Sage of Humanity-Chapter 1704 - 1702: Forging the Sword Sheath

Fortunately, Han Dong was an Artifact Refiner and knew the materials here like the back of his hand. Seeing Lu Ye hesitant, he promptly inquired about his requirements.

Upon learning that Lu Ye wanted to forge a magic-treasure class sword sheath, he helped by taking out some materials from the treasure vault.

Han Dong was quite agreeable and enthusiastic. After leading Lu Ye out of the treasure vault, he said, "Come, I'll take you to Artifact Valley, where crafting happens in this world."

Then the three of them headed towards Artifact Valley and arrived shortly.

Upon arrival, Han Dong led Lu Ye down a passage without knowing how far they delved. During the descent, Lu Ye even saw several lava rivers flowing past, and the surrounding temperature grew increasingly hotter.

Generally, crafting areas are set up in such environments because the power of Earth Fire can be harnessed, allowing cultivators to refine artifacts better.

Deep inside Artifact Valley, many Jade Conch cultivators were bare-chested, sweating profusely as they crafted objects on various artifact crafting counters.

The further they went, the fewer cultivators there were, until none could be seen.

Han Dong removed his clothes, revealing his robust muscles, and pointed at a massive crafting counter: "This is my place for refining artifacts. If junior brother doesn't mind, I can refine a mere magic-treasure class sword sheath for you."

His words were not boastful; within Jade Conch, Han Dong was unmatched in the Path of Artifact Refining. Most magic treasures in the Jade Conch World were crafted by him.

Forging a simple sword sheath was naturally as easy for him as sculpting clay with his ten fingers.

Lu Ye chuckled, "Senior Brother Han, the sword sheath I wish to craft is no ordinary one. You might not be able to refine it."

Han Dong sneered at the words, not upset, "Are you underestimating me, junior brother? Whether it can be crafted, draw me a design first. If I can't make it in this world, then no one else can."

He wanted Lu Ye to draw a design, essentially asking what kind of restriction Lu Ye intended to integrate into the sword sheath.

Lu Ye thought for a moment, took out a jade tablet, and engraved a part of the Drawn Saber Slash Spirit Runes on it before giving it to him.

Han Dong inspected it for a while, falling into contemplation.

As the finest Artifact Refiner in Jade Conch, he naturally dabbled in the Path of Spirit Runes, but his focus was on those used in artifact refinement. Despite this, he could tell at a glance that the spirit runes Lu Ye provided were incomplete.

If an incomplete spirit rune was this complex, how intricate would a complete one be?

Scratching his bald head, he remarked, "A bit challenging." In truth, it was more than a bit challenging—it wasn't something a person could craft, at least not within Han Dong's capabilities.

It's known that the complexity of the As-Close-As-Siblings Spirit Runes was lesser than this, yet even though many top factions in All Phenomena Ocean struggled to decipher it, they have mastered the As-Close-As-Siblings Spirit Runes. However, crafting array discs using these spirit runes has proven difficult for even the most elite Artifact Refiners who have only achieved a degree of success after thorough exploration.

That is why the price of As-Close-As-Siblings Array Discs remains high in All Phenomena Ocean since no Artifact Refiner can craft them as easily as Lu Ye.

Though Han Dong's skills were decent, they lagged behind those nurtured meticulously by elite factions.

If he were tasked with engraving the spirit runes on a jade tablet and had thousands or tens of thousands of attempts, there might be a chance for success, but engraving them onto a jade tablet versus crafting them into a sword sheath was an entirely different level of difficulty.

He had the mind to ask what the spirit runes were but swallowed the words, knowing some things aren't casually pried into.

Such complex spirit runes clearly harbored indescribable power and were extraordinarily precious.

"If Senior Brother Han is free, could you guide me a little here?" Lu Ye asked.

Han Dong was momentarily stunned before responding, "Does junior brother also understand the Path of Artifact Refining?" From Lu Ye's words, it was obvious he intended to tackle it himself.

"I've learned a little," Lu Ye replied.

Han Dong didn't know what to say—just having learned a little and daring to craft such complex spirit runes seemed somewhat ignorant of the limits.

Yet Lu Ye was already considered a VIP of Jade Conch, so Han Dong didn't speak too harshly, merely stating, "No problem, I don't have much on my plate recently."

He assumed that after trying a few times without success, Lu Ye would eventually give up.

In the following days, Lu Ye and Han Dong remained at the deepest part of Artifact Valley, beside the crafting counter, with Lu Ye's mana continuously flowing.

Han Dong soon noticed that Lu Ye indeed had some foundation in crafting but likely hadn't delved deeply into the Path of Artifact Refining. This was evident from his various performances during crafting.

Moreover, at such a young age and with Moon Jade cultivation, he surely dedicated most of his time to bitter cultivation, leaving little opportunity to explore such external paths as artifact refining.

Yet, over time, Han Dong became increasingly astounded.

Because Lu Ye's growth was remarkably swift! It was as if he was naturally suited for artifact refining, particularly valuable because his mana's element sign was fire type, which is precisely what an Artifact Refiner needs most.

Lu Ye had quite the talent in the Path of Artifact Refining, which explains why Khong Khong from the Sword Weapon Sect taught him in that secret realm on Nine Provinces years ago.

