Chapter 243: Chapter 241: Single-Handed Artifact Refining, Astounding the Crowd

"You’ve got guts. For that alone, I won’t make things too difficult for you when you lose!"

Master Qin sneered, his face filled with arrogance.

Jiang Chen shrugged. "We haven’t even started, and you’re already thinking about what happens after you’ve beaten me?"

"There’s no need to compete. I’ll be the one laughing in the end. I’m only giving you this chance so you’ll give up for good."

After a pause, Master Qin looked at the Artifact Refining Apprentice. "You, go prepare an Artifact Refining Room at once!"

"Yes!"

The Artifact Refining Apprentice hurried away.

A short while later...

They arrived in an Artifact Refining Room.

Two Artifact Refining Platforms stood on the left and right, resembling something out of a blacksmith’s shop.

However, all the tools on the platforms were forged from Cold Iron capable of withstanding extreme heat. The two heavy hammers, in particular, weighed over a thousand pounds each. A casual swing could generate a powerful, whistling wind. If a Heavenly Destiny Realm expert were to wield such a hammer, they could flatten a small mountain!

At Jiang Chen’s side, Xiao Qingyi held Little White in her arms. A gentle smile graced her beautiful face, hidden behind a silk gauze veil, as she looked at him. "Brother Jiang Chen, you can do it!"

"Don’t worry," Jiang Chen said with a confident smile. "In a little while, I’ll show you what a truly spectacular Artifact Refining technique looks like!"

When Master Qin and Xiong Yingjie saw this, they both sneered coldly.

Xiong Yingjie said in a low voice, "Little Qin, if you can beat him, I can ask my master to grant you an Enlightenment Pill!"

An Enlightenment Pill.

It was a Third-grade Pill capable of strengthening one’s Divine Thought Power.

For Master Qin, who had been stuck at the level of a First-grade Advanced Refiner for many years, this was practically a Divine Pill!

His eyes burned with desire. He nodded emphatically and said in a low voice, "Rest assured, Young Master Xiong. There’s no way this brat can beat me!"

"Good!"

Xiong Yingjie nodded, his gaze on Jiang Chen growing more sinister. "Brat, if you were competing against me in Alchemy, I might have hesitated. But you dare to compete in Artifact Refining? You’re just asking to die!"

Master Qin strode forward with a powerful and majestic gait, his aura quite imposing.

He half-squinted at Jiang Chen, raised a finger, and wagged it slowly. "Brat," he said coolly, "it’s not too late to admit defeat."

"You should be more concerned with how you’re going to save face when you lose."

Jiang Chen glanced at the crowd that had packed the Artifact Refining Room.

Convinced he had already won, Master Qin had actually called over a crowd of spectators, intending to humiliate Jiang Chen in public.

Unfortunately for him...

He had calculated every possibility, but he could never have predicted that Jiang Chen’s skill in Artifact Refining far surpassed his own.

Master Qin sneered. "Lose? I have been immersed in Artifact Refining for thirty years. If I can’t even beat a brat like you, then I will never utter the words ’Artifact Refining’ again!"

"Excellent!"

Jiang Chen nodded, a cold grin spreading across his face.

First, Master Qin had falsely accused Jiang Chen of forging his Artifact Refiner Identity Token. Now, in order to curry favor with Xiong Yingjie, he was targeting him relentlessly.

Jiang Chen felt no pity for such a person.

Master Qin cleared his throat and announced coolly, "For this competition, we will be forging a Yellow Tier High-level Profound Weapon: the Cold Moon Saber. Once we are finished, we will use the most basic method to determine the winner—we’ll strike the two sabers against each other and see which one is superior!"

"No problem," Jiang Chen nodded.

The Cold Moon Saber was considered a superior weapon even among First-grade High-level Profound Weapons.

It required a total of a Triple Ice Rune and a double Illusion Rune to be inscribed. When drawn, the blade would emit a chilling aura laced with illusions, making it incredibly difficult to defend against.

It was a Profound Weapon whose creation heavily relied on both technique and experience.

