Golden Core is a Star, and You Call This Cultivation?

Back in the Heaven and Earth Mystical Land, Qi Yuan had studied forging techniques and learned quite a bit.

The Heavenly Clan, where the Tattered Robe originated, had once been invaded by the Black Heaven. The world teetered on the edge of collapse before finally succumbing to destruction.

The Heavenly Clan had pursued the forging of radiant treasures, hoping to use them against the Black Heaven. However, they ultimately failed.

Before it ended, the Tattered Robe gifted Qi Yuan a relic called the Embryo of Radiance.

“Is this the same world?”

“Could it simply be two ends of the same timeline?”

“Or… do they merely share the same forging methods?”

After all, forging techniques weren’t necessarily unique to the Heavenly Clan’s world.

In this realm, crafting techniques were said to have been passed down from beyond the heavens.

“Does this mean I’m a celestial sovereign returning to the mortal world?”

“Or perhaps a great cultivator reborn 500 years earlier, equipped with top-tier forging techniques?”

During his time in the Heaven and Earth Mystical Land, Qi Yuan had memorized many forging methods. However, lacking materials, he had never practiced them.

Now, holding the Basics of Artifact Crafting manual, he studied it intently.

“To craft an artifact, one must first awaken the Heart Flame…”

For Qi Yuan, learning the art of crafting wasn’t particularly difficult.

He had studied extensively in the Heaven and Earth Mystical Land.

While the crafting methods in this realm had some differences, the underlying principles were similar.

Qi Yuan quickly grasped the concepts.

“The art of artifact crafting lies in the Heart Flame.

“A blazing flame illuminates the furnace, melting all materials.

“The Heart Flame arises from the heart, flows through the dantian, and manifests through intent…”

“Rise!”

With Qi Yuan’s command, a faint flicker of fire ignited in his heart, growing steadily in his dantian.

As he extended his hand, the flame surged and burned brightly in midair.

“This isn’t celestial fire—it’s an intriguing kind of flame,” Qi Yuan remarked, watching the white flame with curiosity.

Back in the Immortal Realm, he could summon fire with a single incantation.

But the essence of this flame was different, as were its underlying principles.

“There are countless paths in the world: cultivation in the Immortal Realm, martial cultivation in Gongxing, and then this…”

“Old man, fetch me some materials and tell them I’m preparing to craft an artifact,” Qi Yuan instructed.

Now that his Heart Flame had awakened, Qi Yuan was ready to begin crafting.

“I’ll need withered mystic bamboo, iron water, and other materials…” Qi Yuan listed his requirements to Chen Kangbao.

Using the techniques he had learned in the Heaven and Earth Mysttical Land, these materials could be used to craft a flying-type artifact.

If Shen Lingxuan won’t let me ride her, I’ll ride a flying artifact instead.

However, Qi Yuan wasn’t sure if the Shen family had all these materials.

If they didn’t, he’d have to modify the forging methods to use substitute materials.

“Understood.” Chen Kangbao swallowed his steamed bun and went out to gather the materials.

Meanwhile, Qi Yuan continued to hone his Heart Flame.

An artifact master’s strength was closely tied to the potency of their Heart Flame.

A weak Heart Flame wouldn’t last long—barely enough to cook an egg, let alone forge artifacts.

Before Chen Kangbao returned, an unexpected visitor arrived at the courtyard.

“Brother-in-law, the Enforcement Hall sent someone to ask you a few questions. Just answer casually—don’t worry,” Shen Lingfeng said as he entered with a thin middle-aged man. The man had a stern expression and was a Yellow-grade weapon master.

The man glanced at Qi Yuan and said softly, “Routine procedure.”

“Ask away,” Qi Yuan replied, already guessing the reason for the visit.

It was likely related to the discovery of Shen Baiting’s body.

If word got out, it could be quite unfavorable for Qi Yuan at this moment.

The thin man pulled out a notebook and a pen.

“When you were in Ninghe County, did you encounter a specter and have your soul taken?” he asked, his eyes glimmering faintly as if examining the completeness of Qi Yuan’s soul.

“I did encounter a specter, but my soul wasn’t taken. I’m perfectly normal,” Qi Yuan answered.

The thin man wrote a few lines in his notebook:

Soul confirmed intact.

No evidence of soul capture in Ninghe County.

No communication issues, mental state normal.

After finishing, the man continued, “Yesterday morning, you and Shen Baiting reportedly had a conflict?”

“There wasn’t any conflict. I’m a son-in-law, and he wanted to bully me. So I let him,” Qi Yuan replied earnestly.

“What?! That guy wanted to bully you?” Shen Lingfeng exclaimed in anger.

“How did you know Shen Baiting intended to bully you?” the thin man pressed.

