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Chapter 125: Ring of Concealment (2)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Shangguan Bing'er revealed the struggle in her eyes, but she finally reaffirmed her stance. "Little Fatty, my mom is my only kin, can you forgive me?"
Zhou Weiqing gently held her in his arms, and this time Shangguan Bing'er did not resist as she rested in his broad embrace. "Little Fatty, I also can't bear to leave you. Ever since we met, although you often make me angry, but these few years together, I have grown used to having you by my side. Although you're a little afraid of death, a little shameless, and always such a rascal, but I know that your heart is really kind inside. If our feelings are true, such a separation should not matter much. Once we reach the Academy, won't we be together again?"
Zhou Weiqing put his face to her hair, saying: "Bing'er, how could I stop you from being filial? If only I didn't make the promise to Huyan Teacher… I should also spend more time with my mother. When I'm gone, if you are free, do help me visit my mother as well okay? Uh, no, it's our mother. Dad is often at the front lines, and she's also very lonely."
Shangguan Bing'er nodded and said: "I will. Go quickly, or it'll be even harder to part."
Zhou Weiqing held her shoulders and bent his head low. Looking at her beautiful eyes starting to mist over, he gave a light kiss on her lips and said softly: "When we reach the Fei Li Imperial Family's Military Academy, there won't be anyone to control us anymore, can we do 'it' then?"
"Your mind is always so dirty!" Shangguan Bing'er's tears broke into laughter and she punched him lightly on the shoulders.
Zhou Weiqing laughed heartily, saying: "It has to do with my happiness, how can I not fight for it. Alright I'm going to head off first." As he finished speaking, he turned and ran off, quickly disappearing around a corner.
Looking at his disappearing figure, Shangguan Bing'er stood there for a while, tears brimming in her eyes. After a while, she finally recovered and headed back home as well.
Zhou Weiqing ran off very quickly, not because he was in a rush to leave, but because he couldn't bear to leave as well, couldn't bear to see Shangguan Bing'er crying, and he was afraid he wouldn't be able to resist giving up his promise to Huyan Aobo and staying to accompany her.
Returning home for two days and accompanying his mother, Zhou Weiqing finally decided to head to the Palace. First was to visit his godfather, to bid farewell to him, and the other reason was of course regarding his betrothal to Difuya.
"What? You want to dissolve the betrothal? No way." The Heavenly Bow Empire Palace, study room. Di Fengling was dressed in the royal robes, seated at the dragon seat, and he rejected Zhou Weiqing's request without hesitation.
Zhou Weiqing gave a bitter smile and said: "Godfather, you know that Difuya doesn't like me at all, and she looks down on me, furthermore with my looks, I am not worthy of her!"
Di Fengling gave a humph, sizing up Zhou Weiqing before saying: "What's wrong with your looks? You're tall big and strong, what's wrong with that? Anyway, like or not, that's not her choice to make. Furthermore, you're no longer the same as before, you have already Awakened your Heavenly Jewels and become a Heavenly Jewel Master, how could I possibly find a better match than you in the whole empire?! Dissolving the betrothal, that's impossible, don't you know that a King's word isn't easily broken? Hmph, I, your father, being your father-in-law, is it a shameful thing for you?"
"I…" Zhou Weiqing stared at Di Fengling with his mouth agape. Although Di Fengling wasn't a Jewel Master, Zhou Weiqing was still like a little child in front of him. After all, since young, Di Fengling had seen him grown up, and was even more like a father to him than his own father. Even after knowing that his meridians were blocked and he couldn't cultivate, Di Fengling still treated him the same. It could be said that besides his own father, the person Zhou Weiqing feared and respected the most was this godfather, who was filled with the aura and authority of a king. "Godfather… I already have someone I love." Zhou Weiqing said tentatively.
"Oh? Who is it? Can she be prettier than my Difuya? Little Wei ah, I know that Difuya that child hurt you previously, but these few years she has also changed a lot. As a man, you shouldn't be so petty."
"Godfather, I'm telling the truth! I've already personally asked for that girl's hand in marriage and gotten her agreement. Furthermore, we've already … done 'it'. All that's left is to give you a bouncing god-grandson. I have to be accountable to her as well."
"What?!" Di Fengling stared at Zhou Weiqing. Although he knew about Zhou Weiqing Awakening his Heavenly Jewels, regarding what happened between Zhou Weiqing and Shangguan Bing'er, how could Admiral Zhou possibly have the face to tell him that. As a result, he naturally did not know.
"You little brat, how old are you only? And you've already done it with her? You… Sigh… " Di Fengling stood up from his dragon seat. Just as Zhou Weiqing thought he was about to get a scolding, he heard his godfather sigh and say: "Well, I guess I can't blame you. Kids these days, they grow up so fast. If I had known this would happen, I should have held Difuya's marriage to you earlier, then you wouldn't go out and pluck wild flowers 1!"
"Ah?" What type of situation was this? For a moment, Zhou Weiqing was bamboozled, wondering if Difuya was really Di Fengling's daughter or if he was Di Fengling's son. After all, Di Fengling seemed too obviously on his side.
"Little Wei, you must remember. The most important to a man is power, once you have power, then you can have confidence in yourself. A confident man is attractive to women. Godfather isn't against you having several wives, but you must remember to have restraint. Doing that too much isn't good for you as well. Understand?"
Looking at Di Fengling telling him that in a serious face, Zhou Weiqing was twitching in his heart. He suddenly felt that his godfather was almost like his teacher, both supporting him to chase more girls. The only difference was that one was telling him to do so with a perverted face, and the other was telling him in a matter-of-fact way, with a serious, dignified air. Yet, in truth, they were saying the same thing. "Godfather, about the betrothal…" Zhou Weiqing asked hopefully.
Di Fengling gave him a glare: "I, Your Father, already allowed you to marry little wives, you're still arguing with me? Hmph, shoo! Let me tell you, Difuya is also in the Fei Li Imperial Family Military Academy, you two better get along well. After graduation, I will personally hold the wedding ceremony for you both." Zhou Weiqing opened his mouth to say something else, but Di Fengling had already swept out of the room, not giving him a chance to speak any further.
Ugh! Zhou Weiqing was rather depressed now. What am I going to tell Bing'er now? Still, he soon came up with another plan. So, Difuya will also be in the Military Academy? Hmph, didn't she say she would rather marry a pig or a dog than me? I, Your Father, will let you know what a true rogue, a true scoundrel is, and she will know what real pain is! After graduation, she will naturally agree to come with me to dissolve the marriage together with godfather. Worse come to worse, I'll have to run away with Bing'er. Heh heh.
As for Di Fengling who had just walked out of the study room, he had a faint smile on his face, as he thought to himself. Little Brat, trying to fight with I, Your Father, you're still too young and naive to do so! Difuya, you can't let me down. I specially sent you to the Fei Li Military Academy to let you snatch that little brat's heart. Hua Feng has already told me that Little Wei's future will definitely outstrip Big Bro Zhou. With my daughter's beauty, how could she not capture his heart?
Alas, if Di Fengling knew who that the girlfriend Zhou Weiqing was referring to was the top beauty in the Empire, Shangguan Bing'er, he probably would not be so optimistic.
After he exited the palace, Zhou Weiqing went straight to Shangguan Bing'er's house. In the two years they were at the Heavenly Bow Unit, they had returned every year, and he had occasionally accompanied her over, and was thus rather familiar with the route.
Shangguan Bing'er stayed in a rather ordinary small house in the commoner part of town; even after she had been awarded the noble title of Viscount, they did not move. Of course, it wasn't that Shangguan Bing'er was unwilling to move, as she wanted to let her mother stay in a better environment. However, Tang Xian insisted that she was used to staying there and refused to move.
When Zhou Weiqing arrived, Shangguan Bing'er was in the garden with her mother planting vegetables. The garden was rather small, taking up about half of their already rather small courtyard. Zhou Weiqing stood at the entrance, looking at the beautiful mother and daughter pair planting in the gardens, and couldn't help but stare entranced.
"Why don't you come in?" Although Tang Xian had not even glanced in his direction, her voice rang forth.
"Hello Aunty." Zhou Weiqing grinned and entered the courtyard. Seeing him, a joyful look crossed Shangguan Bing'er's face, but it was quickly replaced by a sad look. After all, they were about to part for a few months, and she was feeling rather gloomy in her heart.
Tang Xian stood up, and even her simple clothing couldn't hide her beauty. She smiled at Zhou Weiqing and said: "Little Fatty, from what Bing'er said, you're headed to the Flying Hill City?"
In front of Tang Xian, Zhou Weiqing was always at his most honest and well behaved, and he quickly nodded his head and said: "Yup! I'm already 16 years old, and I promised Huyan Teacher to head over to learn from him."
Tang Xian nodded and said: "Little Fatty, there are two things that you must remember. First of all, do not spend too much time and energy on learning how to create Consolidating Equipment Scrolls. The sheer amount of time needed to master it is extremely taxing, and it will definitely affect your cultivation. With your Elemental Jewel Attributes, you have just too great a talent to waste." Zhou Weiqing quickly agreed. Towards Shangguan Bing'er's mysterious mother, he was rather respectful and fearful, and his mother's admonishment to him to listen to her was still fresh in his mind.
Tang Xian smiled faintly and continued: "The second thing is… When you Store Skills, do try your best to always store as many Control Type Skills as possible. Remember, you can never have too many Control Skills. Do you understand what I mean?"
Zhou Weiqing said honestly: "Not really."
Tang Xian laughed and said: "You're at least honest about that. Simply put, every time a Heavenly Jewel Master uses a skill, there will be a short period of time they will be unable to use it again2. For example, with your cultivation level, once you use your Touch of Darkness, within 10 seconds you are likely unable to continue using again. Am I right?"