It was indeed a perfect choice for a competition of Artifact Refining skill.

"The refining materials are all here," Master Qin said. "Let’s set a time limit of three double-hours. Shall we begin?"

Jiang Chen just grunted and yawned. "Let’s begin, then."

Master Qin immediately darted forward, snatched up one set of materials, and rushed to his Artifact Refining Platform.

A torrent of majestic True Essence surged into the Forging Furnace. Flames erupted with a deafening roar as tongues of fire licked the air. A scorching heatwave began to spread as Master Qin tossed the refining materials into the Artifact Refining Furnace one by one.

Under the heat of the Blazing Fire, the refining materials started to break down.

"What a masterful technique for breaking down refining materials! He truly is a veteran Artifact Refiner!"

"Master Qin’s movements are as smooth as flowing water. He must have perfected them through countless hours of practice!"

"And then there’s Jiang Chen..."

While Master Qin worked with feverish intensity, the crowd watched in admiration.

As for Jiang Chen...

He was still standing beside Xiao Qingyi, casually chatting with the graceful, veiled young woman, looking completely unconcerned.

"Fuck, he’s just showing off again!"

"He probably knows he’s going to lose and is just putting on a relaxed front!"

The crowd couldn’t help but grumble to themselves.

Nearby, a smug sneer played on Xiong Yingjie’s lips. ’Just as I thought, he knows nothing about Artifact Refining. Looks like my bet paid off. Jiang Chen, how dare you impersonate an Artifact Refiner... Let’s see how you die...’

Time ticked by.

In the blink of an eye, two and a half double-hours had passed. Master Qin had already finished refining the Artifact Embryo three times and was beginning the final process of inscribing the Inscriptions.

Meanwhile, Jiang Chen was still laughing and chatting with Xiao Qingyi.

Master Qin glanced at Jiang Chen out of the corner of his eye, a disdainful smirk tugging at his lips. ’Looks like he’s already given up,’ he thought.

Just then...

Jiang Chen suddenly stretched. He gently brushed his finger across Xiao Qingyi’s delicate cheek and smiled. "Qingyi, wait here for a moment. I’m going to go forge a Cold Moon Saber!"

"Okay, I’ll be waiting for you!"

Xiao Qingyi smiled sweetly.

When the crowd saw Jiang Chen finally take his materials and walk to the Artifact Refining Platform, they couldn’t help but sneer. "He’s only starting now? Does he think Artifact Refining is child’s play? Just melting the refining materials takes at least one double-hour. By the time he even melts the materials, time will be up!"

"He’s just posturing!"

"I thought this would be a clash of titans, but it’s just a cat toying with a mouse. How boring..."

Amid the crowd’s jeers, Jiang Chen walked calmly to his Artifact Refining Platform.

With a single hand, Jiang Chen sent a stream of red True Essence into the Artifact Refining Furnace. BOOM! Flames erupted, sending out waves of intense heat.

Master Qin had just tossed his Artifact Embryo back into the Artifact Refining Furnace for further purification. Now with a free moment, he shot Jiang Chen a contemptuous look and sneered, "Brat, you might as well not waste those refining materials!"

"And why is that?"

Jiang Chen asked, looking at Master Qin with feigned confusion.

Master Qin sneered, his face dripping with sarcasm. "You don’t even know the basics of Artifact Refining, yet you dare to pose as an Artifact Refiner? Don’t you know that the Cold Moon Saber is a Yellow Tier High-grade Profound Weapon? One of its components, the Cold Moon Crystal Stone, is notoriously difficult to melt. You only have half a double-hour left, yet you dream of forging a complete Cold Moon Saber? Utterly delusional!"

"Delusional? Forging a Cold Moon Saber in half a double-hour might be a fairy tale for you, but for me, it’s mere child’s play. Open your eyes and watch closely. *This* is what true Artifact Refining looks like!"

Before his voice had even faded,

the refining materials in his hand flew into the Artifact Refining Furnace. Under the searing flames, the materials slowly began to transform.

If he continued at this pace, it would be just as Master Qin and Xiong Yingjie had predicted—he would never complete the Cold Moon Saber in time.

