Master Chen and a group of craftsmen gathered together, flipping through the refining manual, discussing how to refine the refining furnace.
The refining furnace was a First Grade spiritual tool, and a large one at that. For these craftsmen, it was both a test and an opportunity.
These independent craftsmen had accumulated rich experience over the years of refining, but due to the lack of a First Grade refining furnace, they couldn't refine a First Grade spiritual tool.
Naturally, they couldn't become First Grade craftsmen either.
If they could refine this First Grade refining furnace and take the opportunity to practice more, perhaps their refining skills could really break through, allowing them to become First Grade craftsmen.
Some of these craftsmen had gray hair and were nearing the end of their lives, having devoted their entire lives to refining spiritual tools, having long resigned themselves to their fate.
Now, with a sudden opportunity to possibly advance to First Grade craftsmen, these old craftsmen were more spirited than ever, their eyes shining brightly.
Their spirituals, which had been worn down by life, were now fully revived.
Mo Hua also leaned in curiously from the side.
The craftsmen discussed materials, techniques, tempering methods, forging, and shaping.
Although Mo Hua couldn't understand, he could roughly guess what they were discussing.
This was to prevent being completely clueless and taken advantage of in the future.
The craftsmen discussed fervently for two days and then formulated a basic refining plan.
Most of them were not First Grade craftsmen, so attempting to directly refine a First Grade refining furnace was too ambitious.
Therefore, as a first step, they decided to first refine some ordinary First Grade spiritual tools.
After becoming familiar with the forging techniques of First Grade spiritual tools, they would select craftsmen with good refining skills from among them to formally attempt the refining of a First Grade refining furnace.
Mo Hua didn't spend much time studying the specific refining process.
After all, he would never personally engage in refining in his lifetime. It was enough to know some theoretical knowledge and have a general impression of refining techniques; there was no need to invest so much effort.
Moreover, most of the refining time was spent swinging a heavy hammer repeatedly, tempering, swinging the hammer again, and tempering once more.
If he had to swing the hammer himself, it would be fine, but watching from the side for too long would feel tedious, and the constant clangs could make his ears ache after a while.
Most of Mo Hua's time each day was spent studying formations.
He still had another set of First Grade Melting Fire Compound Array with different effects to learn.
When he got tired of drawing formations, he would come to the refining workshop to see Master Chen and their progress.
In this way, half a month passed, during which Master Chen rallied all the craftsmen's efforts and finally, with stumbling steps, refined a First Grade refining furnace.
After completing the refinement, Master Chen asked Da Zhu to invite Mo Hua over.
"See if you can draw formations," Master Chen said to Mo Hua with some expectation.
Mo Hua then examined this refining furnace.
It was noticeably smaller, the materials used were not particularly good, the luster was rather dull, and there were fewer places on the furnace wall to draw formations, with not many positions reserved for other arrays.
Estimating that this refining furnace was originally designed as a small-scale model, it can only accommodate smaller arrays and hasn't reserved positions for Compound Arrays like the Melting Fire Control Spiritual Compound Array.
It seems that not all refining furnaces can support the drawing of such Compound Arrays as the First Grade Melting Fire Compound Array.
Mo Hua felt somewhat regretful.
Refining furnaces can be seen as array media, used to carry arrays.
Arrays need compatible array media, and array media also need compatible arrays.
In other words, to draw complex and profound arrays, one must forge high-quality spiritual tools of excellent craftsmanship; only then can they complement each other.
The current refining furnace clearly lacks the capacity to serve as the array medium for the First Grade Melting Fire Compound Array.
Mo Hua sighed, "I can only draw a First Grade Melting Fire Array, not the complex one."
The group of craftsmen also felt some regret upon hearing this.
Master Chen sighed and then suddenly froze in thought. What was he regretting?
This was a genuine First Grade refining furnace. Coupled with a genuine First Grade array, he had dreamed of owning such a furnace.
Master Chen glanced at the large refining furnace in the courtyard and couldn't help but murmur, "Formerly, even the vast sea couldn't contain all the water."
This child Mo Hua had raised their expectations.
Once the refining furnace was ready, Mo Hua could start drawing arrays on it.
Drawing just a First Grade Melting Fire Array didn't require much effort.
Mo Hua quickly finished the drawing.
Afterward, Master Chen and everyone else refined two more First Grade refining furnaces.
Practice makes perfect.
With the experience gained from the first furnace, the materials and craftsmanship of the subsequent two were better than the first.
But no matter how well they were refined, they could still only accommodate a First Grade Melting Fire Array, dictated by the furnace's structure.
After the completion of the three refining furnaces, Elder Yu decided not to let Master Chen and the others continue refining, as they didn't have enough refined iron and materials left.
He had to leave some for refining spiritual tools; otherwise, having furnaces without materials was akin to having pots without rice—it would lead to starvation.
Mo Hua then drew two more First Grade Melting Fire Arrays.
With everything ready, the refining workshop now had four furnaces: three ordinary First Grade Melting Fire refining furnaces and one large refining furnace with a First Grade Melting Fire Control Spiritual Compound Array drawn on it.
Elder Yu breathed a long sigh of relief.
Everything was prepared, just awaiting the final push.
He had tirelessly strived for a good life for the rogue cultivators in the lower levels of Tongxian City for one or two hundred years, but now, in a short time, they had taken a huge step forward.
Next, it depended on how far they could go.
With the establishment of the refining workshop, completion of the furnaces, and the gathering of craftsmen, Elder Yu chose an auspicious day to officially begin operations.
The name of the refining workshop was straightforward: situated in the south of the city, it was called "Nancheng Refining Workshop."
In Tongxian City, the wealthy lived in the north, and the poor in the south.
Therefore, "Nancheng" meant that this workshop belonged not to any individual but to all demon hunters, and it would also be the workshop for all rogue cultivators in the south of the city.
TL Note: Nancheng means South City.
When the workshop began operations, all demon hunters and rogue cultivators who had participated in its construction gathered together, feasting and celebrating through the night.
Thanks to the coordinated planning of Elder Yu and Master Chen, the craftsmen in the workshop subsequently began methodically refining spiritual tools.
The initial spiritual tools they refined included three types: Vine Armor, Rustic Knife, and Clear Heart Hairpin.
Vine Armor and Rustic Knife were commonly used by demon hunters.
The Clear Heart Hairpin was a versatile spiritual tool used for clearing the mind, refining qi, warding off miasma, and could also be used for decoration. Its functions were not outstanding, but it was widely applicable.
After the workshop began operations, Mo Hua also visited to take a look.
The vast workshop, numerous craftsmen and apprentices, categorized refining materials, specialized refining techniques, orderly forging processes, and the roaring flames of refining furnaces.
And there were rows of exquisitely crafted, uniformly sized, planned and standardized spiritual tools, each tempered in refining furnaces, forged by craftsmen, soaked or cooled in water and ash, and arranged neatly...
All of this greatly impressed Mo Hua.
For the first time, Mo Hua gained a clearer understanding of the cultivation industry.
(End of the Chapter)