Chapter 126: Ring of Concealment (3)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Zhou Weiqing was rather shocked in his heart, as what Tang Xian said was totally correct. After lots of experimentation, he had found out that he indeed required ten seconds after using the Touch of Darkness before he could use it again. This wasn't a matter of a lack of Heavenly Energy, but was the recovery period after the Darkness Attribute was used.
Tang Xian continued saying: "Ten seconds might seem very short to you now, but as your power levels grow higher, ten seconds is more than sufficient to decide your life and death ten times over. The more Control Skills you have, the more they can coordinate and overlap, and the initiative you have in the battlefield against your enemies. If you manage to control your enemies, you will be able to defeat or kill them easily. No matter how strong he is, as long as he is Controlled by you permanently, he will not even have the chance to counterattack. At the same time, a strong Heavenly Jewel Master usually has extremely strong defences. If you Control him and attack him once, you might not be able to kill him off. Under such circumstance, you will need to continue Controlling with different skills. Remember, while companions are important, none can compare in terms of reliability to yourself. Never put your life in another person's hands, if you want to be powerful, you have to first learn how to control yourself."
"Control yourself" Zhou Weiqing repeated the words, all of a sudden he felt as if a door had been opened in his mind. 'Control yourself' those words seemed so simple, yet with so many hidden profound secrets and deeper meaning behind it.
In an abrupt motion, Tang Xian raised her hand and a grey light shot forth towards Zhou Weiqing. Subconsciously, he raised his hands and caught it, only to see it was a black ring. As he examined it closely, he found it was totally black, not reflecting any light at all, and seemed rather ordinary.
Tang Xian stroked Shangguan Bing'er's hair tenderly as she said: "Little Fatty, that ring is called the Ring of Concealment, and it can be considered Bing'er's dowry that I'm giving you. If you wear it on the ring finger of your left hand, and circulate some Heavenly Energy within, you can change the look of your Alexandrite Cat's Eye into any of your Elemental Attributes, thus concealing its identity."
Zhou Weiqing was overjoyed. This item might be pretty useless to most people, but it was an extreme treasure for him. Not only could he prevent any trouble arising from anyone discovering his Alexandrite Cat's Eye, he could also use it to trick the enemies he was facing but allowing them to surprising them with an Elemental Skill they would never expect. It was as if this item was custom made for him!
"Aunty… uhh, no, Mum, since this is Bing'er's dowry, then I shall not be polite." Zhou Weiqing quickly wore it on his ring finger delightedly, causing Shangguan Bing'er to flush in embarrassment as she hugged her mother's arm.
Tang Xian smiled faintly and said: "Little Fatty, remember, if I find that you hurt Bing'er, I will take back the ring, along with your life."
Although she was smiling as she said that, Zhou Weiqing felt a chill down his spine and he could only grin foolishly and not speak.
Tang Xian said: "You two chat a while, I'll head in first." As she said that, she looked at Zhou Weiqing before heading back inside.
As soon as Tang Xian left, Zhou Weiqing relaxed noticeably. In a few steps, he had ran over to Shangguan Bing'er's side, hugging her. She cried out in surprise: "Quick let go of me, my mum will see us!"
Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: "Our mother has already confirmed our relationship, she won't mind seeing us. Come, give your husband a kiss."
Shangguan Bing'er lifted her hand to cover his mouth. "Don't play anymore. Little Fatty, let me lean on you for a while okay?"
Zhou Weiqing started, and his gaze turned soft as he put her down, softly enveloping her in a warm hug. He then told her everything that had happened in the palace and his own thoughts.
"If you do not marry Her Highness, can you get pass His Majesty and your father?"
Zhou Weiqing said solemnly: "Bing'er, do not worry. I will do my best to distinguish myself and gain merits for the country. No matter what, I will never marry Difuya. I like you more not because you're more beautiful than her, but because your character is so much better than hers. In my heart, you are so much better than her, perfect to me. Bing'er, I love you." Shangguan Bing'er's brow quivered and she hugged him closer.
Zhou Weiqing stayed for almost 4 hours before leaving reluctantly. However, before he left, he passed the Spatial Ring to Shangguan Bing'er. After all, she would have to head to Fei Li Empire alone in a few months time, and he would feel better if she had Da Huang and Er Huang together with her for protection.
After leaving Bing'er's house, Zhou Weiqing returned home to bid his mother goodbye, before packing up his things, shouldering his Black Dawn Bow, and leaving the Heavenly Bow City towards the Fei Li Empire.
Zhou Weiqing's current cultivation was a huge difference from the past, and as soon as he left the Heavenly Bow City, the eleven energy whirlpools from the Death Acupuncture Points he had broken through all started spinning at top speed, greedily drawing in energy from the atmosphere and replenishing his energy while he charged forth into the Stars Forest, taking a straight-line pat towards Fei Li Empire. At this time, six Death Acupuncture Points of the second portion of his Immortal Deity Technique had already been broken through.
The second portion of the Immortal Deity Technique were the eight Death Acupuncture Points on the back, and the ones that he had broken through were as follows: The Fei ShuDeath Acupuncture Point at the 3rd section of the spinous process of thoracic vertebra, the Jue Yin Shu Death Acupuncture Point at the 4th section, Xin Shu Death Acupuncture Point at the 5th section, Jian Shu Death Acupuncture Point at the 2nd section of the spinous process of lumbar vertebra, the Ming Men Death Acupuncture Point between 2nd and 3rd portion, and the Zhi Shi Death Acupuncture Point which was 3 inches from the Ming Men Death Acupuncture Point.
As compared to the five Death Acupuncture Points of the first portion, the second portion's Death Acupuncture Points were a lot worse, many of them can instantly cause death. In this two years, although Zhou Weiqing seemed to have cultivated extremely quickly, almost catching up to Shangguan Bing'er, but whenever he broke through a Death Acupuncture Point, it was a painful battle for life and death. Furthermore, the sheer pain he had to go through made him almost feel like ending his own life, torturing all his senses. Luckily, every time he broke through his Death Acupuncture Points, he had Shangguan Bing'er nearby to accompany him. When he was breaking through the Ming Men Death Acupuncture Point, the intense pain had almost made him go crazy and bite his own tongue off, and it was Shangguan Bing'er who shoved her arm into his mouth, and up till now, there was still the bite mark visible due to that incident.
The Immortal Deity Technique was simple to cultivate, and extremely fast, but the pain it brought was the drawback. However, its good points were also clear, currently with his eleven energy whirlpools spinning at the same time, Zhou Weiqing's cultivation rate was many times faster than previously. Even though the amount of Heavenly Energy required was now much larger, but his cultivation rate had not slowed. The greatest benefit was of course the sheer speed at which his energy regenerated; when using skills during battle, his energy reserves could last almost as long as his teacher Mu En, who was already at the 5th level of the Heavenly Shen Energy Stage. From there, you could tell how overpowered the Immortal Deity Technique was.
At the same time, as he broke through more Death Acupuncture Points, the stronger his Immortal Deity Shield was. With eleven energy whirlpools, the shield's defense was much stronger. Since it was automatically triggered upon any attacks, he was nearly immune to any ordinary arrows by now.
"Fat Cat, I say, shouldn't you turn big and let me ride you?" Zhou Weiqing tweaked the ears of the Little White Tiger which was nestled comfortably in his arms, snoozing.
"Wuu wuuu" Fat Cat gave a small cry, then ignored him, going back to rest.
Zhou Weiqing said exasperatedly: "You little thing, you can clearly grow bigger, and there is no one else around now. You better serve your master well now! These two years, I've fed you well, and even accompanied you to sleep every night, yet you're still ignoring me! Hmph, be careful or I, Your Father, will beat you! Look at Da Huang and Er Huang, at least I can ride them, you're so useless compared to them."
When it heard that, Fat Cat opened its eyes angrily, and gave two furious howls, as if saying How dare you compare me to those two stupid bears!
Alas, Zhou Weiqing could do nothing about Fat Cat. Ever since that day when this little fellow had saved them all, it had never turned big again. Although he said he fed it well, that was rather against his conscience. After all, these two years, that little thing had not ate or drank a single thing, nor had it grown at all, with the only difference being the change in its fur. By now, Zhou Weiqing had grown used to it being by his side, and playing and teasing it had also become a favourite past-time.
…
7 days later. Flying Hill City.
Rushing at his maximum speed, Zhou Weiqing easily made his way to the city as he was already familiar with the route. Previously, when he had entered the Heavenly Bow Unit, he had written to Huyan Aobo about his circumstances, lest his teacher think he was still in the normal army camp and went looking for him. After entering the Flying Hill City, Zhou Weiqing quickly headed to the little courtyard where Huyan Aobo stayed. However, before he could knock on the door, he heard a loud booming laughter sounding out in pride.
"Wahaha, hahaha! I, Your Father have finally succeeded after two years! Who says that only Zong Stage Consolidated Equipment Masters are able to create Socketing Scrolls! I, Your Father, have also succeeded! Wahaha, if not for the fact that I wasn't a Heavenly Jewel Master, I would have long become a Zong Stage Consolidated Equipment Master!"
"Old Huyan, you really succeeded?" Another excited voice sounded out.
"Yes! I finally succeeded after two years. This little thing is even tougher to make than Consolidated Equipment Scrolls."
Zhou Weiqing tapped on the door, thinking to himself: What did this Huyan Teacher make this time, to be so excited? Taking two years to create a scroll? That must be something good! Could it be for me? Heh Heh!
"Didn't you see the sign at the door?" Huyan Aobo's impatient voice came from within.
