Starting as a Talisman Master

In an instant, several Earth Flame Talismans buried under the rock were activated simultaneously, and dark red flames intertwined and rose like dragons and snakes. The originally cold stone chamber was transformed into a stuffy oven in a few breaths.

Lu Chi remained calm, his eyes slightly closed. With a subtle thought, a cluster of [Mysterious Fire] quietly appeared in his palm.

With a flick of his finger, the Xuanhuo lightly fell into the center of the furnace, instantly gathering the originally scattered talisman fire and transforming it into a ball of extremely oppressive, high-temperature fire.

He immediately took out the remains of the several broken magical artifacts that had already been disassembled.

"What are you refining?"

Lu Chi stared at the fragments of spirit ore leaping in the firelight and fell into a brief moment of contemplation.

The scene of fighting the thief cultivator that day involuntarily flashed through his mind; the volley of flying needles that the opponent unleashed was extremely insidious.

Flying needles are such magical artifacts that they are small in size and extremely difficult to detect with the naked eye or even divine sense. They can often achieve unexpected victories in battles between cultivators, and their price is far higher than that of magical artifacts of the same level.

He quickly dismissed the idea.

The flying needle magic weapon has amazing destructive power, and its refining process is also extremely rigorous, requiring a high degree of precision in the manipulation of spiritual power and uniformity of materials.

Lu Chi weighed the broken spirit ore in his hand. It was mostly scrap material extracted from waste. If the furnace exploded at a critical moment due to impure materials, it would be a great loss.

"Let's forge flying swords instead."

Flying swords have the most orthodox design and are extremely versatile, making them the most suitable basic magical artifact for practice.

Among the memory fragments he obtained through the [Weapon Tomb], there happened to be an experience of a top-notch mortal blacksmith forging an ancient sword, which he could use to verify this.

Lu Chi took out the largest rough blank and put it into the furnace, then picked up the large iron hammer he had bought from a market stall.

This iron hammer is not a legal weapon; it is made entirely of heavy black iron and weighs several hundred kilograms.

For him, although he could lift it, swinging it around and continuously pounding it would be quite physically demanding.

Lu Chi took off his shirt, revealing his back, and beads of sweat glistened in the firelight.

As he stared at the gradually softening iron in the fire pit, he silently traced the blood and qi pathways of the "Iron Flesh" level in the "Azure Vein Jade Bone Technique" within his body.

Lu Chi gripped the pliers handle tightly with his left hand and exerted force with his right hand. The hundred-pound black iron hammer drew a heavy arc and, accompanied by a muffled thunderclap, slammed heavily onto the red-hot raw material!

"clang!"

He felt a violent jolt in his mind, and a strange rhythm burst forth from the depths of his consciousness, instantly spreading from his arms to the hammer.

The [Hundred Refinements] have taken effect!

Lu Chi no longer hesitated and continued to strike the ground with heavy blows, causing the temperature inside the chamber to rise rapidly.

Because he had no demonic beast flesh to nourish him, with each swing of his hammer, he could feel the muscles all over his body groaning and tearing under the high temperature and heavy pressure.

However, under the resonance of the [Hundred Refinements] talent, that tearing sensation strangely transformed into a torrent of qi and blood that shook the entire body.

The torrent of energy, like a heavy hammer, repeatedly pounded against his internal organs, skin, muscles, and fascia, forcibly forcing the faint spiritual energy that lingered in his body into the depths of every cell.

A "click" sound.

It was as if some invisible shackles within Lu Chi's body shattered in response, and an unprecedented sense of resilience rose from between his skin and flesh, allowing his blood and qi to circulate smoothly and freely throughout his body.

Temper the body to the first level!

"It really works... [Hundred Refinements] really can assist in body tempering!" He wiped the sweat from his forehead, a hint of joy flashing in his eyes.

The "Iron Body" level, which originally required months of arduous training and considerable resources to achieve, was actually achieved in just half a day of frantic hammering. Such speed is simply astonishing.

He steadied himself, his gaze fixed intently on the red embryo on the anvil.

Under the relentless pounding, the originally impure and chaotic magical artifact waste gradually shed its superficiality, and the impurities were forcibly expelled by the Xuan Fire and immense force, revealing the outline of a flying sword.

The sword's spine was straight, and the blade, tempered by the Xuanhuo fire, faintly revealed a restrained, cold gleam.

Next comes the most crucial step in weapon crafting: inscribing weapon patterns.

The so-called artifact patterns are the structures that artifact refiners use their magic power to simplify fragments of the rules of heaven and earth into graphics and imprint on the inside of magical artifacts.

The reason why ritual implements can fly through the air and cut through metal is not only due to the special nature of the materials themselves, but also due to the guidance of these patterns.

Lu Chi closed his eyes and searched, the memories he obtained from the [Weapon Tomb] flipping through his mind like pages of a book.

Through those remaining fragments, he learned about several of the most basic yet most practical artifact patterns in the cultivation world, such as the artifact manipulation pattern, the sturdiness pattern, and the sharpness pattern...

After a moment's thought, he decided to play it safe for now. He gathered a wisp of magic power at his fingertips and carved the most essential "Object Control Pattern" on the sword.

After an unknown amount of time, the entire flying sword trembled violently, emitting a deep hum. The originally violently leaking fire elemental power instantly receded into the sword body, and its brilliance became restrained.

