Chapter 132 - 129: Schools of Artifact Refining
Feeling satisfied, he left the pharmacy to find Xiong Tianfang and have him craft some Tier 3 equipment.
The Shadow Beast materials had already been broken down. He had originally planned to study Artifact Refining for a few days and then craft the equipment himself. However, it turned out that Artifact Refining wasn’t so easy to learn. So far, he couldn’t even properly make the simplest Tier 1 equipment, so he could only seek out Xiong Tianfang for help.
It was just after dawn, and there weren’t many people on the streets. He couldn’t hail a sky-cab either, so Feng Hao sprinted all the way. He took the opportunity to familiarize himself with his newly awakened [Ambush] talent. The instantaneous movement effect left him very satisfied.
’I can move about five meters, and it’s so fast that it’s nearly impossible to track under normal circumstances.’
Feng Hao analyzed it internally, imagining all sorts of slick maneuvers. The only drawback was the high cost. Each use consumed 100 points of Magic Power. Even with his current reserves, he couldn’t use it many times, especially since he needed to use other Secret Techniques in battle.
By the time he reached the Artifact Refining Department, it was already morning. He made his way to Xiong Tianfang’s dorm amidst the pointing and whispering of other students.
Perhaps because of the upcoming academy tournament, Xiong Tianfang had a lot of orders recently. When he saw Feng Hao arrive, he put down his work. "Huh, you’ve advanced to Tier 3?"
"Yes." Feng Hao nodded with a light laugh, taking out the prepared Shadow Beast materials and design schematics. "I need Brother Xiong’s help to craft some Tier 3 equipment."
"No problem. Just let me finish this set I’m working on." Xiong Tianfang readily agreed and went back to the task at hand.
Feng Hao watched from the side with great interest. Before, he didn’t understand Artifact Refining, so he never paid much attention. But now that he had some experience with it, the process felt dazzling.
Xiong Tianfang’s crafting methods were very unique, completely different from what he had seen in "Introduction to Artifact Refining," which naturally made him curious.
Before long, a set of sky-blue metal light armor was complete. Xiong Tianfang inspected it carefully, and after confirming there were no issues, he looked up at Feng Hao. "Alright, I’ll start on yours now."
"Brother Xiong, your Artifact Refining Techniques are very unique. Is there some kind of secret to them?" Feng Hao asked curiously.
Xiong Tianfang paused, a strange expression on his face. "What, you’re interested in Artifact Refining?"
"To be honest, I have been trying to study Artifact Refining recently, but I haven’t made much progress," Feng Hao said with an awkward smile.
Xiong Tianfang couldn’t help but laugh. "That’s perfectly normal. Artifact Refining isn’t like your alchemy. It’s hard to get started if you’re just fumbling around on your own. If you have any questions in the future, feel free to ask me. I can at least guide you through the basics."
"Thank you so much, Brother Xiong!" Feng Hao nodded happily and continued to press, "I noticed the Artifact Refining Techniques you just used are very different from what’s described in the books. Why is that?"
"Because I’m an Ancient Sect Artifact Refiner. You were probably reading a book on New School Artifact Refining," Xiong Tianfang explained while organizing the Shadow Beast materials.
"Ancient Sect? New School?" Feng Hao was completely confused.
Xiong Tianfang explained, "They are the two major mainstream factions in the Artifact Refining Realm today. Each has its own advantages. The Ancient Sect preserves many old Artifact Refining Techniques and values pure, manual craftsmanship. The New School, on the other hand, incorporates many new elements, like mechanical equipment, synthetic materials, and so on."
"So should I learn the New School or the Ancient Sect?" Feng Hao asked, smacking his lips.
"That depends on your personal preference. Generally speaking, the Ancient Sect has a smoother difficulty curve. From beginner to master, the difficulty doesn’t fluctuate too much. The New School is easy to get into, but it gets more and more complex later on. There are tens of thousands of artificially synthesized materials alone."
"Well then, I’ll follow you, Brother Xiong, and take the Ancient Sect path," Feng Hao chose without a second thought.
It wasn’t that he was afraid of the New School’s late-game complexity. Rather, after hearing Xiong Tianfang’s explanation, he felt the Ancient Sect was closer to the Artifact Refining Techniques in the game "Mage."
"A man with a future!" Xiong Tianfang nodded in satisfaction. "The Ancient Sect is definitely the wisest choice."
"Why do you say that?" Feng Hao asked, confused.
