Chapter 112: Spirit Wine Gourd
Chapter 112: Spirit Wine Gourd
At the foot of Xuanxin Sect’s Spiritual Peak, after a private talk with Lu Hangzhi, Honglian left aboard a flying boat. Departing with her were forty-two Spirit Coalescence Elders, including Elder Zhao.
Qin Huai, Mo Li, and Lu Hangzhi met in the main hall alongside the Xuanxin Sect Leader and Master Chen Ji. Five people were present in total.
Mo Li occupied the uppermost seat.
Qin Huai and Lu Hangzhi sat to his left and right. Below them were the Sect Leader and Master Chen Ji.
Seeing the arrangement of seats shift, Lu Hangzhi momentarily felt lost in thought.
Mo Li’s voice echoed through the hall:
“Hangzhi, though you have not yet solidified a divine spark, everyone already sees you as a Spirit Coalescence Elder. Do not feel constrained.”
“This disciple understands.”
Lu Hangzhi pulled his focus back and nodded.
“Ancestral Master summoned this disciple because…”
Mo Li stroked his beard, smiling slightly:
“Our Xuanxin Sect held fast this time. We dare not forget the debt owed to Revered Qin for his aid. Secondly, it was you, Hangzhi. You defeated Jiuyou’s clone. This old man never gave you a reward for that. And this time, you intervened in the nick of time to turn the tide. The Sect Leader, your Master, and I have spoken about your reward. Calling you here is to announce this matter.”
Lu Hangzhi, holding a Concentrated Spirit Peak Stage demon beast inner core, the Matrix Tower artifact, the Tianji Umbrella, and possessing five sword spirits, was no longer the raw youth who’d be thrilled by a single magical flying sword. His expression remained placid, showing no trace of excitement.
“This was this disciple’s duty.”
“You are now at the Tenth Grade of the Epiphany Stage cultivation, the Xuanxin Sect’s second Mind Focusing Cultivator, you need not refer to yourself as a disciple any longer!” Mo Li’s expression turned grave and solemn as he announced, “Effective immediately, you are Xuanxin Sect’s new Vice Sect Leader. You stand equal to your master.”
“This disciple dares not…”
Chen Ji smiled warmly, offering reassurance:
“Why dare not? In this master’s opinion, Senior Brother should have stepped down long ago. It would not be an issue to let you serve as Sect Leader either.”
“…”
The diminutive Sect Leader glared at Chen Ji without real anger. “No respect in front of the younger generation.”
“Heh heh, so then, most of the Xuanxin Sect’s affairs can be handed over to Hangzhi. Let him take charge…”
“A foolish hope.”
This time it was Mo Li’s turn to glare. “The Two Realms Mountain lacks people everywhere, the situation is critical all over. How could Hangzhi possibly have time to manage those trivial, messy affairs of the sect?”
“Ah?”
Chen Ji was dumbfounded, blurting out:
“Master, your esteemed old self means… Hangzhi still has to return to the Two Realms Mountain?”
“Correct.”
Mo Li nodded, then changed his tone. “Listening to Grandmaster Honglian’s intent, it’s best he leaves the day after tomorrow. I and Revered Qin shall be fully responsible for Xuanxin Sect’s defense line! What is your view, Hangzhi?”
“This disciple has no objection!”
Lu Hangzhi had already been told by Honglian to return to the Mountains to help her retain her position as Southern City Inspector.
In exchange, once Honglian secured the Southern City Inspector position, she would immediately request a batch of Matrix Towers from the Yuding Sect and arrange a group of Spirit Coalescence Elders to assist Xuanxin Sect fully in setting up the Second Defense Line! Simultaneously, an operations center independent of the Two Realms Mountain, dedicated to hunting down Intelligent Demon Beasts, would be established.
Publicly, this action brought great benefits and increased security for the human race.
Privately, if the plan succeeded, Xuanxin Sect would become the sole supply point for Spirit Concentration Stage cultivators for tens of thousands of miles around – offering immense advantages!
Lu Hangzhi had no reason to refuse.
