Chapter 577
Half a month later, Zheng Fa arrived at the dock of Jiushan Jie Fangshi, watching as over thirty Shenxiao warships floated into the air, a glimmer of anticipation in his eyes.
These warships carried the fruits of Jiushan Jie’s efforts over the past days:
For instance, the elixirs refined by the Dan Master Guild under the leadership of Master Song.
Or the magical artifacts crafted by Madam Xuanhua and the artisans of Tiangong Pavilion.
Not to mention the Jiushan Sect's signature skills—various spirit talismans.
There were even garments woven in the mortal realm of Jiushan Jie and the grains harvested from its fields.
He turned to Han Qi and said, “Only do business with the major sects of the Baixian Alliance, and steer clear of the territory of Chongxuan Sect.”
“Safety first.”
Han Qi nodded earnestly, replying, “Rest assured, Master, I understand.”
Seeing that Han Qi had already reached the Foundation Establishment stage, Zheng Fa couldn’t help but feel a twinge of nostalgia—when he first arrived at Jiushan Sect, Han Qi had been hopelessly struggling with his cultivation, filled with resentment, and had even forced Zheng Fa to buy a book on talismanic secrets written by Sister Zhang.
Now, thanks to the “Talisman Foundation Establishment Method,” he had stepped into the Foundation Establishment stage and was in charge of so many Shenxiao warships.
He was certainly more impressive than the average Golden Core cultivator.
With this thought, Zheng Fa felt a flicker of unease about Han Qi: “Remember, even though Jiushan Jie is the leader of the Baixian Alliance… if I hear that you’re using your influence to bully others or engaging in forced transactions…”
Han Qi quickly interjected, “Master, how could I dare to do that…”
Given Han Qi’s past misdeeds, Zheng Fa didn’t say much more, just fixed him with a steady gaze.
Han Qi could only force a smile, “I used to, but now there’s no need for that… The spirit elixirs, magical artifacts, and talismans on this ship are all cheaper and more effective than those from other sects…”
“Those cultivators would have to be fools not to buy!”
This statement was quite believable—
Perhaps compared to the Five Sects, Jiushan Sect’s offerings weren’t particularly high-end, but for the various sects within the Baixian Alliance, it was like a dimensional strike.
“Master, I don’t want to resort to forced transactions. But what if some sects refuse to let us take their business and resort to underhanded tactics?”
Seeing that Zheng Fa seemed to buy his argument, Han Qi cautiously asked.
That was indeed a possibility… Many smaller sects in the Baixian Alliance relied on refining tools and alchemy for their livelihood, and some hadn’t joined the guild. This meant that Jiushan Sect’s Shenxiao warships were essentially there to snatch business.
While they wouldn’t dare openly target Jiushan Sect, they might harbor some ill intentions in secret, perhaps employing some petty tricks:
Like spreading rumors or forbidding their disciples from patronizing Jiushan Sect’s business…
Zheng Fa couldn’t even begin to gauge how bold some people could be for the sake of spirit stones.
“Do you think I installed the Shenxiao external elixirs on your warships just because they look good?” Zheng Fa replied flatly.
“Understood!”
Han Qi’s face lit up with excitement as he hopped onto the Shenxiao warship, waving his hand as the Jiushan Sect merchant convoy set off in grand procession.
Their mission was simple: to dump their goods!
A large-scale liquidation!
Since Jiushan Jie lacked sufficient spiritual materials, they had to procure them from the various sects of the Baixian Alliance. With Jiushan Sect’s current capabilities, while they couldn’t claim to have achieved full industrialization, selling a magical artifact or elixir could still yield a decent return in spiritual materials for Jiushan Jie.
As for the grievances of some sects…
If they didn’t respect the “Trade Agreement,” Zheng Fa was more than willing to let them experience what free trade really meant.
……
In the volcanic caverns of Chongxuan Sect, Elder Jiu scrutinized Zheng Fa from head to toe, her gaze filled with skepticism.
Mainly, she was doubting herself.
She had summoned Zheng Fa to offer some guidance on the “Heavenly Fire Refining Treasure Technique,” but the questions he posed… she couldn’t answer.
“How did you grasp the ‘Heavenly Fire Refining Treasure Technique’ so quickly?”
Zheng Fa flashed a shy smile.
Of course, he learned quickly…
He had hired a tutor!
After conducting experiments and discussions in Jiushan Jie, Zheng Fa had delved deeply into the “Heavenly Fire Refining Treasure Technique.”
How should he put it…
He believed that even the Golden Core disciples of Haori Mountain hadn’t received the combined teachings of Madam Xuanhua and Elder Han.
Not to mention the experiments on Gongkai Island…
With such a faculty and learning model, how could Zheng Fa possibly fail?
“I just… learned it twice and got it down,” he said sincerely, like a top student claiming he hadn’t studied before an exam, causing Elder Jiu’s expression to freeze.
