Li Yan was no longer silent. His eyes looked directly at Feng Tao as he spoke quietly, "I don't need any of these spirit stones..."
He paused slightly after saying these few words. Feng Tao's heart skipped a beat, and several thoughts immediately flooded her mind. In an instant, she felt a sense of shame and anger. She thought Li Yan was about to make some improper advances. A sharp glint flashed in her eyes, and she was about to sternly stop Li Yan from continuing, but Li Yan had already spoken again.
"Junior Sister Feng is a prodigy of the sect. Even if you are not now, you will be soon. I hope that in the future, you can do me a favor. That is, to help me rent the 'Shattered Star Chamber' once. Although the sect currently prohibits ordinary disciples from renting the 'Shattered Star Chamber,' with your master's status in the sect, and if you perform exceptionally well, I believe that if Martial Uncle Zhu thinks of a way, it can be arranged. Of course, this won't be now. My current cultivation level can't withstand that Fire Poison, but I need you to promise me this. When the time comes, I will naturally ask for your help."
The words were already on the tip of Feng Tao's tongue, but now she was stunned. What Zhang Ming said was completely different from what she had thought. But then she also remembered some other things about Zhang Ming. Since she had come to find this person, she had carefully inquired about Li Yan beforehand. It wasn't just the few words she had mentioned, having only overheard the elders' discussion.
According to the information she had obtained, this "Senior Brother Zhang" lived in seclusion and was a man of few words, a true ascetic. Apart from regularly going to the Hall of Deacons to collect his spirit stones every month, the most he did was borrow some classics from the "Starlight Pavilion." Feng Tao had also inquired about the types of classics Zhang Ming borrowed. The jade slips he borrowed most often were about artifact refining. It seemed this Senior Brother Zhang indeed wanted to walk the path of artifact refining, there was no doubt about it.
Now that the other party had proposed this condition, Feng Tao was only stunned for a moment before she came to her senses, secretly sighing in relief. However, she then became a little confused. "Senior Brother Zhang, are you planning to refine a natal magical treasure during the Qi Condensation stage? But..."
She was a little shocked. Was this Senior Brother Zhang planning to refine a natal magical treasure during the Qi Condensation stage? It wasn't that this didn't happen, but it was usually only done by core disciples in large sects. For ordinary Qi Condensation cultivators, both the refining materials and the magical treasure refining manual were a luxury.
Li Yan was actually relieved that Feng Tao asked the question directly. If she had agreed without asking for a reason, it would have been more troublesome. That kind of person wouldn't say anything to your face but would surely be making calculations in their mind and thinking more behind your back. If she were to speak carelessly to others, it would bring him a lot of trouble.
Li Yan waved his hand directly, a wry smile on his face.
"Junior Sister Feng, you think too highly of me. Me, a Qi Condensation cultivator, refining a natal magical treasure? Even if you sold me, I couldn't afford the materials to refine a magical treasure. Besides, even if I were allowed to enter the 'Shattered Star Chamber' to start refining now, I'd have to be able to come out alive. Since you've heard Martial Uncle Zhu and the others mention me, my background is surely no secret to you. My former master once gave me a decent, half-damaged magical artifact. He told me that there was a rune inside that would be very helpful to my artifact refining. If possible, if I could re-melt the magical artifact and extract that rune for study, it would be of great benefit to me. So, I want to use the high-grade earth fire of the 'Shattered Star Chamber' to re-melt this half-damaged magical artifact."
As Li Yan spoke, he reached into his robes and quickly took out a half-broken, drumstick-like object, placing it on the stone table in front of him. At the same time, Li Yan urged the spirit power in his hand, and Feng Tao immediately felt a wave of pressure rush towards her. She was startled at first, and her spirit power involuntarily surged out. However, Li Yan released and retracted it in an instant, and everything returned to normal. He then quickly put the object back into his robes.
In Feng Tao's eyes, Li Yan's actions all showed his caution. Although it was just a glance, and she hadn't had time to release her Divine Sense to observe carefully, based on the aura that was released and retracted just now, Feng Tao still recognized that this was a magical artifact of a considerably high grade. If it were intact, she believed this drumstick might even be a high-grade magical artifact. But perhaps due to severe damage, its power was greatly reduced.
For a moment, Feng Tao truly believed seventy to eighty percent of Li Yan's words. If an artifact refiner wanted to obtain the original sealing formations, restrictions, runes, and so on from a spirit artifact or magical treasure, it was only possible to extract them when the treasure was re-melted. But this process was not a guaranteed success. It depended on the refiner's own strength, luck, and other factors. But the method Zhang Ming mentioned was one of the most common ways.
Just from the pressure emanating from the half-drumstick-like treasure just now, to melt it, the earth fire provided by the "Lesser Shattered Star Chambers" in the valley might really not be enough. It was possible that after melting seventy or eighty percent, it couldn't be melted any further. The final result might be complete destruction, which was something no artifact refiner wanted to see.
At the same time, Feng Tao also remembered what the other party had said earlier.
'No wonder this Senior Brother Zhang said the time was not fixed and not in the near future. He is of course waiting for his own strength to improve. But that would require cultivating the 'Shattered Star Ice-Fire Manual' to the eighth layer. This explains why he has been cultivating arduously here all day long. He wants to improve his strength as soon as possible.'
