91: Chapter 91 Worries

The first snow of early winter arrived silently.

When Lin Xuan pushed open the courtyard gate, the outside was already coated in a thin layer of white.

Snow powder had accumulated on the bamboo leaves; a gust of wind caused it to fall with a rustling sound, flashing with fine, crystalline light in the morning sun.

He exhaled a puff of white mist, watching it disperse in the cold air like a silent sigh.

It had been exactly two months since he was conscripted into the Hundred Talisman Hall.

The days remained routine, but Lin Xuan could feel that the atmosphere within the Hundred Talisman Hall was tighter than it had been at the beginning.

The quota had not changed; it was still four First-Grade Medium Grade Talismans per day.

However, the number of patrols by the stewards had clearly increased, and the prices of supplies at the exchange had risen another round; purple-patterned paper had gone from 180 points per bundle a month ago to 188 points.

There were more and more items on the restricted purchase list, and even ordinary hemostatic herbs and Medicinal Pill for Qi recovery had purchase limits.

Today was a rest day.

The Hundred Talisman Hall gave Disciples two days of rest each month to regulate their breathing, recover, and handle private matters. For Lin Xuan, this was rare, freely disposable time.

He changed into a clean, cyan-grey dharma robe, cast the Wind Control Technique, and flew toward the Artifact Refining Peak.

The Artifact Refining Peak faced the Thousand Talisman Peak across the mountains, but the scenery was completely different.

Before even getting close, one could feel the dry heat in the air.

It wasn't the muggy heat of summer, but a heatwave mixed with the melting of metal, the scorching of flames, and the forging of spiritual Materials, carrying the scent of sulfur and coke.

The buildings on the peak were mostly made of black stone, with low, thick eaves and small windows—it was said that this helped better lock in the fire-type Spiritual Qi during Artifact Refining.

Dozens of towering chimneys stood upright; at this moment, most were emitting smoke, the cyan-grey smoke rising straight up, condensing into long dragons in the cold air of early winter.

Chen Hao was in a secluded courtyard on the mountainside of the Artifact Refining Peak.

When Lin Xuan landed in front of the courtyard gate, the sound of rhythmic, steady hammering came from inside; one could tell it was an experienced hand just by listening.

He knocked on the door.

The hammering stopped.

A moment later, the courtyard gate opened, and Chen Hao's face, blackened by smoke, poked out. There was obvious dark bruising under his eyes, but his spirit was good.

"Lin Xuan!" Chen Hao's eyes lit up, and he pulled the door open. "Come in quickly."

Lin Xuan walked into the courtyard.

The courtyard was piled with quite a few Artifact Refining scraps: broken iron ingots, deformed copper blocks, and charred charcoal.

Standing in the corner was a waist-high forging table, with an unfinished red copper hammer placed on the surface.

The hammer head was the size of a washbasin, with flame patterns vaguely visible on the surface. Scattered beside it were several tools—iron tongs, files, and a quenching bucket.

Chen Hao was wearing short, light clothing, with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing sturdy forearms. He wore a pair of thick leather gloves on his hands, worn shiny at the palms.

"Sit down first." Chen Hao pointed to the stone stool in the courtyard and turned to go inside. "I'll make some tea."

Lin Xuan sat down on the stone stool.

The stool was icy cold, but the heatwave in the courtyard dispelled the chill.

He looked around and could see several semi-finished Flying Swords and some bracer armor embryos hanging on the wall inside the room. A thick illustrated book was spread out on the table, filled with complex structural diagrams, and several Ore specimens of different colors were placed beside it.

Before long, Chen Hao came out.

He was carrying a tray with a teapot and two jade cups.

"Low Grade spiritual tea, 'Bamboo Leaf Green,' to clear the heart and calm the spirit." Chen Hao sat down and poured two bowls.

The tea soup was pale green, with wisps of steam, carrying the fresh fragrance of bamboo leaves.

Lin Xuan took the cup and blew on it.

Neither of them rushed to speak, first taking a sip of tea.

Chen Hao put down the bowl and let out a long breath, the forced energy on his face relaxing to reveal the exhaustion that could not be hidden underneath.

"Exhausted?" Lin Xuan asked.

"Tired, but worth it." Chen Hao rubbed his temples, but his eyes were startlingly bright. "Lin Xuan, let me tell you, my Master was drafted last month to participate in a big project!"

He leaned forward and lowered his voice, but couldn't suppress the excitement in his tone: "It is personally presided over by Immortal Master Chiyan, a Golden Core Elder of the Artifact Refining Peak. They are going to refine a large-scale war Magical Artifact called the 'Breaking City Crossbow'!"

Lin Xuan's heart stirred.

War Magical Artifacts—this kind of large-scale machinery had power far exceeding ordinary Magical Artifacts, but they were complex to refine and consumed astonishing Materials, usually only used in Sect wars.

