Sage of Humanity

The figure claiming to be Wang Yang was clearly not a living person, more like a spiritual body or a persistent thought, but it appeared dim and lifeless, as if it could dissipate at any moment.

However, his Sword Control Technique was exceptionally remarkable.

From a distance, Lu Ye watched as the flying swords at the foot of Sword Mountain weaved in and out, sword light wantonly flashing, and Nian Yuexian was locked in combat with them.

What Wang Yang displayed was unmistakably a technique that only strong cultivators at the Divine Sea Realm could execute!

Do the flying swords on Sword Mountain all possess such divine power? Lu Ye was utterly astonished.

And this was just the first flying sword at the foot of the mountain; further up, who knows what might occur.

A moment later, the great battle subsided, Wang Yang's figure vanished, leaving only a flying sword falling before Nian Yuexian.

Nian Yuexian seemed contemplative as she picked up the flying sword from the ground and continued forward, soon encountering a second figure blocking her path…

Lu Ye observed for a moment, roughly understanding the mystery of Sword Mountain.

Each flying sword seemed to be the saber left behind by a strong cultivator at the Divine Sea Realm, containing a thread of the owner's persistent thought or Mental Consciousness. Whenever someone ascended Sword Mountain, the flying sword's might would be triggered.

This was also a test.

A test of the Sword Weapon Sect concerning the Sword Dao.

Lu Ye suddenly realized…

The three of them stumbled into this secret realm, and Nian Yuexian, having spoken disrespectfully, was struck away by Khong Khong. But now it seemed that it wasn't a mere reprimand; Khong Khong intended for her to inherit the Sword Dao legacy of the Sword Weapon Sect!

With Khong Khong's keen insight, he must have recognized Nian Yuexian as a sword cultivator.

Having her, a strong cultivator at the Divine Sea Realm, ascend Sword Mountain to inherit the Sword Dao heritage of the Sword Weapon Sect was certainly better than choosing two cultivators at the True Lake Realm.

As for Lu Ye and Ying Wuji, their task was to cultivate in the Path of Artifact Refining of the Sword Weapon Sect!

Nian Yuexian ascending Sword Mountain was something Lu Ye couldn't assist with, so after watching for a while, he turned and returned to his cabin to rest and prepare to learn the Path of Artifact Refining the next day.

The next day, Lu Ye and Ying Wuji arrived at the cottage together.

Khong Khong first imparted a spirit rune to Ying Wuji, then, ignoring Ying Wuji's resentful gaze, led Lu Ye in a certain direction.

A moment later, they arrived in front of a stone wall.

The stone wall was smooth and flat, clearly showing signs of human carving. With a wave of Khong Khong's hand, the stone wall slid aside, revealing a passageway leading downwards.

An astonishing wave of heat rushed out from within the passage.

"This place is the artifact crafting workshop of the sect, maintained by many exquisite big arrays. It is the most important foundation of the sect, and many of the sect's flying swords originate from here. Ordinarily, common disciples are not allowed to enter."

Khong Khong sighed deeply, reminiscing about the glories of the sect's past.

"Let's go." He beckoned Lu Ye and led the way.

As they moved downwards, the temperature around them increased.

If an ordinary True Lake cultivator were to come here, they would have to vigorously circulate their spirit force to withstand it. But for Lu Ye, whose spirit force was of the fire attribute, this environment was not harsh at all; it was actually quite comfortable.

However, as they continued further down, even he had to slightly circulate his spirit force to resist the burning sensation.

He could not tell how many Zhang deep they ventured into the underground when a massive subterranean cavern suddenly came into view.

Inside the cavern, the environment was fiercely hot, heat waves rolling through, distorting the Void.

Various artifact crafting counters were distributed throughout the cavern, with all kinds of artifact crafting tools systematically arranged. Even though no one had visited for a long time, the place still appeared orderly.

Khong Khong led Lu Ye to the smallest artifact crafting counter and said, "The Earth Core Fire lies beneath this place; when crafting, one can use it to temper materials, saving time and effort…"

As he said this, he tapped a spot on the artifact crafting counter, activating a restriction, and instantly, a dragon's head spewed Raging Flames from a corner of the counter.

"There are many considerations in choosing artifact crafting materials. These things are not something that can be explained orally; one must experience them firsthand to master…" Khong Khong continued, pointing to the various artifact crafting tools on the counter, and started to briefly introduce their uses to Lu Ye.

Lu Ye quietly listened, his gaze fixed unmovingly on the flame-spewing dragon head.

This thing was the Earth Core Fire. Since it was fire, the Talent Tree should be able to absorb and devour it. Although it was hidden underground, it should not be difficult for Lu Ye to absorb it now.

The roots of the Talent Tree could extend…

Even though he now had a stable source of fire spirit stones, the Talent Tree's transformation had heavily increased its fuel demand, and when using it to absorb and gain power from external forces for cultivation, the fuel consumption was quite severe.

Now that he encountered such an opportunity, he certainly couldn't miss it. Absorbing some of this Earth Core Fire to store as fuel for the Talent Tree… should be okay.

Khong Khong continued explaining to Lu Ye, entirely unaware of Lu Ye's intentions.

During the explanation, he let Lu Ye try using the artifact crafting tools, which Lu Ye naturally complied with.

