Several days passed before Yang Kai's aura finally stabilized and he opened his eyes.
Zhagu stepped forward, clasping his fists in the human fashion. "Brother Yang, you've worked hard."
Yang Kai smiled faintly. "It was nothing. Brother Zhagu placed such trust in me — I naturally couldn't let you down."
Zhagu looked puzzled. "I've seen my Ink Disciple forge artifacts before, but it seemed rather different from what you were doing just now?"
Yang Kai chuckled. "Human artifact forging techniques are as varied as a hundred flowers in bloom. Different schools naturally employ different methods. I don't know which school your Ink Disciple trained under, but the technique I used is called Thousand Hammers, Hundred Refinings — one of the most ancient schools among the humans. It has withstood the test of time."
Zhagu nodded in understanding. "So that's how it is."
This wasn't Yang Kai spouting nonsense. The method he had just used to refine the great halberd was indeed called Thousand Hammers, Hundred Refinings. It was especially suited for forging offensive and defensive Artifacts, and even within the Divine Cauldron Heaven, one needed a certain level of status to be permitted to study it.
When Yang Kai had learned artifact forging from Chai Hao, Dongguo Anping and Zhong Liang had both put in a word, so naturally he had held nothing back regarding this technique.
"Don't worry, Brother Zhagu. When the work is complete, you'll see the results for yourself," Yang Kai reassured him.
Zhagu nodded repeatedly. "I trust Brother Yang completely."
"Then I'll continue," Yang Kai said, rising to his feet. He picked up the great hammer once more, channeled his own power, and harnessed the force of the subterranean fire, bringing the hammer down upon the halberd blow after fierce blow.
What Zhagu saw was merely the surface. Beneath each strike, Yang Kai not only unleashed his full strength and called upon the underground flames, but also tempered the halberd from within. Restriction after restriction was hammered into the halberd with each swing, purifying the entire weapon from the inside out.
Day after day, the deafening roar of hammer on metal echoed ceaselessly through the underground cavern.
Yang Kai's movements varied — sometimes fast, sometimes slow. Occasionally the hammer descended slowly, as though tapping gently; other times it fell with the weight of a mountain. Then it would strike with the speed of thunder, the sounds of impact blending into an unbroken chain.
Every so often, Yang Kai would stop to rest and recover.
At first, Zhagu had watched with eager anticipation, but as time dragged on he lost patience. Besides, he was still recovering from injuries sustained in the previous battle and needed his own rest.
Thus, every ten days or so he would come down to check on the progress, and each time, he could clearly sense that the halberd had undergone a marked transformation.
Three full months later, when Zhagu descended once more to inspect the situation, he found Yang Kai sitting cross-legged on the ground, a gleaming great halberd standing tall before him.
Compared to the original halberd, this one was noticeably thinner, though its length was largely unchanged. Yet Zhagu could clearly feel that the weapon radiated a razor-sharp aura with every passing moment.
If the original halberd had been a pearl covered in dust, that dust had now been polished away, and the pearl blazed with dazzling light.
Zhagu's breathing hitched for an instant.
He stepped forward and gripped the halberd, pulling it free. With a casual swing, he found that its weight, length, and thickness all felt perfectly suited to him, as though it had been custom-forged for his body.
Along the shaft, intricate patterns wound in complex spirals. When Zhagu channeled Ink Force into the halberd, it hummed and resonated, as though a slumbering beast had roared to life. Those spiral-like engravings actually amplified the power of his Ink Force.
A smile spread across Zhagu's face, one he couldn't suppress.
The Ink Clan had it hard. Though they could rely on Ink Force and their bodies were taller and sturdier than those of the humans, they had never mastered the art of artifact forging. In the wars between the two races, they had suffered countless losses at the hands of human Artifacts. Those Artifacts came in every imaginable variety and were impossible to guard against fully — who knew how many Ink Clansmen had fallen to their power on the battlefield?
If the Ink Clan could forge their own Artifacts, the humans would have crumbled long ago.
But even a Domain Lord like Zhagu would find it difficult to obtain an Artifact of his own. The ones seized from humans were never quite suited to their wielders, and while his Ink Disciple knew a smattering of forging, the results were nothing to speak of.
Who would have thought he'd end up with one today?
With this Artifact in hand, Zhagu felt his strength had increased by at least twenty percent. Twenty percent might not sound like much, but at critical moments it could mean the difference between victory and defeat — it could save his life. And even setting aside its special abilities, wielding such a halberd in casual combat would deliver devastating damage.
Zhagu could already picture himself cutting a swath across the battlefield, unstoppable.
"It seems Brother Zhagu is quite pleased with his treasure?" Yang Kai's voice came suddenly from behind.
Zhagu turned his head and realized that Yang Kai had risen from his meditation, watching him with an amused smile.
"Pleased? More than pleased!" Zhagu laughed heartily. "So it's finished?"
Yang Kai said, "The one who forged this halberd is your Ink Disciple — I merely refined it further. With my current skill, this is the best I can manage."
"Would this count as a mid-grade Artifact?" Zhagu asked.
"Of course," Yang Kai said with a slight nod. By his estimation, the halberd barely qualified as mid-grade, far from a masterpiece. But for Zhagu, it was already an exceptional prize — otherwise he wouldn't be this delighted.