Eternal Life Begins with Learning

A few days passed.

Under the effect of his Spiritual Radiance Blessing, the Artifact Refining Formulas and several volumes on Artifact Refining Basics he had purchased from the Black Market were transformed from mere words on a page. They became a foundational knowledge that supplemented his own Artifact Refining Skill.

Though the path of Artifact Refining remained vast, after years of stagnation, he had nearly completed a basic framework of knowledge through his constant, rote imitation.

After so many years, that Jade Scroll containing the Puppetry Skill inheritance was once again in his hands.

His complete foundational knowledge of the Artifact Refining Skill was now enough for him to integrate the Puppetry Skill inheritance—something he had longed for but could not grasp for years—into his own system of knowledge.

The "Spiritual Radiance Blessing" remained active. His vast accumulation of Spiritual Radiance Value, along with his now-transcendent Divine Soul Spirit, was enough for him to maintain the "Spiritual Radiance Blessing" for a very, very long time.

With his transcendent intellect, he absorbed and understood countless pieces of information at a speed unimaginable to ordinary people, converting them into his own foundation of knowledge.

After half a month, he finally put down the Jade Scroll for the Puppetry Skill inheritance.

The afterglow of Spiritual Radiance still lingered in his eyes. Chu Mu habitually glanced at the Light Curtain Panel in his vision. Aside from the addition of a few more Artifact Refining Formulas, not much else had changed.

But clearly, the real internal changes... were immense.

’In the mortal world, how had I been able to research and create the formula for Dragon and Snake Soup?’

’Instead of just mechanically following a pre-existing formula to perform Alchemy?’

’It was because I had a detailed understanding of the mortal world’s system of materia medica and its effects on the human body. I had accumulated enough foundational knowledge to create the formula for Dragon and Snake Soup!’

’So why, in the Cultivation Immortal Realm, could I only ever copy things by rote?’

’It was because I lacked sufficient understanding of the vast systems of knowledge involved in both the Alchemy Skill and the Artifact Refining Skill.’

’It was like in the mortal world—hundreds or thousands of medicinal herbs were just that, hundreds or thousands of herbs.’

’But in the Cultivation Immortal Realm, could I ever even come into contact with all the hundreds or thousands of Spirit Medicines? And was the Cultivation Immortal Realm really limited to just a few hundred or thousand types of Spirit Medicine?’

’Obviously not!’

’And the related systems involved in the Artifact Refining Skill were clearly even more vast.’

’If I couldn’t even grasp the basic knowledge framework, how could I possibly have the ability to create?’

’Before, I had spent over half a month tinkering, and with my limited knowledge, all I had managed to produce was a pile of useless trinkets that only looked good.’

This step had only taken him a little over a year in the mortal world.

But in the Cultivation Immortal Realm, he had stagnated on the Artifact Refining Skill for far too long.

Chu Mu looked at the Low Tier Spiritual Materials around him. Countless fantastical ideas from the past now seemed to be more than just thoughts.

A whimsical idea would surface, and the relevant knowledge framework would immediately emerge along with it.

In the past, though he had many ideas, they were limited by his insufficient knowledge and remained mere prototypes.

But now...

Which Spiritual Materials to use, how to combine them, how to inscribe the Artifact Patterns, what kind of Array Prohibitions to employ, how to pair those Array Prohibitions...

Within the Low Tier category, it all seemed clear to him now.

Chu Mu looked at the various Spiritual Materials piled around him. There were many types and large quantities.

Every time he went to the Black Market, he would buy almost any eye-catching Spiritual Material he came across, regardless of its function or type, as long as it was within his price range.

Over the years, he had accumulated a lot of Spiritual Materials, but few were truly precious.

He raised his hand, and several pieces of Spiritual Materials floated up before him.

One piece of Wind Nether Stone, weighing three taels, a Wind Attribute Tier Two Middle Grade Spiritual Material.

One piece of Red Flame Iron, weighing three taels, a Fire Attribute Tier Two Middle Grade Spiritual Material.

Two Hawk Bones, weighing six taels, a Wind and Thunder Attribute Tier Two Lower Grade Spiritual Material.

Rejuvenation Wood, weighing one jin, a Wood Attribute Tier Two Lower Grade Spiritual Material.

Rejuvenation Liquid, weighing two taels, a Wood Attribute Tier Two Lower Grade Spiritual Material.

These five types of Spiritual Materials were all Tier Two, and they were among the most precious of the many materials he had stockpiled.

They were also the limit of what he could access at his current Cultivation level.

After all, in both the Marketplace and the Black Market, ninety-nine percent of the Cultivators were in the Qi Cultivation Realm.

The underground auction he once attended was practically the highest level he could reach.

Any higher than that, and his Cultivation was insufficient to even gain access.

Chu Mu silently stared at the five rare Tier Two Spiritual Materials before him, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Artifact Refining was actually quite similar to Alchemy. The concept of "monarch, minister, assistant, and envoy" also applied, and the more complex the Magical Artifact being refined, the clearer this concept became.

Primary Spiritual Materials, secondary Spiritual Materials...

Each with a distinct role and purpose.

He had long had countless ideas for these five types of Spiritual Materials, but limited by his own abilities, they had remained just that—ideas.

But now...

He needed an idea that could maximize the effectiveness of the Spiritual Materials while remaining within the scope of his Artifact Refining Skill.

After a moment, he put away only the Wind Nether Stone, placing the other four types of Spiritual Materials to his side.

