Chapter 100: Two Years of Artifact Refinement

Half a day later.

Jiuyou circled through the city repeatedly, using his Face-Altering Technique to change identities several times. Only after confirming that no annoying tails followed him did he quietly return to his cave dwelling.

His cultivation was high enough that basically no one would dare harbor ill intentions toward him, but he was used to being cautious. Staying one step ahead never hurt.

Back in his cave dwelling, Jiuyou wasted no time. Just as when he had refined the Obstruction Force last time, he activated layer upon layer of formation prohibitions, shielding the entire cave dwelling tightly.

To prevent the Thousand Leaf City Cave Dwelling Bureau from disturbing him midway, he also prepaid twenty more years of spirit stone fees. He then quietly deployed several Soul Wraith Puppets around the cave dwelling, each one harboring a sinister compressed Nether Capital Ghostfire within. With such killing moves in place, any outsider who dared to barge in would either die or lose a layer of skin.

Only after doing all this did Jiuyou feel somewhat at ease, and he sank completely into seclusion.

Deep within the cave dwelling.

Jiuyou toyed with the Soul Netherstone in his hand. The ore was pitch black throughout, faintly radiating a yin-cold force that was highly compatible with the attributes of his Natal Magical Artifact, the Nine Nether Soul-Chaining Chains. Once integrated, it would surely enhance the chains' power considerably.

But he wasn't in a hurry to refine it.

He first spent over a month carefully studying the ore. Aside from confirming that it could indeed be refined and merged into his magical artifact, he could discern nothing else particularly special about it.

This inevitably reminded him of that self-proclaimed Nether Luo, the Fifth Elder of the Blood Abyss Sect from the earlier auction. That person's attitude toward this item was truly strange, both valuing it and not valuing it, trapped in a peculiar state of ambiguity.

Even a fool could guess that the Blood Abyss Sect had ulterior motives. To them, this Soul Netherstone probably fell into the category of "nice to have, not essential."

In other words, what they needed was perhaps never the Soul Netherstone itself, but rather to use it to confirm the existence of something else.

So, what could make a colossus like the Blood Abyss Sect set its sights on it?

A spirit treasure? Or some secret concerning Spirit Transformation?

Jiuyou's mind raced with speculation. Whenever talk turned to Spirit Transformation, he couldn't help but think of the Blood Soul Forbidden Art.

Could the Soul Netherstone have some connection to the Blood Soul Forbidden Art? But no matter how he looked at it, the two had absolutely nothing to do with each other.

If he couldn't figure it out, then he wouldn't dwell on it.

Jiuyou let out a sigh. He wasn't the type to waste energy on self-flagellation. Having lived eight or nine hundred years, no monster of his age would be foolish enough to obsess over something whose benefits hadn't even been confirmed.

He made up his mind on the spot.

First, refine the Soul Netherstone into the Nine Nether Soul-Chaining Chains to elevate his Natal Magical Artifact's grade. Then, consecrate the Golden Lotus Lamp. After finishing these, he would pay another visit to Precious Heaven Pavilion.

After all, the secrets behind the Soul Netherstone and the Blood Abyss Sect grew more complex the more he thought about them, and the "Cold Ruins" Dong Yanwei had mentioned naturally piqued his interest as well.

A place capable of birthing treasures like the Soul Netherstone should be a formidable blessed ground. Even if he never uncovered the Blood Abyss Sect's true purpose, he might still find more ores of this kind in the Cold Ruins.

In this world, no cultivator had ever complained about having too many treasures. If you thought you had enough, it only meant your strength was lacking and your courage was small.

With his decision made, Jiuyou sank into artifact refinement.

His magical power shared the same attributes as the Soul Netherstone, so naturally, he didn't need to seek out a Righteous Path cultivator with fire-attributed techniques at the Nascent Soul stage like he had when forging the Golden Sun Mountain last time. He only needed to employ his Nether Capital Ghostfire to slowly strip away the ore's impurities and extract its essence.

This process wasn't exactly simple, but it wasn't particularly difficult either.

Time flowed on, and two years passed in the blink of an eye.

Deep in the cave dwelling, the blue flames danced for who knew how many days and nights.

Under the repeated scorching of the Nether Capital Ghostfire, that palm-sized Soul Netherstone gradually melted into a ball of pitch-black liquid. Impurities were stripped away bit by bit, and the liquid grew increasingly pure. Faint, dense black patterns emerged on its surface, emanating a heart-stopping yin-cold aura.

Jiuyou formed hand seals with both hands, slowly guiding the ball of pure Soul Nether essence forward, merging it drop by drop into the Nine Nether Soul-Chaining Chains floating before him. The chains were deep azure throughout, links interlocking, hovering in midair with a slight tremor, as if craving something.