Lu Chi put away the Xuan Fire, and with a casual wave of his hand, the dark blue flying sword wobbled and flew into the air.

Because the materials used were all inferior ores stripped from discarded artifacts, and his initial engraving technique was not yet smooth, this flying sword ultimately only barely crossed the threshold of a low-grade magic weapon.

He pointed his fingers in the underground chamber, and the flying sword, trailing a faint blue light, pierced towards the rock wall on one side.

With a crisp "ding," the sword tip pierced the stone three inches deep, appearing utterly unremarkable compared to the high-level magical artifacts he had seen before.

Lu Chi retrieved his flying sword and felt the magical energy fluctuations transmitted back from the sword. He felt little disappointment.

For him, the low-grade flying sword itself was of limited value; what pleased him most was the gain he had made by exploring the talent of a weapon refiner.

He put away the talisman and returned to the ground-level building via the stone steps.

The moment I pushed open the door, I saw that the morning light was already faintly visible outside the window.

I thought I had only been inside forging some iron, but I never expected that a day and a night would have passed after all the forging, body tempering and engraving.

Legend has it that some powerful beings in the world need to spend years in seclusion, or even several years, to nurture and temper a precious treasure in order to create it. Only after experiencing it firsthand can one know that this is true.

Lu Chi entered the courtyard and subconsciously stretched his muscles and bones, immediately followed by a series of dense, crisp crackling sounds.

He looked down and examined himself; the most noticeable change was in his appearance.

His body, which had been somewhat pale and thin due to long-term talisman making and seclusion, now looked as if it had been repeatedly forged by a heavy hammer in a short period of time. His skin and flesh were firm, his lines were distinct, and he even had a cold, hard texture like pig iron.

This is a sign of entering the first level of the Body Tempering Realm, the Iron Flesh Realm. It's not so exaggerated as to have bulging muscles, but beneath that layer of skin lies a power of blood and qi that has never been seen before.

He looked at the heavy iron hammer weighing a hundred pounds. Previously, it would have required him to exert force by lifting it with one hand, but now he simply grabbed it and the heavy hammer was as light as a feather in his hand.

Lu Chi tried to apply slight force with his fingertips. His fingernails scratched across the hammer handle, producing a harsh sound similar to metal scraping against metal, but not a single white mark was left on his fingertips.

Just as he was secretly marveling at how well his talent and skills complemented each other, a dull emptiness suddenly came from his stomach.

The "Azure Vein Jade Bone Technique" indeed severely depletes his vital essence. In addition, he had not eaten or drunk anything for a day and a night. Now that he had entered the "Iron Flesh" level, his body was like a dried-up riverbed, desperately needing a large amount of food containing spiritual energy to replenish the deficiency.

"If one takes the fasting pill, although it can stop hunger, it will lack the nourishment of the essence of the five grains, which is not good for body cultivation."

With a thought, Lu Chi took out the ancient-looking "Azure Beginning Furnace" from his storage bag. He then took out a handful of crystal-clear, jade-like high-quality spirit rice, carefully washed it, and put it into the furnace. He then made a hand seal to ignite a gentle flame.

The Qingchu Furnace heats up extremely evenly, and under the precise control of magical power, the essence of herbs and plants in the spiritual rice is perfectly locked into the core of each grain.

Before long, a refreshing aroma of rice, carrying a faint medicinal fragrance, filled the room. Its purity far surpassed that of ordinary cooking pots and pans.

Lu Chi swallowed the entire pot of soft, chewy spirit rice.

As the spiritual rice entered his stomach, it transformed into wisps of warm spiritual energy that nourished his slightly weary meridians, and the emptiness caused by hunger gradually subsided.

Suddenly, a knocking sound, neither too loud nor too soft, came from outside the courtyard gate.

Lu Chi suppressed his aura and stepped forward to push open a crack in the door.

Standing outside the door was a meek and obsequious servant, holding a box of ordinary spiritual fruits in both hands. Upon seeing him appear, the servant hurriedly greeted him with a fawning smile:

"Greetings, sir. I am a servant from the house to the north. My master has just moved into the mansion today. As the saying goes, a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative. My master specifically instructed me to send some small gifts to the neighbors on both sides of the street. I hope you will take good care of us in the future."

Lu Chi accepted the gift box without showing any emotion, and casually inquired a few questions. The servant only said that the head of the family had just moved from another prefecture and planned to settle here.

The house to the north is at least two streets away from here, so how can he be considered a neighbor?

Suspicion arose in his heart, and he did not rush back to the house. Instead, he stared intently in the direction where the servant had left, and his innate ability, [Spiritual Eye], quietly activated.

This glance sent a chill down his spine.

"Qi Refining Level 5..."

Beneath that "Qi Refining Level 1" exterior, there was clearly a Qi Refining mid-stage cultivator with solid cultivation.

Lu Chi weighed the heavy box of spirit fruits in his hand, pretending not to notice, and went back to his house as if nothing had happened. In his mind, however, he had already marked the house to the north as an area that needed to be guarded against.

If a mere person who delivers gifts and runs errands possesses such skill, then the origins of the so-called new master become even more unpredictable.

Is it really as he said, a monk from another prefecture who intends to settle down here in seclusion?

Or is it that the Shen and Luo families spared no expense to hire a "new face" from outside specifically to deal with him?