Chapter 71: Imperial Saga (1)

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A large chunk of gold was reduced to a mere sphere smaller than a cosco ball. But this sphere looked beautiful. Instead of gold, calling it a diamond deemed appropriate for all its structure was compressed, leaving the essence alone and shedding its golden surface, hence the name, Diamond Essence Gold.

Ja Sun observed the refined metal and made calculations inwardly. He knew the target, this meant that the objective was clear. Now, he had to think of ways of increasing the difficulty of his mission. With the new array he learned, undoubtedly, the difficulty was reduced by quite a lot. But he could simply add the additional constraint of not using the War God's Cauldron Array and use meager methods to achieve mighty results.

"Do you have another kilogram of gold? I'll pay," Ja Sun inquired as Tang Hao scoffed, "I don't need any payment. Since I proposed the bet, I will provide materials, too."

Though he looked quite oppressive even now, the hint of exhaustion in his eyes couldn't be hidden. After all, he did go all out.

'Achieving thousand refinement in 82 strikes means that the strength of each strike could total to a thousand strikes and each strike was well placed, removing impurities at an exponential rate,' Ja Sun picked the large slab of gold and looked at Tang Hao, "Give me some distance."

With that, Ja Sun sat down cross-legged and set the slab of gold in front of him.

Tang Hao walked towards and smiled while presenting the small, gem-like sphere to Tang Yuehua.

"How was it? Your second bro is awesome, right?"

"Awesome, awesome! So awesome that it almost blew your sister away!" Tang Yuehua pouted and smacked her fist against his broad shoulder.

"It really was my carelessness. Good thing that Ka-ul is—"

Before he could complete, Tang Hao's words were stuck in his throat and he gazed at Ja Sun in astonishment.

"What happened?" Yuehua inquired. Since she wasn't a true spirit master in a sense, she wasn't able to clearly gauge Ja Sun's strength. All this time, Ja Sun's energy was reserved without leaking at all, this gave the impression of being an absolute master but those in the court previously were also somewhat surprised when they learned that Ja Sun wasn't even a Spirit Ancestor. Now that Ja Sun's energy leaked out, Tang Hao was able to find out his spirit rank, too.

A rank 40 can stand still in front of his pressure? A rank 40 can reveal a bloodlust capable of activating his domain subconsciously?

Tang Hao didn't dare believe but seeing was believing.

"He's... a Spirit Ancestor, barely. Rank 40 and probably without his fourth ring."

Tang Yuehua blinked in surprise. In theory, she was well aware that the spirit pressure from someone twenty ranks higher than oneself will hold cruel dominance, and even if Tang Hao's pressure wasn't directed at them, it was by no means small.

However, Ja Sun had a clear task and a focused mind. Still, he spread his mental energy to remain aware of his surroundings, too.

"Set Mission."

He mumbled under his breath.

[Set Parameters.]

"Win the bet against Tang Hao and find an enclosed space privately and pump fists. Additional objectives:

1) Win the bet without using War God's Cauldron Array.

2) Win the bet without using Sigh of Immortal.

3) Win the bet without using Bright Goddess' mental support.

4) Win the bet within 15 minutes."

[Objective: Win the bet against Tang Hao and find an enclosed space privately and pump fists.

Optional objectives:

1) Win the bet without using War God's Cauldron Array.

2) Win the bet without using Sigh of Immortal.

3) Win the bet without using Bright Goddess' mental support.

4) Win the bet within 15 minutes.

Mission Rank: C-A-A-B-A

Mission Rewards: Stump of Purple Cloud Wood—1 kg of Titanium Crystal—120 g of Flaming Sun Iron—3 kg of Heavy Silver—Silver-Gold Diamond Necklace.

Time Limit: 30-30-30-30-15 minutes.]

Ja Sun sighed internally. If it was refining a harder metal then surely the rank would have risen to S-rank. But there was no doubt that Ja Sun's own expertise in Array Refining was better and the mission's difficulty wouldn't reach the peak.

Accepting the mission, Ja Sun stretched his arm out and the dark gold gauntlets gave a dull matte glow and his spirit energy gushed out and formed into a complicated pattern with an astonishing ease.

His eyes condensed towards the slab of gold and the array spread out over the gold slab with the material itself in the center of the array.

Tang Hao wasn't unaware of this method but this ease in creation of array was something even Lou Gao couldn't accomplish much less his disciples. It did not mean Ja Sun was better, it just meant that in his area of expertise, even a Divine Smith fell short.

