Chapter Twenty-Six: The Primordial Chaos Furnace of Hongyuan

The massacre was nearing its end, and already some of the men in black had begun cleaning up the battlefield.

Two hours later, except for a few Core Formation cultivators in black who led late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, sword-flying back and forth among the buildings in search, the rest gathered to one side of the courtyard square, discussing something in hushed voices.

Soon after, a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator approached one of the Core Formation men in black and whispered a few words. Seven or eight men in black then mounted their flying swords and rushed swiftly toward a small courtyard among the buildings.

Not long after, Liu Junhuai saw three men in black emerge from the tunnel that Mu Linchuan had crawled out of, then tracked their way to a cluster of trees where Mu Linchuan had been slain, stopping beneath their boughs.

More men in black arrived, and Liu Junhuai felt a wave of tense anxiety—there was no doubt that the killers had discovered the underground escape route used by Mu Linchuan.

A group of individuals whose cultivation was indiscernible conferred together, then directed all the men in black to fan out and search in Liu Junhuai’s direction. Instinctively, Liu Junhuai withdrew his celestial sense and shrank back into the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion.

By the time he regained his composure and sent out his spiritual sense again, dawn was breaking. The searchers had already departed before reaching his hiding place.

He dared not reveal himself or leave in haste. Instead, he fully extended his spiritual sense, observing the retreat of the men in black around him.

Sure enough, not long after flying away, about half of the men in black doubled back and began searching the area around him once more.

Knowing the outside danger would not soon abate, Liu Junhuai withdrew his spiritual sense and entered the cultivation chamber.

Inside, he took out the superior-grade earth-tier flying sword he had acquired from Shangbaoxuan, along with Mu Linchuan’s inferior-grade heaven-tier sword, refining them both one by one. Watching the men in black darting through the sky, he felt a surge of envy.

He dared not use Mu Linchuan’s sword openly. The sword from Shangbaoxuan had the characters “Nine Heavens” engraved at its hilt; when infused with true essence, the blade expanded to three feet wide, radiating a blue sword-light. Liu Junhuai secretly delighted, “Standing atop this would be quite the spectacle.”

He put away the flying swords and once more entered the cave within the Scarlet Flame Valley, tending to his wounds and reflecting on the gains and losses of the past day.

By far, his greatest gain was Mu Linchuan’s storage ring, yet what intrigued him most was the attack ability of the cauldron staff.

It was only thanks to the cauldron staff’s lethal strike that he survived; in hindsight, it seemed that when the protective Hunyuan Shield Cauldron was attacked, the cauldron staff responded. Was it incapable of attacking on its own initiative?

With this in mind, Liu Junhuai took out the cauldron staff and tried to control it with his spiritual sense, to no avail. He infused it with true essence, but the staff merely trembled as if enjoying a massage.

Frustrated, he found he could not elicit that golden light from the cauldron staff again; all he could do was treat it as an ordinary short staff.

It seemed the cauldron staff could not attack proactively, only respond defensively when threatened.

Yet even this satisfied Liu Junhuai greatly—after all, it had just saved his life. That sudden golden ray killed without warning, not even a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator could dodge it.

The Hunyuan Shield Cauldron’s protective golden body was only in its nascent stage—Mu Linchuan, though gravely wounded, nearly killed him. Clearly, strengthening his life-saving measures was paramount.

No sooner thought than done; as the Hunyuan Shield Cauldron’s incantation surfaced in his mind, warmth once more welled up in his chest, flowing through his dantian and into his sea of consciousness. Within the cauldron’s belly, a vortex formed, the cauldron staff spun inside, and a golden protective glow enveloped his body anew.

Several more hours passed in this manner. Through cultivation, Liu Junhuai gradually healed his wounds. After a simple wash and change of clothes, he observed the chaos outside, seized the opportunity, and slipped quietly out of the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion.

Blending into the crowd, Liu Junhuai soon grasped the shock last night’s massacre had sent through the cultivation world.

At dawn, someone noticed something amiss at the Shangyu Chamber of Commerce, and rumors and speculation spread like wildfire. When the auction hour arrived at noon, more cultivators gathered, and suddenly chaos erupted at the scene.

As numerous cultivators stormed into the Chamber of Commerce, signs of battle emerged everywhere, yet curiously, there was not a single corpse, nor a living soul in sight.

The scene was eerily reminiscent of what happened at the Dragon Sacrifice Pool. Once this discovery was made public, the tens of thousands of cultivators present fell into immediate panic.

For Liu Junhuai, the conclusion was clear—both incidents were the work of the same group, though their identities and motives remained a mystery.

It was plain, however, that local cultivators had participated in both events.

At yesterday’s auction, it had taken only a few hours for the men in black to appear; those who stopped the auction then were highly suspect. The spies likely hid among them.

Liu Junhuai didn’t know any of those people; otherwise, finding out who among them was still alive would have made the investigation far easier.

But he did not much care; in the world of cultivation, the law of the jungle reigned. He himself had profited from these events, and none of those killed were kin or friends of his. Why bother worrying?

Above the Shangyu Chamber of Commerce, cultivators arrived and departed on flying swords.

