Chapter 234: Clear Heart Jade Pendant and Advancement

But he first took a moment to check the panel after its upgrade.

[Level: Lower Grade Magical Treasure · Qilin Seal]

[Experience: 0/200]

[Status: Not Upgradable]

[Spirit Seal: Focus]

The first change he noticed was the name, which had clearly been altered.

Second, the panel was basically no different from that of the Sky-Breaking Saber.

Zhao Zuo took out the Shen Family’s Artifact Refining Secret Record and flipped to the page on the Heavy Mountain Spirit Patterns. He had attempted to draw it countless times and succeeded on many occasions, but he had never managed to break the five-second barrier.

This time, he planned to give it a try using the ‘Focus’ effect. He placed a piece of Spirit Wood beside him and held the Shen Clan’s Artifact Refining Secret Record in his hands.

“Activate, Focus.”

Zhao Zuo whispered, channeling his Mana into the Qilin Seal. The seal seemed to melt into liquid in his palm before transforming into a streak of light… It shot into his head, coming to a stop above his Sea of Souls.

A cool energy nourished the Soul below, simultaneously erecting a defensive barrier around it. As the refreshing aura spread, Zhao Zuo felt his mental fatigue rapidly fade. At the same time, this cool energy felt like countless tiny hands massaging his Meridians.

“This feels good,” Zhao Zuo sighed in relief.

The Qilin Seal suddenly released even more of the cool energy, pouring it into the Sea of Souls below.

In the next instant, Zhao Zuo found his five senses converging with incredible speed. He tuned out his entire surroundings; his sight was fixed only on the book, and all other sounds vanished. ‘I’m certain of it now,’ he thought. ‘This ability is useless in a group fight. It can only be used in a duel.’

Even this stray thought quickly vanished, along with all emotion. Zhao Zuo’s left hand continuously flipped through the sections on the Heavy Mountain Spirit Patterns while his right hand drew unceasingly on the Spirit Storage Jade. He left behind one winding line after another, which eventually converged into a complex Spirit Pattern.

With every turn of the page, knowledge flooded his mind.

Half an hour later, Zhao Zuo’s body went limp as if he were a deflated doll. He fell backward onto his bed. The knowledge he had just acquired surged through his mind, and techniques for drawing the Heavy Mountain Spirit Patterns rapidly surfaced.

His face was pale and his body was covered in sweat. His temples throbbed with sharp, stabbing pains—symptoms of excessive mental exertion. Zhao Zuo quickly relaxed and closed his eyes, focusing on his recovery.

As his mind finished digesting all the techniques he had just learned, Zhao Zuo reached up and gently pressed his thumbs against his temples, soothing the throbbing pain.

About an hour passed before Zhao Zuo recovered. He sat up with a sudden jolt, the sharp pain in his head finally gone. Reflecting on his experience, he came to a conclusion: this state was not something he could use in battle.

The splitting headache would severely impact his combat effectiveness.

He picked up a large bowl and gulped down two mouthfuls of clear, sweet mountain spring water. The progress he’d made while Focused replayed in his mind. He concluded that half an hour in that state was equivalent to several two-hour periods of normal ascetic cultivation.

Factoring in the recovery time, it was like exchanging one hour for six hours of progress.

‘This skill can only be used for studying,’ he thought.

The next day, Zhao Zuo continued to inject Mana into the Spirit Jade Barrier to let it keep grinding for experience. He then stood up and first repaired the Spirit Patterns inside the Sky-Breaking Saber. Afterward, he had the saber circle around him as he began to slowly swing the Suwen longsword.

His movements were extremely gentle, considering the blade was covered in cracks.

One swing, two swings, three, up to five.

Plus one experience point.

Zhao Zuo gradually increased his speed. He would occasionally pause to cover the cracks with an adhesive, preventing the sword from shattering completely with a swing. Piecing it back together would be even more troublesome.

Five swings of the sword yielded one experience point, and it took twenty thousand experience points to level up. This meant he needed to swing the sword one hundred thousand times.

Zhao Zuo planned to swing it five thousand times a day, completing the restoration in twenty days.

「By noon」, Zhao Zuo had finished meditating to restore his Mana. He stood up, pushed open the door to his Cave Mansion, and headed for the Ministry of Affairs Hall, carrying the voucher for the custom Magical Artifact he’d ordered.

