Chapter 4: The Water-Fire Treasure Gourd
Reforging the spirit gourd was not a sudden whim of Song Changsheng’s, it had long been part of his plans.
In the cultivation world, there’s an old saying: “A hundred arts, a thousand techniques, ten thousand types of artifacts.” The sheer variety of magical tools is dazzling, each with its own unique strengths and purposes.
The spirit gourd was a supportive type of magical tool. It housed an independent space within, and an Eroding Bone Array was inscribed at its base. In battle, it could trap enemies inside and refine them into nothing but a pool of blood.
It was already a top-tier magical tool of its class, but compared to killing weapons like swords, spears, sabers, or halberds, it ultimately lacked a certain sharpness and lethal intent.
Song Changsheng possessed extraordinary comprehension and walked the path of a qi cultivator. He had mastered many powerful techniques and recently grasped the Water-Fire Commanding Technique, which significantly enhanced the might of his water and fire spells, far surpassing others of the same realm.
In contrast, his magical tool had become a shortcoming. Inspired during the crafting of the protective charm, he decided to imbue his spirit gourd with the powers of water and fire, transforming it into a lethal weapon!
Refining a magical tool was naturally not something as casual as making a talisman. Song Changsheng made his way to the clan’s Hall of Hundred Arts, an area dedicated to nurturing the clan members' cultivation skills and managing the family industries.
Buried beneath the great hall was a section of a subterranean fire vein that produced a continuous stream of earth fire, used for alchemy and artifact refinement.
Although Song Changsheng had a fire spiritual root, the flame conjured from spiritual power was nothing compared to natural earth fire. As someone who pursued perfection, if he was going to reforge an artifact, he would do so flawlessly.
Due to the hour, the Hall of Hundred Arts was relatively quiet. Song Changsheng walked straight to a corner of the hall and respectfully cupped his fists. “Nephew greets Fifth Uncle.”
In the corner lay a reclining chair. A chubby middle-aged man lay there lazily, eyes closed, slowly fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan. Without opening his eyes, he muttered, “Didn’t I tell you to take a break? There’s no spare work for you today.”
“Fifth Uncle, I came to borrow the artifact refining room. I've had some recent breakthroughs in artifact crafting and wish to reforge a magical tool.”
Upon hearing this, the chubby man opened his eyes and sat up to look at Song Changsheng. “You advanced to a first-rank superior-grade artifact refiner?”
Song Changsheng nodded with a smile.
“Ah! I told you before you should’ve studied alchemy instead of messing with those trivial arrays and artifacts. With your talent, you could’ve become a master alchemist in the future,” the man said, regretful.
This rotund man was no ordinary person. His name was Song Luzhou, fifth of the fifth generation and currently the clan’s Second Elder, in charge of the Hall of Hundred Arts.
Not only was he a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, but he was also the clan’s only second-rank superior-grade alchemist.
Song Changsheng chuckled, “You can say that to me uncle, but if Grandpa hears you, your ears will suffer again.”
At that, Song Luzhou instinctively shrank his neck. The next moment, however, he pointed at Song Changsheng with a grin. “Brat, you dare tease your Fifth Uncle now. Fine, the C-Class artifact room is still available. Go ahead.”
Waving his hand, he dismissed Song Changsheng and lay back down for a nap.
Song Changsheng descended the stairs into the underground level of the hall. Due to the fire vein, the area was searing hot. In some cracks between the rocks, flames danced visibly.
At the center of the artifact refining room stood a large bronze cauldron, covered in carvings of birds, fish, insects, and beasts, forming a vivid and dynamic scene.
This was a first-rank top-quality bronze cauldron, far superior to Song Changsheng’s own old one.
He sat cross-legged, removed the spirit gourd from his waist, and muttered, “This wine mustn't be wasted.”
He then began gulping it down with loud gulps. Only when his tongue curled to capture the final drop of liquor did he burp in satisfaction.
Activating a special mechanism, a blaze of orange-red flames surged from the fire vent beneath the cauldron, beginning to heat it up.
Once the timing felt right, he tossed in several fire and water-attribute ore blocks he had exchanged for and began roasting them with earth fire.
As the impurities in the ores were slowly burned away, the ores melted into liquid form.
Unhurriedly, Song Changsheng placed the spirit gourd inside, added some powdered ore, and then sealed the cauldron to begin the refinement.
Under his precise control, all the materials and the gourd fused together seamlessly. This process lasted three days and three nights. Only when beads of sweat appeared on his nose did the refinement conclude, the spirit gourd was now promoted to a first-rank superior-grade magical tool.
But the work wasn't done yet. After a short meditation to recover, Song Changsheng began inscribing arrays. He muttered, “The Eroding Bone Array can stay. On top of that, I’ll add a Water-Fire Duality Array. That will allow me to fully unleash my power.”
With that, he focused his mental energy and began inscribing array patterns inside the spirit gourd. Inscribing a first-rank superior-grade array into an artifact took him nearly two days and two nights.
If he were setting up an external array, it would take only a moment. But etching it into an artifact was exponentially harder and mentally draining.
If not for his exceptional mental strength, he wouldn’t have been able to complete it in such a short time.
With the array etched, the spirit gourd’s reforging was complete. It had transformed from a yellow-hued gourd into a two-toned artifact, crimson and blue with a metallic sheen, heavy in the hand.
“Now that I’ve infused you with water and fire, I shall name you the Water-Fire Treasure Gourd,” Song Changsheng said, admiring the gourd with great satisfaction.
He tried activating it. The treasure gourd levitated instantly, tilting downward. A faint crimson glow flickered deep within its black opening.
“Go!”
Forming a hand seal, he activated it. A torrent of blazing flame spewed from the gourd’s mouth, instantly turning the entire refining room into a sea of fire. The temperature distorted the very air.
Fortunately, he still remembered where he was and quickly retracted the flame. Even so, the entire room had been charred beyond recognition.
“What terrifying power. If the fire array alone is this strong then the water array shouldn't be far behind. At last, I possess a true offensive weapon,” Song Changsheng thought, unable to hide his joy as he looked at the gourd.
After a short recovery, he opened the barrier to leave, only to be greeted by the dark, soot-covered face of Song Luzhou.
“Uh… Fifth Uncle,” Song Changsheng said sheepishly.
Song Luzhou didn’t speak. He pushed past Song Changsheng and looked inside. One glance was enough to almost make him explode on the spot. He roared, “You little bastard! What have you done?!”
Song Changsheng cursed silently. His Fifth Uncle was notoriously stingy. Now that he’d turned the artifact room into a disaster zone, there was no way he’d get off easy. His eyes darted around, preparing to escape.
But in front of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, what chance did he have? Song Luzhou easily subdued him and growled, “Brat, how are you going to make this right?!”
Knowing he was in the wrong, Song Changsheng gave an awkward laugh. “Fifth Uncle, it's all superficial damage. Please let me off this once.”
“Hmph! I can let it slide… You’re hosting the Ascension Ceremony soon, right? Bring back a jug of second-rank spirit wine for me, and I’ll forget about this,” Song Luzhou said, a sly gleam in his eyes, making an outrageous demand.
“Second-grade? That’s way too greedy! My mother only has a few jars of that stuff, I haven’t even tasted it!” Song Changsheng protested loudly.
“Heh, that’s your problem. Now scram! Don’t forget the wine!” Song Luzhou chuckled darkly and casually tossed Song Changsheng out.
...
(Chapter End)