Martial Peak
chapter-5075

“Many thanks for your assistance, Brother Zha Gu!” Yang Kai cupped his fist.

Zha Gu waved his hand, “Don’t mention it, Brother Yang. You deserved that Spirit Fruit.”

Yang Kai said, “Now that my Small Universe is fully repaired, I can start refining an Artifact Armour for you. Are you ready?”

Zha Gu replied, “I’ve prepared some materials, but I’m not sure if they’re enough. Have a look.”

Upon finishing his words, he fished out a Space Ring. After taking it, Yang Kai looked into it with his Divine Sense and realised that there were many precious items inside, mainly rare resources and ores.

“Is it enough? I can get more materials if you want,” Zha Gu asked fervently.

“It’s enough.” Yang Kai put away the Space Ring, “I’ll start refining the Artifact Armour for you immediately. While I’m working, I would prefer not to be disturbed. I’ll inform you when it’s complete.”

After agreeing, Zha Gu left.

When Yang Kai was learning the Dao of Artifact Refining in Blue Sky Pass, he had made some Artifact Armours; however, they were sub-par items in Chai Hao’s opinion; after all, they were not refined well enough for combat use. They would be putting the Human soldiers’ lives at risk by letting them wear such Artifact Armour and going to war.

Although such artifacts were not good enough for Humans, they would be invaluable to the Black Ink Clan.

Therefore, Yang Kai didn’t have to produce a high-quality artifact, he just had to make sure that the Artifact Armour was as good as the giant halberd. Given his mastery in Artifact Refining now, he had the confidence to achieve this.

It took him three months to enhance the giant halberd; however, it only took him two months to create an Artifact Armour from scratch.

There were two reasons why it took him a shorter time. First of all, his Small Universe had been fully repaired, so he had better control over his own power. Secondly, during the process of Artifact Refining, his skills had also improved significantly.

Although he had spent 10 years studying Artifact Refining in Blue Sky Pass, it wasn’t enough time for Yang Kai to really hone his skills. It required a much longer period of work and experience for anyone to become a Master in Artifact Refining.

During the 10 years of training, Chai Hao had taught Yang Kai everything he knew about the Dao of Artifact Refining until there was nothing else he could teach him.

Of course, this did not mean that Yang Kai was already on par with Chai Hao when it came to his mastery of Artifact Refining. It would take a person hundreds, if not thousands of years of studying and practising Artifact Refining in order to become a Grandmaster like Chai Hao.

However, Chai Hao was no longer able to teach him anything else, for Yang Kai had already grasped all the theoretical knowledge that was passed down to him. As for how far he would go in the Dao of Artifact Refining, that would depend on his own efforts and opportunities.

Growth could only be achieved by continuously practising Artifact Refining.

Therefore, when Yang Kai got around to refining this Artifact Armour, his mastery of Artifact Refining was already much better than before, and after he was done, his skills improved again.

The quality of the Artifact Armour he had made was obviously higher than that of the giant halberd, and the glow radiating from the armour suggested that the artifact was quite extraordinary.

He then released his Divine Sense to inform Zha Gu about it. Upon his arrival, Zha Gu eagerly put on the Artifact Armour and realised that it perfectly fit him. The Artifact Armour covered his vital parts like the chest, abdomen, and back very well. More importantly, it made him look even more imposing than normal.

He was evidently elated.

With the Artifact Armour and the giant halberd in possession, Zha Gu felt that his combat capabilities had increased by 30 to 40%.

When he was in a one-on-one fight against a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in the past, he wouldn’t be a match for them; however, with these two artifacts in possession, he believed that he could easily defeat any average Seventh-Order Human now.

It was the first time he realised that the artifacts made by Humans could increase a person’s strength so tremendously and his emotions undulated. On the battlefield, the Humans were able to activate the powers of artifacts while the Black Ink Clan could only fight with their fists. It was no wonder that the Black Ink Clan would always suffer huge losses in each battle, even those that they eventually won. It was because they didn’t have any artifacts with them while practically all Humans had one or two artifacts on them.

If the Black Ink Clan could be equipped with these artifacts, they would be able to destroy the Human Race with ease.

“Are you satisfied with it, Brother Zha Gu?” Yang Kai suddenly asked.

“I couldn’t be happier,” Zha Gu nodded repeatedly, grinning from ear to ear.

“I’m glad that I haven’t disappointed you.” Yang Kai got to his feet, “Since I have finished it, I’ll take my leave.”

Zha Gu was astounded, “Where are you going?”

Yang Kai replied, “Well, I’m going back to Sir Territory Lord’s castle. It’s been quite some time since I left the castle. I came all the way here to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, and since my goal has been achieved, and I’ve helped you make two artifacts, it’s time I went back.”

“There’s no hurry to leave!” Zha Gu quickly stopped him.

A puzzled Yang Kai gazed at him and asked, “Is there anything else, Brother Zha Gu?”

After hesitating for a moment, Zha Gu replied, “Brother Yang, just some time ago, you asked me how you could make money. I’ve given it a thought, and I think there’s a good opportunity now.”

Yang Kai broke into laughter, “Are you going to tell me that I can earn money by helping other Black Ink Clansmen refine artifacts?”

“Yes.” Zha Gu nodded with a solemn expression, “There’s no doubt that you’re skilled in Artifact Refining, and if you refine artifacts for other Black Ink Clansmen, you’ll be able to earn a lot of Black Ink Coins. Wasn’t that your initial intention?”