"Because the Ancient Sect is more accommodating. Even if you want to switch to the New School later on, your foundation will be a huge help. But if a New School Artifact Refiner wants to switch to the Ancient Sect, they have to start over from scratch," Xiong Tianfang explained proudly.
Hearing this, Feng Hao became even more determined to learn the Artifact Refining of the Ancient Sect.
As they spoke, Xiong Tianfang had already begun working on the Shadow Beast materials. He tanned pieces of Shadow Beast Hide in his hands, shaping them. In the blink of an eye, the beast pelts transformed into a fabric-like material.
Feng Hao watched without blinking, growing more and more amazed. He also had a feeling of déjà vu...
Following Feng Hao’s schematics, Xiong Tianfang quickly assembled the pieces of equipment. A cool-looking Assassin’s set appeared before Feng Hao.
Next was the process of inscribing the Demon Patterns. This was the most important part of Artifact Refining. Only with outstanding Demon Pattern inscriptions could the latent effects within the materials be fully activated.
After successfully inscribing the Demon Patterns, Xiong Tianfang didn’t stop. While sensing the properties of the materials, he began to induce a Demon Pattern resonance.
Because Demon Pattern resonance requires equipment made from the same material, it has always been a unique ability of Ancient Sect Artifact Refiners. It can further unlock the deeper effects of the materials!
To put it simply, Ancient Sect refining pursues the essence of the material itself, while New School refining leans toward the combination and coordination of multiple different materials.
"And... it’s done!" Xiong Tianfang opened his eyes with a hearty laugh and handed the finished equipment to Feng Hao.
Feng Hao didn’t waste any words. He took the equipment and immediately opened his game panel to inspect it. The excellent stats left him very satisfied:
[Shadow Beast Hide Armor]
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Toughness: 40
Weight: 36
Breath Concealment: 32
[Shadow Beast Hide Pants]
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Toughness: 40
Weight: 30
Breath Concealment: 28
[Shadow Beast Hide Boots]
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Toughness: 40
Weight: 26
Breath Concealment: 30
Speed Assist: 8%
[Shadow Beast Wrist Guard]
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Toughness: 40
Weight: 18
Breath Concealment: 28
[Demon Pattern Resonance] Breath Concealment +30, Speed +60, Dark-Energy Protection +10
"Brother Xiong, you’re amazing! The resonance stats are perfect for me," Feng Hao said, his eyes filled with pleasant surprise.
Xiong Tianfang smiled faintly. "It’s mainly because the materials themselves were high-quality."
"Anyway, thank you for your help, Brother Xiong. I’ll let you get back to work. I’m going to go back and refine the Essences."
"Alright. Be careful on your way back. Don’t let those lunatics from the Strength Department see you," Xiong Tianfang reminded him loudly.
"Don’t worry."
「 ... 」
Feng Hao left the Artifact Refining Department without incident, which he found a little strange. Perhaps it was because of the academy tournament; the students were all busy preparing for the competition, so no one from the Strength Department noticed him.
Of course, it was also possible that after more than two months, many people had already forgotten about the incident.
He rushed back to the pharmacy, eagerly locked himself in his room, and began to refine the Shadow Beast Hide Armor. The four High-Level Essences he had prepared earlier could finally be put to use.
A little over two hours later, the brand-new Shadow Beast Hide Armor appeared before Feng Hao:
[Shadow Beast Hide Armor] (Limitless)
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Defense Amplification: 135
Qi Blood Amplification: 4500
Vitality Amplification: 45
Toughness: 40
Weight: 36
Breath Concealment: 32
[Shadow Beast Hide Pants] (Limitless)
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Defense Amplification: 120
Qi Blood Amplification: 3000
Gang Qi Amplification: 120
Toughness: 40
Weight: 30
Breath Concealment: 28
[Shadow Beast Hide Boots]
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Defense Amplification: 118
Qi Blood Amplification: 2800
Speed Amplification: 28
Toughness: 40
Weight: 26
Breath Concealment: 30
Speed Assist: 8%
[Shadow Beast Wrist Guard]
Tier: 3
Protection: 25
Dark-Energy Protection: 10
Defense Amplification: 115
Fire-Attribute Strength: 15
Divine Sense Amplification: 250
Toughness: 40
Weight: 18
Breath Concealment: 28
[Demon Pattern Resonance] Breath Concealment +30, Speed +60, Dark-Energy Protection +10