“Well… I have a superpower that lets me hear people’s inner thoughts. I heard Shen Baiting cursing me in his mind, so I knew he wanted to bully me.

“I’m just a son-in-law—it’s normal to be bullied, isn’t it? So I went to him and asked him to go ahead and bully me,” Qi Yuan explained sincerely, his eyes wide with honesty.

The thin man paused.

Why does everything this guy says sound simple yet utterly baffling?

What superpower?

And why would being a son-in-law mean you should willingly seek out bullying?

He hesitated, then crossed out “mental state normal” in his notes and revised it:

“Thoughts disordered with strong delusions. Likely not soul-captured but severely traumatized by specter encounter.”

“Last night, Shen Baiting was found dead in his pond. It’s suspected someone pushed him in. Did you do it?” the thin man asked, though he was already inclined to believe Qi Yuan wasn’t involved.

“No, I didn’t push him,” Qi Yuan answered.

Indeed, he hadn’t pushed Shen Baiting. Shen Baiting had pinched him and, like a scheming green tea character, had flung himself into the pond, intending to frame Qi Yuan.

The thin man jotted down a few more notes in his notebook. “That’s all. Sorry for the disturbance.”

With that, the man left directly.

Shen Baiting’s death was shrouded in mystery. Even a clan Earth-grade weapon master had found no clues.

Such an enigmatic case clearly had nothing to do with a son-in-law like Qi Yuan.

If it hadn’t been for Shen Baiting’s public dispute with Qi Yuan the day before, they wouldn’t even have bothered questioning him.

“Brother-in-law, if anyone dares bully you again, just come to me!” Shen Lingfeng said, patting his chest with loyalty.

Qi Yuan smiled. “I wouldn’t mind being bullied. By the way, could you ask your mother when she plans to bathe? Make sure to let me know.”

Hearing this, Shen Lingfeng looked troubled. “Brother-in-law, that’s one favor I can’t help with.”

He wasn’t entirely clueless—he knew which requests were reasonable and which were not.

“How about this? Help me just this once, and I’ll teach you some new romantic lines to help you woo girls!” Qi Yuan offered generously.

Shen Lingfeng’s eyes lit up. “I’ll go ask my mom right now! Wait for my good news!”

With that, he bolted out of the courtyard.

As the sun set and night fell, Qi Yuan found himself alone in the yard.

Chen Kangbao returned with a pile of crafting materials, but Shen Lingfeng never came back with news.

“Seems like the people in the Shen household don’t bathe much. Sigh.”

Qi Yuan sighed deeply.

“Time to… start crafting!”

…

In the Shen family’s main hall, Shen Wanshan sat in the head seat, his expression grave.

“How is he?” he asked.

Chen Xianwei, standing respectfully to the side, lowered his head and replied, “The son-in-law seems quite interested in artifact crafting.”

He recounted the day’s events to the family head.

“Does he have talent for it?” Shen Wanshan asked, his tone laced with complexity. “I hope he doesn’t break the Qi family’s legacy.”

“Well… The path of the artifact master is intricate. It depends not just on talent but also on whether the son-in-law is willing to commit to learning. Talent alone isn’t enough,” Chen Xianwei answered tactfully.

What he really wanted to say was: The son-in-law is mad. What’s the point of me teaching him?

Over the past few days, he had only taught Qi Yuan the history of artifact crafting. He hadn’t taught him anything substantial.

After all, if a madman awakened his Heart Flame and started crafting without guidance, he might end up melting himself along with the materials.

Shen Wanshan saw Chen Xianwei’s hesitation and promised, “Thank you for your efforts. If Qi Yuan manages to craft a Yellow-grade artifact, I’ll increase your salary by 30%.”

“Could it be… 20%? Thirty feels asymmetrical—it’s unsettling,” Chen Xianwei suggested, clearly uncomfortable with the number.

Shen Wanshan’s expression twitched. “Forty percent.”

Hearing this, Chen Xianwei finally felt satisfied. Suddenly, he thought of something and asked, “Family Head, the son-in-law’s father was said to be an artifact master. May I know his name? I wonder if I’ve heard of him.”

Chen Xianwei was curious about Qi Yuan’s father.

Qi Yuan’s ability to marry into the Shen family and wed Shen Lingxuan likely stemmed from his father’s reputation.

Though Qi Yuan’s father was dead, his legacy seemed to carry significant weight—possibly as a revered Earth-grade artifact master.

Yet Chen Xianwei couldn’t recall any Earth-grade artifact master surnamed Qi.

At the question, Shen Wanshan’s expression changed slightly, as though recalling an old memory. “His name was erased. I can’t remember it.”

Chen Xianwei’s face darkened as well.

To have someone’s name erased? Such methods?

This implied a depth of intrigue he dared not probe further.

…

“Master, what is this?”

