Qian Jin observed Mu Ne Zhen Ce's shifting gaze with confusion. What was this Prince thinking? It seemed his thoughts changed several times in an instant.

Thud!

The sound of a heavy metal object striking the ground kicked up a cloud of dust, drawing the attention of both Qian Jin and Mu Ne Zhen Ce to where Yi stood.

"Ciyun Ice Iron!" Qian Jin clicked his tongue, staring at the metal object weighing a hundred jin. This leader of the second-largest bandit force beyond the frontier clearly possessed a far richer collection than anticipated; he offered up a slab of Ciyun Ice Iron right away!

This metal was counted among the Ten Great Cold Irons. While vastly inferior to the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Drill Iron from the seabed, this higher-ranked Cold Iron was still one of the best among all types of cold metals.

Iron ore is inherently a metal that readily absorbs heat; leave it in a furnace for a short time, and it becomes scorching hot. Yet, there exist a small number of unique metals that hardly absorb heat at all, collectively known as Cold Irons.

Because of this property, not only are they incredibly solid, but they are also imbued with elasticity!

For most blacksmiths at the Duanzao Shi (Forgemaster) level, Ciyun Ice Iron is best suited for crafting shields and armor, rather than swords. Even when used for blades, it is mixed in only in small proportions to enhance flexibility. This is because Cold Irons have significant deficiencies when fusing with other metals.

More often, they are used alone or combined only with other types of Cold Iron. Even among Cold Irons, fusion is only slightly easier than with common metals, and generally, they are excluded from the crafting of Hun Bing (Soul Weapons).

However, this does not mean Ciyun Ice Iron is utterly unsuitable for forging Dou Bing (Battle Weapons)! On the contrary, if this metal could be fully integrated, it would be suitable for almost all Soul Weapons, becoming a primary material.

"A fine item..." Qian Jin stroked his chin. The last time he saw a rather unique bow in Uncle Black’s notes, the necessary wood materials were lacking.

He had only managed to gather enough materials after robbing several bandit headquarters. Yet, he hadn't had the spare time to forge it. he hadn't forged anything yet; otherwise, seeing this Ciyun Ice Iron now would make him regret it until he woke up from his dreams.

Swish...

Over a hundred magic cores, varying in size from different magic beasts, tumbled out of Yi's Dou Jie (Battle Dimension) like rain, hitting the ground with a series of less-than-joyful clinks.

Mu Ne Zhen Ce’s eyes twitched repeatedly. Rich! Such a haul of magic cores would make even members of the royal family intensely envious.

Qian Jin squatted down, examining the various cores. Most were from low-tier magic beasts; cores from mid-tier beasts were scarce, and he saw none from high-tier ones.

That made sense. Qian Jin nodded. Warriors or mages capable of hunting high-tier beasts would not be targets Yi would choose to rob. Not only would success be unlikely, but the potential losses incurred would be far too great—no need to provoke those who could slay high-tier magic beasts.

Yi looked at Qian Jin's calm demeanor with surprise. That was over a hundred magic cores! Even Eight Desolations Without Life would gape in astonishment if he saw this.

Magic beasts are inherently rare, and ensuring a magic core remains intact upon their defeat is extremely difficult... Yi truly couldn't comprehend it. If a million gold coins were placed before Qian Jin, he wouldn't be surprised or excited—that’s because he was used to seeing money and remained composed.

But this was a magic core! So many magic cores appearing at once! Yi simply could not understand. Didn't Qian Jin realize the value of magic cores?

"There was an error during the hunt for this magic beast," Qian Jin picked up a core from a mid-tier Firebird, sighing repeatedly. "It was killed while angry, while still possessing full sentience. Although the core isn't shattered, a significant portion of its internal magic array must have been damaged..."

"Is that so?" Yi stared at Qian Jin with doubt. Mu Gui Wu Xin, standing nearby, grinned widely. Finally, someone else had experienced the same situation as him! Watching others react with disbelief at Qian Jin's words, only to realize the truth later and be struck dumb—that feeling was fantastic!

Mu Ne Zhen Ce leaned closer to inspect the Firebird core. A rare, single volume in the royal library had once recorded the proper method for killing a Firebird: somehow manage to stun it first, then kill it to extract a complete magic core. Could Qian Jin have read that book too? Even if he had, how could he make such a definitive statement based on just one core?

By examining a single core, could one truly deduce the circumstances of the beast's demise? Mu Ne Zhen Ce found it hard to believe.

Qian Jin felt the various gazes upon him and lightly shook his head. A mere hundred cores, why the astonishment? He could gather far more cores just by wandering around the Western Mountain for a few days! The only drawback was that he couldn't carry them out.

Even if he couldn't take them out, they were perfectly fine for practicing weapon forging or inscription techniques within the Boundless World.

"Are you truly certain?" Mu Ne Zhen Ce asked with mounting suspicion.

Qian Jin nodded. What was there to doubt? He had slain more than one or two Firebirds in the Western Mountain; he could certainly differentiate between a complete Firebird core and an incomplete one.

