For exclusive access to 500+ advanced chapters and more, visit my Ko-fi page and support the journey:
ko-fi.com/laoyao95
Laoyao with L yeahh..thanks for the support.
or Support me at patreon for 500+ advanced chapters :
patreon.com/YaoIk
**
After obtaining what they desired, Mo Yu and his companions did not linger any longer. They headed straight to the first floor and then left the Weapon Refiner Trade Fair altogether.
Under Feng Mu's arrangements, Mo Yu moved into a small courtyard under the latter's jurisdiction.
The courtyard, situated in the heart of the city, was a prime location, conveniently close to the headquarters of the Weapon Alliance—an ideal place for Mo Yu to reside.
"Junior Brother, you can stay in this courtyard for now. Junior Sister Yingying, Master, and I live not far from here. If anything happens, we'll be able to respond quickly. Also, don't forget about the Refining Convention three days from now," Feng Mu remarked with a smile as he led Mo Yu into the courtyard.
"Thank you, Senior Brother Feng Mu," Mo Yu replied with a smile, clasping his hands together. At the same time, he felt a rising fondness for this nominal senior brother.
"Heh, we're family, no need to be so polite," Feng Mu said with a wave of his hand.
After leaving Mo Yu to settle in the courtyard, Feng Mu and Lan Yingying took their leave, leaving Mo Yu alone.
As night descended, Mo Yu eagerly closed the courtyard door and hurried into his room.
Inside, he stood by a table, on which lay the peculiar copper fragment he had recently acquired.
The fragment, yellowish in hue, was covered in green rust resembling coiled worms, obscuring some of the patterns etched onto its surface.
Narrowing his eyes slightly, Mo Yu pressed his fingers together, condensing a strand of Dou Qi at his fingertips into a fine needle.
Carefully, he inserted the needle into the green rust on the surface of the fragment. With meticulous effort, the rust began to flake off, falling onto the table.
Time passed unnoticed. After about half an hour, Mo Yu finally cleared all the rust from the fragment.
Once done, he curved his hand slightly, producing a suction force that gathered the green rust into his palm, forming a thumb-sized greenish bronze ball.
"As expected of an ancient artifact—it's extraordinary. But it still needs to be refined further," Mo Yu murmured, raising an eyebrow. Summoning a crimson thunder flame, he enveloped the green bronze ball within it.
With intense refining, after about ten minutes, the bronze ball began to melt.
As it melted, the greenish hue on its surface faded, revealing minute, pale yellow particles of dust that shimmered like fireflies within the flames. These particles exuded an intense sense of vitality.
After around two minutes, the dust extraction ceased. With the dust completely removed, the bronze ball disintegrated into nothingness.
Suspended within the crimson thunder flame were five particles of pale yellow dust, radiating a vibrant, almost spiritual glow, impervious to the flames.
"Spirit-Nurturing Dust!"
Mo Yu's eyes burned with excitement as he stared at the five tiny particles in the flames. A smile spread across his face as he laughed aloud.
From the moment he saw the copper fragment, he had felt it was familiar. Upon further contemplation, he realized it resembled an artifact Xiao Yan had stumbled upon in the original story—a treasure indeed.
That treasure was none other than Spirit-Nurturing Dust.
In ancient times, Spirit-Nurturing Dust was renowned. It was not only an essential ingredient for refining Eight-grade and higher pills, but also had the miraculous ability to nourish the soul, enriching its spiritual essence and enabling advancement into the so-called Spirit Realm.
The Spirit Realm was a state where the soul possessed a spiritual essence akin to that of high-grade pills. In both alchemy and weapon refining, weapons or pills beyond eighth-grade required this level of spiritual essence.
However, cultivating such spiritual essence required sufficient spiritual qi, which could not be sensed without specialized soul cultivation techniques.
Although Mo Yu's Divine Sky Soul Art had such capabilities, his strength was insufficient, and his absorption rate was exceedingly slow.
But Spirit-Nurturing Dust was different. As an ancient treasure, it could amplify the absorption of spiritual qi.
Moreover, in refining eighth-grade weapons, incorporating Spirit-Nurturing Dust could significantly enhance success rates and improve the final quality of the weapons.
