Ninth-Rank Refiner

Chapter 117: Weapon Scroll

“Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey…” The sound of spitting was incessant, with some even carelessly landing on Family Head Jin and the Elders.

Jin Yongqiang and the seven Elders trembled all over. Jin Yongqiang opened his mouth several times, but then closed it. The Grand Elder braced his hands on the ground, burying his head in his chest.

“In my opinion, this world isn’t about who is the Clan Chief or Elder being right, nor about who is older being right, nor about who is pitifully kneeling being right. It’s about the truth being right; that is the Dao. When you kneel, you are not kneeling to me, but to yourselves. You should kneel for your sins, for your tyranny, and for your heartlessness.”

Qian Duoduo suddenly felt that he was Qian Duoduo, the Qian Duoduo who wasn’t afraid even after being whipped three times. He was not Jin Buhuan, who endured again and again until death.

“Purple-Gold Disciple is the highest honor for a Disciple of this Sect, recognizing selflessness and dedication in upholding the interests of the Refining Spirit Sect. Here, I announce something: my descendants, regardless of gender, must be like everyone else, not receiving any special privileges from the Sect. They must start from the lowest level of the Sect, and only with ability and contribution can they enter the Outer Sect or Inner Sect.”

“Good! Good! Good!” As soon as his voice fell, the Cultivators watching shouted in unison.

“What’s all this noise?” At this moment, an old and majestic voice rang out.

The crowd parted, and Elder Bi, with completely white hair, walked steadily in.

“Cough.” With a cough from him, Jin Yongqiang and the seven Elders jumped up from the ground, respectfully standing at attention and saluting.

“Family Head Jin, Elders, by making such a scene, do you believe the Sect’s punishment was wrong?” Elder Bi’s voice was cold.

Jin Yongqiang quickly plastered on a smile, “No, absolutely not. We are just pleading with the Purple-Gold Disciple to serve as our Family’s Young Clan Chief. No other intention, no other intention.”

Elder Bi’s eyes widened, “No other intention? That’s not right. As Elders, and as the esteemed Clan Chief and Elders, yet you kneel before Mengyuan Mountain’s gate, kneeling for over an hour, letting hundreds of people watch the show. Are you trying to force the infamous reputation of being disrespectful to Elders and heartless upon the Purple-Gold Disciple?”

Jin Yongqiang waved his hands repeatedly, “That’s not the meaning, that’s not the meaning.”

Sweat dripped from his and the Elders’ foreheads. They could rely on the Jin Family to suppress Jin Buhuan, and Elder Bi could likewise use the Protectorate to suppress the Jin Family.

“Just because you share the surname Jin, you demand he do this and that, and if he doesn’t agree to your demands, you kneel. Are you still members of the Refining Spirit Sect? When you have demands for the Sect, do you also kneel? And must the Sect not refuse?”

Jin Yongqiang panicked, and said tearfully, “Elder Bi, we wouldn’t dare.”

“Hmph. You’ve already done it, what else wouldn’t you dare?”

“We were wrong.” Jin Yongqiang knelt down again towards Elder Bi, “Please, Elder, forgive us.”

The seven Elders also plopped down, kneeling.

“Where were you wrong?” Elder Bi asked.

Jin Yongqiang lowered his head, not daring to utter another word.

Elder Bi half-turned his body and said to the onlookers, “Whether it’s the Jin Family, or the Zhao Family, or the Sun Family, or the Wang Family, they are all small families of the Refining Spirit Sect. The Sect comes before the family. The interests of the Sect are greater than the interests of the family. Sect law is greater than family rules. The fault of Family Head Jin and the Elders lies here. The Purple-Gold Disciple is the Purple-Gold Disciple of this Sect, not the Purple-Gold Disciple of any single family.”

Jin Yongqiang’s head was pressed against the cold ground.

“What Bu Huan said just now is all true. In view of this, the Protectorate would like to remind everyone that all family Disciples, whether direct or collateral, are Disciples of this Sect. All families must treat them equally and Cultivate them well. Family Disciples are not private property of their families; they must not be arbitrarily killed, must not be bullied by the strong, and must not be oppressed by the rich. If there is any such instance, one can directly complain and report to the Protectorate. Once verified, severe punishment will be meted out without leniency.”

In front of the mountain gate, there was a burst of cheers. Most of the cheering Disciples wore gray or blue robes. Elder Bi had spoken their heartfelt desires.