But in the very next moment...

the very people who had just been mocking Jiang Chen fell completely silent.

With a single hand, Jiang Chen worked the bellows at a speed so fast it was like an illusion. WHOOSH! The sound of rushing air howled as the fire intensified. Still with one hand, he formed a series of Seal Techniques, sending one wondrous seal after another into the Artifact Refining Furnace. The flames within instantly changed from their ordinary red to a vibrant orange.

Within the orange flames, the refining materials began to melt at a rapidly accelerating pace.

In the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the materials were completely molten. Jiang Chen then made a grasping motion in the air with his palm.

HUMMM—

An invisible surge of True Essence poured into the Artifact Refining Furnace, acting like a phantom hand hammering the weapon within the flames. In moments, the Artifact Embryo of a Battle Blade was complete. With a single beckoning gesture from Jiang Chen, the embryo shot out.

Jiang Chen set it on the Artifact Refining Platform. Then, with a single slap on the platform’s surface, he sent the heavy hammer flying high into the air.

He caught the heavy hammer with one hand and began to strike.

The heavy hammer whistled with immense power in his grip. Each strike on the Artifact Embryo sent a tremor through the entire Artifact Refining Room.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Jiang Chen used only one hand for the entire process—he was actually performing single-handed Artifact Refining.

After a full 3,600 strikes, all impurities within the Artifact Embryo were gone. Jiang Chen immediately grabbed the hilt and plunged the blade into the cooling water.

TSSSSSS—

Billowing white steam erupted. The Artifact Embryo for the Cold Moon Saber was complete!

Master Qin was engrossed in inscribing his Inscriptions, but he caught a glimpse of Jiang Chen’s technique out of the corner of his eye. He curled his lip in disdain. "You’re treating Artifact Refining like child’s play. Single-handed refining? If you actually manage to forge a complete Cold Moon Saber that way, I’ll eat shit!"

"Eat shit? You have... peculiar tastes. But I like that as a punishment. I hope you don’t go back on your word later!"

Jiang Chen smiled faintly.

With a sharp upward flick of his palm, he sent the Artifact Embryo flying high into the air. It then plunged into the cooling liquid with a sharp HISS, and the red-hot embryo cooled instantly.

"Huh? It actually looks pretty good!"

"The shape of that Artifact Embryo is perfect. Can he really perform Artifact Refining with just one hand?"

The Cold Moon Saber embryo in Jiang Chen’s hand looked even more perfect and exquisitely crafted than the one Master Qin held.

Xiong Yingjie’s brows furrowed.

Master Qin, however, just scoffed. "A Profound Weapon that hasn’t been properly tempered is just scrap metal. Besides, there’s not enough time left. You can’t possibly inscribe all the Inscriptions now."

"Heh..."

Jiang Chen gave a disdainful laugh, placed the Artifact Embryo on the Artifact Refining Platform, and began to inscribe the Inscriptions.

One...

Two...

Three...

In the blink of an eye, six Inscriptions were carved upon it.

At almost the exact same moment,

Xiong Yingjie shouted, "Time’s up!" causing both men to stop their work simultaneously.

Master Qin looked at the Cold Moon Saber in his hands, a smug expression on his face. This was the best he had ever performed. "Brat, my Cold Moon Saber is finished," he said confidently. "I assume yours is just a piece of scrap?"

He expected his words to rally the crowd and bring another round of mockery down on Jiang Chen.

However...

Master Qin had predicted the beginning of this story, but he couldn’t have guessed the ending.

The crowd did react, but not with mockery. Instead, a wave of thunderous gasps erupted...

"Holy fuck, did he actually forge it?"

"He did the entire thing with one hand, right? How is that even possible? That’s terrifying!"

"Single-handed Artifact Refining... It’s simply incredible!"

Hearing the crowd’s praise and gasps, Master Qin was completely dumbfounded. He stared at the Cold Moon Saber in Jiang Chen’s hand—a weapon that surpassed his own in both luster and form. Both he and Xiong Yingjie were utterly speechless.