Chapter 1289: Chapter 1289: The Tribulation of Measure Arrives
With the Youshen Pill gathering resources and the assistance of the Three Saints, Chi Yi’s crafting progress undoubtedly sped up considerably.
The initially rudimentary refinery workshop was swiftly transformed by Chi Yi into a grandiose Divine Artisan Palace.
The Divine Artisan Palace is a unique Weapon Refinement Palace exclusive to the Titled Divine Craftsman, where artifact refining success rates can be increased tenfold, but historically, only the Titled Divine Craftsman could benefit from it.
If used for combat, the Divine Artisan Palace can transform into the Dao Protection of an Ancient Divine City: entering the city makes it impervious to myriad tribulations, and using the divine city to strike can rival the falling of a Saintly Dao Mountain, surprisingly forming a supreme innate instrument that combines offense and defense!
"What a formidable divine city! It’s a pity that this treasure can only be utilized by the Titled Divine Craftsman; for others, it’s as good as scrap iron..." the Three Saints were all moved when the Divine Artisan Palace was completed.
Especially the Heaven-Sealing Sect Master, who had been congenial with Ancestor Yan Shi and personally experienced the might of Yan Shi’s Divine Artisan Palace.
In his view, the Divine Artisan Palace refined by Chi Yi is not much inferior to Yan Shi’s. Yet, Yan Shi possesses the dignity of a saint and is even the progenitor among divine artisans in the world! Chi Yi, merely by the status of Immortal Emperor, astonishingly equaled Yan Shi’s Artifact Refining Technique, truly defying the heavens!
"If they were of the same rank, this woman’s artifact refining technique would surpass Yan Shi’s..." the Heaven-Sealing Sect Master secretly speculated, feeling it necessary to genuinely regard this woman as a peer henceforth.
A craftsman capable of easily refining supreme innate instruments is worth befriending by any saint...
Ning Fan was also somewhat surprised.
He knew Chi Yi’s artifact refining skills were high, but lacked direct experience.
After all, Chi Yi previously repaired the Flooded Bottle to supreme innate level, and the process wasn’t particularly easy, as at the time she was refining with merely a strand of heart spirit, with old injuries unhealed and cultivations not as strong as now...
The current Chi Yi is the complete Chi Yi, the strongest Chi Yi!
No, perhaps even now isn’t her strongest form, as her memories have lost too much; only by recovering all her memories can she be deemed complete...
"It’s a pity there’s not enough time, and Immortal Material is quite scarce, otherwise I would certainly install one hundred and eight Gang Silver Soul-Dispersing Moon-Sealing Tathagata Organ Cannons in this divine city..." Chi Yi regretted.
Hiss!
The Three Saints all sucked in cold air upon hearing that the divine city actually has room for enhancement.
Especially Saint Taibai, who instantly recalled many not-so-pleasant memories.
Among the Three Saints present, only Saint Taibai had really been bombarded by Chi Yi’s organ cannons, but at the time Chi Yi had only used thirty-six organ cannons...Equipping the divine city with one hundred and eight organ cannons, just imagining it made cold sweat drip down one’s back; even a Nirvana Saint would have trouble with it...
Ning Fan: "Is Immortal Material very lacking? What is missing, I’ll go buy some."
Chi Yi: "Lacking one hundred and eight mid-grade Heaven-Opening Stones."
Ning Fan: "?"
Heaven-Opening Stones are considered scarce resources even in the Real Realms; if it’s merely low-grade Heaven-Opening Stones, Ning Fan could still try his luck using a Trading Formation and, with the entitlement of the Immortal Emperor Formation, might opportunistically buy one or two...However, for mid-grade ones, he’d have to post commissions and slowly wait for sellers...
But even if he could wait for one or two sellers, it’s unlikely he could wait for a large supply of one hundred and eight pieces...This Immortal Material that can repair, refine, and enhance magical treasures and Dao Weapons, unless there’s reason, who would exchange it for money?
Ning Fan couldn’t help but recall the arduous past of searching for the first piece of low-grade Heaven-Opening Stone to repair the God-Extinguishing Shield...Back then, borrowing Xiang Mingzi’s connections, he found his way to Daoist Wood Pine’s door, only to be told that the low-grade Heaven-Opening Stone owned by Daoist Wood Pine had already been given to Wu Laoba, to settle past karma...
