Chapter 269: Grandmaster Exchange

Hearing the artifact spirit's words, Qin Ming couldn't help but ask in puzzlement:

"Could it be that the Treasure Refining Art within the bronze mirror is also incomplete?"

"Mm, that piece of silk was something I casually recorded while still alive; it was only a small part, which the Golden Toad took to use as bait," Jin Lingzi said lightly.

"This Treasure Refining Art is the core inheritance of the Qingyuan Sect; it also contains some of my own insights into artifact refining, so I shall hand it all over to you as well."

Upon hearing this, Qin Ming opened his storage bag, released the artifact spirit, and held it in his palms, where it resembled a green hedgehog.

He simply couldn't understand why the artifact spirit of the legendary Hooked Jade Jin Guang Mirror would actually look so endearingly clumsy.

Shortly after.

The artifact spirit emitted a burst of green light, and a torrent of information surged into Qin Ming's sea of consciousness.

In an instant.

A complete ancient Treasure Refining Art appeared in Qin Ming's mind.

He merely skimmed through it once, and an expression of immense joy spread across his face.

This was because this Treasure Refining Art absolutely surpassed the current level of artifact refining in the Southern Wild Immortal Realm.

It contained not only refining methods for countless top-grade magical treasures but also an extremely systematic lineage of artifact refining.

By the time he reached the end, Qin Ming couldn't help but form an entirely new impression of Jin Lingzi.

It turned out that as the closing disciple of the White Bone True Person from the ancient era of immortal cultivation, Jin Lingzi's talent for artifact refining was supreme, to the point that calling him a prodigy would be an understatement.

When Jin Lingzi was at the late stage of the Jin Dan realm, he had already fully mastered this Treasure Refining Art and was preparing to break through to the fourth-tier realm.

Who could have expected that at the critical final moment, his master, the White Bone True Person, would refine him into an artifact spirit.

Qin Ming immersed his mind and carefully read through it once more, finding the method to re-refine the Wood Emperor Nail magical treasure using Sun Essence Gold.

He immediately walked over to his innate spiritual plant, the Everlasting Vine, communicated with it, and three emerald-green nails, each three inches long, floated up into Qin Ming's hand.

Qin Ming then took out that piece of Sun Essence Gold, opened his mouth, and blew out a stream of Spirit-Devouring Poison Flame, enveloping the essence gold.

The next instant.

He increased the temperature of the spiritual flame, and in the blink of an eye, melted this piece of Sun Essence Gold into a mass of crimson-gold liquid.

Qin Ming used his divine sense to control the three Wood Emperor Nails, then activated the Treasure Refining Art to trace strange golden spiritual characters in the air with the liquid formed from the Sun Essence Gold.

Immediately afterward, these golden spiritual characters followed specific trajectories and merged into the three Wood Emperor Nails.

Buzz buzz buzz! The Wood Emperor Nails hovering in mid-air suddenly began to shake violently, as lines of crimson-gold spiritual patterns emerged on their surfaces.

When all the spiritual patterns interwove together, a cluster of crimson-gold radiance lit up on the three Wood Emperor Nails, and an extremely rigid and yang sharp glow manifested upon the magical treasures.

Vroom~ The power of these three Wood Emperor Nail magical treasures was instantly elevated to the peak of the third tier.

A Jin Dan cultivator's strength largely depends on their innate magical treasure.

When magical treasures are of the same grade, the magnitude of their power depends on the length of time they have been nurtured within the cultivator's dantian.

However, even if nurtured for a short time, a higher-grade magical treasure possesses far greater power than an ordinary one.

With his 【Spirit Plant Seed Treasure】 trait and his innate spiritual plant, the Yin-Yang Profound Vine, as long as Qin Ming plants the Wood Emperor Nails, their grade as innate magical treasures will rise over time, and their power will continuously increase.

After his innate spiritual plant absorbed the blood beads, it provided the power of years, which was equivalent to him nurturing them in his dantian for a very long time.

Qin Ming waved his hand to summon them, and the three nails suddenly vanished, sinking into the void; when they reappeared, they had already pierced through a huge rock two li away.

He circulated his magic power once more to draw them back, and the three Wood Emperor Nails, spitting out crimson-gold treasure light, reappeared in the palm of his hand.

This entire exchange of going and coming took only the blink of an eye.

"Arriving without a shadow and departing without a trace, while ignoring most defensive measures, it is truly a perfect tool for ambushing people."

"Extremely rigid and extremely yang, it completely subdues demonic paths and ghostly entities."

