txolops Chapter 428 Reforging the Wind-Escape Shuttle
Chapter 428 Reforging the Wind-Escape Shuttle
Chapter 428 Reforging the Wind-Escape Shuttle (A long chapter of 5400 words, please subscribe and vote!)
He was being quite frank, but now that Luo Ming had advanced to the Nascent Soul stage, he naturally wouldn't beat around the bush like before. Since the other party had come to rely on him, he naturally wanted to understand the situation clearly.
Upon hearing this, Liu Su's delicate body trembled almost imperceptibly, and a trace of pain finally flashed across her usually gentle and calm face.
She lowered her eyes, avoiding Luo Ming's calm yet all-seeing gaze, and remained silent for about two or three breaths, as if calming her emotions or carefully considering her words.
"Senior, your insight is truly remarkable. My ancestor's primordial spirit lamp was extinguished ten years ago. Although we do not know what happened in the Inner Star Sea, it is likely that the foundation of my Liu family on Red Sand Island is gone."
Her words were concise and did not dwell on the tragedy, but in just a few words, she sketched a desolate picture of a long-standing family of weapon refiners rapidly declining and even perishing due to the sudden collapse of their pillar.
"I see. The Liu family was once renowned in the region. It is truly a pity that they have suffered such a misfortune." Luo Ming's voice remained calm, without much emotional fluctuation, as if he were stating a fact that had nothing to do with him.
His gaze fell on Liu Su, scrutinizing her: "You were able to foresee the crisis and move some of your clansmen here, which shows some decisiveness. It seems that before the Liu family patriarch perished, he may have had a premonition and left a way out for you all."
Liu Su nodded silently, without denying it. This was indeed one of the final arrangements secretly made by the Liu family patriarch when he sensed the looming crisis within the family.
After pondering for a moment, Luo Ming slowly said, "It's not difficult for Mingyue Tower to protect Fairy Liu and her clansmen and establish a foothold on Silver Shark Island. However, Mingyue Tower has its own rules. As long as you abide by the rules, I, Luo, can guarantee that you can cultivate here in peace."
Upon hearing this, Liu Su was overjoyed and quickly bowed respectfully: "Thank you, Senior! Liu Su and my clansmen will certainly keep to our duties and would never dare to cause trouble for you or Mingyue Tower!"
In the basement of Mingyue Tower, there is a specially designed weapon-refining room.
The space was spacious, with array runes inscribed on the four walls to stabilize the earth fire and gather spiritual energy. In the center, an ancient-looking furnace was burning quietly, emitting a stable high temperature. The air was filled with a faint metallic and mineral scent, as well as a subtle, almost imperceptible pressure unique to high-level demonic beast materials.
Luo Ming decided to take the Liu family in not only because of their impressive weapon-refining skills, but also because he had some high-level demon beast materials that he couldn't handle.
Standing in the center of the weapon-refining room, Liu Su's gaze swept over the items Luo Ming had taken out. The respect and trepidation on her face were gradually replaced by the focus, shock and fervor of a weapon-refining master.
Before her were three pairs of "golden wings," each about ten feet long, flowing with a dark gold luster, with sharp edges like knives, and with faint natural wind-elemental patterns on their surface, radiating pure gold and wind-elemental fluctuations.
A golden spike, about two feet long and only as thick as a finger, crystal clear like a golden crystal, with a cold glint at its tip that flickers erratically, emitting an unparalleled sharpness that stings the skin and a faint spatial fluctuation.
And, there was a cyan shuttle floating to the side, streamlined in shape, with a hazy blue light flowing around it, and covered with fine wind-elemental runes.
Liu Su's gaze lingered for a long time, especially on the pair of golden wings and the golden spike. With her eyesight as a master craftsman who had been a master craftsman for a hundred years, she could clearly sense that these materials were not something that could be obtained from ordinary demonic beasts.
The purity and intensity of the primordial aura of the demonic beasts they contain, the unique toughness of their materials, and especially the faint, lingering ferocious pressure belonging to top predators, all indicate the power of their former owners—at least level eight demonic beasts! Moreover, they are very likely rare species known for their speed, sharpness, or spatial talents!
