Ch171 Unregistered Artifact

I step out into the explosion zone near the demon’s fallen ship.

The large vessel spots me and slowly descends to the rugged ground, and the Old Wang Patriarch scans the scene.

“Impressive. Not much damage to the mountain at all…” he remarks under his breath.

I feel his weak qi aura, but see no physical or soul damage on him or the moose. It looks like the two of them brought that 6th level foundational demon to such a weak state on their own.

I pull the mid grade tier 2 ring I pulled off his body out of my storage and toss it up to the ship’s deck.

“You did most of the work, I just kept him from getting away. How about we split the remains?”

Old Wang continues looking around to make sure no one else is here, then forces a strong wave of qi into the ring to break the imprint.

He shows a thin smile while pouring its contents out on the ship’s deck.

“I may have weakened him, but those spirit grade phantoms are not easy to kill. He had quite a bit of fight left in him. Please, take your fair share.”

I jump up to the ship's deck and give a polite nod.

A pile of foundational crystals counting over 300 and a stash of nearly 100 thousand spirit stones fill up a large portion of the space.

Beside them are a few chunks of leftover tier 2 soul jade, a pile of inferior quality soul metal, and various low grade tier 2 black iron weapons.

The only pile of talismans, pills, and other artifacts is all miscellaneous tier 1 items. He must have used up a lot of his valuable offensive items in battle with the Wang Patriarch.

I see a copper Ye Clan token, a dense illusory demon physique booklet larger than any one I’ve seen before, but both mine and the old man’s attention are only glued to one remaining item.

It is a sturdy collection of 18 copper array flags in total, with a massive head-sized control disk.

Wang Yang picks it up. “This is a high grade tier 2 Mountain Guarding Spirit Formation. It would take about a hundred foundational crystals to charge up, then I’d have to tether the flags to our peak vein… but this should easily stop attacks from late stage foundational cultivators for a few minutes. Its range might cover the entire mansion if I set it up right.”

The old man thinks to himself for a few seconds longer, but a subtle fluctuation starts to form in his soul.

I speak up before it grows too large. “What are you concerned about? Did you sense any other attackers?”

He shakes his head. “No, it is just that he dropped a spirit locking array that is still intact up at my peak as well… Even if you keep the large portion of crystals, the cut will be uneven if I claim this formation.”

I chuckle and wave him off, taking 200 foundational crystals and the rest of the loot in its entirety.

“No need. Please, take it to protect your mountain. Keeping the Wang Clan safe benefits me too.”

I hold up the copper token we both clearly saw and question him further.

“I would like to know why you’re unconcerned about the Ye Clan attacking again though. Will the sect back you? Is this enough to prove the Ye Clan is a demonic force?”

Wang Yang looks at the token for a few seconds, then shakes his head.

“Trying to report them to the sect will be far more trouble than it's worth. This is not as simple as the Jiang Family Conflict. There is a low chance the Ye Clan will target us directly, at least none of their stronger forces. It is clear what they’re after… and I’m not the one who holds it. If they didn’t send their main bloodline patriarch here to retrieve it, it means the Copper City Branch Family is trying to take it all for themselves.”

My gaze tightens, as Wang Yang is clearly talking about the golden sword formation he witnessed me use on the day of the wedding.

“The demon managed to send a long range message out before he died. He confirmed the golden core artifact was in the hands of a 7th level qi refiner with a spirit grade physique in the Azure Cloud Sect… No one in your Clan has such a public image, and it is unlikely you’ll be directly caught in the crossfire if I keep my full strength concealed.”

Wang Yang nods in contemplation, then voices his thoughts.

“We were recently awarded a small portion of a spiritual copper vein from the sect. I sent out a few of our older Mu and Wang clan mid stage qi refining members to oversee the mine as representatives. The entire mine is within the Ye Clan’s Copper City domain. We get updates quite often, and none have been harmed. All of our shipments have come on time so far. If they really are looking to hurt us publicly, we would have already known.”

I nod back.

“Interesting… so they are wary of making public moves… This is the first time I’m hearing these terms, unregistered and registered golden core artifacts. Is this a unique classification in the Hidden Mist?”

Wang Yang smiles again, looking at me like he does his younger clansmen for a few seconds.

“Of course. The Azure Cloud Sect keeps close track of all Golden Core Artifacts in the Hidden Mist. It is an outward manifestation of the top clans’ and some individual cultivators’ strength. There is no need for unnecessary battles when you can refer to the public rankings and see who will come out on top due to a higher amount of tier 3 treasures.”

Wang Yang shows a slight smirk. “The true power of a clan lies in their hidden strength. Unregistered golden core artifacts can sometimes be worth even more. I believe both of the two strong branch families of the Ye Clan only hold one artifact each, adding an unregistered artifact would alter the power balance. Maybe they would even gift it to the main bloodline to increase their branch’s favor and prestige."

I raise both eyebrows, “They have a golden core artifact too? What kind is it? How powerful? How strong are the rest of the cultivators in the Copper City Ye Clan?”

Wang Yang lets out a sigh and shakes his head.

“I’m not on the registered artifact list myself, so I don’t have the influence to know such details. I’m only working off the public ranking. The same goes for their cultivator’s strength. They are a Late Stage Foundational Clan. Their most popular public elder is a 7th level foundation establishment, the head of the Outer Sect’s combat peak. Though, the Branch Patriarch and Matriarch are not any weaker… They also command over a dozen initial stage foundation establishment disciples in the Inner Sect, and a few at the mid stage. That is only the Copper City Branch. There is a reason they’re part of the big three. This clan is on a whole different level than our Mu and Wang families in this humble Lingshi City.”

I take my time to think for a while, then sigh as well.

“So, their influence is strong enough that the sect will look the other way even if they practice demonic techniques?”

“The short answer is yes, but it’s complicated. To mortals, lesser clans, rogues, and other righteous sects, of course the Azure Cloud Sect will condemn demonic arts. However, there are many paths… some that tiptoe the line on what the public eye considers demonic. If a cultivator can control their blood demon physique without their body deteriorating, and only uses blood of farmed spirit beasts to progress, what is the difference between it and any other physique? If an Illusory Demon can cultivate with only their own soul strength, or the ancient shattered wisps found in mined soul metal, then how demonic is his cultivation really?”

Wang Yang's smile fades as he glances my way. “Considering you are not shocked by my words, I believe you see my point. The sect will never condemn a family for using techniques to grow faster and bring them more resources, as long as there is no public backlash. A small mid stage foundational clan like mine has no good reason to point blame at the Ye Clan with nothing of equal value to grant the Azure Cloud Sect in return.”

Wang Yang’s gaze tightens again.

“My guess is they will send more of their weaker hidden forces to Lingshi City and watch from the shadows… The Late Stage Foundation Establishment’s movements are all closely tracked in this county. Considering the message sent out detailing your information, they do not have confirmation that the artifact will remain in the city. I do not believe they will risk any more attention on the matter… At least in the near future.”

I nod and pull the token into my storage.

“Still set up that mountain guarding array. Then, have Mu Shouxin come to your peak tomorrow. I’ll have my fox heal his soul. The more strong allies, the better. Find me a spirit contract strong enough to make the same agreement I made with you.”