The two elders, each wielding a Spiritual Artifact, were hard at work, completely oblivious to anyone approaching.

Only after Lin Hao called out several times did the two finally look up.

At this sight, Lin Hao was stunned.

The two figures before him were so disheveled and filthy that he couldn’t even make out their faces. All he could see was a pair of exceptionally bright eyes darting about.

’Are these still the elders?’

"Martial Uncle, didn’t you just leave? Why are you back already?" The two were startled to see Lin Hao and quickly asked.

"What?" Lin Hao said, taken aback. He took two steps forward and was hit by a foul odor.

The stench was coming from the two elders.

"Elders, have you not rested at all?" Lin Hao asked tentatively.

"It’s hardly been any time at all, why would we rest? These divine stones are too hard. We’ve barely managed to chip any off. Martial Uncle, just wait a moment." Having said their piece, the two prepared to get back to it.

Even someone as composed as Lin Hao couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed at their words.

He had sent the two elders down here before he entered the Tongming Sea, and he had even visited the Danling Sect after that. All told, nearly a month had passed.

For a whole month, the two elders had worked without sleep or rest, completely forgetting to eat.

It could only be described as insanity.

"Elders, please take a break," Lin Hao said.

After so long, even if they were made of iron, their bodies should have given out.

But to his surprise, the two elders shook their heads without even looking up. "We’re not tired. We feel great."

They even sounded full of vigor.

And Lin Hao recalled their eyes.

All signs pointed to the fact that the elders might be telling the truth.

"Elders, check your cultivation. Have you noticed any improvement?" Lin Hao asked, uncertain.

The two paused their work. "Huh, you’re right. My cultivation has unknowingly reached the Peak of the Elemental Realm. I’m just a step away from the Soul Gathering Realm."

"Me too! I remember my cultivation was only at the Eighth Layer when I came in."

"What are we talking about this for? Let’s get back to mining."

With that, they went back to their work.

Lin Hao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

’It seems that for these two, the joy of raising their cultivation level doesn’t even compare to mining Flowing Light Divine Stone,’ he thought.

"Elders, I’m here to take you out."

"Go out?! No, we’re not leaving! Martial Uncle, just take the divine stones and go. We’ll stay here and keep mining." Neither of them even looked up.

Lin Hao glanced to the side. A small pile of divine stones was heaped there, each piece of Flowing Light Divine Stone no bigger than his thumb.

He walked over and scooped up all the stones in his two hands.

A full month of nonstop work, mining with Tier Four Spiritual Artifacts, and all they had to show for it was a handful of stones. It was a testament to just how hard the Flowing Light Divine Stone was.

After placing the divine stones into his storage spiritual ring, Lin Hao tried asking two more times, but their answer remained unchanged.

The Flowing Light Divine Stone was a material for Refining Emperor’s Soldiers and contained a peculiar energy. By working tirelessly, the two elders not only mined the stone but also unknowingly improved their cultivation.

’This is a good thing, too,’ Lin Hao thought. In the end, he had no choice but to take the divine stones and leave by himself.

After leaving the secret realm, Lin Hao explained the situation to Wu Taichu. Even Wu Taichu looked envious, sighing, "Ah, if only I weren’t the Sect Leader."

If he weren’t the Sect Leader, he could go in and mine just like the two elders.

Lin Hao pretended not to hear. He was afraid that Wu Taichu, in a fit of excitement, might try to foist the position of Sect Leader onto him.

"Master, I’m going to make a trip to the Divine Weapon Hall," Lin Hao said, changing the subject.

"I’ll go with you," Wu Taichu said at once.

Lin Hao knew Artifact Refining. Although Wu Taichu had long been aware of this, his heart still pounded with excitement every time he thought about it.

Now that Lin Hao was heading to the Divine Weapon Hall, Wu Taichu assumed he was going to start Refining Spiritual Artifacts. There was no way he would miss this opportunity.

Lin Hao nodded, and the two set off together.

The Divine Weapon Hall had been disbanded by Wu Taichu and had stood empty for a long time. But now, the ten new disciples were full of motivation and had already cleaned the place until it looked brand new.

When Lin Hao and Wu Taichu arrived, the ten disciples were staring intently at Lian Lanxin.

Lian Lanxin was in the middle of teaching them the most basic principles of Artifact Refining.

"Alright, that’s all for today. These are the notes I took when my teacher taught me the art of Artifact Refining. Take them and study them carefully." After speaking, Lian Lanxin took out her notebook.

Her gesture immediately earned the respect of the ten disciples.

Sharing one’s personal notes was a sign that she genuinely intended to selflessly pass on everything she knew.

The art of Artifact Refining was something that not even the Sect Leader, let alone them, had a chance to learn. Now that they had such an opportunity, the ten disciples silently swore that they would not let Lian Lanxin down.

Only after the ten disciples had left did Lin Hao and Wu Taichu step into the Divine Weapon Hall.

Seeing Lin Hao and Wu Taichu, a bashful blush appeared on Lian Lanxin’s face. She asked, "Big Brother, Uncle Wu, how long have you been here?"

"We just got here. Why?" Lin Hao asked, puzzled.

Lian Lanxin shook her head, breathing a sigh of relief internally.

’This was my first time explaining the art of Artifact Refining to others, and I was already so nervous. If Lin Hao had heard me, I would have died of embarrassment.’

"By the way, Lan Xin, I might be leaving for a while, so I’m going to teach you a few methods for Refining Spiritual Artifacts first." Lin Hao got straight to the point.

"You’re leaving again?" Wu Taichu and Lian Lanxin asked in unison.

