There's a saying in the world: "A great reward will surely bring forth brave men."
Unexpectedly, the cultivation world is the same. Ever since Xiao Wenbing took charge and established this novel reward and punishment system, the entire refining process has accelerated dramatically.
A large number of finished products converged on the main square of the Jade Cauldron Sect in the shortest possible time, at a speed that far exceeded anyone's expectations.
Not only that, they broke the record for the fastest speed in the cultivation world, but also maintained the highest quality.
Speed and quality have always been a difficult choice for weapon refiners.
To ensure perfect quality, it must be refined slowly and meticulously, like chewing food over a low flame, to achieve the best results. However, if the goal is to be achieved in a short period of time, then the control over quality can be much more relaxed.
This was a seemingly irreconcilable contradiction, but this time, under the rewards of the immortal artifacts and the penalties of prestige, all the participating craftsmen performed at an exceptionally high level. Within months, when all the finished products were laid out before Xiao Wenbing, his only assessment was: "So they had such great untapped potential..."
After receiving the promise to return, the happiest people were undoubtedly Quini and Shabir. Although the crisis in the Flame Realm had not yet been resolved, they were full of confidence in the future.
Especially after Xiao Wenbing's deliberate arrangement, and after they met the only divine treasure in the cultivation world, they no longer had any doubts.
After repeated, veiled urging from them, Xiao Wenbing finally lost his patience and assembled all the finished products, forming a strange cylindrical magical artifact. As the designer of the artifact, Xiao Wenbing personally named it "Five Elements Tunnel." This name was concise and straightforward, without any embellishment. Although everyone objected at the same time, it was ultimately decided upon due to the strong insistence of the artifact's owner.
The Five Elements Tunnel shimmered with intense five-colored light, so bright it hurt the eyes.
However, although its light was very bright, even far exceeding that of the Qiankun Ring, no one thought that its power could be compared with that of the Qiankun Ring.
Because the magnitude of power is not determined by its appearance.
Of course, a magic weapon crafted using tens of thousands of top-grade Five Elements Stones couldn't be too bad, especially since it was something Xiao Wenbing had painstakingly designed with the Mirror God's guidance; it was truly extraordinary. In terms of grade, it was already an extremely rare level ten magic weapon in the cultivation world.
When they saw the level 10 magic weapon appear in Xiao Wenbing's hands, all the participants were bathed in colorful light and couldn't help but feel refreshed and happy. They never thought that they would also be able to forge a level 10 magic weapon one day.
Xiao Wenbing, who designed this magical artifact, was even more impressed. His reputation as the number one master of artifact crafting in the cultivation world was truly well-deserved.
A few days later, Xiao Wenbing bid farewell to Hui Zhe and the others, and led the main force through the thundercloud storm once again to the Flame Realm.
Within the Fiery Realm, it remained desolate. Although the Tree of Life had temporarily preserved life, the planet still appeared utterly barren due to the influence of the thundercloud storms on the other side of the passage.
Upon arriving in the Flame Realm, everyone immediately began to get busy. Whether it was the Venerables of the three Holy Lands or the many immortals and elders of the Flame Realm, they were all assigned tasks by Xiao Wenbing.
Xiao Wenbing brought not only that level-ten magic artifact from the cultivation world, but also a large amount of materials, with the aim of establishing some special teleportation arrays.
Only by combining these improved teleportation arrays can the powerful energy in the thundercloud storm successfully pass through the "Five Elements Tunnel" and reach the Tree of Life.
Thus, the scene of massive weapon forging across Earth was once again staged in the Flame Realm. However, the difference was that in the Flame Realm, far more manpower was mobilized, and all participants did not need Xiao Wenbing's coercion or inducement; they all willingly and joyfully completed their assigned tasks.
Seeing the high level of enthusiasm among the group, Xiao Wenbing was greatly pleased. He distributed more than seventy teleportation arrays to everyone's locations, then gave some on-site guidance before returning to the temple to work on the energy conversion array.
However, wishes are beautiful, but there is always a gap between reality and ideals.
Half a month later, after hearing the news of the teleportation array's collapse for the fifth time, Xiao Wenbing could no longer sit still.
