"I presume this young friend must be the Divine Weapon Sect disciple mentioned by the Sword Saint Elder. I am Ning Bufan, the Sect Master of the Sword Sect."

Qin Shou bowed respectfully. "Greetings to Sect Master Ning. Has the Sect Master made a decision yet?"

Ning Bufan laughed heartily. "Naturally, it is our Sword Sect's honor to ally with the Divine Weapon Sect. Such an opportunity is rare, and we are eager to seize it. On behalf of the Sword Sect, I hereby vow to the Heavenly Weapon Supreme that we will fully support you in restoring the Divine Weapon Sect and completing the Artifact Refining Skill.

However, young friend, you must also be forthright with our Sword Sect."

Qin Shou nodded. "Of course. What does the Sect Master wish to know?"

Ning Bufan's smile faded slightly. "Do you have a Holy Artifact from the Divine Weapon Sect in your possession?"

Qin Shou shook his head and replied frankly. "No. The Holy Artifacts of our Sect have long been lost. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been in such dire straits that I sought refuge in the Sword Sect."

"Is that so?" Ning Bufan narrowed his eyes slightly.

Qin Shou met his gaze without fear. "If Sect Master Ning has doubts, I can swear an oath right now."

On the Heavenly Artifact Continent, lies can be exposed.

It's tough being a spy!

Ning Bufan remained silent with a faint smile, while inwardly, Qin Shou cursed his shamelessness and swore on the spot to the Heavenly Weapon Supreme.

"I, Qin Shou, swear to the Heavenly Weapon Supreme that if I possess a Holy Artifact Divine Weapon, then..."

"Haha, young friend, there's no need to get so worked up. Of course, I trust you. No need for any oaths." Ning Bufan interrupted with a wave of his hand.

Qin Shou was speechless, muttering internally, "This old geezer must be going through menopause—so fickle and unpredictable."

"Sect Master Ning, are you reassured now?"

"Naturally."

Ning Bufan nodded with a warm smile and then swore his own oath to the Heavenly Weapon Supreme.

"I, Ning Bufan, vow to the Heavenly Weapon Supreme: If the Divine Weapon Sect agrees to become a branch of my Sword Sect, and if the methods for refining Divine Weapons are shared without reserve, I will devote the full power of the Sword Sect to help restore the artifact refining techniques and revive the Divine Weapon Sect. Should I break this oath, may I face divine retribution and destruction."

As the vow concluded, an imperceptible yet mysterious ripple descended over Ning Bufan's head before vanishing without a trace.

This signified that the vow had taken effect.

Ning Bufan turned to Qin Shou with a smile. "Young friend, it is your turn now."

Qin Shou sneered inwardly. "This old fox's vow has its flaws, but I am no amateur either."

"I, Qin Shou, hereby vow to the Heavenly Weapon Supreme: If the Sword Sect fully supports me in completing the refining techniques of the Divine Weapon Sect and assists in its revival without reservations, I will agree to make the Divine Weapon Sect a branch of the Sword Sect and share the refining techniques. Should I break this vow, may I face divine retribution and destruction."

As the vow concluded, the same mysterious ripple descended over Qin Shou's head.

*Heh!* Success!

Divine Weapon refining methods?

*Hah,* simple! With the system, I can even have it compile all the materials for me!

Qin Shou laughed inwardly. He had already tested various special scenarios under his disguised state.

A mere vow? It only binds the locals of the Heavenly Artifact Continent. Once he reverts to his identity as an outsider, the Heavenly Dao Consciousness wouldn't even be able to track him down.

Meanwhile, seeing that the Heavenly Weapon Supreme responded to the vows, Ning Bufan and the Sword Saint exchanged a subtle glance and nodded slightly.

The Heavenly Weapon Supreme's response indicated that this wasn't some new scheme from those three old codgers on Earth. They could relax a bit.

Even so, both of them felt a pang of regret. This kid's vow was airtight, leaving no room for manipulation.

The phrase "assist in revival without reservations" completely blocked any potential loopholes.

The two elders shook their heads, put on polite smiles, and addressed him warmly.

"Young friend, now that the Divine Weapon Sect and our Sword Sect are one family, feel free to mention anything that could aid in refining the Divine Weapons. This Sect Master will ensure your requests are fulfilled," Ning Bufan said with a smile.

Qin Shou replied, "Sect Master Ning, to complete the refining techniques, I will naturally need many Artifact Refining Skills for reference."

With complete techniques, he would be able to synthesize even more perfect Divine Weapons.

"Very well. I will have someone deliver all the various refining methods to your room immediately," Ning Bufan said.

Qin Shou expressed his gratitude. "Thank you, Sect Master. There is one more matter—since the Divine Weapon Sect is now a branch of the Sword Sect, would it be possible for me to read the Sword Sect's cultivation methods?"

Upon hearing this, Ning Bufan's expression stiffened, and the Sword Saint's face grew serious.

Cultivation methods were of utmost importance—they could not afford to be careless.

Seeing their reaction, Qin Shou adjusted his tone. "It's like this: the ruin of the Divine Weapon Sect was so abrupt that no cultivation methods for the Holy Artifact Master stage were left behind. If we wish to restore the artifact refining techniques, it might require advancing to the Holy Artifact Master stage."

