Chapter 1206: Chu Xiang Refines the Cauldron

"Alright, prepare the tools and begin!"

Igniting the earth fire, seeing Chu Xiang startled and somewhat dazed, Zhang Xuan frowned and said.

"Yes!"

Being able to reach the Saint Domain Third Layer at such a young age and being a七星 Alchemist, on the surface he appeared frivolous, but in reality he was anything but simple.

Taking a deep breath, he quickly calmed his mind.

"Young man, rest assured, I'm not bragging to you. If you strictly follow the master's instructions, Old Ding here will be perfectly fine and will even increase in rank..."

Seeing Chu Xiang hesitant, the Golden Origin Cauldron let out a loud laugh.

Hearing this, Master Lin Jie and President Qin exchanged glances, each filled with worry.

Was this cauldron overly optimistic or just brainless... Such refining would cause a drop in rank as a minor issue; the most important thing was that your consciousness might be utterly destroyed...

Was he really not worried at all?

"Yes!"

Chu Xiang responded, then turned to look over: "Master Zhang, may I ask what ore is to be fused..."

"Here!"

With a flick of his finger, a stone flew over.

"This..." His pupils contracted, Chu Xiang staggered again: "Golden Crystal Mystic Stone?"

The Golden Crystal Mystic Stone was extremely precious; fusing even a little could greatly enhance a weapon's power... Even in the Title Empire, it was a very rare and peculiar ore. He never dreamed that the other party would casually produce it.

"This thing is very difficult to melt, isn't it..."

President Qin frowned.

Although the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone was scarce, as the president of the Alchemist Guild, he had ways to obtain some, but... this substance was extremely hard to melt. Even with the earth fire in this hall, melting it would require considerable effort.

If it couldn't be melted, how could it be fused into a weapon to improve quality?

"The earth fire of the Qianchong Empire should be able to melt it without difficulty, but here..."

Master Lin Jie shook his head.

Although the earth fire in this refining hall was the hottest, compared to that of the Qianchong Empire, it was still inferior. Refining the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone might not be so easy.

Just as they were wondering how he would melt it, they heard the young man give an order, and then saw the lid of the Golden Origin Cauldron open, directly swallowing the ore.

"This..."

Blinking, Master Lin Jie slapped his thigh, his eyes shining: "Why didn't I think of that? The cauldron to be refined is a vessel cauldron. Although the earth fire's temperature is limited, with the power of this mid-grade saint artifact, it becomes even hotter... Melting it alone would be difficult, but placing it inside makes it easy. However..."

"However what?"

"However, while this can melt the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone, it has a flaw: the divine sense cannot enter it to detect when it is fully melted. If the timing is off, whether too early or too late, it will greatly affect the forging of the weapon..."

Master Lin Jie said.

With the earth fire burning and the cauldron's enhancement, the temperature inside the cauldron could even melt the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone, but if divine sense entered, it would surely be burned! Without entry, it was impossible to determine the state.

For a high-quality ore like the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone, the duration of fire exposure during forging had a significant impact. Sometimes, a difference of one or two breaths could lead to failure.

"Indeed... Not only that, this cauldron has been burning in the earth fire all along. If the timing goes wrong, not only would the ore be wasted, but it could also lose its optimal structure, causing a drop in rank..."

President Qin also understood.

This cauldron itself was formed from many ores and metals, having achieved a special balance, which kept it stable at the mid-grade saint artifact level.

Now, with continuous burning in the earth fire, this balance was easily broken. Coupled with the uncertainty of when the Golden Crystal ore would melt... this refining method, while solving the problem of insufficient earth fire temperature, increased the difficulty several times over.

Just as the two were worrying, they heard the young man's calm voice continue.

"Move two steps forward, channel true qi toward the northeast, use the Three-Leaf Refining Method with a flick of the finger, and open the cauldron lid!"

His voice carried a special rhythmic fluctuation of masterly instruction, without hesitation or doubt, concise and forceful like a military command.

Hearing the words, Chu Xiang strictly followed, moving two steps and flicking his finger sharply.

With a clatter!

The cauldron lid instantly opened, and a mass of golden liquid flew out, suspended in midair.

"Melted? And just melted, with an error of no more than a tenth of a breath. This..."

His pupils contracted, President Qin was full of disbelief.

He had just said the timing was hard to grasp, and the other party had determined it precisely, without a hair's breadth of error... How was it done?

"It combined the earth fire formation. Chu Xiang's forward movement altered the formation's structure, and channeling true qi into the northeast instantly raised the flame temperature. Then he used the Three-Leaf Refining Method... You should know this technique: each finger strike is faster than the last, the force is fierce, and importantly, it compresses the flame to a point, making the temperature more concentrated and intense... Combined with the formation change, this instantly melted the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone... This refining method, this calculation... too precise, too terrifying!"