"Senior—could these materials be—taken from the level eight demonic beast, the Bloodthirsty Golden Mosquito?" Liu Su's voice trembled with disbelief as she cautiously guessed.
She had seen scattered records of the "Bloodthirsty Golden Mosquito" in her family's ancient books. This demon was known for its incredible speed, unparalleled sharpness of its mouthparts, and the presence of a trace of spatial penetration power. It was a top predator among flying demonic beasts, and its materials were extremely precious.
Luo Ming nodded slightly, confirming her guess: "That's right, it was obtained by chance from an eighth-level Bloodthirsty Golden Mosquito many years ago. That golden spike contains extremely strong air-piercing and sharp characteristics. Those three pairs of golden wings are its innate wings, containing pure gold and wind attribute power, which greatly enhances its speed."
He paused, then pointed to the "Wind-Escape Shuttle" beside him, continuing, "This shuttle is called Wind-Escape, a top-tier flying magic weapon that has accompanied me for many years, and its speed is still acceptable. However, now that I have advanced to the Nascent Soul stage, it's still sufficient for ordinary travel, but if I encounter a powerful enemy pursuing me or need to make a long-distance raid, its speed is becoming somewhat insufficient."
Luo Ming looked at Liu Su calmly: "Now that you, Fairy, are willing to join my Bright Moon Pavilion, I, Luo, will naturally treat you with sincerity. These materials will be entrusted to you, Fairy. I wonder if you have any good ideas on how to maximize the properties of these materials and integrate them into or enhance this Wind-Escape Shuttle," or even—to forge a more suitable new magic weapon?
His words were both an assignment and a test.
Luo Ming's own weapon-refining skills are at the level of "following the prescription." With his powerful divine sense and precise control, he can slowly refine weapons according to known weapon-refining diagrams. However, it is not his forte to design and create the optimal utilization scheme based on a bunch of high-grade materials.
This is precisely where the value of a professional weapon-refining master lies. The Bloodthirsty Golden Mosquito material in his hands is precious and rare, and it must not be wasted on "trial and error".
Upon hearing this, Liu Su's eyes shone brightly, and the restraint she had shown in front of the Nascent Soul Ancestor quickly faded away, replaced by a professional demeanor that mixed excitement, solemnity, and strong confidence.
She carefully examined the three pairs of golden wings and golden spikes again, and repeatedly sensed the spiritual energy fluctuations, internal structure, and material properties of the "Wind Shuttle". She even stretched out her fingers and drew several detection spells in the air, inserting them into several items to carefully perceive the compatibility of their internal materials.
Throughout the entire process, she remained focused and single-minded, completely immersed in the world of the weapon-refining master.
After a moment, Liu Su slowly exhaled, faced Luo Ming, and solemnly bowed. Her voice was clear and firm: "I have been immersed in weapon crafting for over two hundred years and have handled countless materials and magical treasures, but this is the first time I have ever seen an eighth-grade Bloodthirsty Golden Mosquito core material in such perfect condition. Senior's entrustment of such a precious treasure shows your trust. I will certainly do my utmost to live up to your expectations!"
She paused for a moment, organized her thoughts, and began to explain her idea: "In my humble opinion, if we simply integrate these materials into the existing Wind-Escape Shuttle, it will certainly increase its speed to some extent, but it will inevitably be a waste of resources and will not be able to fully utilize the core characteristics of the Bloodthirsty Golden Mosquito material, especially the spatial penetrating power of its fundamental mouthparts, which will probably be mostly wasted."
Luo Ming nodded slightly, signaling her to continue. This was exactly what he had been worried about.
Encouraged, Liu Su spoke a little faster, her eyes gleaming with wisdom: "This junior dares to propose that—using this Wind-Escape Shuttle as a base, and the three pairs of Golden Wind Wings and Bloodthirsty Spikes as the core materials, we should redesign and forge a completely new top-tier flying attack magic weapon!"