Only then did Zhou Weiqing see a sign hung at the side of the door, on it was written: "Not selling Consolidated Equipment Scrolls."
"Huyan Teacher, it's me, Zhou Weiqing!" He could only shout out helplessly.
Strangely, as soon as he shouted that, silence descended upon the house. After a few seconds, the door opened and Huyan Aobo and Feng Yu's surprised faces popped out. Huyan Aobo blinked at him and said: "Little Brat, have you taken up fortune telling?"
Chapter 127: Socketing Scroll (1)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Zhou Weiqing started, then said: "Huyan Teacher, you've gotten fatter! What do you mean I've taken up fortune telling?" Looking at the round Huyan Aobo, Zhou Weiqing asked curiously.
After two years apart, Feng Yu did not look any different, but Huyan Aobo clearly seemed older, with more white hair and black circles around his eyes.
Feng Yu said: "What he means is, your arrival was just too coincidental. He had just completed making a Socketing Scroll, and you, this little brat, arrived the next moment. Isn't that some fortune telling?"
Zhou Weiqing beamed and said: "Is it for me? Huyan Teacher, I've already gotten my second set of Jewels, but I followed your instructions and did not Consolidate Equipment."
Huyan Aobo lifted his hand and pulled Zhou Weiqing into the courtyard, while Feng Yu quickly closed the door. "Come in first, then we'll talk."
Zhou Weiqing followed the two into Huyan Aobo's workshop, only to see it was messy with papers and unknown objects strewn all over the place; they were likely used for creating Consolidating Equipment Scrolls.
Zhou Weiqing saw Huyan Aobo's mysterious and smug look on his face, and asked curiously: "Teacher, you're already a Consolidated Equipment Grandmaster, did you need to be so happy about making a Consolidated Equipment Scroll?"
Huyan Aobo gave a humph and said: "What do you know! I, Your Father, did not create any ordinary Consolidated Equipment Scroll! Look!" As he said that, he lifted up his hands, and a small gold shard the size of a fingernail appeared in his hands.
On first glance, the round shaped gold shard did not seem impressive, but as Zhou Weiqing examined it closely, he couldn't help but draw in a sharp intake of breath.
On top of the tiny gold shard, there were many thin and fine lines and various etchings. They seemed to have some sort of rule about them, and there were even extremely tiny gemstones embedded in the midst of the etchings, with rubies, gold-green cat's eyes, and even the Darkness Heavenly Jewel Masters' black opals, as well as some other things Zhou Weiqing wasn't familiar with.
On just that small gold shard, there were more than a hundred tiny gemstones embedded in a unique formation. Zhou Weiqing could sense that a strange energy wave was circulating in this gold shard. Even if he did not know the cost of the shard, just the exquisite craftsmanship alone was worthy of praise. "Teacher, such fine craftsmanship, what is it for?" Zhou Weiqing looked up at Huyan Aobo.
Huyan Aobo held out his chest proudly and said in a smug tone: "That is called a Socketing Scroll. Do not be misled by its small size, it is worth a huge amount, or rather it can even be called priceless. Such a Socketing Scroll would be worth a minimum of a million gold coins in an auction house. The previous time you came, you saw three Consolidated Equipment Scrolls, and the price of the three of them added together would still be worth less than this Socketing Scroll! The cost of creating this alone took me 200,000 gold coins, and that isn't even including the amount wasted over the two years, which is probably around 100,000 or more gold coins."
Zhou Weiqing said curiously: "It looks very different from the previous Consolidated Equipment Scrolls!"
Huyan Aobo gave a humph: "You ignorant brat, of course it's not the same, that's because it isn't a Consolidated Equipment Scroll. A Socketing Scroll, as the name suggests, will allow you to create an additional socket on your current Consolidated Equipment."
With your Overlord Bow as an example, it originally has one socket, which means you can only socket a single Elemental Jewel. With this Socketing Scroll, you can add another socket, allowing you to socket two Elemental Jewels. With that, when you attack, you will be able to activate two Elemental Skills… That effect of that, you shouldn't need me to describe more right? This is even more useful for a little brat like you who has so many elemental attributes, and having a second socket on an equipment is worth at least ten times more than the first socket.
Zhou Weiqing asked curiously: "Why don't you just create the equipment with two sockets then?"
Huyan Aobo looked at him with a complicated expression on his face, saying: "Do you think I haven't thought of that? It's just that I am not able to do so. To create a 2 socket Consolidated Equipment Scroll, we need to be at least a Zong Stage Consolidated Equipment Master; that is to say, the minimum requirement is to be a Heavenly Jewel Master. I will never be able to do it, but I hope that you can do so in the future. Zong Stage Consolidated Equipment Master's every creation is like a demi godly weapon, do you think they are so easily obtained?"
"Here, take this and use it on your Overlord Bow." As he said that, Huyan Aobo passed the Socketing Scroll to Zhou Weiqing.
Zhou Weiqing was astounded, saying: "Teacher, this is way too valuable, I cannot accept it." Although he had always felt that a disciple should take advantage of teacher, this Socketing Scroll was just too valuable. Not even counting the price of more than a million gold coins, just the fact that it had taken Huyan Aobo two whole years of labour to craft it, such was the value.
"You fool, don't you understand? I, Your Father, created this specially for you. Otherwise, what did you think I spent so much time, energy and effort for? It's not possible for me to become a Zong Stage Master, isn't it much more relaxing and profitable for me to create the ordinary Consolidating Equipment Scrolls?" Huyan Aobo said exasperatedly.
Zhou Weiqing's eyes widened: "Teacher, you mean, you created this specially for me?"
Huyan Aobo nodded and said: "Since I asked you not to Consolidate any other Equipment for your Physical Jewels, I still need to ensure that you have sufficient self defence capabilities. As long as you add an additional socket to your Overlord Bow, even though it might not be equal to those demi godly weapons of a Zong Stage Master, but it will at least be close. Alas, I just do not have the vigour remaining to create another one, otherwise you'll be able to have 3 sockets! Hmph!"
Taking in a deep breath, Zhou Weiqing's gaze turned resolute, and with a loud *Putong* sound, he knelt in front of Huyan Aobo. Receiving the Socketing Scroll seriously, he said in a solemn tone: "I, Zhou Weiqing, swear by my Heavenly Jewels. In this life, no matter what price I pay, I will definitely become a Zong Stage Consolidated Equipment Master or higher and complete Huyan Teacher's wish. If I fail to accomplish this, I will be punished by the Heavens!"
Zen's notes:
It's a rather short release this time, the reason as stated below. I normally do not translate the author's notes, but this one really touched me. I can imagine how much effort it takes to write a story day after day like that, just like how Huyan Aobo used his vigor and life energy creating that Socketing Scroll. I'm not sure how many of you watched Bakuman, but man, that really reminded me of the uncle from the show. *teardrop*
Author's note:
Hi, I'm San Shao's wife, posting this chapter on his behalf. Extremely sorry that this chapter is much shorter than usual. This morning, he started having a fever. As it was his birthday, he refused to eat medicine. Alas, his temperature shot to above 39, so he took the medicine. After sleeping most of the day, he actually reached 43 degrees. Even while in a drowsy state from taking medicine, he still told me to remember to post the chapters at 5pm today. Earlier, I saw many of you friends and readers wishing him a Happy Birthday, and I thank you all on his behalf. Looking at him, my heart really hurts, this is his birthday after all! I apologise, my emotions are rather ragged today, but I really wish that you all can wish him a speedy recovery as well. It has been 7 years, and I've seen him writing like this everyday. In the past, he was extremely healthy, but now he is starting to get sick more often. Once again, apologies for the single short chapter today. I really do hope that he does write lesser, I'm sorry, if you must blame someone, do blame me instead…
Chapter 128: Socketing Scroll (2)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
When Huyan Aobo said that he had spent two years creating the Socketing Scroll just for him, Zhou Weiqing felt an uncontrollable warm feeling welling up within him. Looking at Huyan Aobo's clearly aged features and the dim light in his eyes, it tugged deeply at his heartstrings. He did not know how else to express his feelings, and so he knelt down in front of Huyan Aobo and gave a solemn oath. This time, he was a hundred percent sincere, and did not have any sly thoughts in his mind.
Huyan Aobo started a little, a strange gleam in his eyes. However, a moment later, he sighed and helped Zhou Weiqing up. "Little Wei, I'm actually very conflicted in my heart. To be honest, I really do want you to learn from me and to become a Zong Stage Consolidated Equipment. However, I'm also afraid that by doing so, it will ruin your future. With your talent, you can be an unbelievably powerful Heavenly Jewel Master… but if you spend so much time and effort on learning how to create Consolidated Equipment Scrolls, I'm afraid…"
Zhou Weiqing did not expect that Huyan Aobo would warn him like that, saying exactly the same thing as what his future mother-in-law Tang Xian had said.
With a smile, Zhou Weiqing said: "Teacher, it's too late for that. I have already sworn by my Heavenly Jewels, and I will not be able to go back on my word. Furthermore, who knows if your disciple, I, am a genius at creating Consolidating Equipment Scrolls as well? I can do both!"
Huyan Aobo shook his head helplessly, saying: "You, this little brat, are always so optimistic. I really hope you can keep that mentality when you start learning. If it were that easy to become a Consolidated Scroll Master, the price of the scrolls wouldn't be so high. Come, use this Socketing Scroll first, and we'll start your lessons tomorrow."
"Alright." Zhou Weiqing lifted up his right hand and focused his will, and his Heavenly Jewels appeared. Of course, two sets appeared this time round, instead of the one that he had the last time he was here. On his right wrist, two pure Icy Jade Physical Jewels revolved, and with a quick flash of light, the Overlord Bow appeared in his hand in a small cloud of icy mist.
