Seeing the shockingly ugly furnace and the perfectly matching fire poker, everyone fell silent.
"Pff—"
"Pfft!"
After a long pause, laughter erupted one after another.
"Holy crap! How can something be this ugly?!"
"What kind of aesthetic is this? That's terrifying!"
"She's such a beauty, but everything she takes out is so ugly!"
People couldn't stop mocking.
After all, Jiang Yunnuan was extremely beautiful, but the furnace she brought out and the fire poker she forged were unbelievably ugly. The contrast was simply too striking!
This fire poker and that furnace were truly a perfect pair!
The poker was pitch-black, with a small flattened square of iron at the front.
It looked as though the next moment someone would shove it into the furnace to stir burning wood and ashes.
Listening to the crowd's laughter, Qin Yiwei and the others kept expressionless faces, though their cheeks twitched slightly.
As Jiang Yunnuan's fellow disciples, they obviously wouldn't laugh at her.
But they also couldn't lie through their teeth and argue that the stick looked good.
"Th-this… is actually quite nice!" Wen Yan forced a stiff smile, trying to find something complimentary to say. "Just like we said earlier, we shouldn't judge by appearance!"
"Exactly!" Ke Minglu immediately echoed his wife, nodding repeatedly. "You can tell this is Sect Master Mu's style. Xiao Jiang has truly surpassed her teacher!"
"That's right," even Ke Chongzhen forced out a smile. "Since it's an offensive artifact, all that matters is that it's effective. Why does it need to look good?"
"Exactly! Whether it's a person or a… stick, it can't just have appearances without substance!" Wen Yan added, her smile becoming increasingly sincere.
Qin Yiwei and the others: "..."
Master's reputation suffered yet another blow!
They suddenly felt a little ashamed, they had lost.
The Ke Family really had the courage to praise it!
They themselves didn't dare praise it out loud.
But Jiang Yunnuan's creation this time was simply too ugly.
Even uglier than all her previous works!
While they were feeling embarrassed, Jiang Yunnuan happily waved the stick in her hand at them, "I'm done!"
The laughter from the crowd grew even louder.
Jiang Yuancheng laughed the loudest of all, his voice dripping with mockery, "What the hell is that supposed to be? Isn't that just a shit-stirring stick?"
Qin Yiwei and the others immediately darkened.
They could joke about Jiang Yunnuan's work themselves, but that didn't mean others were allowed to mock it.
Chu Jingzhuo glanced over and smiled faintly at Jiang Yuancheng, "How did you know it was made specifically to stir you? Impressive, excellent self-awareness."
Jiang Yuancheng froze for a moment before realizing the meaning of the insult, he immediately jumped up in rage, "What did you say?!"
Qin Yiwei smiled as well, "Seems his hearing isn't very good either, I suggest Third Junior Sister stir him a few more times."
"I support that!" Lu Wenjun raised his hand immediately and shouted loudly, "Stir him!"
Jiang Yuancheng: "..."
Motherfucker, these bastards!
Still, he didn't dare charge over. Instead he shot them a vicious glare before turning back to watch his sister's performance.
Once again he regretted not bringing the Jiang Family guards with him.
If they were here, he wouldn't have to endure such humiliation!
At this moment, Jiang Yunnuan had already finished, while Jiang Yuanxin was still working.
Jiang Yuanxin's furnace was far more refined than Jiang Yunnuan's.
This competition involved many scoring metrics, including how long it took to refine the artifact.
The final score would be determined by combining all factors.
When Jiang Yuanxin saw Jiang Yunnuan finish first, she was also startled.
But after clearly seeing the stick, she laughed and immediately relaxed.
What use could a weapon that ugly possibly have?
Artifact refiners valued aesthetic sense as well.
The finished artifacts they forged were usually very beautiful.
Some artifact refiners even developed their own distinctive styles, giving every work a strong personal touch.
Some pieces could even be considered works of art!
Of course, some refiners had average taste, but no matter how average, they wouldn't produce something this ugly!
Jiang Yuanxin sneered inwardly and continued refining her artifact.
Another quarter hour passed. By the time Jiang Yunnuan was almost falling asleep, Jiang Yuanxin finally produced a sword.
The sword looked exquisite and elegant, with several crystal fragments embedded in it, making it even more pleasing to the eye.
Many people couldn't help admiring it, holding such a sword would make anyone want to practice swordsmanship more often!
Seeing the sword in Jiang Yuanxin's hands, Jiang Yuancheng's smile turned proud.
This was his sister's true skill!
Jiang Yunnuan was clearly here just to make a fool of herself!
Looking around the arena, people were forging all kinds of weapons, but none were uglier than Jiang Yunnuan's stick.
Even the ferocious-looking meteor hammer seemed downright elegant compared to that stick.
Even the judges couldn't help glancing toward Jiang Yunnuan several times. Each time they looked, they shook their heads.
It couldn't be helped, that fire poker… really drew attention.
They had simply never seen a stick that was so painful to look at.
Once all contestants finished their artifacts, it was time for evaluation.
Contestants could choose their own opponents and challenge others.
Once a challenge was accepted, they would hand their weapons to Changtian Sect disciples.
These disciples had similar levels of cultivation and would use the weapons with equal force when striking each other.
After all, the same weapon in the hands of cultivators with different cultivation levels would produce different attack power.
—A Nascent Soul Stage cultivator could kill a Qi Refining cultivator with a single leaf.
To ensure fairness, the disciples would perform the strikes.
After the weapons collided, it would be clear which one was stronger.
Each person could challenge up to five opponents.
If a weapon shattered immediately against the first opponent, then the owner could only accept their misfortune.
After the judges finished explaining the rules, the verification round began.
Before Jiang Yunnuan even moved, she saw Jiang Yuanxin approaching with her sword.
"Sister, please instruct me."
Jiang Yuanxin smiled gently, showing no trace of dissatisfaction.
Jiang Yunnuan nodded, "Alright."
The two of them approached the judges together.
The judge lazily glanced at their weapons without looking carefully, then nodded to the nearby disciple, "Begin."
The disciple holding the fire poker clearly had a stiff expression.
The corner of his mouth twitched as he looked at the stick with a complicated expression.
If he hadn't seen Jiang Yunnuan forge it with his own eyes, he might have thought it had been taken straight out of the kitchen!
Meanwhile, the disciple holding the sword wore a bright smile.
That beautiful sword certainly felt much more pleasant!
"Alright. Ready. Three, two, one, start!"
At the judge's command, the stick and sword collided in midair.
Clang!
A flash of cold light shot outward.
Everyone's gaze followed that streak of light until it landed on the ground.
Then they all sucked in a sharp breath.
"Holy crap!"
"What the hell just happened?!"
"That fragile?!"
Looking at the broken fragment of the sword on the ground and then at the completely undamaged fire poker, the smile on Jiang Yuanxin's face froze solid.
How was that possible?!