That said, Ning Fan still opened the Trading Formation, intending to try his luck, but only bought two pieces of low-grade Heaven-Opening Stone, spending thirty thousand gold...
"Only two low-grade ones, can you use them?" Ning Fan asked.
"Yes, they are usable..." Chi Yi understood the scarcity of Heaven-Opening Stones and wouldn’t use these two stones for building cannons.
They would be reserved to repair Duowen Wushuang and enhance the magical treasure’s power...
Ning Fan: "Don’t be too attached to worldly objects; it’s your divine city, you can do as you wish."
Chi Yi: "The master is mistaken; it isn’t just Chi Yi’s divine city...The master is careless! The master didn’t notice that inside the main hall of the Divine Artisan Palace, there is a statue of the master, which Chi Yi borrowed nine Heaven-Opening Stones from the Three Saint seniors to create..."
Ning Fan: "?"
Using such scarce Heaven-Opening Stones, you actually consumed nine pieces just to make a statue for me? Isn’t this somewhat extravagant? Wait...
These Heaven-Opening Stones, did you borrow them from the Three Saints?
Ning Fan thoughtlessly regarding the Three Saints.
The Three Saints then immediately seized the opportunity to prove their worth.
Chi Biaonu: "Borrow, what borrow? Daoist Chi Yi is just joking. It’s the honor of my three Heaven-Opening Stones to be used for building a statue for Rebel Venerable!"
Heaven-Sealing Sect Master: "To use five Heaven-Opening Stones to build a statue for Rebel Venerable reimburses all regrets of my entire life!"
Saint Taibai: "The gleam in the statue’s eyes from the Heaven-Opening Stone light is my unwavering belief for life!"
Ning Fan: "..."
Just a statue, and it’s becoming more and more exaggerated...
However, the karma of nine Heaven-Opening Stones is not something to take lightly.
Ning Fan: "Whatever the cost of these Heaven-Opening Stones, that’s what it will be. I won’t allow the Three of you to give them away for free."
The Three Saints: "Ah? There’s really no need to be polite, Senior, these are all the juniors’ sincere intentions..."
Ning Fan: "Name your price. If you don’t, I’ll pay you according to market value."
Three Saints: "Uh, this..."
The Three Saints felt helpless but understood that the Fourth Step Reverse Saint disliked getting entangled in karma.
So they must accept payment and settle this karma immediately; but they couldn’t overcharge, for overcharging would indicate a lack of understanding of worldly wisdom...
Thus, the Three Saints discussed in secret and symbolically charged a thousand gold for each stone, priced based on defective goods.
Such a price was sufficient to clear the karma and allow the Rebel Venerable to sense their sincere intentions, couldn’t be more perfect...
Ning Fan: "Alright, one thousand gold per stone, cash and carry, if you find it too little later, you can’t regret it..."
Thus, this matter was concluded.
Still, Ning Fan couldn’t understand why Chi Yi would spend a fortune to build a statue, but he didn’t ask further.
Chi Yi explained on her own.
Chi Yi: "With the master’s divine statue occupying the core, this Divine Artisan Palace will be different from all others. As long as Chi Yi gives the order, the master can use it too."
Chi Yi: "Calling it Divine Artisan Palace is not fitting anymore. So Chi Yi has given it a new name. From now on, this place shall be the master’s [Divine Treasury]. Even Chi Yi’s authority here ranks only second..."
Huh?
Ning Fan was surprised, was this little girl’s gesture truly that grand, casually gifting him a Supreme Innate Instrument?
...
Yet Ning Fan still underestimated Chi Yi’s movements.
After the Divine Artisan Palace (crossed out) Divine Treasury was established, Chi Yi’s artifact refining journey continued.
In the days that followed, Chi Yi forged twenty-four tools at the Innate Level, including hand hammers, pincers, anvils, grindstones, bellows, etc. In terms of grade, within the twenty-four tools, fifteen were Superior Innate, and nine were Supreme Innate.
During these days, the visions above the Crimson Mountain Fighting Sea never ceased; every time an Innate Treasure was successfully forged, it would invariably draw many visions.
Such sights as purple air soaring to the bull star, daytime stars appearing, silhouettes of godly entities in the Crimson Sea, mirages of ancient countries... as these visions appeared more frequently, viewers grew accustomed.
As for the grand lightning tribulation brought about by the birth of powerful magical treasures, it’s hardly worth mentioning.