The current Overlord Bow seemed a little different from its previous look; the entire bow seemed thicker and heavier, and the golden tattoos which were originally only on the body of the bow had now extended even to the bowstring. The now golden bowstring was extremely eye catching, with swirling light around the bow, causing it to seem even more domineering.
Indeed, as Zhou Weiqing got his second set of Heavenly Jewels, his Overlord Bow and all his Stored Skills all evolved once, and were considered 'leveled up'. With so many Stored Skills for his first Jewel, Hua Feng told him not to rush into Storing more skills for his second Jewel yet.
"So quick? Little Wei, what's your cultivation level of Heavenly Energy now?" Feng Yu, who was standing at the side, was surprised by his having two sets of Jewels and couldn't help but ask.
Zhou Weiqing gave a big grin and said: "Level eleven, just one more level and I'll complete the Heavenly Jing Stage and breakthrough to the Heavenly Shen Energy Stage."
As soon as he said that, he heard the sounds of two deep breaths, as Huyan Aobo and Feng Yu had shocked expressions on their faces. After the passage of two years, Zhou Weiqing was only 16 years old. To be able to cultivate up to his second set of Jewels in two years was already very good, indeed four levels in such a short time was already considered genius level. However, they truly had not expected that in such a short time he had raised seven levels to eleven! He was just 16 years old! He was just one step away from reaching the Heavenly Shen Energy, which for a Heavenly Jewel Master meant reaching the Zun Stage; and for Heavenly Jewel Masters it was also when they were no longer considered newbies.
Feng Yu muttered: "Old Huyan, I'm starting to think that letting Little Wei learn to create Consolidated Equipment Scrolls from you is a big mistake."
Huyan Aobo gave a bitter smile and said: "I really do not know if it's lucky for me to choose this little rascal as my disciple or not."
While they were speaking, Zhou Weiqing had taken up the Socketing Scroll, and under Huyan Aobo's directions, he circulated his Heavenly Energy into the scroll.
As soon as his Heavenly Energy entered the small gold shard, it lit up like a glittering gemstone, various colours shining and mixing, and a torrential energy seemed to surge like a wave through the room.
Huyan Aobo had a very serious look on his face as he waved his right hand, a layer of silver light expanded out from his body, enveloping Zhou Weiqing and preventing the energy from the Socketing Scroll from leaking out. After all, there were many Consolidating Equipment Masters living nearby, and if the energy from the scroll leaked out, it could attract unnecessary attention and cause trouble for them. "Press it to the Overlord Bow, right about an inch above the original socket." Huyan Aobo cried out.
A flash appeared in Zhou Weiqing's eyes as he maintained his output of Heavenly Energy into the Overlord Bow and the Socketing Scroll, as he used his left hand to press the scroll to the bow according to Huyan Aobo's instructions. In the instance when the two met, Zhou Weiqing shuddered, as did the Overlord Bow. Soon after, he could clearly see the Socketing Scroll melting into the Overlord Bow, and gradually a small socket formed in the corresponding position.
One of the reasons why the Socketing Scroll was so expensive was also because of its absolute success rate. Although it was extremely difficult to create, it was rather easy to use, and was thus considered an extremely rare treasure. After all, which Heavenly Jewel Master did not want another socket on their Consolidated Equipment? If cultivation level of Heavenly Energy and number of Heavenly Jewels was the basic hardware of power, then Consolidated Equipment, Stored Skills would be the software. Hardware was extremely important, but often the software was key in determining the outcome of fights, especially in fights between Heavenly Jewel Masters of the same level.
When Zhou Weiqing felt that his Heavenly Energy had been drained by a third, he heard a soft *Ting* sound, and the entire Socketing Scroll had melded into the Overlord Bow, the thick gold light instantly enveloping the entire bow before spinning around. In the next instant, the Overlord Bow vanished, turning back into the Icy Jade Physical Jewel and returning to revolve around his right wrist.
"Done!" Huyan Aobo exclaimed with relief. Although he knew that in theory his Socketing Scroll was supposed to have a 100% success, it was only until it had actually succeeded that he was reassured. "After adding the socket, you will not be able to use the Overlord Bow for the next 3 days as it needs a period of recovery to complete the 2nd socket."
Zhou Weiqing laughed heartily and said: "Thank you teacher!"
Huyan Aobo waved his hands and said: "You've traveled a long way, go and rest for now. I also need some rest for today." As he said that, he walked towards his bedroom. Zhou Weiqing could clearly see that even with Huyan Aobo's high level of cultivation, his steps were rather shaky. That showed how much energy and heart he had expended these two years.
Originally, Zhou Weiqing thought that with Huyan Aobo's state of exhaustion, he would need to at least rest for a few days. However, early next morning, he was awoken by his teacher at dawn.
After a simple breakfast, Huyan Aobo led Zhou Weiqing to the simple room which he had stayed before. There was a small table with a bunch of materials on it. Zhou Weiqing thought to himself: This teacher sure is eager!
Huyan Aobo was clearly still not in a good state, clearly the day of rest was insufficient for him to recover completely. "Little Wei, your talent is just too outstanding, especially with the Alexandrite Cat's Eye with that mix of superb elemental attributes. Teacher does not want to waste too much of your cultivation time as well, so I hope that you will only spend 2 hours a day practicing making Consolidated Equipment Scrolls. We will begin your lessons today."
As soon as he started talking about Consolidated Equipment Scrolls, Huyan Aobo looked a lot more energetic, with a light in his eyes. "Before I teach you how to create Consolidated Equipment Scrolls, let me ask you. Do you know what our personal Power Jewels are? Or perhaps, use a simple line to describe our Power Jewels."
Zhou Weiqing thought for awhile and said: "Our Power Jewels are part of our bodies."
Huyan Aobo smiled faintly and said: "You're right. The Power Jewels are indeed part of our bodies. In fact, they are full of life, and aren't just simple, dead jewels, no matter Physical Jewels or Elemental Jewels. When our Power Jewels Awaken, it is actually our inborn innate essence being unlocked, granting us the power. I'll talk about Elemental Jewels later, and concentrate on Physical Jewels first. To me, Physical Jewels are like the meat, bones or even internal organs of our body, or they can even be likened to an embryo. As for our Consolidated Equipment Scrolls, what they do is to let them grow into their final form. It can be said that we are like an architect, inputting our designs into the Physical Jewel, allowing it to grow and form into their final forms according to our designs, trying our best to let it best release its hidden potential. As for this design, it requires Spatial Energy to be input into the Physical Jewels, that is the reason why the very basis of Consolidated Equipment Masters is the Spatial Attribute."
"Do you still remember how excited I was when I knew you had both Spatial and Wind attributes? That is because the Wind Attribute will allow you to increase your speed, and it is also much more controllable than just the agility boost from Physical Jewels, as you can control it with your will. As such, as long as you can successfully complete a Consolidated Equipment Scroll, you will always be able to do it with increasing speed, and you will be able to improve more with practice, and it is considered to have the effect of half the work, twice the effect."
"When many Consolidated Equipment Masters train, they focus and get gridlocked in a rather common misconception. That is the endless chase to improve quality and ignoring speed. However, I personally feel that this method isn't correct, as my view is that speed and quality are equally important. For example, even if you can make the best Consolidated Equipment Scrolls, but you only make one in your whole life, what use is that? Although the number of Jewel Masters are much lower than any other profession, but they are still substantial, and the requirement for Consolidated Equipment is just too huge. Many Jewel Masters aren't able to Consolidate Equipment for all their Physical Jewels because they aren't able to afford the scrolls."
As he said up till there, Huyan Aobo's voice turned stronger: "My dream is that one day, every Jewel Master will have enough Consolidated Equipment Scrolls to use…"
"Little Wei, now, let me start telling you the basics of creating a Consolidated Equipment Scroll…"
Chapter 129: Freak Amongst Geniuses (1)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
In a blink of an eye, a week had passed. Huyan Aobo had taught all the basics of creating Consolidated Equipment to Zhou Weiqing, including the various methods as well as a lot of basic information.
Creating Consolidated Equipment Scrolls required the usage of a special type of paper, and this paper was called Consolidating Paper, and the main ingredient in creating that paper was the nucleus core of a Zong Stage Heavenly Beast. Of course, one nucleus core could be used to make more than ten thousand sheets of Consolidating Paper after being ground to dust, as each sheet only needed a small amount. The dust had to be combined with Cat's Eye Jewels (that usually signified the Spatial Attribute in Jewel Masters) which also had been ground to dust, as well as several other rare and expensive items, in order to create the paper.
In general, the Consolidating Paper was usually only sold in some large cities, and a set of ten thousand of those would cost almost fifty thousand gold coins. That was of course the price of the most basic ones, made from a Low level Zong Stage Heavenly Beast, and if it were from a higher level beast, the price would skyrocket higher.
After having the Consolidating Paper, the next step would be to craft and draw out the design. To create a Consolidating Equipment Scroll, one had to first design the equipment's type, look, usage and various attributes. It could be said that this step was the most important step, and also an extremely complicated step.
The final step was of course the actual creation of the scroll, and it was also rather complex and required many intricate steps, of which the most troublesome was the blending of Consolidating Ink. Different Consolidating Equipment Scrolls would require different types and different blends of Consolidating Inks, which were usually a blend of Heavenly Beast blood, nucleus cores, various ground precious gemstones, ground herbs and various other precious materials. Just the numerous varied recipes and materials alone were almost countless.
