Cultivation Online
chapter-1519

1519 Divine Blacksmith

"E-Exalted Blacksmith Fanatic? Are you suggesting a connection between me and that enigmatic figure? What led you to such a conclusion?" Zi Xuan swiftly retorted, her innocence a well-crafted facade.

"So you're not the Exalted Blacksmith Fanatic? How did you acquire that material, then? I can remember and identify any material I've seen once, and that piece of Cold Stellar Iron was stolen from Gu Guming a few years ago." Tian Qiyuan spoke in a calm voice.

"Is that so? I had no idea. I acquired this from the black market last month. So it was stolen by the Exalted Blacksmith Fanatic, huh? A fascinating revelation, but does it truly matter where it originated? It's in your possession now." Zi Xuan's words flowed as smoothly as her breath.

Seeing how stubborn she was to keep her identity a secret, Tian Qiyuan no longer tried to expose her and said, "You're right. It doesn't matter where it came from."

Zi Xuan was slightly taken aback by how readily he accepted the situation. She was certain that he had a strict policy against accepting stolen materials, a rule that would have challenged her persuasive skills. But she was relieved that it wasn't the case.

"You're a lot more open-minded than I'd anticipated. I know many blacksmiths who would not craft anything with materials acquired through unethical means," she expressed her surprise.

"Would you rather I not accept the material, then? It's not like I don't have any standards or pride. I obviously won't steal anything myself, but how another individual acquires their material is none of my business. Of course, I'm not encouraging such actions, either. Moreover, how can one tell for sure their material wasn't acquired through unethical means?"

In the cultivation world, where the pursuit of power and longevity often led to questionable ethics, murder was a common occurrence. Given this, Tian Qiyuan's acceptance of the stolen material was hardly unusual. For him, it was just another aspect of the cutthroat world he lived in.

"Anyway, what kind of sword do you want this time?" Tian Qiyuan asked.

"I don't know, so I'll let you decide."

"The same grade?"

"How many materials would it take for you to craft an Empyrean-grade treasure?" she asked.

"Well, I'll need at least five. However, I have yet to craft one, so you'll need to wait a little longer if you really want one."

"Five, huh? Alright. I have four here." Zi Xuan retrieved three more materials. Naturally, all of them were stolen from their owners in the last few years.

"Let me guess… you got them from the black market?" Tian Qiyuan smiled at her nonchalant action.

"Yup! It was sold to me as a bundle," she calmly nodded with an innocent smile on her face.

"Give me two… no, one hundred years. I'll become a Divine Blacksmith by then."

"Okay. I'll look for more materials in the meantime."

Zi Xuan left shortly afterward. Although she wanted to stay a little longer, she didn't want to delay his promotion to Divine Blacksmith even for a second.

After Zi Xuan left, Tian Qiyuan immediately began working toward Empyrean-grade treasures inside his world.

Most blacksmiths struggle to advance to the next level due to a lack of materials. Crafting treasures requires a significant amount of resources, which can be expensive, especially high-

grade treasures that require rare materials. Even recycling the materials afterward isn't enough to create something new, making it a major hurdle for those seeking to upgrade.

However, Tian Qiyuan didn't have to worry about lacking rare resources since his world had an abdunance of them. This is also how he managed to become a Grand Blacksmith in just a few thousand years, while most would take hundreds of thousands of years to reach that level.

While Tian Qiyuan entered seclusion to focus on his craft, Zi Xuan returned to collecting materials for him as the Exalted Blacksmith Fanatic.

Her existence has become such a menace that people form alliances and groups to hunt her down. However, Zi Xuan wasn't one of the strongest cultivators in the world for nothing. Even without revealing her true strength, she could easily deal with any adversaries.

A hundred years later, Tian Qiyuan emerged from his seclusion to auction off his newest creation and to let the world know of his advancements.

"Did you hear? The Exalted Blacksmith has finally created an Empyrean-grade treasure, officially becoming a Divine Blacksmith!"

"Heavens! He's a Divine Blacksmith already!? He'd become a Grand Blacksmith not too long ago! How the hell is he progressing so fast?!"

"I call bullshit! There's no way that's possible!"

"It's true! He's auctioning off his Empyrean-grade treasure as we're speaking!"

At the auction, Tian Qiyuan gave a quick speech before the battle, just like previously.

"Although I've managed to craft an Empyrean-grade treasure, I can only do swords at the moment, so I do not consider myself a real Divine Blacksmith just yet. I will wait until I can craft other weapons of similar quality before I dare claim that title."

His humble demeanor left a favorable impression on many blacksmiths, including the Divine Blacksmiths out there.

"And once again, I will accept a personal commission from the winner of this auction."

Once Tian Qiyuan left, the auction began shortly after.

The auction for the Empyrean-grade treasure was a frenzied mess, even more chaotic than the last Mystic-grade auction.

Sure enough, Zi Xuan was at this auction as well. Unfortunately, there were too many powerhouses present in this auction and she was unable to win this auction due to a lack of funds. While she had managed to win the last auction, it was mostly due to the treasure being mere Mystic-grade, and most of the truly wealthy bidders already possessed Empyrean-grade and above treasures, so they weren't as willing as her to spend a fortune on it.

In the end, the ancestor of the Holy Sword Monastery won the bid.

Zi Xuan was frustrated that she lost, but she did not despair, as there were opportunities to acquire it in the future.