My Artifacts Can Upgrade Infinitely

Zhao Zuo felt as if a star had exploded in his head, his mind going blank for a moment. All his previous theories had been completely overturned by her death.

’Why did she kill herself?’

’Wasn’t she the type to abandon everything just to live?’

’And she just died? Like that?’

Zhao Zuo had never imagined things would develop this way. He wasn’t some peerless, master strategist, after all. He had considered numerous responses, but Zhao Qingmeng’s suicide wasn’t one of them.

There had to be a solid reason for her suicide. Unless... she died to protect an accomplice. But if her entire persona had been a disguise, then who could possibly be so important that she would give up her life to protect them?

Or perhaps... the price she’d paid was far greater than he knew.

Zhao Zuo stared at Zhao Qingmeng’s corpse, lost in thought. Memories of her flashed through his mind as he searched for any possible inconsistencies.

In a way, her death brought the matter to a close.

Without her, Zhao Zuo had no other leads, and thus no reason to go to the Punishment Hall.

He didn’t leave right away. The moment Zhao Qingmeng died, he was already embroiled in trouble. After only a dozen breaths or so, someone descended on a sword through the dense fog, landing beside the corpse.

She was a Female Cultivator in a pale blue dress. Her figure was slender and her face an elegant oval, its lines smooth and symmetrical. Her features were delicate and well-defined, and her eyes were as bright as a clear spring.

For some reason, Zhao Zuo felt a strange sense of familiarity from her—not because of her appearance, but because of her indistinct aura and build.

She first bent down to examine Zhao Qingmeng’s corpse, then used her Mana to perform Refinement on the Storage Bag. Her movements then faltered for a moment.

The Storage Bag was empty except for an Identity Token, as if everything else had been deliberately hidden away.

After her inspection, she quickly approached Zhao Zuo and spoke.

"I am a disciple of the Inner Sect’s Punishment Hall. My name is Hua Qingge."

Hua Qingge took a blood-red Token from her Storage Bag. Its face was carved with the image of a long, straight Blood Sword, while the back bore the word "Moyun" encircled by auspicious clouds.

Within the Moyun Sect, Outer Sect Disciples carried common iron Tokens, Inner Sect Disciples had silver Tokens, and the most esteemed True Disciples possessed golden Tokens.

There were also several special Tokens: the cyan identity plates of Alchemists and the orange Tokens of Artifact Refiners.

And then there was... the blood-red Token, which represented the sect’s law-enforcement authority. Legend said... the Blood Sword was the personal artifact of a past Moyun Sect ancestor, graded as a Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact.

"Senior Sister Hua." Zhao Zuo bowed. ’Someone died in broad daylight within the Inner Sect’s grounds. Regardless of the deceased’s identity, it’s bound to trigger an investigation from the Punishment Hall.’ He had already figured as much.

"I’m going to use the Heart Inquiry Skill. Do not resist," Hua Qingge instructed, her voice devoid of emotion, her tone strictly professional.

"I know," Zhao Zuo agreed with a nod, raising no objection.

The Heart Inquiry Skill was a Secret Technique that acted on the spirit. It wasn’t particularly powerful, and failure wouldn’t cause significant harm. However, it had a high requirement for one’s Divine Soul strength; it could only be used successfully if the user’s Soul strength was far greater than the target’s.

Hua Qingge pressed her palms together. The Mana from her Dantian slowly flowed into her eyes, lending the clean, beautiful orbs a violet tint that made them seem noble.

The next moment, violet light radiated from her eyes. Wisps of it settled on Zhao Zuo, and he felt a fragile restraint envelop his body. ’This must be the power of the Heart Inquiry Secret Technique.’

"Are you connected to her death?" Hua Qingge asked.

"Somewhat, but she killed herself," Zhao Zuo replied calmly, looking into Hua Qingge’s pale violet eyes. As he spoke, the restraints on his body remained unchanged.

"Did you drive her to kill herself?" Hua Qingge’s expression was unchanged as she continued her questioning.

"No."

"Did you threaten her into killing herself?"

"No."

Hua Qingge lowered her hands, and the invisible restraint instantly vanished.

"Explain your connection to her death."

Not daring to hide anything, Zhao Zuo quickly recounted his recent experiences and laid out his theory: that there might be a well-organized team behind Zhao Qingmeng.

"I will investigate this matter," Hua Qingge told Zhao Zuo. She then tossed out a silver longsword with her right hand, stepped onto its blade, and performed Sword Flight, disappearing into the nearby mist.

