Chapter 164

Chapter 164: Deceiving and Robbing

Hearing these two voices, Lou Yun was immediately startled. He released the seal in his hands, but he had to keep the Fusang Fire burning so that the common weapon remained inside the Chaos Golden Cauldron. If he extinguished the Fusang Fire without sealing it, the newly forged common weapon would absolutely become scrap!

Therefore, forging weapons usually required selecting a secluded and safe location to prevent unexpected interruptions during the process. Being disturbed would ruin all the effort and waste all the materials. Who would forge weapons outdoors in a wild, desolate area?

Lou Yun knew this well, but he mainly aimed to elevate the grade of his magical weapon while warming up for the upcoming forging conference. Added to this, he had great confidence in his Fusang Fire. Materials that took others an hour to refine could be refined by him almost instantly. Thinking it wouldn’t take much time, he chose this concealed valley for forging.

But he never expected that such a remote place would suddenly have outsiders appear, and worse, just as he was about to retrieve the common weapon!

As the voices faded, a figure descended from the sky and landed before Lou Yun.

This man was middle-aged, short and plump, with an arrogant expression. He frowned as he glanced at Lou Yun a few times. Then he circled the Chaos Golden Cauldron several times, his frown immediately softening into surprise and excitement.

From the change in his demeanor, Lou Yun deduced he was also a skilled weapon maker. His surprise and excitement were obviously due to recognizing the Chaos Golden Cauldron’s value. Moreover, this man possessed extremely high cultivation—Lou Yun’s spiritual senses couldn’t penetrate it, meaning his magical weapon was at least at the human level or above.

Before discerning the intruder’s intentions, Lou Yun decided not to speak or act. He maintained the Fusang Fire’s temperature without change and closely observed every move the other made.

The man acted as if Lou Yun didn’t exist, his entire focus fixed on the Chaos Golden Cauldron. Eventually, he ignored the intense heat radiating from the cauldron. He leaned his head in and inspected it inch by inch, his expression shifting from excitement to greed.

Lou Yun watched this silently, sneering inwardly. It seemed this man coveted the Chaos Golden Cauldron intensely, even forgetting Lou Yun’s presence—intentionally or not, it was unclear. But regardless, wanting the Chaos Golden Cauldron meant he should check if he was worthy first!

Finally, the man studied it sufficiently and straightened with reluctance, turning to Lou Yun. He lifted his chin haughtily. "Is this cauldron yours?"

Lou Yun replied impassively, "Yes!"

"How much to sell it?"

The short man was direct, immediately asking the price. His question made Lou Yun chuckle inwardly and sparked a playful urge to tease him. Lou Yun smiled. "How much are you willing to pay?"

The short man mistook this for earnestness. Believing he had a chance, his eyes flickered as he said, "You seem to be a skilled weapon maker too. Giving you money might not be as practical as giving you spiritual crystals, right?"

Suppressing laughter, Lou Yun nodded. "Right, spiritual crystals are more valuable than money. So how many spiritual crystals will you offer for my cauldron?"

The short man pondered deeply, then extended five fingers. "I’ll give you five second-grade spiritual crystals for your cauldron. How’s that?"

Hearing the offer, Lou Yun nearly doubled over in silent laughter but also felt deep disdain for the short man. Anyone with a shred of discernment could see the Chaos Golden Cauldron was no common item. Trying to buy it with just five second-grade spiritual crystals was outright bullying.

Lou Yun pretended to deliberate, then said, "Five second-grade spiritual crystals? That’s too many. No thanks. How about this instead?"

The short man’s eyes lit up, thinking Lou Yun was a fool. "Too much? I can give you less!"

Lou Yun continued, "Five second-grade are too much. Give me one fifth-grade spiritual crystal instead!"

A fifth-grade spiritual crystal was worth nearly ten thousand times more than five second-grade ones.

This left the short man speechless, his smile frozen. After a pause, he snapped back enraged. "You brat! You nearly fooled me today. I thought you were an idiot, but you’re actually trying to scam me!"

