Chapter 41 Artifact Refining

Li Yao felt a chill in his heart as he caught the hidden meaning behind Zhang Chong's words. The other party held deep concerns regarding the factions of the Holy Lord and the Supreme Lord, fearing they might pressure him into surrendering the God-Trace Purple Gold.

"I am enjoying the benefits of belonging to a major power, so I suppose I cannot escape the drawbacks either. What a load of utter nonsense!"

Li Yao did not think Zhang Chong was making a mountain out of a molehill. Within major powers, such dark affairs were far too common. Given the slightest opportunity, internal factions would gladly seek to eliminate Ji family's little moon. Ye Fan's immense kindness toward the Jiang family—even gifting them a seed of the Undying Medicine—did not stop greedy individuals from coveting his tripod.

As the forest grows large, all sorts of birds appear. There are the vicious and ruthless, those who repay kindness with enmity, and those devoid of human conscience—every type exists.

The Flawless Heaven Holy Land was particularly notorious for this, riddled with conflicting factions alongside the hidden influence of the Ruthless Emperor's lineage. Although Li Yao was backed by the Rising Sun Divine Island and under normal circumstances would not lose the God-Trace Purple Gold, who could guarantee what the future might bring?

Even Zhang Chong was subtly advising him to quickly utilize the God-Trace Purple Gold, as doing so would, to a certain extent, curb the greed of others.

"Can this really deter the covetous desires of others?" Li Yao felt far from confident in his heart, for he had no faith in human nature.

Human hearts were the most complex and changeable of all. When profits grew to a certain scale, many people would subconsciously choose to forget the risks involved.

"However, there is at least some good news at present. I won't end up like Ye Fan, hunted across the entire world by people eager to seize my treasures."

Sometimes reality is precisely this contradictory. While the Flawless Heaven Holy Land brought pressure upon Li Yao, it simultaneously erected a towering wall around him, shielding him from external perils.

Though there were those within the Holy Land who coveted immortal gold, they would never tolerate outsiders casting greedy eyes upon it. Anyone daring to stretch out a claw would instantly face the wrathful thunder of the Flawless Heaven Holy Land.

The Flawless Heaven Marketplace spanned over two hundred miles from north to south and three hundred miles from east to west, encompassing numerous trading districts. Among them was one designated as the Weapon Refining Workshop.

Right beside it stood another district brimming with rich medicinal fragrances. A gentle breeze swept through, carrying the scent of alchemy; merely inhaling it was enough to invigorate one's spirit.

These two districts were built adjacent to each other, and their locations were chosen with deliberate purpose.

Beneath both workshops lay an eternal, ten-thousand-year vein of underground fire. Capitalizing on this geological feature, the Flawless Heaven Holy Land established the weapon refining and alchemy workshops side by side.

Upon arriving at the Weapon Refining Workshop and standing outside its entrance, Li Yao was immediately struck by an intensely terrifying wave of scorching heat.

"Senior Brother," the guards at the entrance greeted him respectfully the moment they spotted him.

Li Yao nodded slightly in acknowledgment and asked, "I wish to use a weapon-refining chamber. How should I pay the fee?"

"There is no need. As an elite disciple, Senior Brother is entitled to use the refining chambers free of charge," one of the disciples hurriedly replied.

Li Yao was momentarily stunned. He had not anticipated such perks. It seemed the distinction between elite disciples and ordinary disciples went far beyond cultivation resources and scriptures, extending significantly into various other privileges as well.

"Senior Brother, this is currently the weapon-refining chamber with the finest fire vein energy. Here is the room's token," the disciple said, handing over a piece of jade plaque.

Li Yao accepted it and glanced down. At the top of the jade plaque was carved the character for "Heaven," and directly beneath it was the number eleven.

"Heaven Grade, Room Eleven." Li Yao turned the jade token in his hand, looked at the disciple, and said, "Many thanks."

The weapon-refining chambers were divided into four tiers: Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow, arranged from bottom to top. The Heaven-grade chambers were located on the lowest level.

