Outside Of Time

Chapter 1677: Dao Refinement Universe

Editor: Atlas Studios

“Offerings…”

Hearing the clay fox’s words, Xu Qing’s gaze landed on the abyss as he fell into deep thought.

A while later, he retracted his gaze and calmly spoke.

“Since I can’t explore it, I’ll put it aside for now.”

With that, Xu Qing’s body swayed and he rose from the Ink Land, flying out.

Behind him, the clay fox heaved a sigh of relief inwardly.

After recalling what kind of place this was, She felt extreme unease about continuing to explore. She even felt Her heart palpitating when She smelled the rust.

After all, no one knew when the primordial upper star nail was going to return…

If it returned while they were still exploring, the instant it was forced back into that place would spell complete annihilation for both Xu Qing and Her—body and soul alike.

Of course, the clay fox also knew that the probability of such a thing happening wasn’t high.

Hence, what truly caused Her heart to palpitate was the unknown under the Ink Land.

That was a mystery and danger that surpassed everything She knew.

Seeing that Xu Qing had given up, the clay fox heaved a sigh of relief and immediately followed.

Just like that, She and Xu Qing left the Ink Land. The moment they appeared outside, Xu Qing threw the fishing rod to the clay fox.

After the clay fox caught it, She already had a guess. Hence, a hint of hidden bitterness appeared on Her face.

“Little brother, are you going out to play on your own? You want me to fish for you at home?”

Xu Qing nodded.

That was indeed his plan.

“There are still ten months before I head to the Reception Universe. Time is limited, so I have to go take the rewards for ascending.”

“If it finishes fast, it’ll be a few months. If it’s slow, it’ll be half a year before I return.”

“During this time, I’ll have to trouble you to help me continue fishing here. The more origin essence you fish, the better.”

With that, Xu Qing left without waiting for the clay fox to agree.

The clay fox snorted and curled Her lips as She looked at Xu Qing’s departing figure.

“He sounds polite but his tone carries an undeniable firmness, and his actions are the same. This kid… has truly grown up.”

“How dare he speak to me like that!”

“However, I like him even more now.”

After pouting, the clay fox couldn’t help but lick Her lips. With a wave of Her jade-like hand outside the black soil, a sea of flowers appeared out of thin air around Her. Within the blooming flowers, countless enchanting women emerged, each exuding unparalleled charm.

These were all created by the clay fox’s divine technique.

Amidst the chatter and laughter of the women, melodic music echoed through the air.

It was as though She had returned to the Hundred Flowers Palace.

Naturally, soft couches appeared as well, accompanied by immortal fruits and spirit wine.

The clay fox, ever the connoisseur of indulgence, reclined on the couch like an imperial concubine. With a flick of the fishing rod, the line fell into the Ink Land. At the same time, She nibbled on immortal fruits, sipped spirit wine, and listened to the delightful music, Her mood utterly blissful.

“Life… should never shortchange oneself.”

…

Xu Qing sensed this scene from outside the Ink Land.

Everyone’s preferences and perceptions were different.

The clay fox liked to enjoy life and the bustle, while Xu Qing liked peace and the silence.

What the former felt boring might be a kind of peace in the latter’s heart.

Hence, no matter what the process was, it was just a different choice. In the end, She just had to fish out the origin essence.

With such thoughts in mind, Xu Qing used his immortal token to leave the Ink Yang Universe and head to… the Dao Refinement Universe!

Regardless of whether it was the Ordinance Baptism of magic treasures or the opportunity to have a weapon forged by a Lower Immortal, it was all carried out in the Dao Refinement Universe.

The Dao Refinement Universe was naturally special. It was even reasonable to say that it was a strategic resource universe.

This was because this universe was already the core of the entire Nine Shores Heaven in terms of artifact refinement.

The artificial changes inside were also huge and shocking.

In the Dao Refinement Universe, there were no starfields, galaxies, or stars.

What was there was only a vast furnace!

This furnace occupied seventy percent of the Dao Refinement Universe’s expanse, and from this alone, one could imagine the unimaginable magnitude of its size.

As for the Dao refinement fire in the furnace, it came from… countless stars!

All the stars of the Dao Refinement Universe had been relocated here to fuel and strengthen the fire of this place.

However, the stars in this universe weren’t the only ones who formed this refinement fire.

There was also a portion that was plucked from other universes and sent over to increase the intensity of the dao refinement fire.

Another portion came from the god’s fire.

All of this gathered together to form this terrifying Dao Refinement Furnace that could accommodate billions of artifact masters.

From afar, this furnace wasn’t much different from the sun. It was just that it was even more astonishing and vast, becoming the only celestial body in this universe.

At the same time, countless ethereal ribbons spread out from the Dao Refinement Furnace, drifting in all directions.

Each of these ribbons was teeming with countless cultivators coming and going.

In the entire Nine Shores Heaven, anyone with the need for artifact refinement and the qualifications to enter would come here. As a result, the Dao Refinement Universe was bustling with activity at all times.

When Xu Qing’s figure appeared, it was on an ethereal ribbon. The sights before him, the sounds echoing around him, and the waves of heat surging toward him all made Xu Qing momentarily dazed.

“Such a furnace…”

Xu Qing mumbled inwardly but his footsteps didn’t stop, even speeding forward.

He followed the ribbon he was on and walked past the people coming and going before reaching the end.

He queued up and waited in front of the black altar.

