Chapter 73

An old man and a young man continued to walk deeper into the Twilight Forest.

Next, Fang Liuxian began to talk more.

He would occasionally stop Jiang Feng, pointing out a certain Ming beast or Ming plant to him.

His knowledge in this area was extremely profound, and he knew their names, levels, attributes, and characteristics like the back of his hand. The most crucial part was the functions of certain parts of their bodies.

Jiang Feng recalled the words he had heard on the training ground at the county office and gradually understood something.

He was deep in thought when the ground suddenly began to tremble. Jiang Feng looked up sharply, and Fang Liuxian had already shouted, "Cracked Horn Rhino! A Level 3 Ming beast of the First Rank!"

Sure enough, a gray rhinoceros soon charged over. It had a forked horn on its nose, which was green.

In front of the Cracked Horn Rhino, a vine was fleeing. It looked quite peculiar, with a large yellow flower blooming on its top, and two leaves waving like hands. Its roots moved like legs, and its speed was surprisingly fast.

Fang Liuxian said, "Stinky Flower, it emits a foul odor that enrages the Cracked Horn Rhino. The Ming beast has lost its reason, so be careful!"

As he spoke, he took out a stick, and the top of the stick suddenly opened into a small umbrella. The umbrella spun, lifting him into the air.

He swayed and flew to a tree branch, calling down, "When the Cracked Horn Rhino is in a berserk state, it will rise to Level 5 of the First Rank, so be careful!"

His posture clearly indicated that he was ready to watch the show!

In a moment, the Cracked Horn Rhino had caught up to the Stinky Flower and crushed it to pieces. The stench spread out, and Jiang Feng caught a whiff of it, feeling a sudden surge of agitation deep in his heart. His eyes met the Cracked Horn Rhino's, and immediately, it was as if they had a mortal grudge, and they charged at each other fiercely!

Fang Liuxian sat on a tree branch, looking down and saying leisurely, "After all, he is still young, with a fiery temper..."

Before Jiang Feng could even touch the Cracked Horn Rhino, the golden blood qi in his blood suddenly started to flow rapidly, as if it had sensed something. The stench that had entered his blood from the air was quickly caught and instantly eliminated.

Jiang Feng's mind cleared, and when he regained his composure, he was already facing the Cracked Horn Rhino's heavy breathing and the cold, green horn!

At the critical moment, Jiang Feng reached out and lightly pressed the side of the horn.

The momentum of the rhino's charge combined with his own strength, lifting his body lightly and propelling him over the Cracked Horn Rhino.

The Cracked Horn Rhino overshot, roaring madly. Suddenly, a wrist-thick branch grew rapidly and blocked Jiang Feng's path!

Jiang Feng, as if he had expected it, flicked his finger. A sharp whistle sounded in the air, and a blade with electric sparks shot towards the branch, cutting it in half. Jiang Feng reached the branch, grabbed it, and gave it a light shake!

Golden Ming force slid over, and the bark fell off, revealing the white branch. Jiang Feng flipped in mid-air and met the Cracked Horn Rhino, which was charging back, with the branch thrust forward!

He chose the perfect moment to flip and thrust. The Cracked Horn Rhino charged over, and its eyes were impaled on the white branch. The branch, strengthened by Ming force, pierced straight through the Cracked Horn Rhino's brain.

Jiang Feng threw the other end of the branch into the ground, and the Cracked Horn Rhino lowered its head in submission, burying it in the ground, motionless.

The surroundings returned to calm, and Fang Liuxian lightly jumped down from the tree, praising generously, "Beautiful!"

Jiang Feng said, "After all, it's just a Level 3 Ming beast of the First Rank."

Fang Liuxian reminded him, "It was enraged by the Stinky Flower and should have been at Level 5 of the First Rank."

Jiang Feng said, "There are gains and losses. After becoming berserk, its level increased, but its intelligence decreased. One gain and one loss, it actually became weaker."

Fang Liuxian said in surprise, "That's a good new perspective."

Jiang Feng said matter-of-factly, "That's the truth. If it were in a normal state, a Level 1 Wood-type Ming beast in the forest would have much better control over the environment."

Fang Liuxian asked thoughtfully, "When the Cracked Horn Rhino controlled the branch to block your path, it seemed like you were prepared?"

Jiang Feng nodded, "Indeed, I was somewhat prepared. The Cracked Horn Rhino's horn is green, which means it's a Wood-type Ming beast, and its power must be related to trees."

Fang Liuxian waited for him to continue, but he stopped there. The old man asked with a strange expression, "Just that?"

Jiang Feng said, "That's all I could determine at the time."

"Everything else was your on-the-spot response?"

"Yes."

"… I can't tell…"

At the time, Jiang Feng's movements were smooth and composed, and it was hard to see that he was responding to the situation on the spot!

Fang Liuxian thought for a moment and then asked, "Do you remember the second round of the human trials yesterday?"

