Chapter 34: Opening the Furnace
Chi Yantian held in a breath and strode at the very front.
The artifact-refining office had long been without human presence, carrying an inexplicable desolation and silence. But that atmosphere was soon broken by Chi Yantian.
He suddenly threw himself in front of a worktable, trembling hands holding up a lump of mud with a blurry shape. Quivering, he said, “This, this is...”
Yu Qingtang leaned over for a look and suspected Chi Yantian had fallen under an illusion, and that what Chi Yantian could see was different from what he could see.
Otherwise, no matter how he looked at this oddly shaped handful of mud, it did not look like treasure.
“This is an artifact embryo!” Chi Yantian seemed afraid they would not understand, gesturing wildly with his hands. “Before artifact refiners open the furnace, they all have to first create an artifact embryo. At this stage, none of the rare heavenly treasures have been added yet. What’s inside is the artifact refiner’s most original concept!”
Ye Chenyan raised an eyebrow. “Then the one in your hand is the embryo of what?”
Chi Yantian: “Uh.”
Ye Chenyan lifted his chin slightly, amusement gathering in his eyes. “Oh—”
Chi Yantian was about to get angry, but Yu Qingtang had already covered Ye Chenyan’s mouth and comforted him. “Maybe it’s some lost artifact. It’s also possible that after so much time passed, it changed shape, so it’s normal not to recognize it right away.”
A hint of approval entered Chi Yantian’s gaze as he looked at him. “You do have some judgment after all!”
Yu Qingtang coaxed him. “There are still several more embryos over there. Go take a better look.”
Chi Yantian rushed over eagerly.
Ye Chenyan’s mouth was covered by him, and he obediently did not make a sound. Only his lively eyes still glanced down at Yu Qingtang’s hand, signaling for him to let go.
“You really know how to coax people.” Ye Chenyan moved closer to glance at the magical artifact embryo, then withdrew his gaze with little interest.
“Of course.” Yu Qingtang completely failed to hear the implication in his words and sighed deeply. “Can you boys stop fighting and killing all day long...”
After he finished speaking, he paused, revealed a terrified expression, and abruptly turned around to pat his own face.
This was bad. He had gotten too deep into the role. He had even said “you boys.”
Once the Golden Core Competition ended, he had to hurry and change back into men’s clothes. Otherwise, who knew what kind of aftereffects might appear?
Yu Qingtang’s gaze turned firm. For some reason, he sensed a certain crisis.
Chi Yantian bounded up and down excitedly, making a full circuit through the main hall of the artifact-refining office before returning to their side with his brows tightly locked.
“What?” Ye Chenyan raised an eyebrow. “You couldn’t tell what any of the embryos were?”
“That’s not it. Some were still well preserved, and I could make out the initial artifact-refining ideas. I’ve already put them away.” Chi Yantian made no effort to hide that he had gained something. Folding his arms, he looked gloomy. “I just find it strange. What exactly happened to Sage-Hearing Academy back then?”
“Judging by the remaining traces, this place was extremely prosperous back then. There were at least a hundred artifact refiners, not to mention disciples coming and going to study. It must have been bustling.”
He lifted his head, as if gazing across the river of time at the once-lively scene here, with voices everywhere and metal ringing against iron. That made him even more regretful. “Everything was left lying around at random. Unless the situation had been urgent, no artifact refiner would ever throw a half-finished artifact into molten iron and leave.”
“At the time, what kind of emergency could it have been?”
“I don’t know either.” Yu Qingtang also lifted his head and answered with great sincerity.
He really did not know.
Back then, he had insisted on finishing the book partly because the story itself was fairly exciting. The early part had also buried plenty of foreshadowing, making the later plot seem very promising.
Who could have guessed that some foreshadowing stayed buried for a lifetime?
Yu Qingtang was rarely sighing along with someone when Ye Chenyan suddenly turned his head. “What’s that sound?”
The two people immersed in emotion both froze and looked toward the gradually growing CLACK-CLACK sound. All they saw was the Blazing Rhinoceros’s backside.
Yu Qingtang described it objectively. “It seems to be eating. Eating quite happily.”
Ye Chenyan added to the description. “What it’s eating also seems quite hard.”
Chi Yantian was shocked. “Stop! Flamelet!”
