Mortal: I have a Spirit Gathering Cauldron

In the cultivation room filled with spiritual energy, Lin Feng put away the memory of Chen Qiaoqian that left him speechless.

He picked up the jade slip with the artifact diagram once again and examined it carefully.

His gaze swept over the Azure Rainbow Sword, the Crimson Gold Shield, the Mystic Ice Thorn, and the Blazing Fire Banner, finally settling on one name—the Condensing Void Mirror.

The Condensing Mirror is a top-tier magical artifact. Its surface emits white light, which can freeze magical artifacts and cultivators within a certain area.

Magical artifacts illuminated by the mirror's light will lose control, and cultivators illuminated by it will become sluggish. The duration depends on the difference in cultivation levels between the two parties; the greater the difference, the longer the duration.

Lin Feng's eyes lit up.

Isn't this Duobao Nu's Qingning Mirror?

It seems that the Condensing Void Mirror and the Azure Condensing Mirror are exactly the same, and are very likely to be imitations of the ancient treasure "Condensing Light Mirror".

"Good stuff." Lin Feng looked at the diagram of the Condensing Void Mirror three times in a row, becoming more and more satisfied with each look.

He originally possessed a magical artifact for controlling the Zhenyue Tower. It was a high-grade artifact, emitting a mysterious yellow light from its base, capable of suppressing enemies. Although its grade wasn't high, it had been used in the Bloodstained Forbidden Land and during the pursuit of Lin Xingjian, with good results.

Unfortunately, the Zhenyue Pagoda was already somewhat damaged after Lin Xingjian slashed it away with his sword.

There was a fine crack on the tower, and the flow of spiritual light was slightly hindered. Although it was still usable, its power was greatly reduced, and it might be completely destroyed one day.

"I was just worried about not having a controllable magic artifact, and the Condensing Void Mirror has delivered itself to my doorstep." Lin Feng's lips curled up. "A top-tier magic artifact, much stronger than the Mountain Suppressing Pagoda. After it's crafted, combined with the divine sense strength of the Great Evolution Technique, the control effect will be several times stronger."

He was determined to refine the Condensing Void Mirror.

But having a condenser mirror alone is not enough.

Lin Feng took stock of his own assets.

Offensive magical weapons: Wind-Breaking Spear and Soul-Bewitching Bell, both top-tier, sufficient.

Defensive artifact: Xuan Turtle Shield, a top-tier artifact. The Golden Light Shield spell is also nearing completion; with two layers of defense, it will be even more secure.

Auxiliary and flying magical artifacts: Concealing Spirit Veil, Gentle Breeze Flag, and Wind-Escape Shuttle are more than enough for hiding and escaping.

Controlling magical artifacts: The Zhenyue Pagoda is damaged and I plan to sell it to refine the Ningkong Mirror, which will be a perfect replacement.

Talisman: The Ice Sword Talisman has one use left. It is very powerful, so I need to buy another one.

Pills: I still have a few bottles of high-quality Qi-union Pills, enough for a while. But after the demonic invasion, the price of pills will definitely skyrocket, so I need to stock up in advance.

We also need to stock up on healing and detoxifying pills. Anything can happen on the battlefield, and if you get poisoned or injured, you're doomed without medicine.

Lin Feng made a shopping list in his mind, then stood up and left the cave.

The Wind Shuttle transformed into a silver streak and sped towards the Tianxing Market.

Two hours later, Lin Feng appeared at the entrance of Star Dust Pavilion.

He walked straight into the pavilion and found Steward Zhou, whom he had dealt with before. Steward Zhou still had that smiling face, and when he saw Lin Feng arrive, he greeted him warmly.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, it's been a long time! Please come in, please come in!"

The two went up to a private room on the second floor, and after they sat down, a servant served them some fine tea.

Without wasting any words, Lin Feng took out the Zhenyue Pagoda from his storage bag and placed it on the table.

"Manager Zhou, please give me an estimate for this magical artifact."

Steward Zhou picked up the Zhenyue Pagoda and examined it carefully. He immediately noticed the cracks on the pagoda, his brow furrowing slightly, but quickly smoothing out his expression.

"A top-grade magic artifact, slightly damaged, which somewhat affects its use." Steward Zhou pondered for a moment. "Fellow Daoist Lin, how about two hundred spirit stones?"

Lin Feng made a mental estimate. A perfectly intact high-grade magic weapon would cost between three and four hundred spirit stones. Although two hundred was a bit low, considering that the Zhenyue Pagoda was indeed damaged, the price was fair.

"Sold."

Manager Zhou immediately instructed the shop assistant to bring the spirit stones. Two hundred low-grade spirit stones were packed into a small bag. Lin Feng took it, scanned it with his divine sense, and confirmed the number was correct.

"Manager Zhou, I need to buy a few more things." Lin Feng took out a list from his sleeve and handed it to Manager Zhou.

The list includes: materials needed to refine the Condensing Void Mirror: Cloud Light Stone, Condensing Light Jade, Refined Copper Mother, Spirit Rhinoceros Powder; one talisman, an offensive type; several bottles of Qi Harmony Pills; several bottles of healing pills; and several detoxification pills.

