78: Chapter 78 The Feedback of Hundreds of Crafts and Mass Refining of Weapons

In the Lin Family's back mountain, within the Jia-grade Earth Fire Room, dark red magma wound through trenches in the ground, occasionally bubbling up with giant bubbles that burst with a "pop," releasing scorching heat waves.

At this temperature, an ordinary Qi Refining stage Cultivator would be parched and have their Spiritual Qi exhausted after staying for three hours.

But Lin Ze had sat motionlessly here for seven days and seven nights.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Dull sounds of iron hammering echoed in the stone room. Each time the hammer fell, it was accompanied by golden sparks flying.

Lin Ze was shirtless, his skin illuminated red by the earth fire. Beads of sweat had just seeped out, but before they could drip, they were evaporated by the surrounding high temperature, turning into wisps of white smoke.

His eyes were fanatical, revealing a trace of madness.

Before him lay spirit Materials purchased at great cost from the Inner Sea: deep-sea cold iron, blue crystal sand, and century-old red copper.

These good things, which would be enough to cause Loose Cultivators to scramble, were stacked like common cabbages here.

"Again!"

Lin Ze roared low, the "Water Wood Longevity Art" inside his body running frantically. The Spiritual Qi in his Dantian was like a bursting flood, surging along the extraordinary meridians into his right arm, converging on the iron hammer weighing several hundred jin.

With one hammer strike, the force exceeded a thousand jun.

On the anvil, the fist-sized deep-sea cold iron let out a wail under the intertwining of great force and high temperature.

Impurities turned into black smoke and dissipated, its volume instantly shrinking by a third, while a layer of faint blue cold light flowed on the surface.

"Success!"

A flash of brilliance appeared in Lin Ze's eyes. His left hand pinched out a fire-drawing Spell, and a fire snake suddenly sprang from the earth fire pool, wrapping around the purified cold iron.

"Hiss."

The final inscription was forcibly carved into the sword embryo by his Divine Sense. Lin Ze backhanded a grab for the century-old spiritual spring water nearby and poured it down violently.

White water vapor instantly filled the Earth Fire Room.

As the mist dissipated, a three-foot-long green blade, glowing with cold Sword Qi, hung silently in the air. On the sword body, water-wave spiritual patterns were faintly visible, natural and seamless.

A Medium Grade Flying Sword was complete.

Without pausing, without celebrating, Lin Ze didn't take another look at this Flying Sword, which could sell for over a hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and casually tossed it into his Storage Pouch.

Immediately after, he picked up a piece of blue crystal sand and threw it into the earth fire again.

Five days later.

Ten days later.

Half a month later.

When Lin Ze finally put down the cracked iron hammer, the mountain of Materials in the Earth Fire Room had been completely cleared.

In its place was the heavy weight in his Storage Pouch.

He took a deep breath, and on his pale cheeks, overdrawn from exhaustion, a look of ecstasy appeared.

Standing up, his bones popped. The Spiritual Qi in his body circulated, and it was actually more than 30% thicker than before his seclusion.

"Not only did I succeed in refining, but my cultivation has also faintly touched the threshold of the Late Stage. The Materials from the Inner Sea are truly formidable."

Lin Ze muttered to himself and pushed open the heavy stone door.

Long-lost sunlight poured down, stinging his eyes and making him squint slightly.

...

Lin Family Affairs Hall.

Third Elder Lin Changyun was pacing anxiously in the hall, holding a Jade Slip, his knuckles white from the force.

"Has he not come out of seclusion yet?" Lin Changyun looked at the deacon guarding the side, his tone anxious.

The deacon smiled bitterly and shook his head.

"Reporting to Third Elder, the Jia-grade Earth Fire Room where Ze-ge is located has had its Formation sealed off. No one dares to disturb him."

Lin Changyun sighed heavily and slapped the sandalwood table, making the teacups jump.

"Foolish! The Family accepted the Flying Sword order from the Chen Family, and there are only three days left. A full fifty Medium Grade Flying Swords! As an Artifact Refiner who just advanced, even if he doesn't eat or drink, how could he possibly gather them in such a short time?"

