I Was Forced to Marry a “Trash” Cultivator, But She Turned Out to Be a Reborn Empress!

Chapter 279: Treasure Takes Form, Fame Spreads Once More

By the arrival of the twentieth day, the sword blank had taken its true form.

Shen Xian felt the spiritual power boiling within his veins and the fresh, profound insights crystallizing in his Sea of Consciousness. A flicker of excitement danced in his eyes.

This session of artifact forging had yielded returns far beyond his initial calculations.

He wasn’t merely refining a True Spirit Treasure…

He was tempering his own Dao foundation.

The forging process continued, but Shen Xian already knew the outcome with cold certainty—

When this Cold Soul Sword was finally born, it would shake the foundations of the Holy City.

This certainty bred an immense, unshakeable confidence. His fighting spirit soared, his hands weaving complex seals as spiritual light cascaded from his fingertips like a celestial waterfall.

Suspended above the Burning Heaven Cauldron, the sword blank was nearing completion. The blade was a translucent, glacial blue, yet veined with crimson patterns that pulsed like living arteries. Two diametrically opposed Laws were being forced into a perfect, impossible fusion within the steel.

“Condense!”

With a low, authoritative command, the Li Fire True Seal between Shen Xian’s brows blazed with blinding intensity. The flames of the turtle-snake lamp surged violently.

The Laws of Water and Fire—eternal opposites—were forced into a violent, harmonious convergence within the blade. The sword body trembled, emitting a clear, piercing hum that resonated with the surrounding space.

*Zheng—!*

Amidst the keening of the metal, the runes on the blade ignited. Ice-blue and crimson-red energies intertwined, projecting a magnificent Tai Chi diagram into the void above the cauldron.

Even more astonishing was the faint, phantom silhouette of a flood dragon manifesting near the hilt—the undeniable sign of a weapon spirit’s birth!

Shen Xian’s eyes shone with piercing light. His ten fingers danced like butterflies weaving through flowers, executing the final nine artifact seals in a single, fluid breath.

“It is done.”

As the final seal settled, the sword floated upward of its own accord. The Tai Chi diagram rotating around the blade solidified, radiating a terrifying Pressure that seemed to distort the air itself.

A Mid-grade True Spirit Treasure!

And one possessing an embryonic weapon spirit!

Shen Xian allowed a faint smile to touch his lips. The quality of this Cold Soul Sword had exceeded his projections.

Just as he reached out to retrieve the blade, the atmosphere shifted violently.

*BOOM!*

An earth-shattering peal of thunder rolled down from the Ninth Heaven, shaking the forging room to its foundations.

Above the Duobao Workshop, the clear sky was instantly strangled by roiling black clouds.

“That is…” Outside, Zhao Wuchen snapped his head upward, his pupils constricting to pinpoints.

Within the suffocating cloud layer, silver lightning wove a terrifying net, spiraling into a massive vortex directly overhead.

More terrifying still was the image within the eye of the storm—a colossal phantom sword, slowly taking shape amidst the thunder.

“Weapon Tribulation!” Master Shen You’s voice cracked with disbelief. “It’s a Weapon Tribulation!”

The entire Tiangong Workshop erupted into chaos.

A Weapon Tribulation only descended when a True Spirit Treasure of heaven-defying quality was born!

Young Master Zi Chen trembled, his face flushed with excitement. “The ancient texts don’t lie! Only a Magical Artifact that threatens the balance of nature triggers the tribulation!”

The artifact forgers of the Hundred Arts Sect turned the color of ash.

The grey-robed old man who had mocked Shen Xian felt his legs give way. He slumped against a pillar, muttering incoherently, “Impossible… how could he possibly…”

The phantom sword in the vortex sharpened. Suddenly—

*CRACK!*

A bolt of silver lightning, thick as a water bucket, tore through the sky, hammering straight down toward the forging room!

Just as the crowd gasped in horror, a streak of ice-blue sword light shot upward, charging aggressively to meet the heavens!

*Zheng!*

The sword’s cry resonated through the clouds. The Cold Soul Sword wove through the lightning storm like a living creature. With every strike it endured, the blade grew more luminous, tempering itself in the destructive energy.

Miraculously, the phantom dragon at the hilt began to solidify, feeding on the thunder.

“It… it is using the Heavenly Tribulation to temper itself!” Master Shen You’s voice shook. “Such spirituality…”

For the first time, this fifth-rank artifact forger felt a crushing sense of inferiority. The gap between them was not a stream; it was an ocean.

After nine rounds of tribulation lightning, the dark clouds dissolved. A beam of pure golden light descended from the firmament, bathing the Cold Soul Sword in celestial glory.

The Tai Chi diagram on the blade became permanent. The flood dragon shadow solidified into a physical entity, coiling around the hilt, its eyes burning with sentient intelligence.

Silence reigned before the gates of the Duobao Workshop.

Everyone craned their necks, staring at the divine sword suspended in the golden light, their faces etched with pure shock.

