CHAPTER 144: CHAPTER 142 COMBINATION MAGIC ARTIFACT! EXTREME MAKEOVER_1

The Formation was destroyed? A beast claw that seems to be related to the Black Blood Bizarre? Was this man-made? Or... has the calm period passed, and the Black Blood Bizarre can’t wait to harvest fear?

"Do you want to escape the Great Wilderness? We sincerely invite you to join the Artifact Refinement Department."

The time left for them was dwindling; they couldn’t afford to perform tests. An additional Artifact Refiner would also mean extra strength. They must craft the best Flying Boat Magical Artifact as soon as possible.

"This is a special Token. With it, you can enter the Artifact Refinement Department located in the Cave and assist in crafting the Flying Boat Magical Artifact. After the task is done, you will be able to leave the Great Wilderness as well."

A Black Command Token was tossed over, and the person hurriedly departed.

Jia Ren turned his head, looking into the distance. The faces of the Cultivators in the Market did not show smiles; their eyes held fear of the unknown. This was exactly the result the Black Blood Bizarre wanted.

The destruction of the Formation was just an appetizer... There isn’t much time left for me. I must make good use of the precious time, storing a large quantity of Evil Warding Talismans of Extraordinary Saint Level and the Flying Boat Magical Artifact that will carry me away. I absolutely cannot waste any of it.

Jia Ren hastily withdrew his gaze and walked towards the Cave up ahead. An invisible barrier blocked the way, but the Black Command Token emitted a dim glow, enabling him to smoothly enter.

Inside the barrier, it was like a whole different world—tranquil and serene.

Inside, more than ten Cultivators were busy, sorting through various artifact refining materials and purifying them. The number of Artifact Refiners left was not large, and those gathered here were the only ones remaining in the Great Wilderness Market. That was why the appearance of an Artifact Refiner in the Market was given so much importance. One more Artifact Refiner could also improve the efficiency of crafting the Flying Boat.

"A new Artifact Refiner? Follow me!"

Having received the information beforehand, a middle-aged man led the way.

"No matter what kind of Magic Artifacts you’ve specialized in refining previously, here, you can only work on Flying Artifacts. Have you ever made a Flying Artifact? What is your Refining Level?"

The man was polite but had an anxious look in his eyes. The recent breach in the newly established Formation had understandably caused concern.

"A First-grade High-quality Artifact Refiner."

The Refining Level of a First-grade Low-quality Artifact Refiner was too low to be taken seriously; they could only work as assistants in the Artifact Refinement Department. That doesn’t fit my plans. With no time to learn and rise through the ranks, I need to pretend to be a highly skilled refiner to gain access to high-end information.

"A First-grade High-quality Artifact Refiner?"

"Finally, we have help! Please follow me!"

The dark-faced man became a bit more respectful, leading the way as Jia Ren followed behind.

The Cave was not the familiar layout Jia Ren knew; over ten Caves were interconnected, offering a much vaster space.

Seven or eight Cultivators huddled around a Flying Boat longer than ten zhang, engaged in an endless debate. The discussion focused on how to make the Flying Boat soar higher, faster, more durable, and carry more Cultivators.

"This is the new High-grade Artifact Refiner, Mr. Shi Bai."

The dark-faced man introduced Jia Ren to the crowd.

"A High-grade Artifact Refiner? A pleasure to meet you. How come I’ve never heard of Daoist Shi before?"

Qi Mu, who had been involved with the Utensil Sect, knew many Artifact Refiners but not Jia Ren.

"I came to the Great Wilderness Market to make a living half a year ago. I never thought I’d encounter something like this, sigh..."

Jia Ren did not want to elaborate and only wished to bluff his way through.

"Daoist Shi is really unlucky."

The others did not continue the topic, so as not to touch upon Shi Bai’s sore spot.

"Has Daoist Shi ever crafted a Flying Artifact? Do you have any insights on enhancing flying height?"