Seeing the short man abandon courtesy, Lou Yun had no patience to toy with him further. He sneered coldly. "Me scam you? Hah, you flip things around well. I suppose you know quality goods. My cauldron isn’t for sale at a fifth-grade spiritual crystal—even a ninth-grade couldn’t buy it! And you dare offer five second-grade? Do you think everyone’s as foolish as you?"

The short man seemed thick-skinned. Though exposed, he showed no embarrassment, replying with a sinister grin. "Brat, you clearly don’t know who I am. Tell you what—having your cauldron noticed by me is your fortune. Countless others beg me to take theirs, but I ignore them!"

"I planned to offer you something in exchange, but since you dared mock me, I won’t hold back!"

His words blatantly suggested stealing the Chaos Golden Cauldron. Lou Yun had never encountered such shameless arrogance. Hearing this, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes as his expression turned icy. "I don’t care who you are! But if you want my cauldron, you must kill me first!"

The short man laughed loudly. "You think I wouldn’t kill you? Brat, you’ve brought this on yourself. See, this spot you picked is ideal—kill you, and no one will ever know!"

As he spoke, a fan appeared in the short man’s hand.

Lou Yun wasn’t unfamiliar with fans as magical weapons—his Second Uncle Lou Tianzhi used one. Lou Tianzhi was tall, refined, and elegant with his fan. In contrast, this short man resembled a ball, making his wielding of a fan ridiculously absurd.

But Lou Yun couldn’t laugh now. He was still controlling the Fusang Fire’s temperature. If the man attacked immediately, his forged common weapon would be completely ruined!

While a high-level common weapon meant little to Lou Yun currently, failing just before completion due to this short man was unbearable.

Thoughts racing, Lou Yun decided to buy time—he’d finish forging the weapon while distracted.

Resolving this, he clasped his hands behind his back, controlling the Fusang Fire solely with his spiritual senses. Simultaneously, he said, "What? Can’t trick me, so now you steal? From your bluster, you sound famous. Dare tell me who you are?"

The short man didn’t suspect Lou Yun’s hidden posture. He curled his lip mockingly. "You’re clearly a wet-behind-the-ears brat. Not knowing me? Hmph! Across the entire Spirit Weapon Star, anyone seeing me knows who I am!"

He shook his head. "You’re wasting such a fine cauldron. Better I graciously claim it!"

"Then who are you?"

As he spoke, Lou Yun’s hands rapidly formed seals behind him.

Lou Yun’s sealing speed was incredibly fast—he completed it as his words ended. With a sharp exhale, he roared, "By the heavenly and earthly marks, unleash the common weapon’s edge!"

Visible mist of dense energy descended from the sky and plunged into the Chaos Golden Cauldron.

Sensing this energy, the Chaos Golden Cauldron emitted a clear, dragon-like shriek. It floated into mid-air and spun rapidly.

The short man jumped at Lou Yun’s roar, preparing to attack immediately. But the cauldron’s shriek halted him, his attention shifting to it. Truthfully, he was highly curious about what weapon such a valuable cauldron could forge.

The Chaos Golden Cauldron’s lid floated away, and rectangular white light flowed out. It was gentle and unobtrusive, so one could clearly see a sword within it.

Since his own manifested magical weapon and his first ever common weapon were both swords, Lou Yun adored them. Thus, he forged swords as vessels for absorption. This time was no exception.

The newly crafted sword drifted into Lou Yun’s hand. As the white light faded, its full shape appeared.

Lou Yun developed a habit—keep his weapons simple and natural, avoiding patterns, decorations, or unnecessary complications. This likely stemmed from Chang Xiang’s saying, "great skill in simplicity."

Though the sword’s form was plain, the short man clearly recognized its worth. His small eyes stared intently at Lou Yun’s sword, drool nearly dripping from his mouth.

"Advanced two-star!"

Lou Yun nodded in satisfaction and stored the sword in his ring. While the short man gaped in astonishment, Lou Yun quietly drew the Chaos Golden Cauldron back into his body. By the time the short man refocused, the space was emptied—but that didn’t hinder his greedy stare fixated now on Lou Yun’s ring.

With the common weapon fully forged, Lou Yun had no further worries. Smoldering coldly, he beckoned to the short man. "Drop dead, fatty. Come and steal it!"