In the pre-Nine Provinces era, the Sword Weapon Sect was exceedingly prominent, with its Sword Dao and artifact refining leading the entire Nine Provinces, where the Sword Dao legacy was bestowed upon Nian Yuexian, while the artifact refining legacy was brought out of the secret realm by Lu Ye and given to Ouyang Zi of Nine Provinces.

With Khong Khong's teachings as a foundation, Lu Ye's various crafting methods mesmerized Han Dong.

Originally, Han Dong intended to guide, but after a few days, their dynamic shifted into mutual exploration.

In such an environment, Lu Ye's artifact refining skills naturally grew rapidly.

However, crafting a suitable sword sheath isn't an easy task. Refining an As-Close-As-Siblings Array Disc is straightforward for him because the most crucial part is the spirit rune. The array disc itself is merely a vessel, which Lu Ye can casually refine.

But the sword sheath is different. Although it is also a vessel for spirit runes, if the quality of the crafting isn't good enough, it won't be able to withstand the powerful forces accumulated within the runes.

One must ensure the quality of the sheath while maintaining the integrity of the spirit runes. Combining the two presents a significant challenge.

After spending half a month in Artifact Valley, Lu Ye finally began truly crafting the sword sheath.

Han Dong was not optimistic about this. In his view, Lu Ye's artifact refining skills were inferior even to his own, so how could he possibly incorporate such complex spirit runes?

If the runes aren't incorporated, merely crafting a sword sheath is utterly pointless.

To Han Dong's astonishment, during his first attempt, Lu Ye achieved a ten percent progress!

Although a small mistake caused all his previous efforts to be in vain, the result was undeniably impressive.

Han Dong was puzzled, as such a thing shouldn't happen. From his perspective, with Lu Ye's current level of refining skills, achieving even half of the progress was impossible, let alone ten percent.

Little did he know, Lu Ye had the Talent Tree to back him up. Although his artifact refining skills weren't as high, he had a natural advantage in incorporating spirit runes.

Time and again, Lu Ye tried and failed, with varying progress, but each failure meant starting all over again.

Fortunately, artifact refining is different from Alchemy; in Alchemy, if you fail, the whole batch of spirit runes is nearly destroyed, whereas, in refining, as long as the material loss isn't significant, you can start anew.

This is an advantage that Alchemy cannot match.

Even so, Han Dong had previously taken materials from the treasure vault, which were heavily consumed, forcing him to return for more.

Lu Ye worked tirelessly without any worries.

Time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, Lu Ye had been in the Jade Conch for almost two months.

During these two months, countless failures occurred, with frequent setbacks requiring a fresh start.

In the deepest part of Artifact Valley, before the massive artifact crafting counter, Lu Ye raised the newly crafted sword sheath, examining it carefully, his eyes bloodshot.

Two months of sleepless nights, despite having advanced to the Moon Jade, Lu Ye felt utterly exhausted. Fortunately, the sword sheath was finally crafted.

Beside him, Han Dong's condition was even worse, with sunken eyes and scruffy beard.

Han Dong was actually quite strong, at the Moon Jade mid-stage, one layer higher than Lu Ye, but cultivation realm is merely the level of cultivation; personal foundation is not something that can be swayed by realm or level.

Lu Ye had gone to the extreme in the Constellation Realm; in terms of physique, Han Dong was far inferior to him.

At this moment, Han Dong was also gazing at the sword sheath, smacking his lips and saying: "Not easy, indeed!"

He truly didn't expect that crafting a sword sheath would take two months, but the result was fairly satisfactory.

"Indeed, not easy," Lu Ye examined the new sheath. It had been crafted to resemble the Boulder Mountain Saber, pitch black and seemingly inconspicuous, but if someone underestimated it because of its appearance, they would pay a price.

Lu Ye slightly activated mana to infuse it, immediately feeling the mana flowing along the rune patterns.

He took the Boulder Mountain Saber from his waist, drew it from its sheath, and inserted the long sword into the new sheath, continuously urging mana to nurture it, turning to Han Dong: "Thank you, Senior Brother Han, for your help during this period."

"It's nothing; I also gained a lot."

During the exchange of refining techniques, Han Dong indeed learned a lot from Lu Ye, originating from the Sword Weapon Sect, which was absent in Jade Conch's Blue Flag Street.

Han Dong felt that if he could thoroughly understand these things, his refining skills should improve by one level.

This is undoubtedly extremely precious to an Artifact Refiner.

"Let's go, have a drink," Lu Ye beckoned.

Han Dong readily agreed. Throughout, he never asked what the spirit rune was for.

On the side, Ma Shangsi, who waited for two months, stepped forward and followed.

Soon after, at the valley where Lu Ye was housed in Jade Conch, he and Han Dong sat and drank, chatting freely.

Lu Ye never expected he would be delayed in Jade Conch for so long. Fortunately, the result was smooth, and with the experience of crafting the sword sheath this time, next time with better materials, it would undoubtedly be simpler.

He intends to meet Qiu Wu tomorrow and ask about the arrangements at Jade Conch; he must return to All Phenomena Ocean.