Ninth-Rank Refiner

Chapter 48: Draw a golden toad

Qian Duoduo returned to the stage, and Xia Shangfeng sat to his left, covering his right cheek and leaning sideways.

To be able to endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens, what a true man, Qian Duoduo praised in his heart.

Money is more important than face, how many people understand this principle? But Senior Brother Xia is one of the few who do.

On the stage, another pair of Outer Sect Disciples were sparring, Level Five against Level Five. As he watched the competition, Qian Duoduo slowly began to understand a few things.

Cultivators' sparring matches compare both the depth of cultivation and the subtlety of their Moves. Under the same cultivation level, mastering one or two ultimate Moves can also allow one to dominate.

If one's cultivation is sufficient, one can also break through with sheer force. Qian Duoduo's victory over Xia Shangfeng belonged to this type. The reason Qian Duoduo's spiritual power was strong enough to control the Golden Sword across levels was entirely due to the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art.

"Good!" Qian Duoduo clapped vigorously, cheering for the Blue-Robed Disciple who had just won. This Senior Brother snatched victory from defeat, feigning exhaustion but secretly accumulating Spiritual Qi, finally breaking through his opponent's defense with one sword strike.

Qian Duoduo finally understood why these people were at the Mengyuan Mountain Martial Arts Field every day. It wasn't just because the fights were genuinely exciting, but also because they were truly enlightening for cultivation. If it were him, how would he control this Flying Sword, how would he block this magic seal, how would he defend against this golden spear...? The real combat on the stage was the best teacher.

"Number Ninety-Eight!"

"It's our turn to go up," a voice sounded in Qian Duoduo's ear, pulling him out of his hypothetical offense and defense scenarios.

He turned his head to see Xia Shangfeng looking at him with a helpless expression.

"Is that so? That's great!" Qian Duoduo pulled him up and walked towards the stage. "Senior Brother, you must hit me hard later and use all the Moves you know. You absolutely must not surrender early. You said we're one for loyalty and one for meticulousness, so we won't get hurt..."

Unfortunately, Qian Duoduo wasted a lot of words, but he couldn't make Xia Shangfeng, whose face was as dark as a pot, last long on the stage.

After three or five Moves, he used the rotation of his Wood Sword to accidentally cut himself, then sat down on the stage and surrendered cleanly.

...

After defeating Xia Shangfeng, Qian Duoduo became a regular at the Mengyuan Mountain Martial Arts Field.

Regardless of winning or losing, stepping onto the stage to compete excited Qian Duoduo.

Because the Golden Rooster Sword would clang upon impact, Qian Duoduo even earned a nickname—Golden All-Summoner.

It wasn't Bu Huan (Summoner), but All-Summoner.

Since he could challenge Level Five Cultivators, several Qi Condensation Level Six Senior Brothers secretly invited Qian Duoduo to the stage. But Qian Duoduo, being so dedicated to learning, wasn't that enthusiastic and declined their offer of one-on-one eager teaching.

Aside from practicing the Golden Rooster Sword in actual combat, Qian Duoduo spent the rest of his time observing spiritual plants and reading the "Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining."

As soon as he opened the "Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining," Liu Boli in the Golden Toad would awaken from his meditation and Cultivate in a mysterious posture. He wasn't really Cultivating; he was actually waiting at all times for Qian Duoduo's questions about Artifact Refining.

About ten days later, nearly a hundred small Spirit Chickens hatched as expected. They were fluffy, like rolling balls of yarn. Their crisp chirping sounds burrowed straight into your heart. Wang Meiruo unhesitatingly commandeered Huang Guiren's small courtyard to serve as the Spirit Chicken kindergarten.

At this time, all the violet clovers in Buhuan Estate also bloomed, a spectacular sight that made Wang Meiruo wish she could jump onto the flowers and roll around.

In the Estate, tens of thousands of young Spirit Chickens were almost fully grown, and Huang Guiren was preparing to slaughter and sell a batch of roosters. He said he had checked, and the best male-to-female ratio for Spirit Chickens was one to ten, yielding the most eggs and the greatest output.

Although Qian Duoduo felt it wasn't very humane to the chickens, he was still relatively poor for now, so it would have to do. Once he became wealthy, he would greatly promote the Dao of chickens, allowing every chicken the right to fall in love and lay eggs, so they wouldn't peck open their eggshells and come into this world for nothing.

Most of the spiritual plants Qian Duoduo planted had bloomed by now. During this period, several other Senior Brothers from the Gold Vault, like Wang Dahei and Lei Jiashu, also found their way here one after another. They knew Qian Duoduo was currently researching spiritual plants, and each time they came, they brought one or two varieties he didn't have.

