“` Enjoy more content from empire
Shang Huan stood in the dense forest, his small eyes fixated on the five Wood Spirit Boys on the ground.
He immediately pulled out a palm-sized scroll from his sleeve. He skimmed over the awkward Curse Words and carefully read the detailed introduction that followed.
“To be used continuously for three days, one must soak them in Spiritual Pulp?”
“Even if used sparingly, five days is the limit.”
“If you want the horse to run, you must feed the horse, right?”
“Spiritual Pulp!” Shang Huan trembled with excitement.
“No wonder Mr. Gongsun agreed to Mo Wuzhou’s extortion.”
“So that was his plan!” Shang Huan’s eyes shone with excitement.
Mo Wuzhou was greedy and shrewd, but in the end, Mr. Gongsun was still one step ahead!
Having bought the Wood Spirit Boys, one would need to come and buy Spiritual Pulp to use them!
Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!
No, I must quickly stockpile a batch of Spiritual Pulp.
A hundred Wood Spirit Boys, how much Spiritual Pulp would that require?!
I’m going to be rich!
Haha…
…
A kite tore through the night sky, heading straight for Peng Yue Mountain.
In the Yiyou District, within the Underground Secret Chamber below Chen Mu’s residence.
“First, cultivate Mana.”
He took out the Exquisite Jade Plate and placed White Jade Coins into it.
Wisps of fog-like Earth Spirit Vital Energy began to appear in mid-air.
“Amazing.”
He had assumed that the Earth Spirit Vital Energy would emanate from within the Exquisite Jade Plate. But in reality, Earth Spirit Vital Energy appeared abruptly from the surrounding space.
“I need to gather information about the Exquisite Jade Plate in the future. This item, I suspect it has quite a history.”
An Hour later, Chen Mu opened his eyes.
It lacked only about one-tenth before the Jade Seed would be completely filled.
“It’s a pity, this goal, I estimate, will take quite a long time to reach.”
He was about to mass-produce Wood Spirit Boys, which would definitely consume Mana, making it difficult to fill the Jade Seed.
With a thought,
a small-armed-length heart of wood flew in from across the wall.
There, neatly stacked against the wall, were more than a hundred similar pieces of wood.
He called up the gray wall and looked at the Artifact Refining Technique entry.
Artifact Refining Technique (Wood Spirit Boy): 7629/10000;
His understanding of refining Wood Spirit Boys had far surpassed that of ordinary people.
He was also becoming increasingly familiar with the control required to infuse Talismans into the wooden horse bodies.
“But without reaching the limit, there will inevitably be mistakes, and who knows how much wood will be wasted.”
The heart of the wood varied, and differences in their processing could accumulate little by little, causing him to make errors during refining.
Hiss Hiss Hiss…
Bang!
Wood chips flew everywhere.
The dark little wooden horse exploded into pieces.
Black smoke billowed, sweeping away the wood chips around him.
“It’s just about determination, right?” Chen Mu did not care too much.
This was something he was familiar with.
…
Within the Scripture Transmission Institute beneath Cold Moon Pond.
Fu Zi sat behind the counter at the eastern gate of Scripture Transmission.
He leisurely browsed through a volume of jade slips.
“It’s been verified, the Wood Spirit Boys originated from Mo Wuzhou’s hand,” Zhang Jin respectfully said from outside the counter.
“Do you believe that?” Fu Zi’s eyes shifted slightly as he gave Zhang Jin a probing look.
That…
Why would there be any doubt?
Mo Wuzhou has a Condensing Aperture master as a teacher. Wouldn’t it be normal for him to know how to refine slightly exotic Magic Artifacts?
“Rong junior sister specializes in Alchemy. Where would she find the time to learn Artifact Refining?” Fu Zi said calmly.
Zhang Jin pondered, “So Mo Wuzhou is just a middleman? Someone else is behind the creation of the Wood Spirit Boys?”
“There are hidden dragons and crouching tigers in the Lower Courtyard,” Fu Zi put down the jade slip and sighed.
“He has only recently become an apprentice in the Upper Court. Patrolling the two courtyards, he shouldn’t have had the time to meet many people,” Zhang Jin lowered his head in thought. “Finding this person shouldn’t be difficult.”
“Who said this person is among those patrolling the two courtyards?” Fu Zi said meaningfully.
“I have managed the Scripture Transmission Institute for decades, and I have never seen the method for refining Wood Spirit Boys before.”