Huyan Aobo was definitely a good teacher – he described in detail every step of the creation process of Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, and with some of his own simpler works as examples, he would show and tell the various design concepts, the theory behind them, how to blend the various Consolidating Inks and many other of the basics, ensuring that Zhou Weiqing understood the theory behind them instead of just memorising. After a week had passed, Zhou Weiqing had at least had a very basic understanding of how to create Consolidating Equipment Scrolls.
To Huyan Aobo, the blending of Consolidating Inks was actually one of the simpler steps, though troublesome. He himself had already mastered more than a thousand types of blending recipes, and within the next few years, Zhou Weiqing could slowly memorise and familiarise himself with them. The most important thing to learn now was the design, after all it was also the easiest to make mistakes on, as it was necessary to consider what Jewel Master was using the particular scroll.
Zhou Weiqing was definitely not stupid, but with such a vast and constant inflow of information, he felt as if his brain was always in a half dazed state. Luckily, he was not a person who dwelled upon things he couldn't control, and he just tried his best to understand and absorb all the design concepts that Huyan Aobo was teaching him. After all, as Huyan Aobo said, he did not need to rush to memorise all the various blending recipes of Consolidating Inks now, as he could always slowly memorise them in the future. However, design was key, and some of the more intricate details were much better to be learned under the tutelage of a good teacher now, than him having to puzzle it out himself in the future.
"Little Wei, over the past few days, I have taught you many things, and it will take you quite a while to digest it all. From today onwards, we will add an additional 4 hours of practice time. After all, you will be able to learn and digest everything quicker as you try out creating the scrolls yourself, as only when you experience it and practice, will you be able to feel and perceive everything for yourself. One of the most important factors for us Consolidating Equipment Masters is the success rate of our creations. With my current standards, even when creating the most basic Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, my success rate is only about 30%. Do you know what is the significance of success rate?" When Huyan Aobo was teaching Zhou Weiqing, he was always deadly serious, and could be definitely considered a strict teacher.
Zhou Weiqing immediately replied: "The significance is money. Every sheet of Consolidating Paper wasted is 5 gold coins wasted. If we include the cost of the Consolidating Ink, that would be almost a dozen gold coins wasted in total."
Huyan Aobo nodded in satisfaction, he was indeed a miser after all. "That's correct. Every failure is a huge loss in gold, time and energy. As such, when you are creating the scrolls, you must have your full focus and concentration, even on every tiny detail. During this period, you should be at the peak for your spiritual energy and do so with your utmost enthusiasm, where the Consolidating Equipment Scroll is your everything."
Atop a table, there lay a sheet of Consolidating Paper spread out to reveal various lines and traces emanating energy, coming together to form a detailed design. This design was what Zhou Weiqing had created yesterday, and it was of a shield, done with Huyan Aobo's Xuan Wu Shield as a base design, and was mainly focused on defence. After the design had been outlined and completed, the actual creation process would be to use the Consolidating Ink coupled with Spatial Energy, to meld together with the Consolidating Paper and form the final product of a Consolidating Equipment Scroll.
Zhou Weiqing picked up a weasel hair brush with a jade body, dipping it into the Consolidating Ink which Huyan Aobo had prepared for him. Taking a deep breath, he released his Heavenly Jewels, spinning his attribute wheel to the silver area, and focusing his full concentration on the Consolidating Paper before him, he slowly dipped the brush down.
This Consolidating Ink was a pale gold colour, and as he slowly circulated his Heavenly Energy into the brush, it quickly started emitting a pale silver glow. Zhou Weiqing followed Huyan Aobo's instructions, moving his brush slowly and firmly, moving it across the paper with strength, following the design's trace.
Huyan Aobo stood behind him, staring at his work without blinking, a satisfied look in his eyes. Zhou Weiqing's Physical Jewel was strength, and that helped keep his hands steady without any trouble, and that was an unexpected satisfying find.
At this point, Zhou Weiqing had barely drawn less than an inch when he suddenly felt as if something unknown broke, and the originally glowing trace of the design suddenly dimmed and vanished. "Stop." Huyan Aobo said solemnly.
Zhou Weiqing lifted his head and looked at him, confusion in his eyes.
Huyan Aobo said: "You've just started creating the scrolls. Remember, you must definitely go slow, to allow the Consolidating Ink to properly combine with your Spatial Energy, before fusing completely with the Consolidating Paper; only then can you continue going forward. At the same time, you cannot go too slow as well, or too much of the Ink will be left at a particular spot, ruining it. To Consolidating Equipment Masters, the most difficult thing is to grasp the perfect timing, and this can only be done by countless of hours of practice, until it is ingrained in your muscle memory. Different Consolidating Ink and Consolidating Paper will have a different level and rates of fusion, and the feeling of the complete fusion is also different. You have only just begun on your journey of learning, and you do not need to rush things. Without at least ten thousand sheets of practice, you will likely not be able to succeed. You must be patient."
Zhou Weiqing said with a heartbroken look on his face: "Just like that, one sheet of Consolidating Paper is wasted? That's 5 gold gone in an instant! This is literally burning money! Teacher, I no longer think the price you set for your Consolidating Equipment Scrolls are expensive!"
Huyan Aobo gave a humph and said: "Did you think grooming and developing a Consolidating Equipment Master is that easy?! It's all a matter of burning time and money. You still have four months together with me, and I hope that by the time you have to leave for the Fei Li Military Academy, you can at least succeed once in creating a basic Consolidating Equipment Scroll. Once you succeed, you just need to maintain practice everyday, and hopefully you can become a Low Level Consolidating Equipment Master within 3 to 5 year. The basics are extremely important, so you need to ensure you master them well. Do not worry about the materials, I will prepare them for you."
Zhou Weiqing nodded, and though he couldn't bear the thought of such waste, he threw the ruined paper to the side. From the other side of the table, he took a new sheet from the stack that lay there. Huyan Aobo said: "You just keep practicing slowly, I will call you when it is time to eat."
"At least creating Consolidating Equipment scrolls will not be a complete waste of time in terms of training; although it will not help you improve your cultivation level, it is very good training in terms of cultivating your heart and spirit, and will also improve the control of your Heavenly Energy. As you practice creating Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, you will also find that your control over your Stored Skills will be much finer. Alright, you go ahead and practice, I'll go rest first." Huyan Aobo was no longer young, and he still needed time to recuperate from his two years of painstaking effort.
After Huyan Aobo left, Zhou Weiqing started on his second attempt at creating a scroll. This time, he still failed after barely an inch of drawing, though the failure was due to him being too slow and causing the Ink to gather. He could actually distinctly feel the time taken for the Consolidating Ink and Paper to fuse, and Huyan Aobo had also pointed out the several points he needed to take note of, but when he was actually doing it and when he circulated Heavenly Energy into the brush, he found that it wasn't as easy to control as he felt. Just like what Huyan Aobo said, it was a rather strange and profound feeling when the two fused. It could be said that almost every Consolidating Paper, even when made from the same nucleus core, had a very minute difference, but sometimes even those extremely minute differences could cause the entire creation process to fail.
Zhou Weiqing continued trying for the next seven sheets, all resulting in failure, and by now his entire forehead was coated in sweat. Due to an over concentrating and focusing of his spirit, his eyes were stinging.
Putting down the brush, he muttered to himself as he thought through his experience: "The grasp of the timing… perception… timing… perception… How can I use my perception to master the timing? That's too difficult, no wonder Teacher said it requires at least ten thousand sheets of practice before having the possibility of success. I'll need to rest my spirit for a while, so I can focus properly once again, otherwise there'll be even less chance of success."
As he thought that, Zhou Weiqing just lay back onto the ground, releasing his Heavenly Energy and Jewels. As he rested, a sudden flash of brilliance struck him.
Colourless… Time. Zhou Weiqing suddenly flipped back up into a seated position, glee in his eyes. "That's right! Isn't the key to this the grasp of timing? If I can't control the perception, then why not control the time directly. My 6th Attribute is Time after all!"
As he thought of that, excitement filled him. Since he had gained his second set of Jewels, the Absolute Delay Stored in his first Jewel had evolved, but its effect was still paled in comparison to his other Skills. Its range had increased from 5 yards to 6 yards, as well as improved in terms of the control time. The only good point about the skill was that its cooldown was very low, being only 3 seconds. However, it did take up quite some Heavenly Energy, and with his current cultivation level, he could only use it 8 times in succession; with the recovery of the energy whirlpools, it was still only 9 times at max. With such a range and only a second delay, Zhou Weiqing had not found much use for it in battles, at least not yet. He had always felt that there wasn't much of a point with just a second of delay.
Chapter 130: Freak1 Amongst Geniuses (2)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
However, perhaps now it seemed like this skill would be extremely useful to him. In his previous failures, it didn't even require a second of control, even half a second of control or less would have helped him pass that one inch distance. Having two sets of Jewels had another benefit, he could use two different elements at the same time. To an ordinary Heavenly Jewel Master, that might not be something they could use, but to Zhou Weiqing who had six attributes, it was very useful. After having his second Alexandrite Cat's Eye, he was able to use two skills of different attributes at the same time, for example: Time and Spatial.
How will I know if this works if I do not try? Experimenting was the only way to test the theory, and Zhou Weiqing eagerly took another sheet of Consolidating Paper, closing his eyes for a bit to focus himself, before beginning once again.
Like the previous times, his Spatial Energy entered the brush tip, and he started moving it along the pre-drawn designs. Very quickly, he reached the area where he had problems with the rhythm.
Absolute Delay. Without hesitation, Zhou Weiqing released his 6th Skill, causing a large amount of Heavenly Energy to be expended, but the brush in his hand was able to move according to his wishes, the previous problem area was thus instantly passed and completed with a flourish, almost reaching three inches.
