Chapter 78: Sword Casting Pool

“Way too expensive out there… nothing but black-hearted profiteers…”

Ye Rong searched the auction house for the remaining pieces of the Rainbow Set. Just as he’d hoped, his search turned up dozens of matching pieces of gear, including his own Rainbow Bracelet and Rainbow Ring. There were also other pieces like the Rainbow Ring (Green), Rainbow Belt (Orange), and Rainbow Crystal Necklace (Yellow). However, the indigo and violet-colored gear were missing. They couldn’t be found in the auction house either, proving they weren’t easy to collect.

The individual Rainbow Set pieces weren’t high-grade, and their scattered attributes were mostly average. Selling prices ranged from thirty taels of silver to two taels of gold. Steeling himself against the ‘flesh-cutting’ cost, Ye Rong bid on the cheapest: the Rainbow Ring (Green) and the Rainbow Belt (Orange).

As for the Rainbow Crystal Necklace (Yellow), its price started at one tael of gold or more. This was mainly due to its unique attribute: Monster Karma Points +10%. Scarce things were precious. No matter how useful the attribute truly was, right now, the only ways to increase Karma Points were by killing monsters and completing quests. Ye Rong had never seen any other gear with Karma-boosting properties. The Rainbow Crystal Necklace (Yellow) seemed to be the only one, naturally driving its price up.

For Ye Rong, who possessed less than two taels of gold, this price felt unacceptable. Besides, even if he gritted his teeth and bought it, he still couldn’t complete the Rainbow Set. If it were truly the very last piece he needed, he might have considered paying a much higher price.

“Oh right, brewing ingredients too! Need to see if anyone’s selling those.”

Life Professions were precious and rare. However, the Brewer profession had very limited use early on. Its earning potential couldn’t match that of several other popular professions. Few people actively pursued Brewing unless they were avid drinkers. But since he already had the Brewer profession, letting it go to waste unused seemed foolish. He should at least brew a few good bottles to taste himself. If the flavor was good, he might even take some to Jiang Shu, that old ghost. It might please the old man, reminding him of his duties as a master and possibly leading him to offer Ye Rong some higher-tier magic treasures.

Without Flying Swords or Magic Treasures, even Dao Scrolls like the ‘Ancestral Hall Manuscript’ from last time were excellent. Ye Rong fondly remembered the huge leap in experience that thing gave him.

He found many ingredients for crafting First-Grade Jimo Aged Liquor, all priced very cheaply— just a few taels of silver per set. Ye Rong bought a large batch. He realized he was only missing the Yellow Berry ingredient; everything else was already gathered.

“A Flying Sword Message from Dongliu? Telling me to go back to watch Manzhu Lver forge her sword?”

A Flying Sword landed precisely in front of Ye Rong, hovering steadily.

Ye Rong thought for a moment. He had finished his business in Chengdu City. So, he attached a letter to his Chuyun Sword, quickly scribbling a line on it with his superb calligraphy brush, and sent the Flying Sword Message back.

This Chuyun Sword had mediocre combat stats, making it unsuitable for fighting. But it was perfect for Flying Sword Messages. Back when he’d acquired it, Ye Rong had specifically valued its excellent flying speed attribute above all else.

“Damn, these people all upgraded their weapons big time in just a few days!”

Ye Rong grumbled resentfully. The players who had completed their Initiation Tasks to become Qingcheng Formal Disciples had each been taken as students under the Third-Generation Disciples. Depending on the monster materials they handed over, they just needed to complete one more task. Then, their respective masters would help forge an Immortal Weapon for them.

The strength and wealth of the Third-Generation Disciples varied greatly. Therefore, the Immortal Weapons these disciples received also differed significantly in quality.

Generally, they got the top-tier among Third-Grade Immortal Weapons, with attributes slightly better than Ye Rong’s Taixuan Ice Soul Sword. If the master was powerful, they might receive a Fourth-Grade Immortal Weapon, even if it was the weakest kind within that tier.

“Manzhu Lver’s master is Lv Linggu, famously the Qingcheng Sect’s ‘treasure hoarder girl’ among the Third-Generation Disciples. The flying sword she grants is definitely a Fourth-Grade Immortal Weapon! And she actually gets a special furnace lighting ceremony for forging it!”

Their shared boss-hunting expeditions over the past few days had greatly eased the tension between Ye Rong and Manzhu Lver. He discovered that besides her initial intense hostility towards him—for some unknown reason—she was actually a pretty good person. Although assertive and a bit fiery, she didn’t have the annoying, spoiled-princess attitude.

Truthfully, that Lv Linggu was also very competitive by nature, only even more eccentric. No wonder she took Manzhu Lver as her disciple.

“Though Lv Linggu’s own power isn’t that impressive, she possesses numerous treasures. In a real fight, someone much more accomplished might not even beat her. Especially that Five Spirits Battle-Axe she obtained from the Yuan River Golden Ship, a legacy of Guangchengzi—its power is incredible!”

On Qingcheng’s Hanxiu Peak, besides the Hidden Sword Pool, there was another place called the Sword Casting Pool, reserved specifically for Sword Refiners among the disciples.

Manzhu Lver wasn’t a Sword Refiner, so normally she couldn’t use this forge. Only for the first official disciple reward would a Sword-forging Boy assist with the forging. That kind of privileged treatment wouldn’t be available in the future.

In Ye Rong’s own case, as a disciple of Qingcheng’s Sect Leader and a Third-Generation Formal Disciple—but because he skipped the Initiation Task—he strangely lost this very opportunity. No Sword Casting Pool access for him.

The Qingcheng Sword Casting Pool covered an area of a hundred zhang in diameter. Purplish-gold chains as thick as a man’s wrist encircled the pool. Countless streaks of sword light shimmered in the air above it.

By the time Ye Rong arrived, Manzhu Lver and the others had been waiting a long time. Exchanging brief nods in greeting, they entered the Sword Casting Pool together.

The NPC guarding the Sword Casting Pool was a Sword-forging Boy. He looked about seven or eight years old, but his features were strangely mature and weathered, like he’d lived an incredibly long time. A pair of sharp, sword-like eyebrows slashed across his forehead. No one present could see his Level.

“The hour has not yet come. The pool remains closed.”

The boy kept his head down, not looking directly at Manzhu Lver as he spoke calmly.

Seeing the girl’s temper about to flare again, Ye Rong quickly grabbed her slender wrist and pulled her back.

Until they knew who this Sword-forging Boy really was, it was wise to be polite. Who knew if the game designers might have whimsically made some boy an undercover big shot in the Sect?

“Brother Dongliu, none of you guys have used this Sword Casting Pool to make a sword before?”

Curious, Ye Rong asked. The others all looked just as clueless about the forging process as he did, clearly inexperienced.

“During Closed Beta, the master just threw the flying sword directly at you. There was never such a process,” Dongliu Cangshui replied, shaking his head. He had been taken as a disciple by the Third-Generation Disciple Qiu Yuan after completing his Initiation Task, which had left him somewhat disappointed. “Now? Only Greenie here landed a good master who pulled strings for her. None of us others are important enough to use the Sword Casting Pool. Even those who got Fourth-Grade Immortal Weapons were practically useless—their true attributes were worse than some top-tier Third-Grade Immortal Weapons.”

“Obviously! My master specially asked for two pieces of Purest Gold Essence for me too,” Manzhu Lver chimed in, her voice sugary sweet. “Adding them during the forging will boost the attack attribute even more.”

Since their relationship improved, Ye Rong had discovered quite a few of her good points. Her figure alone was hard to fault, possessing a mature allure far beyond her years.