A carefree Konrad stood before the Refinery Cauldron obtained from the system with several high-grade Divine Materials floating around him. The Refinery Cauldron was an exceedingly powerful tool that inarguably made Konrad the most skilled alchemist across the Three Realms. Through it, he could either meld artifacts into brand-new wholes or extract the ingredients that composed them. He also possessed great control over the shape of the artifact that came out, able to use his mind to control the result's appearance as long as it stood within reason.
Meanwhile, with the Tower having made him the wealthiest individual in the history of the Ancient Crystal World, and the previous battle against Celestial Church and Infernal Cult, beneath the God Rank, there was virtually no artifact he wasn't able to refine. And for his "badges of office," he naturally wanted the best.
Therefore, he first brought forth the ingredients for his crown and seal. Then, using his thoughts as guide, merged them all within the Refinery Cauldron. Afterward, Konrad sacrificed several Divine Artifacts, turning them into fuel for his crown, then released several drops of God-Blood into the mix.
He then joined his hands, causing the Refinery Cauldron to release a massive white blaze from which a new golden crown encrusted with nine imperial jade beads appeared within the air.
He did the same for his seal; thus, creating two Divine Artifacts of the highest caliber in less than a minute. In fact, due to being blessed by God-Blood, those artifacts didn't lose out to the Celestial Church's Heavenly Star Bow.
Of course, with his current cultivation, although his Holy Sense stood far beyond the limits of his Rising Saint Rank, Konrad couldn't use more than a fraction of their power without suffering severe backlash.
"If I could comprehend the first layer of the Absolute War Sense, even with my current cultivation, I could make use of more than half their power. With the second layer, simultaneously wielding the two of them would come at no cost. A pity…"
Konrad assessed. As Ancient Secrets, the Blossoming Death Art, the Absolute War Sense, and Seer's Vision were by far his three mightiest arts. But for that very same reason, each carried tremendous cultivation difficulty. With his unparalleled cultivation talent, even Konrad took two weeks to comprehend the first layer of the Blossoming Death Art. As for the second one, he estimated that two years of secluded cultivation were the bare minimum.
At that rate, even with the Tower's assistance, simultaneously cultivating the three would be a heaven-defying task, consuming more time than the world had to offer. Meanwhile, Seer's Vision and the Absolute War Sense contradicted one another, making cultivating the two nigh-impossible.
But with their fantastic abilities, Konrad was truly unwilling to give up on either one.
With a sigh, he set the Golden-Jade Crown and Imperial Jade seal aside.
There was no such thing as God-Rank Arts. Or more accurately, God-Rank arts and methods were unique to each deity, bred from their Dao and comprehension of the Laws. They couldn't be passed on to others.
Therefore, throughout the Three Realms, Divine Rank Arts were the typical limit. Then came Ancient Secrets which didn't have creators and existed from the beginning of times. There were twelve in total, with the Supreme Conqueror Sutra being the mightiest of them all.
Not many Gods could create an art that rivaled even the weakest of Ancient Secrets. Therefore, many deities battled to obtain their knowledge. Konrad had received this information from all the Infernal Souls he refined.
And as he pondered how to conciliate those two arts, a knocking sound came from the door.
"Come on in."
Konrad ordered and one of his pale-skinned, female legionaries stepped in, bringing alongside her a neatly folded golden robe.
"Master, this is the imperial robe embroidered by lady Iliana."
She explained while unfolding the golden robe embroidered with a Ten-headed Horned Serpent. Throughout the Ancient Crystal World, only in Konrad's palace could one see a woman of such cultivation level handling such menial tasks.
"Oh? How thoughtful of her. You can cancel the weaving of the other one."
Konrad beckoned, causing the robe to leave the beauties' hands to fly toward him. While holding it in suspension, he tossed thirty drops of God-Blood into the cauldron, extracting its power before throwing the robe inside.
The red flame again blazed, and the robe soared, unblemished, and now glittering with a formidable force. With that simple move, Konrad made this otherwise ordinary robe more resilient than the average high-grade Divine Artifact.
And in the instant it landed into his hands, Konrad couldn't help but sigh.
"Being rich surely makes life easier. I'm rich. So rich that I don't know what to do with my richness anymore. Has anyone seen such wealth?
Why isn't there a law against being too rich?
Throughout the Mortal Realm, can anyone compete with me? If I'd known being a grave robber was this rewarding, I would have majored in that craft years ago!
A pity!"
Konrad lamented, his words causing the nearby beauty's eyes to widen in disbelief. Never did she expect that her grand master also possessed such a…peculiar side.
Was this really the soon to be August Jade Emperor, the Profane Prince that held the Holy Continent in awe?
"Spread my order, we will start charities across the Holy Continent, give shelter to the orphans, and raise them into loyal servants of the faith."
Konrad ordered before sending the three items into the beauty's hands. Though startled, she quickly nodded in approval.
"As you command, master!"
"Oh, and by the way. How did the execution go?"
Konrad inquired. Since the deadline arrived, he didn't spare Bayiz. Having him executed in the middle of the city's square. However, the Serkar's death was of so little consequence that Konrad didn't bother attending to the execution. Instead, making it an attraction for his citizens.
"As you ordered, we first flayed Bayiz Serkar until only the meat beneath his skin remained, then drowned him half an inch into death while preparing unique worms that gnawed him from the inside.
He -danced- for a long time.
Afterward, he was hanged, drawn, and quartered."
The beast lady replied before pulling out a crystal ball she presented to Konrad. Within, Bayiz's soul remained. As a Quasi-Sage with a half-complete Divine Seed, even without his body, Bayiz's soul maintained spiritual consciousness and thrashed within the crystal ball.
Konrad nodded in approval.
"Well-done. After the coronation, you and the other legionaries within the palace can return to the Tower to carry on with your training. You must all reach the Infernal Knight Rank at the fastest pace possible."
Konrad ordered while pulling the crystal ball into a space treasure.
The beast lady nodded, then excused herself, bringing alongside her the three imperial items to carry on with the next part of the coronation.
Seriousness then returned to Konrad's eyes.
"It's time to claim my throne and complete the current quest."
