My Artifacts Can Upgrade Infinitely

The most important thing for this mission is to bring plenty of Antidote Pills.

Zhao Zuo reined in his wandering thoughts and focused his gaze on the gray orb of light before him. Inside, golden patterns expanded once more, just a sliver away from complete Perfection. This meant a new Spirit Seal was about to form.

Another half hour passed. The gray light scattered, and the Sky-Breaking Saber landed in Zhao Zuo’s palm. The last few upgrades hadn’t changed its appearance, which was clearly already perfect.

A familiar transparent interface appeared before his eyes.

[Upgrade Description: Significantly increases the Magical Artifact’s Wind Attribute attack power.]

’I still need to grind EXP as fast as possible,’ Zhao Zuo thought.

He took a few Fire Element Seeds from his wrist and fed them to the Fire Spirit Snake beside him. Zhao Zuo then stood up and began practicing the Golden Body Technique. As his body moved through a series of strange postures, the Qi Blood within him surged, and his entire body began to faintly radiate a layer of Golden Light.

In a corner, unnoticed by Zhao Zuo, the Fire Spirit Snake propped up the front half of its body and began to cultivate. It didn’t know what kind of Cultivation Technique this was, but it understood one thing: when it assumed those special postures, the Spiritual Objects in its body were refined at a much faster rate.

As time went on, Zhao Zuo mechanically stuffed Vajra Pills into his mouth, rapidly absorbing their medicinal power to temper his body. The unique thing about Vajra Pills was... they were like fixed clumps of Energy. No matter how many he consumed, he would never develop a tolerance.

That was why Zhao Zuo dared to consume them so boldly.

「In the blink of an eye, it was early in the eighth month.」

The Sky-Breaking Saber’s EXP had reached 45,000, another 55,000 short of the requirement for its next upgrade. During this period, Zhao Zuo did only two things each day: practice the Golden Body Technique and grind EXP.

He stopped absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power to advance his Cultivation and paused his exploration of the Path of Artifact Refining.

Thanks to his tireless efforts, the Sky-Breaking Saber’s EXP gain was substantial, netting him five to six thousand a day. Furthermore, his Golden Body Technique had reached a bottleneck, and Zhao Zuo was confident he could break through within five days.

By then... the physical strength his body could exert would approach 22,000 jin.

After he finished cultivating, Zhao Zuo used a Cleaning Talisman to wash away the sweat and grime from his body. Clenching his fist slightly, he felt the power contained within his frame and couldn’t help but break into a satisfied smile.

"It seems... Brother Zhao’s progress is extraordinary," Liu Heng, standing not far away, said respectfully upon seeing the smile on Zhao Zuo’s face.

"I’ve made some small progress. Come inside with me," Zhao Zuo said.

"Alright."

On the stone table in the living room sat an iron kettle and teacups. Zhao Zuo channeled his Mana to light a flame under the kettle and took a pot of Clear Water from the water purifier nearby.

Once the water boiled, he added the Cold Thorn tea.

"Please."

"Why have you summoned me this time, Brother Zhao?" Liu Heng asked.

"It’s nothing important. I just wanted to ask how you’ve been settling into the Inner Sect."

Unlike Zhao Zuo, who remained in seclusion, Liu Heng clearly understood the importance of socializing. In just half a month, he had successfully integrated into the circles of the Inner Sect—not the circle of Inner Sect Disciples, of course, but that of their servants.

This circle wasn’t particularly influential, but it was a good place to exchange information.

"The Inner Sect environment is nothing like the Outer Sect. I’m settling in quite well. As for the duel between Chief Venerate Chen and the Demon Path Cultivator, I have heard a few other things..." Liu Heng’s eyes shifted as he correctly deduced what information Zhao Zuo was after.

"Tell me more," Zhao Zuo said with interest, taking a small sip of his Cold Thorn tea.

Since joining the Inner Sect, he hadn’t formed any friendships or connections. He lived the life of an Ascetic, so his access to information was naturally limited.

"They say... a large faction within the sect hopes Chen Xiaorong will lose. It’s even said that together, they have enough influence to sway the Sect Leader’s will. For Chief Venerate Chen’s duel this time, the sect probably won’t be sending anyone to act as her protector." Liu Heng chose his words with care as he relayed what he had heard.

"If even you were able to hear about it, it’s clearly no great secret," Zhao Zuo said. He had agreed to take Liu Heng on as a servant precisely so he would have someone to gather intelligence from the Inner Sect for him.