Then, Chu Mu took off the pair of Divine Wind Boots on his feet. He studied them for a moment, his gaze finally settling on the two tattered feathers.

From his current perspective, these Divine Wind Boots were a prime example of shoddy craftsmanship.

The Wind Spirit Goose Feathers, which were Tier Two Lower Grade Spiritual Materials, even if somewhat damaged, should never have been refined into a mere Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact when used as the primary material.

They should have produced an Upper Grade Spiritual Artifact at the very least, and even a Top Grade Spiritual Artifact wouldn’t have been out of the question.

Regardless, the framework of these Divine Wind Boots was undoubtedly worth studying.

And studying them... meant dismantling them.

Dismantling meant... destruction.

Chu Mu didn’t hesitate for long. His Divine Sense immediately enveloped one of the boots.

Ever since purchasing these Divine Wind Boots, he had spent a great deal of time pondering how to take them apart and where to start. He already had a clear plan.

At this moment, the Divine Sense covering the Divine Wind Boots acted like a set of extremely fine hammers and scissors, peeling away bit by bit at the Magical Artifact’s most crucial component—the Spiritual Energy Supply Pattern.

Only by first disabling the Magical Artifact’s Spiritual Power supply Array Prohibition could he ensure that the other Artifact Patterns and Array Prohibitions would not be affected or damaged during disassembly.

This step was very dangerous.

He had no idea if the Artifact Refiner who had made the Divine Wind Boots had mixed in any unknown elements.

After all, many Artifact Refiners were extremely protective of their work. Guarding one’s own techniques, no matter how humble, was the norm in the Cultivation Immortal Realm.

Although it was difficult to make a Magical Artifact completely immune to reverse-engineering, it wasn’t impossible to hide a few tricks within the extremely complex Artifact Pattern Array Prohibitions.

Fortunately, after nearly a quarter of an hour, there were no accidents. Once the Divine Wind Boots in his hands lost their Spiritual Power supply, they visibly dimmed.

Chu Mu couldn’t hide his delight. Cutting off the Spiritual Power supply meant that even if there were hidden tricks elsewhere, they could no longer affect the whole.

He decisively activated his "Spiritual Radiance" and continued to probe and experiment, bit by bit.

He couldn’t deduce the combination of Spiritual Materials used in the Divine Wind Boots, but through this kind of experimentation, he could still figure out the paths of the Artifact Patterns, the combination of the Array Prohibitions, and their effects.

It was just that the process was extremely complex. And regardless of whether he succeeded or not, the Divine Wind Boots would clearly be useless afterward.

About three days later, he finally put the Divine Wind Boots down.

In front of him was a thick stack of manuscripts.

On the manuscripts, the structure of the Divine Wind Boots’ Artifact Pattern Array Prohibition was depicted with absolute clarity, down to every last detail.

As for the Divine Wind Boots themselves, aside from being melted down to extract a very limited amount of Spiritual Materials, they were now completely useless.

A Spiritual Fire ignited, and his Divine Sense once again enveloped the Divine Wind Boots. With his current skill level, he clearly couldn’t extract the main Spiritual Material from the boots’ body.

However, extracting the two brilliant Wind Spirit Goose Feathers shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

After all, the two feathers weren’t completely fused with the main Spiritual Material, only partially embedded in it.

’Please don’t break...’

Chu Mu prayed silently. But this time, it seemed the heavens didn’t hear his prayer. At almost the exact same moment, the two Wind Spirit Goose Feathers...

Snapped at the base!

Chu Mu stared blankly at the two broken feathers, completely stunned.

’How is that possible?’

Confused, Chu Mu examined them closely. Under his detailed scrutiny, a clue slowly began to emerge.

’So that’s how it is...’

Gazing at the two feathers floating in his hand, Chu Mu had a sudden realization.

These two Wind Spirit Feathers must have been broken from the very beginning, only to be artificially fused back together.

But the technique used was quite brilliant; rejoining the broken pieces hadn’t damaged the Wind Spirit Feathers’ effectiveness at all.

’It probably wasn’t the same Artifact Refiner...’

Chu Mu thought back to the shoddy craftsmanship of the Divine Wind Boots, lost in thought.

Chu Mu couldn’t hide his regret as he set the two feathers aside.

He didn’t have the ability to rejoin them. With their effectiveness compromised, the two feathers could only be used as auxiliary materials.

Then, he turned his attention to the reverse-engineered schematics of the Divine Wind Boots’ Array Prohibition and Artifact Patterns.

After a moment of contemplation, he picked up a brush, dipped it in ink, and began to slowly modify and fill in the schematic, following the ideas forming in his mind.

Using the Hawk Bones as the primary Spiritual Material, with the two broken Wind Spirit Feathers and the Rejuvenation Wood as auxiliary materials, plus Wind Leopard Hide, Jade Silkworm Silk, and Jade Bright Sand...

His ideas grew clearer bit by bit, and the framework slowly took shape on the paper.

Three types of Tier Two Spiritual Materials and seven types of Tier One Spiritual Materials.

He would then combine these ten Spiritual Materials with corresponding Artifact Pattern Array Prohibitions.

In the past, he had set out to research his own Qi and Blood Cultivation Assistance Formula.

Now, he would break away from his long-standing habit of rote imitation and create his own Artifact Refining Formula—a pair of Divine Wind Boots perfectly suited for him...

...