Nie Shiyun did not hesitate. The moment the start of the timed event was announced, an idea had already formed in his mind.
Apparatus—did this not play right into his hands? It was merely moving forward the production of something he had already planned to refine later.
Nie Shiyun took out the gold-purple copper cauldron gifted to him by Nie Li and manifested his Core Fire within it. He tossed in several spiritual stones, and the fire-gathering formation on the cauldron’s belly was activated, circulating with a dazzling radiance.
He had long intended to craft a refining cauldron for himself, but now was not the time. All raw materials used for refining the apparatus needed to be reported; Nie Shiyun did not want to risk others discovering Coal Ball’s phoenix feathers.
Recalling his earlier promise to craft a pill furnace for Zhai Bairong, Nie Shiyun felt that now was the perfect opportunity. Alchemists rarely refined pills in front of others, so he wouldn't have to worry about the gift being discovered by outsiders once it was handed over.
Gold-purple copper was an excellent base material. Nie Shiyun intended to use this material to recast his own cauldron eventually, so he decided to use the same base for Zhai Bairong’s pill furnace. Making them a matching pair was a small, private whim of his.
Originally, he had never refined a pill furnace before and thought he should practice a few times before doing it for real. However, not only had Nie Shiyun spent the entire previous night in the geothermal chamber, but he had also observed Zhai Bairong refining pills. He felt that through his observations, he already had a firm grasp of the process, which allowed him to make such a bold decision on short notice.
A pill furnace was much smaller and more delicate than a refining cauldron, but it was still considered a relatively large object. Under normal circumstances, three hours would be quite tight. The audience below only saw the various artifact refiners gradually selecting their materials and beginning the most tedious first step: lighting the fires and hammering. For a time, the stage was filled with a cacophony of clanging and banging, and the passersby couldn't make heads or tails of it.
However, Nie Shiyun’s speed was extremely fast. Before long, someone in the crowd realized he was refining a cauldron-like vessel and was instantly surprised. "He certainly is daring! To produce an object as large as a cauldron within three hours? Has he gone mad trying to show off?"
"Fellow Daoist, what do you mean by that?" A bystander who knew nothing of artifact refining immediately leaned in to ask.
"You may not know, but the materials used for refining are all refined ores and hard substances. It’s not like molding clay where just having a shape is enough. Every component must be hammered repeatedly to ensure the tempering effect is consistent. Only after repeated checks and adjustments can they be fused together; otherwise, the item will break as soon as it's used. Naturally, the larger the volume, the more time and effort it requires."
The other person nodded thoughtfully. However, seeing Nie Shiyun’s movements as fluid as flowing water, they felt he didn't look like someone desperately trying to show off, but rather someone possessed of absolute confidence.
While adjusting the heat, Nie Shiyun hammered one half of the furnace body with precision and force. Before many people could even process what was happening, the shape of half the furnace gradually took form.
"So fast. At this rate, it feels like he could finish in less than three hours."
"This... u-usually it’s not like this." The person who had just been clamoring about Nie Shiyun showing off and explaining the logic to others was suddenly proven wrong, stammering and unable to speak.
Nie Shiyun did not look like an ordinary refining apprentice at all. If one inquired around, they would find no record of him taking on commissions or orders; he merely followed his father to observe and learn. Why, then, did he look like a veteran who had been practicing for a hundred years?
"Look, he’s even started carving formations onto the furnace body. Does he really have more than enough time in three hours?"
"..."
The person beside him dared not speak again, fearing that if they said another wrong thing, they truly wouldn't have the face to stand there anymore.
At this moment, some artifact refiners who truly understood the craft happened to come by. They knew far more than those young laymen. Every one of them was struck with shock. Rather than refining the entire furnace first and then carving formations onto it, Nie Shiyun chose to carve a portion of the formation onto each component as he finished it. He must have planned it perfectly so that once the components were completed and joined together, all the formations would be activated simultaneously.