"If we breach the contract, not only will we have to pay double the deposit, but the Lin Family's reputation will be destroyed!"

The atmosphere in the hall was oppressive. Several stewards lowered their heads, not daring to provoke him.

Fifty Medium Grade Flying Swords—that was a task that would require the Family's several veteran Artifact Refiners to work together for months to barely complete. How could Lin Ze dare to take it on alone?

Just then, a hoarse voice came from outside the Affairs Hall.

"Third Uncle, why are you angry? It is merely fifty Flying Swords."

Everyone turned around suddenly.

Lin Ze was wearing a green long robe, his long hair tied casually behind his head with a straw rope. There was fatigue under his eyes, but his gaze was shockingly bright.

"Lin Ze, you have come out of seclusion?"

Lin Changyun rushed up, his voice trembling, a final glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"That order..."

Lin Ze didn't waste words.

He walked to the center of the hall, directly unbuckled the Storage Pouch at his waist, turned his wrist, and poured it downward.

"Clatter."

Accompanied by the sound of metal colliding, the air in the entire Affairs Hall instantly turned cold.

It wasn't the temperature dropping, but Sword Qi.

A full fifty Flying Swords hung uniformly in mid-air, sharp Sword Qi intertwining, forcing several stewards with lower cultivation to retreat repeatedly, feeling pain on their faces.

Lin Changyun's eyes widened in shock. He trembled as he reached out, gripped the hilt of one of the Flying Swords, and probed with his Divine Sense.

"Water cloud patterns, perfectly compatible, Spiritual Qi conduction without any obstruction. The Materials have been purified to this extent?"

He looked up suddenly, staring fixedly at Lin Ze, his voice sharp.

"Did you refine all of these alone, and are they all Top Grade among the Medium Grade?"

"I have not failed the mission."

Lin Ze said faintly, pulled over a wooden chair to sit down, and finished the cold tea in one gulp.

"Third Uncle, go and deliver the goods. If the Chen Family wants to inspect, let them look at the blade inscriptions. With this batch of goods, not only will we not breach the contract, but we can also sell them a big favor."

"Good, good, good."

Lin Changyun was so excited his face was glowing red.

This was no longer a junior; this was simply the Family's cornucopia.

...

Night fell.

Lin Ze returned to the secret room. He didn't take the shock in the Affairs Hall or the Family's rewards to heart; worldly praise was merely fleeting.

What he was truly looking forward to was what he had kept for himself.

The fifty Flying Swords delivered to the Family were just leftovers. The boutique pieces refined with cold iron essence and blue crystal sand king were lying quietly in another Storage Pouch.

Lin Ze took a deep breath, sat cross-legged, formed hand seals, and gave a low shout.

"Out!"

"Clang, clang, clang."

Twelve clear sword hums exploded in the secret room.

Twelve Flying Swords, connected head to tail like twelve deep-sea Dragons, circled around Lin Ze.

But this was not enough.

Lin Ze's eyes sharpened, and he pointed his sword finger at mid-air.

"Main Formation eye, appear."

A long sword broke out from his body; it was his natal Flying Sword, the Canglang Sword Array main sword, which he had been nourishing for a long time.

"Formation rise."

The "Canglang Sword Array," this incomplete sword array obtained from a ruin after a near-death experience, could only exert a fraction of its power before because it lacked the support of secondary Formation eyes.

Today, it finally welcomed the moment of complete Formation.

The twelve transparent Flying Swords felt the main sword's summons and hummed, instantly turning into twelve streams of light, precisely embedding into the Formation nodes around the main sword.

Boom!

The Spiritual Qi in the secret room went into turmoil. The invisible water-attribute Spiritual Qi, under the guidance of the sword array, turned into a blue raging tide.

The roaring sound exploded in Lin Ze's ears.

He waved his sword finger.

"Go!"

The sword array vortex suddenly shrank, turning into a blue aurora, instantly piercing the second-grade Low Grade blue gold stone target used for testing Spells in front of the secret room.

The "Canglang Sword Array" secondary Formation eye was completely formed.

Lin Ze looked up, his gaze piercing through the stone wall, looking toward the distant Inner Sea.