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

Chapter 285: The Great Dao is Simple; Defying Expectations

Shen Xian’s movements appeared utterly pedestrian.

He wove no complex hand seals, nor did he summon any blinding, heaven-shaking phenomena. He simply guided the Earth Fire, feeding the raw materials into the Burning Heaven Cauldron one by one.

His technique lacked even the flair of a third-rank artisan. To the untrained eye, it resembled a novice stumbling through the most basic steps of smelting.

“Is that it?” Master Zhou of the Hundred Arts Sect narrowed his eyes, sighing inwardly. *Brother Lu was right. This kid’s grasp on refining True Spirit Treasures is shallow at best.*

As a highly respected Elder of the Hundred Arts Sect, Master Zhou generally disdained bullying the younger generation. However, his friendship with Lu Tingwei spanned a millennium; they had shared life and death, forging a bond deeper than blood. He had come today specifically to bolster his old friend’s prestige.

As for Shen Xian…

“It is good for young men to have talent, but to be so sharp and ostentatious is a path to ruin,” Master Zhou shook his head slightly. “Consider this a lesson for the lad. He must learn that the Dao of Artifact Refining ultimately relies on genuine scholarship and accumulation, not flashy tricks.”

He recalled the imagery from the memory stone he had seen earlier. Shen Xian’s previous work did possess some unique qualities. But refining a True Spirit Treasure was a world apart from ordinary spirit artifacts; it required centuries of precipitation to grasp the essence.

“Brother Lu is correct. If we allow such impetuous, restless individuals to run rampant, it will ruin the atmosphere of the entire profession. We must blunt his edge today. If he is willing to humbly seek guidance hereafter, he might yet become a pillar of our Hundred Arts Sect.”

Master Zhou stroked his beard, his gaze holding the mix of sternness and expectation typical of a senior expert. He didn’t intend to crush Shen Xian completely, merely to force this talented youth to understand one thing: the Dao of Artifact Refining tolerates no impatience.

On the sidelines, several low-rank refiners exchanged bewildered glances. One whispered, “Why isn’t Master Wang using any fire control arts? At this smelting speed, he won’t even match half of Master Lu’s progress…”

The Flaming Elder from Skyfire City stroked his beard, a trace of undisguised contempt flashing in his eyes. “Hmph. He cannot even execute a foundational technique like the ‘Three Talents Fire Division,’ yet he deems himself worthy to sit as our equal?”

He stared at Shen Xian’s seemingly methodless smelting, his disdain deepening.

“He is merely a junior who struck luck, relying on a sliver of talent to disrupt the ancient rules of our trade!”

For centuries, the fifth-rank Grandmasters had maintained a tacit understanding: the supply of True Spirit Treasures must be strictly controlled, and their prices kept artificially high. To do otherwise would be to devalue their own existence.

But this Shen Xian was a variable. Not only did he plan to refine True Spirit Treasures, but he also intended to sell them at a low price. He was practically smashing their rice bowls!

“If Brother Lu can publicly humiliate him today, it will be a blessing for us all,” the Flaming Elder sneered. “Otherwise, if we let such an ignorant, arrogant junior run wild, the prestige we have accumulated over a millennium will be trampled under his feet.”

He glanced at Shen Xian’s chaotic process again, his conviction firm.

*With such crude techniques, failing to even fully purge the impurities… how dare he claim the title of fifth-rank?*

*Whatever he pulls out of that furnace will be nothing more than scrap iron!*

Lu Tingwei caught Shen Xian’s actions from the corner of his eye and felt a wave of relief wash over him. *Indeed, a man with a hollow reputation. With such a sluggish smelting pace, by the time I finish shaping, he won’t even be done tempering his materials!*

Whispers began to ripple through the sea of spectating cultivators:

“Didn’t they say he could trigger a Weapon Tribulation?”

“He probably used some trickery last time…”

“It seems Black Profound City bet on the wrong horse…”

…

Shen Xian remained impassive, his expression as tranquil as a still lake, utterly deaf to the skepticism washing over him.

