17 1000 Year Crystal Iron
Bang!
Bang!!
Bang!!!
Bang!!!!
「That's the 25th time I failed! System, why can I not forge this? Didn't you stay that this was just like normal Iron?」
Ding! It requires a special technique to forge. The 1000 year crystal Iron is just like iron except you have to manipulate it with spiritual energy in order to work with it. The crystal will absorb the energy from all physical impacts and heat directed upon it unless it is covered in spiritual energy. If too much energy is absorbed then it explodes. To prevent this the energy can be converted into something more useful by arrays carved into it, again, with spiritual energy.
「How am I supposed to do that!」
You can purchase the manual from the shop. You have 4 transactions left.
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Name: ≪Chen Hua≫≪Feng Shan (Current)≫
Titles: ≪N/A≫
Profession(s): [...]
HP: 800/800 MP: 500/500
Level: 14 EXP: 282/2500)
Age: 7 Race: Human
Strength: 14.2 Dexterity: 14.3
Agility: 14.3 Intelligence: 14.1
Status Points: 22 Mastery points: 22 Lottery draws: 0
Shop transactions remaining: 5 Free conversions remaining: 3
Equipment: [...]
Current Missions: N/A
Skills: [...]
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「How much will it cost?」
100 Spirit stones
「Okay th-」
Mid-grade
「You're scamming me!」
The system is always fair and never scams anyone. You can have fun attempting to find out the method yourself.
「...」
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!...
「Can you give me a hint?」
Ding! The host can feel free to but the manual for 100 mid-grade spirit stones!
「Scammer!」
Stingy...
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!...」
「Argh! This stupid Iron!」
With his first still covered In his spiritual energy, he slammed it down hitting the crystal iron.
Thunk... Aah! clutching his hand whit felt as if it had broken from the impact with the iron, he spun around a bit and then gently placed his hand on the bench using his spiritual energy to calm the nerves in his hand.
Squish... The iron flattened out...
Ding! Congratulations, you have figured out how to forge the iron!
「... Is that really worth 100 mid-grade spirit stones? didn't you say that you never same anyone?」
...
「I demand compensation!」
Ding! The system never scams anyone. Please pay 95 mid-grade spirit stones to unlock the workshop function of the system.
「If it only cost 5 spirit stones then why did you make me waste all that time?」
...
Open the cauldron section of the alchemist herbalist book...
Cauldrons are split into 9 different grades. Lock alchemists, he cauldrons can only refine pills that are of the same grade as or lower than the grade of the cauldron.
The first 3 grades only require materials that can withstand the pill flame of 1 rank higher than the cauldron, as all cauldrons do. The next cauldrons (rank 4-6) require pill arrays to be inscribed on the cauldron, they are used to finetune the inner workings of the cauldron mid-refinement and to make the necessary adjustments when refining. The highest 3 ranking cauldrons require a pill cosmos diagram to be inscribed on the cauldron. The refiner must calculate the positions of the stars and use them to cause resonance between the universe and the pill.
The 1000 Year Crystal Iron was a special material. As he recently found out, *glares at the system*, It was extremely easy to shape. The only troublesome part would be inscribing arrays and inscriptions on them.
Although unnecessary, If any physical impact placed on the cauldron could be transferred to heat, and any heat applied to it contained inside of the cauldron, then it would probably be the most sought after cauldron for lower-ranked alchemists especially if there were arrays that could maintain a set temperature disallowing extra heat to enter. If less time and energy was needed to maintain the heat in a cauldron, then one could focus on refining the pill more resulting in an increased success rate and less wasted materials meaning more profit.
Quickly keeping this in mind, Chen Hua stopped and thought: 「Wait, the 5 sects all have alchemists, right? I wonder... If I were to provide 5 to each sect at the beginning of the meeting in the next 15 days, then...」
With this idea in his head, he set off to the not yet in existence potter's wheel to make cauldrons.
System, Unlock the workshop!
Ding, Workshop unlocked. All tools required for any profession ave been supplied.
「... Where is the potter's wheel?」
There is none.
「Being a potter is a profession, is it not?」
Are you working with clay?
「Does this metal not have the properties of clay? I could even bake 'ceramic' pill bottles out of these!」
... With the silence of the system and a small blue flash, a potter's wheel appeared.
--- 5 days later ---
「10 days until the alliance's initial meeting! 51 cauldrons finished! Say, system, how much can one of these cauldrons be sold for on the market?」
Ding, You have made peak tier 3 grade cauldrons. They can be sold for 35 high-grade spirit stones. If you were to increase the quality of the arrays and add the pill arrays then you could sell them as 4th-grade caldrons for 100-150 high-grade spirit stones.
「Now all I have to do is make the sect even more extravagant than it already is...」
「I know! I'll make the main pathways out of the iron and turn them into one massive protective array... I'll also put a compound shield generator in each of the peaks and have them all resonate and combine with the main generator at my residence...」
Spending the next 6 days in the workshop, he finally came out looking haggard and in dire need of a shower.