Compared to carving formations on a heavy, rounded vessel, formations made this way were more delicate and could cover many corners, offering numerous benefits. But how could this be easy? If there was even a slight error in calculation or a tremor of the hand by a hair’s breadth, the fusion of the components would fail, and the disconnected formations would be nothing more than useless decorative patterns.
"Senior Brother...?"
Duan Mingyu saw Zhai Bairong’s gaze fixed on the crowded exchange stage and followed his line of sight.
"Does Senior Brother want to go over and look? I wonder what they're competing in over there," Duan Mingyu asked casually, not particularly interested.
Zhai Bairong naturally wanted to go and see Nie Shiyun, and he was even more curious about what he was making today.
He had left the geothermal chamber a bit later than Nie Shiyun this morning. After arranging the departure of the Yingyue Sect disciples, he had been dragged to the plaza by Duan Mingyu without a moment's rest.
"But we have to set off back to the Yingyue Sect soon, and I still want to browse more," Duan Mingyu said with a troubled tone. "There are so many people over there..."
Rong Lü immediately spoke up from the side, "I'll accompany you to browse elsewhere."
Zhai Bairong glanced at Rong Lü. He was truly something; most of the Lingfeng Mountain cultivators had already left, yet Rong Lü refused to go for Duan Mingyu's sake. However, the disciples of Lingfeng Mountain had always operated independently, and Zhai Bairong had no affection for that sect anyway. It didn't matter if he returned early or late.
Being glanced at by Zhai Bairong, Rong Lü only interpreted it as the other being slightly unhappy that he was taking Duan Mingyu away, so he remained silent.
"Then... Senior Brother, shall we meet later? At the designated gathering point for the Yingyue Sect," Duan Mingyu asked tentatively.
Zhai Bairong wished for nothing more than for the two of them to leave him alone. He smiled and nodded. "That sounds fine."
As the two headed toward the auction house, Zhai Bairong immediately turned around and squeezed toward the artifact refining exchange stage. He slightly suppressed his aura, but as he got closer, he was still recognized by many surrounding cultivators. Duan Mingyu’s group had attracted a lot of attention over the past few days, not to mention Zhai Bairong, who had taken second place in the martial competition. However, compared to the fear people felt toward someone like Xu Yehua, they felt a natural sense of distance from Zhai Bairong. Tacitly, the cultivators on the outer edge quietly made way for him, though none dared to strike up a conversation.
Zhai Bairong did not care what they thought. He nodded politely and walked forward through the path they had opened for him. This way, he could see Nie Shiyun among the many refiners on stage at a single glance. However, the other seemed to have completely concentrated his spirit on the work in his hands and did not notice Zhai Bairong joining the crowd below.
Zhai Bairong had come out late to begin with, and after wandering with those two for a while, over an hour had already passed. Nie Shiyun’s furnace body was basically formed. The gold-purple copper body was divided into three segments, each of the same size and thickness. Smooth patterns were meticulously traced onto the furnace body with a carving tool, interspersed with Spirit-Gathering Formations and Heart-Calming Formations—all basic formations beneficial for pill refining. Before the audience below could see clearly, he summoned his Core Fire. Within the rolling flames, he precisely controlled the segments and the molten copper, assembling them with seamless precision.
"Oh—!"
"It's finished already?"
The spectators, who previously had the leisure to look here and there, now involuntarily focused their gazes on Nie Shiyun’s side. Many others were still repeatedly hammering their materials or restarting after being dissatisfied with the firing. They saw Nie Shiyun dip the newly refined furnace body into ice water, and after a quick quench, he placed it back on the forging table.
Only then did Zhai Bairong see clearly what it was, his eyes widening in surprise. To call it a refining cauldron, it was a bit too small. He couldn't help but recall how Nie Shiyun had cryptically written "pill furnace" as his reward at the door of the geothermal chamber earlier. He just hadn't expected the other to actually refine such a thing in public.
