Chapter 81: Thunder Sword Ascends to Top-Tier Profound Rank
Shen Mo left the third tunnel and headed straight to the deepest part of the sixth tunnel.
He surveyed the area, using his spiritual energy to search, and quickly found the location of two buried items.
These two items were hidden quite deeply and showed no recent signs of excavation.
If Shen Mo hadn't been able to see the life panel, he certainly wouldn't have found them through a meticulous search.
At the bottom of the pit, the two items lay quietly.
One was a palm-sized demon crystal, radiating with brilliant thunderlight.
The other item was a book made of metal!
No wonder it hadn't decayed after so many years.
Shen Mo had come prepared.
He put on gloves and effortlessly took the Thunder Toad demon crystal.
This demon crystal, left behind by a fifth-rank demon beast after its death, contained extremely powerful thunder-attribute energy.
According to Xiao Fan's life panel, an elder of the Heavy Weapon Sect in the Foundation Establishment stage was gravely injured because he directly touched the crystal without caution.
This caused a massive thunder outbreak, triggering the array's agitation, worsening his injuries.
In the end, he barely escaped by exploiting a flaw in the array.
After securing the Thunder Toad crystal, Shen Mo picked up the heavy metal book.
Wiping off the dirt on the surface, the cover revealed the inscription "Crystal Refining Technique."
"With this, I can create sockets in spirit tools and embed demon crystals myself."
"This is the core skill of the Heavy Weapon Sect, and now I've obtained it so easily."
Shen Mo smiled, took the items, and left to return.
Back in his room, he immediately began reading the Crystal Refining Technique.
About an hour later, he lifted his head from the book.
"So that's it. The technique for creating sockets is very ingenious, requiring special materials to forge the hammer and chisel."
"These tools must be stable enough to create sockets without damaging the spirit tools."
"Hence, making the hammer and chisel requires various materials, including thunder crystals, which explains why the Heavy Weapon Sect monopolized the thunder crystal mine."
"As for embedding, it needs a special embedding liquid. When injected into the socket, it allows the demon crystal to integrate seamlessly with the spirit tool."
"The hammer, chisel, and embedding liquid are the essence of the Crystal Refining Technique!"
Shen Mo nodded slightly.
Prepared and ready, he began the process!
The thunder crystal mine not only had thunder crystals but also some associated minerals that Shen Mo needed.
Two days later, he acquired a set of hammer and chisel, along with a jar of embedding liquid.
Shen Mo took out some Yellow-rank spirit tools and some second-rank demon crystals.
Following the Crystal Refining Technique, he used the hammer and chisel to create sockets.
Then he applied the embedding liquid and embedded the crystals.
This process required full concentration, as any mistake would result in failure.
Shen Mo initially failed repeatedly.
But having taken the comprehension pills, his understanding far surpassed ordinary people.
After a few failures, he quickly identified his mistakes.
Each attempt was better than the last.
Feeling confident, Shen Mo took out the Thunder Sword and repeated the process.
Finally, he donned gloves and embedded a third-rank demon crystal into the sword.
This demon crystal came from a third-rank demon beast, the Fire Spitting Ape, capable of breathing fire.
The Thunder Sword was a Profound-rank spirit tool and couldn't handle a crystal too powerful.
A third-rank demon crystal was its limit.
As for the fifth-rank Thunder Toad crystal, Shen Mo planned to socket and embed it into a stronger spirit tool later.
Moments later, the Thunder Sword radiated a strange brilliance.
Shen Mo gripped the hilt tightly.
Immediately, he felt a sense of joy emanating from within the sword.
Evidently, the sword's faint spirit also sensed that it was becoming stronger.
Shen Mo nodded slightly.
After embedding the Fire Spitting Ape demon crystal, the Thunder Sword had now ascended to the top-tier of the Profound rank.
"The Crystal Refining Technique contains formulas for four types of hammers and chisels, and four types of embedding liquids. This is the most important part."
"I've memorized this technique, so there's no need to keep the book. I can give it to Murong Yue."
Of course, Shen Mo did not intend to hand over the entire Crystal Refining Technique.
In this world, only oneself can be truly trusted.
