C23 Showing His Edge(2)

"Time's up!"

In the nick of time, the forging was complete.

"Ding!"

"Congratulations to the host for obtaining the top-grade Spirit Weapon, Thousand Chance Gathering."

A slender, flexible iron wire blade materialized in Qin Feng's hand.

The Censor was currently examining each Artifact Forging Master's creation. He shook his head at several, signaling their failure and subsequent elimination.

Only a middle-aged man remained, his Spirit Weapon having achieved top-grade status, thus securing his advancement. Qin Feng's creation was the last to be inspected. If Qin Feng's work didn't pass muster, the middle-aged man would emerge as the victor.

As the Censor took hold of the Thousand Chance Gathering from Qin Feng, beads of sweat formed on his brow, betraying his anxiety.

His eyes suddenly widened, pupils shrinking, as he breathlessly declared, "Qin Feng... has passed..."

The purity was astounding. The Pure Qi was utterly flawless, seemingly forged from materials of a higher caliber. The Censor had never before witnessed such an exquisite Spirit Weapon crafted from lower-grade resources. It was far superior to any prior work. This young man could very well be a prodigy!

The middle-aged man's expression turned sour, clearly displeased with the outcome.

The audience, momentarily struck mute, eventually erupted into fervent discussion.

"This young man is incredibly skilled. I completely misjudged him, mistaking him for a novice."

"Indeed, it's astonishing how someone so young could already be such a skilled Artifact Forging Master."

Despite a smattering of disparaging remarks within the crowd, Qin Feng received his fair share of accolades.

And so...

It came down to just the middle-aged man and Qin Feng.

"Alright, with the first two stages behind us, the results are in. Two contestants have successfully completed the initial forging phases. Now, we move on to the final showdown—the third stage, ore forging."

"Give it up, kid," the middle-aged man in white sneered at Qin Feng, his eyes brimming with scorn as he strutted past.

Wang Run was a locally renowned Artifact Refining Master who often used his exceptional skills to belittle others.

Qin Feng kept to himself, silently selecting ores with his attention solely on the stones, not giving Wang Run a second look.

Wang Run assumed Qin Feng was too intimidated to challenge him and smirked smugly, prompting laughter from the onlookers. The crowd mocked Qin Feng's presumptuousness, and the spectators clamored for him to step down, convinced that his previous successes were flukes. It was clear to everyone that the young man was outmatched and would surely lose.

Unperturbed, Qin Feng simply smiled and continued sorting through his ores.

Shee Yun watched the scene with an expression that suggested she thought they were fools. She thought to herself, "Just wait, it'll be your turn to cry from the pain soon enough!"

The gong and drums for the final round resounded. An elder with gray hair rose and pulled a pitch-black dagger from a Secret Bag. A gasp rippled through the crowd, "Oh my god! It's a Heaven Defying Level dagger!" The audience erupted into excitement.

Heaven Defying Level! Even the Limitless Level was rare, but a Heaven Defying Level Divine Artifact was exceedingly scarce!

"Ladies and gentlemen, the runner-up will not be disappointed either. This dagger is their prize," announced the host, taking the dagger from the elder and showcasing it on stage. All the contestants watched eagerly, their eyes wide with desire. The elder seemed to hold Qin Feng in high regard, yet he seemed skeptical about Qin Feng's chances of winning.

Qin Feng, however, sat expressionless beside the Artifact Refining Furnace, meticulously organizing his chosen ores and discarding those with inferior luster.

The other contestants gingerly placed their ores into the furnace, bolstering the heat with Profound Power, beads of sweat forming on their foreheads. Qin Feng, on the other hand, casually tossed all his ores into the Artifact Refining Furnace and pulled out a small fan from his Storage Bag to stoke the flames and cool himself off.

Due to excessive use of the Spirit Fire that day, his Spirit Points had diminished, only allowing for a small flicker of flame. He would need a full recharge of Spirit Points to produce a robust fire, so for now, he made do with what he had.

"What's he doing? Cooking?" jeered the audience below, convinced Qin Feng was merely causing a disturbance. Indeed, no one had ever seen artifact refining done quite like this before.

After some time, Qin Feng discarded the less lustrous ores back into the furnace. He then positioned himself cross-legged beside the Artifact Refining Furnace, closing his eyes to rejuvenate.

To the onlookers, he appeared to be napping, but in reality, he was channeling Profound Power to empower the Artifact Refining Furnace.

The crowd's laughter grew louder, as if they were enjoying a comical, free monkey show.

"Bang!"

Wang Run was the first to successfully refine a magical weapon. He quickly opened the Artifact Refining Furnace and retrieved a golden dart.

"Limitless Level! It's Limitless Level! Master Wang is incredibly skilled!" the crowd exclaimed. The golden hue signified the Limitless Level, a fact clear to all with insight, suggesting that no one else could possibly forge a higher-tiered spirit or magical weapon.

The assembly was taken aback, Wang Run included, as he hadn't anticipated forging a Limitless Level magical weapon. Triumph seemed within his grasp! His grin was somewhat unsettling.

Dart in hand, he approached Qin Feng, casting a provocative glance and sneeringly suggested he concede.

Qin Feng looked up, his gaze icy as he uttered a single word: "Scram."

Wang Run, taken aback, grabbed Qin Feng's clothing in irritation.

"Contestant, please return to your seat!" commanded the Censor with authority. Wang Run, with a click of his tongue, complied and went back to his place.

The crowd, having stowed their Artifact Refining Furnaces, gathered around Qin Feng. They were eager to see what substandard metal this presumptuous youth would produce.

With a deep breath, Qin Feng exhaled and rose to his feet.

The host approached, opened the Artifact Refining Furnace, and extracted a compact, finely-crafted silver needle.

"Hahaha! All that posturing for an embroidery needle!" Wang Run guffawed.

Qin Feng, smiling at the silver needle, breathed a sigh of relief, "At last, it's complete."

"Ding!"

"Congratulations to the host for acquiring an Ancient Level Spiritual Weapon, the Spiritual Sleeve Needle."

In that moment, an elder stepped forward through the jeers, picked up the silver needle, and after a thorough inspection, announced with a stunned expression an outcome beyond anyone's expectations, "This is… an Ancient Level Spiritual Weapon!"

In a moment, everyone fell silent, a collective gasp hanging in the air. They all wondered if perhaps they had misheard. But the astonished looks on the faces of the Elders and the Censor confirmed that they had indeed heard correctly.

"What a letdown," Qin Feng lamented, cradling his head in his hands. "I spent a month forging a Limitless Level Spiritual Weapon, only to end up with an Ancient Level one."

Goodness gracious! Was he some kind of beast? A Limitless Level in just one month! And with such monstrous strength, he still had the audacity to consider himself a failure! It was enough to drive anyone mad.