Chapter 431 - 396: Yuding Peak, Part 2
Chapter 431: Chapter 396: Yuding Peak, Part 2
The two groups argued more and more fiercely, but fortunately, it was all talk. No one seemed to have any intention of starting a fight.
Zhao Lin shook his head, walked over to an Artifact Refining Apprentice who was watching the commotion, and cupped his fist. "Fellow Daoist, may I ask where Master Zhengtu’s Artifact Refining chamber is?"
There were over a dozen Artifact Refiners on Yuding Peak, but Zhengtu was the only one who could be called a master. His fees, however, were also the most expensive.
A regular Artifact Refiner charged anywhere from ten to fifty contribution points to forge a magical artifact, but Zhengtu’s starting price was one hundred, not including the cost of materials.
Zhao Lin felt his Ice Blade Skill was nearing perfection. Using an ordinary magical artifact would be worse than using none at all, so he decided he might as well seek out the best Artifact Refiner.
"You’re looking for Master Zheng?"
The apprentice gave Zhao Lin a surprised look, then pointed to the east. "Go into the tunnel on the right. It’s the third and largest Artifact Refining chamber from the left."
Zhao Lin cupped his fist in thanks and walked to the end of the plaza, where he indeed saw two tunnels, one on the left and one on the right.
The tunnels delved deep into the mountain’s interior. They were wide and long, with stone chambers carved out on both sides.
As Zhao Lin stepped into the tunnel, he was immediately hit by a blast of hot air.
The character "Zheng" was carved on the door of the third stone chamber.
’This must be the place.’
Zhao Lin grabbed the iron ring on the stone door and knocked twice, hard.
GRIND...
A moment later, the stone door slowly ground open.
It revealed an incredibly spacious stone chamber, a full fifty to sixty zhang wide.
The chamber was brightly lit. The walls and floor were built from heat-resistant wu-stone. In the center of the room was a furnace, with flames leaping high from its hearth.
The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder.
A tall cultivator with a full beard had his sleeves rolled up high, revealing well-muscled arms. He was instructing two apprentices as they hammered the embryonic form of a magical artifact.
"Keep your hands steady. Don’t shake."
"Switch to the small hammer. Use the Hammer Wielding Technique..."
Zhao Lin walked over and stood to one side, watching quietly.
After a moment, the bearded cultivator shook his head, waved for the two apprentices to stop, and turned to look at Zhao Lin.
’This must be Zhengtu,’ Zhao Lin thought, and he quickly bowed. "Junior Zhao Lin greets Senior Zheng."
Zhengtu had a brutish, fleshy face and was quite ugly, which reminded Zhao Lin of Zheng Tu from *Water Margin*.
"Out with it. What do you want?"
Zhengtu casually took out a talisman and crushed it. A cooling sensation immediately spread through the area.
"This junior cultivates the Ice Blade Skill and would like to ask Senior to forge a battle saber."
Zhao Lin stated his purpose directly.
"Oh?"
Zhengtu sized Zhao Lin up. "With your cultivation level, you could just buy any old magical artifact. You really want me to forge one for you specially?"
Zhao Lin said humbly, "This junior may be overreaching, but I’d like to have a better-quality magical artifact crafted."
"Hmph, that’s true. A magical artifact can last for many years. If you have the money, of course you should get a good one."
Zhengtu held up two fingers and said bluntly, "Two hundred contribution points and five hundred Spirit Stones!"
Zhao Lin was taken aback. ’Why is he talking about money right away?’ he thought.
Zhengtu saw what Zhao Lin was thinking and said, "These have always been my rules. Otherwise, we’d waste all that time chattering away, settling on the weight and style of the artifact, only for you to say it’s too expensive and you don’t want it. Wouldn’t that be a total waste of breath?"
"It might be a bit pricey, but you can rest assured about my craftsmanship."
Seeing Zhao Lin’s hesitation, Zhengtu added another sentence.
"If this junior provides the materials, can it be cheaper?"
His recent expenses had been huge, so Zhao Lin wanted to save every little bit he could.
"Forging a magical artifact requires dozens of materials. We’ll see, depending on what you bring."
Zhengtu said ambiguously.
"Alright, I’ll agree to Senior’s terms!"
Zhao Lin couldn’t just turn around and leave, so he gritted his teeth and agreed. Besides, the price for forging a magical artifact was the same as a single Acupoint Opening Pill. Thinking of it that way, it didn’t seem so expensive anymore.
"Straightforward!"
Zhengtu laughed heartily, but his eyes suddenly narrowed when he saw the three long sabers Zhao Lin was carrying. "What have you brought?"
Zhao Lin took a few steps back, gripped the hilt, and drew the brow-blade saber from its sheath.
Zhengtu raised his eyebrows. "That’s a brow-blade saber from the Earth Dark Sect. You want me to forge one for you too?"
Zhao Lin slowly shook his head. "This junior would like to ask Senior to forge a magical artifact that can counter the brow-blade saber."
