Chapter Bonanza (3/10)

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“My real name is Qin Zhou,” Qin Zhou stated.

Lu Zhanyu cleared his throat twice. “Then you must be a reclusive master. My apologies for my presumption. I invited you here to seek your counsel on another matter.”

“This meteorite iron is beyond our use,” Yin Lifeng interjected. “Truthfully, none in the Haoqi Sect possesses the skill to forge seventh-tier alchemy materials.”

Qin Zhou felt regret at this, but…

“I won’t be taking back the item,” Qin Zhou stated. To save enough money to buy golden silkworm thread, he’d need at least another harvest of Spirit Heart Fruits from the underground, then refine them into pills to sell before he could scrape together the funds.

Yin Lifeng couldn’t help but smile bitterly. “Senior, it’s not about the money. We still want the celestial meteorite.“ Who among the artifact masters wouldn’t worship a celestial meteorite, especially disciples of the Haoqi Sect?

”We’re asking if you could forge a spirit artifact for us,” Yin Lifeng said. Celestial meteorite was indestructible, a top-tier artifact material. He admitted he was testing Qin Zhou.

The man before him possessed a celestial meteorite yet treated it casually. Could it be he knew the art of forging?

Qin Zhou examined the thumb-sized meteorite, pausing before replying, “I cannot.”

“Senior, you don’t forge?”

Qin Zhou: “Mhm.”

Qin Zhou ultimately preferred not to draw too much attention. It wasn’t that such a small piece of celestial meteorite couldn’t be forged into a weapon—rather, the smaller the object, the more intricate the work required. If his hammer were to be seen in the mortal world, he feared he’d never have a moment’s peace again.

On Mount Yuanqing, that might have been acceptable.

But this Yin Lifeng before him was the young master of the Haoqi Sect—a complete stranger.

Had Zhanyu asked instead, he might have agreed.

“If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.” Qin Zhou thought to himself that this trip hadn’t been in vain. He’d seen Zhanyu, though the crowded Haoqi Pavilion made a formal greeting impractical.

There would be other chances. In the cultivation world, they were bound to cross paths again.

“As you wish, Senior.” Lu Zhanyu smiled as he watched him leave, seemingly unconcerned that Qin Zhou hadn’t agreed to the matter.

Before Qin Zhou had fully exited, he heard Yin Lifeng frown and ask, “What should we do about this celestial meteorite?”

“Take it back. Have Third Uncle examine it. He might have a solution.”

“True. If it were my great-grandmaster, he’d likely have some solution.” Yin Lifeng sighed.

Qin Zhou’s footsteps paused only briefly.

The “Third Uncle” mentioned by Zhanyu was undoubtedly Lu San.

Yet this young master of the Haoqi Sect also addressed Lu San as his great-grandmaster.

If both were his trusted confidants, he couldn’t simply stand by and watch this unfold.

“If this celestial meteorite can be processed, what do you intend to refine?” Qin Zhou sighed inwardly and turned back.

He was curious to hear what these two youngsters planned to forge from the celestial meteorite.

Both speakers turned their heads toward him.

Just as Yin Li was about to speak, Lu Zhanyu interjected first: “Senior, we wish to forge a pendant with a medicinal spirit jade core, fused with celestial meteorite. The meteorite’s indestructible nature will shield the jade from harm. Should the spirit artifact develop a spirit upon completion, it could even protect its master.”

Medicinal Spirit Jade—jade formed through prolonged immersion in medicinal juices and impregnated with spiritual energy.

Qin Zhou frowned. “For whom?”

“For myself,” Lu Zhanyu replied with a smile.

“Unsuitable,” Qin Zhou dismissed outright, his tone stern. “Celestial meteorite iron is primarily used for defense and lacks a strong affinity with medicinal spirit jade. To sustain, stimulate, and amplify the jade’s medicinal properties while protecting it from damage, you should use seventh-grade tree spirit vine.”

Yin Lifeng, standing nearby as the young master of the Haoqi Sect, suddenly lit up.

Lu Zhanyu’s delicate eyes fixed on Qin Zhou. They weren’t sharp, yet they seemed capable of effortlessly seeing through many things. “So, Senior, you still won’t admit you can forge artifacts?”

Qin Zhou: “…”

“Then perhaps I should address you differently now?” A faint flush spread across Lu Zhanyu’s pale face, betraying the excitement beneath his reserved demeanor.

Qin Zhou lowered his gaze and conceded, “…I knew inviting me wasn’t solely about this celestial meteorite.”

Yin Lifeng:?

Yin Lifeng glanced at his companion, then at the standing Qin Zhou. Why did he suddenly find himself unable to comprehend what these two were saying?

Just as Yin Lifeng was about to protest that he had indeed been invited for the meteorite, Lu Zhanyu raised a hand to silence him before he could speak.

Instead, he continued speaking to himself: “Not long ago, the secret realm of Boundary City opened. Rumors spread that this year’s supreme treasure was a hammer.”

“Then, within days, two crimson beams lit up the clouds over Yuanqing Mountain, and two seventh-tier spirit artifacts appeared… Cough.”

