"Hasn't the technique been lost?" Jiucai Rong showed deep concern, "Our Manor can't forge Magical Artifacts? Can only make Magic Artifact embryos?"
"The technique isn't lost yet; it's just that the lack of forging materials is the key issue."
Ning Zheng's expression was heavy:
"Beast materials are needed. They are naturally born with Spiritual Roots and Innate Divine Techniques, embedded into the Magic Artifact embryo to extract a specific innate ability... but we don't have the means to purchase Beast carcasses in this area."
The Magic Artifact embryo is just the foundation.
Certain tusks, fur, bones, blood of Beasts. Beast materials + Magic Copper embryo = Magical Artifact.
The assembly line of a Magical Artifact goes something like this.
Mining, smelting, crafting into Magic Artifact coarse embryo.
The Magic Artifact coarse embryo is sent to various family marketplaces and cultivator cities.
These cities will have family cultivators and local Loose Cultivators responsible for hunting Beasts. Adding the Beast materials to the embryos, combined to craft Magical Artifacts.
Simply put, Ning Zheng's mining site belongs to the upstream of the Magical Artifact assembly line.
"Since we don't have Beast material channels, can we use humans for the Magical Artifacts then? After all, we have human material channels."
Jiucai Rong contemplated, not realizing that he asked a question that made Ning Zheng's scalp tingle, looking quite innocent:
"For example, a cultivator cultivates with a Spiritual Root to gain an Innate Divine Technique, then we capture him and throw him into the forging. Wouldn't this weapon then generate the Innate Divine Technique of the cultivator...."
???
How can a normal person say such chilling words?
Ning Zheng looked at them, feeling somewhat inexplicably horrified.
Young people should learn to put themselves in others' shoes before speaking.
What if someone wanted to put you into a Magical Artifact?
But seeing the eager gaze of the other party, Ning Zheng still solemnly said:
"Of course, it's feasible. Many Tribulation Cultivators, Demon Men, and those who follow the Demon Path use the flesh and blood of Human Race cultivators to forge Demon Artifacts, but we are a legitimate Forging Manor. Do not emulate them by hunting cultivators passing by the foot of the mountain to make Magical Artifacts."
Back then, Ning Zheng was also quite afraid of being caught by those Demon Men for Artifact Refining.
Because of his unique Spiritual Root, which is the highest grade Celestial Spirit Root.
He didn't just save enough Qi Fortune Value by never spending money.
In previous years, he spent a full thirty thousand Qi Fortune Value to request the Spiritual Root best suited for him, only to end up with a Shadow Crocodile Grass soaked in the blood of a World-Ending Celestial Calamity Shadow Crocodile from an unknown timeline.
It's quite magical, a Spirit Grass with no form, just a shadow.
[Spiritual Root: Shadow]
[Innate Divine Technique: Nerve Shadow Poison, attacks can add mental life energy, each attack parasitizes the spirit, after ten attacks, the soul body of the enemy will undergo a cocoon-breaking split, producing a clone that exists on the enemy for a certain time.]
...
Hit the enemy ten times, a temporary Ning Zheng clone emerges beside the enemy.
Ning Zheng attempted to shoot a River Demon with arrows imbued with Nerve Shadow Poison. After continuous shooting, a bunch of Ning Zheng shadows appeared beside the River Demon, all chasing and attacking it together.
Even Ning Zheng's clones could stack attack counts, inject poison, and gang up to create new splits.
The more they attacked, the more they multiplied!
Ning Zheng didn't know how strong he was, but when he compared it to various low-level Five Elements Spirit Root techniques like the Little Cloud Rain Skill, Wind Riding Technique, Fireball Technique... he found himself quite unique!
The art style was obviously out of place.
How to say it?
It looked very evil at first glance.
Each shot gave birth to something akin to a spawn, which didn't fit his classical Sword Immortal aura.
Sometimes Ning Zheng wondered how he'd handle marrying a wife in the future.