"Breaking City Crossbow?" Lin Xuan repeated.

"Right!" Chen Hao nodded heavily. "I heard from Master that if this thing is refined, one arrow can blast through a five-zhang-thick black iron city wall!

The protective Spiritual Qi barrier of a Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator is like paper in front of it. Even a Golden Core expert would be severely injured if they took a direct hit!"

He paused, his voice dropping lower: "Our Sect is really going all out this time. Just the main material, Fiery Sun Iron, alone, they called up one thousand catties! That is a core Material for refining Third-Grade Magical Artifacts; usually, we don't use two hundred catties in a year."

Lin Xuan was silent.

One thousand catties of Fiery Sun Iron... This scale was indeed astonishing. It also indirectly showed that the situation on the front line was likely tighter than rumored.

"What about you? Did you participate?" he asked.

"I'm not qualified enough." Chen Hao smiled bitterly, then became excited again. "But Master is responsible for handling the smelting and impurity removal of a portion of that Fiery Sun Iron, and I am helping him!"

"Just this has already opened my eyes—you haven't seen it, but after that Fiery Sun Iron is burned red, natural Sun True Fire patterns appear on the surface.

Master has to use the 'Sanyang Forging Technique,' combined with twelve types of auxiliary Materials, and repeatedly forge it nine times to force out the Impurities..."

He spoke with great animation, his hands gesturing the rhythm of the forging in the air.

Lin Xuan listened quietly.

He knew that Chen Hao truly loved Artifact Refining. When he talked about these things, there was light in his eyes.

"...Just for this one process, I learned for seven whole days."

Chen Hao's mouth was dry from talking, so he picked up the tea bowl and drank a large gulp. "But it's worth it! Master said I have good Comprehension Ability, and he passed the core secrets of this 'Sanyang Forging Technique' to me. Although I can't use it well yet, this is the foundation for future Artifact Refining."

"What about Contribution Points?" Lin Xuan asked.

"This is even more practical." Chen Hao chuckled and took out his identity jade token from his chest. "Participating in such a core project, the Contribution Points are generous. Just this one month, I got one thousand points! It's almost equal to two or three months of normal work."

One thousand points.

Lin Xuan calculated in his heart; this was indeed a cut above normal production tasks. It seemed the Sect was really willing to spend to motivate Disciples in core production links.

But...

He looked at Chen Hao: "Is the situation on the front line not looking good?"

The smile on Chen Hao's face faded.

He was silent for a moment, put down the tea bowl, and his fingers unconsciously rubbed the rim of the jade cup.

"Master didn't say, but I can feel it." Chen Hao's voice lowered. "A while ago, a few Senior Brothers who rotated down from the front line came to ask Master for special 'Breaking Fiend Arrowheads.' When I was serving tea, I heard them chatting a bit..."

He paused and looked up at Lin Xuan, his eyes carrying a heaviness Lin Xuan had never seen before.

"On the Xuanyin Sect's side, they have the secret support of the Southern Wilderness Demonic Sect."

Southern Wilderness Demonic Sect.

Lin Xuan's heart tightened. This was a massive Demonic Path force outside the territory that had long had ambitions to infiltrate the Southern Heaven Region. The Xuanyin Sect was just one of its proxies in the Southern Heaven Region.

"The Demonic Sect gave them a large batch of corpse puppets and Wraiths."

Chen Hao continued, his voice hoarse. "Those things don't fear death, don't fear pain, and there are many of them.

Our Disciples are trading human lives to wear them down. I heard that when the Iron Wall Pass was lost, it was crushed by thousands of Copper Corpses that broke through the defensive grand formation."

He clenched his fists: "And those little demons are very insidious, specifically choosing to sneak attack when our Disciples are rotating or resupplying. Last month, a supply team transporting Medicinal Pill was ambushed on the way. Out of twenty-something people, only nine escaped back."

The courtyard fell silent.

There was only the faint clanging sound from the distant Artifact Refining workshop, and the sobbing of the early winter cold wind scraping across the courtyard wall.

After a long time, Chen Hao spoke again, his voice even lower: "Lin Xuan, I also heard a rumor..."

He swallowed a mouthful of saliva: "The Sect's top brass is seeking reinforcements from the Qingyang Sword Sect."

Qingyang Sword Sect—the leader of Sword Cultivators in the Southern Heaven Region, a staunch ally of the Sanyang Sect.

"But if even the Qingyang Sword Sect has to be asked..." Chen Hao didn't continue.

Lin Xuan understood what he meant.

If the war was going smoothly, why seek reinforcements? Seeking reinforcements meant the situation was not optimistic.

"There is something even more worrying." Chen Hao wiped his face. "I heard that someone in the Sect proposed moving some key production links—like refining the core components of the Breaking City Crossbow, or drawing special war Talismans—forward to the 'rear strongholds' close to the front line."

