On a pile of 400,000 gold coins lay two gleaming mid-grade Dan artifacts.
In front of the sect shop, Cultivators watching the battle had formed another three layers deep.
Everyone understood that this was the last battle of the month's commercial war, and the one with the highest stakes.
In the crowd, Lang Caihua's spherical body was squeezed until only a narrow strip of him was visible.
He strained to poke his head forward and loudly said, “Liang Liben is an Artifact Refiner fanatic. He could have become a First Rank, or even a more Advanced Artifact Refiner long ago, but he deliberately didn't refine Magic Treasures because he wanted to go further in Artifact Refining. This match will be worth watching.”
His seemingly casual words were actually a hint to Qian Duoduo, reminding him to be careful of Liang Liben.
Cai Fuxue secretly gritted his teeth, wishing he could spit on Lang Caihua's Face.
Liang Liben sat down, his Face expressionless, but his hands gently caressed the cauldron. His movements were softer than touching a baby, as if he was greeting the cauldron.
This Artifact Apprentice is not simple.
He treated the cauldron as a spiritual object, which put him at a higher level than Qian Duoduo.
At least in terms of his connection with the cauldron, Qian Duoduo didn't have his understanding yet.
Liang Liben took the Ming Iron ore with both hands, held it above his head, and gently dropped it into the cauldron.
His reverence and calmness made it seem as if only he and the cauldron existed in this world.
Qian Duoduo withdrew all his Spiritual Awareness and focused it on the cauldron and the Ming Iron ore—this match would definitely not be easy, but he had to win.
With his eyes half-closed, Qian Duoduo poured Spiritual Qi into the furnace, lit the furnace fire, rapidly raised the furnace temperature, cut open the Ming Iron ore, and began refining and purifying it.
Suddenly, in his Spiritual Awareness, Qian Duoduo detected a gap opening in the lid of Liang Liben's cauldron.
What was he going to do?
At this point, Qian Duoduo was already purifying the Ming Iron for the third time, as it had turned into molten iron.
Liang Liben's cauldron, under high temperature and pressure, trembled slightly, as if it was about to explode.
If this cauldron exploded, it would be no laughing matter.
There were at least five or six hundred Cultivators around; even if they didn't die, many would be injured.
A wisp of faint, light smoke slowly drifted out, tracing an arc in the air.
This was Ming Iron slag! Qian Duoduo suddenly realized.
Liang Liben was risking a cauldron explosion to expel the slag from the cauldron, thereby making the inside of the furnace purer.
Indeed, after the light smoke dissipated, Liang Liben's cauldron lid closed again.
After opening and closing three times, Liang Liben slammed his palm onto the cauldron, beginning the final forging.
Qian Duoduo hadn't mastered this lid-opening technique, nor had he tried it, so he didn't dare to imitate him. He could only pour all his attention into the cauldron, carefully observing the molten Ming Iron.
The Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art was already operating, and he spared no Spiritual Qi in concentrating it into a bean-green color.
The liquid Ming Iron, like a handful of living water, continuously leaped. Although the Impurities within were very few, they were still present, and the furnace fire could no longer force them out.
What to do? If he opened the furnace now, Qian Duoduo might not be able to defeat Liang Liben.
Unintentionally, Qian Duoduo used Spiritual Qi to push the molten Ming Iron, making it spin like a whirlpool. As the iron liquid whirlpool spun faster and faster, Qian Duoduo's eyes suddenly lit up.
The lighter Impurities had gathered towards the inner side of the whirlpool!
Now, he could purify it further.
Qian Duoduo continuously accelerated, separating the Ming Iron liquid containing Impurities, then using intense fire to calcine and remove the Impurities.
Rotate again, calcine again. Rotate again, refine again...
When Qian Duoduo opened his eyes, everyone in the venue was looking at him.
Liang Liben's Ming Iron had already been taken out and was suspended in the air for everyone to admire.
His Ming Iron seemed transparent, emitting a soft glow, like water without a single speck of dust.
Seeing Qian Duoduo stop his movements, Liang Liben knew that Qian Duoduo's refining was also finished. “This is my most satisfying purification. Regardless of win or loss, I thank Jin Zhendian.”
He was so sincere that Qian Duoduo didn't bother with courtesies. “The feeling is mutual. I should thank you too.”
The Cultivators watching had no such patience and began to urge, “Open, open, open.”
Gently pushing the cauldron lid, Qian Duoduo opened the cauldron. A white-purple light shot out from inside the furnace.