A Cultivator could perform short-distance Sword Flight upon reaching the Late Period of Qi Cultivation, but this required a specific Flying Sword. The price of a Flying Sword was equivalent to an Upper Grade Magical Artifact, making it a symbol of both status and wealth.

Only after reaching the Foundation Establishment Stage could a Cultivator fly freely using an ordinary Magical Artifact, and at speeds far exceeding the Late Period of Qi Cultivation. Covering thousands of miles in a single night was no issue at all.

Zhao Zuo glanced wistfully in the direction Hua Qingge had disappeared before stepping over to Zhao Qingmeng’s corpse. ’Judging by the blood loss... an injury like this is definitely fatal.’

But just to be sure, Zhao Zuo reached out and twisted the dagger a few times, completely scrambling the heart. At the same time, he unleashed a pulse of Fist Force from his right hand that obliterated her brain. Only then did he stand up.

’You wanted to kill me, so I’m killing you. Perfectly fair,’ Zhao Zuo thought.

After finishing, Zhao Zuo didn’t leave. He waited for a while until a menial disciple in gray robes came to collect Zhao Qingmeng’s corpse and clean the bloodstains from the ground.

Only then did he look away, heading up the steps and disappearing into the heavy mist.

The Identity Token in Zhao Zuo’s hand glowed faintly, and the surrounding mist quickly dissipated. A flight of white jade-like steps stretched down from above, leading to his feet. A few meters away stood a black boulder, about three meters tall.

This must be another maxim left by a past Moyun ancestor.

"All in the Moyun Sect must abide by the sect’s rules and protect the peace of the land."

Zhao Zuo shook his head slightly at the sight. The Moyun Sect of today was a far cry from its former self. At the very least, the sect didn’t care about the lives of the Loose Cultivators who depended on the Moyun Workshop; instead, it just exploited them.

With every step he took, the mist receded several meters around him. Before long, another stone bearing an ancestral maxim appeared before him.

"Never forget your humble origins; never bully the weak with your strength."

The maxims in the Moyun Sect’s Inner Sect conveyed more of the original ancestor’s ideals, and the aura emanating from the sword marks was far stronger than in the Outer Sect.

TAP.

Zhao Zuo took another step, and the dense fog rapidly dispersed, revealing a scene like a celestial paradise. Pure white Spirit Mist drifted in the air, moved by the wind—it was Spiritual Qi so dense it was nearly tangible.

In the distance, a path led toward the summit, flanked by various pavilions built into the mountainside. All around were the disciples’ Cave Mansions, each shrouded in dense fog.

Zhao Zuo followed the jade steps and soon found the Inner Sect’s Ministry of Affairs Hall. Compared to its Outer Sect counterpart, this place was much quieter. There were few missions posted on the Spiritual Jade wall beside it, and most of the combat missions required at least the Late Period of Qi Cultivation.

"I’m an Outer Sect disciple who just passed the assessment today."

Zhao Zuo found an unoccupied counter and took out the Identity Token from his Storage Bag—the one imbued with the Mana of the three Stewards—along with the Scroll bearing their signed seal.

The disciple on duty took the Scroll and Token and used a verification tool to check them.

"Inject your Mana into this Identity Token." The purple-robed young man behind the counter casually handed over a silver Token.

"Alright."

Zhao Zuo took the Token and injected his Mana. He immediately perceived a line of information within it.

[Name: Zhao Zuo]

[Identity: Earth Fire Hall · Inner Sect Disciple]

[Contribution: Thirty-four]

"Verification passed. Congratulations, Junior Brother, on becoming an Inner Sect Disciple." At this, Zhao Zuo immediately bowed in thanks.

"Junior Brother, the Cave Mansions for Inner Sect Disciples are divided into two grades. The first kind has denser Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power, but requires you to earn one hundred fifty Contribution Points per month. The second kind... has slightly weaker Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power and requires one hundred Contribution Points per month."

"I’ll choose the Grade A Cave Mansion with the denser Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power," Zhao Zuo said.

The one hundred fifty Contribution Points were more like a performance quota. Fulfilling it granted one the right of residence and the status of an Inner Sect Disciple. If someone failed to meet the Contribution Point requirement for several consecutive months, they would be stripped of their Inner Sect Disciple status.

Because of this system, the Moyun Sect wasn’t worried about people bribing a Steward to improperly become an Inner Sect Disciple.

.....