After the battle at Yongdeng Ansha, Zhao Lin already considered the Earth Dark Sect his adversary.
The brow-blade saber was excellent for cleaving, had a long attack range, and ordinary magical artifacts were often at a disadvantage against it.
Fu Dong, a Qi Refining Ninth Layer cultivator who had gone out to sea with Zhao Lin, had died by a brow-blade saber. The fact that the stationed island cultivators later salvaged a short sword, broken in two, from the seabed spoke volumes.
"A little interesting."
Zhengtu chuckled, reached out for the brow-blade saber in Zhao Lin’s hand, and pointed at the pattern on the blade. "The brow-blade saber is forged using a folding and hammering technique. The edge is extremely sharp, and its hardness and toughness are also quite good."
"The blade is slender and long with a slight curve, combining the stabbing ability of a straight sword with the cleaving power of a curved saber. It’s perfectly suited for the Water Moon Slash that Earth Dark Sect cultivators excel at."
Then his tone shifted. "Its weakness is a lack of flexibility. It’s especially vulnerable to heavy magical artifacts like clubs, hammers, and cleavers. A light blow will send it flying; a heavy one will snap it in two."
Zhao Lin was secretly impressed. Zhengtu had hit the nail on the head.
Zhengtu paused for a moment before continuing, "Since you cultivate the Ice Blade Skill, we’ll forge a thick-bladed cleaver. It should weigh at least twice as much as the brow-blade saber, and we’ll add tungsten-vanadium stone to increase its hardness."
"That way, when you encounter a cultivator of a similar realm using a brow-blade saber, you can fight them head-on without restraint!"
Zhao Lin’s spirits lifted. "Please forge a thick-bladed cleaver for me, Senior."
But Zhengtu just smiled. "Forging the magical artifact is easy. I’m afraid you won’t be able to wield it."
Zhao Lin froze. "Please explain, Senior."
Zhengtu handed the brow-blade saber back to Zhao Lin and explained, "For every bit heavier a magical artifact is, it requires a corresponding amount of extra Spiritual Power and Divine Sense to control. Your cultivation is only at the Artifact Refining Fifth Layer. Can you handle it?"
Zhao Lin thought to himself that he was a Martial Cultivator and had also practiced the Nine Revolutions God Condensing Skill, so his Spiritual Power and Divine Sense were both stronger than those of cultivators at the same level.
However, he wasn’t sure if he could actually control the thick-bladed cleaver, and he fell into a thoughtful silence.
Zhengtu smiled faintly and had an apprentice bring over three iron swords from the stone table next to the furnace.
Then he said to Zhao Lin, "Try out the weight."
Zhao Lin picked up the three iron swords one by one, discovering that each was heavier than the last.
Magical artifacts aren’t ordinary weapons. To achieve speed and flexibility, they generally aren’t made too heavy.
The first iron sword was half the length of the brow-blade saber, but its blade was thick, making their weights roughly equal.
The second iron sword was wider and longer, weighing about twice as much.
The third iron sword was even heavier, weighing roughly the same as three brow-blade sabers.
Zhengtu waved a large hand and chuckled. "Don’t just hold them. Wield them like magical artifacts."
Zhao Lin understood. He said, "Alright," then took out his Silverlight Dagger and swiped it across his fingertip.
A drop of fresh blood fell, seeping into the blade of the first iron sword.
He submerged his Divine Sense into it, instantly establishing a mysterious connection with the iron sword.
With a single thought, the iron sword let out a clear ring and vibrated as it rose into the air.
The biggest difference between a magical artifact and an ordinary weapon is that magical artifacts contain materials like Golden Soul Stone and Soul Suppressing Iron, which Divine Sense can adhere to, allowing a cultivator to control the artifact with their mind.
Under Zhao Lin’s command, the iron sword zipped back and forth across the spacious stone chamber, flying freely.
Zhengtu nodded. "Good. Try the next one."
Zhao Lin did the same with the second iron sword and still found it easy to control.
Zhengtu was slightly impressed. "Next."
This time, Zhao Lin finally felt the pressure. The increased weight of the artifact caused his Mana to drain extremely quickly, and the range of his Divine Sense also shrank by about ten zhang.
After a moment, Zhao Lin recalled the iron sword and presented it to Zhengtu with both hands. "Junior feels this sword is the right weight."
Zhengtu’s voice was grave. "Are you sure? If a magical artifact is too heavy, it will not only affect its flexibility but also shorten its attack range."
"Yes, this junior has thought it through."
Zhao Lin replied seriously.
His Ice Blade Skill was nearing perfection, and most of the time, he could suppress his opponents with Magic alone.
If he needed to use a magical artifact, it would be to leverage its power, so naturally, heavier was better.
"Fine! It’s your magical artifact, so it’s your call."
Zhengtu said no more. He had an apprentice bring over a dozen or so battle sabers of different styles and line them up on the anvil for Zhao Lin to choose from.
Zhao Lin already had an idea of what he wanted and quickly selected a short-handled hunting blade.