Chapter 1517: The Empire Alliance Artificer Guild

"Junior uncle?"

The eight-star artificer paused, then frowned, his face turning ashen: "Friend, who exactly are you? Joking with me like this seems inappropriate!"

How could he not recognize his own uncle? The man before him was a complete stranger, directly claiming to be his uncle—clearly a mockery.

"Joking? It seems you truly don't recognize me!"

Shaking his head, Zhang Xuan suddenly grabbed at the air.

Boom!

A violent force immediately enveloped the eight-star artificer, as if about to crush him into powder.

Having reached the initial stage of the Cave Void realm, his control over power was effortless; even some early Saint Realm Nine experts could be easily defeated. Although the man before him was an eight-star artificer, his cultivation was only at the peak of the Void Entry realm. Feeling his body stiffen, he immediately circulated his inner energy, raised both palms, and struck back.

But before his palms could reach, he felt the force that had nearly crushed him vanish in an instant, as if it had never existed.

He hurriedly looked at the young man, only to see him with hands behind his back, speaking calmly: "Since you don't recognize me, let me ask you: Are you Chen Mo?"

"I am indeed Chen Mo!"

Artificer Chen Mo nodded.

His name was known to everyone in the guild; calling it out was nothing special.

"You studied under the nine-star artificer Master Luyang, practicing the Luyang Artificing Art, specializing in the Macro-Point Artificing Method. Your left ring finger was once burned by earthly fire during an artificing session... Am I wrong about any of this?"

Zhang Xuan looked at him calmly.

"That... correct!"

Chen Mo paused, then shook his head: "These things can be found in the guild records, nothing special..."

"I know these can be found, but... the Macro-Point Artificing Method requires coordination of all ten fingers to unleash its full power. When you first learned it, your ring finger was injured, and every time you quench a weapon, you involuntarily contract it. Although it doesn't affect artificing much, it shows your control over power hasn't reached its peak. Not many people know that, do they?"

Zhang Xuan smiled lightly.

"You, you..."

Artificer Chen Mo stiffened.

This habit in his artificing, though harmless, had indeed formed during his apprenticeship. Few knew about it, even in the guild. For this man to state it so confidently, as if he had seen it himself—could he really be from the sect?

"I know not only this, but also that the Macro-Point Artificing Method you practice has many flaws. Senior Brother Luyang sent me here to guide you, hoping you can break through soon. Of course... I brought no token, so it's fine if you don't believe me."

Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

"Guide me?"

Frowning, Artificer Chen Mo's eyes were full of doubt.

"Indeed. There are three obvious errors in your artificing technique. First, your methods are too complicated; you refine each step to the extreme. While this benefits some ores, it hinders the fusion of the weapon..."

Zhang Xuan spoke with a light smile.

Artificer Chen Mo's body swayed.

What the other said was correct—he did have this habit and had tried to correct it, but each time he did, he missed the optimal fusion time for various materials, resulting in weaker weapons.

Over time, he had given up.

In artificing, habits, movements, techniques—everything matters. Even as an eight-star artificer, he couldn't achieve perfection.

"Second, the Macro-Point Artificing Method uses a macroscopic approach to find the center point of hammer strikes, achieving the effect of locating the part through the whole. Your eyesight is good, and you always find the best hammering spot on the ore, but your speed is a bit slow..."

Zhang Xuan continued.

"I..."

Artificer Chen Mo trembled again.

It was as if the other had personally witnessed him artificing, describing everything with perfect accuracy.

"Third..."

Zhang Xuan went on.

After the three points, Chen Mo was drenched in cold sweat.

These three were indeed errors in his artificing technique. He had tried to correct them countless times without success, and because of this, his artificing level, though improved, had not advanced significantly.

"Is there... a remedy for this?"

Unable to hold back, he clasped his fists and bowed.

Though unsure if the other was truly his junior uncle, he knew that in the art of artificing, the other far surpassed him—they were not on the same level.

"I said Senior Brother sent me to guide you, so naturally there is a solution..."

Zhang Xuan smiled lightly.

Although he couldn't easily show his eight-star artificer badge, his understanding and knowledge of artificing remained, surpassing even some early nine-star artificers.

After the Library of Heaven's Path identified the other's flaws, a little thought provided the solutions, making guidance very simple.

"So that's how it is..."

After hearing the guidance, Chen Mo had a sudden epiphany, as if enlightened.

"Thank you, Junior Uncle!"

Kneeling, Chen Mo was completely convinced.

"No more doubts?"

Zhang Xuan smiled lightly.

"No more doubts..."

Chen Mo gave an awkward smile.

Even if the other wasn't his junior uncle, pointing out so many of his issues and providing correct methods was enough to earn half a teacher's respect—he could be considered a master.

"Good. Besides guiding you, I also have some matters to discuss with your guild leader. Could you introduce me?"

Zhang Xuan said.

"You want to see the guild leader? This way..."

Nodding quickly, Chen Mo led the way.

"This..."

Watching this, Zhao Ya admired her teacher even more.

She knew her teacher was omnipotent, but she hadn't expected that with just a few words, he could convince an eight-star artificer to become his nephew, and most importantly, make him believe it without doubt—even seeing it with her own eyes, it was hard to believe.

With an eight-star artificer guiding them, they soon met the guild leader.

He was an old man who looked about sixty, with white hair and cultivation at the peak of Saint Realm Eight.

"Guild Leader, my junior uncle has come specifically to see you..."

Chen Mo approached.

"Junior uncle?" The guild leader's expression tightened, and he quickly stood: "May I ask your name, senior?"

He and Chen Mo addressed each other as equals; since the other was Chen Mo's junior uncle, he was naturally also his senior.

"I am Wu Zhangxuan, and this is my student. Due to some physical issues, we came to request your help."

Zhang Xuan clasped his fists.

"So you are Artificer Wu... What matter requires my help? If our guild can do it, we will spare no effort."

The guild leader smiled.

"It's like this: my student suffered meridian damage due to a cultivation error. I wanted to ask if your guild has any item that can replace meridians and allow the circulation of true energy?"

Zhang Xuan said.