A full four hours later, Khong Khong finally said: "Regarding artifact crafting, a thousand words cannot compare to one practical attempt. I will now craft an artifact; observe and learn carefully. How much you learn will depend on your skills and comprehension."

"Yes." Lu Ye respectfully replied.

The next moment, Khong Khong flipped his palm, producing a head-sized mineral from who knows where, placing it on the artifact crafting counter while activating the Earth Core Fire to smelt it, saying: "To forge a good flying sword, one must choose good materials. The Path of Artifact Refining starts with material selection and processing, just as cultivation starts with a solid foundation, allowing improvement to follow."

The following half-day was spent immersed in Khong Khong's artifact crafting and explanations. His movements were deliberately slow to facilitate Lu Ye's observation and learning.

It wasn't until a longsword was freshly forged that the demonstration was considered complete.

Although Lu Ye was eager to leave this place sooner, witnessing a strong cultivator who could be considered a Grandmaster level in artifact refining create a flying sword in such a short period left him deeply impressed.

Moreover, this longsword contained seventy-two restrictions and was a magic-artifact class flying sword.

A flying sword like this placed in the Heaven's Augury treasure vault could be sold for tens of thousands of merit.

Tens of thousands of merit may not be much to Lu Ye, but it was a considerable amount to most cultivators.

"How much do you understand?" Khong Khong asked.

Lu Ye furrowed his brows, "Thirty percent?"

Khong Khong nodded, "Understanding thirty percent isn't bad, but understanding only goes so far. When you actually start hands-on work, you might not even reach half that percentage."

"Shall I give it a try?" Lu Ye volunteered.

Khong Khong was pleased, "You go ahead."

The materials for artifact crafting were provided by Khong Khong, their quality not high, naturally chosen for Lu Ye's practice, so they didn't need to be top-notch.

Low quality meant lower difficulty in crafting.

Yet even so, Lu Ye progressed with some stumbles.

Fortunately, there was a benefit to artifact crafting: If one fails in crafting, they can reforge it.

Unlike alchemy, where failure means losing everything.

Thus, artifact crafting economizes more on raw materials compared to alchemy.

During Lu Ye's crafting process, Khong Khong frequently offered guidance, demonstrating great patience. Lu Ye earnestly learned, progressing rapidly.

For three consecutive days, this is how the two of them spent their time, with only the sound of hammering echoing throughout the artifact crafting workshop.

By the third day, Lu Ye held a longsword in his hand, looking dispirited.

In three days, he had crafted his first longsword, though it looked rough, and its quality was far from commendable.

With merely five restrictions within, it was just a low-grade spirit artifact.

Still, Khong Khong was pleased, "Not bad, not bad. Your talent with spirit runes is indeed high, which allows you to be more efficient in artifact crafting."

Artifact refining is not merely shaping a spiritual artifact; if that were all, a common blacksmith could do it, and Lu Ye wouldn't need to use the artifact crafting counter.

Given his current cultivation and skills, he could shape any low-quality raw material into whatever forms he desired.

However, a cultivator's artifact crafting involves integrating restrictions within the spiritual artifact while shaping it—this is the key. Without restrictions, a spiritual artifact is of no significant use.

Lu Ye had previously crafted many array banners, but compared to true artifact refining, it was hardly comparable.

"How long did it take the Sect Master back then to reach such a level?" Lu Ye asked.

Khong Khong reminisced, "It took me eight days, and the quality I crafted didn't match yours, containing merely three restrictions. If you maintain such progress, you could craft a flying sword meeting requirements within three years."

Three years... still a long time.

"Go rest for a bit, but don't forget to reflect on this attempt's gains and losses. From now on, come to the grass hut every morning. I'll teach you the essence of artifact crafting, and in the afternoon, come here to practice. If there are any uncertainties, you may ask me anytime."

"Yes!"

Returning from the artifact crafting workshop to the cabin, Lu Ye glanced in the direction of Sword Mountain. Nian Yuexian was still there, climbing against the persistent spirits or mental consciousness of each flying sword. However, she wasn't slow in her progress, and by now, she had already ascended a hundred zhang on Sword Mountain.

Amber, who remained here, greeted him with concern for Lu Ye.

"The depletion is considerable; resting a bit will be fine." Lu Ye spoke, addressing Yiyi, as since coming to this secret realm, Yiyi dared not show herself, given Khong Khong's intimidating cultivation.

Back at the cabin, instead of meditating, he lay down and slept.

Awakening refreshed.

Following Khong Khong's prior instructions, he first sought him at the grass hut to listen to his lecture on artifact crafting essentials.

In the afternoon, with Ying Wuji's resentful glance, he went alone to the artifact crafting workshop.

This time, Khong Khong didn't accompany him.

Lu Ye dared not be negligent, continuing to refine artifacts, uncertain if Khong Khong had any means to monitor inside the artifact crafting workshop, hence he had to proceed with the crafting.

Moreover, if he sincerely wished to leave here soon, he needed to pass Khong Khong's test as quickly as possible.

Three years was far too long, so Lu Ye set his own standard to leave the secret realm in no more than half a year.

If delayed too long here, who knows what sort of worries Second Senior Sister and the others might have?