The Legend of Fangren

Chapter 149 One shouldn't be too cautious.

The metal, called Azure Black Gold, was completely black and translucent, yet it had nothing to do with azure blue.

"Before being refined by fire, this azure black gold is completely black. Only by being refined by fire for a long time can it reveal its azure color. The lighter the color, the more thoroughly it has been refined, and the better. The finished azure black gold is extremely stable. Xuan Qi cannot be injected from the outside, nor can it be extracted from the inside. It can be called an extreme type of gold. However, it is precisely because its properties are too extreme that it is not suitable for making Xuan artifacts. Materials of other attributes cannot form a Qi path when refined into it. As soon as they reach the metal part, they are blocked."

From the perspective of the Five Elements, the azure black metal is metal, which represents condensation and should have the effect of gathering and attracting qi. Therefore, it can be the main material for weapons. However, this metal takes the power of condensation to the extreme. Its own matter and primordial qi are too condensed. When external qi finally enters it, it will be condensed and unable to move, and it will have no effect of attracting qi. As a result, it is too good and becomes "useless". No matter how many other uses it has, it is not suitable for weapons that people wield.

Fang Shi was overjoyed, like a monkey seeing a giant stick in the Dragon Palace, and hurriedly asked, "What grade is this Azure Black Gold? I have never seen it in many books."

To everyone's surprise, Lao Gang shook his head and said, "If we're talking about grade, there isn't such a thing as Azure Black Gold."

"Huh? Why is that?"

"Because it is truly difficult to use and does not connect with Xuan Qi, you junior cultivators often have a misunderstanding. You think that the higher the grade of materials, the better, and that once your cultivation reaches a higher grade, you should replace them with materials of the same grade to be considered suitable. But you don't realize that the difference in Xuan Qi between humans and Xuan beasts is already several times greater, and the Xuan Qi of natural objects is even more extreme, ranging from several times to dozens of times greater than that of Xuan beasts. To the point that they cannot even show a Primordial Living Form and can only be considered inanimate objects, how great is the difference between humans and these natural objects?"

This is the difference between reality and games. In reality, materials do not take into account the strength of the human body, and their quality is not judged according to human standards. The strength of the simple structure of a natural dead object often far exceeds that of a living body composed of complex matter.

"Rather than saying that this azure black gold has no grade, it's more accurate to say that its quality has not yet been determined. Its properties are so extreme and its uses are so few that it has exceeded the limits of the mortal world. Back then, our temple master retrieved it with the intention of making a hammer, but he couldn't find a satisfactory forging plan for a long time, so it was left to gather dust here and hasn't been used until today. Now it seems that this old thing might just be waiting for you."

"Uh, if the Palace Master were to retrieve it, shouldn't we inform him beforehand before using it?"

"No need, no need." Old Gang casually pointed to a few directions, all piled with miscellaneous items. "Our Palace Master is very capricious. He scooped up a whole bunch of things and just piled them up in this pavilion. As a result, most of them are just gathering dust. He also said a long time ago that if anyone can actually use this piece of azure black gold, they can take it. It's better than letting it bury here."

Of course, the Azure Black Gold is useless, but that's because it's too "useful" for the average person to use, so the price is definitely unavoidable.

When asked about the price, Lao Gang only said that he was happy to break even. Back then, the temple master spent a lot of money and even intercepted the stone to retrieve it. It was said that it cost more than a million. Given the stone's hard and heavy nature, if its grade had been determined, it might have been fifth grade or even higher. In that case, the price would not have been several million.

This relieved Fang Shi. Fortunately, he had made a fortune in Emerald City some time ago, and he could still scrape together more than a million. However, Lao Gang said that this was only the cost of the Azure Black Gold. The material costs for the other parts and the forging costs would have to be calculated separately. All in all, it would probably cost more than a million.

"Huh?!" Fang Shi was shocked. Of the extra million or so, the forging cost accounted for more than half of it.

The disciples who come here for training only make second or third-tier Xuan weapons, and with the sect's reimbursement, the cost is probably only tens of thousands. How come it's over two million for him? There's no way he can expect the sect to reimburse him at all.

Uncle, you may have forgotten that I'm still a child.

"Emmm...that's true. It was just a spur-of-the-moment thought. I forgot that you're just a junior cultivator out here for training. Oh well, just take what I said earlier as a joke. After all, no matter how strong you are, you definitely can't wield this Azure Black Gold."

Fang Shi refused to accept this, saying, "How can a man be told he's no good?"

"Master Gang, let me try the weight. Even if I can't lift it now, at least I'll have something to remember it by. I can try again when I'm stronger."

"Alright, please."

So Fang stepped forward and first pulled the trailer to feel its weight, which felt okay.

Old Gang said, "This trailer is also a magical tool that can greatly reduce the weight of goods, but it will immediately return to its original weight as soon as the goods are removed. Be careful not to hurt your back."

"Alright." Fang Shi took a stance, wrapped his arms around himself, and tried to find a suitable point of leverage on the rough surface of the black gold. Then he took a deep breath and slowly increased his strength.

"————" Old Gang stared nervously, thinking that if this kid could even lift this piece of black gold, it would be too frightening.

Fortunately, Fang Shi, his face flushed red, still managed to lift the black gold.

He exerted his strength for a full ten minutes, and even Lao Gang was amazed by the endurance of his muscles. Unfortunately, the Azure Black Gold lived up to its reputation and was not something that an ordinary person could lift. At least from Fang Shi's current level, without a better point of leverage and angle of force, he could not budge it an inch.

How strange, how strange. Fang Shi circled around Wu Jin twice, unable to figure it out.

Even if you can't lift it vertically, you can at least move it a little horizontally, right?

He refused to believe it. If such a small trailer could be easily towed (in terms of Fang Shi's opinion) after reducing its weight, then the weight of the main body couldn't be exaggerated. How could it be so completely welded together, as if it were integrated into one body?

"?Wait."

A lightbulb went off in Fang Shi's head, and an unconventional idea flashed through his mind. He immediately grabbed the tow truck handle again.

"What are you doing?" Old Gang saw him pull up the trailer, but not to move it; instead, he lifted the front of the trailer.

"As expected." Fang Shi immediately understood. He then lifted the trailer again, flipping it over and slamming the azure black metal onto the iron floor with a dull metallic clang.

To Lao Gang's surprise, even though the cart was already covering the black metal, Fang Shi still couldn't move it. After a moment's thought, he exclaimed, "So the weight of this stone is due to the metal's ability to gather and solidify with other materials! Perhaps it's because a large amount of profound energy has been trapped inside, greatly stimulating this type of metal's ability to condense energy and matter, which is why it's so 'heavy'! Ah! If that's the case, releasing the profound energy within might give this metal a wonderful use."

Seeing Lao Gang's shock, Fang Shi couldn't help but retort, "Didn't you guys discover this when you were refining this metal before?"

"Of course not. From mining to transportation to the finished product, this piece of gold was made entirely using magical artifacts, which are often used for building foundations. There is no need for manual handling. It's just that our temple master said he wanted to make it into a hammer, but he hasn't even started yet."

Fang Shi was ashamed.

It turns out that the people of the Li Huo Palace are all too cautious. If they had shaken or fallen a couple of times while carrying it, they wouldn't have missed it at all.

Indeed, one shouldn't be too cautious, or one will easily miss out on many good things.