When the artifact crafting competition officially began, huge screens appeared on all four sides of the square, showing scenes from the workshops of all the participating artifact makers.

Qin Ruqing exclaimed, “Oh, there’s a live broadcast of the competition. That’s quite advanced.”

She counted the small windows on the four screens and found that there were just over 120 participants.

Qin Ruqing said, “The number of participants seems less than I expected.”

She had heard that the competition wasn’t limited to just Xiling but included artifact makers from several regions.

If it were only one place, the number would be normal, but given the broad reach and the influence of the Celestial Bureau, the number seemed a bit low.

Yang Wenxu nodded and explained, “The selection criteria for this competition are very high.

Just one requirement—each participant must have one or two notable works—eliminates most people.

For an artifact maker, not any random artifact can be called a notable work. First, the design must be outstanding, then it must be recognized by the public and gain some fame. An artifact maker who achieves this is already a notable figure.”

Lu Wei thought about the two days of review and screening after the competition registration and guessed, “Maybe some people with notable works still got eliminated.”

Qin Ruqing, her eyes on the screen, saw Tang Zifeng in the 68th small window on the east side, already preparing his materials.

She replied, “Definitely. Celestial Bureau must have its own screening standards. What you consider a notable work might not meet their criteria, so naturally, they’d be eliminated.”

Qin Ruqing and her friends were standing, but many people in the square had brought small stools to sit and watch, seemingly ready to stay for the entire ten-day competition.

Some people were even fighting for the best viewing spots in front of the screens.

Seeing these people from Xiling who started fights over the slightest disagreement, Qirong said, “Sit here for ten days? Won’t they get bored?”

Lu Wei, however, understood their perspective.

If it were an alchemy competition, she would stay and watch the whole event too.

“These people are likely artifact makers. In such a grand event, with all the top figures in the artifact-making field participating, having the chance to watch masters craft artifacts through the screen is a rare opportunity. They wouldn’t want to miss it.”

Qirong thoughtfully nodded, “But won’t those master artifact makers mind their techniques being learned by others? Most secret techniques aren’t shared publicly.”

Hearing this, Qin Ruqing laughed, turned, and asked, “Qirong, you watch Third Sister make pills every day. Have you learned her secret techniques?”

Qirong was momentarily at a loss for words.

As a body cultivator, he knew that the deep techniques of alchemy were beyond his understanding just by watching.

Even if he understood, he couldn’t learn them.

Realizing this, Qirong nodded in understanding.

Seeing his reaction, Qin Ruqing smiled slightly, “See, you know that a master’s secret techniques can’t be learned just by watching.”

“But,” she added with a nod, “with so many people watching…”

“No matter how many people watch, there will always be one or two with outstanding talent who can grasp some techniques. Even if some are less gifted, they can still memorize the key steps of a master’s process and review them repeatedly after returning home to grasp the basics.”

“Still, artifact crafting techniques are inherently private. It’s a great boon for Xiling’s artifact makers that these masters are willing to share their crafting process. The Celestial Bureau must have worked hard to make this happen.”

As Qin Ruqing said this, a young man sitting on a small stool not far ahead turned around and silently looked at her.

He felt like he was exactly what Qin Ruqing described—less talented and unable to secure a good viewing spot.

Earlier, he had been jostled to a corner and couldn’t compete with others for a better position.

The young man didn’t dare complain.

He kept his eyes wide open, staring at the screen, but after a long time, his eyes were sore and teary, and he still couldn’t understand any of the master’s techniques he was watching.

Just as he was feeling discouraged and thinking about packing up and going home, he heard Qin Ruqing’s words and felt enlightened.

Indeed, as the fairy said, he should not try to understand everything but focus on one or two masters whose techniques he could somewhat comprehend and memorize their processes, even if they were unclear. He could review them repeatedly afterward.

With this in mind, the young man immediately took out a recording stone and, while recording, bowed to Qin Ruqing. “Fairy, I am the slow learner you mentioned. I was disheartened because I couldn’t understand anything after watching for a long time. But your words enlightened me. You are my teacher for the day!” His tone was filled with genuine gratitude and excitement.

Qin Ruqing was caught off guard by the young man turning to speak to her from the row of small stools ahead, and suddenly calling her his teacher for the day.

The newly appointed “teacher for the day” remained calm.

She smiled and looked at the crystal stone in his hand, “Is that a recording stone? Does the screen allow recording?”

The young man shook his head, “Of course not. The Celestial Bureau’s screen is encrypted. The image becomes blurry during recording.”

“Then why…”

“Your words inspired me deeply. For those of us who are not so bright, hard work can make up for it. Even if the recorded image is blurry, watching it dozens or hundreds of times will help us see clearly.” The young man spoke earnestly.

Won’t that ruin your eyes?

Qin Ruqing was quite surprised at his determination and examined him, concluding that he indeed seemed less quick-witted.

The earnest young man continued recording and chatting with Qin Ruqing (he even started a conversation!).

“Fairy, do you have a favorite master in this competition? The gambling houses on Jueli Street probably have already set up betting pools for today’s competition.”

A favorite master? Qin Ruqing smiled, “Of course!”

She pointed to the screen on the east, “Number sixty-eight. The number looks auspicious, and the young man seems quite promising for the championship.”

The young man quickly looked at number sixty-eight and saw a black-robed artifact maker.

He was surprised—how could she tell he was good-looking?

But he trusted the fairy’s words, certain they must be right.

The lights were dim, and the scenes they were recording were all the same.

He mumbled to himself, “Mother said most people from Xiling aren’t very smart, only a few are clever. So, if you meet them, you should learn from them. I think these people are the clever ones.”

Feeling more determined, he thought, “An artifact refiner should be daring. Today, I’m going to take a gamble!”

Qin Ruqing didn’t leave to rest; she went to the casino.

As they squeezed into the crowded casino to place their bets, Qirong kept muttering, “Sister, didn’t you say small bets are fun and big bets are harmful?”

Qin Ruqing, holding a pile of chips, placed them on position sixty-eight without hesitation and said calmly, “Yeah, this is a small bet.”

Lu Wei smiled.

A small bet of a hundred thousand spirit stones?

As expected of our richest sibling.

She also placed her bet on the same position.

The dealer managing the betting table couldn’t help but twitch his mouth when he saw these young people place their bets without blinking. “Guests, are you sure? No one has bet on position sixty-eight yet.”

Qin Ruqing blinked, “Yes, that’s why I bet on it. Maybe it will be an unexpected win?”

The dealer’s mouth twitched again.

This is the biggest casino in all of Xiling; we get all kinds of gamblers.

He didn’t say anything more and quickly recorded their bets, thinking they were just rich kids from some big family wasting their money.