire Lord's words, Yuan Dian was completely stunned.