"That’s true, but... I don’t think this information is false," Liu Heng replied.

Zhao Zuo nodded. This revealed Chen Xiaorong’s predicament within the sect. She might be the Sect Leader’s disciple, but the Sect Leader’s duty was to lead the Moyun Sect. His primary task was to maintain the stability of the internal factions, which meant he would certainly make compromises when necessary.

"A candidate for the Golden Core realm, and they’re just giving up on her like that?" Zhao Zuo mused in confusion.

"Supposedly, years ago, Chief Venerate Chen and the Sect Leader had a major falling out over some incident. Though they’re master and disciple, any goodwill between them has long since vanished. The former Chief Venerate of the Punishment Hall, however, grew quite close to her, possibly because they had similar temperaments." Liu Heng shared all the information he had.

"So, as long as Golden Core experts don’t interfere, the former Punishment Hall Chief Venerate will handle any Foundation Establishment cultivators the Demon Path has in reserve. His combat strength is nearly unrivaled below the Golden Core realm, so the Demon Path won’t risk another Foundation Establishment expert on a gamble. This means the most they’ll do is arrange for a few backup schemes involving Qi Cultivation Perfection cultivators." Zhao Zuo analyzed the information. The situation wasn’t as dire as he’d first thought.

"That should be the case, but the Moyun Sect will not provide any aid at the Qi Cultivation level," Liu Heng said. He no longer hoped to change Zhao Zuo’s mind, wishing only that he would act with caution and, at the very least, stay alive.

"She’s certainly not a popular Chief Venerate, is she," Zhao Zuo sighed softly.

Liu Heng shared a few more pieces of recent intel, but they were all trivial matters.

"Peach Blossom Lady, a senior Inner Sect Disciple, would like to request a meeting with you, Brother Zhao. What are your thoughts...?"

"I’m not seeing her. Turn her down for me."

Peach Blossom Lady lived not far from Zhao Zuo’s Cave Mansion. Originally a Loose Cultivator, she had passed the Core Heart Hall’s assessment to join the Outer Sect, then spent another seven years or so to pass the assessment to become an Inner Sect Disciple. She frequently networked with disciples from similar unorthodox backgrounds, organizing a small trading fair to turn a profit.

Her Cultivation was at the Eighth Layer of Qi Cultivation, and she was over forty years old. With a stroke of fortune, she might still reach Foundation Establishment before she turned sixty. But if her luck was poor... she would likely remain a Qi Cultivation Cultivator for the rest of her life.

After Liu Heng left, Zhao Zuo first downed several large mouthfuls of tea before taking out another Vajra Pill and swallowing it. A while back, he had purchased two hundred and twenty Vajra Pills for eight thousand Spirit Stones.

He had now consumed more than half of them, which should be enough to break through the bottleneck of the Golden Body Technique’s Fourth Layer and begin cultivating the Fifth Layer. As he practiced the Golden Body Technique... cyan phantoms constantly shifted around him, interwoven with faint, thin cyan lines.

He cultivated and cultivated. With every Vajra Pill he swallowed, he felt himself take a large step closer to that threshold. His heartbeat grew stronger and more forceful, like a deep drumbeat.

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP!

Zhao Zuo took a deep breath, then abruptly pulled out three Vajra Pills and swallowed them. As a scorching energy spread from his abdomen, the Qi Blood throughout his body instantly grew much richer. Fierce, violent power surged through him, directly beginning to remodel his muscles and Meridians.

"Hah!"

His hands formed a complex and profound Hand Seal before him.

As the Vajra Seal took shape, the Qi Blood in his body erupted once more. A white mist enveloped him as his Qi Blood surged. His heart acted like a pump, driving viscous blood to every corner of his body. The veins beneath his skin became starkly visible, like a complex, breathing lattice.

All the Qi Blood in his body suddenly shuddered, then slowly began to compress and solidify before charging ferociously at the bottleneck.

In an instant, Zhao Zuo felt an unstoppable flood of power surging within him. It had the momentum of rivers and oceans—churning, crashing, colliding, and compressing!

THUMP.

THUMP.

THUMP.

From within the Cave Mansion came a heartbeat like that of a primordial beast, startling the slumbering Fire Spirit Snake awake.

In the blink of an eye, a layer of golden light coated Zhao Zuo’s body, brilliant and dazzling.

The solid bottleneck shattered violently, transforming into an even vaster reservoir of Qi Blood that began to fuel his body’s metamorphosis.

Golden Body Technique, Fourth Layer—complete Perfection!

.......