Chapter 552: Chapter 195 Fate Goddess

“The Tai Chu Rune is indeed more powerful than the Fate, Heavenly Mechanism, Qi Fortune, Nine Inheritances, and the Path of the Ninety-nine Supreme,” he said regretfully, “but unfortunately, this Qiankun Ring contains a whiff of Saint’s aura, as if it were infused with the Saint’s understanding, in an attempt to fashion a Holy Artifact.

This should have been a good thing, but the material used is of the Soul Device grade, and it was refined using the Tai Chu Rune. Therefore, using this Qiankun Ring requires a strand of Holy Power, as well as an understanding of the Tai Chu Rune.

Let’s not talk about this strand of Holy Power… Everyone understands that those who can use Holy Power are mostly Saints, and a Saint would definitely not waste their time with Magic Treasure Equipment of the Soul Device grade. And even if there are some Cultivators who possess a strand of Holy Power without being at the Saint Realm, meeting the first condition, what about the second? Understanding the Tai Chu Rune, which is even more difficult than the Netherworld Rune? I think, except for Zhou Yan himself, it’s likely that no one else in the world could use this ring.

Artifact Refining, this time is for the people of the world, to allow the majority to be qualified for its use, to find satisfaction in its function, not just to refine it for oneself.

Failing to meet even the most basic requirements of Artifact Refining, thus, in this ranking, Zhou Yan can only be considered seventh.”

The Yaochi Saint spoke with unparalleled arrogance.

As his words ended, some genius Cultivators felt it was a pity for Zhou Yan, yet they were unable to refute such a viewpoint.

At this moment, the Yaochi Saint continued, “Compared to this ring with distinct features but also prominent flaws, the Qiankun Ring crafted by Fate Goddess Zhuge Jiayue is much more powerful.

Even an ordinary person could use her Qiankun Ring once they obtain it, because ordinary people also have their own fate.

And if an ordinary person got ahold of this ring, they could change and strengthen their own fate. The better one’s fate, the more incredible encounters one would experience, and in life-threatening situations, one would often have a chance to survive.

In comparison, the Fate Goddess’s ring is suitable for all ages, a top-tier treasure for any Realm. This time, does anyone dispute that the Fate Goddess deserves the first rank in Artifact Refining?”

The Yaochi Saint asked with a smile.

He knew all too well that nearly all the Cultivators were captivated by the natural aura of fate exuded by the Fate Goddess, practically becoming fanatical followers. Who would have an objection now that he had said this?

Sure enough, after the Yaochi Saint finished speaking, all the seated Cultivators spontaneously stood up, and the applause thundered like a storm, wave upon wave, unceasing.

And in that moment, Zhuge Jiayue, who had awakened her own Life Chart, had hair that turned as white as snow, yet it looked spirited and floated about. Her long white hair grew very elegantly and reached three to four meters, gently encircling her from all sides.

She had completely transformed and became unrecognizable to all the Cultivators.

She was still her, yet she seemed not to be her.

She had merely awakened the Life Chart of the Fate Goddess, not the memories of the previous generation, nor had she experienced Body Seizing. But she had become different.

At least amidst such applause, she simply looked on quietly, as if it all were unrelated to herself.

From start to finish, she remained calm, as if such minor commotion was beneath her notice.

She no longer paid attention to Zhou Yan as before; in her heart, his importance seemed to have vanished without a trace, unshackled.

By embarking on her own destiny, she could now control her own fate. The destiny of the Fate Goddess would never change for a man.

…

The applause eventually ceased after a long duration, and the Yaochi Saint did not try to stop it. Although many could tell he did so intentionally, what he said made sense, so it all fell within the bounds of normalcy.

Therefore, even with Fairy Die feeling indignant and Saint Yao dissatisfied, they could not interfere too much.

“Now that we have mentioned the first and seventh places, we should talk about the sixth rank in these top seven Soul Device rings. Compared to the rarity of various special energies, some more moderate creations might have shone in previous comparisons, but this time, they seem less dazzling.

His crafting may involve the Supreme Dao Skill, but within the Supreme Dao, there are others better than his. So, overall, his ranking is sixth.

And the owner of this sixth place is Wu Ji.”

As the Yaochi Saint finished, murmurs of sympathy and various mocking and discussing voices arose from the crowd.

In fact, the Qiankun Ring crafted by Wu Ji was only second to that of the Fate Goddess in terms of quality, yet it was pushed so far back in rank. Zhou Yan understood in his heart that this must have been influenced by some words of the Wuxu Saint.

The Cultivators below, who could truly appreciate the merits and benefits of Artifact Refining and fully comprehend them, were few.

And even though some recognized the excellency of Wu Ji’s crafted ring, no Cultivator would speak up for Wu Ji, considering the great embarrassment he had previously suffered.

Who would accept such a clown-like figure?

He would have gone unnoticed if he had not succeeded, and even if he had, the cheers would not have been plentiful. And if he failed, many would kick him while he was down, especially given Wu Ji’s earlier arrogance that had offended countless Cultivators.

“The power of Fate cannot be overlooked, nor can the forces of Qi Fortune, and Heavenly Mechanism be underestimated. However, Qi Fortune and Heavenly Mechanism are equal, and their rings are nearly identical in grade.

It’s not easy to determine a winner between the two, but in the longevity of Artifact Refining, Qi Fortune’s Jia Yongheng far surpasses Zhuge Chunqiu of Tianji Mountain, hence, Jia Yongheng is ranked fourth, while Zhuge Chunqiu is third,” he declared.

