Heavenly Jewel Change
chapter-36-2

Chapter 36 Freak Amongst Geniuses (2)

However, perhaps now it seemed like this skill would be extremely useful to him. In his previous failures, it didn’t even require a second of control, even half a second of control or less would have helped him pass that one inch distance. Having two sets of Jewels had another benefit, he could use two different elements at the same time. To an ordinary Heavenly Jewel Master, that might not be something they could use, but to Zhou Weiqing who had six attributes, it was very useful. After having his second Alexandrite Cat’s Eye, he was able to use two skills of different attributes at the same time, for example: Time and Spatial.

How will I know if this works if I do not try? Experimenting was the only way to test the theory, and Zhou Weiqing eagerly took another sheet of Consolidating Paper, closing his eyes for a bit to focus himself, before beginning once again.

Like the previous times, his Spatial Energy entered the brush tip, and he started moving it along the pre-drawn designs. Very quickly, he reached the area where he had problems with the rhythm.

Absolute Delay. Without hesitation, Zhou Weiqing released his 6th Skill, causing a large amount of Heavenly Energy to be expended, but the brush in his hand was able to move according to his wishes, the previous problem area was thus instantly passed and completed with a flourish, almost reaching three inches.

Looks good! Having completed this section, the Consolidating Ink gathered and solidified, shining with a dim glow, signifying that the portion had already been fused as according to the rhythm. Zhou Weiqing was delighted, but he could not be careless at this point. After all, it took just one mistake for the entire scroll to be ruined and all previous effort to go to waste.

Every sheet of Consolidating Equipment Scroll was formed by many countless lines and traces to form the design, and within each brush stroke of the portion, one could not stop at all or it would be totally ruined. However, after completing the portion in the brush stroke, one could stop to rest. After all, there was a limit to the Consolidating Equipment Master’s Heavenly Energy, and to complete an entire Consolidating Equipment Scroll required a large amount of Heavenly Energy.

Seeing that his idea was actually effective, Zhou Weiqing was delighted. He dipped the brush once more into the Consolidating Ink, continuing with the second brushstroke. The facts showed that the Absolute Delay’s control of time was a perfect fit when infusing Spatial Energy into the Consolidating Equipment Scroll. Whenever the brush reached a critical point and he was unable to properly handle the rhythm and timing, Absolute Delay was able to allow him to control himself and complete the brushstroke.

Although this made his overall speed much slower, and also greatly increased energy consumption, it at least led him step by step towards success. Alas, this Consolidating Equipment Scroll ended up failing near the end as well. It had been reaching the last few brushstrokes and Zhou Weiqing had gotten too excited, forgetting to factor in the amount of Heavenly Energy expended, and had started on the next stroke too quickly. As such, he had not been able to use Absolute Delay at a critical period and the entire sheet of Consolidating Paper was ruined once more.

However, he was not depressed by that loss at all, and staring at the ruined sheet in his hand, he started laughing smugly. The first time was always the toughest, and the pain was perhaps greater than joy this round. However, now that he had the experience under his belt… Heh Heh.

Sitting cross legged, Zhou Weiqing focused his attentions on his eleven energy whirlpools, spinning them at the max to recover his Heavenly Energy. When he was fully recovered, he started on a new sheet once again, and this time he was much more experienced. After all, failure was the mother of success, and this time he felt in a much better position; for some of the previous bottlenecks, he even felt he had a 20% chance of success Equipment Scrolls without using Absolute Delay.

Zhou Weiqing’s perception was indeed correct. When creating a Consolidating Equipment Scroll, the most critical period was the first time. As long as one succeeded once and managed to feel and understand the timing and rhythm, it could only get easier.

However, in order to successfully complete his first Consolidating Equipment Scroll, Zhou Weiqing did not dare to be careless. He once again made use of Absolute Delay for any possible bottlenecks; ensuring he had sufficient rest in between to recover his Heavenly Energy three times.

At long last, the final brush was complete. A bright silver glow shimmered around the faint gold Consolidating Ink as it fused with the Consolidating Paper. Instantly the entire sheet flashed in a golden light as a faint energy wave appeared, as if the sheet of Consolidating Paper had come to life.

Zhou Weiqing stared blankly at the completed Consolidating Equipment Scroll in front of him, feeling an indescribable sense of accomplishment welling up within him, as if he had created life! Indeed, created life, he felt as if he had granted that sheet of Consolidating Paper life, turning it into a Consolidating Equipment Scroll!

Without hesitation, Zhou Weiqing picked up another sheet of Consolidating Paper. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and went through the entire process of his previous success once again, before starting on the next sheet.

This time, he took his time, not making use of the Absolute Delay for every brushstroke, and only for the ones which he felt he definitely had no chance. Still, he actually managed to complete this second Consolidating Equipment Scroll in half the time of the previous one!