Lin Hao nodded. "My Martial Dao Cultivation has stalled. I need to go explore the sect’s perilous grounds."

Wu Taichu fell silent. He had thought Lin Hao was preparing to search for another secret realm.

Lian Lanxin simply nodded.

She knew that Lin Hao’s skill in Artifact Refining surpassed even her grandfather’s. For someone at his level, Martial Dao Cultivation was the true prize.

"Once you master one principle, you can understand them all. Lan Xin, you simulated that stone dragon with both perfect form and spirit. Refining Tier One, Tier Two, and Tier Three Spiritual Artifacts is mainly about inscriptions and material ratios. For you, this should already be very simple," Lin Hao said, picking up a calligraphy brush from a nearby table.

Wu Taichu, with quick eyes and hands, rolled up his sleeves and began to grind the ink for Lin Hao.

Meanwhile, Lian Lanxin hurriedly unfolded a sheet of white paper for him.

Lin Hao didn’t stand on ceremony. He dipped the brush in the ink, and his hand began to move like a flowing dragon across the paper. "Memorize the direction of my strokes," he said.

As Lin Hao’s brush moved, fine lines appeared on the paper. In no time, a peculiar rune took shape.

"Artifact Refining is the process of inscribing various runes onto a weapon as it is being forged, then smelting various Crystal Stones and refined metals according to specific ratios. When the molten solution merges with the rune, a Spiritual Artifact is born," Lin Hao explained, putting down his brush.

Then, he pointed to the rune and continued, "This is a swiftness rune. It makes a weapon lighter, faster, and easier to handle."

"Grand Martial Uncle, by how much can it increase a weapon’s speed?" Wu Taichu asked.

Lin Hao smiled. "If it’s just the rune, without adding special materials, it can increase the speed two to three times over. Of course, a weapon refined that way wouldn’t be a Spiritual Artifact. If you add the materials to successfully create a Spiritual Artifact, the speed can be doubled again on top of that."

Hiss!

Wu Taichu couldn’t help but gasp.

Speed meant seizing the advantage.

For example, between two Martial Artists of the same cultivation level, if one’s weapon was enhanced by this rune, their opponent might already be a corpse before they could even make a move.

And if that weapon were a Spiritual Artifact, the opponent’s death would be an absolute certainty.

A Spiritual Artifact could decide life or death.

While Wu Taichu was still in a daze, Lin Hao picked up his brush again and wrote down a list of materials next to the rune.

"Big Brother, what tier of Spiritual Artifact is this recipe for?" Lian Lanxin asked, seeing "Red Cloud Cold Iron" and "Blood-Pattern Crystal Stone" written on the paper.

Although she was young and previously disliked Artifact Refining, she had grown up in the Jinglian Saint Institute. There, Blood-Pattern Crystal Stone was a material used for Refining Tier Three Spiritual Artifacts, which was why she asked.

"A Tier One Spiritual Artifact, of course," Lin Hao replied nonchalantly.

"Ah!" Lian Lanxin’s lovely eyes went wide with shock.

’Using Blood-Pattern Crystal Stone to refine a Tier One Spiritual Artifact? Isn’t that too extravagant?’

"It’s fine. Refine them with confidence. We’re not short on Crystal Stones," Lin Hao said with a smile, thinking she was worried about the cost.

In the Southern Border Prefecture, and even across the entire Ancient Empire, Artifact Refiners were scarce, which meant Crystal Stones were plentiful. Lin Hao only needed to say the word, and the Danling Sect could easily trade for a large amount using their pills.

He was, for all intents and purposes, fabulously wealthy now.

Having said that, Lin Hao picked up his brush again.

In no time, several more runes appeared on the paper, each with a corresponding list of materials.

"These are some of the most practical runes, along with the methods for Refining Tier One Spiritual Artifacts. Practice these first. When you’re proficient, I’ll teach you how to make Tier Two Spiritual Artifacts."

As he spoke, Lin Hao handed Lian Lanxin a storage spiritual ring.

Lian Lanxin took it, her eyes widening as she looked up at Lin Hao.

"That’s right. It’s from the Jinglian Saint Institute. I asked that disciple for it when I was at the Danling Sect," Lin Hao said with a smile.

Those simple words brought tears to Lian Lanxin’s eyes.

She had thought Lin Hao had gone out of his way to offend the Jinglian Saint Institute just to stand up for her.

Just as she was about to speak, Lin Hao looked down and gathered the papers with the runes drawn on them.

"There’s a handwritten manual inside that explains various important points for beginner Artifact Refiners. I looked through it; it’s quite detailed. With this, Refining a Tier One Spiritual Artifact shouldn’t be a problem for you," Lin Hao said, handing her the papers while gesturing toward the storage spiritual ring.

"Big Brother, I absolutely will not disappoint you!" Lian Lanxin finally said, biting her lip.

"I believe in you." Lin Hao’s eyes were full of encouragement.

"Alright, Lan Xin, take your time studying. I have a feeling that by the time I get back, the Divine Weapon Hall will be completely transformed," Lin Hao said with a smile as he walked out.

Wu Taichu glanced at Lian Lanxin, then back at Lin Hao, and ultimately decided to follow Lin Hao.

To be honest, he was also very interested in Artifact Refining and wanted to ask for some pointers, but right now, Lin Hao was more important.

Wu Taichu decided he would find out Lin Hao’s plans first, then come back to the Divine Weapon Hall.

"Grand Martial Uncle, where are you headed?" Wu Taichu asked, catching up to Lin Hao.

Lin Hao paused, turned back, and spoke three words.