"Oh? How exactly should it be designed?" Luo Ming's eyes showed interest.
In a quiet room, Luo Ming sat cross-legged, a sea chart spread out before him. His gaze fell on the mark of "Qiyuan Island," and he said slowly, "Other secret techniques and cultivation methods can be pursued gradually. Right now, there are two most urgent matters: First, to quickly gather the large amount of Xuan Water needed to refine the 'Mysterious Yuan Pearl,' this treasure is fundamental, and the sooner it is refined, the better; second, to begin refining and fusing with spiritual fire, this is the fastest way to increase combat power in the short term."
If the "Mysterious Origin Pearl" could truly be crafted from the terrifying amount of "Mysterious Water" anticipated, even without incorporating "Geng Essence Qi" to enhance its sharpness, its unimaginable, horrifying weight alone, when thrown, would be enough to shatter the protective aura of a Nascent Soul cultivator.
Ordinary magical treasures are probably as fragile as paper.
The power of the fused seven flames is immeasurable. These two factors are key to Luo Ming's rapid increase in combat strength.
The key was also his trump card that allowed him to enter the Sea King Sect's secret realm again after ten years.
"Now that the waters around Silver Shark Island are peaceful and there are no more monsters causing trouble, I can leave with peace of mind for a while. As for the Wind-Escape Shuttle, the reforging of this treasure takes too long, so let this woman take her time. There's no rush anyway," Luo Ming said, a glint of light in his eyes.
Since Luo Ming defeated the transformed demon king Whale Power King, the level six monsters that posed the greatest threat to low-level cultivators and were originally entrenched in the nearby seas have ceased to exist.
The level seven demonic beast had already vanished without a trace.
The four entrances to the "Sea King Sect" secret realm are now completely under the control of human cultivators. After some tacit "negotiations" and brief friction, the Star Palace and the Reverse Star Alliance each occupied two entrances and dispatched capable personnel to systematically clear out the remaining demonic beasts inside the secret realm and exploit its resources.
The open and covert struggle between the two major forces has intensified again, stimulated by the resources in the secret realm, and friction occurs frequently.
But the "eye of the storm" in this sea area—Mingyue Tower—remains aloof. With Luo Ming, a Nascent Soul ancestor capable of repelling mid-stage Transformation Realm demonic beasts, in charge, no one dares to provoke him.
Furthermore, since Mingyue Tower does not participate in any power struggles and only engages in fair trade, it has attracted a large number of independent cultivators and small family cultivators who are unwilling to get involved in the conflicts between the Star Palace and the Reverse Star Alliance to join or seek cooperation. Its power and reputation are at their zenith on Silver Shark Island.
Seeing that there was no immediate danger on the island, Luo Ming arranged the affairs in the building, and specifically instructed Yuan Yao, Wen Siyue and others to be careful. After secretly leaving the Wind Fox Beast to hide and guard the island, Luo Ming left Silver Shark Island quietly.
He concealed his aura, changed his appearance, and transformed into an inconspicuous streak of light, merging into the vast outer sea and speeding towards "Qiyuan Island," thousands of miles away.
None of the cultivators on the island, including Elder Xinggong, knew that this newly promoted Nascent Soul Ancestor had quietly departed.
Several months later, in a sea far from the human islands, where the waves were turbulent and the sky was dark.
The wind howled, whipping up towering waves, creating a chaotic scene between sea and sky. Countless whirlpools, large and small, formed, collided, and vanished on the surface. This was the terrifying, twice-yearly celestial wind of the Chaotic Star Sea.
Such power of heaven and earth would tear even a Foundation Establishment cultivator to shreds in an instant if caught in it; Core Formation cultivators would also not wish to linger, as they would need to constantly maintain their protective spiritual light, which would consume a great deal of energy.
However, amidst this devastating raging wind and waves, a massive black shadow, resembling a moving mountain, was cutting through the storm, moving forward with an astonishing speed disproportionate to its size—it was the Xuan Turtle.