Yu Qingtang and Ye Chenyan leaned to one side and watched the show, watching Chi Yantian fly into a rage and discipline his son.
Yu Qingtang even had the leisure to comment, “Shouldn’t that be ‘shut your mouth’?”
Chi Yantian possessed brute strength, and even pressing down the Blazing Rhinoceros, a demonic beast likewise famous for brute strength, took him no effort at all. He directly pried open its mouth to check. “What did you eat!”
He nearly shoved his entire head into the Blazing Rhinoceros’s mouth. Only after seeing clearly did he let out a breath of relief. “It’s fine. It ate some ore containing fire essence.”
Yu Qingtang’s eyes widened. “Huh? Generally speaking, that should count as a problem, right?”
“Blazing Rhinoceroses feed on volcanic rock to begin with.” Chi Yantian waved a hand. “This fellow was spoiled rotten by me. That’s why it wants to eat immortal grass and meat too.”
Yu Qingtang’s expression turned odd. So this brother here, though he looked rough-skinned and thick-fleshed, could actually still count as a pampered little princess among the Blazing Rhinoceros race?
“Uh...” Chi Yantian scratched his head. “But there were originally quite a few unusual ores here, and it ate a good number of them. You two can divide the rest. They should be worth a decent amount of spirit stones.”
He stood, inhaled through his nose with intoxication, and said, “Deeper inside, there seems to be a secret chamber with additional restrictions.”
“The most important room in an artifact-refining office ought to be the private refining room of some artifact-refining grandmaster! I’ll go find a way to open it!”
Yu Qingtang did not have time to stop him and could only turn back to look at Ye Chenyan.
“Let him go.” Ye Chenyan shook his head, amused. “It’s his opportunity too.”
He crouched down and picked through the pile of ore, frowning in difficulty. “I can’t tell good ore from bad either. How should we divide this?”
Yu Qingtang was extremely generous. “Put it with you first. After we get out and exchange it for spirit stones, we’ll split it.”
“All right.” Ye Chenyan laughed and put them away. From that side came a loud crash, along with Chi Yantian’s cheer. “It’s open!”
The two quickly hurried over. In front of the artifact-refining room, smoke and dust filled the air. Chi Yantian’s face was covered in black ash, but he smiled wide enough to reveal a mouthful of white teeth. “The furnace fire inside still hasn’t gone out! A furnace fire that has burned for a thousand years—this fire must have a remarkable origin!”
“Mm-hm.” Yu Qingtang was too embarrassed to ruin his excitement, so he handed him a handkerchief. “Wipe yourself first.”
Chi Yantian took the handkerchief and excitedly started wiping the furnace.
Yu Qingtang: “...”
Ye Chenyan suddenly leaned his face over. “Hey, did I get ash on this side too?”
Yu Qingtang leaned closer to look. “Where?”
He lifted his sleeve and wiped Ye Chenyan’s face for him. “It’s pretty clean.”
Ye Chenyan’s eyes abruptly widened.
Behind them, Chi Yantian shouted again. “Hey, those ores from earlier, lend them to me first. After we get out, I’ll repay you tenfold—”
Ye Chenyan whipped his head around and directly sent the ores flying at his forehead. “Take them and shut up.”
But Chi Yantian’s mouth was not going to shut today. Even after being hit, he showed no restraint at all. He rubbed his hands together excitedly. “Today really is an unexpected opportunity sent down from heaven!”
As he spoke, he looked at the other two and became somewhat embarrassed. “But you two can only take a few ores. This really is...”
His eyes lit up. “How about this? I’ll use this furnace fire from a thousand years ago to temper your magical artifacts for you!”
Yu Qingtang turned back. “Huh?”
There was such a good thing?
If he agreed too quickly, would he seem extremely unreserved?
Chi Yantian picked out two fiery red ores and held them up in front of him. “Give me your qin. I’ll temper it for you once. In the future, when you play it, it’ll be able to spray fire!”
Yu Qingtang’s smile slowly vanished. “...Actually, maybe forget it.”
“I suddenly remembered this qin was passed down from my ancestors, and it has restrictions on it. It probably can’t be altered.”
Chi Yantian froze. “If it has restrictions, then indeed...”
Yu Qingtang pointed at Ye Chenyan. “Go to him. Change his spear into one that sprays fire!”