Thinking of this, Mo Yu's eyes sparkled with anticipation.
The Refining Convention was only three days away. While he was confident in winning, the Dou Qi Continent was full of hidden talents. An unforeseen challenger could disrupt his plans.
With the Spirit-Nurturing Dust, Mo Yu now had an extra layer of assurance, increasing his chances of victory!
Excitement flickered in his gaze as he focused on the five pale yellow particles. After a brief moment of contemplation, he extended his hand, drawing one particle toward him.
Fixing his eyes on the tiny particle, Mo Yu slowly closed his eyes. A moment later, a suction force emerged, pulling the glowing dust into his forehead, where it vanished.
As the dust integrated into his forehead, Mo Yu's body trembled violently, his face tightening as a faint, stabbing pain coursed through his head.
Frowning deeply, he endured the pain. It felt as if the dust was a bullet piercing his soul, embedding itself within.
Fortunately, the pain was fleeting and gradually subsided.
Just as he exhaled in relief, he noticed an unusual fluctuation in the surrounding air.
Strands of a faint, mysterious energy seeped through the spatial fluctuations, slowly entering his forehead.
"Spiritual Qi!"
Mo Yu's eyes widened in surprise before quickly identifying the energy—it was indeed spiritual qi!
This spiritual qi was far more abundant than anything he had absorbed before. Delighted, Mo Yu immediately assumed a meditative posture, focusing on absorbing the qi while channeling the Divine Sky Soul Art to maximize the process.
Like primordial mist, the spiritual qi seeped continuously into his forehead.
The absorption lasted for three hours, during which the pale yellow particle gradually dimmed and ceased emitting energy. Clearly, the effects of the Spirit-Nurturing Dust were not infinite.
As the dust disintegrated, the strange suction force dissipated, and the surrounding spiritual qi vanished.
However, Mo Yu instantly felt an overwhelmingly powerful energy surging into his soul, rapidly enhancing its strength.
At the same time, his soul's intensity increased dramatically, as if it had consumed an incredibly potent elixir.
With his soul power skyrocketing, Mo Yu felt a mounting pressure in his forehead. He hadn't anticipated the dust's amplification effect on his soul to be so astonishing.
Upon reflection, it made sense—while his Divine Sky Soul Art absorbed spiritual qi slowly, years of accumulation had left his soul rich in latent potential.
With the catalysis of the Spirit-Nurturing Dust, Mo Yu's soul power soared to a new level!
As his soul power rapidly strengthened, a trace of delight surfaced on Mo Yu's face. He could distinctly sense that the surrounding energy of heaven and earth seemed to be stirred by some mysterious force.
Amid the turmoil, wisps of an extremely faint yet profoundly memorable airflow quietly seeped out of the void, surging into Mo Yu's body like an unstoppable tide.
As this special energy integrated with him, Mo Yu's soul power climbed higher and higher. Finally, it reached its peak and stabilized.
"Half-step eighth-grade!"
His tightly shut eyes snapped open, and upon sensing his current soul power, a look of elation appeared on Mo Yu's face.
Who would have thought that just one grain of Spirit-Nurturing Dust would bring him such tremendous gains? With half-step eighth-grade soul power, coupled with his superb refining techniques, refining eighth-grade weapons would no longer be beyond his reach!
With this breakthrough, he now possessed the qualifications to truly contend for the championship! This realization sparked a rare trace of ambition on Mo Yu's usually composed face.
Seventh-grade marks a master, while the eighth-grade signifies a grandmaster! Though only a single tier apart, the gap between these two levels is immense, a nearly insurmountable chasm.
Take Elder Zhu Jian, for example. While still referred to as a "master," he had actually reached the level of an eighth-grade grandmaster. However, out of habit, people continued to address him as Master Zhu Jian.
In terms of reputation, Master Zhu Jian was famous throughout both the Western Region and Central Plains. Even the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion and the Jade Sword Sect held him in high esteem, showcasing the immense influence of an eighth-grade weapon refiner.
If it weren't for the fact that the old patriarch of the Golden Warhorse Clan had past dealings with She Lao, they likely wouldn't have risked offending Master Zhu Jian to shield Mo Yu.
