The Science of Cultivation

Li Lang didn’t linger on the topic of whether his artifact spirits were once Qi beasts for long. He could investigate the matter later once he managed to create his first artifact. For now, the significance of the matter didn’t affect anything relating to his plans.

Now armed with the knowledge imparted by his artificer teacher, Tie Qian, Li Lang no longer hesitated and began crafting the printer that had been in his mind for years. For the first prototype test, he made generous use of the advanced equipment in his lab to produce the base components. He wanted to test what would happen during an attempt to birth an artifact spirit while within Ruby first before working towards simplifying its production process.

Ruby had said it wasn’t possible to simulate an artifact spirit within her realm, but he believed it should still be able to tell whether his attempts succeeded or not. It just meant it wouldn’t result in the actual creation of a new spirit, and he could still practice his methods within the artifact space.

With the automated modules of his powerful 3D printers available, the body of the talisman printer was quickly created within his lab.

He had adjusted the design to accommodate a beast core and channeled his artifice techniques in an attempt to create his first artifact. Unsurprisingly, his first few attempts failed before he got too far. He was unaccustomed to the process, so it was more of a learning experience than anything.

Days passed as he continued to make his attempts. With each failure, he inched closer to his goal.

He began with a standard printer, but slowly, the small changes he made added up, and it became increasingly complex. However, he hadn’t succeeded even once, with the resulting printer always producing results that only retained the appearance of a talisman, but none of the substance that made it work.

That all changed three weeks into his research.

With numerous attempts under his belt, and an expert like Tie Qian as his consultant, Ruby’s artifact space finally reacted in a new fashion upon completing the printer.

Upon reaching the penultimate step of inserting the beast orb, the entire printer shone with a bright white light. It only intensified when Li Lang then invoked his techniques to finish the process.

The luminosity of the light kept climbing until it began to flicker, as if it had hit a limit. Then, a loud shattering sound rang out before the light entirely disappeared.

“That’s new. Do you have any idea what happened, Ruby?” Li Lang asked.