Chapter 143

"Sun Shi, I'm certain. You know my inscription skills—failure is unlikely if I'm just crafting a standard entry-grade artifact." Wang Yu replied without hesitation.

"Hehe, that's true. Your artifact-crafting skill has already surpassed mine; how could a common entry-grade artifact possibly stump you? Wait a moment—I'll apply for your test with the Hall's senior overseer." Upon hearing this, Master Sun let out a dry laugh and nodded, then pulled a transmission talisman from his sleeve, whispered a few words, and tossed it into the air, where it vanished as a white streak out of the artifact chamber.

"Thank you, Sun Shi!" Wang Yu, seeing this, naturally expressed great delight and gratitude.

Although he could apply directly to the Artifact Hall himself, securing witnesses from other formal artifact-crafters would likely take several more days—nothing compared to the speed of a formal artifact-crafter's direct recommendation.

"Alright, rest here for now and gather your strength. Unless something unexpected happens, two other artifact-crafters will arrive shortly to join me in witnessing your entry-grade artifact crafting."

Upon hearing this, Wang Yu naturally nodded and sat cross-legged in the corner, closing his eyes to meditate.

Less than an hour passed when footsteps sounded outside the artifact chamber, and two figures entered—one man, one woman.

The man was a burly giant, clad in coarse cotton tunic and shorts, with cropped hair and beard, his eyes sharp and bright; the woman wore a black robe, her face sallow and gaunt, her expression calm.

"Guo Dao You, Xiao Dao You —is it you two?" Master Sun, upon seeing them, paused in surprise, then stepped forward with a look of astonishment.

"What, Lao Sun, you don't welcome us? If there weren't literally no other artifact-crafters free right now, do you think we'd go out of our way to come here?" The burly man, seeing Master Sun, spoke loudly and casually.

"Hehe, not welcome? How would I dare? You and Xiao Dao You are among the top five artifact-crafters in the sect—I assumed it'd be someone else." Master Sun yawned, smiling without warmth.

The burly man rolled his eyes, about to say more, but the black-robed woman glanced at Wang Yu and suddenly asked in a cool tone:

"You're Wang Yu, Sun Dao You 's artifact-crafting apprentice, the one applying for formal artifact-crafter witnesses?"

"Yes, honored elders, this junior seeks formal artifact-crafter witnesses." Wang Yu had already risen and stood respectfully with hands clasped the moment they entered.

He had quietly scanned them with his spiritual sense—both were also at the late Qi Refining stage.

It wasn't surprising.

Artifact crafting consumes immense time, and artifact-crafters' cultivation aptitude is generally average compared to ordinary inner-disciples. Even if they can afford abundant spirit stones for auxiliary pills, reaching late Qi Refining is likely the limit for most artifact-crafters.

Second-grade artifacts require Foundation Establishment to craft—that's why there are so few second-grade artifact-crafters.

"Good. I've heard of your reputation. Many outer-disciples who've used your low-grade artifacts have praised them highly, saying your skill among apprentices is among the best."

"Now you dare apply for formal artifact-crafter status—clearly you have talent, far surpassing my two apprentices. Otherwise, the Hall's overseer wouldn't have sent us both here to witness." The black-robed woman even spoke words of approval.

The burly man now also studied Wang Yu up and down, a hint of curiosity on his face.

"Then this junior thanks you both for your trouble." Wang Yu bowed respectfully.

"Very well. Begin crafting the artifact. The three of us will witness together." The black-robed woman nodded.

The burly man beside her made no objection.

"Since I'm most familiar with the Spark Technique inscription, I plan to craft the Fire Dragon Sword—a weapon my master has forged many times before."

Seeing this, Wang Yu no longer hesitated. He walked to the pile of materials, picked up a lump of iron essence, and as he spoke, moved toward the tool platform, where hammers and all other tools were laid out.

His task was first to forge the artifact's embryo—a step even formal artifact-crafters find no great difficulty in, at most differing in the embryo's quality: better or worse.

The black-robed woman and the other two stood silently nearby, saying nothing more.

Soon, the chamber echoed with the rhythmic "ding-dong" of hammer strikes.

…

Several days later.

The black-robed woman and the short-haired giant walked out of the artifact chamber together, heading slowly toward the gate—but their expressions differed: the woman remained calm, while the giant frowned deeply, as if troubled by an unsolvable problem.

After leaving Master Sun's residence, they flew straight toward the Artifact Hall.

"Sun Dao You, what do you think of Wang Yu's artifact-crafting skill?" The short-haired giant suddenly asked his companion.

"Not bad. Whether preparing the artifact embryo or inscribing the patterns, everything was orderly and extremely steady." The black-robed woman replied coolly.

"Xiao Dao You, doesn't it strike you as too steady?"

"The entire Fire Dragon Sword crafting process showed almost no mistakes. Even the final inscription—aside from being painfully slow—had virtually no errors."

"No, it's worse: every inscription attempt succeeded on the first try." The giant shook his head, voicing his unease outright.

"Hehe, Xiao Dao You, isn't it obvious? A seven-pattern Fire Dragon Sword is difficult only the first time; with each subsequent crafting, the difficulty drops. Wang Yu's flawless, even-handed execution—every inscription succeeding immediately—means he's crafted this weapon countless times before."

"Otherwise, even you and I couldn't have succeeded on the first try if it were his first attempt." The black-robed woman replied calmly, unimpressed.

"You mean his flawless performance comes from having crafted it many times? That makes sense—but I still feel something's off, though I can't quite say what… In short, this kid gives me an unusual feeling." The short-haired giant rubbed his head, nodded, then shook his head again.

"If you put it that way, there is one odd thing about this kid—if he truly is unusual." The black-robed woman turned back to look at the giant and spoke suddenly.

"Oh? Xiao Dao You, please elaborate." The short-haired giant immediately perked up.

"Didn't you notice how unnervingly calm his expression was throughout the entire crafting process? Not a flicker of panic or worry—like he held complete control from start to finish." The black-robed woman's lips curled slightly as she spoke slowly.

"Don't you find it strange how composed this little one looks while forging? Completely composed from start to finish, as if he's in full control of the entire process—not a hint of panic or worry on his face," said the woman in the black robe, a faint smile curling at her lips.