Now that Mo Yu had reached the eighth-grade refining level, even super powerhouses at the Dou Zun rank would have to treat him with courtesy. With this new identity, Mo Yu began harboring even greater ambitions.
Relying on his eighth-grade refining skills and the extensive forging knowledge accumulated in his past life, he believed he could bring the Weapon Alliance under his control!
Although the Weapon Alliance paled in comparison to the Pill Tower in terms of heritage, scale, and organizational strength, it was undeniably a faction brimming with potential.
If he could take control of it, Mo Yu was confident that by transforming the Weapon Alliance into something akin to the refining sect from his previous life, it wouldn't take more than ten years for the alliance to rival the influence of the Pill Tower. In the future, it might even compete on equal footing with the Yao Clan, one of the ancient eight clans.
Under Mo Yu's leadership, perhaps weapon refiners could rise to the same esteemed status as alchemists on the Dou Qi Continent!
With the Weapon Alliance's cooperation and support, Yuan Manor could establish itself more firmly in Central Plains and quickly grow into a first-rate power on the continent.
However, such plans were premature at the moment. As long as Master Zhu Jian remained a hindrance within the Weapon Alliance, it would be impossible to bring it under his command.
Before that could happen, Mo Yu needed to first win the championship of the Refining Convention and obtain the high-ranking position of Honorary Elder within the Weapon Alliance. Afterward, he would have to eliminate Master Zhu Jian.
After mulling over the plan for a moment, Mo Yu buried it deep within his heart. Stretching lazily, he stood up.
It had to be said—the trip to the Weapon Refiner Trade Fair had been immensely rewarding.
Not only had he befriended the formidable Tie Jian Zun Zhe, but he had also obtained the ancient Spirit-Nurturing Dust, an invaluable aid to soul cultivation.
Taking out another grain of Spirit-Nurturing Dust from the remaining four, he stored the other three in his Beast Ring. This item's ability to absorb spiritual energy was simply too valuable for Mo Yu.
However, Mo Yu sensed that his current soul power had already reached its limit at the half-step eighth-grade, thanks to years of accumulation with the Divine Sky Soul Art. To push beyond into the eighth-grade would require even greater effort.
Thus, it was wiser to reserve the remaining Spirit-Nurturing Dust for more critical uses. After all, it might become essential for enhancing weapon refinement in the future.
Right now, Mo Yu needed the Spirit-Nurturing Dust for an urgent task.
With that thought, Mo Yu's finger brushed over the Beast Ring, and a massive, terrifyingly sharp, yet damaged heavy sword appeared in his hand.
This sword was none other than the personal weapon of Tie Jian Zun Zhe.
Running his hand over the cracks on the blade's body, Mo Yu retrieved several refining materials, including the recently acquired piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Azure Spirit Wood.
Sitting cross-legged on the stone platform, Mo Yu adjusted his Dou Qi briefly before exhaling a long breath. He murmured to himself, "With my current refining skills, repairing this damaged heavy sword shouldn't be an issue.
But with the Refining Convention fast approaching, I don't have enough time to fully repair this sword. For now, I'll have to rely on a grain of Spirit-Nurturing Dust to accelerate the process."
Mo Yu had a faint feeling that something unexpected might occur during the tournament.
At that time, he might need Tie Jian Zun Zhe's assistance. Therefore, it was crucial to repair the heavy sword in advance. With Tie Jian Zun Zhe's character, as long as Mo Yu restored his sword, he would undoubtedly repay the favor.
With this thought, Mo Yu stretched out his hand, pulling the various materials toward him. With a wave of his hand, the materials floated in midair.
Taking a deep breath, he flicked his fingers, sending the materials into the refining furnace. As his hand seals shifted, the crimson thunder flames within the furnace flared up intensely.
The process of repairing the heavy sword had begun...
------------------------------------------------------
For exclusive access to 500+ advanced chapters and more, visit my Ko-fi page and support the journey:
ko-fi.com/laoyao95
Laoyao with L yeahh..thanks for the support.
or Support me at patreon for 500+ advanced chapters :
patreon.com/YaoIk