A thick, condensed protective light barrier, displaying a blend of blue and yellow hues, extended from its back, which was covered by a heavy carapace. Outside the barrier, the wind howled, the waves crashed, and thunder roared; inside, however, all was calm and still, without even the slightest tremor.
Luo Ming, dressed in a black robe, sat cross-legged on the back of the Xuan Turtle, his expression calm, as if he were in his own quiet room, seemingly unaware of the power of heaven and earth outside the light barrier that was enough to make even a Core Formation cultivator tremble.
About a foot in front of him floated a small cauldron, only three inches tall, with an ancient shape and a dark bronze color—the Spirit Gathering Cauldron.
Inside the cauldron, a "gray flame" the size of a human head, dark in color, constantly twisting and writhing, emanating an extremely cold aura, was slowly rotating and merging.
At the center of the flames, three flames of slightly different colors intertwined and permeated each other, eventually turning into a deeper and more eerie gray.
Luo Ming calmly watched the changes in the flames inside the cauldron. He extended his right index finger and pointed it in the air, injecting a stream of pure azure energy into the cauldron. Instantly, the aura of the gray flame intensified, and the fusion process accelerated. The three distinct yet shared "yin" auras gradually merged into one in a mysterious rhythm.
"Hmm—the fusion of the Xuan Yin Fire, the Heavenly Capital Corpse Fire, and the Netherworld Ghost Fire is much smoother than I expected," Luo Ming muttered to himself, his voice calm and even.
"It seems that, indeed, it's because all three belong to the 'extreme yin' attribute. Although their origins differ, their general direction is the same. Under the harmonization of the Spirit Gathering Cauldron and that azure energy, the repulsive force has been greatly reduced."
He observed for a moment, and seeing that the fusion was nearing its end, the color of the gray flames was stabilizing, and the internal energy flowed smoothly and without any more violent fluctuations, he nodded slightly. Then, he made a gesture with his right hand.
That gray, seemingly insignificant flame, yet containing a chilling and destructive power that would make even Nascent Soul cultivators tremble, floated lightly out of the Spirit Gathering Cauldron like an obedient pet and slowly landed in Luo Ming's outstretched palm.
Upon touching the flame, there was no burning sensation; instead, an extreme chill that penetrated to the bone and seemed capable of freezing one's soul was transmitted through it.
Luo Ming carefully sensed the new power within, a mixture of the chilling Xuan Yin Qi, the filthy corrosiveness of the Heavenly Capital Corpse Fire, and the soul-devouring properties of the Netherworld Ghost Fire, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.
"This fire—while perhaps not as domineering as the Dry Blue Ice Flame in absolute power, is insidious and treacherous, specifically targeting the souls of living beings and tainting the spiritual light of magical treasures. If an ordinary mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator were to inadvertently come into contact with even a trace of it—" A cold glint flashed in Luo Ming's eyes, "I'm afraid they would be in a terrible state, suffering great loss of vital energy, and it would not be easy to expel it."
This is by no means an exaggeration. The Profound Yin Fire, the Heavenly Capital Corpse Fire, and the Netherworld Ghost Fire—any one of them, taken out alone, is a top-tier Yin-attribute spiritual fire that would make Nascent Soul cultivators envious, or even be used as a trump card.
For an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator, being able to completely control and refine even one of them is already quite difficult, enough to secure a place among those of the same level.
Luo Ming, relying on the miraculous effects of the Spirit Gathering Cauldron, successfully fused three top-tier Yin Flames, absorbing their strengths and forging a brand-new spiritual flame that combined the characteristics of all three and underwent a qualitative change in power!
Its strangeness and difficulty to guard against, and its corrosive power are so strong that even Luo Ming himself would never want to get involved with it unless he had already refined it to a preliminary level.
"With this fire, we have another powerful weapon to use against enemies," Luo Ming thought with satisfaction. Without further hesitation, he opened his mouth and took a gentle inhale.
The seemingly calm but actually terrifyingly powerful gray flame in his palm transformed into a thin thread of fire, which he absorbed into his abdomen and directly entered his dantian.
