Chapter 2841: Southern Skyfire, North Star River

Carson Flores knew quite a lot of things; in Alchemy he could at least barely be counted as a master, and by constantly listening to Ben Singleton talk about Formations he’d picked up some knowledge there too. As for Talismans, he’d stepped through the door but was still far from mastery, and he only had a rough grasp of the Way of the Sword Talisman. But when it came to Artifact Refining, he really didn’t understand it.

The Artifact Refining competition was in full swing. In the vast Profound White Valley, flames shot into the sky, heat waves rolled, and all kinds of Demonic Beast Abnormal Phenomena kept rising up into the air, looking grand and imposing.

Seeing Carson Flores’ curious expression, Kaelithra Nixon opened his mouth to explain, "Artifact Refining generally requires adding Spirit Blood to increase its activity, so the vast majority of Artifact Refiners choose Demon Blood of Sentience. That demon blood already possesses extremely high spirituality, and when added during refining, it will trigger its true-form phantom."

"Normally speaking, the higher the Level of Spirit Blood added and the more of it you use, the higher the quality of the magical treasure produced from the same materials, and the stronger its abilities."

Carson Flores casually asked, "Blood of Sentience—then wouldn’t the blood of Cultivators also work?"

"Of course it can."

Othric Whitmore chuckled as he took over the explanation, "Among Artifact Refiners there’s a particular school. They believe humans are the most spiritual lifeforms in the world, that human blood is the most suitable Spirit Blood for Artifact Refining, so they often use human blood when they refine artifacts."

"The milder Artifact Refiners will obtain Immortal’s Blood through trade, purchase, and other means. Evil Sect Artifact Refiners, however, will directly use the blood of living people for blood sacrifice to achieve the best effect. Some of these living people are Immortal Slaves bought for this purpose, others are simply captured outright. Naturally, the latter is usually done in secret so no one finds out, otherwise it’s hard to guarantee that some righteous person won’t come to eradicate their evil."

Chatting as they walked, everyone entered the inner arena. Relying on Othric Whitmore’s status as Junior Sect Master, they were quickly led to a viewing platform with an excellent view.

On the stands sat quite a few guests of distinguished status—men and women, young and old—each one a big shot with a powerful aura.

As Junior Sect Master, Othric Whitmore was naturally known to many. After a round of greetings, Kaelithra Nixon’s identity was also revealed, sparking another round of polite exchanges.

Naturally, none of that had anything to do with Carson Flores. He simply took his seat and watched the competition.

The entire Artifact Refining competition had already entered its mid-to-late phase. Everyone still remaining on the field was highly skilled. Carson Flores scanned them one by one—he couldn’t really understand what they were doing, but each of them looked incredibly impressive.

Just as he was watching, an elderly man with white hair walked in from the entrance, and in an instant a large swathe of people around them stood up.

"Elder Jaramillo!"

"Sect Master Jaramillo!"

The white-haired elder nodded to everyone, a faint smile appearing on his previously stern face. "Everyone’s in high spirits. Quite a lot of people have come today."

"Such a grand event—naturally we have to come broaden our horizons and witness the bearing of all these masters!"

"Sect Master Jaramillo will definitely take first place this time. We offer our congratulations in advance."

"I have a magical treasure that I’ve never managed to refine properly. Now that there are so many Artifact Refining Masters here, I came to see if there’s a chance to finally get this magical treasure refined right."

Those who recognized the white-haired elder all spoke up with smiles, showering him with compliments.

The white-haired elder waved his hand. "Don’t go putting a high hat on me. I’m afraid I won’t be able to beat Grayan Darlington in this competition."

Kaelithra Nixon walked back to Carson Flores’ side and introduced in a low voice, "This is Jorren Jaramillo, Sect Master of the Star River Sect. Star River Sect is extremely powerful, with tens of thousands of Disciples. Aside from cultivation, their greatest strength is Artifact Refining—they’re a top-tier Artifact Refining Sect."

"Sect Master Jaramillo’s Artifact Refining skills are formidable, not inferior to my master. And the Grayan Darlington he mentioned is the Deputy Sect Master of Skyfire Sect and Peak Master of Refining Peak. His attainment in Artifact Refining is likewise incomparably strong."

"Skyfire Sect and Star River Sect are the same—they’re both top-tier Sects with immense power. And because both Sects’ greatest strength lies in Artifact Refining, whenever they meet on an Artifact Refining stage, they’ll inevitably want to decide a winner. They’ve competed many times, with wins and losses about equal and even many draws, so in the Refinement World there’s a saying: ’Southern Skyfire, North Star River.’"

Carson Flores let out a soft laugh. "You’re pretty familiar with all this."

Kaelithra Nixon chuckled and explained in a low voice, "My master is also fond of Artifact Refining. My Sixth Senior Brother learned my master’s Artifact Refining skills. He likes to roam the world, and whenever he comes back he tells us stories. All of this is what Sixth Senior Brother told us."

As host, Othric Whitmore naturally went up to greet Jorren Jaramillo. In their conversation he mentioned that he was accompanying guests from Grand Void Mountain, and Jorren Jaramillo’s eyes immediately lit up. "True Sage Grand Void has come?"

Othric Whitmore hurriedly explained, "Uncle-Master Grand Void is busy exploring a new world and cannot spare the time for now, so it’s his Disciple who came..."

Jorren Jaramillo followed up, "Is it the Sixth Disciple, Uther Compton?"

Othric Whitmore replied, "It’s the Twelfth Disciple, Kaelithra Nixon."

Disappointment showed on Jorren Jaramillo’s face. "Ah, if they were here, I might have had some hope of beating that Grayan Darlington."

Othric Whitmore asked curiously, "Senior, why do you say that?"