“`
“The Wood Spirit Boy comes from outside? Are you referring to those who work the fields?” Zhang Jin was full of disbelief, “What is that person after?”
Capable of Artifact Refining, at the very least possessing Illusion Breaking Cultivation, how could such a person be willing to hide among a group of workers in the Lower Courtyard?
“Nothing more than some little secret, afraid of others finding out,” Fu Zi replied nonchalantly.
“Then it’s going to be tough to investigate,” Zhang Jin frowned.
“What if we just deal with Mo Wuzhou…”
Zhang Jin made a slicing gesture across his neck as he spoke.
“What nonsense are you talking!”
Fu Zi glared at Zhang Jin. “I wouldn’t dream of killing someone with his talents. How could I possibly do such a thing.”
“But once the Wood Spirit Boy starts to be sent en masse to the pioneer teams, it won’t be easy to manage the task of leading the Exotic Beasts to charge the defenses,” Zhang Jin leaned in and whispered.
“It doesn’t matter,” Fu Zi said slowly, squinting his eyes, “Just draw a few more over.”
“Just because you can see them doesn’t mean you can stop them.”
Zhang Jin’s face changed, “But that will result in many deaths and injuries.”
“If the Exotic Beasts are really too many and too strong, our people…”
Fu Zi glanced at the other party and said indifferently, “People will die on both sides, only then will there be no flaws.”
“Song Wujie and his disciples are all too clever, to deceive them without a few deaths would be difficult,” Fu Zi said with an icy gaze.
Feeling the chill in Fu Zi’s gaze, Zhang Jin tensed up and promptly nodded in agreement, lowering his head.
I also need to figure out a way to get a Wood Spirit Boy!
…
Peng Yue Mountain, Yiyou District, the Underground Secret Chamber.
Bang!
Wood shavings flew in all directions.
Another jet-black wooden horse exploded into pieces.
Chen Mu scratched his head in annoyance.
The small wooden horse had a hard spot on its leg. He applied too much force during the Talisman’s insertion process, losing balance, and the whole wooden horse shattered.
“So close,” he said.
Busy all night, after refining ten times in a row, he only managed to make one.
“The Success Rate is cause for concern.”
At this rate, when will he ever complete the order?
Seeing a large sum of money right before his eyes, yet unable to deliver the goods and get paid.
He glanced at the experience marked on the grey wall.
Artifact Refining Technique (Wood Spirit Boy): 7829/10000;
“Keep grinding,” he muttered to himself.
A series of explosive shattering sounds immediately filled the Secret Chamber.
…
For three consecutive days, Chen Mu played hooky and chopped trees by day.
By night, he returned to Peng Yue Mountain’s Secret Chamber, where after exhausting his mana, he would tirelessly grind the Artifact Refining Technique experience.
That day, a fine drizzle began to fall around Peng Yue Mountain.
The pioneer team stayed put.
The Second Pioneer Squad in the Yiyou District.
The group chopped down thick tree trunks and inserted them side by side into the soft, muddy soil, then laid out some freshly split wooden planks to create a platform elevated a meter and a half above the ground.
Tents were pitched on the temporary wooden platforms.
As the sky darkened and the drizzle persisted, everyone lounged at the tent entrances, chatting leisurely.
“Little Mu, you haven’t been bitten by any poisonous bugs, have you?” Old Hao asked with furrowed brows and worry.
“What’s wrong?” Chen Mu didn’t understand.
“Go find a puddle and take a look at your face?”
Chen Mu was perplexed.
He reached out of his single-person tent and with one hand carved out a hole the size of a face on a wooden stake.
The pit quickly filled with rainwater.
Chen Mu peered into it.
“So pale,” he observed.
He had already used the Five Ghosts’ viewpoint to check as soon as Old Hao finished speaking.
“Artifact Refining takes a bit out of you,” he admitted.
His body was robust, his appetite hearty, but his spirits were sapped.
“A minor mishap in practice, no big deal,” Chen Mu said with a smile, trying to gloss over it.
“You can’t afford to be impatient for success,” Old Hao exhorted, puffing out a cloud of white smoke.
“Alright,” Chen Mu agreed with a smile.
Indeed, he couldn’t rush things.
If his foundation got damaged due to Artifact Refining and affected his path, that would be a serious loss.
“These eight thousand White Jade Coins are not easy to earn,” Chen Mu sighed.