But in terms of practicality, it seemed that even the innate Ultimate Skills of Divine Beasts, Great Demons, and the top-tiered of Ancient Holy Lands were just at this level.
If those Demon Men found out about him, they would probably treasure him immensely, capturing him for Artifact Refining, and using his ashes to make a blade...
It would likely have a splitting effect, considered a Magical Treasure Divine Artifact.
Meanwhile.
It seemed that the thirty thousand Qi Fortune Value was a very good deal, but later, Ning Zheng discovered he fell into a huge pit!
It was equivalent to a thirty thousand down payment.
The subsequent cultivation techniques had to be developed by himself!
For each Realm of opening cultivation techniques, the associated techniques would cost a fortune.
Thoughts returning to the present.
No matter what.... Ning Zheng was very opposed to using cultivators to refine Demon Artifacts.
"I understand, our Manor produces coarse embryos, and that's as simple as it gets," Jiucai Rong echoed, growing more speechless inside.
It turns out we were worse off than imagined.
Just a sweatshop without any technical skills.
Masses of semi-finished Magic Artifact embryos were sold off, and refiners who bought them made a huge profit in an instant after processing them.
One needs to hunt Fierce Beasts to refine Magical Artifacts...
So, where does the original Beast forging material come from?
"Difficult, difficult, difficult! But since it's called the Sword Forging Manor, it can't just make coarse embryos... this main line is stuck, it needs a breakthrough."
Jiucai Rong suddenly brushed off a clump of green bird droppings from his hair and silently looked up.
"Found the outer area."
...
Time passed, and dusk quickly arrived.
Ning Zheng prepared to leave, leaving a sentence: "Work hard, I won't be joining you for meals. Remember to rest on time and recover your energy, so that you'll have the spirit to work tomorrow."
In reality.
Looking at them, he figured they couldn't eat much anyway.
In the afternoon, they all secretly snacked on Magic Copper, each pretending to be diligently forging, showing off how clean-handed they were.
The noticeably bloated bellies had already betrayed them!
And Ning Zheng didn't care about their snacking.
Being a production line in a food factory, workers at least had to be well-fed; anything's delicious until it's consumed too much every day, leading them to vomit.
The Money Childs raised by the Manor also ate with gusto at first, stuffing their heads until they vomited, then these slaves had to force-feed them!
Seeing them like this, Ning Zheng thought it was quite good.
By voraciously eating Magic Copper, their nails grew out, providing the raw materials for crafting Magic Coins.
After leaving the smithy, Ning Zheng planned to go down the mountain. His dream as a slave was to get off work on time.
After getting home and having dinner, it would be just in time at seven, time to log out remotely and call it a day.
However, on his way down the mountain, Ning Zheng saw several cooks in the kitchen.
They were holding a large Magic Copper pot and stirring it incessantly with a stick.
Gurgle~~
He didn't know what slop they were brewing, constantly bubbling, with steam rolling off.
Food God: [I can't, I'm feeling a bit off, my body feels a bit weak, went to bed at four and felt dizzy ever since I woke up at seven in the morning.]
Shao Chaikun: [Do you have any cooking experience?]
Food God: [No, I was raised on takeout.]
Shao Chaikun: [Then why call yourself Food God? Bah, random naming and claiming to be a hotel chef, in charge of the spoon.]
Food God: [Next, let's add 95 gasoline.]
Shao Chaikun: [In such large quantities?]
Food God: [They'll be lucky to have it.]
Shao Chaikun: [I wouldn't dare eat that much.]
Food God: [Anyway, it's for the Manor's people.]
Shao Chaikun: [What if it causes issues?]
Food God: [Throw it in the Forging Furnace, a suona blows the tune, and a dozen blacksmiths will have a grand ceremony.]
...
Ning Zheng watched silently, recalling that besides forging Copper Swords and Copper Sabers, they indeed also had Copper Suonas... he couldn't help but come to a realization, sighed, and continued down the mountain.
These people were probably sick.