The spiritual energy flow and restriction-interlocking designs involved in low-grade artifacts were not complex. For Shi Yu, it was all mapped out in her mind, requiring no extra effort to draw out design blueprints.
She concentrated the flames into a single point—scalding hot yet precise, wrapping tightly around the emerald python skin layer by layer as if guided by a mind of its own.
Although the hide had been soaked and tempered in the Slaughter Spring water, stripping away almost all impurities and raising its quality, it still required manual refinement. Otherwise, if forged directly into an artifact, the final product would inevitably suffer from unstable spirituality.
Seeing the python hide grow increasingly soft and resilient under the intense heat, Shi Yu seized the right moment. Using her spiritual energy as a blade, she sliced it into dozens of pieces along the hide's natural grain.
After refining each piece in turn, the next step was to inscribe the restrictions onto them.
Using her spiritual sense as a pen and spiritual energy as ink, she outlined the patterns stroke by stroke across the python hide's surface.
With each stroke, a subtle ripple of light shimmered across the skin, like gentle waves on the surface of a lake.
First was the Impact Dissipation restriction. Using fire to temper the patterns and patterns to channel force, this restriction focused on basic defense. Inscribing it was not particularly difficult, and she finished it in no time.
The Speed Augmentation restriction was far more intricate, requiring her to engrave extremely fine wind-spiritual patterns onto the hide to catch the subtle rhythm of flowing spiritual energy. Concentrating fully, Shi Yu condensed threads of spiritual energy at her fingertips, stitching the spiritual runes onto the python skin inch by inch. It took her a full two hours to complete.
Once these two restrictions were complete, she paused briefly to regulate her breathing before drawing forth the essence of Five-Elements Wood to resonate with the python hide's native Wood spiritual property, completing the third restriction: Growth.
The entire process took a full four hours. As the flames rose and fell, the python skin gradually shifted from emerald green to a deep jade hue, its scales shimmering with faint gold threads. Wrapped in flowing spiritual light, it had begun to take shape as an artifact vessel.
Shi Yu abruptly snuffed out the flames, leaving only a lingering thread of warmth around the piece, and exhaled softly.
Most of the work was done. All that remained was to bind the seam joints with prepared medicinal sap, pass it through the fire once more to refine it, and link the restrictions across every python skin segment so they would form a single, interconnected whole...
Two days passed like this, and a soft armor crafted from Wood-Seeking Python hide was nearly complete.
Over these two days, whenever her spiritual energy was completely depleted, Shi Yu would consume Life Spring water and Dew-Condensing Pills before meditating to recover.
This method of cultivating by exhausting and restoring her reserves slightly boosted her efficiency, though the empty, hollow feeling in her body after draining her spiritual energy was far from pleasant.
The instant the soft armor was fully formed, a wisp of treasure Qi emerged from it as usual, sinking into Shi Yu's dantian and merging into the Qi cyclone orbiting her yellow sprout.
In an instant, the newest Qi cyclone expanded visibly.
Shi Yu slowly let out a breath, her heart brightening at the sight.
The boost to her cultivation from the treasure Qi gained through artifact refining was quite respectable. If she continued cultivating at this pace, she would likely reach the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm in about a month.
Truth be told, only Shi Yu was capable of obtaining a wisp of treasure Qi almost every single time she forged an artifact.
Treasure Qi was similar to the pill veins found only on supreme-grade pills; it appeared only when a newly forged artifact was truly exceptional. This "exceptionalness" had nothing to do with the artifact's rank, but rather whether it maximized the full potential of its spiritual materials.
For an ordinary weapon refiner, producing treasure Qi once every ten forged artifacts would already make them exceptionally skilled. No one else could generate treasure Qi every single time like she did.
Shi Yu examined the soft armor in her hands, watching the python patterns shimmer as spiritual energy flowed across it.
It could be considered a Tier-1 High-Grade artifact.
“Not bad,” she muttered to herself. Finding her spirits still high, she was about to continue refining artifacts when her mind stirred, sensing a slight disturbance in the Maze Array at the courtyard entrance.
“Someone's here.” Her expression turned serious. With a wave of her hand, she packed up the clutter scattered on the ground, storing everything inside the Fate-Tapping Bell.
To avoid drawing unwanted attention, the Maze Array at the entrance was set up in an understated, crude manner using only a few jade chips. Its function was equally simple: any passerby who strayed near would unconsciously drift away from the courtyard.
Her courtyard was in a remote, desolate spot that few people passed, so the array was rarely triggered.
Stepping over, Shi Yu pressed her ear against the door to listen. The intruder had already begun drifting away under the influence of the array.
After using her spiritual sense to gauge the person's cultivation level outside, Shi Yu cracked the door open slightly and looked out.
Recognizing who it was, she raised an eyebrow and called out, “Chen Er.”
Two days ago at the defense line, she had told Chen Er to drop by when he had time. His arrival was quite timely.
Hearing his name, Chen Er spun around. Spotting Shi Yu, he offered an honest smile and hurried over.
“I knew it! The address Young Master gave me was right around here,” he said, scratching his head. “Strange, though—how did I miss this courtyard and wander off like that?”
Shi Yu smiled faintly, her gaze lingering on him for a moment before she stepped aside. “Come inside first.”
Shi Yu could tell that despite the smile on Chen Er's face, he looked haggard. He must have had a rough few days.
Once Chen Er was inside, she scanned the surroundings. Seeing no one around, she closed the courtyard door.
Shi Yu motioned for him to sit. “How have things been in the sect these past two days? How are your injuries?”
Sitting on a stone stool, Chen Er hurriedly motioned for Shi Yu to take a seat as well. “Manager Jiang's healing pill was fantastic. My injuries were mostly healed that very night.”
“As for the sect...” He hesitated, shaking his head with a bitter laugh. “Senior Sister Lu is still at the back mountain reflecting on her actions, but whether she put someone up to it or the senior brothers just dislike me, my daily allowances have been docked over the past two days. Yesterday was supposed to be monthly allowance distribution, but... they just claimed mine was lost.”
“There aren't any tasks in the Merit Pavilion I can take on either. Right now, I just want to focus on cultivating so I can take on simple bounty missions down the mountain later and earn a few spirit stones to get by.”
Within the sect, outer disciples mostly relied on these small cultivation resources provided by the sect to get by. Now, because of Lu Yujiao's matter, Chen Er was left in such dire straits.
As for taking on bounty missions, with Chen Er's level of strength, he could at best do odd jobs, which hardly paid anything.
Shi Yu glanced at him. “It seems the two spirit talismans I gave you ended up causing you trouble instead.”
Hearing her say that, Chen Er stood up in a panic, waving his hands frantically. “Please don't say that, Young Master! If not for the spirit talismans you gave me, Senior Brother Zhan Xuan would have kicked me to death that day!”
As he spoke, gratitude shone in his eyes, and tears began to stream down the face of a man who was usually all smiles. “You cleared my predicament and saved my life, Young Master.”
“When I think of Jiang Hong and Li Xu, I only feel how stupid I was. Just because we all came from the Mortal Realm, I foolishly imagined some bond between fellow countrymen... How ridiculous... If not for you, Young Master...”
He blew his nose forcefully. “I don't even know how I can ever repay your kindness, Young Master. Back in the Mortal Realm, I could at least run errands and bring you food, but after coming to the Origin Realm, I realize I'm completely useless—”
“You can still run errands for me now,” Shi Yu interrupted.
Looking at Chen Er's stunned expression, Shi Yu thought for a moment before saying, “Chen Er, how about you come work for me?”
Chen Er blinked, dumbfounded. “W-Work for you?”
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