"Even a Jin Dan cultivator, someone like Yuwen Hong, would probably not withstand such a surprise attack from the shadows."

"However, the consumption of magic power required to wield the Wood Emperor Nail magical treasure is simply too great; even with my robust magic power comparable to that of an early-stage Jin Dan cultivator, it drained more than half in a single strike."

"If an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator were to use this treasure, they would likely be sucked dry into a mummy."

"It seems I must reach the Jin Dan stage before I can truly unleash this treasure's maximum power," Qin Ming thought, gently stroking the upgraded Wood Emperor Nails with great satisfaction, before continuing to plant them back into his innate spiritual plant.

Having his innate spiritual plant nurture his magical treasure for him truly saved him a great deal of effort.

Half a month later.

A heavyweight figure arrived on Moon Gazing Island.

Gongsun Yang, a third-tier Dandao Sect grandmaster from the Profound Stream Valley, came in person.

Gongsun Yang sported a small tuft of goat-horn beard; he was an elderly man with chicken-skin and crane-white hair, possessing a False Dan cultivation base.

Qin Ming, however, had stayed in the Profound Stream Valley for two years, so he knew this better than anyone.

Despite the fact that the other party only possessed a False Dan cultivation base, his status within the Profound Stream Valley was transcendent.

Qin Ming hadn't expected that this Dandao Sect grandmaster from the Profound Stream Valley would travel thousands of li to come here.

It made him feel somewhat ashamed.

After all, although both were third-tier Dandao Sect grandmasters, Gongsun Yang's seniority was greater.

Beside him stood a thin boy of about ten years old, none other than Fang Han, who had once caused a sensation in the Profound Stream Valley and possessed an innate Dandao spiritual body.

He bowed deeply and respectfully toward Qin Ming, saying, "Junior Fang Han pays his respects to Senior Qin!"

"Hehe! Since you are the distinguished disciple of Daoist Gongsun, there is no need for such formalities; do not stand on ceremony," Qin Ming said, lifting him up.

After arriving, Gongsun Yang also couldn't help but marvel at the environment on the island.

"Alas! Who would have thought that such a paradise-like existence could be found in this place."

"Daoist Qin truly possesses profound fortune!"

His personality was quite easygoing, completely lacking the airs of a grandmaster; since both were Dandao Sect grandmasters, they naturally had many topics to discuss.

Many of Qin Ming's third-tier pill formulas and his Golden Core Formation pill formula had, in fact, been stolen from the other party's sect.

However, he didn't feel the slightest bit guilty; he chatted with the other party confidently, as steady as an old dog.

The two exchanged their respective experiences in the Dao of Pills, and both benefited greatly.

Gongsun Yang had also heard that the pills Qin Ming refined were third-tier Dust-Extinguishing Pills, which was why he had traveled so far, wishing to see this newly risen young talent with his own eyes.

Nor did he look down on the other man simply because Qin Ming was young.

"I wonder from where Fellow Daoist Qin obtained the formula for the Dust-Extinguishing Pill?"

After exchanging words for most of the day, Gongsun Yang suddenly blurted out this question.

Qin Ming raised an eyebrow; without his face flushing or his heart racing, he replied flawlessly: "Qin Mou has a friend surnamed Su in the Great Jin Immortal Dynasty; I obtained it through an exchange with him."

"Mm, the Su family; it seems that person from the Su family shares a profound relationship with Fellow Daoist Qin, to be willing to part with even the Dust-Extinguishing Pill formula." Gongsun Yang nodded as he spoke, seemingly accepting this explanation.

Qin Ming said indifferently, "Our friendship is passable; Qin Mou already made the acquaintance of Brother Su while still in Yunze Dahuang."

"No wonder it is so."

"The difficulty of refining this Dust-Extinguishing Pill is second only to that of the Jin Dan; even for this old man, refining it is quite troublesome, and the success rate has always been pitifully low."

"I did not expect Fellow Daoist Qin to succeed in a single attempt; could it be due to the connection with Fellow Daoist Su? Yet what unique insights does he possess?"

"I wonder if Fellow Daoist Qin could share one or two points?"

As soon as Gongsun Yang touched upon this topic, his heart itched with eagerness, and he could not help but ask Qin Ming.

A thought stirred in Qin Ming's heart upon seeing Gongsun Yang voluntarily bring up the topic of refining experience regarding the Jin Dan.

Thus, he also steered the conversation in that direction.

Between Qin Ming and Gongsun Yang's questions and answers,

time slipped away quietly, and three days and three nights passed.

The two were still in the Guest-Welcoming Pavilion, talking by candlelight into the night.

(End of Chapter)