152: The Principles of Lingbao Mountain, Preparation for the Third Level

"Snowy Mei, naturally intelligent and possessing extraordinary Comprehension Ability, caused the second-tier Magical Artifact, the Illusion Heart Bell, to develop a rudimentary spirit, becoming a High Grade Magical Artifact. She is thus ranked first with an assessment score of ninety-eight points!"

Next, Old Man Fuyun looked at Chen Cuo, intentionally or unintentionally. In truth, Chen Cuo's Artifact Refining had no flaws whatsoever; in fact, it could be called perfect.

"Chen Cuo, second place. The Magical Artifact he refined, the Five Elements Glazed Lamp, is a second-tier High Grade Magical Artifact that can channel the power of the Five Elements. His Comprehension Ability is exceptional, and he independently improved the rune engraving of the Five Elements Glazed Lamp, adding defensive effects. The Artifact Refining process was seamless, truly perfect. However, it was too mechanical, and the Magical Artifact did not develop a spirit, hence he is ranked second with an assessment score of ninety-seven points."

Old Man Fuyun looked at the Five Elements Glazed Lamp in his hand. He personally evaluated this treasure. As long as Origin Qi was injected, activating the rune's function, the glazed lamp could adapt to its surroundings and execute Five Elements Evasion.

In an instant, it could escape over ten miles.

It could be called a Divine Artifact for escaping. This treasure, from its appearance to its specific function, rune inscription, and refining steps, was all perfect. Categorizing it as a second-tier High Grade Magical Artifact was completely accurate!

It was a flawless perfection, not like Artifact Refining, but rather like meticulously carving a work of art.

And such perfect Artifact Refining appeared too mechanical. This is not to say it's bad; it just means that if Chen Cuo wanted to, every Magical Artifact he refined could achieve such perfection.

It was like the copy-and-paste of an assembly line from his previous life!

The System panel's function was precisely this. He learned the refining method for the Five Elements Glazed Lamp in a short time, relying on the System's insight. His proficiency was very high, as if it had become a fixed skill.

And for the assessment, it was also his first time refining, so failure was not an option!

Of course, he could only refine it exactly as instructed, so the final result was this: he only got second place in the second assessment!

Strictly speaking, Chen Cuo had not yet deeply grasped Lingbao Mountain's Artifact Refining philosophy.

Lingbao Mountain values the spirit of a Magical Artifact more than its inherent quality. However, these two Artifact Refining characteristics are not directly proportional; they can only be described as two aspects required for Artifact Refining.

Artifact Refining is the creation of life; the spirit of a Magical Artifact is its life. The refining of a Magical Artifact is the birth of a new life.

Moreover, the Illusion Heart Bell refined by Snowy Mei publicly produced an unusual phenomenon and even received a response from the Sounding Artifact Stele!

Chen Cuo's Five Elements Glazed Lamp was merely of excellent quality, reaching the Realm of a second-tier High Grade, but it was very lacking in terms of spirit.

Given this, if she didn't get first place, it would be unreasonable.

However, these are all minor issues. The refining of Magical Artifacts is influenced by many factors. A good Magical Artifact might be the result of a sudden flash of inspiration.

Artifact Refining experiences like Chen Cuo's, where success is guaranteed from the start, are very rare among common Artifact Refiners. With the System panel, once his proficiency was sufficient, he was naturally an Artifact Great Master.

As for the cultivation of spirit in Magical Artifacts, Chen Cuo also had research on it, and the simplest method was blood refining!

Especially for a Martial Artist like him, using this method to refine Magical Artifacts also has a high probability of nurturing a Magical Artifact's spirit, because a Martial Artist's blood contains spirit, which is Martial Dao spirit.

This naturally gives an advantage for nurturing a Magical Artifact's spirit.

Snowy Mei should not have used this method. She likely used magical power as a medium to communicate with the Magical Artifact's spirit, and during this process, the Illusionary Crystal Crown definitely played a huge role.

After two meetings, Chen Cuo already had some guesses: the other party should be Cultivating a Cultivation Technique related to illusion arts.

As for why a Disciple from Icy River Valley would Cultivate an illusion-type Cultivation Technique, Chen Cuo was very interested.

"Zhang Zhao, third place. Exceptionally talented, soul and artifact united, easy for artifacts to develop a spirit... assessment score ninety-two!"

The subsequent scores were already a clear drop from Chen Cuo and Snowy Mei. Ling Bu Zi scored ninety points. The Lingchan Twins made a mistake in the final Fusion step of the Concentric Lock, causing their scores to be significantly discounted, neither reaching ninety points.

Mu Erhun was even worse. When he refined Qi, he could only use his specialty, refining Puppets. This Puppet was only first-tier, and strictly speaking, it did not belong to the Magical Artifact category but was a type of Puppet doll, ranking eighteenth on the Sounding Artifact Stele.

Don't let the high ranking fool you; its function was very simple.

Its purpose was to scout! He was severely targeted, only getting seventy-nine points!

But at least he made it to the third round, and his score was sufficient to enter the third round.

Seventeen advanced to seven!

The successful qualifiers were Snowy Mei, Chen Cuo, Zhang Zhao, Ling Bu Zi, the Lingchan Twins, Mu Erhun, and another Qi Refining Realm Disciple named Li Hao. This person refined a first-tier High Grade Magical Artifact, the Qiankun Pearl!

It was actually a rare space-type Magical Artifact, which could be used for storage. This Disciple actually had spatial talent, immediately causing the four lower-ranked individuals to feel a great sense of crisis!

"Next, you will have three days to recover your Origin Qi, and then the third assessment will take place, which is the final competition for True Disciple. You all should do your best!"

Old Man Fuyun, with his immortal demeanor, flicked his whisk and floated away.