When Ye Xuan saw an Artifact Refiner hurry into the backyard, a faint smile finally touched his lips.

He wasn’t actually trying to tear down the Artifact Refining Workshop’s reputation by so ruthlessly slapping them in the face.

His sole purpose was to force Master Lu Li to show himself.

Given his current status, it was simply impossible to meet Lu Li through normal means, which was why he had devised this plan. He refused to believe that Lu Li wouldn’t come out after he had thoroughly trashed the Artifact Refining Workshop’s good name.

Upon learning that someone had gone to summon their master, the group of Artifact Refiners from the workshop finally let out a collective sigh of relief, their tense nerves easing.

They were confident that once their master arrived, this kid would surely face a humiliating end.

As his mood relaxed, one of the Artifact Refiners suddenly thought of a brilliant reason to counter Ye Xuan.

He immediately snorted, stepped forward, and said with a sneer, "What you say does have some merit. However, these are merely display pieces from our Artifact Refining Workshop. The other weapons we forge are all universally acclaimed. Did you not just purchase my Qingyu Profound Armor? If my Qingyu Profound Armor wasn’t so excellently crafted, why would you have spent eighty mid-grade Profound Stones to buy it?"

The man’s face was filled with pride; he was the very same Artifact Refiner who had previously sold the Qingyu Profound Armor.

That was right. As soon as he spoke, understanding dawned on everyone present.

If the items from the Artifact Refining Workshop were as terrible as Ye Xuan claimed, why would he have paid such a high price for the Qingyu Profound Armor? It made no sense at all.

Everyone had witnessed the great lengths Ye Xuan had gone to in order to purchase the Qingyu Profound Armor earlier.

"Did you think I bought this Qingyu Profound Armor of yours to actually use it?" Ye Xuan sneered. "I only wanted the Qingyu Mithril inside. Such a fine material, and you turned it into this piece of profound armor? You have the audacity to say that with a straight face."

"Don’t tell me you intend to extract the Qingyu Mithril from my Qingyu Profound Armor?" Upon hearing Ye Xuan’s words, the Artifact Refiner didn’t refute him but instead cried out in shock.

"That’s precisely the idea."

"You must be joking!"

This time, it wasn’t just the Artifact Refiner who was stunned; even Li Xu and the others cried out in alarm.

After a material has been refined into a Spiritual Treasure, it’s not that it can’t be extracted, but that doing so is exceptionally difficult—far more difficult than forging the Spiritual Treasure in the first place. One might even say it’s nearly impossible.

After all, once any material is refined, it becomes thoroughly fused with other materials. To then extract it again is simply not something an ordinary person can accomplish.

And if there was a chance of extracting other materials, it was even more impossible for Qingyu Mithril. Qingyu Mithril has extremely strong adhesive properties, making it one of the most difficult materials to extract.

"Who dares to come to my Artifact Refining Workshop and cause trouble...?"

Before they could speak again, a booming voice erupted from within the Artifact Refining Workshop.

The voice was aged yet powerful, and it arrived with a formidable oppressive aura.

This aura was terrifyingly potent, the kind that only a Martial King powerhouse could possess. Just a wisp of it was enough to make the chests of many present tighten and their vision go dark.

"Master!"

"Master Lu Li!"

Some people in the Artifact Refining Workshop, their hearts pounding in fear, quickly spoke up to pay their respects.

From the inner depths of the Artifact Refining Workshop, an old man with graying hair and a filthy robe walked out.

His beard was gray and white, and his frame was quite tall. Although he looked very old, his face was completely free of wrinkles. A terrifying pressure swirled around his body.

An aura of fire lingered about him, fierce and intimidating. The moment he appeared, the temperature in the entire hall shot up by nearly ten degrees. His bell-like eyes stared coldly at Ye Xuan.

’This kid is finished.’

Qin Yu felt an immense sense of satisfaction.

Everyone in the Imperial Capital knew that Master Lu Li was famous for his explosive temper.

At this moment, many people didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly.

"Heh, Master Lu Li. You’ve finally come out."

Ye Xuan chuckled inwardly. Maintaining a calm expression, he put down the artifact he was holding and said slowly, "Master Lu Li, I’ve come here today on behalf of my master to ask for your guidance on the path of Artifact Refining."

Flames seemed to flare up around Lu Li; he was clearly on the verge of erupting in anger.

However, the moment Ye Xuan’s words fell, a sharp glint suddenly shot from Master Lu Li’s eyes.

He had heard bits and pieces about what Ye Xuan had been doing and was naturally curious about his origins. Now that Ye Xuan had said this, he immediately became intrigued by the "master" he mentioned.

"What? Could this kid also be an Artifact Refining Master?"

"From his tone, it sounds like his master is in no way inferior to Master Lu Li."

"Master Lu Li is the number one Artifact Refining Master in our Sky Empire. Even in the entire Dream Realm Plain, he’s ranked among the top five. Who in the world is this kid’s master?"

The many Martial Artists present were utterly shocked, and a buzz of discussion erupted.

Although Ye Xuan claimed to be seeking guidance, everyone could see that his earlier actions were no different from crashing the place. If he didn’t have an incredibly powerful backer, why would he ever do something like this?

