Sage of Humanity

However, at the same time, Lu Ye didn't forget his previous plan to store Talent Tree fuel using the environment of this place.

He quietly activated the power of the Talent Tree, and tendrils that only he could see extended from beneath his feet, probing deep into the ground.

The length that the tendrils could extend wasn't very long, but since the Earth Core Fire could be drawn to the artifact crafting counter, it indicated that the location of the Earth Core Fire wasn't too deep.

Therefore, there was a high probability that the tendrils of the Talent Tree could directly reach it.

With focus, he controlled the tendrils digging into the earth to search around, and quickly found the location of the Earth Core Fire. In the next moment, the tendrils transmitted the power of absorption, ingesting the energy of the Earth Core Fire.

After the Talent Tree completed its transformation, Lu Ye could control the energy absorbed in this way, either by storing it as fuel for the Talent Tree or using it to ignite its leaves, unlocking new spirit runes.

Since he previously obtained seven spirit runes at once, which he hadn't fully comprehended yet, he didn't plan to unlock additional spirit runes temporarily, especially while being here without the mood to research new ones, he just stored all the absorbed energy as fuel.

Inside the vast artifact crafting workshop, he was the only figure. Lu Ye took off the Crimson Dragon Battle Suit, exposing his upper body, and at the artifact crafting counter, he was sweating profusely while working. With each strike of the crafting hammer, another line of pattern was etched within the sword embryo, and as the patterns continued to integrate, a spirit rune gradually took shape.

Thus, forming a restriction.

This method of constructing spirit runes by hammering the sword embryo was undoubtedly much more challenging than constructing them using spirit force, so artifact refining wasn't simply about being able to construct spirit runes.

Days passed one after another.

Lu Ye advanced rapidly in the Path of Artifact Refining, as he had set himself the goal of leaving this secret realm in half a year, so he was truly dedicated to learning the Path of Artifact Refining.

Every morning he would punctually go to the grass hut to listen to Khong Khong's guidance.

Khong Khong was undoubtedly extremely satisfied with Lu Ye's performance, and it was rare to find such an excellent successor in this secret realm, who had great potential to inherit the Sword Weapon Sect's artifact refining legacy. Thus, he spared no effort in imparting his knowledge, further accelerating Lu Ye's growth rate.

The first item Lu Ye refined was a Restriction Level 5 low-grade spirit artifact, and two days later, he was able to refine a Restriction Level 9 low-grade spirit artifact.

Nine restrictions were the limit for low-grade spirit artifacts; beyond that was the mid-grade.

Lu Ye previously didn't quite understand the difference between a nine-restriction and a ten-restriction item, simply thinking that missing one restriction wasn't a big deal.

But when he actually began artifact refining, he realized the difference was significant.

Because the difficulty in refining a ten-restriction spirit artifact was incomparable to refining a nine-restriction spirit artifact.

After another ten days, Lu Ye was already able to easily refine mid-grade spirit artifacts, and their quality was commendable.

A month later, the first top-grade spirit artifact was born in his hands.

And at this time, Ying Wuji had just passed the first test, entering the artifact crafting workshop to start refining alongside Lu Ye.

The comparison between the two was stark and obvious.

Khong Khong's expectations for Lu Ye grew larger and larger, as Lu Ye's performance repeatedly exceeded his expectations, even to the point of disbelief.

Yet he didn't know that Lu Ye's rapid advancement wasn't solely due to him being a spirit runes master, but also because he possessed Mental Consciousness.

With Mental Consciousness activated, Lu Ye could clearly perceive the internal situation of the spirit artifact he was refining, allowing him to adjust the force he applied accordingly.

Mental Consciousness undoubtedly provided significant aid in artifact refining.

The more outstanding Lu Ye's performance, the worse Ying Wuji seemed.

Originally, Khong Khong would actively teach Ying Wuji aspects of artifact refining, but after a month, unless Ying Wuji asked proactively, Khong Khong stopped imparting knowledge to him.

Obviously, with Lu Ye as his expectation, he didn't care at all whether Ying Wuji was there or not.

Ying Wuji had no complaints; with Khong Khong ignoring him, his days turned leisurely. He even hoped Lu Ye could soon refine a flying sword that met the requirements, passing the secret realm's test, so he too could leave.

Like Lu Ye, he didn't have much interest in the Path of Artifact Refining to begin with; only previously compelled. Now free, he would learn when interested and otherwise just cultivate on his own, quite content.

Life in the secret realm was monotonous and dull, repetitive.

Lu Ye was fully immersed in refining, rarely returning to the wooden cabin, almost spending the entire day in the artifact crafting workshop.

Khong Khong would occasionally visit the artifact crafting workshop, providing Lu Ye with verbal guidance and demonstrations.

Thus, another month passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Lu Ye looked at the freshly crafted supreme-grade spirit artifact in his hand, his mood remaining calm.

It was soon; in two months, his artifact refinement progress had reached the level where he could produce supreme-grade spirit artifacts; though the birth of this supreme-grade spirit artifact had lucky elements, having created the first naturally meant he could craft a second.

Beyond supreme-grade spirit artifacts were Magic Artifacts, and comparatively, the difficulty of refinement would undoubtedly surge dramatically.