Facing many pairs of scrutinizing eyes, Jia Ren knew it was time to prove himself.

"You are trying to make a Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat, right? To increase the flying height, it mostly revolves around reducing the weight of the Magic Artifact and burst-type Inscriptions..."

Jia Ren had acquired a Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat and had focused his research on it. His inquiries aligned perfectly, and he responded fluently.

"Modifying the Flying Boat is a bit troublesome. Many alternatives cannot be collected, like the Void Profound Stone to shrink the Flying Boat, or the Flying Feather Stone to lighten it... and the new materials required for a fresh plan. This is not the heyday of the Great Wilderness Market..."

The Artifact Refinement Department, with the full support of major businesses and the Meng Family, had limited resources. Many precious materials could not be gathered, let alone alternatives. A skilled worker cannot work without materials; many ideas can’t be realized due to a lack of refining materials. They could only consider modifying the existing Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat.

"May I take a look at your plans?"

Jia Ren had studied the Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat extensively. Its highest flying height was limited to a thousand zhang. He and the Artifact Refinement Department both believed that this height would not suffice.

Among the dozens of plans, each had its focus, but there was a common key point: if the flying height was too great, the Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat needed reinforcement to avoid disintegration mid-air. Using too much reinforcement material would only increase the weight of the Flying Boat, reducing its flight altitude.

"I’ve seen your crafting plans. You all seem to want to treat the Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat as a long-term use Flying Artifact. If it were only crafted to briefly enhance flight altitude and speed, what level could it reach? Escape the domain of the Black Blood Bizarre, and wouldn’t the skies then be wide open to us?"

Jia Ren’s thinking was different from that of ordinary Artifact Refiners. They subconsciously made Magic Artifacts that were sturdy and reliable, never considering the accumulation of a single performance. Extreme methods can’t last long. As long as we can escape danger, that’s enough.

"Is this... possible?"

Jia Ren had opened a new world to them. Their thoughts broadened, and ideas emerged one after another.

"It’s far more useful than our previous plans!"

"Daoist Shi, the Artifact Refinement Department welcomes you to join us!" Qi Mu said with a big laugh, ceaselessly praising him.

His status among Artifact Refiners was not low, and this was considered recognition of Jia Ren.

Time waits for no one. The Artifact Refiners immediately began experimenting with new ideas nonstop.

Jia Ren took dozens of plans and improvement proposals, merging them with the crystallization of their experience to perfect the ideas. His Refining Level was far from matching these Artifact Refiners. Achieving a short-term improvement of Flying Artifacts was difficult, but the collective wisdom of the refiners could open up new ideas.

Jia Ren got the materials he wanted from the Artifact Refinement Department and began crafting the Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat. That’s the biggest advantage of joining the Artifact Refinement Department; after reporting, materials can be taken as needed. I’m happy to take the opportunity to freeload materials and enhance my Proficiency Level.

Time to begin Artifact Refining.

Jia Ren found a secluded area and started Artifact Refining.

Alchemy and Artifact Refining share certain similarities; starting to refine using Earth Fire was not difficult. The Grandmaster-level Flame Control Pill Technique managed the cyan Earth Fire, rapidly refining the materials. All Ore Stones were purified of impurities to reach their most perfect state.

Jia Ren deliberately chose a corner where no one paid attention, but still, Artifact Refiners were attracted to the area, continuously marveling at his superb control of the flames.

Soon, the material purification was complete, and the most critical moment of Artifact Refining arrived.

Jia Ren, looking at the crowd of Artifact Refiners surrounding him, felt like his scalp was about to explode.

I deliberately hid in the least noticeable spot! How did you all still follow me?

"Fellow Daoists, your work on the Flying Boat is urgent."

If I continue, my identity as a High-grade Artifact Refiner will be exposed.

Jia Ren thought as he put away the Earth Fire.