Lu Zhanyu’s voice was low and hoarse. “Now, an extraterrestrial meteorite has appeared in the Immortal-Demon City. If not for you, I couldn’t imagine who else it could be.“

Third Uncle cannot wield Galaxy. Only one can wield Galaxy.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Lu Zhanyu stepped forward, clasped his hands together, and bowed deeply. His voice slightly choked, ”Zhanyu greets Grandfather Village Chief.”

Qin Zhou’s mind seemed to conjure an image of Zhanyu as a child.

A pale, jade-like child with a face strikingly similar to the villagers, still unsteady on his feet, called out in a clear, high voice: “Zhanyu greets Grandfather Village Chief.”

His words melted everyone’s hearts, and they all scrambled to pick him up.

To prolong young Zhanyu’s life, Qin Zhou sought out many longevity-enhancing items for him. Except for the Marrow Cleansing Pills that brought excruciating pain, Zhanyu treated all the other elixirs like candy, barely clinging to life.

Surviving this long must have taken tremendous effort.

Qin Zhou raised his hand to steady Zhanyu’s arm. “Hmm… As long as you’re alive.”

Lu Zhanyu’s lips trembled slightly. “After both my fathers passed away, my uncles took great care of me. My eldest uncle treated me as his own son, which is why I survived.”

Shier and Shiba both…

Qin Zhou didn’t want to dwell on those thoughts, only reminding him, “He doesn’t want you to call him ‘eldest uncle’.”

Lu Yi disliked being called “eldest uncle” since childhood, insisting Zhanyu address him as “uncle.”

Qin Zhou didn’t perceive much difference between “elder uncle” and “uncle.” Yet, following Lu Yi’s precedent, Zhanyu addressed everyone as “uncle.”

“I’ll call him that secretly,” Zhanyu chuckled. “Seems you’ve already met my eldest uncle.”

“Otherwise, how would the hammer be in my hands?” Qin Zhou replied.

Zhanyu: “True.”

Yin Lifeng, standing by unable to interject: “…”

Huh? Doesn’t anyone notice this pitiful young sect master?

Yin Lifeng quietly slipped behind Zhanyu, nudged his lower back, and whispered for help, “What should I call him?”

Even Zhanyu’s junior master called him Grandfather.

“Great-Grandmaster,” Zhanyu reminded him softly.

Yin Lifeng respectfully called out, “Great-Grandmaster.”

Only after calling out did Yin Lifeng realize—wait, Great Grandmaster?! Was he really that low in the lineage?!

Qin Zhou nodded.

“What is Lu San doing?”

Hearing the familiar name, Yin Lifeng froze momentarily before hastily answering, “Grandmaster… he should be refining artifacts deep in the mountains right now…”

It was the first time he’d heard anyone address the Grandmaster by his full name so directly.

“After witnessing the anomaly on Yuanqing Mountain, Third Uncle will likely descend the mountain,” Lu Zhanyu said.

Qin Zhou nodded. “If you find him, tell him I’ve returned.”

“Understood.”

“Hand over the meteorite.”

Yin Lifeng dared not ask questions, merely handing it over carefully with both hands.

Qin Zhou: “Give me the medicinal spirit jade too.”

Lu Zhanyu removed the pendant from his own neck.

The moment the firefly-green jade left him, Lu Zhanyu’s complexion paled further.

Qin Zhou frowned.

“This jade was given to me by my Fifth Uncle,” Lu Zhanyu explained.

The medicinal spirit jade in his hands possessed at least two thousand years of vitality. But…

“The celestial meteorite won’t be needed. I’ll take it back. Find a forge—I have use for it.” Qin Zhou gently stroked the jade.

Lu Zhanyu froze, hastily grabbing Yin Lifeng—who, unaware of the situation, was about to leave to find a workshop—and said to Qin Zhou, “Village Chief, I invited you here only to verify your identity. I didn’t… actually intend for you to forge an artifact for me.”

“Encountering me upon your return just as you were about to forge an artifact—that’s a kind of luck. Having endured the hardships of poor health since childhood, consider any other blessings—whether luck or wisdom—as karmic compensation from fate.“

Qin Zhou gave a perfunctory reply, then raised his eyes to signal Yin Lifeng to find a workshop.

Yin Lifeng beamed with delight. ”Exactly! Great Grandmaster is absolutely right.”

With that, he turned to leave.

Such a brilliant and dazzling person as Junior Master Uncle should have lived much longer.

Lu Zhanyu tried to stop him again, but just then someone burst through the doorway—

“Young City Lord, envoys from the Guiyuan Sect have arrived. They’re heading toward the Upper City, requesting an audience with the City Lord.”

Lu Zhanyu’s raised hand froze mid-air.

Qin Zhou, noticing this, inquired, “Who is the City Lord of Immortal-Demon City?”

Lu Zhanyu replied, “Uncles Shiyi, Shiliu, and Shijiu.”

“But matters in Immortal-Demon City are mostly handled by Junior Master Uncle,” Yin Lifeng interjected. “Those senior uncles are rarely in the city. That the Guiyuan Sect has come to Immortal-Demon City—could they possibly be intending to…”

Lu Zhanyu cut him off. “Lifeng, take the village elder to the forging workshop.”

He cleared his throat twice. He would go meet these guests from the righteous sect.