Talent Vs Hardwork (Patreon)

Chapter 2: Gamblers Never Meet a Good End

"It's actually a spirit-refining artifact!"

Lin Chuan's eyes widened in astonishment as he eagerly took out the Green Patterned Cauldron.

A small bronze cauldron with three legs and two ears appeared before him.

The cauldron's surface seemed to be etched with mysterious patterns, resembling ancient characters or runes, densely packed and countless in number.

Even without knowing its exact functions, it was clearly extraordinary.

Spirit refining, also known as enhancement, was a method that forcefully infused the power of heaven and earth into an object. It mimicked the creative powers of the heavens, capturing and enhancing objects with the energy of the world.

Whether it was pills, incense, or magical artifacts, they could all be refined.

However, due to its defiance of natural laws, it carried a certain success rate.

If successful, the object's power would greatly increase. If it failed, the object would become worthless under the force of heavenly power.

Moreover, spirit refining could be done multiple times.

If one was lucky enough, even a common roadside weed could be enhanced to a level capable of cutting down stars.

"Oh my god, this is incredible!"

Lin Chuan took a deep breath, swallowing hard, still unable to snap out of his excitement.

He hadn't expected such an unexpected surprise after awakening his martial spirit.

But after a moment of elation, Lin Chuan felt a surge of danger.

Such a treasure would be coveted even by the gods. If anyone found out, he would become a target for countless people.

No matter what, the existence of the Green Patterned Cauldron must remain a secret!

"But speaking of which, I remember that spirit refining requires a specific type of fire. I wonder if ordinary fire will suffice."

As they say, practice is the only criterion for testing truth.

Lin Chuan placed the Green Patterned Cauldron on the ground and ran to the woodshed.

He returned with a bag of rice and a few sticks of wood.

"Let's give it a try. I hope it doesn't disappoint me!"

Lin Chuan took a deep breath, set up the firewood under the cauldron, and used a fire starter to ignite the kindling, pushing it under the wood.

Before long, the firewood was ablaze, sending up curls of smoke.

Seeing this, Lin Chuan quickly took a grain of rice and tossed it into the cauldron.

The patterns on the cauldron gradually lit up, emitting a silvery-white glow. The grain of rice began to slowly rotate, occasionally absorbing the surrounding light.

"It actually works!"

Lin Chuan restrained his excitement, keeping his eyes fixed on the cauldron's changes.

After about half an hour, the silver patterns gradually dimmed, and the light completely faded.

"Is it finished?"

Lin Chuan reached in and picked up the refined grain of rice, examining it closely.

The once ordinary grain of rice had become translucent and crystal clear, with a striking silver pattern on its surface.

This silver pattern matched the one that lit up on the Green Patterned Cauldron, slowly turning to a dark silver over time.

"Is this rice infused with the energy of heaven and earth? It certainly looks extraordinary. I wonder what effect it will have."

Lin Chuan gently caressed it.

"Let's give it a try!"

Taking the once-refined grain of rice into the kitchen, he cooked it using an ordinary iron pot.

This time, he could clearly see the glow emanating from the rice.

The energy within it was escaping!

Lin Chuan didn't hesitate, opening his mouth wide and swallowing it whole.

The rice dissolved instantly upon entering his mouth, transforming into rich energy from the world, surging through Lin Chuan's body with a roar. Without much thought, he immediately started doing push-ups.

Uncertain how to cultivate spirit power, he resorted to this crude method to absorb the energy.

Despite his efforts, the efficiency remained low.

A mist began to rise from Lin Chuan's head, soon enveloping his entire body.

At that moment, he looked as if he were being cooked.

[You have exercised diligently, slightly improving your physical fitness.]

...

Three hours later.

The phenomenon finally ceased.

"Finally, it's over!"

Lin Chuan collapsed on the ground, letting out a long sigh of relief.

The once-refined rice turned out to be even more extraordinary than he had imagined. Despite the intense exercise, Lin Chuan felt invigorated and full of energy, without the slightest hint of fatigue.

Yet, the gains didn't stop there.

"My spirit power seems to have increased significantly. I'm not far from level six!"

Feeling the obvious increase in his spirit power, Lin Chuan licked his lips, astonished.

The effect was even more remarkable than he had anticipated.

Had his body been able to absorb all the energy, and had he known how to cultivate spirit power, the gains would have been even greater. Most of the energy had been wasted.

Even so, Lin Chuan was already quite satisfied.

"I wonder if I can refine my martial spirit..."

Once this thought emerged, it was impossible to suppress.

Lin Chuan was extremely tempted, but he knew that if the refining failed, the martial spirit would be utterly destroyed by the power of the heavens.

If his martial spirit was destroyed, he would be finished.

With that in mind, Lin Chuan had to suppress his desire.

"I need to stay calm. There's no rush to refine my martial spirit. I need to ensure the refinement won't fail first."

Though he couldn't refine his martial spirit for now, other items were still fine.

Lin Chuan gathered the remaining arrows and a machete from his house and placed them in the Green Patterned Cauldron.

As the fire blazed, the first pattern on the cauldron lit up once more. When the refining process ended, the arrows inside had undergone a drastic transformation.

A silver pattern had appeared on the arrows, eventually turning to a dark silver.

The wooden shafts now had a metallic sharpness, and the iron arrowheads emitted an even more intimidating cold light.

Lin Chuan beamed with joy and continued refining the remaining arrows.

At that moment, there was a sudden knock on the door.

Lin Chuan was startled. He quickly stopped what he was doing, willed the Green Patterned Cauldron back into his body, took a deep breath, and composed himself before hurrying to the door.

Opening it, he saw the village chief of Caomiao Village standing outside.

"Village Chief, it's you! What brings you here?"

The village chief smiled warmly upon seeing Lin Chuan.

"Lin Chuan, it's like this. The spirit master from the Spirit Hall said you could become a spirit master. So, I visited the nearby villages."

"They don't have any spirit master candidates this year, so I got the shared work-study quota from the three villages. Would you like to go to the spirit master academy to study?"

Lin Chuan was initially taken aback, then felt a warmth in his heart.

"Thank you, Village Chief. I would love to study at the spirit master academy!"

"Good, good. Then the work-study quota is yours. The registration for Nuoding Academy is in half a month. Lin Chuan, you must work hard and strive to become an excellent spirit master."

Lin Chuan nodded gently.

"Don't worry, Village Chief. I won't let everyone down!"

"Good boy, I believe in you. I’ll leave you to prepare. See you!"

With that, the village chief turned and left briskly, muttering to himself: "The village finally has a spirit master!"