A Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Starting as a Sword-Forging Servant and Ascending to Immorta

On the rustic stone table, a small three-legged stove bearing the marks of time was placed in front of Zhou Lingxuan.

The dark gold furnace body has no array carvings. The furnace body and the three small legs have no visible joints, appearing as if they have been connected since birth!

How could Zhou Lingxuan not recognize this thing! How could it not look familiar!

He knew every inch of its structure and the capacity of its furnace body clearly, because it was something he had crafted himself!

It was hammered out, one blow at a time.

Zhou Lingxuan stretched out his withered fingers and gently pressed the pads of his fingers against the edge of the alchemy furnace.

A cool sensation came from my fingertips.

He recalled that he had just finished building a pill furnace for Xue Yi, that little girl from the Pill Hall, when Elder Shen came to the abandoned hall to snatch her away and even showed off the pill furnace in public.

"You know about this thing!"

Seeing Zhou Lingxuan's reminiscing expression, the Second Elder confirmed.

"Three-legged Cloud-Flowing Furnace"

With a gentle tap of his fingertips on the alchemy furnace, a soft "clang" echoed through the secret chamber.

"What a pity."

Zhou Lingxuan shook his head regretfully, "We were in a rush at the time, so the heat wasn't quite right. We used a 'hitting the cow from across the mountain' method to clean the blind spots at the bottom of the furnace, so it wasn't perfect."

"I see."

Seeing that Zhou Lingxuan spoke with such complete knowledge, the Second Elder reached out and stroked the surface of the alchemy furnace.

"This matches up. Elder Shen sent this over a few days ago."

"This alchemy furnace is truly a treasure. Although it lacks array patterns, it can control the earth fire to its fullest extent, without wasting a single drop!"

At this point, the Second Elder stared intently at Zhou Lingxuan, "I thought it was the masterpiece of some master craftsman, but I never expected it was you who made it!"

The Second Elder believed it, not because Zhou Lingxuan's lie was flawless.

Rather, everything was connected, and he had no choice but to believe it!

Neither Elder Shen of the Pill Hall nor Xue Yi had any reason to lie; it was all for the sake of a menial servant!

"Where was it made?"

"Beside the fire pit in the Jiazihao area behind the abandoned hall, I set up a small workshop specifically for its construction."

The location, the people, and the objects all matched, but the more perfect the match was, the more uncertain the Second Elder felt.

The Fire-Fixing Nail and the Three-Legged Flowing Cloud Furnace were placed together; both were magical artifacts without array patterns or true qi guidance!

Possessing unbelievable and exquisite forging skills, this is a masterpiece forged through sheer force!

The Second Elder closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"You've truly proven your worth! And you've proven your skill!"

The Second Elder placed his hand on the table, and the cracks hidden within instantly covered the stone table.

"Do you think that just because you're a prodigy, you can change the sect's rules regarding Chen Baichuan's matter?"

The sect's rules and regulations cannot be changed!

If we make way for geniuses, there will be no room for ordinary disciples to survive in the sect from now on!

"Second Elder is overthinking it."

Zhou Lingxuan analyzed slowly and methodically, "Second Elder, why don't you consider whether Elder Chen's mistake was really that serious?"

"How can it not be serious? That's embezzling military supplies, forming cliques, and overstepping authority in allocating quotas! If these aren't serious, then what would be?"

The Second Elder stood up excitedly, his voice rising several decibels, "If other elders follow suit and rely on a genius to defend and vouch for them, wouldn't the sect's rules and regulations become a joke!"

"That would have to be true!"

Zhou Lingxuan stated confidently, "The so-called embezzlement of military supplies is a trap set up by others for Elder Chen!"

"The Second Elder couldn't possibly be unaware that Liu Quan sent the Ten Thousand Year Cold Soul, Li Yuan was responsible for falsifying the accounts, so where is the actual item in the end?"

"If you're going to investigate, investigate thoroughly and completely. Don't let anyone get away with it!"

Each question came crashing down, leaving the Second Elder speechless with resolute arguments.

Having lived for so many years, how could he not see through the thoughts of those people in the main hall!

Li Yuan, in particular, was a terrible actor; anyone could see that he had a problem!

"Even if the accusation of forming cliques for personal gain is something others have pinned on him, what about the other two charges?"

The Second Elder pressed on, "Don't forget, Chen Baichuan personally confessed in the main hall to the crimes of forming cliques for personal gain and overstepping his authority in allocating quotas!"

"That's easier to explain. Second Elder, just think about what Chen Baichuan has been doing all this time."

Upon hearing this, the Second Elder was taken aback.

"He went to the firm and pressured Elder Li to promote a useless person to the position of a useless steward?"

Zhou Lingxuan pointed to himself, "It's me."

Useless?

Zhou Lingxuan!

When the two were equated, the Second Elder opened his mouth, but found himself speechless.

"What, Second Elder, do you think a lowly servant like me could form cliques and engage in favoritism? I wonder what Elder Chen is after?"

After finally regaining his voice, the Second Elder answered dryly, "Regarding the matter of overstepping authority..."

"As far as I know, he allocated the Enforcement Hall's share to the Formation Hall, which is against the rules!"

When he said this, the Second Elder's voice was weak, but deep down he felt that there was something to be done about it.

"Isn't it simpler? Elder Chen made a slip of the tongue while drunk and was coaxed into making a promise by the people from the Array Hall."

Zhou Lingxuan pressed on, "Moreover, has the Enforcement Hall truly cut off the supply of magical artifacts? The Artifact Hall hasn't stamped the document, and the Affairs Office hasn't issued a transfer order. What kind of overreach is this?"

The Second Elder has indeed not received any official documents or information from various sources.

He has none of these things, yet Liu Quan came to him to complain, clearly using him as a tool!

"Second Elder, to put it bluntly, Elder Chen is just a hothead who can't control his mouth. He loses his bearings after drinking a little horse piss!"

The crude language made the Second Elder uncomfortable, so he lowered his voice and said, "No matter what, he's still your superior."

"If he weren't, I wouldn't be defending him!"

Zhou Lingxuan snorted coldly, leaning forward. "To put it bluntly, if I got drunk and started shouting in the abandoned hall that I was going to steal the Holy Maiden from the main peak, would the Second Elder arrest me too?"

These words left the Second Elder speechless, his face turning bright red. "How dare you!"

After giving a rebuke, the Second Elder was speechless.

"You can't say anything now, Second Elder? At most, this can only be considered an attempted crime; it's not enough to convict me!"

"Attempt?"

The second elder pondered these two words repeatedly, and finally realized the truth.

"Hahahahaha..."

"You old man!"

Pointing a finger at Zhou Lingxuan, the Second Elder's eyes flashed with a sharp light. "Your argument is clearly sophistry, but undeniably, the logic behind your words is meticulous, and I can't find any reason to refute it!"

The most crucial point is that Chen Baichuan did not cause any sustained losses.

Everyone in the hall knew that Chen Baichuan was innocent, but there was no precedent, and he didn't know how to handle the situation.

Now that Zhou Lingxuan's attempt was "unsuccessful," everything has changed!

The Second Elder looked at Zhou Lingxuan with a newfound appreciation.

Not only is his blacksmithing skill superb, but his ability to twist the truth is also astonishing.

The most crucial point was that he originally thought Chen Baichuan would step forward, and that sense of loyalty was of paramount importance.

Although he was scolded, Zhou Lingxuan was in a good mood because he knew that the Second Elder had finally given in.

"Even if it was an unsuccessful attempt, he's made a mess of things in the sect lately. It would be difficult to explain if I wasn't punished!"

"Easy, cripple him!"