Looks good! Having completed this section, the Consolidating Ink gathered and solidified, shining with a dim glow, signifying that the portion had already been fused as according to the rhythm. Zhou Weiqing was delighted, but he could not be careless at this point. After all, it took just one mistake for the entire scroll to be ruined and all previous effort to go to waste.
Every sheet of Consolidating Equipment Scroll was formed by many countless lines and traces to form the design, and within each brush stroke of the portion, one could not stop at all or it would be totally ruined. However, after completing the portion in the brush stroke, one could stop to rest. After all, there was a limit to the Consolidating Equipment Master's Heavenly Energy, and to complete an entire Consolidating Equipment Scroll required a large amount of Heavenly Energy.
Seeing that his idea was actually effective, Zhou Weiqing was delighted. He dipped the brush once more into the Consolidating Ink, continuing with the second brushstroke. The facts showed that the Absolute Delay's control of time was a perfect fit when infusing Spatial Energy into the Consolidating Equipment Scroll. Whenever the brush reached a critical point and he was unable to properly handle the rhythm and timing, Absolute Delay was able to allow him to control himself and complete the brushstroke.
Although this made his overall speed much slower, and also greatly increased energy consumption, it at least led him step by step towards success. Alas, this Consolidating Equipment Scroll ended up failing near the end as well. It had been reaching the last few brushstrokes and Zhou Weiqing had gotten too excited, forgetting to factor in the amount of Heavenly Energy expended, and had started on the next stroke too quickly. As such, he had not been able to use Absolute Delay at a critical period and the entire sheet of Consolidating Paper was ruined once more.
However, he was not depressed by that loss at all, and staring at the ruined sheet in his hand, he started laughing smugly. The first time was always the toughest, and the pain was perhaps greater than joy this round. However, now that he had the experience under his belt… Heh Heh.
Sitting cross legged, Zhou Weiqing focused his attentions on his eleven energy whirlpools, spinning them at the max to recover his Heavenly Energy. When he was fully recovered, he started on a new sheet once again, and this time he was much more experienced. After all, failure was the mother of success, and this time he felt in a much better position; for some of the previous bottlenecks, he even felt he had a 20% chance of success Equipment Scrolls without using Absolute Delay.
Zhou Weiqing's perception was indeed correct. When creating a Consolidating Equipment Scroll, the most critical period was the first time. As long as one succeeded once and managed to feel and understand the timing and rhythm, it could only get easier.
However, in order to successfully complete his first Consolidating Equipment Scroll, Zhou Weiqing did not dare to be careless. He once again made use of Absolute Delay for any possible bottlenecks; ensuring he had sufficient rest in between to recover his Heavenly Energy three times.
At long last, the final brush was complete. A bright silver glow shimmered around the faint gold Consolidating Ink as it fused with the Consolidating Paper. Instantly the entire sheet flashed in a golden light as a faint energy wave appeared, as if the sheet of Consolidating Paper had come to life.
Zhou Weiqing stared blankly at the completed Consolidating Equipment Scroll in front of him, feeling an indescribable sense of accomplishment welling up within him, as if he had created life! Indeed, created life, he felt as if he had granted that sheet of Consolidating Paper life, turning it into a Consolidating Equipment Scroll!
Without hesitation, Zhou Weiqing picked up another sheet of Consolidating Paper. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and went through the entire process of his previous success once again, before starting on the next sheet.
This time, he took his time, not making use of the Absolute Delay for every brushstroke, and only for the ones which he felt he definitely had no chance. Still, he actually managed to complete this second Consolidating Equipment Scroll in half the time of the previous one!
Once he completed the second sheet, he started on the third, then the fourth, and he got more proficient with every successful completion of a Consolidating Equipment Scroll, and his speed grew faster and faster. After swallowing the black pearl, his senses were strengthened to far beyond that of any normal person, and that was extremely useful in the process of creating Consolidating Equipment Scroll. As soon as he felt something was amiss, he was able to instantly use the Absolute Delay to control it. This continued for the rest of the day, and besides a few times where he lost focus and failed, he actually managed to complete more than a dozen scrolls.
"Little Wei, it's time for dinner." Huyan Aobo's voice rang out from outside. Although he was resting, his room was near enough to listen to Zhou Weiqing's room, and seeing him practice without pause, he felt extremely satisfied.
Opening the door, Huyan Aobo entered the room, and as Zhou Weiqing looked up at him, he was given a huge shock. Zhou Weiqing's eyes were streaked red, and his face was pale.
"Little Wei, you didn't stop at all?" Huyan Aobo asked with concern, though his eyes were filled with pride and happiness. As a Consolidating Equipment Grandmaster, he was very clear that for a Consolidating Equipment Master to succeed, the most important thing was perseverance. Zhou Weiqing had only just started learning how to create Consolidating Equipment Scroll, and he was already so engrossed in it; as a teacher, he felt a sense of pride and satisfaction.
"It's already time for dinner? That's so fast!" Zhou Weiqing muttered to himself as he clambered up from the ground. All of a sudden, he felt the earth whirl around him as blackness threatened to invade his vision, and he stumbled backwards.
Huyan Aobo quickly caught hold of him, circulating a strand of pure Heavenly Energy into Zhou Weiqing's body. He was very familiar with such a condition, when the spirit was depleted and exhausted beyond the limits, and he had often lapsed into such a condition himself when creating Consolidating Equipment Scroll. Helping Zhou Weiqing to lie down once again, he told him to rest, as that was the most important thing in such a condition.
Next, he randomly picked up one of the Consolidating Paper Zhou Weiqing had left strewn on the ground, hoping to see what progress his beloved disciple had made. Even if it was normal to fail all this while, he still wanted to see how much he had completed thus far; it was a good gauge of innate talent which was extremely important for Consolidating Equipment Masters.
"En?" As soon as the Consolidating Paper entered his hands, Huyan Aobo instantly felt that something was wrong. He was just too familiar with Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, knowing them just like the back of his hands, and the familiar energy flow from the sheet made his fingers tingle, and his eyes stared at the sheet in his hands, he was dumbfounded and silent for a moment.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Feng Yu, who was sitting in the dining hall with his bowl, preparing to eat, was startled out of his seat by the sudden cry of shock, and with a quick flash he had rushed to the room. "Huyan Old Man, what are you spasming about??" When he reached the room and saw that Huyan Aobo was alright, he couldn't help but say angrily: "What's wrong? Did you see a ghost?"
Huyan Aobo muttered to himself: "It's scarier than a ghost. Look!" As he said that, he shoved the scroll in his hands into Feng Yu's hands.
Feng Yu took the scroll and examined it closely, before saying casually: "It's just an ordinary beginners Consolidating Equipment Scroll, what's so special about it? Creating such an item, you still have the face to cry out loud?"
Huyan Aobo looked at him, then at Zhou Weiqing, speechless. Feng Yu could clearly see that this old friend of his had a twitching face, and all of a sudden, comprehension dawned upon him and his eyes widened as he exclaimed: "Wait… do you mean to tell me… this scroll… this scroll was done by him??!"
Huyan Aobo did not reply Feng Yu, instead rapidly picking up the various Consolidating Papers lying on the ground. Feng Yu also pressed closer, and together, the duo whose ages added up to more than a hundred years, looked at sheet after sheet of Consolidating Papers. As they did so, their expressions grew more and more colourful.
"This… is this for real?" As they finally finished looking at the last Consolidating Paper, Huyan Aobo almost collapsed onto the floor.
Feng Yu muttered: "If it isn't you cheating, if it isn't done by you, then it is indeed real. Besides the two of you, there aren't any other Consolidating Equipment Masters. Huyan Old Man, I think you have really picked up a treasure this time."
Under normal circumstance, when Huyan Aobo met with something exciting, he would laugh out loud heartily, just like when he created an extremely rare scroll. However, this time, he wasn't even able to laugh, feeling a sense of weakness in his body.
"What happened to me? My head aches so badly." At this moment, Zhou Weiqing slowly picked himself up from the ground. As a Heavenly Jewel Master, and having swallowed the black pearl, his physique and recovery rate was definitely at an 'inhuman' level.
With two *swoosh* sounds, the two old men instantly surrounded him, and Huyan Aobo held out a shaking hand holding the Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, waving them before Zhou Weiqing and said: "Little Wei… are these done by you? You… you succeeded?"
Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: "Yup! I succeeded. That really felt good, just as if I was granting life to these Consolidating Papers. I'm almost addicted to that feeling! Ahhh, my head really hurts now though. Teacher, Senior Feng Yu, don't stare at me like that! I know I'm a genius, but this genius is really hungry now.
Chapter 131: Freak Amongst Geniuses (3)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Huyan Aobo leapt forward, his large stomach bumping into Zhou Weiqing as he grabbed his shoulders. Huyan Aobo said excitedly: "How can genius describe you, you're not a genius, you're a freak amongst geniuses! Quick, tell me, how did you manage to do it? I can't believe it, a person who has never created a Consolidating Equipment Scroll before can actually succeed after half a day of trying! Furthermore, with a success rate of over 60%!!"
"Teacher, it's time to lose weight! Also, can we eat and talk, I'm really hungry!" Zhou Weiqing said helplessly. He was indeed famished, after a whole day of hard work and intense focus, where his Heavenly Energy had been drained and replenished several times over, and his vigor was totally drained; how could he not be hungry.
"Alright, alright, let's go eat now. Even if you want to eat this fat body of teacher's I will let you!" Huyan Aobo was almost dancing with joy now, waving the stack of completed Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, so excited that he didn't even know what he was saying anymore.