"Is this the handiwork of a Descendant of the Divine Artisan? Just for refining tools, there were nine Supreme Innate pieces; if you count the Divine Artisan Palace itself, she has forged ten Supreme Innate items!" Even the mighty Three Saints found it difficult to remain calm.
Though nine out of ten Divine Craftsmen are rich, before their eyes was someone evidently wealthy beyond measure...
Chi Yi wasn’t very satisfied with the newly forged tools.
Twenty-four tools in total, yet only nine reached Supreme Innate grade; the output rate was too low. And among the nine Supreme Innate items, not one touched the boundary of Heaven-Opening... Heaven-Opening, so difficult, not even slightly reachable...
To forge these twenty-four tools, Chi Yi used up forty percent of the resources from sixteen Great Thousand Worlds.
An Artifact Refiner surely is a money-burning profession.
To do a good job, one must first sharpen their tools. At this moment, the preliminary work for repairing Duowen Wushuang was thoroughly prepared.
Chi Yi didn’t act immediately. During this time, the preparations for the preliminary work had consumed her greatly, hence before the final repair job, she needed to rest well and adjust her state.
"These times have been so tiring, so exhausting, but all of this is nothing compared to the pain of losing the master..."
In the side hall of the Divine Artisan Palace, Chi Yi soaked in the steam-filled bath barrel, her head nodding off into slumber.
Her past self dreamed of crafting a Heaven-Opening Artifact, and to forge Heaven-Opening Immortal Materials, the grade of the tools used naturally couldn’t be too low.
Her current self maintained her past refining habits, yet her goal shifted from crafting Heaven-Opening Instruments to becoming the master’s protective instrument.
No matter the cost, in this lifetime, she must protect the master, never losing again...
She no longer remembered her past but could never forget the scorching pain of loss...
Such pain felt like just one lifetime yet seemed to have lasted for countless millennia due to her poor memory failing to discern where those pains came from.
Hence countless suffering flowed back to its source, and countless suffering streamed toward the end of time...
Half asleep and half awake, images seemingly appeared before Chi Yi’s eyes: numerous partings, numerous losses, an endless number of times watching butterflies burn to ashes... despair gnawed at her reincarnation, the world’s response was only indifference, she sunk into the endless deep sea, not a trace of warmth reached here, even hugging herself, the surroundings were still cold...
Countless malicious voices murmured in her ears, unclear between truth and falsehood...
Countless treasures promising heavy pledges eventually stabbed her from behind...
Having been drenched by rain, hence willingly holding an umbrella for others...
Having endured too many dark nights, hence longing more for the arrival of that beam of light...
Yet she hadn’t fully considered what she would say upon encountering that beam of light again...
She had too much suffering to express, yet when truly meeting that beam of light, her response was merely a smile...
If she must leave something behind, let it be the best...
...
Chi Yi soaked in the bath, sleeping soundly, sometimes frowning, sometimes shedding tears, yet occasionally showing a smile, inexplicably, not knowing what was in her dreams.
While she slept, she didn’t even know someone was sitting next to the bathtub.
Ning Fan initially sensed Chi Yi was asleep and wanted to come in and carry her to bed.
But at this moment, he didn’t disturb Chi Yi’s slumber and instead sat quietly by her side, fingers interlocked, head lowered in silence, hiding his expression in the shadows.
To Chi Yi, what she was dreaming of was merely bizarre and wondrous fantasies, forgotten the moment she awoke.
Yet, if Ning Fan could also witness Chi Yi’s chaotic dream fragments and understand everything, what then...
The heavy past belonged to Chi Yi, but it wasn’t solely her memory... Ning Fan could understand whose memory this was now.
Those words once heard like riddles are now all understandable.
[In the past, I didn’t understand why I couldn’t find you despite searching so hard. When I truly understood, I could no longer coexist with you in the same world. You, later on, will probably never find me either, not in any reincarnation... when you do find me, perhaps you’ve already missed the opportunity...]
[The moonrise at Primeval Mountain takes a full decade to complete... the tides of Nether Dust Sea take a century to surge... the fog of Vast Expanse Path takes a millennium to disperse... the peaches of Heavenly Court take ten thousand years to ripen... the Bell Orchid of Sky Desolate Ancient Realm blooms once every hundred thousand years... and I am allowed a smile only once every several million years...]
[I’ve waited a long time, I’ve left you... so much...]