Qian Duoduo's Ming Iron had transformed into an iron ring, slowly emerging from the furnace. On the Ming Iron ring, a faint purple light, like a small snake, flowed continuously.
Liang Liben's eyes widened, then narrowed, carefully examining Qian Duoduo's Ming Iron. Finally, he smiled and sighed deeply, “I am utterly convinced of my defeat.”
“Good. This match was splendid!” Before Chu Tianqi and the others could cheer, an authoritative voice rang out above everyone's heads.
Master Wang of the Refining Association had arrived at some unknown time.
When he spoke, no one dared to make a sound, pricking up their ears to continue listening to his explanation.
“Liang Liben's refining and purification have reached the extreme of cauldron forging. Coupled with his technique of opening the cauldron lid to discharge slag, the purity of his Ming Iron is close to one hundred percent. However—”
As he explained, Master Wang came to the very center of the shop entrance. “Jin Buhuan's forging, by using the word 'movement', created a transformation. By using 'movement', he solved a large portion of the Impurities that could not be resolved by forging. While increasing purity, it also produced spirit.”
Master Wang did not reveal Qian Duoduo's spinning insight; after all, that was a secret inside the furnace that others could not see.
“Therefore, what you saw was Liang Liben's Ming Iron presenting a pure white, while Jin Buhuan's presented a hint of purple. Jin Buhuan wins by half a step.”
Chu Tianqi and the nine other shop assistants could no longer restrain the reins of their joy. “We won! Refining Spirit Sect won!”
The surrounding Cultivators also offered their congratulations. “Congratulations, Refining Spirit Sect!”
Qian Duoduo quickly stood up and performed a full bow. “Same to you, same to you. Today, all in-store purchases are 30% off.”
“I want to buy your piece of Ming Iron ore, will you sell it?” a Cultivator shouted from the crowd.
“Sell! I'm a businessman, of course I'll sell,” Qian Duoduo replied with a smile.
“I want to buy too.” One voice after another rang out.
“Everyone can have some. Please come into the shop to make an appointment and register. Everyone pays a deposit, and we'll notify you to pick it up once it's refined.” Qian Duoduo quickly arranged for Chu Tianqi to handle the reception. “Today's pre-orders are still 30% off!”
The next day, Qian Duoduo went to the City Lord's Plaza, and only after confirming that the copper coins were indeed placed above the knives and swords, did he walk towards the Refining Association.
Liu Boli had long wanted him to go to the Refining Association. The Refining Association was the final destination for Artifact Refiners. But he knew Qian Duoduo's rebellious nature; if he told him to go east, he would go west. It was better to leave him alone and let Qian Duoduo figure it out himself. In the past month or so, Qian Duoduo had been engrossed in refining materials. This greatly pleased Liu Boli.
Purifying materials was the most monotonous and boring task, but it was crucial for refining Magic Treasures. Sharpening the axe does not delay chopping wood.
Yesterday, Master Wang had brought up the matter of Qian Duoduo taking the Artifact Refiner examination again.
If he didn't go soon, it would be disrespectful. Moreover, Master Wang had gifted the Seal of Dharma, igniting the flames for the great victory in the commercial war.
According to the assistant Zhu Junliang, besides the Master Wang, the City Lord also attended the competition yesterday. The City Lord was named Jiao Yueshan.
For the past month, Qian Duoduo had either been competing or preparing for competitions, so he hadn't seen this City Lord and didn't know what he looked like.
Zhu Junliang said that even though Master Wang acted all mighty, when he met the City Lord, he had to be completely submissive.
According to Qian Duoduo's understanding, the City Lord was like the Sect Leader, and the Master Wang was like the Palace Lord. It was normal for the Palace Lord to listen to the Sect Leader.
But Zhu Junliang shook his head, saying that the City Lord and the Master Wang were not superiors and subordinates.
Qian Duoduo didn't quite understand this, and he would ponder it slowly. Right now, he just wanted to make money and increase the sect shop's assets tenfold.
Winning the commercial war was just the first step. If he could advance a rank and become an Artifact Refiner, that would be another big step forward.
He looked up, and a tall tower was right before his eyes; he had arrived at the Refining Association.
Before Qian Duoduo could even speak to inquire, a welcoming attendant approached. “Are you Jin Buhuan, the Refining Spirit Sect's shop keeper? The Master Wang has words for you, please come inside—”