Once he completed the second sheet, he started on the third, then the fourth, and he got more proficient with every successful completion of a Consolidating Equipment Scroll, and his speed grew faster and faster. After swallowing the black pearl, his senses were strengthened to far beyond that of any normal person, and that was extremely useful in the process of creating Consolidating Equipment Scroll. As soon as he felt something was amiss, he was able to instantly use the Absolute Delay to control it. This continued for the rest of the day, and besides a few times where he lost focus and failed, he actually managed to complete more than a dozen scrolls.

“Little Wei, it’s time for dinner.” Huyan Aobo’s voice rang out from outside. Although he was resting, his room was near enough to listen to Zhou Weiqing’s room, and seeing him practice without pause, he felt extremely satisfied.

Opening the door, Huyan Aobo entered the room, and as Zhou Weiqing looked up at him, he was given a huge shock. Zhou Weiqing’s eyes were streaked red, and his face was pale.

“Little Wei, you didn’t stop at all?” Huyan Aobo asked with concern, though his eyes were filled with pride and happiness. As a Consolidating Equipment Grandmaster, he was very clear that for a Consolidating Equipment Master to succeed, the most important thing was perseverance. Zhou Weiqing had only just started learning how to create Consolidating Equipment Scroll, and he was already so engrossed in it; as a teacher, he felt a sense of pride and satisfaction.

“It’s already time for dinner? That’s so fast!” Zhou Weiqing muttered to himself as he clambered up from the ground. All of a sudden, he felt the earth whirl around him as blackness threatened to invade his vision, and he stumbled backwards.

Huyan Aobo quickly caught hold of him, circulating a strand of pure Heavenly Energy into Zhou Weiqing’s body. He was very familiar with such a condition, when the spirit was depleted and exhausted beyond the limits, and he had often lapsed into such a condition himself when creating Consolidating Equipment Scroll. Helping Zhou Weiqing to lie down once again, he told him to rest, as that was the most important thing in such a condition.

Next, he randomly picked up one of the Consolidating Paper Zhou Weiqing had left strewn on the ground, hoping to see what progress his beloved disciple had made. Even if it was normal to fail all this while, he still wanted to see how much he had completed thus far; it was a good gauge of innate talent which was extremely important for Consolidating Equipment Masters.

“En?” As soon as the Consolidating Paper entered his hands, Huyan Aobo instantly felt that something was wrong. He was just too familiar with Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, knowing them just like the back of his hands, and the familiar energy flow from the sheet made his fingers tingle, and his eyes stared at the sheet in his hands, he was dumbfounded and silent for a moment.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Feng Yu, who was sitting in the dining hall with his bowl, preparing to eat, was startled out of his seat by the sudden cry of shock, and with a quick flash he had rushed to the room. “Huyan Old Man, what are you spasming about??” When he reached the room and saw that Huyan Aobo was alright, he couldn’t help but say angrily: “What’s wrong? Did you see a ghost?”

Huyan Aobo muttered to himself: “It’s scarier than a ghost. Look!” As he said that, he shoved the scroll in his hands into Feng Yu’s hands.

Feng Yu took the scroll and examined it closely, before saying casually: “It’s just an ordinary beginners Consolidating Equipment Scroll, what’s so special about it? Creating such an item, you still have the face to cry out loud?”

Huyan Aobo looked at him, then at Zhou Weiqing, speechless. Feng Yu could clearly see that this old friend of his had a twitching face, and all of a sudden, comprehension dawned upon him and his eyes widened as he exclaimed: “Wait… do you mean to tell me… this scroll… this scroll was done by him??!”

Huyan Aobo did not reply Feng Yu, instead rapidly picking up the various Consolidating Papers lying on the ground. Feng Yu also pressed closer, and together, the duo whose ages added up to more than a hundred years, looked at sheet after sheet of Consolidating Papers. As they did so, their expressions grew more and more colourful.

“This… is this for real?” As they finally finished looking at the last Consolidating Paper, Huyan Aobo almost collapsed onto the floor.

Feng Yu muttered: “If it isn’t you cheating, if it isn’t done by you, then it is indeed real. Besides the two of you, there aren’t any other Consolidating Equipment Masters. Huyan Old Man, I think you have really picked up a treasure this time.”

Under normal circumstance, when Huyan Aobo met with something exciting, he would laugh out loud heartily, just like when he created an extremely rare scroll. However, this time, he wasn’t even able to laugh, feeling a sense of weakness in his body.

“What happened to me? My head aches so badly.” At this moment, Zhou Weiqing slowly picked himself up from the ground. As a Heavenly Jewel Master, and having swallowed the black pearl, his physique and recovery rate was definitely at an ‘inhuman’ level.

With two *swoosh* sounds, the two old men instantly surrounded him, and Huyan Aobo held out a shaking hand holding the Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, waving them before Zhou Weiqing and said: “Little Wei… are these done by you? You… you succeeded?”

Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: “Yup! I succeeded. That really felt good, just as if I was granting life to these Consolidating Papers. I’m almost addicted to that feeling! Ahhh, my head really hurts now though. Teacher, Senior Feng Yu, don’t stare at me like that! I know I’m a genius, but this genius is really hungry now.