[I wish to watch a moonrise together... even just for... ten years...]
"You want to watch a ten-year moonrise together, huh? If given the chance, I would give it a try..." Ning Fan murmured softly.
It was unclear whether these words were meant for Chi Yi or someone else entirely.
No one knew what Ning Fan understood.
No one knew what he intended to do next.
The dragon slayer eventually becomes the evil dragon; encountering too many riddlers, one will inevitably become another riddler.
In her deep sleep, Chi Yi seemed to hear Ning Fan’s words, thus revealed a sweeter smile, as if dreaming a beautiful dream bathed in moonlight...
...
Chi Yi slept very sweetly, and upon waking, she remembered nothing and began to focus on repairing Duowen Wushuang.
The artifact refinement location was the Divine Artisan Palace, using twenty-four superior and supreme innate instruments, with two Nirvana and one Shienie Saint assisting her!
The repair lineup could be described as luxurious, unmatched even by the former ruler of the Divine Artisan State, who didn’t have the Three Saints aiding.
With such a lineup, repairing a magical treasure with lingering spirit is without any difficulty.
But Chi Yi not only wanted a repair; she hoped to elevate Duowen Wushuang’s power even further.
To achieve this, she devised hundreds of plans, eliminating them one by one until she selected the optimal solution.
Then...
Duowen Wushuang was successfully repaired, and it all seemed ordinary and expected!
Ziwei Four Sacred Artifacts, each a supreme innate treasure, combined they form a Heaven-opening Artifact.
Alone, Duowen Wushuang is supreme innate, yet with his own knowledge, he secretly replicated the powers of the other three sacred artifacts.
Theoretically, he possesses all the powers of the Ziwei Four Sacred Artifacts, comparable to Heaven-opening.
The reality is, his vessel is merely supreme innate level; though the power is strong, the shell falls far short of Heaven-opening...
After Chi Yi’s comprehensive enhancement of Duowen Wushuang...
Boom!
At the moment of completion, the sky above Crimson Mountain Fighting Sea seemed to be split open by a force, but what was actually split was... the Dao!
Endless purple light poured from the Dao’s fissure, transforming into a sky full of purple glow, which was not a glow but the purest Shienie Wilderness’s Three Energies, revealing the deepest purple!
Shienie Wilderness’s Three Energies surged in, and in just a moment, they seemed to have traversed thousands of lifetimes, infusing entirely into Duowen Wushuang.
And at this moment, Duowen Wushuang’s magical treasure grade began to ascend rapidly, racing towards the unreachable Heaven-opening limit.
"Is this going to refine a Heaven-opening Artifact?" The Three Saints were shockingly speechless, yet felt everything was within reason.
What else could be worth the Reverse Saint’s effort to repair but a Heaven-opening Artifact!
But the Heaven-opening phenomenon did not last till the end...
After numerous failures to breach the Heaven-opening limit, Duowen Wushuang’s treasure light began to recede, ultimately failing to become a Heaven-opening Artifact.
Though not Heaven-opening, because it touched the boundary of the sky, calling it still a supreme innate treasure wouldn’t be quite accurate.
Within the Real Realms, those equipped to open the heavens but regrettably failed are often called... sub-Heaven-opening Artifacts!
"Still can’t refine Heaven-opening huh, damn it, if I had hundreds or thousands of mid-grade, superior Heaven-opening Stones, this time, it would surely be possible, surely possible..." Pouring all in, achieving from near success to failure, Chi Yi’s heart was filled with disappointment. She didn’t dare look at Ning Fan, didn’t dare imagine what disappointed, angry, blaming expression he had at this moment...
"What are you thinking! Just two pieces of low-grade Heaven-Opening Stone to refine a Heaven-Opening Artifact, aren’t you being too hard on yourself..."
Ning Fan rubbed Chi Yi’s head speechlessly, meeting Chi Yi’s bewildered, upturned eyes.
The master wasn’t angry?
The master is really... too gentle! Wu wu wu, the master is so kind!
"It’s such a pity. If there were enough Heaven-Opening Stones, perhaps this time we could truly witness the birth of a Heaven-Opening Artifact..." The spirit sense of the Three Saints was filled with a sense of regret. It was a Heaven-Opening Artifact, after all. If there was no hope, it would be fine, but the worst thing is to see hope and still end in failure...
