My Artifacts Can Upgrade Infinitely

In the forest, a great battle had come to an end. Shen Yunjiao withdrew her longsword; the instant it pierced him, she had channeled her strength to shred Lin Hao’s heart.

"Was he the one behind the attack on you?"

Zhao Zuo swiftly snatched the Storage Bag from Lin Hao’s waist. He then used a few Cleaning Talismans to tidy the area and scattered a powder to mask the scent from Spirit Beasts. Shen Yunjiao, meanwhile, placed Lin Hao’s corpse into her own Storage Bag.

"Lin Hao. Zhao Qingmeng’s full brother," Zhao Zuo said after they finished cleaning up, taking out a Healing Elixir and swallowing it.

"That poor girl," Shen Yunjiao remarked with a sigh.

Once everything was taken care of, the two began their retreat.

"Lin Hao?" Zhao Zuo questioned.

"Zhao Qingmeng," Shen Yunjiao replied, rolling her eyes. Perhaps it was because she was a woman, and one who had also experienced great suffering, that she felt such a strong connection to Zhao Qingmeng.

Zhao Zuo said no more. The day’s battle had shaken him, especially since he hadn’t even found an opportunity to use his trump card, the Soul-Shaking Bell.

The two moved quickly, returning to the core district of the Moyun Market in about half an hour. Some of Zhao Zuo’s wounds had already closed, but many others were still seeping blood. Fortunately, he had managed to circulate his Qi Blood to slow the flow.

"I’m going to treat my wounds," Zhao Zuo said.

"Alright. I’m going to change my clothes as well."

In the washroom, Zhao Zuo removed his Taoist Robe. He first used a Cleaning Talisman to remove the bloodstains from his skin, then took out a potent Golden Wound Medicine to apply to his injuries. A stinging pain shot through him as the powder made contact with his wounds, causing fine beads of cold sweat to break out on his face.

Zhao Zuo gritted his teeth and continued to apply the Golden Wound Medicine to stanch the bleeding.

After this simple treatment, he sat down on the floor and took out a Healing Elixir, swallowing it.

As his body absorbed the elixir’s power, a cooling sensation spread across his surface wounds. Inside his Dantian, the Source Water Bead was also at work, helping to repair his injuries.

After being strengthened several times, both the Source Water Bead and the Huayang Bead had reached the threshold for advancement. To advance, however, required five Spiritual Objects of the same type. Advancing the Huayang Bead would cost roughly 1,700 Spirit Stones. The Source Water Bead, on the other hand, was a prized possession among many female Cultivators.

As a result, its price was even higher; advancing it would cost around 2,500 Spirit Stones.

’No matter what realm I reach or what power I command in the future, combat will be unavoidable. That makes items for post-battle recovery all the more crucial. But the Huayang Bead, which enhances the absorption of Pill Medicine, is also extremely important... so it needs to be advanced as well.’

’The two Spiritual Objects together would require around 4,300 Spirit Stones.’

’On this trip down the mountain, my Storage Bag contains the Lower Grade Magical Artifacts I’ve forged recently—236 in total. Selling them all should net me 3,700 Spirit Stones.’

’I can’t advance both at the same time. I’ll have to choose the Huayang Bead, which is more important for my Cultivation right now. Besides that, my Sky-Breaking Saber is also due for an upgrade.’

’The materials needed are the Spirit Core of a One Tier Demon Beast and Wind Shadow Iron.’

A Spirit Core is an energy core nurtured within a Demon Beast’s brain. Not all Demon Beasts possess a Spirit Core; it is more like a unique energy organ. A Demon Beast with a core will be a cut above others, but that’s the extent of it.

Only when a beast is advancing to the Third Tier does a Spirit Core slightly increase the rate of success.

In the hands of Artifact Refiners and Alchemists, Spirit Cores are considered high-end materials. A wide variety of Magical Artifacts and Spirit Pills can be created from them, depending on the attribute of the Demon Beast they came from.

Since the formation of Spirit Cores is completely random, their prices are consistently high. Even a basic One Tier Spirit Core costs around 1,000 Spirit Stones, while a Second Tier core can go for as much as 10,000!

After about four to six hours, Zhao Zuo opened his eyes. Most of his wounds had already healed, and the deeper ones had scabbed over. Still, he would need another three to five days of rest to fully recover.

Zhao Zuo stood up and washed away the lingering scent of blood with hot water and soap. He then used a Cleaning Talisman to dry himself before changing into a fresh Taoist Robe.

An occasional movement would still send a stinging pain through his wounds, and his Qi Blood felt somewhat depleted.

In the dining room, Shen Yunjiao had already prepared dinner. Despite having been in the same battle, she showed no signs of weakness. In fact, her aura felt even deeper and more powerful.

"Are your injuries serious?" Shen Yunjiao asked casually, gesturing for Zhao Zuo to sit down and eat.

"Not too serious. A couple of days’ rest should do it. But... I really underestimated him."

Zhao Zuo sighed. His journey had been too smooth so far, and he’d rarely been forced into a difficult battle. The Sky-Breaking Saber usually delivered a killing blow on its first strike. This string of easy victories had, without him realizing it, made him conceited. Even knowing his enemy was an expert at the Late Period of Qi Cultivation, his first thought had been, ’I can beat him.’

"Even if I hadn’t ambushed him, you still would have won in the end," Shen Yunjiao stated matter-of-factly. "By then, you were both exhausted, but you clearly had the upper hand. Besides, Lin Hao’s arm had already been crippled."

"That may be true, but it wasn’t the outcome I wanted," Zhao Zuo said, picking up some stir-fried bamboo shoots with his chopsticks. To him, it wasn’t an honorable victory.

"You fought against the odds and came out with this result. That’s already impressive. You don’t need to be so hard on yourself."

Shen Yunjiao looked at the dejected Zhao Zuo, her tone becoming increasingly gentle as she comforted him softly.

"I know, I know... I’m just reflecting on it. I hope to do better next time."