[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-immortal-path-among-the-stars":3,"chapter-the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-143":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Immortal Path Among the Stars",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2320075,4537,"Chapter 143","the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-143",143,"\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Sun Shi!” Wang Yu, seeing this, naturally expressed great delight and gratitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, Wang Yu naturally nodded and sat cross-legged in the corner, closing his eyes to meditate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Less than an hour passed when footsteps sounded outside the artifact chamber, and two figures entered—one man, one woman.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re Wang Yu, Sun Dao You ’s artifact-crafting apprentice, the one applying for formal artifact-crafter witnesses?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had quietly scanned them with his spiritual sense—both were also at the late Qi Refining stage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t surprising.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second-grade artifacts require Foundation Establishment to craft—that’s why there are so few second-grade artifact-crafters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The burly man now also studied Wang Yu up and down, a hint of curiosity on his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then this junior thanks you both for your trouble.” Wang Yu bowed respectfully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Very well. Begin crafting the artifact. The three of us will witness together.” The black-robed woman nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The burly man beside her made no objection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The black-robed woman and the other two stood silently nearby, saying nothing more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, the chamber echoed with the rhythmic “ding-dong” of hammer strikes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several days later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After leaving Master Sun’s residence, they flew straight toward the Artifact Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sun Dao You , what do you think of Wang Yu’s artifact-crafting skill?” The short-haired giant suddenly asked his companion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not bad. Whether preparing the artifact embryo or inscribing the patterns, everything was orderly and extremely steady.” The black-robed woman replied coolly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xiao Dao You , doesn’t it strike you as too steady?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The entire Fire Dragon Sword crafting process showed almost no mistakes. Even the final inscription—aside from being painfully slow—had virtually no errors.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, it’s worse: every inscription attempt succeeded on the first try.” The giant shook his head, voicing his unease outright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? Xiao Dao You , please elaborate.” The short-haired giant immediately perked up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.\u003C\u002Fp>",1110,"2026-06-20T15:44:30.991Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","b40ef1943649c14e706c33dc72313f4cf971b3e49dfcce028202cc3de2046003","the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-144","the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-142",530,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-immortal-path-among-the-stars-cover.jpg"]