The so-called flying sword that met the requirements was likely at the magic-artifact level; Khong Khong couldn't possibly ask him to refine a spirit treasure class longsword, as that wouldn't match his True Lake Realm cultivation.

Therefore, as long as he could refine a magic-artifact class flying sword, it should satisfy Khong Khong's requirements, and by then, he could leave this secret realm.

Lu Ye casually tossed the supreme-grade spirit artifact longsword aside, then prepared to gather more materials to continue refining.

However, the moment the longsword hit the ground, an unexpected change occurred.

With the sound of a clang, the entire artifact crafting workshop shook violently. Simultaneously, Lu Ye's expression changed because he distinctly felt a peculiar movement from the Earth Core Fire beneath the ground.

The reason he could detect this was because the roots of the Talent Tree were entrenched underground, drawing energy from the Earth Core Fire.

The roots of the Talent Tree were essentially an extension of Lu Ye himself, enhancing his sensitivity to any anomalies in the Earth Core Fire.

Before he could comprehend what had happened, the heads of the dragon-shaped artifact crafting counters suddenly erupted with uncontrollable Earth Core Fire.

In an instant, the entire workshop was engulfed in a sea of flames.

Shortly after, Lu Ye dashed out of the workshop, covered in soot and looking burnt red, like a boiled shrimp.

In that situation, had he not promptly summoned the protective power of the Talent Tree around him, it would have been a close call.

The ground continued to shake relentlessly, and even the sky started to change inexplicably. Lu Ye turned around, observing his surroundings, and saw numerous pitch-black fissures appearing everywhere, resembling cracks that spread in all directions.

What happened?

Lu Ye was bewildered.

After a considerable time, the various abnormalities gradually ceased.

The fissure-like void fissures also slowly disappeared.

Ying Wuji ran over from the wooden house, with Amber perched atop his head, its claws tightly gripping his hair. At first glance, it looked like he was wearing a tiger head hat...

Ying Wuji appeared somewhat panicked, "Lu Yiye, what happened?"

Lu Ye slowly shook his head.

He was unsure of the situation.

Just then, Khong Khong's voice suddenly sounded by his ear, "Come to the straw cottage!"

"Yes!" Lu Ye responded, then swiftly flew towards the straw cottage. Turning back, he saw Ying Wuji was not following and frowned, "Come on."

Ying Wuji had a forlorn face, "I can't move!"

Lu Ye immediately understood; Khong Khong only summoned him alone, and Ying Wuji evidently wasn't qualified to accompany him.

"Wait here then," Lu Ye said, then turned and left.

Soon, Lu Ye arrived at the straw cottage, finding Khong Khong sitting there, just like the first time they met.

Lu Ye approached and greeted, "Sect Master."

"Sit," Khong Khong softly spoke, gazing into the distance with a deep look in his eyes.

Lu Ye sat cross-legged in front of him, vaguely sensing that Khong Khong's summons related to the earlier disturbances.

However, after waiting for quite some time, Khong Khong did not seem inclined to speak.

Lu Ye felt it was inappropriate to disturb him. Although he had been trapped here for this period, honestly, Lu Ye was quite grateful to this elder. No matter what, he had genuinely and diligently taught him the Path of Artifact Refining, holding nothing back.

In two months, the great progress he achieved in the Path of Artifact Refining owed partly to his own skills and mainly to having such an excellent teacher.

"The time has come," Khong Khong suddenly sighed.

"Sect Master?" Lu Ye frowned, feeling today's Khong Khong seemed both desolate and somewhat relieved, though his words were vague and unclear.

"Indeed, it's time." Khong Khong smiled, retracting his gaze, and looked at Lu Ye, "I am merely a manifestation of an obsession; the true Khong Khong died long ago."

"Obsession..." Lu Ye was not particularly surprised, as Nian Yuexian had speculated something similar on the first day they arrived here.

"An obsession, after all, is just an embodiment of a Mental Consciousness. The true Khong Khong, before his death, was concerned about the Sword Weapon Sect's legacy, and thus, I came into being. I am him, yet not him. For the sake of the sect's legacy, it was prolonged to this day. Over the millennia, some have arrived here, but none have passed the test until I saw you."

As he spoke, Khong Khong looked at Lu Ye with a gratified expression, "Your talent in the Path of Artifact Refining is no less than mine, perhaps even surpassing it. I truly hoped to see the day when you mastered it, but now, it seems that remains a distant hope."

"Sect Master, what has happened?" Lu Ye asked.

"Something has occurred," Khong Khong sighed, "but it does not concern you. It's just that this secret realm is about to sustain itself no longer."

"Why?" Lu Ye frowned.

Khong Khong knew he was a manifestation of an obsession, naturally aware this was a secret realm.

Its inability to sustain itself indicated that Lu Ye and others could leave here, yet as the moment approached, Lu Ye felt far from joyful; in fact, he felt quite heavy-hearted.

"No matter how adept the restriction methods, there comes a day they fail. The maintenance of this secret realm naturally requires energy consumption. Now, the foundation sustaining it shows signs of instability, hence it is nearing its end."

Upon hearing this, Lu Ye suddenly felt a sense of unease and tentatively asked, "What is the foundation sustaining this secret realm?"