Therefore, the best things, such as the formulas for top-tier hammers and chisels and top-tier embedding liquid, must be kept in his own hands.
As for the rest, they can be handed over without reservation.
Shen Mo lightly knocked on the door.
Since he was the Young Sect Master, there were always two strong inner disciples guarding outside his room.
Many people competed for this duty.
The two disciples immediately responded upon hearing the sound, "Young Sect Master, what are your orders?"
Shen Mo said, "Please summon Elder Li here. Tell her I have something important to discuss with her."
The two disciples nodded repeatedly, "Yes!"
Moments later, a somewhat weary-looking Elder Li arrived at Shen Mo's room.
"Young Sect Master, what is it you need?" Elder Li asked, puzzled.
Shen Mo usually didn't trouble them, so this sudden request surprised her.
Shen Mo smiled, "A few days ago, I chased a demon beast into the depths of the mine and inadvertently discovered this."
"Elder Li, I think you'll be very interested."
He presented the metal book to Elder Li.
At first, Elder Li was indifferent, but upon seeing the cover, her eyes widened with astonishment.
"This... Crystal Refining Technique? This is the secret technique that the Heavy Weapon Sect had stolen by a traitor long ago!"
Shen Mo nodded with a smile, "Yes, but unfortunately it is incomplete, with a few pages missing."
To prevent anyone from suspecting that he had torn out the pages, he had taken not only the best formulas but also some pages detailing the socketing techniques.
These were the most refined parts.
But even without these parts, it was still possible to create sockets and embed crystals into spirit tools.
Moreover, it was still far superior to the Heavy Weapon Sect's current techniques!
After all, the Heavy Weapon Sect had lost the entire Crystal Refining Technique.
Even if later generations tried to rewrite it from memory, it couldn't compare to the completeness of this inherited technique.
With this level of Crystal Refining Technique, Qingxuan Sect could mass-produce refined spirit tools and sell them, effectively surpassing the Heavy Weapon Sect.
Refined spirit tools, different from ordinary spirit tools, had sockets for embedding demon crystals, making them more powerful and favored by cultivators.
Elder Li quickly flipped through the book.
The more she read, the more delighted she became.
All her fatigue from the past few days vanished!
"It really is the Crystal Refining Technique! I can't believe it was buried deep in the thunder crystal mine!"
"Young Sect Master, this thing is priceless! Are you... willing to give it to the sect?" She looked at Shen Mo excitedly.
Shen Mo nodded with a smile, "Elder Li, if I didn't intend to hand it over, I wouldn't have called you here."
"Good! Good! Qingxuan Sect is truly fortunate to have you!" Elder Li's eyes reddened with emotion.
In her heart, Shen Mo's status rose immeasurably.
This young man, with his immense potential, formidable strength, great wisdom, and now this noble quality of dedication to the sect, was truly a treasure bestowed upon Qingxuan Sect by the heavens!
Shen Mo smiled, "Please, Elder Li, summon another inner elder. The two of you should return to the sect and deliver this book to the sect leader. Handle it with utmost care."
"Of course! With this book, our Qingxuan Sect can refine crystals just like the Heavy Weapon Sect. This item can almost determine the fate of our sect!" Elder Li said joyfully, "Our Qingxuan Sect is about to rise!"
Elder Li placed the book in her storage ring and hurriedly left.
In less than ten breaths, two elders turned into a streak of light and shot out of the mine.
Their speed was astonishing!
Shen Mo watched their departing figures with a knowing smile.
Keeping the Crystal Refining Technique to himself was meaningless.
It needed to be mass-produced to create immense value.
Only then could Qingxuan Sect become strong.
With a strong Qingxuan Sect, he, the Young Sect Master, could naturally live comfortably.
🌟 Unlock Exclusive Early Access on Patreon! 🌟
Hello, beloved readers!
Join my Patreon community to enjoy:
📚 Daily Updates: Never wait for new chapters—get your story fix every day!
📖 20 Chapters Ahead: Access new chapters far in advance of RoyalRoad releases.
Support the creation of the stories you love and dive deeper into my world!
Patreon.com/Alex_Cruise