"I’ve never seen such superb flame control! Daoist Shi’s level is surely far beyond that of a High-grade Artifact Refiner, right? Truly keeping a low profile," someone said.

My persona can’t crumble!

"Sorry, I don’t like onlookers while I’m refining Magic Artifacts. It only distracts me and leads to failure," Jia Ren replied.

With that said, the crowd could only helplessly leave. Artifact Refiners jealously guarding their secret techniques was all too common, with few willing to reveal their precious artifact crafting methods.

Jia Ren took out the Solid as Golden Soup Formation. A golden light dome covered his area, freeing him from disturbance. The light dome remained in a golden state, preventing peeping.

The refined materials were added in order, controlling the Earth Fire to fuse them.

As an Alchemy Grandmaster, Jia Ren found similarities between merging Elixir properties and artifact materials, somewhat reducing the difficulty of Artifact Refining. However, merging medicinal properties with artifact materials was still different. His initial attempt ended in failure.

A few Artifact Refiners were in the midst of refining when they heard an explosion from a distant barrier, and their expressions turned odd.

"An Artifact Refining failure? I must have heard wrong," one said.

"With such control of the Earth Fire, he’s clearly a veteran," another mused.

Jia Ren’s current skill level made refining Superior Grade Flying Artifacts still too difficult.

After failing three times in a row, he finally crafted the embryo of the Flying Boat.

Next, he began to engrave the Inscriptions of Magical Instruments.

Compared with Low-Quality Magical Artifacts, the Cloud-Surpassing Flying Boat, as a Superior Grade Flying Artifact, had requirements a hundred times more demanding. The Inscriptions numbered over a hundred, each type with its own focus.

First Order Superior Grade Inscription Ride the Wind, First Order Superior Grade Inscription Cloud Vertical, First Order Mid-quality Inscription Big or Small Ruyi...

So much simpler than I imagined!

His soul became like a spiderweb, his soul power differentiating into ’Spider Silks,’ simultaneously inscribing from different areas, reducing the difficulty. The Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique came from the Utensil Sect, a Sect focused on Artifact Refining. It was suitable for precisely controlling puppets and Spirit Insects, and also beneficial for inscribing Inscriptions of Magical Instruments. As Jia Ren’s Talisman Crafting level had reached Transcendence into Sainthood, he found engraving Inscriptions, which had some common ground with talisman creation, even more effortless.

How lucky! The Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique is quite helpful, but I also need to find a way to speed up its cultivation.

With the first layer of the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique nearing its limit and the second layer within reach, Artifact Refining would become easier after the breakthrough.

As he engraved each Inscription, the difficulty of a First Order Superior Grade Inscription was high, but not too much for him to handle. He carved Ride the Wind and Cloud Vertical Inscriptions. He discarded the Big or Small Ruyi Inscription and the Solid Inscription, which were typically found in mid-quality or higher Magic Artifacts. He was trying to make the Magic Artifact as light as possible to fly higher.

With my engineering background from the industrial era, my insight is unique. I don’t aim to make a Magic Artifact perfect in every way, with a near all-encompassing effect like a panacea. If one Magic Artifact can’t meet all the requirements, then, like machine gears, they can be combined to form the desired Magic Artifact. The Flying Boat will be treated as a vessel for ascent, with custom-built other Magic Artifacts serving as a propulsion system to push the Boat forward. I’ll eliminate many ’useless’ Inscriptions and add those that enhance flight altitude. The goal is simply to fly as high as possible. The True Water Refinement Technique mentioned a special type of floating Inscription mainly used underwater. Floating and hovering share commonalities, so it could ensure long-duration suspension.

「Several Hours Later」

He wiped sweat from his brow, looking with satisfaction at the extreme Flying Artifact he had crafted for the first time. It had only one Ride the Wind Inscription, one Floating Inscription, and one Solid Inscription. The rest were Cloud Vertical Inscriptions, all solely to make the Magic Artifact as light as possible, to fly even higher.