Due to the huge demand for refining in the Dao Refinement Universe, there were quite a lot of people waiting on any of the ethereal ribbons. Fortunately, the number of refiners inside was also astonishing, so the queue wasn’t too long.

Most of them sat cross-legged with their eyes closed, cultivating as they waited. When it was their turn, they stepped onto the altar, crushed a jade token, and transformed into a beam of light, teleporting into the surface layer of the Dao Refinement Furnace.

Just like that, several days passed in the blink of an eye.

During these few days, Xu Qing was carefully observing the refinement furnace.

This furnace was divided into nine levels: upper, middle, and lower. The lower the level, the more abundant the artifact refinement entrances. Only the uppermost level had a limited number of entrances.

As for the cultivators who were coming over from everywhere, the vast majority of them entered the entrances in the lower three levels. It wasn’t very common for them to enter the middle three levels.

As for the upper levels, Xu Qing didn’t see anyone going there.

Hence, he more or less made a judgment inwardly.

A few hours later, when the cultivator in front of him also walked onto the altar and the teleportation disappeared, it was finally his turn.

Xu Qing took a deep breath and stepped onto the altar, taking out the immortal token he had obtained as a reward for ascending.

According to the actions of the others in the past few days, Xu Qing crushed this immortal token.

With a bang, the shattered immortal token spread out and fused into the altar, forming a catalytic force. With a boom, it transformed into a beam of light that rose.

The pillar of light headed toward… the second floor of the upper three levels of the Dao Refinement Furnace!!

The appearance of this pillar of light immediately attracted the attention of the surrounding cultivators. Many surprised gazes were cast over.

There were also discussions among the cultivators.

“I am actually seeing a cultivator who can enter the upper levels!”

“The upper three levels of the Dao Refinement Furnace are related to immortal artifact refinement!”

“Generally speaking, only those who have made great contributions can obtain such qualifications…”

“He should be the new ascender of this batch. He can obtain this honor by ranking in the top ten!”

Most of these discussions were filled with envy.

It was truly a rare opportunity to have a Lower Immortal personally refine artifacts.

Xu Qing didn’t care about the discussions. At that moment, he was teleported along with the pillar of light. When he appeared, he was already at an entrance in the upper levels.

The heat surrounded his face and in front of him was a huge fire pit.

An old man in a red robe sat cross-legged on the fire pit. His entire body emitted an extremely terrifying aura. After Xu Qing sensed it, his expression turned solemn.

He immediately determined that this person was an immortal!

Hence, he bowed.

“What treasure do you want to refine?”

The red-robed old man didn’t open his eyes. He was still sitting cross-legged on the fire pit but his divine sense echoed.

Xu Qing didn’t hesitate. He immediately took out the Ordinance treasure compass he had obtained back then. He also took out the dust of Heaven’s Law.

After some thought, he placed his Holy Heaven Pagoda at the side.

He then respectfully spoke.

“Senior, I want to refine this compass. With the material it is made of, coupled with Heaven’s Law and my own Ordinance, I want to forge it into a treasure that can resonate with my Ordinance!”

“What style?”

The red-robed old man transmitted his divine sense.

“Make it into a stick!”

Xu Qing lifted his hand and waved it, materializing the iron stick he often used back then to determine the form of the treasure he was about to refine.

After that, he pointed at the compass.

“As for the Ordinance in this compass, Senior, please help me take it out and fuse it into my Holy Heaven Pagoda.”

This time around, the red-robed old man on the fire pit opened his eyes slightly. A terrifying pressure spread out from his eyes and landed on Xu Qing.

“You only have one chance at the refinement.”

Xu Qing lowered his head and calmly spoke.

“I have another chance at the Ordinance Baptism.”

“That’s not my job.” The red-robed old man said calmly. After that, he carefully sized up Xu Qing and suddenly spoke again.

“You’re Xu Qing?”

Xu Qing nodded.

The red-robed old man laughed.

“Since you’re the first in this batch… Forget it, I’ll help you once.”

After the old man finished speaking, he raised his hand and pointed. Immediately, a shocking might spread out from his fingertip and landed on the compass.

The compass shook and rapidly melted, dissipating the impurities, leaving behind its essence. As for the Ordinance inside, it was taken out without any damage. With a move of the red-robed old man’s fingertip, the Ordinance of the compass headed straight for the star tower at the side.

In the next instant, a burst of flames shot out from the furnace, surrounding the Holy Heaven Pagoda. As the Ordinance integrated with it, even its own shattered form was reforged within the flames.

Not only did it recover, but the might it emitted was clearly stronger.

After doing this, the old man began to refine the magic treasure for Xu Qing. He purified the compass and quickly fused it with the Heaven’s Law’s dust. After some thought, he took out a palm-sized bluestone and placed it inside with a wave of his hand.

The flames in the entire fire pit rose and burned. As they continued to refine, an iron stick… was faintly discernible in the sea of fire.

The moment it was about to take shape, the red-robed old man suddenly spoke.

“Your Ordinance!”

When Xu Qing saw the scene of the old man casually refining weapons, he knew that the person in front of him must be a Master. In his excitement, he didn’t hesitate at all to spread out his Parallel Ordinance.

It fused into the sea of fire and the iron stick.

The iron stick suddenly trembled, as though it had become a kaleidoscope, and countless illusory bodies appeared.

“It’s done!”

Xu Qing’s eyes lit up.