Realizing this first, Master Lin Jie clenched his fists.

Although it was just a short sentence, it involved mastery of formations, earth fire temperature, ore melting point, true qi properties, and even refining techniques! Only with a clear calculation of all these aspects could one achieve such pinpoint accuracy.

Not to mention a Six-Star Alchemist; even he, a quasi Eight-Star, could not accomplish this.

The amount of calculation in that instant... was simply too terrifying!

"Move three inches left, raise the forging hammer, strike the cauldron mouth using the Willow Leaf Falling technique, forge one hundred and forty-eight times, one strike every three breaths, no more, no less, at a steady pace, and then..."

The young man's words continued.

Then came the clanging sounds of striking.

"Marvelous... too marvelous!"

After watching for a while, Master Lin Jie suddenly exclaimed.

"Master..." President Qin was puzzled.

"Your cultivation level is insufficient; you can't see the issue... The Willow Leaf Falling technique is the most basic forging technique. It sounds unremarkable, like a willow leaf falling slowly and evenly... But used here, it's incredibly clever. This cauldron, just heated by the earth fire, is also on the verge of melting. Using a too-fast or too-forceful technique would cause internal cracks. These cracks, though small, would reduce its quality. But with this technique, such problems don't occur; it even makes the texture denser and increases its power..."

Lin Jie's eyes reddened.

The guidance of the young man before him turned the ordinary into the miraculous. Using the simplest forging technique, he enabled the cauldron to better fuse with the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone liquid.

Clang, clang, clang!

After Chu Xiang struck one hundred and forty-eight times, he finished forging the mouth of the Golden Origin Cauldron. Then, following Zhang Xuan's instructions, he turned the hammer in midair and struck the cauldron's legs.

"Why not strike the body directly? What's the point of striking the legs?"

President Qin was still puzzled.

Normally, when forging a weapon, striking in order would make it more stable. Just finishing the mouth and then directly striking the legs... the跨度 was too great!

"This..."

Master Lin Jie also frowned, unable to figure it out.

Buzz, buzz, buzz!

Just as they were wondering, they heard the cauldron suddenly emit a dull sonic wave, like surging waves.

"This... I understand!"

Hearing this, Master Lin Jie suddenly realized.

President Qin quickly looked over.

"This is the Tide Forging Method... It is said to have been created by an Eight-Star Alchemist who heard the sound of the tide. After striking the mouth, then the legs—the two farthest apart—when struck, they produce a special resonance, like the tide... In this way, the Golden Crystal Mystic Stone on the cauldron's body can be fully fused without forging, without damaging the previous structure, and even improving it. Most crucially, through this tidal vibration, the spirituality within is also refined, becoming stronger... Too amazing, too amazing! How did he come up with this?"

The more he spoke, the more astonished he became. Master Lin Jie felt he could barely keep up.

The Tide Forging Method was very obscure; even he had rarely used it. He never dreamed it would be applied here...

There were many forging techniques, but using the right one not only allowed better fusion of various metals but also greatly benefited the spirituality within.

Many people used high-quality ores to improve weapon quality, making the weapon stronger and tougher, but the spirituality did not increase much... It was like a small ox pulling a large cart, which might not be good for the weapon's overall power.

The young man before him used the Tide Forging Method at a critical moment, precisely solving this problem.

Not only did the weapon improve greatly, but its spirituality also increased... killing two birds with one stone!

"To guide someone else in refining and still consider this... What level of mastery in forging must one achieve to do this?"

Previously, he thought that guiding someone else to refine would be extremely difficult to succeed. Now it seemed... success was ten to one!

The other party's understanding of forging was far deeper than his.

They were not even on the same level.

After watching for a while, he grew more and more astonished.

Every step of Master Zhang's guidance was as precise as meticulously crafted heavenly work, without any flaw or error. Even though he was not the one acting, he still accounted for the other's strength and true qi properties.

At first, he could understand the forging methods, but as time passed, there were many he could no longer comprehend.

Upon careful thought, he could figure them out, but... by then, the other party had already employed countless techniques, dazzling and overwhelming.

After an unknown amount of time, with a loud roar, Chu Xiang, following Master Zhang's instructions, stepped back a few paces.

Rumble!

Then, everyone in the refining hall felt a magnificent aura surge upward, and the sky suddenly darkened.

"It's the Emergence Tribulation..."

Their bodies tensed, and everyone's face changed color.