… …

The Jin Family never bothered Qian Duoduo again. It was said that after they returned, Jin Yongqiang promoted three Elders from the collateral branch. The collateral Elders brought an unprecedented voice and fought for interests for the collateral branch. The poor Disciples of the Jin Family were provided resources by the Jin Family and could Cultivate for free until they entered the Outer Sect.

Later, when Elder Bi asked Qian Duoduo how to deal with Jin Buque, Jin Buyong, Kang Shenjun, and Gongsun Zheng, Qian Duoduo felt that since the Jin Family had changed, there was no need to put them to death. He just sent them to the spirit mine under the Jail, to contribute their remaining energy and atone for their past wrongdoings.

After Jin Buque entered the Jail, the position of Young Clan Chief of the Jin Family remained vacant. However, Jin Yongqiang stated that anyone could be the Young Clan Chief, but the condition was to defeat Jin Buhuan in the martial arts arena.

There was nothing against the rules in what this stubborn old man said and did, so Qian Duoduo had no way to deal with him.

Of course, as long as he didn’t affect him, Qian Duoduo was satisfied, because he had too many things on hand now.

During the day, he was mainly busy with the ten-thousand-acre manor. At night, he researched Artifact Refining, Cultivated the Golden Light Technique and the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art.

What Qian Duoduo most wanted to Breakthrough was still Artifact Refining. Holding the Magic Treasure for “Soaring Overlord,” he pondered for several nights and decided to first lay a solid foundation. He had only obtained the first four scrolls of the Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining; the later weaponry scroll, defense scroll, utility scroll, Puppet scroll, Artifact Transformation Scroll, and Combination Scroll were still unobtainable.

This night, after reviewing the spirit mine scroll, Qian Duoduo changed into his original blue robe and quietly left Mengyuan Mountain, heading straight for Wanjin Pavilion.

Wanjinge Square was deserted on this winter night. He quickly slipped into a Wood House, sat on a futon, took out the Jade Slip of the spirit mine scroll from the Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining, and entered the virtual space.

Qian Duoduo found himself on a primitive planet, with no one around, only spiritual plant, Spirit Beasts, Spirit Birds, and unseen spirit mines. He held a golden shovel for mining.

“Welcome to the spirit mine world. The assessment content is ore identification and ore refining. Both quantity and quality will be assessed. Please begin.”

Qian Duoduo stared with wide eyes, recognizing the patch of spirit ginger in front. Underneath the spirit ginger was soft copper. Sure enough, he obtained soft copper from the roots of the spirit ginger, placed it in the nearby cauldron, and purified it with gentle heat, completing a task. There were giant-tailed worms crawling there, they loved to eat green mud ore…

Ore identification was like solving a puzzle, requiring reasoning and judgment based on small clues. Ore refining was like gold panning, removing Impurities to obtain pure gold.

During his recent mission, Liu Boli’s explanations along the way and the practical experience of Artifact Refining had given Qian Duoduo rich experience. Ore identification and ore refining became a kind of enjoyment and surprise.

He didn’t know how much time had passed. He felt he hadn’t played enough in the virtual space when a ball of fire light pushed him out.

Picking up the Jade Slip of the Encyclopedia of Weapon Refining in front of him, it now contained an additional scroll—the weaponry scroll.

As he exited the Wood House, Qian Duoduo looked back. Alas, the Golden Toad had reappeared on the top of the golden pillar.

“Sorry, Senior Sister Cao Yueying, I accidentally struck you down again.” Returning to his Immortal Cave like a thief, Qian Duoduo immediately began studying the weaponry scroll.

Weaponry is divided into Magic Treasures for attacking people and city-attack magic treasures. Magical Artifacts for attacking people include over three hundred types such as swords, spears, sabers, halberds, axes, whips, hooks, forks, seals, bottles, flags, and drums. city-attack magic treasures include over a hundred types such as sky-shattering cannons, trebuchets, siege ladders, battering rams, siege hooks, heavy crossbows, and trench bridges.

Qian Duoduo flipped through it several times and discovered a problem: the Golden Rooster Sword that Liu Boli had refined for him was not recorded in this weaponry scroll. The silver sword that Yu Yixiang could combine nine swords into one was also not recorded.

“Elder Liu, is this weaponry scroll an Incomplete Manual?”