“That leaves us with the fifth place—correct, the recipient of the fifth rank is Shiyin. Her Path of the Ninety-nine Supreme Artifact Refining is vast and profound. Furthermore, her experience in Artifact Refining is actually less than ten years.

Hence, she is ranked fifth, surpassing Wu Ji, without any objections.”

The Yaochi Saint announced.

His ranking won over nearly all the Cultivators present.

Even the remaining ten Cultivators agreed with this order.

As for the seven who gained rankings, neither the Fate Goddess nor Wu Ji cared at all, and Zhou Yan harbored only a cold sneer in his heart, without any intention to argue.

That was because Zhou Yan knew, the Yaochi Saint longed for him to step forward and argue, so that various excuses could be made to nitpick the Qiankun Ring.

Whether the ring had any defects or not, no one knew better than Zhou Yan.

But Zhou Yan didn’t need to argue; whether one had the Artifact Refining Ability or not was not something that could be faked. Over time, whoever had the talent would still reveal it in the Nine Origin Heavenly City in the future.

Moreover, the age of his work was less than ten years, even less than five years! This was a fact many people were aware of.

Venerating the Fate Goddess was only temporary. Once they came to their senses, the cultivators would naturally have their own scale in their hearts.

What’s more, the next round of competition would feature an Alchemy contest, where the Tai Chu Pill would be refined with the Tai Chu Rune. Whoever consumed it would possess the Tai Chu power for a certain amount of time. By deploying any means, a whiff of a Saint’s imposing energy would be present, with the Tai Chu Rune materializing. This would make the previously criticized Qiankun Ring suitable for everyone.

When that pill emerged, the Yaochi Saint would undoubtedly be slapped in the face.

And it was for this reason Zhou Yan disdained to argue.

Consequently, Zhou Yan did not raise any objections, and the ranking became fixed.

Following that, the Yaochi Saint looked at Zhou Yan with pride, his eyes not concealing the satisfaction he felt. He then announced the rankings of the other ten cultivators, before finally materializing the rankings of nearly three thousand genius cultivators in the Artifact Refining competition onto the Void Array Platform.

Everyone could see their respective ranks, and the reasons and positions of the rankings were very detailed, showing ‘absolute’ fairness, convincing many cultivators.

This approach seemed somewhat pointed, but it was still within the rules allowed, after all, the real rankings were just like that.

The more realistic the rankings were toward the back, it often implied sideways that the rankings at the front were ‘real’, which was another kind of misleading. It misled the other cultivators into believing that the Qiankun Ring Zhou Yan refined had severe flaws.

In reality, this was a little trick of the Yaochi Saint.

And if Zhou Yan didn’t employ the Tai Chu Rune in the Artifact Refining, he naturally wouldn’t be able to take advantage, and could possibly be rated as low as seventh place.

That is to say, no matter what, the result wouldn’t change, and it would still be seventh place.

“All right, the Sword Illusion Realm for this Artifact Refining competition and the recordings from the Memory Crystal Stone have also been completed. They will be transmitted along with your refined products to the Nine Origin Heavenly City. Coming up next is tomorrow’s Alchemy competition. I hope everyone will prepare well and face tomorrow’s challenge.”

As the Yaochi Saint spoke, he glanced at Zhou Yan again with a mocking look in his eyes, as if saying, “You want to marry the Holy Daughter? It’s useless for you to struggle as much as you like if I don’t think highly of you!”

As for such a provocative gaze, Zhou Yan also didn’t care at all. He responded with a cold sneer, as if to say, “We’ll just wait and see!”

…

15294th Secondary Main Peak.

When Zhou Yan returned to his Secondary Main Peak, the sky had darkened once more, with the night about to fall, and another day had unknowingly passed.

At the Main Peak, Bai Ying had tidied up everything for Zhou Yan, keeping the mountain peak in perfect order.

By the time Zhou Yan returned, Bai Ying had already respectfully welcomed him.

“Master, Zhou Gucheng and Zhou Qianqian have already brought the people of the Great Zhou Family. However, due to war and earlier invasions by the Foreign Race, the survivors of the Great Zhou and Li Families combined are now less than a hundred. Among them, some left on their own, and some went missing after betraying and leaving, not counting those people, there are no more than a hundred people from the Zhou and Li Families combined.”

Bai Ying spoke softly.

“Has it… fallen to this extent already?”

Zhou Yan murmured to himself and then sighed gently, saying, “Bai Ying, you have worked hard during this time.”

“Master, Bai Ying is not tired. Everything Bai Ying does for the master is as it should be. Because if it were not for the master, Bai Ying would have already died.”

Bai Ying spoke respectfully.

“Ah… between us, we really don’t need to be so formal.”

Zhou Yan sighed.

“Master says this because the master cares for and cherishes Bai Ying, which is Bai Ying’s honor. But servants have their place, and Bai Ying cannot ignore these things. Being a servant, the White Fox should do her duties well.”

Bai Ying said.

Zhou Yan knew that Bai Ying spoke from the heart, so he ultimately didn’t say anything more.

“Master, this time, you really should have taken first place,”

Bai Ying said somewhat resentfully.

“No matter, the rank doesn’t matter. After all, I’ve come to understand that even if I had taken first place in both Artifact Refining and Alchemy, the final betrothal gift phase still has a lot of tricks. That is to say, this phase can erase the results of all the previous efforts. In the end, the Yaochi Saint wants to exchange the Holy Daughter for enough resources. He has great ambition, seemingly wanting to break the heavenly seals and truly achieve Transcendence from the Sword Burial Ancestor Star.”

Zhou Yan laid bare the ultimate goal of the Yaochi Saint.

Bai Ying was taken aback.