Chapter 53 – The Dawnheart Flame

  Jun De stood in the center of his courtyard and stared absent-mindedly at the peach trees. They had lost their pink flowers and were now green. The Warflag of Dominion stood proudly, moving in a breeze that stirred the white and gold fabric.

  A troubled frown had formed on his face as he thought about current events.

  With what Elder Mu had told him, and the growing rumours of demonic cultivators on the rise and entire towns vanishing in the night, the pressure on the Sect was mounting. The Outer Sect had stopped treating the stories as distant rumours and were now taking them seriously.

  Jun De had spent some time going over his options, and he was coming up short. If this conflict engulfed the entire region as Elder Mu feared it would, Jun De would inevitably be drawn into it. His high cultivation in comparison to his age may have protected him in a duel, but it meant nothing in the real world.

  If a war broke out against the Demonic Cultivators, Jun De couldn’t count on staying safe.

  His only option was to get stronger.

  Jun De turned his attention to the Warflag of Dominion. It was a powerful item, but it was only a mid-tier Spiritual Artifact. If he could increase its quality to high-tier, then his chances of surviving what was coming would increase.

  “The best way to stay alive would be to not fight at all.” Jun De muttered.

  He would love to run away or find an excuse to leave the Sect for a while until this all died down. But the entire region had problems, and he doubted that he could seclude himself away somewhere in the Sect if trouble came.

  “I need to do everything I can to survive what’s coming.” Jun De stated. He felt a strange sense of motivation and a drive to become stronger.

  It was amazing what the threat of danger could do for someone who enjoyed living as much as Jun De did.

  A short time later, Jun De arrived at the Nine-Treasure Pagoda, the Outer Sect’s primary hub for spiritual items, refinement materials, and rare treasures. The interior was quiet and steeped in smoke from burning incense.

  Rows of treasures glowed faintly beneath protective formations, and the main hall was filled with Disciples exchanging items, contribution points or spirit stones for resources, equipment or pills.

  Jun De was greeted by Elder Hua, a graceful older woman at the peak of Qi Condensation who had been in the Outer Sect for many years and managed the Nine-Treasure Pagoda.

  “Disciple Jun, you don’t often visit us here. What brings you to the Pagoda today?” She asked while offering Jun De a polite smile. Despite her status as an Elder, it was clear to everyone that Jun De would soon be entering the Inner Sect, and she treated him with more kindness than other Disciples in the Pagoda.

  Jun De bowed respectfully in greeting before replying.

  “Elder Hua, I wonder if it is possible to have someone within the Pagoda assist with refining and improving the Warflag of Dominion that I received in the Inheritance Site.” Jun De asked.

  Elder Hua didn’t answer right away. Instead, her expression turned thoughtful for a moment.

  “The Warflag is a rare artifact, despite its low grade. Refining it is certainly possible, but I would recommend another course of action instead of having someone from the Pagoda refine it for you.”

  “I eagerly await the Elder’s wisdom.” Jun De responded politely.

  “Relying on others to care for and improve your artifact is not desirable, Disciple Jun. For those lacking talent, they have no other recourse. But for you, I believe it would be a better use of your time and Contribution Points to refine items yourself.”

  “Secondary skills such as Alchemy, Talisman crafting and Artifact refinement are not just side pursuits. They are essential to understanding the path of cultivation, and can also bring necessary resources and contribution points.”

  “I’m unsure if I possess the talent for the task, Elder Hua.” Jun De said, his voice filled with doubt. He had been a student in his previous life, spending time with his head buried in books. He didn’t know anything about crafting or refining.

  “Artifact Refining is not particularly challenging. The barrier to learning is often the price of a Flame and the materials to craft an artifact.”

  “A Flame?” Jun De asked, picking up on the capital ‘F’ in the Elder’s voice.

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  “You will need a suitable Flame for Artifact Refinement, unlike Pill Refinement, which can make use of a pill furnace to generate the required heat. We have several types available, and I would recommend a more gentle Spirit Flame that is suitable for your current cultivation. It will be less useful in combat, but easier to control.”

  Jun De exhaled slowly, his thoughts turning around what the Elder had said. She hadn’t led him wrong before; her recommendation regarding pills had prevented him from making the mistake of rushing forward in his cultivation without a stable foundation.

  ‘I would have ended up like the Ren Clan Patriarch.’ Jun De thought.

  “I will follow the Elder’s advice. Where do I start?”

  Elder Hua brought Jun De upstairs, passing from one floor to the next until they reached the seventh floor of the Nine-Treasure Pagoda, where the materials and Flames for artifact refining were located.

  Jun De stood in front of a radiant brazier at the back of the seventh floor, watching a delicate flicker of flame unlike any he’d seen before. It didn’t burn red or orange, but with a soft, resplendent gold that reminded him of the last rays of the sun at dusk.

  The flame pulsed with a quiet hum, and its warmth was both physical and spiritual. He could feel his Qi pulse in time with the flame, and Jun De wondered if Elder Hua had selected this Flame at random, or did she know that it was suitable for him from the start?