The two exchanged a wary glance.

The Sword Saint regained his composure, laughing brightly. "Haha, young friend, allow us some time to deliberate. Cultivation methods for the Holy Artifact Master stage are no trivial matter. A decision cannot be made lightly. Should you truly require them, the cultivation methods beneath the Holy Artifact Master level can be made available to you."

Qin Shou appeared downcast. "It was presumptuous of me. But it's fine—it's merely a possibility. Restoring the refining techniques might not necessarily require advancing to the Holy Artifact Master stage."

He had already known it was impossible to obtain the Holy Artifact Master cultivation methods so easily. That's why his true goal was the cultivation techniques for Spiritual Artifact Masters!

"Thank you for understanding, young friend." The two elders exhaled in relief.

If the Holy Artifact Master cultivation methods became a necessity, would they provide them or not?

If not, they wouldn't be committing fully; but if they did and Qin Shou ascended to Holy Artifact Master, the Sword Sect might lose their current leverage of control.

...

The next day.

Ning Bufan formally announced the incorporation of the Divine Weapon Sect as a branch of the Sword Sect, causing an uproar throughout the Sword Sect.

"What is going on? The Divine Weapon Sect—a sect with only one member—has actually become a branch of the Sword Sect? How bizarre."

"Yeah, and the announcement came directly from the Sect Master himself. He even handed over Jade Sword Peak to that person. What kind of honor is that?"

"Not only that, but I heard all the Sword Sect's Artifact Refining Skills were sent to Jade Sword Peak. A mere outsider receiving all that? It's inconceivable."

"Haha, don't overthink it. What outsider? That's family now. Didn't you notice that Senior Sister hasn't returned from Jade Sword Peak yet? She's probably staying over. If you ask me, how could he still be an outsider?"

"What? No way! Senior Sister actually..."

"Shoo, shoo. What's with that face? Senior Sister is human too. Humans have needs. Say less, or if Senior Sister finds out about your gossiping, you'll be in for it."

"Right, shut up, shut up. Let's go practice our sword techniques..."

...

Jade Sword Peak.

By the lakeside dwelling, Lin Ke held a laughing pink qilin in her arms like a little puppy. Her gaze was tender as she used her soft, snow-white fingers to tease the chubby chin of the pink qilin.

"Wu jiu jiu..."

The pink qilin flopped onto its back in Lin Ke's arms, its four pudgy hooves twitching adorably. Its eyes squinted shut as it indulged in Lin Ke's "massage."

Lin Ke chuckled lightly. "A Child Sword Beast... The Divine Weapon Sect even has such Divine Weapon Beasts. Cute, definitely cute, but it doesn't seem to have any combat abilities.

Oh well, as long as it's cute. It might be useful once it's grown."

She hugged the Child Sword Beast tightly and planted a firm kiss on it before looking at the bamboo house in the distance.

Inside the Primordial Energy shield around the bamboo house, ripples of rune energy emanated intermittently, mixed with Qin Shou's exasperated curses.

"Damn it! What's going on? I refuse to believe this..."

"Ugh, come on! How could this fail too..."

"Argh, you've got to be kidding me! So close..."

"Ahhhhhh, Qin Shou is going to lose it..."

Inside the room, Qin Shou angrily tossed aside the ruined sword embryo in his hand and grabbed a fresh one. With a brush made from the fur of a peak-level Spiritual Artifact Monster from the Heavenly Artifact Continent, he dipped it lightly into the pale jade liquid on the palette and tried yet again to inscribe runes.

Having obtained the Sword Sect's refining techniques, Qin Shou now had a completely new understanding of artifact refining on the Heavenly Artifact Continent.

The first step was to hunt down monsters with specific attributes, using their blood, flesh, and bones in combination with particular metals to create weapon embryos. This step required little technical skill and was easy for Qin Shou to accomplish.

The second step involved using the energy cores from within monsters to infuse Primordial Energy, melting Living Jade to produce Jade Ink, and then crafting fine brushes from monster fur. With these tools, runes would be inscribed onto the weapon embryo using one's own Primordial Energy as a conduit.

This step required precise control over energy, and Qin Shou was still feeling his way through it.

Still experimenting meant he hadn't succeeded even once.

The third step was to channel one's own Primordial Energy and blood into the weapon embryo, using a unique technique to infuse a small amount of spiritual power, forming intricate vein-like patterns similar to runes. After subjecting the creation to prolonged nourishment with Primordial Energy, the process would finally be complete.

These three steps weren't overly complicated, but they weren't simple either.

Qin Shou's wrist flickered as he worked, yet a half-completed rune drawn with Jade Ink dissolved into energy, causing the sword embryo to be ruined once more.

Qin Shou shook his head. Mastering a livelihood skill truly was a daunting task.

Forget it. No more drawing for now.

Checking the time, Qin Shou began tidying up his workspace, preparing to head over to the Sword Sect Secret Scripture Hall.

The Sword Sect had granted him access to cultivation methods below the Holy Artifact Master level, but those were just average techniques. To acquire better ones, he would need to earn merit.

And earning merit meant someone had to stir up trouble.

When it came to causing trouble, Qin Shou considered himself unparalleled.

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