Ye Chenyan’s eyes widened slightly. “This spear of mine...”
“That spear of his isn’t suited to spraying fire.” Chi Yantian once again picked through the pile of ore on the ground, then took out some ores from his own storage ring. “But that spear of yours really should be tempered again.”
When he spoke of artifact refining, his logic became clear and confident. “You can’t tell from the outside, but its interior is already damaged. If it isn’t repaired soon, I’m afraid it’ll break before this Golden Core Competition ends.”
Ye Chenyan took out the silver battle spear, lowered his head, and gently rubbed it, his expression somehow a little nostalgic.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Chi Yantian said casually. “Aren’t all you Guiyi Sect people sword cultivators? Why do you use a spear?”
“Cough.” Ye Chenyan touched his nose. “Young vigor. I argued with someone out of stubbornness.”
Chi Yantian did not ask further. He reached out and took the silver battle spear, then waved a hand to tell them to go out. “I’m going to refine an artifact. Stand farther away.”
“Don’t damage it.” Ye Chenyan looked at the door and smiled. “Careful, or I’ll blow up your Heavenly Fire Cult.”
Chi Yantian scoffed. “Absolutely impossible!”
Yu Qingtang asked, “Is damaging it impossible, or is blowing up Heavenly Fire Cult impossible?”
“Both are impossible.” Chi Yantian sat down cross-legged. The black ash on his face had not been wiped away, but he looked especially focused and solemn.
Ye Chenyan said nothing more. He pulled Yu Qingtang outside the door and sat down cross-legged as well. “We’ll trust him this once.”
Yu Qingtang copied him and sat cross-legged. Ye Chenyan propped his chin on his hand and looked over, suddenly laughing. “Can you sit still? Don’t let your legs go numb again...”
Yu Qingtang’s movement paused. He pulled his legs back out and changed into a relaxed posture, leaning against the door. He absolutely would not engage in pointless bravado.
According to the original plot, Ye Chenyan had indeed changed spears.
The silver battle spear had broken in the Ancient Academy Realm. The new spear later on had been given to him by Tu Jiaojiao, and Yu Qingtang did not know whether Chi Yantian had helped forge it.
Now...
If the silver battle spear was tempered again and could accompany him longer, that should also be a good thing.
Yu Qingtang secretly looked at him. “You treasure that spear a lot.”
Ye Chenyan lowered his eyes, his knuckles lightly tapping his knee. He originally did not want to say much, but Yu Qingtang was looking at him with eager eyes.
“This is my first spear.” He also leaned back against the artifact-refining room door. “When people enter Guiyi Sect, they all first use mortal iron swords. Only after passing the disciples’ competition can they go to Sword Valley and choose their own sword.”
“All inner disciples are qualified. It’s both people choosing swords and swords choosing people.”
He lowered his head, tossed the ore in his hand, and smiled with deliberate ease. “I had just argued with the Discipline Elder and said I wasn’t going to learn the sword anymore, so of course I didn’t go choose a sword either.”
“But Little Junior Sister refused to accept that. In the middle of the night, she secretly took me past the restrictions to go choose a sword. Guiyi Sect values swords. If there really was a sword that was of one heart with me, then the rice would already be cooked, and no one could stop it.”
Ye Chenyan closed his hand around that piece of ore, his brows lowered. “But I walked through Sword Valley three times, and not a single sword came for me.”
“Later, Master found an old friend and had this spear forged for me.”
He turned his head to look at Yu Qingtang, a bit of unwilling stubbornness hidden in his eyes. “Since it was willing to leave with me, I’ll take it all the way above the nine heavens.”
Yu Qingtang’s eyes widened slightly. Carefully, he reached out and lightly tugged Ye Chenyan’s sleeve, just about to speak.
Both of their expressions changed at the same time.
A wave of heat surged from behind them. Ye Chenyan grabbed Yu Qingtang and threw himself outward.
“Ow!” Yu Qingtang rolled once on the ground.
Fortunately, the two of them were alert. The moment they sensed the heat, they rushed out. Otherwise, right now they would have been clutching their backsides and yelling that they had been burned.
The artifact-refining room’s doors stood wide open. The black ash covering Chi Yantian’s face could not hide his glowing delight. He shouted, “It’s done!”
“Opening the furnace—”