"Xiao Wenbing, these ninety-five fellow Daoists are all renowned and recognized master craftsmen on Tianding Star. Add to that the five of us old fellows, and we make a total of one hundred. Do you think that's enough?"
He reached out and pulled out a hundred jade slips, handing them all to Hewlett-Packard, saying, "Please distribute them to everyone, one for each person. Refine them according to the instructions. I'll come back after they're all finished."
He turned back towards the hut, but as he approached the door, he suddenly turned around and said, "Please leave as soon as possible. If the entire product fails because of a defective part, that would be a laughing stock."
Volume Four: The Divine Artifacts Chapter 167: One Hundred Jade Slips
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Seeing this young Golden Core cultivator enter the thatched hut, most of the hundred or so weapon-crafting experts wore unfriendly expressions. What kind of talk was that? It was utterly condescending!
He took in the expressions of everyone at Huipute and couldn't help but shake his head inwardly. However, he also knew that before witnessing Xiao Wenbing's methods, it was absolutely unimaginable to convince everyone.
However, HP smiled slightly, confident that once the weapon forging was successful, they would definitely look at Xiao Wenbing with new respect. He was absolutely certain of this.
HP lowered his head, casually flipped through the jade slip in his hand, and couldn't help but let out a soft "hmm".
After a long while, he finally sighed and understood why Xiao Wenbing wanted to seek the help of a hundred weapon-refining experts and why he wanted him to distribute these things.
These one hundred jade slips each contained detailed instructions on how to refine an item. With his discerning eye, he could tell at a glance that none of these items were simple.
Crafting these items is not only quite difficult, but also takes a long time.
If someone were to actually start the furnace and refine them, it would be impossible to refine all of these items in less than several decades.
Another point is that among these jade slips, there are a few that are extremely difficult to obtain, and even one's own brothers wouldn't dare to guarantee success on the first try.
Xiao Wenbing handed the jade slip to me because he wanted to use my expertise to allocate the materials. Otherwise, if the most difficult blueprint were given to the person with the least cultivation level to refine it...
Well then... just wait, it will take at least eight or ten years before you see even a trace of the finished product.
After reading through all the jade slips, HP finally looked up and saw countless eyes staring intently at him.
"Senior brother, it's been half a day already," Hui Ming gently reminded Yi Di.
"Ah..." HP realized then that he had been so engrossed in looking at the blueprints that half a day had passed without him noticing. Luckily it was him; if it had been someone with less status or prestige, the crowd would probably have already started jeering.
However, when facing the First Elder of the Jade Cauldron Sect, although the followers were dissatisfied, very few dared to show it without any scruples.
HP blushed slightly, and a thought flashed through his mind as he reviewed the personalities and manufacturing skills of everyone present.
Then, the old Taoist priest casually distributed the jade slips in his hand.
After receiving the jade slip, everyone, though inwardly disdainful, still subconsciously looked down at it. After a moment, when they looked up, their faces showed considerable surprise, with the three Tribulation Transcending stage seniors looking utterly incredulous.
Yan Min hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Are these jade slips really from that little guy's hand?"
Each of them was a master craftsman. A glance at the jade slip revealed that these items were unheard of and never seen before; mastering them would be no easy feat. Judging from their expressions, each person's task was undoubtedly challenging. It was almost unbelievable that such things had been designed by a junior Golden Core cultivator.
HP gave a wry smile and said, "Actually, I really wish it was me who drew these things, but the truth is the truth, and I don't have that much ability."
Upon hearing his self-admission of inferiority, the expressions on everyone's faces changed slightly again, and they truly put away some of their contempt.
Yan Min looked up at the Ancestral Master's House, and there was no longer any contempt in his eyes.
"Alright." HP shouted, "We've got the goods. I've already prepared three hundred superior cave dwellings. Fellow Daoists, choose one you like. If anyone needs help, just let me know. Materials and everything else are provided. Hmm... three months, I'll meet here after three months. If anyone makes a mistake, we can wait another three months."