「Finally! I've finished the generators and now only need to use the system to install them!」
Going around to the various peaks he installed the generators and placed an upgraded cauldron atop each one. These cauldrons he had just made were not only cauldrons but also cannons. They could build up heat and when it was hot enough hall you had to do was toss in a special projectile made form the crystal iron and boom! a superheated highly explosive hunk of iron would shoot out and cause a massive explosion. There was even a compartment to add in extra materials for added effects.
With only 4 more days left, Chen Hua got to work on the pathways, one could never be too safe when it came to laying out protective arrays. While transforming the pathways with the iron 'bricks' he also engraved arrays onto them which would cause them to absorb any heat energy, kinetic energy, spiritual energy, etc. and transform that into spiritual energy then condense 50% of it at the bottom of the lake and 10% inside of each of the 5 peaks. After a long time, something like this would be able to form a paradise for cultivation.
Because this was such a great idea, perfect for establishing a sect, many others have tried something like this in the past but all failed for the same reasons, How do you secretly steal energy from the sect members without them noticing including the old freaks? How do you collect that energy? How can you maximise the energy taken?
The other sects just did not have the materials that could make it possible, but with the 1000 year crystal iron, things were different. Because of the unique properties, he could use it to absorb many different types of energies and transform it. He was prepared to flabbergast those sects when they arrived... Speaking about those sects, they were supposed to come tomorrow morning!
Hurrying to take a shower he cleaned up and teleported to the shop before it opened. Placing the extra cauldrons inside of the second floor, he prepared for his guests.
Now, with a bit of free time, he sat behind the counter playing with a small pile of the 1000 year crystal iron. Thinking about what he would make a thought suddenly occurred to him, Why not create a pagoda treasure, like have 9 different inscriptions inside of the pagoda (one for each floor)?
No, rather than that, why not create a peak master treasure, something that the peak masters could be recognised with, one that could have various functions such as transfer points between badges, issue badges, control certain restrictions, allow other tokens to control certain restrictions within a certain time limit, act as the peak's shield generator key, etc. With this in mind, he began to sculpt out 5 pagodas and redeemed a title plate maker from the shop (1 for free no transaction count)
Finishing on the 6 pagodas fairly quickly (although they did look a bit simple and plain), he inscribed various formations and inscriptions in the bottom that would automatically engrave a title plate it was placed on top of with the corresponding inscriptions when the levels of the pagoda were activated.
On the first level of each of the pagodas, he inscribed inscriptions that could only be used to defend against those a) without a title plate on them, and b) withstand against an attack of a level higher than the defender. Of course, because he was unable to create inscriptions that were of too high a level, he chooses to make it so that the disciples would have to charge them by storing their spiritual energy inside of them so that the inscriptions would use the provided energy to form a defence.
He then hollowed out the centre of the pagodas and inscribed small arrays on the inside. These were to, when activated, resonate with the respective shield generator and activate it. They also were able to control various restrictions created on the peak. This was done by adding a 'restriction token' to the restriction which would resonate with the pagoda.
Each of the 5 pagodas could only manipulate the restrictions that they created and it would only work on their respective peaks. The 6th pagoda was a bit more complex than the other 5 and also had many other functions, This would belong to the sect master and be able to manipulate all restrictions in the sect regardless of who made them or where they were placed.
He decided that there would be different sets of pagodas, 1 tier would be for Core disciples limited to their residence, 3 for outer and inner elders limited to the area of their jurisdiction, 5 for grand elders, 5 for peak masters, 7 for sect protectors, 9 for the sect master, and the sect ancestors were monsters who didn't even need a pagoda, in fact, they only had to think and they could already control the entire mountain range and beyond.
Just as he was completing the last step to the pagodas, 5 old men walked in with 5 other younger ones in tow.
「Welcome to the Myriad Da-... Welcome guests, You are just on time for the alliance meeting! Please follow me into the basement, we will take the teleportation array to the main sect.」
Glancing at each other the sect heads closely followed Chen Hua into the basement.
Continuing down the stairs they took a look into the packed warehouse and were stunned when they saw the cauldrons just piled into a corner, various inscribed items in another corner, and a large pile of the 1000 year crystal iron sitting in the centre of the room.
Passing the storage room they made it into the other room and although not surprised, they were still amazed that there would be a mid-scale teleportation array platform placed in such a small shop.
「Just how much effort did you put into building this shop?」
「Not much really, it only took a few days of hard work of inscribing things...」
Everyone else: ...
Well, we are here, this will teleport us to the main sect, I suggest that you try not to be too surprised when we get there although it is mostly empty. After we finalise the alliance plans you all can officially register as disciples of the sect.
With a bright light, the 11 people standing on the teleportation platform vanished and reappeared at another location somewhere in the mountain range.