“Here are twenty Lower Grade Magical Artifacts. I’d like to exchange them for Contribution Points,” Zhao Zuo said. In truth, within the Moyun Sect, even the Outer Sect Disciples looked down on Lower Grade Magical Artifacts. Tens of thousands, sometimes even hundreds of thousands, of these artifacts would be collected before being shipped out by specialists to be sold in the various Loose Cultivator Markets across the Great Yue Country.

Beyond the Moyun Workshop, the Moyun Sect controlled over forty Loose Cultivator Markets. They were spread like chess pieces across the Great Yue Country’s various nodes of converging Spiritual Power. These served to gather resources and act as waypoints for Sect Disciples, or… as sentinel posts in times of war.

“Alright.” The person behind the counter was likely an Inner Sect Disciple as well. He calmly accepted the Magical Artifacts from Zhao Zuo with a composed, professional air.

“I’d also like to pick up a custom Magical Artifact,” Zhao Zuo added, presenting his Token.

“Order A-34. A long, hard, and sharp saber.”

The man took the Token and infused it with Mana to check the details. He then stood and walked toward the storeroom in the back. As the door opened, Zhao Zuo caught a glimpse of a figure in a gray robe sitting cross-legged inside.

‘The Moyun Sect has three main treasure vaults for Cultivation resources,’ Zhao Zuo mused. ‘The Ministry of Affairs Halls for the Outer and Inner Sects, and the Sect’s central Treasure Vault near the summit of the main peak. They must all be guarded by experts of the Foundation Establishment Stage.’

After a few moments, the man returned with a slender wooden box, over a meter long. He handed it to Zhao Zuo and spoke in a business-like tone.

“Please inspect the Magical Artifact here to ensure it meets your requirements and has no issues. The Ministry of Affairs Hall is not responsible for any problems discovered after you leave.”

Zhao Zuo opened the wooden box and infused the weapon inside with his Mana. He quickly established a connection with the black long saber. Fiery red spots flickered across the blade’s surface, and its temperature rose rapidly.

The spine of the saber was thick and its edge was perfectly straight. A cold glint emanated from the blade, which looked exceptionally sharp.

‘Hard material, fire attribute… no problems here.’

As an Artifact Refiner himself, Zhao Zuo naturally recognized the materials. The weapon was forged from a composite called Flame Cloud Steel, mixed with a portion of Ink Pattern Steel.

Two layers of Breaking Army Spirit Patterns and one layer of Heavy Mountain Spirit Patterns were superimposed within. The former increased the Magical Artifact’s sharpness, while the latter reinforced the blade’s durability.

The three Spirit Patterns appeared to be stacked, but they were faintly separate and clearly didn’t synergize to form a greater whole. Though it qualified as an Upper Grade Magical Artifact, its attributes were merely average.

“No issues,” Zhao Zuo said, nodding. He placed the wooden box into his Storage Bag.

He had recently decided to stop Refining Lower Grade Magical Artifacts for Spirit Stones. First, he needed to complete Chen Xiaorong’s repair order. After that, he would return to his old routine of Refining and selling Lower Grade Magical Artifacts. The income wasn’t fast, but it was reliable.

“By the way,” the clerk said, leaning in. “If you’re looking to sell that, I can connect you with someone.”

“Twelve thousand Spirit Stones,” the man added, taking half a step closer and lowering his voice.

“No, thank you.” Zhao Zuo shook his head, declining the offer.

“Alright then.”

Zhao Zuo turned and left the Ministry of Affairs Hall. He now had three more Yellow Bud Pills in his Storage Bag. This time, he didn’t plan on giving the Pill Medicine to Liu Heng; after all, widening one’s Meridians was always a good thing.

“Inner Sect, Ruyi Pavilion,”

he said into his Communication Jade.

“Got it,” Liu Heng quickly replied.

Ruyi Pavilion was actually just a restaurant, a business owned by one of the Moyun Sect’s Elders. Of course, a portion of its monthly earnings had to be submitted to the sect. The food and wine Liu Heng had brought to his Cave Mansion before had come from Ruyi Pavilion.

For the current Zhao Zuo, the prices were no longer expensive. A comfortable meal for the two of them would only cost a dozen or so Spirit Stones.

Meanwhile, Liu Heng had already arrived at Ruyi Pavilion. Standing beside him was a stranger in a green Taoist Robe.