Upon hearing this, everyone dispersed, most of them taking their most capable disciples with them to focus on refining the material.
They were extremely cautious. They gave it their all, yet not a moment could be spent on something else.
Although HP's old tricks sound nice, if there's a pickpocket, they'll have to wait another three months.
However, if he were to fail in front of so many of his peers, leaving ninety-nine people waiting for him alone, he would have no face to stay on Tianding Star any longer.
Therefore, during this month, the Jade Cauldron Sect was bustling with activity, full of energy and thriving.
Three months later, when Xiao Wenbing opened the thatched hut again, a full one hundred strangely shaped magical artifacts of various forms were placed outside the door.
It must be said that when Xiao Wenbing walked out of the ancestral hall this time, everyone's attitude towards him was quite different.
After the intense three-month refining process, everyone sat down to discuss and share their experiences. Almost everyone discovered that they had gained something new from the refining process.
This is simply unimaginable. You have to understand, these people are all well-known experts on Dingxing.
Tianding Star is a place widely recognized as the premier weapon-refining holy land in the cultivation world. To make a name for oneself here means to be renowned throughout the entire cultivation world.
And it was these master weapon refiners who, in these three groups, discovered some new methods of weapon refining.
Each jade slip that Xiao Wenbing took out contained some differences from the contemporary weapon-refining techniques.
In other words, the refining methods and techniques described in the jade slip often have unexpected changes in a certain specific step. This is a brand new model, a change they never thought of. Because of this slight difference, the finished product has changed slightly from what they expected.
This seemingly insignificant change made the entire refining process more than twice as complex.
They were all masters of Taoist arts and crafts, and naturally had a deep thirst for knowledge about things they didn't understand. However, after discussing and deducing from various sources, they only grasped about half of the effects of those new techniques, and the other half remained a mystery to them.
Even the five old guys at the Tribulation Transcending stage, led by Master Huipu, were shocked by that novel idea when they were refining it. It wasn't until they finally succeeded in refining it that they could barely deduce the use of these things based on their nearly 1,000 years of experience and insights in weapon refining.
The results they obtained were even more astonishing.
Such an ingenious idea, all created by one person, even if they don't want to admit it, they are actually already convinced.
So when Xiao Wenbing came out, he saw a hundred smiling faces.
"Fellow Daoist Xiao, everything is here. Please inspect it," said the old Daoist Hewlett-Packard solemnly.
Xiao Wenbing responded politely, bowed deeply to everyone, and said, "Thank you all, seniors."
Unexpectedly, everyone, including Yan Min, returned the greeting. These people had completely regarded him as an equal, or even a higher-ranking person.
Xiao Wenbing didn't stand on ceremony. He stepped forward, picked up a finished product, examined it carefully, and after a while, frowned.
An old Taoist priest in the crowd was immediately alarmed. This item was the one he had crafted. If Xiao Wenbing were to publicly say that it was substandard, he would truly lose face.
Xiao Wenbing stared at it for a long time before finally letting out a deep sigh.
The old Taoist priest trembled, as if all eyes were on him. Just the thought of losing face in front of so many people made his vision go black, and he almost became the first cultivator in the Separation and Union stage to die from a ruptured cardiovascular vessel.
Xiao Wenbing shook his head and said, "This item is exceptionally well-made. If every item were of this quality, then this crafting project would be 80-90% successful."
The old Taoist's eyes suddenly lit up. What did this young man just say? Excellent...
He let out a deep sigh, then stared intently at Xiao Wenbing. If it was refined so well, why did you make that expression just now? It was truly terrifying.
Xiao Wenbing was naturally unaware of the old man's change of heart. He picked up another item, looked at it for a while, and casually praised it a few times.
He took one item after another, occasionally offering a casual comment, but every comment hit the nail on the head. By the time he took the last item, the expressions of the many cultivators were filled with deep admiration.
Even the Hewlett-Packard brothers sighed, admitting they couldn't match that level of insight.