It should be... for me, right? Zhai Bairong couldn't help but feel a flutter of joyful speculation in his heart.
At this time, many other artifact refiners stopped their hammering and began the firing process; the atmosphere on stage became tense. Nie Xingan was making a traditional Spirit-Gathering Basin. His choice was traditional but steady—this was an apparatus that many cultivators and sects would commission. Placed in a sect’s auspicious locations or at the eye of a suitable formation, it could gather the spiritual energy of an area. However, the effectiveness and appearance depended on the quality of the craft.
Nie Xingan’s work was standard and did not catch the eye. Earlier, no one had paid him any attention, but now that the initial shape was visible, many people became interested. After all, every sect wanted to acquire a few of these; they were very practical.
Another hour passed, and Nie Shiyun had finished the top of the pill furnace. This part had little practical significance, but it suddenly made the apparatus exquisite. The slightly heavy shape of the furnace belly was elongated by the slender, openwork body and the top, turning it into a beautiful piece of scenery resembling a small pagoda.
Nie Shiyun was not satisfied with this and began tinkering with something on the furnace body. The audience below craned their necks but couldn't see clearly, dying of curiosity.
Nie Shiyun did not intend for everyone to see. While his refining so far could be said to benefit all alchemists, the next step was somewhat special.
Wood can generate Fire, but too much of anything in the world is detrimental; if there is too much Wood, the Fire becomes hollow. Zhai Bairong himself possessed a single Wood spiritual root, and the source of the Green Lotus Residual Flame he had obtained was also botanical. Compared to ordinary fire, it had an extra touch of Wood, and the combination of the two actually suppressed the fire's intensity during pill refining.
In such a case, Metal can overcome Wood. By controlling the magnitude, it could instead help the pill fire advance further. Nie Shiyun carved the simplest Metal Qi Formation onto the bottom of the furnace. Its power was very small, but this tiny bit was exactly what was needed to help the pill form faster.
His movements were very fast, and almost no one saw. This formation was hidden so discreetly that it seemed to blend into the dark bottom of the furnace. Unless a Wood-root cultivator tested it repeatedly, they would not be able to detect the nuance.
Nie Shiyun looked up to see how much time was left. With a cursory sweep, he spotted Zhai Bairong standing alone in the crowd. The two did not dare to lock eyes for too long; they met for a brief moment and then looked away. However, Nie Shiyun still allowed a trace of a smile to show, though to others, it looked like a confident smile of success.
The many junior artifact refiners nearby were still struggling with their hammers and metal, sweating profusely. Out of the corners of their eyes, they saw that Nie Shiyun had not only finished such a large piece but was even adding the finishing touches, unhurriedly carving purely decorative floral patterns onto the top of the furnace. The sight made them want to cough up blood in frustration.
"Such a meticulously crafted work. This should be at the peak of the Treasure-grade... no, it might already be a Spiritual Tool. For the refiner to be only at the Golden Core stage, this is truly outstanding."
There were even alchemists who, just by looking from a distance without even trying it, were already eager. "Is this cauldron for sale? I can make an offer immediately afterward!"
"I—I want to ask as well!"
"..."
Several alchemists in the audience realized they all shared the same intention and suddenly became tense, guarding against each other as if preparing to rush forward the moment the exchange competition ended.
Zhai Bairong’s expression remained unchanged, but he felt a bit of secret pride. Realizing that the corners of his mouth were about to turn up, he immediately went on alert, reciting the Heart-Calming Incantation several times to suppress the smile. *In any case, Nie Shiyun hasn't said it's for me yet,* Zhai Bairong reminded himself silently.
***
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Transmigrated into a Total Shou Novel as a Cannon Fodder, but Ended Up 1v1-ing the Male Lead | Chapter 63 | A Gift of Gold and Copper | Novela.app | Novela.app