The slab of gold rose up and was suspended mid-air. Now, Ja Sun had to refine it at least of the same quality as Tang Hao but he also needed to preserve a bit of spirit energy since he wouldn't be using Sigh of Immortal. Given the situation, it wouldn't be possible since the Array Refining expends too much spirit energy. This is also why the mission was A-ranked for the most part: Ja Sun's raw capabilities fell short when compared to Tang Hao.

If raw capabilities fell short, then he can only take a more drastic approach.

With a thought, under Tang Hao's and Tang Yuehua's stunned gazes, the gold began to spread into thin hair-like strands before moving into the spirit energy morphed into the pattern of Array. Not only did Ja Sun use the last step at first, but he also began to refine multiple strands of gold at once, the pressure of which bore onto Ja Sun's mind.

A wondrous scene instantly made the eyes of the spectators' dazzle. Little by little, the gold in the middle dispersed within the array. The original snow-white array now gave a bright golden glow from within countless strands of gold could be seen moving around like fish in the sea. But the Array began to tremble while veins popped around Ja Sun's trembled.

Gritting his teeth, Ja Sun controlled the array and kept it from collapsing under the constant collision of the strands of gold within the array but with each collision, the strands would be refined one step further.

What Ja Sun did was leave the refining to golden strands themselves. He was merely a shepherd guiding all the strands to a particular path where they would collide, refine, and congeal time and again.

This pressure on Ja Sun's mental energy solidified a few portions of loose and misty spirit energy into the slowly rotating vortex once again while the Bright Goddess lamented from being stopped to help.

In comparison to Tang Hao's method that almost uprooted the courtyard, Ja Sun's method was furious yet contained. The array would pulse like a spirit ring but with each pulse, the contents within the array grew purer.

"It's... like snowing gold," Tang Yuehua whispered, fully dazzled. She had only seen her family forging but seeing such a strange and exotic method clearly attracted Tang Yuehua momentarily who strived for utmost elegance.

Unlike Tang Yuehua, Tang Hao saw more.

'Though his spirit rank is 40, his mental energy is spread outward and also focused on the task. Not only that, his body is sturdy enough to support such a use of mental energy without adverse effects aside from pain. His mental energy and physique are clearly in the ranks of Spirit Emperor. Just by this, Bibi Dong's student is more excellent than our Clear Sky disciples but if he has such potential then for what reason is he not already close to Spirit King?'

He frowned and narrowed his eyes.

Previously, Tang Hao wouldn't think so meticulously but now that the spirit bone of the Nine-headed Giant was on the line, even he had grown serious about the situation. The competition wasn't only among him and the continent, but also his own brother.

To him, Ja Sun was a member of the future competition from the Spirit Hall's side. The more outstanding he is, the more pressurized Tang Hao would feel later but as he saw the first glimmer of the strand of a Diamond Essence Gold, his eyes revealed excitement and he forgot all this once again. Future competition should be left for the future. Currently, the competition was between him and Ja Sun!

Ja Sun's eyes, in this short period, turned slightly bloodshot.

He would instantly pull out the strand of refined gold in the middle as the impurities snowed from the array in the form of think golden flakes.

One by one, the essence was gathered in the middle but Ja Sun continued to let it be refined by the pulses of the array. More and more collected within. The golden light of the array began to fade.

Within each sliver of diamond-like gold, the golden vein within gave a faint luster of purity. The sight of it made the Tang Siblings attracted by the second for the moment all of the essences were collected, Ja Sun didn't congeal it into a ball. Instead, the slivers of essence connected and turned into a long thread. After coiling around the array, Ja Sun let the thread get refined a few more times. He waited till the last moment and with a soft grunt, the long thread was cut into four equal halves before these pieces were weaved into an extremely simple square cloth that could be fashioned as a handkerchief.

"Hooo..."

With a soft exhale, the array disappeared and the cloth-shaped Diamond Essence Gold fell over Ja Sun's outstretched palm.

The cloth was translucent like a veil with uniformly patterned golden veins that would look extremely attractive and desirable to anyone. Ja Sun was sure that aside from this one, there was no other cloth made of the cooling threads of Diamond Essence Gold.

Slowly standing up, Ja Sun staggered momentarily before finding his footing.

"Please inspect," Ja Sun whispered before stretching his arm towards Tang Hao.

Still speechless, Tang Hao gazed at the handkerchief and slowly picked it with his hand. At first touch, the cloth was softer than silk and quite slippery. But while his own gem-like essence looked lavish as a decoration, Ja Sun's handkerchief seemed to be in a realm of its own. Thin hair-like veins of gold within the already thin cloth made Tang Hao gulp.

"Even... Lou Gao cannot do this."