“Really that fast?”
“Well… it’s alright…” Elder Jiu gritted her teeth, “But your spiritual fire…”
“This is a bit of my own fortune, which is why my ‘Heavenly Flame Great Method’ has reached perfection.”
Elder Jiu frowned slightly, seeming puzzled, but didn’t press further.
As a master, it wasn’t appropriate to pry into a disciple’s fortune.
Moreover, she knew that she had only exchanged a few words with this fourth disciple in recent days, so she could only commend him, “Your spiritual fire is indeed remarkable…”
Of course it was remarkable.
This was the True Sun Fire.
According to Senior Sister Yuan, the highest-grade spiritual fire of the demon clan—the Jinwu Spiritual Fire—was nothing but a mere flame in comparison to the True Sun Fire.
Even though in Zheng Fa’s mind, the greatest use of the True Sun Fire was point washing, it didn’t mean that it wasn’t powerful for refining.
On the contrary, the True Sun Fire had its own unique wonders in refining… Simply put, it could wash points during the refining process…
Just like debugging a program.
When a bug appeared while coding, as long as Zheng Fa had enough spiritual power and soul strength, he could fix it without starting over.
This thing… was the bug itself!
Zheng Fa even dared to boast that even without Madam Xuanhua and the others providing special guidance, he was undoubtedly a genius in refining with the True Sun Fire!
Elder Jiu seemed to have thought of something and spoke up, “Why don’t you refine a Feiyun Sword for me to see?”
Zheng Fa was taken aback; the Feiyun Sword was the most popular standard magical artifact flying sword in the Xuanwei Realm and wasn’t difficult to refine.
His master probably wanted to see the quality of his work.
But why choose a flying sword of all things?
Tianhe Sect was inferior to Haori Mountain in refining overall, but when it came to sword crafting, they were unparalleled in Xuanwei!
Even though Elder Han wouldn’t teach Zheng Fa the core techniques, the other methods were still worthy of the Tianhe Sect’s reputation in swordsmanship…
Plus, with the “Heavenly Fire Refining Treasure Technique” from Haori Mountain, as Elder Han himself said:
With the strengths of both sects combined, Zheng Fa’s skills in refining flying swords were certainly on par with the true disciples of Tianhe Sect.
After thinking for a moment, Zheng Fa decided… to hold back a bit.
Li Hao had been ordinary in the past; it was normal for him to make progress given the right opportunity.
If he appeared too talented…
That might raise some eyebrows.
He pondered, deliberately making the technique he used a bit clumsy, and after several days of struggling with the True Sun Fire, he finally managed to refine a Feiyun Sword of upper-grade magical artifact quality.
By his own estimation, he had hidden at least fifty percent of his strength this time…
Otherwise, this Feiyun Sword would have been at least a top-grade magical artifact.
But as he turned around, he saw Elder Jiu staring at him for a long moment, then glancing back and forth at the Feiyun Sword in the cavern, seemingly at a loss for words.
Uh-oh!
He had overestimated Chongxuan Sect!
“I truly underestimated you in the past…”
No, it’s not that Chongxuan Sect is that weak…
“Even if I refined the Feiyun Sword, it would only be an upper-grade magical artifact…”
Elder Jiu’s gaze toward Zheng Fa grew increasingly approving.
Not only was his technique pure, but he even showed signs of possessing Yuan Ying potential.
His talent in refining was also exceptionally high.
Though they hadn’t been particularly close in the past, he was still her disciple, and his success was ultimately a good thing for her.
“Now… among the next generation of Chongxuan Sect disciples, you’re probably the most talented…”
After saying this, Elder Jiu fell silent.
After a long while, she waved her hand, grasping the Feiyun Sword, and said to Zheng Fa, “Come with me!”
Huh?
Zheng Fa felt a surge of joy as she led him up the mountain, but halfway up, Elder Jiu suddenly turned and walked to the entrance of a cave.
“Master, Bi Xia requests an audience.”
Elder Jiu called out at the cave entrance, and soon a young disciple emerged, bowing respectfully as he welcomed the two into the cave.
Zheng Fa understood that this was the cave dwelling of the Chongxuan Sect’s leader.
The furnishings inside this cave were different from those in Elder Jiu’s dwelling; the cave walls were mostly made of a type of black stone, giving it a solemn and dignified atmosphere.
The leader of Chongxuan Sect was a very serious middle-aged cultivator.
He was holding an iron box, examining it closely, his brow furrowed, which made him appear even more intimidating.
“Elder Jiu, you’re here? Just in time…”
Elder Jiu interrupted him, taking out the Feiyun Sword and saying, “Master, take a look at this Feiyun Sword…”
The leader of Chongxuan Sect paused for a moment, reaching out to take the Feiyun Sword, examining it closely while nodding repeatedly, “You refined this? There’s some improvement…”
“He did it.”
Elder Jiu pointed at Zheng Fa.
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