If Mu En were here, he would definitely give Huyan Aobo this assessment: This old fellow, laughing until his chrysanthemum flower 1 has blossomed.
At the moment, Zhou Weiqing had a splitting headache, and he was still rather fuzzy. Hearing Huyan Aobo's words, he subconsciously said: "Teacher, I don't like to eat too oily foods."
Huyan Aobo started, and Feng Yu had already burst out laughing. With Huyan Aobo's normal temper, he would have sent a slap flying over. However, this time, his hand raised up high but couldn't land down; Zhou Weiqing in his eyes was more precious than a pot of gold!
After eating, Zhou Weiqing looked much better, having obviously recovered. Under Huyan Aobo and Feng Yu's constant questioning, he told them about how he had succeeded. "What? Time? You actually have one of the three Saint Attributes, time?"
Zhou Weiqing asked in surprise: "Teacher, you know about the time attribute?"
Huyan Aobo said exasperatedly: "Even if I haven't eaten pork before, I've seen pigs run before2! Pretty much every experienced Jewel Master would have heard of the Saint Attributes." As he said that, he sucked in a deep breath before saying: "Little Wei, don't you know. In the Jewel Master world, as long as any Jewel Master appears with any of the Saint Attributes, even if it's just a Elemental Jewel Master, he or she will be highly sought after by all the larger forces in the world. The Saint Attributes true power isn't just on their combative strength, but they each also have some unique usages."
Regarding the Saint Attributes, Zhou Weiqing had only heard Tang Xian mention them briefly, and he did not know many details about them. Hearing Huyan Aobo mention them, he couldn't help being curious and asked: "Teacher, so what are these unique usages of the Saint Attributes?"
Huyan Aobo said: "Let me give you a simple example. Each of the three Saint Attributes have their own unique innate skills. The Divine Attribute's innate skill is resurrection, Spirit Attribute's innate Skill would be glamour and hypnosis, while Time Attribute's innate skill would be the control of time."
"Wow! Resurrection?" Zhou Weiqing's eyes widened as he exclaimed. "Doesn't that mean the Divine Attribute should be the strongest?"
Huyan Aobo shook his head and said: "That's not necessarily true, they each have their own strengths, and I am not certain myself. After all, the true profound mysteries of the Saint Attributes aren't something that a mere Jewel Master of my level would know. Although the Divine Attribute has the resurrection innate skill, I have heard that there are many restrictions to it, and it isn't as easy as you think."
Taking another deep breath, Huyan Aobo's little eyes were sparkling like two stars. "I have never imagined that one day, someone would actually have Wind, Spatial and Time attributes all by himself, and even more so that such a person would be my disciple! Little Wei, do you know? With your Time Attribute, as long as you master intricate control of time, then you have an advantage that no other Consolidating Equipment Master in the world has, that is, a 100% success rate! Furthermore, as long as you have enough Heavenly Energy to sustain yourself and sufficient materials, given enough time you can definitely succeed in creating any Consolidating Equipment Scroll. Furthermore, as long as you successfully create one, you should be able to master it and continue creating them."
"In addition to the increase in speed from the Wind Attribute, I cannot imagine any other person more suited to being a Consolidating Equipment Master."
Turning to Feng Yu, a strange note appeared in Huyan Aobo's voice: "Seven days, in just seven days, he has done something that most ordinary low level Consolidating Equipment Masters aren't able to do. The only thing he lacks now is knowledge, experience and sufficient Heavenly Energy. All normal estimates are useless for him!"
"Before starting to teach him, I was worried he might take too long to learn and affect his cultivation. However, from now, I should be worrying that he learns too quickly, and this teacher will soon be useless to this little rascal."
Huyan Aobo grabbed hold of Zhou Weiqing's shoulder and said: "Little Wei, from today onwards, I ask that you spend the next four months focusing totally on training to be a Consolidating Equipment Master, and when you leave here, that should be the time that you graduate from my teachings. Everyday, you will only have 4 hours of rest, 8 hours to learn from me, and 12 hours to practice creating the scrolls. I want you to learn everything about Consolidating Equipment Masters in the shortest time possible, and hopefully become a low level Consolidating Equipment Master by then."
"Yes!" A massive interest for the profession of Consolidating Equipment Master had been sparked within Zhou Weiqing as well. To anyone, to focus entirely on doing something, the most important thing was to have a sense of accomplishment, and to him now, that was definitely something he had in abundance.
Even Huyan Aobo did not realise currently that he was not just grooming an excellent Consolidating Equipment Master, but someone who would eventually surpass him… someone who would reach the heights of Consolidating Equipment Masters… someone who would be a human money printing machine. After all, with Zhou Weiqing's speed and success rate of creating Consolidating Equipment Scrolls… Heh heh…
From that day onward, Zhou Weiqing's schedule was packed to the brim. Everyday, Huyan Aobo was still able to get some rest after teaching him, but Zhou Weiqing only rested for 4 hours, including eating hours. Luckily, he had an extremely good physique, and his entire being was enjoying being immersed in the joys of the Consolidating Equipment Master profession.
Huyan Aobo did not try to pull up a seedling in the mistaken hope of helping it to grow3, and did not jump the gun and allowing Zhou Weiqing to start creating high level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls. Instead, he instructed Zhou Weiqing to learn and practice every single one of the low level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls he had in his considerable memory. The mission he gave Zhou Weiqing was that before leaving for the Military Academy, he had to design and complete a set of 1000 Scrolls of all the 392 basic Consolidating Equipment Scrolls Huyan Aobo taught him.
As an experienced Consolidating Equipment Grandmaster, Huyan Aobo knew just how important establishing a strong foundation and good basics was. No matter how much of a genius Zhou Weiqing was, if he did not build a good foundation, he would never to go on to amount to great success. As such, although he transferred a considerable amount of knowledge to Zhou Weiqing, he stopped him from creating Mid Level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls and beyond.
According to Huyan Aobo, the higher level scrolls were all made up of mixing and matching of the basic scrolls, or could even be considered 'leveled up', more complicated versions of all the various basic skills. Even if Zhou Weiqing had the terrifying 'cheating' Time Attribute, if he did not have the solid foundation with a bedrock of basic skills, he would only amount to a copying machine, and not a creator.
…
4 Months Later.
"Teacher, what will you be teaching me today?" Zhou Weiqing had an eager look on his face as he looked at Huyan Aobo. In these four months, he had noticeably lost a large amount of weight, going down an entire size, with sunken eyes and obvious dark circles around them. His skin was no longer the healthy bronze, but rather pasty and white after spending 4 months without seeing the sun.
However, if one examined closely, they would notice that although his body was abnormally fatigued, his eyes were much more brilliant than four months ago, filled with the desire for knowledge. In his mind, it was filled with the profound secrets of Consolidating Equipment Masters.
In the past four months, this pair of master and disciple had not left the house, one teaching and one learning with all their hearts and minds. Huyan Aobo, despite his miserly ways, had spent all his life savings buying Consolidating Paper and the various materials needed for all the different Consolidating Inks.
As for Zhou Weiqing, he had also managed to learn pretty much everything about the basics of Consolidating Equipment Masters, mastering the various knowledge and skills; from design, to creation, to memorising all the various Consolidating Ink Recipes, as well as other tips and tricks.
"Today, we will not be learning anything else." Huyan Aobo looked at Zhou Weiqing with a faint smile on his face. He was sitting cross legged in front of Zhou Weiqing; though of course his stomach was almost sagging to the floor.
Sensing the kind benevolence of his teacher's eyes, Zhou Weiqing was rather surprised by Huyan Aobo's words. "Not learning anything? But… Teacher, I have to leave for Fei Li City in just a few days, there's no time to waste!"
Huyan Aobo smiled and said: "Haha… you little fool, Teacher no longer has anything left to teach you; I have already passed on everything I know to you in this four months. Although you still need a long period of time to digest all my teachings, and need a lot more practice, it is indeed true that I have nothing new left to teach you."
Zhou Weiqing was stunned, and he could sense the complicated feelings from Huyan Aobo. "Teacher…"
Huyan Aobo said: "Little Wei, I was never ever able to become a Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Master. Not because I didn't have enough talent, or because I didn't work hard enough, but because my cultivation level was never enough. My body and my Heavenly Energy was never sufficient for me to create anything more than a single socketed Consolidating Equipment Scroll."
"Creating a Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Scroll has always been my dream, alas I was restricted by being a mere Elemental Jewel Master. However, you are different, you are a Heavenly Jewel Master, and not just an ordinary Heavenly Jewel Master, but one richly endowed by nature, with six elemental attributes, of which many are rare. I hope that even when you go to the Fei Li Military Academy, you still spend 2 hours a day on practicing to be a Consolidating Equipment Master. With your talent, 2 hours is more than enough."
"In any case, you are leaving soon, and I have a gift for you."
Chapter 132: Legendary Consolidated Equipment Set (1)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Zhou Weiqing started. "Teacher, you have given me so much already, how can I accept anything else from you?"
Huyan Aobo laughed and said: "Well, you can consider it an exchange instead then. In about 3 days time, you should have finished all sets of the 392 types of basic Consolidating Equipment Scrolls right? I'll use this gift to swap with your 392 sets of scrolls. Your teacher's life savings have been wiped out by you, if I don't sell any scrolls, I'll be destitute."
Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: "How about leaving me a few? As you know, I'll need to spend in the Fei Li City as well. Furthermore, I plan to Store some Skills on my second Elemental Jewel before leaving."