"There will be opportunities in the future, take it slow, don’t rush..." Ning Fan said this to Chi Yi.
Don’t rush.
When I find enough Heaven-Opening Stones, your dream of refining a Heaven-Opening Artifact will definitely come true.
If not once, then ten times; if not ten times, then a hundred times, a thousand times...
Whether it’s refining artifacts, looking for Bell Orchid, or watching the moon together, if it’s what your heart desires, then no matter how slight the possibility, I am willing to seek that glimmer of light...
Illusory or futile, unattainable or inaccessible...
Even if all Saints become angry and all rebels obstruct me, the road beneath my feet will always be the one I wish to walk!
With Duowen Wushuang in hand, it’s time... to rewrite everything!
"Uh, master, please don’t rush off yet. There’s still a lot of remaining resources. Chi Yi would like to refine more protective items for you. The master’s Divine Treasury is really too empty!" Chi Yi said weakly.
She wasn’t unaware of the atmosphere or deliberately ruining it, but she really wasn’t finished yet...
"Oh..." Ning Fan.
The battle spirit that had reached its peak slowly receded, transforming into a calm response, as if the battle spirit just now wasn’t emitted by him, retracting and releasing at will.
"Just like before is fine, while Chi Yi refines, the master can go to those Nirvana Worlds to cultivate..." Chi Yi.
...
Saint Heir’s Trial, Northern Barbarians Kingdom.
With the tacit approval of Chiwei Demon Lord, Ning Fan used some indescribable means and communicated like this with the Trial Space lady for quite a while.
Subsequently, as if cheating, Ning Fan, who was originally supposed to have finished the trial, was reborn and returned.
The time in the Trial Space was in a frozen state. Logically, after being reborn, Ning Fan could directly return to the time node when he left the trial.
But then, a voice suddenly appeared, interfering with Ning Fan’s cheating, causing a deviation in Ning Fan’s return to the trial’s time node.
"I don’t know where you, little variable, came from, but, to block my path to sainthood, with your current wings, it’s not enough!"
Ning Fan only saw a white-haired figure flash by, and then the surrounding time nodes were pierced by countless purple rays.
As for Ning Fan, he only felt his heart spirit being struck, resulting in severe pain, and then his heart spirit plunged into a chaotic time stream.
"Hmm? Just a wisp of heart spirit, yet it could withstand my blow..." The white-haired figure was slightly surprised.
What surprised the white-haired figure even more was that Ning Fan did not remain long in the chaotic time stream. Even though the original time node had been shattered, after a flash of azure in his eyes, Ning Fan quickly found the time node closest to the original from the vast multitude of time nodes and leaped into it.
...
After a flash of light, Ning Fan once again stood on the land of the Northern Barbarians Kingdom.
However, at this moment, the Northern Barbarians Kingdom had already taken on a different appearance.
The North Pole Mountain that originally stood here was no longer in sight, replaced by a blood light Giant Sword as high as the heavens, thrust into the snow plains of the Northern Barbarians Kingdom, with a deep chasm extending from the Giant Sword, splitting the entire Northern Barbarians Kingdom in two.
Endless ruins and dead bodies lay buried under the blizzard, desolation everywhere, yet calamity thoughts soared into the sky, countless scarlet calamity thoughts pervading the world, starkly contrasting with the originally white snow-covered Northern Barbarians Kingdom.
Countless immense creatures as big as gods were massacring and pursuing survivors here...
"Could it be too late again? No, I can still sense the aura of the Northern Barbarian God, and Bai Ling’s aura is still there too..." Ning Fan’s gaze softened.
Before he could make his next move, a figure fleeing everywhere saw him first.
"Ha ha! Isn’t this my Zhang Dao Brother? You really are fine!" Shi Xian Zhenren was overjoyed and flew towards Ning Fan all the way.
Following closely behind was an underworld sparrow with wings covering the sky, chasing and killing all the way.
"You damned bald bird, if you dare, don’t chase me, chase someone else! You have guts! Still chasing, huh! Just wait, I’ll have help soon!"
"Zhang Dao Brother, stop watching the fun, come help..."
Alas, before Shi Xian Zhenren could finish his plea for help, he was swallowed by the underworld sparrow in one bite...
With a blank expression, after belching, the underworld sparrow lowered its eyes and looked at Ning Fan.
Almost as soon as its gaze was cast over, endless Calamity Flashes engulfed Ning Fan...