Manager Zhou glanced at the list and frowned slightly.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, we have Cloud Light Stone and Condensed Light Jade, but refined copper mother..." He shook his head, "refined copper mother is currently out of stock; it's unavailable throughout the entire market."

Lin Feng frowned. Refined copper mother is one of the key materials for refining the Condensing Void Mirror; without refined copper mother, the Condensing Void Mirror cannot be refined.

Lin Feng hesitated for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Forget it, I'll buy the others first. I'll figure out how to get the refined copper mother myself."

"Alright." Manager Zhou instructed the shop assistant to bring the other materials.

As for the talismans, Steward Zhou took out two for Lin Feng to choose from.

"This is the 'Thunderfire Blade Talisman,' possessing both thunder and fire attributes. It is extremely powerful, can be used three times, and costs three thousand spirit stones," Manager Zhou introduced, pointing to the first talisman.

"This is the 'Golden Sword Talisman,' made of pure metal, sharp and fierce, usable three times, priced at 2,800 spirit stones."

Lin Feng picked up the Thunderfire Blade Talisman and examined it carefully. The talisman was entirely crimson gold, with thunder and fire patterns on its surface, and faint flashes of lightning. Holding it in his hand, he could feel a surge of violent spiritual power.

"This one."

He also bought three bottles of Heqi Dan, two bottles of Huichun Dan for healing, and two bottles of Qingling San for detoxification.

Lin Feng paid with spirit stones, put the items into his storage bag, and got up to take his leave.

After leaving Stardust Pavilion, he didn't rush to leave the market, but instead strolled around the streets again. As Steward Zhou had said, the fine bronze mother was indeed out of stock; he asked at several stalls, but none had any in stock.

Lin Feng remained calm. Originally, due to the time constraints, he had directly purchased the refining materials for the finished product and did not intend to use the Spirit Gathering Cauldron. Now that he did not have the refined copper mother, he would simply buy some refined copper to upgrade it.

Fortunately, refined copper is a relatively common material for refining magical artifacts, and most shops have it in stock. After changing his clothes and concealing his cultivation level, Lin Feng casually bought some.

On the way back, Lin Feng secretly made plans in his mind.

The price of elixirs has risen significantly compared to four years ago, and the price of talismans has also increased.

"It seems that the news of the demonic invasion is no longer a secret among the upper echelons," Lin Feng murmured.

With a major battle looming, prices are skyrocketing. Well-informed cultivators are hoarding supplies—elixirs, talismans, magical artifacts—buying and stockpiling whatever they can. Once the demonic army arrives, these things will likely be hard to find.

"I need to hurry up and refine the Condensing Void Mirror." Lin Feng sped up, and the Wind-Escape Shuttle transformed into a silver light, disappearing into the night sky.

Back in his cave, Lin Feng organized the newly purchased materials and placed them on the stone table in the weapon-refining room.

After summoning the Spirit Gathering Cauldron, he poured refined copper into it.

A dozen days later, the refined copper in the cauldron had shrunk and changed color, becoming darker and more solid, emitting a faint spiritual light.

"It's done." Lin Feng nodded in satisfaction.

With the refined copper mother material, all that's left is to refine the weapon.

Lin Feng studied the diagrams of the Condensing Void Mirror repeatedly, striving to memorize every step. He also simulated the refining process in his mind several times to ensure nothing was missed before he began.

The cloud-like stone was melted and transformed into a mass of silvery-white liquid; the condensed jade was crushed, mixed into the liquid, and stirred evenly; the refined copper ore was melted and cast into a mirror blank.

Inscribing the array patterns is the most crucial step. The Condensing Void Mirror requires as many as sixty-four layers of array patterns to be inscribed, and each layer must be flawless. Lin Feng held his breath and concentrated, transforming his spiritual energy into fine needles to inscribe the array patterns bit by bit on the mirror surface.

Fortunately, Lin Feng has now completed the first level of the Great Evolution Technique, and his divine sense is strong, so inscribing array patterns is not difficult.

One floor, two floors, three floors...

half a month later.

Lin Feng took out a palm-sized bronze mirror from the refining furnace.

The mirror's surface is smooth as a mirror, gleaming with a faint silver light. The back of the mirror is engraved with intricate patterns, their shimmering light resembling tiny silver snakes swimming within. The frame is cast from refined copper, its surface possessing a pale golden sheen.

As spiritual energy was infused, a beam of white light shone from the mirror, illuminating the stone wall of the cultivation room. Where the white light shone, the air distorted slightly, as if frozen by something.

Lin Feng turned the mirror towards himself and saw a handsome face.

"It's done." He smiled.

The Condensing Void Mirror is a top-tier control artifact.

Lin Feng put the bronze mirror into his storage bag and breathed a sigh of relief.

He returned to his cultivation room, sat cross-legged beside the Spirit Eye Spring, and took out a high-quality Qi-Harmony Pill.

The medicinal power transformed into streams of warm energy flowing from the meridians to the dantian, and the slight increase in spiritual energy within the dantian also relieved some of the fatigue from refining the weapon.

"Everything is ready," Lin Feng murmured. "Next, I need to go to the spirit stone mine to find the ancient teleportation array. Studying abroad in the Chaotic Star Sea is crucial to my cultivation path, so I must hurry."