The moment the Nether essence touched the chain body, the entire Soul-Chaining Chains blazed with dark light.

Black patterns spread along the links like living creatures, interweaving with the original deep azure. The chain body grew increasingly solid, faintly exuding a bone-chilling cold that dropped the temperature within the cave dwelling by several degrees.

Jiuyou's expression remained steady as his Divine Sense directed every movement, distributing each drop of Nether essence evenly across the chains.

This process couldn't be rushed, nor could it be delayed. After all, this was his Natal Magical Artifact, connected to his very mind and spirit. Not the slightest error could be tolerated.

A full several months passed before the Nether essence was completely integrated into the Soul-Chaining Chains.

Jiuyou opened his eyes and raised a hand to retrieve. The chains flew back into his palm, their deep azure body now shot through with dark patterns, luster restrained, yet containing far more ferocious power than before.

With a thought, the chains suddenly lashed out, darting through the cave dwelling like a swimming dragon, stirring a biting wind in their wake. The chain body swept across the stone wall, easily carving a deep groove into it.

"The power has grown considerably."

Jiuyou nodded slightly, then shook his head.

That Soul Netherstone was ultimately only palm-sized. Though it had strengthened his Natal Magical Artifact, it was still far from the point of complete transformation. But there was no rush. If the opportunity arose in the future, he would simply seek out more ores of this kind.

He absorbed the chains into his body for nurturing, then took out the Golden Lotus Lamp.

The golden little bowl rested in his palm, its spiritual light restrained, ancient and weighty. Jiuyou's fingertip flashed with spiritual light as his Divine Sense delved into it, beginning the consecration. This treasure had already been refined by someone else before, but the original owner had long since wiped away their imprint, saving him considerable effort.

A few days later, Jiuyou's Spiritual Mark was left upon the Golden Lotus Lamp.

He rose to his feet, holding the Golden Lotus Lamp aloft as he poured his magical power into it.

The golden little bowl trembled with a resonant hum, flew from his hand, and hovered in midair, expanding with the wind. In an instant, it transformed into a colossal golden bowl over a hundred zhang in size, inverted as it descended, enveloping the entire cave dwelling and Jiuyou himself within.

On the bowl's surface, golden patterns flowed ceaselessly, spiritual light weaving into a net. Jiuyou raised a hand and slammed his palm against the bowl wall. A dull thud sounded, yet the wall didn't budge in the slightest.

"Its defensive power is acceptable. Its ability to trap enemies shouldn't be lacking either."

Jiuyou nodded with satisfaction. With a flick of his mind, the Golden Lotus Lamp rapidly shrank and flew back into his palm.

He tested it several more times, whether channeling the golden lamp to protect himself or casting it toward distant targets. All responded to his will without the slightest delay.

This ancient relic was now thoroughly his.

He hadn't expected a mere upgrade of his magical artifact to consume two years.

Naturally, Jiuyou hadn't forgotten his other purpose.

He deactivated the cave dwelling's layers of prohibitions one by one, recalled the Soul Wraith Puppets, and changed into a clean spiritual robe. He then used the Face-Altering Technique to assume a stranger's appearance before leaving the cave dwelling, heading toward the western part of the city.

The Precious Heaven Pavilion's towers stood majestic as ever, bustling with activity as usual.

Jiuyou didn't enter through the main gate. Instead, he circled around to the VIP passage on the side, took out a Communication Jade Slip, and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Moments later, a steward-looking cultivator hurried over and respectfully led him deep into the pavilion to a private chamber.

Deep in the cave dwelling, the nether blue flames danced for who knew how many days and nights.

The steward served spiritual tea and tactfully withdrew.

Jiuyou picked up the teacup and took a light sip, his gaze sweeping calmly across the chamber's furnishings. He was in no hurry, waiting patiently.

Before long, Dong Yanwei's hearty laughter echoed from beyond the door.

"Hehehe, Daoist Ghost honors us with his presence! Dong has failed to welcome you properly, please forgive me, forgive me."

The door pushed open as Dong Yanwei strode in with a smile on his face, cupping his hands in greeting.

Jiuyou set down his teacup and rose to return the courtesy.

"Pavilion Master Dong is too kind. This one has come to inquire about something."

"Oh? Speak freely, friend. If Dong knows it, he will surely tell you everything."

Dong Yanwei sat down across from him, his gaze flickering slightly as he began privately speculating about the purpose of Jiuyou's visit.

Jiuyou didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point.

"This one wishes to ask about the place you mentioned at the auction, Pavilion Master Dong. The Cold Ruins."