In this moment, all doubt was incinerated.

The Holy City had witnessed the birth of a true artifact forging Grandmaster!

The doors to the forging room opened. Shen Xian walked out, and the air in the Tiangong Workshop seemed to freeze around him.

“Master Wang!”

Zhao Wuchen was the first to move. He rushed forward, bending at the waist until he was nearly parallel to the ground. He held a jade box high above his head with both hands. “The Heaven-Reaching Chamber of Commerce presents this humble gift to congratulate Master on successfully forging a True Spirit Treasure!”

Behind him, the chamber’s stewards bowed in perfect unison, a wave of deference practiced a thousand times.

Zhao Wuchen’s vision had been sharp; he had prepared these heavy gifts well in advance. Now, the timing of his investment was perfect.

Young Master Zi Chen scrambled forward, eyes wide with hero-worship. “Master Wang, you are too amazing! I… can I touch the sword?”

Before Shen Xian could reply, a voice carrying immense weight rolled in from the distance.

“Chen’er, do not be rude!”

Venerable Zi Yun, a Void Refinement expert, stepped through the air as if descending a staircase. He landed before Shen Xian and did the unthinkable.

He cupped his fists in a gesture of peer-to-peer respect. “Little Friend Wang, congratulations.”

Shen Xian had proven his identity as a fifth-rank artifact forger with undeniable power. To succeed in forging a True Spirit Treasure on the first attempt… such skill demanded respect, even from a Celestial Venerable.

This single bow caused the crowd to gasp audibly.

A Void Refinement Celestial Venerable actively saluting a Nascent Soul cultivator? Such a sight had not been seen in the Holy City for a century!

“I did not let the Celestial Venerable down,” Shen Xian replied with a calm smile.

He was referring to the incident with the Black Profound Celestial Venerable.

Venerable Zi Yun nodded, his eyes crinkling with a smile. “It seems my grandson will have to frequent your establishment for instruction from now on.”

“Wang will certainly do his utmost to guide him,” Shen Xian agreed smoothly.

Both were intelligent men. In a few short sentences, an alliance was solidified.

Luo Tianxiong led the Luo family forward, his voice trembling with suppressed emotion. “Master Wang, this… this Cold Soul Sword…”

Shen Xian smiled faintly and raised his hand.

*Zheng—*

The Cold Soul Sword transformed into a stream of light, landing gently in his palm. The blade was ice-blue jade, the veins were liquid fire, and the dragon spirit coiled around the hilt stared out with eyes like lightning.

“Fortunately, I have not failed the commission.”

Four simple words, yet they made Luo Tianxiong shake.

He received the divine sword with both hands, feeling the terrifying surge of Law power within it. Suddenly, he bowed deeply, his posture screaming gratitude. “The Luo family owes Master a life-debt!”

When he thought of the arrogant faces of his arch-rivals, the Li family, Luo Tianxiong felt a rush of vindictive pleasure.

He had won. He had won big.

Master Shen You stood at the edge of the crowd, his expression a chaotic mix of emotions.

Finally, he let out a long, defeated sigh. He stepped forward and cupped his hands. “Fellow Daoist Wang… no, Master Wang. This old man… submits.”

The title “Master,” coming from a proud fifth-rank artifact forger, carried the weight of a mountain.

The cultivators who had previously mocked Shen Xian now hung their heads, desperately wishing the ground would open up and swallow them whole.

The grey-robed old man was pale as a corpse, quietly slinking to the very back of the crowd, praying to remain unseen.

“Everyone.”

Shen Xian looked around, his voice calm, level, yet carrying an undeniable authority.

“From today onwards, the Duobao Workshop accepts custom orders for True Spirit Treasures.”

The sentence struck the crowd like a physical blow.

Accepting custom orders for True Spirit Treasures?

The implication was terrifying.

It meant the Duobao Workshop had officially ascended to the ranks of the Holy City’s apex artifact forging powers.

The artifact forgers from the Hundred Arts Sect and the Daoxuan Sect exchanged panicked glances.

They knew Shen Xian’s quoted prices.

He was cheaper than them. And the quality… was devastatingly superior.

Most importantly, he was young. His Potential was limitless.

In that instant, the established monopolies felt the cold shadow of an existential threat.

Zhao Wuchen was so excited his beard trembled. “Master, rest assured! The Chamber will provide full cooperation!”

He thanked the heavens he had chosen to Invest in this man early.

Venerable Zi Yun nodded approvingly. “If you have any needs, simply speak.”

Luo Tianxiong didn’t hesitate, producing a Storage Ring. “This is an additional gift of Spirit Stones from the Luo family to Master Wang!”

Shen Xian stood at the epicenter of the crowd, bathed in the awed, fearful gazes of the Holy City’s elite. The corner of his mouth lifted in a barely perceptible arc.

He was no longer the unknown nobody who had just arrived in the Holy City.

He was—

A true Grandmaster of artifact forging!