In the courtyard, Chen Kangbao stared at Qi Yuan’s creation, his expression strange.

“This… is a drone,” Qi Yuan replied proudly.

“Why does it look a bit like a fly?” Chen Kangbao muttered.

“Ahem. I can’t make a big drone yet, so I started with a small one.”

After receiving the materials, Qi Yuan had thrown himself into a chaotic frenzy of forging—and had actually succeeded in crafting a flying artifact.

However, as it was his first attempt, the result was… well, more of a decorative item.

The tiny drone’s power was equivalent to “the strength of ten mosquitoes.”

A clear waste.

By Chen Kangbao’s estimate, the materials used to make this drone could have bought thousands of meat-filled buns.

“No matter. I’ll improve,” Qi Yuan said nonchalantly. “To role-play as a god, crafting drones isn’t enough. I’ll also need grenades, speakers, flashlights, projectors, cameras, lightsabers…

“With these gadgets, I’ll surely achieve peak divine theatrics.”

Of course, his crafted items would have an otherworldly twist.

After all, this world had different rules than Earth. You couldn’t just replicate Earth’s technology and expect it to work.

This was where Qi Yuan’s ability to see hidden information would come in handy.

“We’re short on funds for materials. Once I craft some useless artifacts, I can sell them on the black market.

“For example, a lightsaber. I think it’s pretty cool. Some people would love it—it’s flashy and stylish,” Qi Yuan suggested.

Artifact crafting materials were costly.

With his current resources, Qi Yuan couldn’t afford enough materials.

He was also reluctant to rely solely on the Shen family for resources.

Taking small amounts was fine, but larger, more valuable quantities wouldn’t be tolerated by the Shen family.

More importantly, if the Shen family discovered he was crafting artifacts to stage divine theatrics, wouldn’t his secret be exposed?

His drones, flashlights, and other props had to remain hidden.

Once exposed, the mystery and grandeur of a “god” would vanish, leaving him as nothing more than a clown pretending to be divine.

“Master, hurry up and craft artifacts so we can sell them and buy more buns!” Chen Kangbao’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“…Why do I feel like I’ve become your employee?” Qi Yuan muttered to himself.

Still, remembering how Chen Kangbao had helped him fend off specters, he let it slide.

“Materials are too scarce. Sigh, I wonder—if I melted myself down, could I forge a weapon?” Qi Yuan mused.

The next day, Chen Xianwei resumed teaching Qi Yuan, just as he had the previous day.

The lessons remained simple—essentially a history class.

After all, he felt it was unwise to teach advanced crafting techniques to someone slightly unhinged.

First, Qi Yuan might not understand.

Second, he might set himself on fire.

As days passed, nearly two weeks had gone by.

Chen Xianwei adjusted his collar in the mirror before leaving his courtyard.

Just outside, he ran into his "rival," Wu Zhen.

“Old Chen, guess what? I recently took on a student who awakened his Heart Flame in just half a month. I just returned from the Artifact Hall after fetching him some materials for practice. Not for crafting yet—just to familiarize himself with melting materials.”

Wu Zhen spoke with obvious pride.

Awakening the Heart Flame in half a month was impressive for an artifact apprentice. Such talent often led to becoming a Xuan-grade artifact master.

“Not bad,” Chen Xianwei replied nonchalantly.

“I also saw Qi Yuan at the Artifact Hall. I heard he’s learning crafting from you.

“He must’ve awakened his Heart Flame by now, right? I noticed he was taking out a lot of materials,” Wu Zhen said with a sly tone.

Artifact apprentices couldn’t craft right away. After awakening the Heart Flame, they mostly practiced melting materials.

Wu Zhen doubted Qi Yuan had awakened his Heart Flame.

He had seen Qi Yuan requesting materials from the Artifact Hall on his first day of learning. To him, this clearly pointed to Qi Yuan selling the materials for profit.

Chen Xianwei’s expression flickered but quickly regained composure. “He’s the Shen family’s son-in-law. Taking a few materials is normal.”

Even so, he was puzzled.

Over the past ten days, he had only taught Qi Yuan about the history of artifact crafting.

Qi Yuan had listened attentively without any complaints.

Why was he suddenly taking materials?

Was he planning to start crafting?

Chen Xianwei decided he’d better check on Qi Yuan. If Qi Yuan attempted crafting without guidance, it could go wrong—he might even burn himself.

At the same time, Chen Xianwei felt a twinge of guilt.

He shouldn’t have focused so much on history lessons. It was time to officially start Qi Yuan’s training.

“Old Chen, I envy you for taking the Shen family’s son-in-law as your student. When you’re riding high, don’t forget about me,” Wu Zhen teased with mock jealousy.

The two had no deep animosity—just a long-standing habit of poking fun at each other.

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