Yang Kai waved his hand, “The reason I helped you make artifacts was that I wanted to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. Now that my Small Universe is complete, there’s no reason for me to keep doing it. It takes a lot of time and energy to refine artifacts, and I would prefer to focus on the Martial Dao so that I’ll be useful to Sir Territory Lord when I go to battle with him.”

Zha Gu shook his head, “That’s not right, Brother Yang. By cultivating, you’re just increasing your own power; however, if you can make artifacts for the Black Ink Clan, you’ll help lots of people grow stronger, and that will help Sir Territory Lord as well. I’m sure he’d be more than willing to see you refine artifacts for the Black Ink Clan.”

“You have a point, but…”

“Brother Yang, you need resources to cultivate, right? However, do you have any of such resources with you now?”

Yang Kai parted his lips as he seemed to be lost for words. A moment later, he replied dejectedly, “I don’t.”

“See?” Zha Gu appeared sincere, “Humans always say that one must sharpen their tools before they get to work. In order to cultivate, you need to buy a lot of resources, but what can you do without any Black Ink Coins? By refining artifacts for others, you’ll be rewarded handsomely.”

The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched, “You’re indeed knowledgeable, Brother Zha Gu. You seem familiar with many sayings Humans use.”

Zha Gu replied with a smile, “I learned those sayings from my previous Black Ink Disciple. In any case, I’ve been sincere with you, and I don’t intend to harm you in any way.”

“I know…” Yang Kai scowled and fell into his thoughts.

Zha Gu said, “What’s there to consider? If you’re willing to refine artifacts for others, I’ll do all the heavy lifting for you. I’m friends with a lot of Feudal Lords, so I’m sure they’re interested in getting their own artifacts.”

Yang Kai replied hesitantly, “It’s been a long time since I left the castle. If I don’t go back, I’m worried that Sir Gui Liao will punish me.”

Zha Gu said, “You’re Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple. Since he’s not around, no one else can boss you around, including Sir Gui Liao.”

“Well…” Yang Kai appeared tempted, “If I listen to you and help those Feudal Lords make artifacts while they provide all the materials, how much should I charge them?”

Zha Gu instantly replied, “You’ll be able to charge 10,000 Black Ink Coins for each artifact.” His prompt reply suggested that he had been pondering on this issue for quite some time.

Yang Kai was secretly shocked by Zha Gu’s greed. Zha Gu might think that he didn’t know the purchasing power of Black Ink Coins, but when he stayed by Nu Yan’s side in the past, he already gained some understanding of the value of Black Ink Coins. According to his estimation, if there was a conversation rate between Black Ink Coins and Open Heaven Pills, 1 Black Ink Coin would be worth 10,000 Open Heaven Pills.

In other words, 10,000 Black Ink Coins would be worth 100 million Open Heaven Pills, which was about enough to purchase a full set of Sixth-Order materials.

Of course, this was only a rough estimate as no one had ever used Black Ink Coins to trade for Open Heaven Pills before, but the conversion rate should be around there.

A set of Sixth-Order materials obviously didn’t matter to Yang Kai, but it was a lot of money for a Feudal Lord who didn’t own his own estate.

Despite knowing this full well, Yang Kai pretended to know nothing and asked, “What can I buy with 10,000 Black Ink Coins?”

Zha Gu replied in a serious tone, “A set of Sixth-Order materials!”

Yang Kai gasped as he appeared astonished.

Zha Gu persuaded him by saying, “It’s a great business idea. You just have to make a few artifacts for others, and you won’t have to worry about getting resources anymore.”

Yang Kai instantly made a decision, “It’s indeed a viable business.”

Upon successfully persuading the other man, Zha Gu guffawed, “Have you agreed to it, then?”

Yang Kai nodded, “Why wouldn’t I agree to such a great business idea? However, in order to refine artifacts, I’ll need to use the Earth Fire here. Also, Brother Zha Gu will have to help me contact those Feudal Lords. It wouldn’t be appropriate for a Black Ink Disciple like me to directly contact them.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll handle everything for you,” Zha Gu appeared ready to make this business a success.

Yang Kai was certainly aware of the other man’s intentions, so he nodded, “Good, we can split the profits evenly from selling the artifacts.”

Zha Gu was shocked upon hearing that, “No no, that’s too much. You’re the one doing all the hard work, and the Earth Fire is practically inexhaustible. I don’t deserve 50% of the profit. I’ll just take 30% of it.”

Yang Kai was startled as it was the first time he saw someone not wanting to earn more when it was offered to them; nevertheless, he wouldn’t waste time persuading him, so he nodded and said, “In that case, do we have an agreement?”

“We do,” Zha Gu nodded firmly.

They smiled at each other as they were ready to make a lot of money.

Since an agreement had been reached, Zha Gu immediately got to work. After telling Yang Kai to get some rest in the castle, he ordered his subordinates to spread out in various different directions.

Three days later, while Yang Kai was cultivating, he felt the aura of a Feudal Lord approaching. The person soon arrived and landed in front of Zha Gu’s castle. Then, Zha Gu’s subordinate led him inside.

The arrival of this Feudal Lord was just the beginning. In the following half a month, more and more Feudal Lords came over. Yang Kai did some calculations and realised there were more than 10 Feudal Lords present now.

It seemed that Zha Gu was on good terms with quite a number of Feudal Lords.