  “This is the Dawnheart Flame.” Elder Hua said as she stepped beside him.

  “It is an artificial spiritual flame created by the Sect for beginner refiners. But don’t underestimate it, this flame carries a trace of a Celestial Sun Lotus’s spiritual energy. Unlike natural Flames, artificial Flames lack a will of their own and will be much easier to integrate with your Dantian.”

  Jun De nodded slowly as he listened to the explanation. His eyes were fixed on the Flame, and he could feel a desire in his Qi to possess it.

  “It’s calm.”

  “Good. Then you’ll have no trouble with it. You’ll need to build a spiritual link before using it to refine your Warflag of Dominion. The process will require several days of meditation.”

  Jun De winced slightly at the thought of meditating for days on end, but he agreed.

  A few hours later, Jun De was standing once again at the Pagoda’s acquisition counter, sorting through the various items Elder Hua had recommended for the upgrade. He laid them out on the counter next to the golden Flame that was placed inside a lantern designed to hold it.

  “I believe that is everything.” Jun De said, already thinking about how he was going to be poor once again.

  Apart from the Flame, he purchased a manual on how to integrate and nourish the Flame inside his Dantian, the method of controlling it during the Artifact Refinement process, and the basics of Artifact Refinement itself. Then there were the materials for the refinement.

  Refined Star-Iron Threads, Luminous Spirit Jade, and a small bottle of two-hundred-year-old Morning Lily Resin.

  Elder Hua gave him a small discount, but Jun De’s Sect Token was nearly completely empty of Contribution Points once he placed everything in his storage bag and left the Pagoda.

  Still, he was more than happy to spend a fortune if it meant staying safe. The world was changing, and he would need to grow stronger to face it.

  When Jun De returned to his courtyard, he sat in his favourite chair in his courtyard and opened the control method scroll that described the Flame Bonding process and the Basics of Flame Guidance.

  The diagrams inside were elegant, and the steps were clearly numbered. But, once again, Jun De was disappointed by the explanations that were filled with the sorts of cryptic metaphors that cultivators seemed to love.

  “Let the flame enter you as morning enters the sky. Do not resist, breathe with it and listen to its will. Who the hell writes this kind of nonsense?” Jun De cursed, resisting the urge to toss the scroll into the corner of his courtyard.

  Instead, he practiced the breathing techniques, Qi Circulation methods, and other necessary steps that would draw the Dawnheart Flame into his body.

  On the third morning, satisfied that he knew enough of the method to succeed, Jun De sat on the ground with the lantern containing the Flame set in front of him just as the sun began to rise.

  The Flame left the lantern like a curious but cautious animal that was hesitant to explore the world around it. Tentatively, it hovered in the air in front of him before his Qi began to churn and call out to it.

  In a flash, the Flame approached him, and Jun De opened his Meridians to allow it in.

  He tensed at it touched him, but instead of pain or heat, there was only a faint warmth. It was like sunlight shining on him as the Flame drifted through his Meridians toward his Dantian, where it finally nestled happily amongst the swirling strands of his golden Qi.

  Jun De opened his eyes and was surprised by how quickly and easily he had integrated the Flame. With a snap of his fingers, a tongue of golden fire appeared in front of him, crackling softly in the air as it used some of his Qi as fuel.

  From there, Jun De refined the Warflag of Dominion.

  The process was simple, and all he had to do was follow instructions in the Artifact Refinement manual.

  Jun De placed the Warflag of Dominion in a clear portion of his courtyard, while he laid out the materials he had purchased from the Pagoda. Then, he drew a simple pattern around the flag using a diagram found within the manual, using his Qi and anchoring it with Luminous Jade.

  With incredible care, Jun De coaxed the Flame from his Dantian and guided it over to the Warflag, covering it in golden fire. The Flag shimmered in response, resisting him, but Jun De simply channelled more of his Qi into the Flame to overcome the Flag.

  When the Flag finally stopped resisting him, Jun De began to refine the Star-Iron Threads, weaving them into the material of the Flag to enhance its strength, while the Flame bonded them together. It was almost as if the Flag knew where it wanted each thread placed.

  Finally, after several days and repeated refinements, Jun De bathed the Flag in Resin, each drop combining with the Flame until the Flag glowed with a brightness to rival the sun.

  By the end of the seventh day of refinement, Jun De was drenched in sweat, and his eyes were bloodshot. Even resting for short periods of time wasn’t enough to stave off his exhaustion.

  But he had been successful.

  The Warflag of Dominion was no longer the same as before. It shimmered with an intense inner light, and the threads of Star-Iron caught the sun. Its aura pulsed with strength, and it radiated authority.

  It was now a High-Grade Spiritual Artifact of the Qi Condensation Stage.

  Jun De collapsed onto his chair and stared at the flag as it fluttered in the wind.

  “Next time, I’m just going to pay someone to do it for me.” Jun De muttered.