Emerging from the temple, he hurriedly and casually arrived at a construction site, carefully inspecting the quality of the work. Although Xiao Wenbing was certain of his good manners, he was still furious.
Who is in charge of overseeing the construction of this teleportation array?
Upon hearing Xiao Wenbing's icy voice and his furious gaze, no one dared to speak for a moment.
"What, is no one going to take responsibility?" Seeing their expressions, Xiao Wenbing became even more furious.
"Fellow Daoist Xiao." A voice as soft as a murmur rang in his ears.
Xiao Wenbing turned his head and saw Elder Yan cowering and calling out softly.
With a furrowed brow, Xiao Wenbing said, "What is it? Speak louder."
His status in the Flame Realm is now different. He can order around even immortals like Quini, let alone elders like Yan.
Elder Yan, with a pained expression, said softly, "This teleportation array is..."
"Who is it?" Xiao Wenbing said fiercely, "No matter who is in charge, I will not let them off easily. With such poor quality, could it be that they want to use someone else to kill me?"
The quality of this teleportation array can only be described as shoddy. It's utterly impossible for it to withstand the energy impact of a thundercloud storm. If the energy leaks out, the Flame Realm will suffer an unprecedented calamity. When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken; in that case, everyone will likely be implicated. That's why Xiao Wenbing was so furious; such an irresponsible person must be severely punished.
"Yes, yes..." Elder Yan looked embarrassed, and under Xiao Wenbing's sharp gaze, he finally stammered, "This teleportation array is in the responsibility of Fellow Daoist Xiao."
"What Fellow Daoist Xiao? Let him come and see..." Xiao Wenbing was taken aback. He glanced around and saw that although none of the demons dared to speak, their eyes were all very strange.
He reached out and pulled Elder Yan to a distance, then asked softly, "You said this is my responsibility?"
"Yes, Fellow Daoist Xiao, you even personally gave me guidance here."
"Is...is that so?"
"certainly."
Looking at the somewhat familiar scenery around him, Xiao Wenbing finally realized that Elder Yan was not lying. He laughed heartily and said, "Yes, yes, I was studying the energy conversion array in the temple for the past two days. I was so dizzy that I made a mistake, haha."
Elder Yan smiled and said, "Yes, thanks to Fellow Daoist Xiao for disregarding past grievances and lending a helping hand, we in the Yan Realm are deeply grateful and will never forget your kindness."
"Not at all," Xiao Wenbing said politely, then asked with a puzzled look, "Elder Yan, I remember you gave a demonstration before you left and laid out the basic framework."
"That's right." Elder Yan's expression was somewhat bitter, but he still answered truthfully.
"If that's the case, why is the quality so poor, and why did five out of the seventy-three teleportation arrays collapse one after another? This is..." Xiao Wenbing suddenly remembered something, paused slightly, and asked, "How does the quality of the other teleportation arrays compare to this one?"
"Well, the quality is actually all about the same."
"Almost? You mean all seventy-three teleportation arrays are this garbage?" Xiao Wenbing could no longer contain himself and shouted. If this teleportation array was only being done carelessly because he wasn't there to supervise it, then what about the other seventy-two? Were all the supervisors blind?
Elder Yan hesitated for a moment, then said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, please don't take offense. They have indeed done their best."
"Impossible. With their level of expertise in crafting artifacts, it should be easy for them to complete."
Elder Yan's expression changed slightly, and he said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, we are indeed not up to the task. This is the first time any of us have ever encountered such a complex building. The fact that we were able to build it is already a blessing from the gods..."
Xiao Wenbing was greatly surprised. Judging from Elder Yan's appearance, he didn't seem to be lying.
Just as he was pondering this, several dark figures flew in from afar; they were Long Shi and several elders from the three great holy lands.
Upon seeing Xiao Wenbing, Long Shi immediately exclaimed, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, you're not going to complete your mission."
Why?
Long Shi glanced at Elder Yan and said without any politeness, "What kind of people are the assistants you sent me? They call themselves experts in weapon crafting? Even I, an old man, am much better than them."
"You?" Xiao Wenbing looked at Long Shi, and after a moment, asked seriously, "Do you know how to forge weapons?"
