Yue Mei's languidly beautiful face finally showed a flicker of interest as Ling Sha continued her report.
Her gaze shifted, landing on Zhou Changqing. Even for someone of her standing, for whom a man's good looks held little sway, she was momentarily struck by the young man's handsome features.
But what truly intrigued her was what Ling Sha called the Monster Core Armament. According to the report, this was no simple weapon with a Monster Core crudely embedded in it, but rather a piece of equipment that could dramatically amplify its user's strength. This was enough to finally pique her curiosity about Zhou Changqing.
"And that's the situation. It was because I was escorting this young man that I was delayed," Ling Sha concluded.
Yue Mei gave a slight nod. Her form flickered, and she was once again reclining on the long chaise.
"This 'Monster Core Armament' of yours... bring it here. Let me see if it's as impressive as you claim."
At her command, Ling Sha retrieved the tier-three longsword she had received from Zhou Changqing from her storage ring, presenting it with both hands.
With a simple gesture from Yue Mei, the sword shot through the air and into her grasp.
Her jade-like fingers caressed the scabbard for a moment before she drew the blade.
With a clear ring, the sword emerged from its sheath, its body gleaming with a cold light.
She examined it closely. The blade was a cold silver, etched with faint patterns, and an aquamarine Monster Core was embedded at the hilt. From its appearance alone, it was clearly a fine sword.
Then, a purple halo of Dou Qi bloomed around the hand gripping the hilt, and she channeled it from her palm into the longsword.
Instantly, the Dou Qi activated the Monster Core. A vast surge of aquamarine energy erupted from it, flooding the blade.
The cold silver of the sword was suddenly shrouded in an aquamarine haze, as if a current of water were bound to its surface. The light refracted through this current, making the sword glitter with a crystalline luster, giving it a dreamy, ethereal quality.
"Swish!"
Feeling the power contained within the blade, Yue Mei slashed it through the air.
A crescent-shaped blade of aquamarine energy instantly shot toward Zhou Changqing.
Faced with the sudden attack, Zhou Changqing didn't even blink. He stood his ground, his expression impassive, as if he'd been scared stiff.
Only Ling Sha's eyes twitched. She fought the urge to leap forward and block the attack, forcibly restraining herself. She could not act out of turn in the Chieftain's presence. Even if the Chieftain were to execute Zhou Changqing on the spot, there was nothing she could do.
A wave of regret washed over her. Perhaps she had been too hasty in bringing him to meet the Chieftain. She should have waited for a more opportune moment. If something were to happen to the young man, she wouldn't die of grief, but she would be consumed by guilt. After all, she had made him a promise. She had sworn to guarantee his status and freedom among the Snake-People.
The blade of energy closed the distance in an instant, stopping a meter before Zhou Changqing. Its biting edge seemed poised to slice him in two.
But in the next second, a purple mist emanated from the air before him.
The mist appeared and instantly coalesced into a thin, crystalline film.
"Bang!"
The energy blade slammed into the purple film and exploded.
Splinters of blue light shot in every direction, sending a shockwave rippling through the air. Yet, behind the barrier, Zhou Changqing remained completely untouched. Not a single strand of his hair had moved.
Seeing this, Ling Sha let out a quiet sigh of relief. It seemed the Chieftain had no intention of killing him; it was merely a test.
Yue Mei, however, looked at the unfazed Zhou Changqing with a great deal of interest.
"Why didn't you dodge?"
"Because I wasn't afraid."
"And why weren't you afraid?"
"I just wasn't."
"Interesting." A slight curve graced Yue Mei's lips. The young man's placid reply only deepened her fascination.
Her little test had been revealing. Although the embedded Monster Core's attribute was incompatible with her own Dou Qi, the sword could still unleash an attack on par with a Dou Grandmaster. This proved Ling Sha's report was no exaggeration. If this sword were in the hands of a water-attribute Dou Grandmaster, the combination of their own Dou Qi and the energy from the Monster Core would allow them to unleash power far beyond their own level.
Yue Mei was now thoroughly intrigued by the sword's design. Even with her powerful perception, she couldn't detect anything special about its construction that would allow it to fuse Dou Qi and Monster Core energy to create an effect so much greater than the sum of its parts.
She turned her attention away from the young man, weighing the sword in her hand before nodding slowly. "It is indeed a fine sword. Its tier, however, is too low to be of any use to me."
With that, the sword floated from her grasp and drifted back down into Ling Sha's waiting hands.
Yue Mei settled back onto her chaise, her gaze once again on Zhou Changqing. "Show me, young man," she said with a smile. "Show me how you forge such a weapon. This Chieftain is very curious!"
"You have my word. If you truly possess the skills Ling Sha described, I guarantee your status in the tribe will be second only to mine. I will also do my best to satisfy any request you might have."
"Then I must thank the Chieftain in advance."
Zhou Changqing cupped his hands and nodded. Despite his calm demeanor, he was not so arrogant as to disrespect a Dou King. He responded to kindness, not coercion, but that didn't mean he was a fool. When facing an expert who could end his life at any moment, the proper respect had to be shown. Besides, she was already giving him a great deal of face. To feign arrogance now would be his own folly.
With that, Zhou Changqing waved a hand, and the storage ring on his index finger flashed.
Several chunks of metal of varying colors flew from the ring, coming to a stop as they hovered in the air about four meters in front of him.
At this, both Ling Sha and Yue Mei focused their full attention. They were both eager to witness just how a Monster Core Armament was forged.
Using a wisp of Dou Qi so faint it was nearly invisible, Zhou Changqing kept the metal chunks suspended in midair as his eyes suddenly sharpened.
He thrust his right hand out toward the materials and began to circulate his Dou Qi.
Instantly, a massive torrent of gold and silver Dou Qi surged from his palm, completely enveloping the metal.
Then, Zhou Changqing clenched his fist.
The cloud of misty, crackling Dou Qi began to roil and transform at a dizzying speed.
In less than two seconds, a great cauldron, fully ten feet tall, materialized before their eyes. It looked as if it were forged from solid gold and silver, and the chunks of metal were now contained within its belly.
"Dual-attribute Dou Qi, just as I thought," Yue Mei noted with a nod.
Zhou Changqing raised both hands, aiming them at the cauldron.
"Refine!"
At his mental command, a磅礴 of Dou Qi poured from his hands into the great vessel.
The cauldron immediately underwent a drastic change. The gold and silver on its surface began to flow like liquid, emitting a metallic sheen. Inside, the immense Thunder Dou Qi transformed into countless arcs of electricity. They shot from the cauldron's inner walls like silver, twisting threads, connecting to the metal chunks within.
The sight was reminiscent of the plasma spheres from Zhou Changqing's previous life.
Under the relentless assault of these countless electrical arcs, the metal chunks began to heat up, quickly glowing red hot. At the same time, innumerable streams of Gold Dou Qi drilled into the metal, catalyzed by the Thunder Dou Qi to integrate at the atomic level. All the while, Zhou Changqing's formidable spiritual perception was focused entirely within the cauldron, monitoring every minute change in the materials.
Time flew by, and in what felt like an instant, half an hour had passed.
By now, under the tempering of what seemed like solid Thunder Dou Qi, the metal chunks inside the cauldron had melted into pools of searing, molten liquid.