After yet another group of Sea Sky Pavilion disciples in blue and purple uniforms arrived, the square before the auction house was packed to bursting.

Just then, a young cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Refining beside Liu Junhuai cupped his hands and greeted him, “Greetings, fellow Daoist. My surname is Wu, Wu Shaoyuan. I hail from Shangbaoxuan.”

Liu Junhuai quickly returned the greeting. “Greetings, Brother Wu. Might I ask, how are you related to Manager Wu of Shangbaoxuan?”

“He is my grandfather,” Wu Shaoyuan replied, gesturing behind him. “He actually sent me here to invite you over.”

“Very well, let’s talk over there then,” Liu Junhuai replied cheerfully.

At the edge of a nearby copse, Manager Wu was deep in conversation with two elderly men.

Liu Junhuai saluted. Manager Wu, with a look of apology, said, “I hadn’t intended to trouble you, but seeing you alone amid such chaos—major sects have sent their people, and soon they’ll be looking for labor. So I thought it best to call you over.”

Liu Junhuai felt a surge of gratitude. He had always liked Manager Wu; the man had not harbored ill intent even when Liu offered up such a precious cold crystal that day.

Liu Junhuai replied, “It is your calm wisdom that I must thank. I am young and lacking in experience, so I am grateful for your guidance.”

Manager Wu laughed heartily. “You, lacking experience? Last time at my place, you reaped plenty of benefits, didn’t you? I reckon you’re more silver-tongued than I am!” Then, pointing to the two elderly men, he said, “These are the managers of Ling World Pavilion. They have many rare items—by all means, you should pay them a visit.”

Liu Junhuai quickly saluted the two of them. “Why don’t we go now? This is no place to linger.” He had long been thinking of leaving this place of trouble, and now he had the perfect excuse.

Along the way, Liu Junhuai learned that the higher-ranking of the two elders was Chief Steward Xiang Yuanjia, of mid-Foundation Establishment strength, while the other was named Zhong Zhaigu, also mid-Foundation Establishment.

Inside Ling World Pavilion, after tea was served by an attendant and Xiang and Zhong had gone to report the events at the Chamber of Commerce, Manager Wu leaned in and whispered, “You can trust these two. We’ve been friends for decades. By the way, they have a jade gourd here—keep an eye out, it’s a fine thing.” As he finished, Manager Wu made a counting gesture with his thumb.

“I understand. By the way, is that ‘Thunder Moves in All Directions’ manual I saw last time still available? I’ve thought it over and decided to buy it after all. Once I leave here, good things will be hard to come by,” Liu Junhuai said.

Manager Wu was delighted. He had always been interested in Liu Junhuai. The youth looked about sixteen or seventeen, yet already had Foundation Establishment cultivation; he was courteous, adept in his dealings, and seemed to be of considerable means—likely from a prominent family.

Manager Wu summoned Wu Shaoyuan and said to Liu Junhuai, “Shaoyuan is my grandson. His parents passed away early; it’s just him and his sister with me now.” Turning to Wu Shaoyuan, his eyes full of affection, he added, “This Liu Junhuai is much younger than you, yet far surpasses you in cultivation. You should get closer to him. Don’t be fooled by his youth; he’s remarkably adept with people.”

Wu Shaoyuan, taking this to heart, pulled up a chair and sat right next to Liu Junhuai. His straightforward nature made Liu Junhuai feel at ease, and soon the two were chatting away about the affairs of youth until the two old stewards returned.

“Thank you for waiting, Brother Liu. Let us go upstairs to have a look,” Xiang Yuanjia said.

With that, the group rose and headed up.

The second floor was lined with display cases like bookshelves, each encased in a glass-like barrier, clearly containing precious items.

Upon reaching the second floor, Liu Junhuai’s eyes were immediately drawn to a cauldron furnace. The furnace was divided into upper and lower chambers, its silhouette reminiscent of a gourd from afar, more like two stacked purple clay teapots—one large, one small—up close. The upper section bore the inscription “Hongyuan,” the lower “Chaos.”

“This is the Hongyuan Chaos Furnace,” Xiang Yuanjia explained, noting Liu Junhuai’s keen interest. “The upper part is the cauldron, the lower the furnace. The cauldron is used for alchemy; combined, they serve as a forging furnace. It is crafted from purple refined copper mixed with meteoric iron from beyond the heavens.” With that, he dispelled the barrier and handed the item to Liu Junhuai.

The moment Liu Junhuai touched it, he felt a strong sense of ancient grandeur—a vast, desolate aura of bygone ages.

“Senior, what is the price for this?” Liu Junhuai had taken quite a liking to the furnace.

After a brief consideration, Xiang Yuanjia said, “The Hongyuan Chaos Furnace is indeed a treasure of profound heritage. Our pavilion acquired it only recently. Since you come recommended by Manager Wu, I’ll offer it to you at a ten percent discount. How does eighteen hundred mid-grade spirit stones sound?”

“My thanks for your generosity, senior.” The price was even lower than Liu Junhuai had expected.

He immediately exchanged the spirit stones for the Hongyuan Chaos Furnace and slipped it into his storage ring.