Long Shi blushed and said, "Of course I know." However, under the watchful eyes of Xiao Wenbing and his companions, he finally coughed and said, "I know a little, barely..."
"I know a little, it's barely enough!" Xiao Wenbing drawled, "Elder Long, I've met those people in charge of weapon crafting in the Holy Temple. Their skill level is no less than that of our cultivation world. As for your skill level, well..."
Long Shi shook his head repeatedly and said, "Impossible. Old Long has some insight. Perhaps they are good at making small gadgets, but they are definitely not good enough to build these special large teleportation arrays."
"Ah..." Xiao Wenbing was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood. Long Shizhen's words had truly awakened him from his dream.
Due to the scarcity of materials in the Flame Realm, everything is used sparingly. The most common items crafted by those masters of artifact crafting are universal beads, and their skill in crafting such small items has truly reached its pinnacle.
However, they are unwilling to build any of the top-tier teleportation arrays that require a large amount of materials.
Lacking experience, their skills were inevitably rusty. And that was the biggest reason they failed to complete the task.
Volume 6 Scams and Deceptions, Chapter 10 Rescue
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Seeing that Xiao Wenbing was lost in thought and silent, Long Shi and the others wisely refrained from disturbing him.
After a long while, Xiao Wenbing sighed and glanced at everyone's faces. He understood that if he wanted to rely on them to build the teleportation array, who knew when it would be completed?
“I have already ordered a halt to construction in the area I am in charge of. What do you think?” Long Shi said.
“Sigh, that’s to be expected.” Xiao Wenbing shook his head silently and said, “Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. Everyone has different expertise, so we can’t blame them.”
“I know, but I’m not suited to be a supervisor. You should find someone more capable.”
Xiao Wenbing nodded slightly and turned to say, "Elder Yan, please give the order to temporarily halt construction in all areas."
"this……"
"Elder Yan, I don't want to waste the raw materials," Xiao Wenbing said solemnly.
Elder Yan said helplessly, "Yes, I will pass it on right away."
After Elder Yan left dejectedly, Long Shi asked, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, what do we do now?"
"What to do? Just deal with it..."
"Cold salad?"
"Well, I'll go find the one in white and try to solve this problem. You should inform the Venerables of the three holy lands to come to the temple to rest first."
“Alright, but…” Long Shi hesitated and asked, “Fellow Daoist Xiao, are you really going to discuss this with Palace Master Feng?”
"Of course, who else would we turn to?"
Watching Xiao Wenbing leave after uttering a single sentence, Long Shi scratched his head, utterly puzzled.
The power of heavenly thunder is indeed a super power unparalleled in the world, but it belongs to the category of powerful destructive energy. Throughout history, there has never been any record of the Heavenly Thunder Palace producing a master of weapon crafting. So why are they looking for Feng Baiyi? Are they asking her to build a house or to demolish it?
Could it be that the beautiful woman is actually a hidden master of unparalleled skill...?
Ignoring Long Shi's suspicious behavior, Xiao Wenbing went directly to the Holy Temple. He found Feng Baiyi and explained the current situation.
"You mean, we can't count on the weapon-crafting experts in the Flame Realm?"
"That's right. Such a large-scale teleportation array is extremely difficult to master. Unless you are a master who has been immersed in it for many years, it is absolutely impossible to master it in a short period of time."
"Are there really no talents in this field in the Flame Realm?"
"Hmm... In terms of exquisite craftsmanship, the average level of the Flame Realm is indeed above that of the cultivation world, but in terms of scale and grandeur, it is quite different." Xiao Wenbing gave a fair assessment: "In terms of height, size, depth, and completeness, the Flame Realm really lacks talent, or rather, no one has the opportunity to become talented."
"Could we cultivate some?"
"Yes, but we can't afford to consume that much."
Why?
“Materials, time… we don’t have enough materials and time for them to study.”
Feng Baiyi blinked her beautiful eyes and asked, "So you're planning to invite someone from the cultivation world?"
“Indeed, you understand me best, Baiyi.” Xiao Wenbing was overjoyed and said, “That’s exactly what I need you to do to help me pick up the person.”