"Kid, who is your master?" Lu Li asked, his eyes narrowed.

Ye Xuan glanced at the crowd. "It is not convenient to speak my master’s name here."

His tone clearly implied that there were too many people and wagging tongues present.

"Hahaha! Young man, you won’t even reveal your master’s name, yet you dare to come here seeking guidance? On what grounds do you seek guidance from me? You came to my Artifact Refining Workshop to cause chaos today. I don’t care who your master is; I will show you no mercy."

Master Lu Li laughed out of extreme anger, the fury on his face yet to fade, his voice laced with cold indifference.

But even so, he didn’t act rashly.

The young man before him had an air of strangeness about him. Moreover, Lu Li had overheard some of Ye Xuan’s earlier critiques and was secretly shocked by his attainments in Artifact Refining.

However, he could also tell that for many of the pieces, Ye Xuan was simply nitpicking.

Putting aside everything else, even he could point out flaws in the many Profound Soldiers in the exhibition hall.

After all, many of these display pieces were forged by his disciples. From his perspective as a Tier Seven Lord Level Artifact Refiner, it was perfectly normal for them to have flaws.

Even if a Tier Eight Emperor Level or even a Tier Nine Emperor Level Artifact Refiner were to examine the most perfect Profound Soldier he had ever forged, they could definitely find many faults with it.

In this world, nothing is truly perfect.

But from this, he could also sense that Ye Xuan’s attainments in Artifact Refining were truly astonishing. Even his own head disciple, Li Xu, couldn’t suppress him in this regard.

This was why, despite his notoriously short temper, he hadn’t attacked right from the start.

But if Ye Xuan couldn’t give him a proper reason, he wouldn’t show any mercy, regardless of who his master was.

Hearing this, Ye Xuan smiled faintly. A streak of light suddenly shot from his hand and landed in Lu Li’s. "This is a piece my master made a long time ago. Master, please have a look."

Lu Li lowered his head to look at the object in his hand.

"What is that?"

"It looks like a throwing knife."

The crowd looked on with curiosity, all craning their necks to get a better view.

They saw that what had landed in Lu Li’s hand was a streamlined throwing knife, looking quite simple and unadorned.

It was the Profound Extinction Dagger that Ye Xuan had originally forged using Soul Profound Steel.

Not long ago, after obtaining Star Profound Iron in Black Stone City, Ye Xuan had added some of it into the dagger and reforged it using the Endless Molten Flame.

The moment the Profound Extinction Dagger landed in his hand, Lu Li’s furious gaze calmed, replaced by a look of solemnity.

As the saying goes, it takes a master to know one’s work.

Although the Profound Extinction Dagger itself was something Ye Xuan had only spent a few hours forging.

Its main material was just Soul Profound Steel, with no other materials added, only a few formation patterns carved onto its surface.

But even so, Master Lu Li could still discern a terrifying level of Artifact Refining skill from it.

Leaving aside everything else, just purifying the Soul Profound Steel was no simple task.

Yet the purity of the Soul Profound Steel in this throwing knife was astonishingly high. Even if he were to refine it himself, he might not be able to do any better.

Secondly, a portion of Star Profound Iron had been integrated into the dagger.

The fusion of these two simple materials was flawless, like a stroke of divine inspiration, an exquisite work of art that left one breathless.

This fusion-forging technique greatly resembled the Hundred-Turn Tempering Skill, a long-lost art on the continent.

What shocked Master Lu Li even more was the residual aura of a terrifying flame on the throwing knife. It actually made the Earth Fire within his own body tremble with fear.

This showed that the flame used to forge this dagger was even superior to his own Earth Fire—the Xin Yan Fire.

All of these things, one after another, left Master Lu Li deeply shaken to his core.

Ye Xuan cleared his throat lightly, interrupting Master Lu Li’s state of fascination.

"So, Master, what do you think of this dagger’s craftsmanship?"

Master Lu Li gave Ye Xuan a deep look. "Young man, let’s move to another place to talk in detail."

Although Master Lu Li’s expression was still grim, his tone was no longer so tyrannical. He directly led Ye Xuan into an inner hall.

Everyone present was left dumbfounded.

Master Lu Li was famous for his explosive temper, and just moments ago, he had clearly been on the verge of erupting.

Yet Ye Xuan, the challenger who had come to crash their workshop, was not only not struck down by Master Lu Li’s palm but was instead led into the inner hall. This left everyone staring at each other in stunned disbelief.

Master Li Xu and the others were also secretly astonished. It was the first time they had ever seen such a grave expression on their master’s face.

’It seems the throwing knife that kid took out must be something extraordinary.’

"Hmph. No matter what, that kid dared to slander the Artifact Refining Workshop like this. It would be a miracle if Master Lu Li lets him off lightly."

Qin Yu and Zhou Qingwei had ugly expressions on their faces.

They had been hoping for nothing more than to see Ye Xuan struck dead on the spot, but unfortunately, the outcome was not what they had expected.

However, they believed that after Ye Xuan’s actions, even if his master had some great origin, Master Lu Li would not let him off easily.

On the Dream Realm Plain, with Master Lu Li’s status, even the leaders of the ten top factions had to treat him with considerable respect.