Before dark that day, Qian Duoduo and Huang Guiren herded the chicks into the chicken coop. As night slowly fell, Wang Meiruo returned to Wen'an Peak, and Huang Guiren went to his residence to Cultivate.

Qian Duoduo looked at the eight thousand or so types of spiritual plants before him, his mind stirring. Their roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds—he didn't know how many times he had looked at them; he could know their appearance with his eyes closed. "At this point, if I go to Wanjin Pavilion to take the assessment, I should have some confidence, right?"

Once the thought arose, he could no longer control it. So, Qian Duoduo slowly left the Outer Sect and walked towards Wanjin Pavilion.

Facing the gentle night breeze, Qian Duoduo walked while reciting the "Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining," arriving at Wanjinge Square. Without the daytime heat and the fervent crowds for Artifact Refining, the square seemed like an old man lying shirtless on a straw mat.

However, a few of the Wood Houses behind each golden pillar actually had lights on. This meant there were Disciples taking night exams inside.

For a night exam, whether one passed or not, it was better when no one was watching the excitement.

Arriving at the first golden pillar, Qian Duoduo pushed open a Wood House door without hesitation and walked in.

In the center of the room, there was only a meditation cushion and nothing else.

Qian Duoduo sat on the meditation cushion, and his vision blurred, immediately placing him in a virtual space. A piece of information instantly appeared in his Spiritual Awareness, instructing him on how to participate in the assessment.

Following the instructions, Qian Duoduo took out the Jade Slip of the first volume of the "Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining" and placed it on the ground. A blank screen appeared in front of him. This was for the Disciple taking the assessment to draw their own unique symbol. This symbol would also be the Artifact Refiner's exclusive mark on the Magic Treasures they refined in the future.

Qian Duoduo thought for a moment, then reached out and drew a Golden Toad.

The Golden Toad was his biggest secret, containing a mysterious Liu Boli, and it was also the starting point of Qian Duoduo's Immortal Cultivation World.

Drawing it best represented himself.

Within the space, three red lights flashed, and the assessment was about to begin.

In the blink of an eye, the virtual space was overwhelmingly filled with spiritual plant fragments, divided into six parts: roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds.

Qian Duoduo's task was to assemble these fragments into complete plants.

Correct assemblies earned points, incorrect ones earned none. Within the time it took for one incense stick to burn, the more one assembled, the higher the score.

Qian Duoduo fully opened his Spiritual Awareness, covering all the spiritual plant fragments, and a strong sense of familiarity spontaneously arose. He had read this content a hundred times on the Jade Slip. More importantly, in the Estate, he had cultivated them from a single seed into seedlings, growing leaves and blooming flowers, deeply engraving their forms, colors, sizes, and even scents into his heart.

He extended his right hand and quickly tapped six times, and a complete spiritual plant was assembled.

Without needing to look or recall, Qian Duoduo knew that what he assembled would certainly be correct.

He extended his left hand and similarly quickly assembled another plant.

With both hands tapping simultaneously, spiritual plants were assembled in the blink of an eye.

At the moment of assembly, he even seemed to hear the joyful cries of the spiritual plants. This was the joy of a fragmented body reassembling and regaining life.

They were happy, and Qian Duoduo was even happier. As his hands danced, he forgot himself, forgot Artifact Refining, forgot the assessment, and only wanted more spiritual plants to grow in his hands.

The Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art quietly began to operate, and green lines extended from Qian Duoduo's body, naturally connecting the six parts of each spiritual plant. As they connected, a wisp of vitality was generated. More vitality made the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art operate even faster.

Qian Duoduo's hands unconsciously waved along these green lines, and spiritual plants were rapidly assembled one after another.

He assembled one thousand, two thousand, three thousand... Qian Duoduo no longer knew how many he had assembled, only that his hands were almost like two flashes of lightning.

His hands were tired, and his eyes were even more tired, but he didn't want to stop. Qian Duoduo didn't want to give up on any spiritual plant.

As long as he didn't collapse, as long as time ran out, he would assemble until the very end!

He felt there were still over a thousand spiritual plant fragments before him. Most of these thousand-plus were ones Qian Duoduo had only learned about in books but had never planted.

He slowed down. Although the Spiritual Qi in his Spiritual Vein was like a dried-up river, and even just moving his arms caused pain and he felt cramps coming on, Qian Duoduo still gritted his teeth and persevered.

After assembling dozens more, a green light suddenly flashed in the virtual space, and all the spiritual plant fragments disappeared.

Qian Duoduo was back in the Wood House, with the first volume of the "Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining" in front of him.

Qian Duoduo slumped to the ground, letting his hands twitch freely for a while, then lay quietly for a long time before picking up the Jade Slip. He felt it was a pity he hadn't finished assembling all the spiritual plants, and at the same time, he was a little anxious, wondering if he had passed or not.