Upon entering the refining chamber, the ambient temperature escalated by yet another notch. As Li Yao descended further, the rise in temperature became even more pronounced.

Fortunately, this level of heat was still within Li Yao's capacity to endure.

Unlike the Fire Domain, these refining chambers were reinforced by arrays established by powerful masters, which insulated against the extreme heat of the fire vein to a certain degree.

Moreover, the flames here were vastly inferior to those in the Fire Domain. Leaving aside the core flames of the Fire Domain, this place probably could not even compare to its sixth layer.

Before long, Li Yao reached the Heaven-grade section and located the heavy stone door bearing the number eleven.

Cast from ancient rock, the door was exceptionally thick. Due to years of continuous exposure to high temperatures, the surrounding walls were immensely hard, fully capable of withstanding the attacks of cultivators in the Other Shore realm.

Next to the door was a recessed indentation whose shape matched the jade token perfectly.

Li Yao placed the jade plaque into the indentation. A faint glow flickered within, and instantly, ancient runes carved into the stone door began to shimmer with flowing liquid fire, resembling molten lava that quickly spread across the entire surface of the stone gate.

*Crack!*

A soft sound echoed as the stone door lifted, and an overwhelming wave of scorching heat surged toward his face.

Retrieving the jade token, Li Yao stepped inside the refining chamber. Two breaths later, the stone door behind him descended with a deep, rumbling thud.

The refining chamber was compact, measuring roughly one and a half丈 (approximately five meters) in length and width, and nearly two 丈 (nearly seven meters) in height. Right in the center of the chamber was a well-like pit about two feet across. However, instead of water, the bottom of the pit contained a terrifying mass of roaring flames.

Li Yao walked over to the edge of the fire well. The intense thermal energy caused a tingling sensation across his skin. If not for his exceptionally formidable physical body, he would truly have been in grave danger right now; even so, his entire body burned with pain.

A brilliant divine radiance burst forth from within his body, shielding his physical form, and instantly the burning pain subsided significantly.

As rolling waves of heat assaulted him, Li Yao's jet-black hair whipped wildly around him. He crossed his legs and sat down, placing the jade token neatly before him.

This jade token was forged from an unknown material and refined by powerful experts, rendering it impervious to fierce flames.

The well had been crafted by masters of the Flawless Heaven Holy Land; not only could it channel the energy of the underground fire vein, but it could also amplify the might of the flames.

The jade token served not only as the key to unlock the chamber but also as the core array token to control the fire well.

Li Yao retrieved a piece of divine source, crushed it directly, and extracted the fragment of God-Trace Purple Gold from within.

A dazzling purple radiance shone brilliantly, glowing with a mesmerizing hue. Though it was merely the size of a finger pad, its value was truly incalculable.

With a gentle sweep of his hand, Li Yao cast the God-Trace Purple Gold directly into the fire well, plunging it into the blazing inferno.

Yet, this was, after all, a sacred substance exclusive to a Great Emperor. Shrouded in swirling purple light, the flames licked against it, causing it only to stir slightly; softening it proved utterly impossible.

Seeing this, Li Yao began manipulating the jade token to intensify the fire. With a faint hum, the runes engraved upon the fire well lit up. As the underground flames surged through the well, their potency escalated once more. The scorching heat instantly caused a burning sensation across Li Yao's skin that his divine power could no longer fully isolate.

With no other choice, Li Yao had to ramp up his protective divine radiance to safeguard his body. Otherwise, though he might survive a short while, before the God-Trace Purple Gold even melted, he would likely be baked through.

Half a day later, Li Yao sat quietly cross-legged, manipulating the jade token to maintain the fire well's intense煅烧 (calcination) of the God-Trace Purple Gold.

His complexion, however, was pale. Having continuously exerted his divine power to the utmost to protect his body, his consumption had been astronomical; the originally abundant divine power within him was now more than half depleted.

A quarter of an hour later, Li Yao could finally sustain it no longer. He withdrew from the vicinity of the fire well, retreating to the edge of the chamber to begin recovering his divine power.