Once the gray fire line entered the dantian, it obediently floated below the nascent soul, slowly rotating and absorbing the pure mana energy that Luo Ming's nascent soul was breathing in and out, undergoing a deeper level of nurturing and integration.
"The three types of Yin Fire are complete. Next—" With a thought, Luo Ming's Spirit Gathering Cauldron flashed again, and three flames of completely different colors and auras emerged.
One ball of crimson red, intense and violent, is the Crimson Owl Demon Fire taken from the transformed Fire Owl; the other ball of golden light, extremely yang and strong, exudes a domineering aura that burns all things, is the Golden Crow True Fire obtained from the Fiery Sun Bird.
The last one is a blend of crimson and gold, possessing both the ultimate yang essence of the Golden Crow True Fire and the characteristics of the Zhiyang Bird's own innate spiritual fire. Its aura is intense yet carries a hint of agility and vitality. It is the "Zhiyang Golden Flame" that the Zhiyang Bird evolved into after refining a portion of the Golden Crow Fire.
As soon as the three flames appeared, the temperature in the surrounding space suddenly soared. Even the protective light shield erected by the Xuan Turtle rippled slightly, and the raging wind outside the shield seemed to be forced back by the scorching heat.
"Crimson Owl Fire, Golden Crow True Fire, and Fat Yang Golden Flame—all three belong to the extreme Yang," but their characteristics differ. Crimson Owl Fire is violent, Golden Crow True Fire is domineering, while Fat Yang Golden Flame is more moderate and mellow, and contains a trace of the true essence of the Southern Ming Fire.
Luo Ming stared intently at the three leaping flames within the cauldron. "Fusing these three flames should be more difficult than fusing the Yin Flame, requiring even greater caution. As for the Azure Ice Flame—this flame is of too high a grade, possesses the strongest power, and is also the most difficult to completely control. Its attributes are completely opposite to other spiritual flames, so it must be left for last. We need to slowly refine and control it before any fusion is possible. Right now, let's deal with these three Yang Flames first."
He steadied himself, raised his hands, and channeled his magical power into the three balls of pure yang spiritual fire within the cauldron.
Just as Luo Ming was immersed in the subtle and dangerous fusion process of the three clusters of supreme yang spiritual fire within the Spirit Gathering Cauldron, carefully guiding and harmonizing them, an accident occurred.
"Um?"
His brows twitched suddenly, and his mind instantly snapped away from the fiery world inside the cauldron. His deep eyes snapped open, his gaze like lightning, piercing through the thick blue-yellow light shield erected by the Xuan Turtle, ignoring the raging hurricane and waves ahead, and shooting straight towards a certain sea area more than two hundred miles away.
Although he was refining and fusing these spiritual flames, he was constantly keeping a close eye on his surroundings with most of his divine sense.
In his divine sense, several rather disheveled and unstable streaks of light were frantically rushing toward him at an almost desperate speed.
Within the escaping light were three human cultivators, two men and one woman, all at the Core Formation stage, with two at the mid-Core Formation stage and one at the late-Core Formation stage.
They were working together to activate a silver-white, long and narrow magical artifact called a "flying boat." This boat was extremely fast, far exceeding the escape speed of ordinary Core Formation cultivators, and was clearly of a high grade.
However, at this moment, the flying boat's spiritual light was slightly dim, and there were even a few minor damage marks on its hull, indicating that it had experienced a fierce battle or escape.
Following closely behind these three streaks of light were several powerful and violent demonic energies! Among them, two demonic energies were the most conspicuous, deep as an abyss, carrying the majesty and ferocity unique to dragon-type demonic beasts, and were clearly two level-seven flood dragons!
One was blue and the other black, both hundreds of feet long, appearing and disappearing beneath the sea surface, stirring up the undercurrents at incredible speed.
Above them in the sky, there were three smaller but equally fierce flying monsters—level six "Wind Rift Beasts"—covered in bluish-gray scales, with fleshy wings, and incredibly fast!