"Yes, I'm better than him in this regard. But Old Sir Lou has the greatest eyes when it comes to alloys," Ja Sun replied calmly.

"Uncle Yong, please stop!"

Dai Mu's shout rang and a golden-plated warrior stepped into the courtyard at this moment.

With long brown hair hanging through his shoulders, the sharp-eyed and broad chinned man gazed at everyone before his gaze settled on Ja Sun.

"Are you the one who made our Little Princess cry?"

Ja Sun gazed at the 3-meter high giant before looking at Tang Hao.

"What's the result?"

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Tang Hao's heart itched. He was unwilling of course but the result was clear. In terms of refining, his own gold vein diamond fell short not only in grace but also in quality.

"Brat—"

"Uncle Captain, give us a minute!" Tang Hao lashed out with his overbearing presence instantly locking down the giant warrior. The crafty glint in the teary eyes of Dai Mu disappeared as she paled.

"Brother," Yuehua smiled and patted his arm, "This only means you need to train more."

She could see why Tang Hao would enter a bad mood.

"You won..." Tang Hao sighed.

"Thank you for showing grace in defeat," Ja Sun clasped his hand and bowed. He would keep a good relationship with Tang Hao. He was clearly a cow still not fully milked.

"Please pass on my item—"

"Hah!" Tang Hao sneered and hurriedly pulled the handkerchief made of Diamond Essence Gold as if a treasure, "You can make more of these yourselves. Just gift this to me—"

"Then I want to gift it to Sister Tang," Ja Sun interjected calmly.

"Huh?" Tang Hao's expression turned strange as Ja Sun stated offhandedly.

"I meant to give this to a woman I'm pursuing, not romantically, of course, but... let's not delve into that. She is the kind of woman who loves to get the greatest benefit. I guess, among Sister Tang and that devil, the only similar feature is that both of you have blue hair. If not her, then I would rather gift it to Sister Tang."

Ja Sun's calm words shocked Tang Hao.

Can you be more obvious?!

That's what everyone thought and Tang Yuehua felt a little awkward.

"If you're thinking I'm lying, then you can meet her in the competition. She will probably destroy your team," Ja Sun added calmly.

"Or, you can return the handkerchief to me. You are aware of my capabilities. Just commission an article of clothing made of precious metals from me."

Ja Sun's further words made Tang Hao purse his lips. He could feel greed oozing out of Ja Sun clearly. He wasn't lying, Tang Hao's bestial instincts assured him.

"Fine, Yuehua, keep it. Ka-ul, stop calling me with formality from now on. You're, at least, 10 years younger than me. Call me Elder Brother—"

"Fine, Tang Hao."

Ja Sun cut him off.

"Please complete the bet," Ja Sun remarked and with a scoff, Tang Hao handed the beautiful handkerchief to Tang Yuehua who was instantly stunned by the cool and soft feeling of the cloth while Tang Hao revealed one crystal, one ore, and one stump of poisonous wood.

Catching these items, Ja Sun wasn't afraid of poison, not while wearing his gauntlets and he instantly stored them into his essence tool.

Glancing towards the giant guard who had grown cold and calm after Tang Hao's outburst, Ja Sun inquired, "Tell me how can I help you?"

"Bastard, you made Dai Mu cry!"

Previously, Dai Mu instantly ran away to create trouble and this was the result. The other soldiers and the captains of the palace doted on her so seeing her reddened eyes and hearing her sob, one of them instantly swore to find an explanation for this treatment. But by now, even Dai Mu realized that she had underestimated the situation.

"She did not cry in front of us. Are you sure that in between leaving from this courtyard and meeting you, she wouldn't have cried for an entirely different reason?"

Ja Sun's retort made the Captain of the Palace Guards frown.

"Don't twist words," the man growled when Tang Yuehua stored the handkerchief in her storage essence tool and smiled, "Uncle Yong, please quench your anger. It was merely a discussion and nothing untoward happened to Princess Dai."

"Yes, Uncle Yong," Dai Mu hurriedly nodded. Who here, except for the guard captain, didn't know who was at fault. Now that Dai Mu instantly understood that going against Ja Sun meant going against Tang Hao, she momentarily ceased her plans.

"Princess... all the guards swore to protect the Imperial Family. I, Yong, was saved by the Crown Prince and have also watched you grow up. If I can't even suppress the cause of your tears, then I'm worthless!"

He stated with a devoted expression before looking at Ka-ul.

"If you can make the princess cry—"

"He did not," Tang Hao's expression turned sharp, "And I've known Uncle Dai for a long time. He is a warrior and so is Brother Taiyin. Are you saying that any of them would fight a rank 40 Spirit Elder who is also exhausted by a round of forging while being Spirit Emperors like yourself?"