He looked up and stared straight at Lin Xuan: "The reason is that the consumption on the front line is too great, and long-distance transportation has high losses and high risks. It is better to send some Talisman Makers, Artifact Refiners, and alchemists directly to relatively safe strongholds to produce on the spot and replenish nearby."

Lin Xuan's heart sank.

This was exactly one of the situations he was worried about.

At the Hundred Talisman Hall, at the Artifact Refining Peak, at least in the core hinterland of the Sect, there was a protective mountain formation and Nascent Soul Old Ancestors guarding, making it relatively safe.

But if he were sent near the front line...

In the face of real war, how safe could a so-called "safe stronghold" be?

"Lin Xuan," Chen Hao's voice trembled slightly, "do you think... if they really send us Talisman Makers and Artifact Refiners over there, what should we do?"

He was only twenty-one this year.

He had only joined the Sect a few years ago, and most of his time was spent hammering in the Artifact Refining workshop; the furthest he had ever gone for training was to a mine a hundred miles away. War had once been just a rumor to him.

But now, the shadow of war was about to press down on him.

Lin Xuan was silent for a moment, reached out, and patted Chen Hao's shoulder.

"The Sect should weigh it." He tried to keep his voice steady. "Sending us Low Grade production Disciples over there carries too much risk.

Once a stronghold is attacked, what is lost is not just people, but long-term production capacity. Cultivating a Talisman Maker or an Artifact Refiner is much harder than cultivating a battle-department Disciple."

Chen Hao's eyes brightened: "You mean, they won't?"

"Not necessarily." Lin Xuan shook his head. "If the war continues to deteriorate, anything is possible."

He paused, looking into Chen Hao's eyes: "We must make the worst preparations."

Chen Hao was startled, then nodded slowly.

"Right... make the worst preparations."

The two chatted about their recent situations for a while.

Chen Hao talked about the interesting things on the Artifact Refining Peak: a Senior Brother wanted to forge a Flying Sword with cold iron, but his control of the heat was not good. The ice-type Spiritual Qi in the cold iron conflicted with the furnace fire, causing an explosion that burned off the Senior Brother's eyebrows. Now, everyone called him "Eyebrowless Senior Brother" when they saw him.

Lin Xuan also briefly mentioned the affairs of the Hundred Talisman Hall: Senior Brother Zhou had been pushing himself too hard and fainted in his cubicle a few days ago, forcing the steward to send him to Danding Peak for recuperation; Junior Brother Zhao finally gave up on the Armor-Piercing Talisman and honestly drew Golden Light Talismans. Although he earned less, it was stable.

But both of them knew clearly that these relaxed topics only temporarily covered the worry underneath.

While chatting, Chen Hao suddenly remembered something and slapped his thigh: "Right, Lin Xuan, didn't you say last time you wanted to add a better offensive Magical Artifact?"

Lin Xuan nodded: "I do have that intention. The earth fiend bell has good defense, but my offensive means still rely on the startling thunder whip and Spells. I lack a powerful, decisive attack."

Chen Hao chuckled and lowered his voice: "I know a Senior Brother, surnamed Han, at the ninth level of Qi Refinement, who is a Named Disciple of my Master. A while ago, he refined a Top Grade thunder-attribute offensive Magical Artifact, the 'Thunder-Striking Thorn.' He originally intended to use it himself, but he urgently needs Contribution Points to exchange for a barrier-breaking pill to impact Foundation Establishment, so he intends to sell it."

Lin Xuan's heart stirred: "Top Grade Magical Artifact? What's the price?"

"At market price, this kind of thunder-attribute Top Grade offensive Magical Artifact starts at at least 1,600 points." Chen Hao gestured. "But Senior Brother Han is in a hurry to sell and is willing to be cheaper. I have a good relationship with him; if you go to buy it, you should be able to get it for 1,400 points."

1,400 points.

Lin Xuan calculated quickly in his heart. He currently had a balance of over 3,400 Contribution Points. Spending 1,400 would leave him with 2,000. Although it was not a small amount, for a Top Grade offensive Magical Artifact, this price was indeed cost-effective.

"What's the quality?" he asked.

"I have seen the finished product." Chen Hao said solemnly. "The main Materials are a Top Grade lightning-struck wood core and soft gold thread. It is one foot two inches long, as thin as a bamboo chopstick. After activation, it can turn into a three-foot thunder ray. Its penetrating power is extremely strong, and it also comes with a paralyzing effect.

Senior Brother Han's Artifact Refining skills are top-notch among Qi Refinement Stage Disciples. The quality of this Thunder-Striking Thorn is absolutely no problem."

Lin Xuan pondered for a moment: "Can I see the real thing?"

"Of course." Chen Hao stood up. "Senior Brother Han should be in the workshop today. I'll take you there now."