“But since you are returning to the Two Realms Mountain, it’s time to swap out your gear.”
Mo Li’s words found agreement in the other three.
An expert comparable to a Spirit Concentration Stage cultivator, wearing mid-grade spiritual artifacts of the Epiphany Stage? It was truly quite shabby.
Lu Hangzhi felt it deeply.
Back in Huangtong Town against the Pangolin Demon Beast, three low-grade magical artifacts and the armor he wore had barely withstood a single strike from an Early Spirit Concentration Stage monster beast. It showed just how weak his defenses were.
At this point, Qin Huai chuckled:
“For defensive spiritual artifacts, I’ve prepared a set for Hangzhi.”
“Oh?”
Chen Ji couldn’t mask his interest.
“Revered Qin is also versed in artifact refining?”
“Naturally.”
Qin Huai affirmed.
“Several days ago, Hangzhi slew a defensive-type Soul-Concentrating Demon Beast in Huangtong Town. I handled the corpse materials. I saw the pangolin’s scales were excellent quality. Couldn’t resist using them.” He took out a set of pitch-black armor from his storage ring. “Used a few scales to make a Spirit Condensation Stage spiritual artifact.”
Lu Hangzhi quickly extended his hands to receive it.
It felt surprisingly light in his hands. The metal-like, finely scaled armor emanated a faint coolness.
“This craftsmanship… masterwork technique!”
Chen Ji, as head of the Golden Jade Hall and deeply interested in artifact refining, wouldn’t miss inspecting it. Peering close at the intricate pattern-like magic formations on the scales, his expression became entirely respectful.
“A pity this Chen Ji only possesses Epiphany Stage cultivation. Could never forge a Spirit Concentration Stage magical artifact. Pray… what level of force can these scales withstand?”
The last sentence betrayed his deep concern for his disciple, Hangzhi.
Qin Huai just laughed – he’d expected this.
“Knowing Hangzhi is your treasured disciple, how could I dare be careless? Rest easy. Every scale on these plates was meticulously chosen from that pangolin’s hide. No imperfections, no damage marks. Plus, I soaked each scale in a special solution. Makes them more flexible and form-fitting… Setting aside the enchantments, just these scales alone can completely negate Ninth Grade of Comprehension Stage magical impacts.”
“…” Chen Ji stared, dumbstruck.
Special solution soak?
Such an artifact refining technique?
Lu Hangzhi couldn’t help but feel excited. He decided that whenever he had time and opportunity, he must seek out Revered Qin to learn from him.
Qin Huai continued the presentation:
“For this armor, I employed an overlapping triangle pattern, stitching them with painstaking care. When any scale receives force, the pressure spreads outward through the layers. Can dissipate up to thirty percent of the strike’s power! Can withstand one or two attacks from a Mid Soul-Concentrating Stage beast easily!”
Chen Ji’s eyes turned red.
Overlapping triangle pattern! Another technique unknown to Xuanxin Sect!
“…And against the demon race, I engraved three distinct ‘force-dispersing formations’ into the scales. Added a shockwave rebound feature too. Final touch: embedded both a Spirit Gathering Array and a Mid Spirit Concentration defensive barrier. Just pour in magic power and activate it. This barrier can withstand either three full-force blows from a Mid Soul-Concentrating Stage beast, or a single such strike from a Concentrated Spirit Peak Stage monster.”
Lu Hangzhi felt goosebumps ripple one layer after another across his skin.
Incredible!
Was this even a spiritual artifact anymore? It was practically a magical artifact! And no ordinary magical artifact at that!
With this armor artifact, as long as he didn’t run into a Concentrated Spirit Peak beast, he could stand and fight beast-to-man.
It’s not about knowing quality, but comparisons kill. Mo Li mentally shelved the Spirit Concentration Stage artifact he’d prepared. His aged face flushed slightly. Coughing awkwardly he covered his embarrassment:
“Ahem… Since Revered Qin has already prepared such an outstanding artifact… we shall select another gift. Hangzhi… Do you have any specific requests?”