No matter how hard they racked their brains, they couldn't understand why Xiao Wenbing, with his current cultivation level, would have such insight. His performance had far exceeded the limitations of his age.
This level of insight and discernment is something that an ordinary cultivator over a hundred years old could never possess.
Of course, if they knew that Xiao Wenbing was actually only around thirty years old, it would be even harder for them to believe it.
Little did he know that Xiao Wenbing's casual remark was actually the Mirror God's evaluation of these items. Of course, Xiao Wenbing wouldn't simply copy it verbatim, because the Mirror God's words were mostly derogatory. A perfectly good item, in its eyes, would have seventeen or eighteen flaws, turning into trash that even a beggar wouldn't want.
If these words were spoken aloud, I estimate that half of the hundred or so people here would hang themselves, 20% would jump off buildings, 20% would take drugs, and as for the remaining 10%, they would probably pick up weapons and declare war on themselves.
However, occasionally, the Mirror God would mercifully say a few good words. For the Mirror God to praise something, it must be an exceptionally outstanding achievement, the most prized masterpiece of the refiner. So every word made them feel comfortable to the core, but it also made them secretly admire Xiao Wenbing's discerning eye.
Volume Four: The Divine Artifacts - Chapter 168: The Artifact is Complete
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After examining all the items, Xiao Wenbing simply asked the Mirror God a single question in his mind: "Are these things finished?"
"It's done! I never expected this..." Mirror God let out a long sigh.
"Can't think of what?" Xiao Wenbing asked in surprise. Didn't you say it was done? How could you not think of anything?
"I didn't expect there to be so many experts in weapon crafting in your field."
Xiao Wenbing was taken aback and snorted inwardly. This was the Jade Cauldron Sect, a place recognized by the cultivation world for refining weapons. If there were no weapon-crafting masters here, then there were even fewer in other places.
Having received the Mirror God's reply, Xiao Wenbing ignored its sentiments and arranged all the items in a certain order. Then, he flicked his finger, and an ordinary spiritual power, without any special characteristics, emanated from his hand and touched the array eye of the first magic artifact.
A faint ray of light appeared, gradually growing larger. A faint spiritual energy shone along a certain path onto the second magical artifact. Then, one after another, until all one hundred magical artifacts were connected by spiritual energy, a strange change suddenly occurred in front of the thatched hut.
All the magical artifacts simultaneously emitted a dazzling light, spreading towards the endless sky until they formed a large sphere of light covering an area of several feet in diameter.
The sphere of light was so large that it enveloped everyone inside, and each person inside could clearly feel a peaceful and serene atmosphere.
Their souls seemed to be cleansed by a magical power, and their consciousness seemed to be able to perceive every change in the world.
Even in their meditation, they might not be able to achieve such harmony with this world.
At that moment, everyone understood. They had succeeded.
No explanation was needed; firsthand experience spoke louder than any words. They already knew that the magical artifact had been successfully crafted.
"Amitabha!" HP exclaimed, bowing deeply to Xiao Wenbing, and said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, your merits are immeasurable."
"Infinite Heavenly Venerable".
In an instant, everyone under the light screen clasped their hands and looked at Xiao Wenbing with delight.
Xiao Wenbing returned the greetings one by one. He said loudly, "This magical artifact can calm the mind and stabilize the spirit. It has unparalleled benefits for the mental cultivation of cultivators. Why don't we call it 'The House of Tranquility'?"
Everyone nodded in agreement and praised the move.
As Xiao Wenbing looked around, his eyes suddenly lit up. Among the hundred people, he recognized one of them. He smiled slightly.
Elder Huifeng, hiding in the crowd, had remained silent out of shame. Now, his face flushed, and he was about to step forward when Huipu suddenly said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, I have a few questions. Please enlighten me."
The old man's gaze kept drifting back and forth in the light screen, sometimes frowning in deep thought. Finally, he couldn't hold back any longer and asked the question.
The room fell silent, everyone waiting for Xiao Wenbing's reply.
They all knew that Hewlett-Packard's question was definitely about the creation of this calming chamber.