*A bunch of frogs at the bottom of a well,* he thought, a cold sneer hidden deep in his heart.

The flames dancing within the Burning Heaven Cauldron appeared ordinary, but if a true Sovereign of refining were present, they would have seen the terrifying truth. Every flicker of the flame oscillated at a precise, identical frequency. The temperature was controlled not just to the degree, but to the microscopic variance required by each specific ore. The Earth Fire didn’t just burn the surface; it permeated the molecular structure of the materials, silently and ruthlessly purging impurities from the inside out.

*They think ‘Three Talents Fire Division’ and ‘Nine Palaces Fire Control’ are profound skills?* Shen Xian scoffed internally.

Little did they know, the apex of fire control required no flashy hand seals. It was about making the flames an extension of one’s own will, obeying like a limb.

Lu Tingwei’s ‘Nine Palaces Fire Control’ looked exquisite, but it was superfluous. He was using hand seals to forcibly constrain the fire, layering it and regulating the temperature through brute force rather than understanding the essence of the materials.

Shen Xian’s technique, however, allowed the flames to naturally align with the intrinsic Dao of the materials, completing the perfect temper with the least amount of resistance.

The Dao of Artifact Refining lies not in complexity, but in precision.

Unfortunately, among the thousands present, not a single soul had the eyes to see it.

Ten days passed.

While Lu Tingwei was still sweating over the intricate adjustments of his flame layers, a clear, melodious hum resonated from Shen Xian’s cauldron.

*Om—!*

The sound was crisp, signaling completion. All materials were tempered, impurities annihilated. He was finished a full three-tenths faster than Lu Tingwei’s “superior” technique.

“What?!”

Master Zhou of the Hundred Arts Sect shot to his feet, his eyes bulging with disbelief.

He stared fixedly at the Burning Heaven Cauldron. “How is this possible? It has only been ten days! He has already completed the entire smelting phase?!”

The crowd erupted. The low murmurs of mockery instantly detonated into a shockwave of exclamations.

“This… this is impossible!” A low-rank refiner’s jaw dropped. “Even Master Lu is only seventy percent done. How can he be this fast?!”

“Did he use a forbidden art?”

“No, look!” Someone pointed a trembling finger at the interior of Shen Xian’s cauldron. “Look at the liquid… it’s almost transparently pure!”

The Flaming Elder’s face drained of color, his sneer freezing into a grotesque mask of shock.

He stared at the cauldron, his spiritual sense probing the liquid. “This… how…”

*Impurities completely gone. The fire alignment is perfect…* A storm raged in his mind. *This is definitely not luck!*

Lu Tingwei’s composed facade shattered. He snapped his head toward Shen Xian, a flicker of genuine panic igniting in his eyes.

*Impossible!* He roared internally. *He didn’t use a single fire control technique! How can he be faster than me?!*

Yet the reality was brutal and undeniable. Shen Xian’s materials were not only ready, but they also possessed a purity that shamed the results of Lu Tingwei’s meticulous ‘Nine Palaces Fire Control.’

“Could it be…” A terrifying thought struck Lu Tingwei like a thunderbolt. *”Has his fire control reached the realm of ‘Returning to Simplicity’?!”*

*But how?! That is a realm even I have only dreamed of touching!*

The spectators finally processed what they were seeing. The doubts vanished, replaced by awe.

“Master Wang… is actually faster than Master Lu?!”

“That technique looked ordinary, but it was actually unfathomably profound! We were blind!”

…

Amidst the chaotic noise, Shen Xian remained unmoved. He had already begun the second step: Shaping.

Lu Tingwei snapped back to reality. He forced himself to breathe, readjusting his crumbling mindset. He glanced at the materials in his own cauldron, and a flash of anger pierced through his panic.

*So what if you’re fast!*

*This duel is decided by the final product!*

*If I refine a high-grade True Spirit Treasure, how can you possibly compare?*

With that thought, a vicious resolve took hold of him. He reached into his storage ring and threw several additional pieces of precious fifth-rank materials into his cauldron!

He had come prepared for war. He would not let some upstart walk over him.

*I will win this contest, no matter the cost!*