“Hmm.”
Lu Hangzhi reflected seriously.
In truth, with this armor artifact, his defense gap was nearly closed. After all, he also had five sword spirit guardians. And once the Seven-Seven Sword Formation deployed, it combined attack and defense.
He was not lacking in offensive magical artifacts either!
The Tianji Umbrella contained forty-nine top-grade magical artifact flying swords and was itself a high-quality magical artifact!
Elixirs?
Twelve Concentrated Spirit Peak Stage demon beast inner cores?
Dozens of Early Spirit Concentration Stage demon beast inner cores?
For supplies, there was the Honeycomb Artifact.
Huh… wait!
Lu Hangzhi suddenly realized what he urgently needed.
“Ancestral Master, I want a magical artifact that can store a large amount of Spirit Honey.”
“…Uh.”
Mo Li was speechless.
The Dwarf Sect Leader and Chen Ji looked at each other.
Just this?
“Yes, just this.” Lu Hangzhi said seriously: “After returning to Two Realms Mountain, I probably won’t have much private space or time to refine Spirit Honey. I might as well take advantage of the time now to make more Spirit Honey and store it… By the way, it’s best if it’s a magical artifact that is convenient to carry and use, and doesn’t seem out of place.”
“There are many storage magical artifacts. I remember the previous sect leader had a Spirit Wine Gourd that could hold an entire lake’s worth of water. Not only was the space huge, but spiritual items placed inside wouldn’t change for thousands of years.”
Chen Ji suggested.
Hearing this, Lu Hangzhi was immediately tempted.
Could hold an entire lake?
That’s pretty amazing!
“This one sounds good.”
Mo Li and Chen Ji looked at each other with helpless expressions.
“Of course, that’s no problem. If you have any other needs, feel free to mention them.”
In front of Qin Huai, the three big shots of Xuanxin Sect didn’t dare to be stingy. Besides, Hangzhi was going to support the entire Xuanxin Sect in the future. If he made such a great contribution but only received a useless gourd, they themselves wouldn’t be able to bear it.
“But I really don’t need anything else.”
“That won’t do!”
“How about this… Our Xuanxin Sect still has a few treasures kept in reserve. Hangzhi, you can choose one yourself.” The Dwarf Sect Leader listed three magical artifacts in one breath:
First, there was the Black-White Chessboard at the entrance of the main hall, a genuine illusion arts formation board. Once deployed, it could control an area of several miles. Unless the enemy reached the Mystic Light level, they couldn’t easily escape. Unfortunately, to activate this treasure, one must reach the Spirit Concentrating level. Moreover, while creating Epiphany Stage monster beasts in the illusion was manageable, creating Spirit Concentrating level monster beasts consumed a huge amount of magic power. Currently, even Mo Li couldn’t master it.
Lu Hangzhi quickly shook his head.
If even the Ancestral Master couldn’t use it, then he certainly couldn’t. Using illusion arts to kill people sounded exhausting. Was it faster than the Seven-Seven Sword Formation?
Besides…
The Black-White Chessboard was an important symbol of Xuanxin Sect’s face. How could he take it away?
Lu Hangzhi firmly refused!
“There is another powerful magical artifact, but it requires Mid Soul-Concentrating Stage to activate. You can’t use it yet…” Mo Li pondered for a moment, then showed a conflicted expression before reluctantly saying: “It seems the only thing suitable for you is this last one, the Codex bestowed by Lord Baimei.”
“…”
Lu Hangzhi stood up:
“Let’s talk about this after I officially condense my Divine Spark.”
“Lord Honglian gave me two days to rest. Time is precious, so I’ll take my leave now. There are still many senior brothers and sisters waiting in the courtyard.”
Mo Li and his disciple exchanged a glance, feeling quite helpless.
Xuanxin Sect was a small sect, and they had brought out everything they could offer. But they truly had no way to supply a prodigy like Lu Hangzhi.
Qin Huai also knew about Xuanxin Sect’s predicament. He nodded with a smile and granted permission. “Go ahead.”