At this moment, Feng Tao had figured out many things. After thinking about Li Yan's proposed condition carefully again, she felt that there shouldn't be too much of a problem. Because before, when she had heard that the "Shattered Star Chambers" were being restricted by the sect, she had also worried if she would have to wait fifteen years before she could use them. But at that time, the pale-faced youth had smiled and comforted her, saying that when her "Shattered Star Ice-Fire Manual" cultivation reached the eighth layer, he would go and ask the Sect Master to let her use the underground "Shattered Star Chambers." Although Feng Tao was skeptical at first, she later learned that Senior Brother Tang Tian and Senior Sister Wu Yizhen had each secretly entered once this year.
Fairness did not exist. Principles and precepts were only for the weak.
The rest was simple. Feng Tao just needed to swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao with her "Inner Demon" in front of Li Yan. A cultivator's oath cannot be spoken lightly, especially one with the "Inner Demon" or "Heavenly Tribulation" as the contract; the result was almost certain to be fulfilled. If Feng Tao were to go back on her promise, she would be eroded by her "Inner Demon" for the rest of her life, and her cultivation would never advance.
Although Feng Tao was cautious about this matter, feeling that the certainty was high, she quickly made the oath.
Immediately, the two agreed to meet at the sect's Hall of Deacons in half an hour. At that time, Li Yan would need to personally register his departure with the Deacon Elder. Then, they would meet up with the others there and leave directly. After all, Feng Tao could not wait.
After Feng Tao left, Li Yan smiled slightly, returned to his room, and sat down cross-legged. He went over what had just happened carefully in his mind. Only when he felt there were no flaws did he feel at ease. He never underestimated anyone, even if the other party was just a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl. Li Yan would treat her seriously.
As for the reason he had just given, it was actually just one of the reasons he had been considering for many days. Li Yan had been considering various possible scenarios and ways to get close to the "Shattered Star Chambers." He had already envisioned many possibilities.
As for that half-drumstick-like treasure, it was just a complete high-grade magical artifact that Li Yan had casually snapped in half. He didn't know when he had obtained it; it should have been during the great battle at Windy Cool Mountain. At that time, all kinds of magical treasures and storage pouches were flying everywhere. Any that appeared near him were often stuffed into the "Earthen Patch" by him. This drumstick was something from one of those storage pouches. At Windy Cool Mountain, the cultivators on both sides were at least at the Foundation Establishment stage. How bad could the things in their storage pouches be? No one would carry things like spirit artifacts on them unless they had special meaning. The lowest items in the storage pouches were high-grade spirit treasures, magical artifacts, and the like. Otherwise, they would not have any surprise effect in combat.
With Li Yan's current magical power and physical body, an ordinary magical treasure could be smashed to pieces with one blow from him, let alone destroying a magical artifact. He just needed to cover up the resulting spiritual power fluctuations. Li Yan was just bullying Feng Tao for her low cultivation, daring to snap a magical artifact right in front of her without her noticing.
An hour later, a streak of black light quietly left Falling Star Valley and flew straight to the northeast. Within the black light, six people in green robes were standing on a black shield. At a glance, one could tell they were all from Falling Star Valley.
Standing at the very front of the shield was an old man in a green robe. His hair and beard were graying. Although he had a smile on his face, and when he occasionally looked back at the few people behind him, the smile became even more amiable, his Divine Sense was constantly scanning the surroundings, not daring to be careless in the slightest.
Behind him stood three men and two women. One of the girls was beautiful, in the prime of her youth. It was Feng Tao, with a trace of anxiety on her face. The other woman was tall, with a slender waist and full hips, and an imposing aura. If Feng Tao was a budding flower, then she was a blooming peony. This woman was Feng Tao's Second Senior Sister, Wu Yizhen, at the tenth layer of Qi Condensation.
Needless to say, the three men were Li Yan, Tian Denghu, and Feng Tao's Eldest Senior Brother, Tang Tian. Tang Tian was also handsome and aloof, his sword-like eyebrows like a pair of flying swords, giving him a heroic and imposing air that made the two beside him pale in comparison, as inconspicuous as passersby.
At this moment, Wu Yizhen was constantly whispering a few words to Feng Tao. She could see the anxiety in Feng Tao's heart and had to comfort her from time to time. This little junior sister had a gentle personality and was well-mannered and reasonable, which had won the affection of their master and the rest of them. Before their master left, he had asked the two of them to take more care of this little junior sister. Now that the Feng family was in trouble, how could Tang Tian, as the eldest senior brother, let Feng Tao go back with only Martial Uncle Fang?
The main reason was that he also knew that with Feng Tao's aptitude, she would definitely shine in the sect in the future. Now that Feng Tao was weak, it was the best time to befriend her. Tang Tian had originally planned to accompany Feng Tao back alone, but Wu Yizhen's relationship with Tang Tian, though not confirmed as Dao Companions, was also one of mutual affection and was extraordinary. She immediately proposed to go along as well. The outside world was a bit turbulent now, and one more person meant more strength. Tang Tian couldn't dissuade her and had to agree.
Tang Tian, Tian Denghu, and Li Yan were standing silently at the back. Tang Tian had a cold and proud expression on his face. He squinted his eyes, deep in thought. Although he had been a little curious about this junior brother named Zhang Ming before, he had already lost interest. With such low cultivation, for Junior Sister Feng to insist on dragging this person along was truly superfluous. He didn't know what the little junior sister was thinking. Although Feng Tao had explained some of it, she hadn't told him everything.
As a disciple from a small family, Feng Tao had known since she was young about the cruelty of the cultivation world. She knew what could be said and what couldn't. The principle that "disaster comes from the mouth" had been taught to her by her family's elders time and time again. She would not reveal everything she knew about Zhang Ming without reservation.