Jiang Feng nodded, sensing what he was about to ask.

Fang Liuxian indeed asked, "How did you know the opponent would dodge to the right?"

Jiang Feng explained, "When he entered the arena, although he was restricted from moving, his eyes kept drifting to the right, and he made this gesture." He demonstrated, a very subtle movement, almost just a muscle reflex, which ordinary people would never notice.

"Moreover, this person had an unsteady gaze, lacking a sense of righteousness, and was someone who would only dodge in a crisis. So I judged that he would dodge first, and to the right."

Fang Liuxian continued, "If you had judged incorrectly, wouldn't it have been very dangerous?"

Jiang Feng smiled slightly and said, "The facts prove that I was right."

Indeed, these were all afterthoughts, and the facts had already proven Jiang Feng's correctness.

Fang Liuxian thought for a moment and then asked, "During the third round, when you fought Teng Zhi, did you also predict his actions?"

Jiang Feng said, "All actions have signs before they are executed. I'm not yet proficient, so I can only occasionally make judgments."

Fang Liuxian was silent for a long time, then took a deep breath and looked at Jiang Feng with a new perspective.

In fact, before Jiang Feng explained, Fang Liuxian had already had some speculations. But hearing it from his mouth was still extremely shocking.

This was just a boy under sixteen!

If his theory developed, he could predict others' actions in battle, always being one step ahead and taking the initiative!

Moreover, this theory sounded simple but was actually extremely difficult to implement.

The battle process is always changing rapidly. How could you ensure that you could observe so much information and make judgments based on it in an instant?

To be honest, the prediction in the second round against Tang Yonghuai was easier, as everyone was initially stationary, leaving ample time for observation.

But the third round was different. In the third round, Jiang Feng indeed predicted successfully during the battle. Even if, as he said, he was not yet proficient and could only occasionally succeed, it was still an astonishing result!

Jiang Feng looked up, his gaze clear, "Master Fang, is this why you came to find me?" He smiled slightly, a bit embarrassed, and asked, "What is a Treasure Artisan? Can I learn it?"

Fang Liuxian was silent again for a long time, then took a deep breath and sighed, "If you can't learn it, no one in this world can!"

...

...

A Treasure Artisan, as the name suggests, is a craftsman who makes treasure artifacts. Making treasure artifacts requires Ming force, so a Treasure Artisan must be a martial cultivator.

However, making treasure artifacts requires special talent, which only a few martial cultivators possess. In the entire Mingxin world, Treasure Artisans are extremely rare. It is said that among a thousand martial cultivators, there might be only one Treasure Artisan.

Therefore, Treasure Artisans are truly rare professions, with a high status and are highly respected in most places.

Jiang Feng had seen little about Treasure Artisans in books, but there were still some records.

Fang Liuxian had two golden diagonal lines embroidered on his shoulder, indicating that he was a Second Line Treasure Artisan.

Generally, Treasure Artisans are divided into five levels, from First Line to Fifth Line, with the levels increasing from low to high.

Treasure Artisans of different levels can make treasure artifacts of different levels. The highest-level Fifth Line Treasure Artisans currently number only four in the continent. Every treasure artifact they create is accompanied by a special launch event, and all the strong from the Nine Heavens and the Profound Extremes will flock to it, treating it as a major event.

Jiang Feng asked, "What kind of talent does a Treasure Artisan need?"

Not asking about the benefits first, but about the abilities, Jiang Feng's caution pleased Fang Liuxian. He stroked his beard and said, "First, a Treasure Artisan needs a sufficiently sensitive perception of Ming force. The first test can show that your perception range of Ming force is quite sufficient, but I don't know how sensitive it is."

He thought for a moment, took out a small booklet, and handed it to Jiang Feng, saying, "Flip it open and tell me what patterns are on each page."

This small booklet was only palm-sized, with ten pages, but it was not too thin. The pages were made of an unknown material, hard and thick, with no patterns visible.

As soon as Jiang Feng touched it, he felt a faint fluctuation of Ming force. He understood and flipped a page, lightly brushing his finger over the card, and a thin golden light seeped into the surface of the card.

After a moment, he said without looking up, "A butterfly."

He didn't ask if it was correct, flipped to the second page, and after a moment, said, "A door, with a small path behind it."

The third page, "A flower, it's... an iris?"

The fourth page, "A three-tailed shrimp."

...

Page after page, the first few were a bit slower, but the further he went, the faster his movements became, clearly having found the knack. In no time, he had finished the entire booklet and recited all ten patterns of Ming force on the pages!

He looked up at Fang Liuxian and asked, "This test is pretty simple..."

As he looked up, he noticed that Fang Liuxian was staring at him, shocked and overjoyed!

The old man muttered, "Such... such sensitivity to Ming force, it's a treasure sent by heaven!"

He grabbed Jiang Feng, saying repeatedly, "You must become a Treasure Artisan. If you back out, I won't let it go!"