Huyan Aobo laughed and said: "Little brat, you're still haggling with me. Alright, I'll leave you 10 sets, that should be sufficient for your needs. Furthermore, I recommend you do not Store Skills in the Flying Hill City Skill Storing Palace, just head directly to the Fei Li City. It is after all the capital city of Fei Li Empire, and it has the largest Skill Storing Palace in the entire empire, and it is also the main headquarters. There should be much higher grade Heavenly Beasts there. With your speed and success rates of creating Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, you are a human money-printing press, how can you be worried about not having enough money in the future? Alright, here is the gift." As he said that, Huyan Aobo took off a necklace from his neck, handing it to Zhou Weiqing.
The necklace was glowing with a dim gold light, looking simple and unadorned. From a single glance, it was really old and unassuming, with only the round gold-green cat's eyes jewel embedded in the middle being of value. However, it held a thick aura of spatial energy, and Zhou Weiqing guessed it would be a Spatial Object of some sort.
Teacher is giving me this necklace? The thought flashed in Zhou Weiqing's mind. After all, the nearly 400 sets of basic Consolidating Equipment Scrolls which he had created painstakingly were worth quite a bit. Although the scrolls were just basic low level ones, and even with 1000 of them they did not guarantee success in Consolidating, but it shouldn't be any issue selling each set for 30000 gold coins. With so many sets, it would at least be more than 10 million gold coins, was that necklace worth that much?
Zhou Weiqing was not trying to quibble with Huyan Aobo about this exchange, but was only just curious about it. After all, Huyan Aobo had invested so much money and resources into him, just in terms of raw materials he had spent more than 6 million gold coins worth, wiping out Huyan Aobo's savings. As Huyan Aobo had mentioned earlier, it wasn't that easy to become a Consolidating Equipment Master, and in general even low level Consolidating Equipment Masters barely made money; as the materials were just too expensive. it was only until mid level Consolidating Equipment Masters or beyond where the income would start to pick up. Of course, often objects are valued according to their scarcity, and with the low numbers of Consolidating Equipment Masters, that also drove the price of low level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls up higher.
Huyan Aobo personally put the necklace on Zhou Weiqing's neck and sad: "The gift for you is inside that necklace."
Realisation dawned upon Zhou Weiqing; the necklace was just a container for the gift.
Huyan Aobo said: "Do you remember why I told you not to Consolidate Equipments for your second set of Jewels?"
Zhou Weiqing nodded and said: "You mentioned it was because of Consolidating Equipment Sets."
Huyan Aobo nodded and said: "That's right, Consolidating Equipment Sets. The gift I have for you is a set of design drawings for a Consolidating Equipment Set. It's value cannot be priced by mere gold. Little Wei, let me ask you, do you know how Consolidating Equipment Scrolls are classified?"
Upon hearing a test, Zhou Weiqing quickly sat up straight and said: "The classification of Consolidating Equipment Scrolls are according to the levels of the Masters who create them. From low to high, they are – Low Level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, Mid Level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, High Level Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, Grandmaster Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Scrolls and finally God Tier Consolidating Equipment Scrolls. In terms of Consolidating Equipment Scroll Sets, they can be considered one level higher than their base; for example a Grandmaster Consolidating Equipment Scroll Set can be considered Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Scrolls, but it has to be an entire set."
Huyan Aobo nodded in satisfaction, saying: "You're right. The gift I have for you is a set of design drawings for a Set of ten Consolidating Equipment Scrolls. These were designed by an extremely skilled God Tier Consolidating Equipment Master. However, when he finished designing this set, he had been overly exhausted, having spent all his life vigor in doing so, and had passed away. However, each design from a God Tier Consolidating Equipment Master is worth as much as a God Tier Heavenly Beast's nucleus core.
Upon hearing the words God Tier Heavenly Beast, Fat Cat, which had been snuggled up next to Zhou Weiqing and snoozing away, moved slightly, opening its eyes and glancing at Huyan Aobo. At the same time, Zhou Weiqing also asked curiously: "Teacher, what is a God Tier Heavenly Beast? Is it stronger than a Zong Stage Heavenly Beast?"
Huyan Aobo gave a disdainful humph before saying: "In front of a God Tier Heavenly Beast, what is a Zong Stage Heavenly Beast? They cannot even be compared! As you know, when a Heavenly Jewel Master reaches 9 Sets of Jewels and the Zong Stage, he still has 3 more stages ahead of him. The Heavenly Jewel Master with a 10th Set is called a Heavenly King, with an 11th Set, Heavenly Emperor, and with the 12th Set, Heavenly God. The Heavenly Beasts also have a corresponding level."
Zhou Weiqing was shocked and said: "Then the God Tier Heavenly Beast you mentioned is equivalent to a 12 Jewelled Heavenly Jewel Master?"
Huyan Aobo nodded slowly and said with pride: "Now, do you know what the 10 designs I am giving you represent? They aren't just the designs, but also include the recipes of the Consolidating Ink required. most importantly, this set of God Tier Consolidating Equipment Designs are specifically created for Strength Attribute Heavenly Jewel Masters; and furthermore it is an entire set."
Zhou Weiqing could only stare dumbfounded before he finally said: "God Tier design, and also a set? Since sets are considered one level higher, what kind of classification is that?"
A gleam appeared in Huyan Aobo's eyes: "In this world, we have a saying: Legendary. There are less than 10 Legendary Sets which have been passed down through the ages, of which I'm not sure which are even complete. Although I dare not say that ours is the one and only set, it is still a masterpiece from time immemorial. This great God Tier Consolidating Equipment Master is our great ancestor, the founder of our particular sect of Consolidating Equipment Masters. The reason why I hoped that you would one day become a Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Master is because the minimum requirement for creating these Designs is exactly to be a Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Master. Little Wei, this set of designs have been passed down through the ages from master to disciple, yet none of us have ever successfully created the entire set. Now, I am passing it to you in hopes that one day, I can witness you creating this Legendary Set."
Shock, a strong mind blowing shock reverberated in Zhou Weiqing's heart, as he subconsciously lifted his hand to hold the necklace, as his breathing grew ragged and rapid.
Huyan Aobo said solemnly: "The entire set of 10 designs have been examined in detail and researched, and all of them have agreed that they are designed in sequence and should be created and used in sequence, from easy to hard. The first 3 design drawings can be created by Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Masters. While the fourth can still be created by a Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Master, though it has to be backed up with the power of a Low Level Zong Stage Heavenly Master. The fifth will require a Mid Level Zong Stage Heavenly Master, while the 6th requires a High Level Zong Stage Heavenly Master. The last four scrolls actually require a God Tier Consolidating Equipment Master, backed up by at least a Heavenly King level of power. Furthermore, that isn't the most difficult portion."
Huyan Aobo's last line almost made Zhou Weiqing puke blood, as he said in a quavering tone: "That's not the most difficult portion?? Then what is the most difficult?"
Huyan Aobo said with a bitter smile: "The most difficult thing is actually the sheer amount of rare and expensive materials needed for the Consolidated Ink required for this set of Scrolls. In fact, after looking at the materials required, I have pretty much lost the will to even collect them. This set of designs have been passed down through 1100 years, and have gone through 21 generations of master disciple Consolidating Equipment Masters. However, out of them, only 4 of our ancestors who had reached the Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Masters attempted to create this, and of them all, only one actually succeeded. Furthermore, he only managed to create a single scroll before wiping out his life savings. Even with the Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Scrolls having a ten percent success in Consolidating, but just a single one isn't much of a use, and has always been stored in this Spatial Necklace ever since."
Zhou Weiqing drew a cold breath as he said: "Teacher, does that mean that over the past thousand years, of all our ancestor teachers, besides our Founder, there haven't been any other God Tier Consolidating Equipment Masters?"
Huyan Aobo said exasperatedly: "Did you think that God Tier Consolidating Equipment Masters are cabbages that grow on the roadside1? Did you think they appeared that easily? In our three thousand years of Consolidating Equipment Master history, there have only been about a dozen or so God Tier Consolidating Equipment Masters recorded, of which, all of them have been famous names. For our sect, only the honoured founder who designed this Legendary Set was a God Tier Consolidating Equipment Master. After which, there has only been one other person who has the chance of becoming a God Tier Consolidating Equipment Master."
Zhou Weiqing asked: "Who is that?"
Huyan Aobo looked at him steadily before saying: "It's you."
Zhou Weiqing started. "Me?"
Huyan Aobo said solemnly: "Yes that's right, it's you. Not even the great founder's innate talent was comparable to yours. Do you know how long I took to complete all 392 sets of beginner Consolidating Equipment Scrolls?"
Zhou Weiqing shook his head.
Huyan Aobo said: "Ten years, it took me a whole ten years, and I was praised by my teacher for being a genius. If not for the fact that I was restricted by not being a Heavenly Jewel Master, I would definitely have been able to become a Zong Stage Consolidating Equipment Master. However, what about you? You took a mere four months to complete what I did in 10 years. The set of basic Consolidating Equipment Scrolls is actually the most important test for our sect of Consolidating Equipment Masters, and we are only considered graduated once we have completed this test. That means, having done so, you have actually already reached a Mid Level Consolidating Equipment Master. Taking four months to train into a Mid Level Consolidating Equipment Master, that is unprecedented in the entire history of Consolidating Equipment Masters, and you are indeed unique in that sense."
"In the past, this set of design drawings were passed down to disciples only when the Master was about to pass away. However, I feel your talent is just too great, and I truly believe that it will be able to be used to its maximum capabilities in your hands. As such, I am passing it down to you now. I hope that in the future, you will be able to create this set and use it for your own Physical Jewels Consolidated Equipment. If in the future, you ever do complete this set, then you will be the first Consolidating Equipment Master with a full Legendary Set."
Zhou Weiqing said: "Teacher, hasn't anyone else been able to use a full Legendary Set before?"