"Huh?" Dai Mu's expression blanked.

"Brother Hao, you lost to a... Spirit Elder?"

Tang Hao instantly scowled at Dai Mu's words as he scoffed, "He's just a little better at refining."

Feeling Ja Sun's and Tang Yuehua's stare, Tang Hao's eyelids twitched but the moment Ja Sun heard that this fellow was Spirit Emperor, his expression eased up.

"If you feel offended, I will give you an explanation in a minute," Ja Sun narrowed his eyes.

He was going to strip a layer of the Imperial Family today.

"Hmm?" Yong frowned.

"But first, I feel a little unwell. I need to use a bathroom. Where can I find one?" Ja Sun inquired calmly.

"Why?" Dai Mu pouted. She wasn't as simple as she looked. Trained in etiquettes, she knew how to control men and women around her using her expressions itself but that was within the realm of elegance itself. Faced with Ja Sun, she only felt blocked and frustrated.

"To take a dump, why else? Or am I not allowed to do that either?"

Tang Yuehua looked away. Tang Hao closed his eyes. He was brash, but not by this much.

However, once Ja Sun entered the bathroom, he pumped his fist and collected the rewards. Aside from an accessory, everything was related to Smithing: metals and ores of the highest rarity with only a few being above the presented quality.

Once Ja Sun came out, he exited the room and walked towards the group standing silently. By now, Dai Mu was somewhat regretting her impatience since Tang Hao barely replied to her. While Tang Yuehua would speak comfortably, she revealed it by her gestures that she wasn't really willing to be too close.

But Ja Sun wouldn't care about her regret. Instead, he would only stoke the fire further.

If Dai Mu can pull a Guard Captain, she may be able to bring even dangerous fellows and for this, Ja Sun simply added a normal mission that affected the entire event as a whole. After all, going to an enclosed space time and again would look quite suspicious.

[Objective: Gain as many individual benefits from the White Tiger Clan as possible.

Mission Rank: Based on the accomplished objective.

Optional Objectives:

1) Make the Imperial Family feel as humiliated as possible.

Mission Rewards: Based on Mission Rank.

Time Limit: 9 hours.]

There really wasn't a grudge between Ja Sun and the White Tiger Clan but why wouldn't he slap others for insults if it is worth the reward? The quicker he grows stronger, the better, and Spirit Rings aren't the only way of cultivation. His fusion with Vajra Gauntlets was a living proof of that. And out of all the emotions, making others feel humiliated is Ja Sun's innate talent.

Once Ja Sun arrived in front of the Guard Captain once again, he inquired calmly.

"You clearly wished to fight me. Go ahead, tell me. Do you want to use your entire strength or limit yourself to three spirit rings while facing me?"

Ja Sun's inquiry instantly made Yong gloomy. While Ja Sun was away, Tang Yuehua clearly explained the matter and even spoke Ja Sun up as he refused to take anything from Dai Mu that was gifted from the Imperial Crown. This won Yong a bit of good faith towards Ja Sun.

But hearing such crude words, Yong couldn't help but feel a ball of fire appearing within his chest as he barked, "Why does it matter?!"

"It matters a lot. Use your full strength then I will also be forced to go all out. The battle isn't the issue. The conclusion to the battle is. You came with the hopes of making me apologize to the princess, right?" Ja Sun inquired with a narrowed gaze.

Yong scoffed and crossed his arms over his broad chest.

"What about it?"

"If you limit yourself to three rings to match me, I promise not to go all out myself. But if I win, I will ask for that Dagger made from the Bite of Jinx Serpent. In return, if I lose, I will compensate by providing a rare refining material, the quality of which shall not be lower than the dagger. Tang Hao can appraise it, or even Ning Fengzhi," Ja Sun stated calmly.

"And what if I use my entire strength?" Yong frowned.

"Then I promise to go all out. In victory, I shall still compensate with a rare refining material alongside apologizing to the Princess for my ill conduct. I will give a bow and speak words of apology. Nothing more, nothing less.

In case you lose, I will be provided with the dagger and the Princess' apology. She will bow and speak words of apology. Nothing more, nothing less."

"What?" Yong shouted furiously, his pressure descended as Tang Hao calmly covered Tang Yuehua.

"You came for Princess Dai's dignity even when she was unreasonable. The teachings of the Imperial Family are clearly not well enough. But you are not nurtured impetuously. Think properly. If you want an explanation, this is it."

Ja Sun held his hands behind his back.

Even Dai Mu was red with anger.

 

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