En! Qian Jin nodded heavily again. As long as it wasn't a high-tier magic core, there were almost none he hadn't seen before. He knew too well the weaknesses of those beasts, the common flaws that appeared during combat, and their fighting habits. Yi felt somewhat unwilling. He had presented two such valuable items, yet they failed to elicit the slightest surprise from Qian Jin. This deeply wounded the dignity and honor of the leader of the second-largest bandit group beyond the frontier!

I'll risk it all! I don't believe this! Yi stared at Qian Jin. Ever since meeting this young man, he had been at a disadvantage. Even as Qian Jin’s shadow, he had to find a way to shock him at least once! Otherwise, being his shadow felt too dishonorable!

A Rank Ten Dou Crystal!

Qian Jin slightly raised an eyelid. He had obtained a piece of this in the Ancient Barren Sand Sea, and it was larger than this one. Furthermore, he had discovered a small Dou Crystal vein and acquired quite a few crystals, many of which he still hadn't used up.

Seven-Colored True Rainbow Iron! A material for crafting Soul Weapons!

Qian Jin raised a hand and patted the metal, not showing much reaction. Forging a Soul Weapon required many different types of raw materials. If he got excited over acquiring just one, wouldn't gathering them all together cause him to nearly die of excitement?

Still that attitude? Yi felt hurt, deeply hurt! Even a Bandit King would hardly possess such composure upon seeing these items.

That’s it! I’m going all out! All sorts of metal materials spilled continuously from the Battle Dimension—magic crystals, Dou Crystals, Dou Stones, and all manner of strange rocks soon appeared before Qian Jin.

Qian Jin, whose expression had remained consistently calm, watched the growing pile of materials, his expression gradually turning solemn. These materials... these materials... If I add the materials I plundered a few days ago... Yes! It's enough! It's truly enough to create one special item!

Not just one! If the size were slightly smaller... Qian Jin realized these materials could create nearly ten of the same item: a Gravity Control Console!

The gravity platform that Rune Master Aknash had constructed in the Boundless World! Except that one was massive; the gravity platform before him was considerably smaller.

Not long ago, the training under Uncle Black in the Boundless World, though exhausting, yielded rewards far exceeding his expectations; the growth rate of the Dou Qi within his body had accelerated significantly.

Gathering the materials to build such a magical gravity device was originally one of Qian Jin's wishes and plans. He had assumed he would need to return to Eternal Flow City and, through the combined efforts of the major factions, purchase the necessary components from merchants to complete the construction.

Unexpectedly! Qian Jin truly hadn't anticipated that after looting several bandit headquarters, coupled with the treasures hoarded by Yi, the second-in-command bandit leader beyond the frontier, he had managed to gather everything!

Build one? Qian Jin shook his head. It would be better to make several smaller ones. Although Duan Feng Bu Er and the others were still in the Ancient Barren Sand Sea, they would surely come to find him one day.

"Let's make a few more," Qian Jin nodded very seriously. If not for the help of Duan Feng Bu Er and the others when his family group was in the Ancient Barren Sand Sea, and if not for their desperate resistance in several engagements there, he would have been killed by magic beasts and that faction of the Qian family, even if he had three lives.

Yi's tense heart finally relaxed at this moment. Qian Jin had been so shocked by the preciousness of the materials he kept revealing that he grew contemplative! Yes! That must be it! That's why his expression was so solemn.

Qian Jin looked up and noticed the smug smile on Yi's face: "What's wrong?"

"Heh heh..." Yi let out a triumphant laugh. "Scared by my collection, aren't you?"

"No."

"No? Impossible!" Yi's tone immediately rose. "Your expression just now was clearly very serious..."

"Serious, because I was calculating," Qian Jin gestured toward the materials on the ground. "To forge a magic device with them—no! Or perhaps several magic... tools..."

Bang! Yi momentarily lost his grip on the precious metal in his hand, and it dropped to the ground again. His eyes, full of shock, fixed on Qian Jin: forging magic devices? An Inscriptionist!

"Is there anything else?" Qian Jin swept all the materials from the ground into his Battle Dimension and continued, "They are useless in your hands anyway. Just give them all to me."

Yi stared blankly at Qian Jin. Did this kid have the inherent nature of a bandit, wanting to clear everything out? Forget it! Since he was becoming his shadow and would rely on Qian Jin to reach the Saint realm later, he might as well hand everything over. He wouldn't have many useful things for himself in the future anyway.

"These potions..."

Qian Jin looked at the potions Yi carefully and reverently lifted from his Battle Dimension, frowning slightly. "If they are materials that haven't been brewed into potions yet, give them to me! As for the ones that are already finished potions, you keep those."

P.S. Yesterday I promised to post five chapters for Yanzi's birthday, but I fell asleep after posting the third one... So, there will be four chapters today, serving as the make-up gift for Yanzi's birthday.

I also want to say, even though the wish "Happy Mang Ri" for Yanzi is late, the heartfelt blessing will only increase, not diminish.