Lightning Tribulation

With the first batch of orders completed, Yaoguang specially gathered all the artificers of the Zixiao Institute and brought out thousands of spirit stones before everyone as rewards. Following the recent expansion, the number of artificers in the Zixiao Institute had increased from eighty-two to two hundred and four. Thanks to the addition of Yun Lai's team, the number of senior artificers had reached forty-six. Every artificer received one spirit stone as a bonus. Senior artificers received at least five spirit stones based on their contributions, and some even took home more than a dozen. This bonus was substantially higher than even their usual annual earnings. As for the apprentices, whose ranks had swelled to four thousand... Their artifact refining skills were still in the learning stage; an annual salary of tens of thousands of yuan already left them overjoyed. A reward like spirit stones was far too advanced for them, so there was no need to hand any out. Seeing what full artificers earned would do far more to kindle their drive and strengthen their resolve to become certified artificers. Receiving such a bounty of spirit stones all at once, every artificer in the Zixiao Institute beamed with joy. Once the news spread, it sparked endless envy throughout Jiuxiao Domain's artifact refining circles. Upon learning that the Zixiao Institute had four more batches queued up, many people scrambled to pull strings, hoping to secure a position there. In an instant, the Zixiao Institute went from an institute on the brink of demotion to a prized destination in the eyes of every artificer. Whenever artificers from the Zixiao Institute walked outside, they drew envious looks wherever they went. *** "First Seat Yaoguang truly has bold resolve, willing to shell out so many spirit stones all at once as profit shares." In the workshop, Yun Lai walked in carrying a file. "Everyone worked overtime around the clock to finish the order as quickly as possible. Naturally, I couldn't let their enthusiasm go unrewarded," Yaoguang said. "When there are orders, working overtime to fulfill them is only natural for artificers. When there aren't orders, don't they relax and take it easy just the same?" Yun Lai remarked, then added, "Besides, had you not used the power of your Origin Spirit to coordinate and manage everything, they wouldn't have worked with such rapid efficiency. You were the most exhausted one." "Which is why I gladly accepted the lion's share of the profits, didn't I?" Yaoguang smiled. "You designed the flying swords, and their production was overseen around the clock by your divine mind. It's only what you deserve," Yun Lai said sincerely. Yaoguang did not remain falsely modest. With the God King trait, his coordination and management hadn't been nearly as arduous as Yun Lai imagined. Of course, he had no intention of showing that. The artificers would only remember that whenever they encountered the slightest difficulty or a hitch in the workflow, the First Seat's divine mind would descend immediately, guiding them along the most accurate and efficient path. Enveloping the entire Zixiao Institute with his divine mind every second to ensure the smooth production of flying swords—what an immense mental toll that must have taken! Therefore, when Yaoguang claimed sixty percent of the order's profits, not a single person uttered a complaint. "By the way, what brings you here?" Yaoguang asked. "The sword cultivators assigned the first batch of one hundred swords have completed their refinement and training with the Zixiao Type 12 flying swords. Starting today, they are officially patrolling the Posuo Island area. These are the figures from their final training session; I brought them for you to look over." Yun Lai handed over a jade talisman. Yaoguang took the talisman and set it directly onto the workbench. As the formation patterns across the workbench gleamed with light, the information within the talisman was extracted and projected into the air as light and shadow, revealing figures soaring through the sky on flying swords. Alongside them were various operational data. "Posuo Island is only a small island about a hundred li across, not particularly large among the East Sea Archipelago. However, factoring in its surrounding economic zone, its value is far from negligible. Furthermore, there are no other islands within a thousand li of it..." Yaoguang paused over the speed recorded by one of the sword cultivators. "A patrol speed of Mach 1.4 should be plenty. They can complete a circuit in a little over an hour, and energy consumption is less than one spirit stone. Even with a four-man squad patrolling three times a day, the spirit stones consumed will only be around ten." Yun Lai nodded. A squad of four sword cultivators was the standard patrol formation—an established convention. After all, every sword cultivator had different specialties; a lone cultivator on patrol could easily find their strengths countered. "Has an Origin Spirit Great Cultivator gone over?" Yaoguang said, "The Zixiao's resistance to interference is somewhat lacking. Without an Origin Spirit Great Cultivator, they could easily be targeted." "Naturally." Yun Lai nodded. "Spirit cultivators are different from body cultivators, sword cultivators, and spell cultivators. It's universally acknowledged by all sects in Cangwu that spirit cultivators are support. And support—well, entering the field directly isn't considered an all-out war." He smiled faintly. "Hall Master Bailu went to oversee the area personally. She cultivates the Boundless Visualization Method, which excels above all in divine mind confrontation and detection range. Her Origin Spirit can already enter the Zixiao Divine Lightning layer, giving her an awareness range of one thousand six hundred li. The entire perimeter around Posuo Island falls completely within her detection scope." "Zixiao Divine Lightning." Yaoguang immediately grasped the weight of that statement. Cultivation along the Origin Spirit path differed from that of Star Lords and Foundation Establishment. Cultivation at this stage was straightforward and brutal. Whenever cultivators felt their Origin Spirits were sufficiently powerful, they could ascend directly into the Nine Heavens, tempering their Origin Spirits with Blazing Sun Heavenly Lightning, Zixiao Divine Lightning, and Chaos Divine Lightning. With each round of tempering, an Origin Spirit realm cultivator's divine mind would surge dramatically in strength. Cangwu... In Yaoguang's own understanding, it was likely a peculiar wormhole. Spacetime was warped and curled up to the point where everyone believed they lived on a flat plane, giving rise to the notion that Cangwu had a dome sky and flat earth. The warping of spacetime generated spacetime tides, and when these tides collided with one another, they triggered Chaos Divine Lightning. When Chaos Divine Lightning interacted with external matter and energy, it evolved into Zixiao Divine Lightning. As Origin Spirit cultivators underwent repeated temperings by Zixiao Divine Lightning, if they possessed transcendent talent and could capture a trace of the profundities of chaotic spacetime, they could condense a Dharma Body and step into the Dharma Idol realm. This was a realm on par with Star Gods and Golden Cores. In theory, undergoing even a single Zixiao lightning tribulation offered hope of achieving a Dharma Idol. But the odds were far too slim. Tempering the spirit through lightning tribulation was fraught with lethal peril to begin with, and having to grasp the profundities of chaotic spacetime amidst such hazardous conditions made the process nigh impossible. In recent years, there had been no shortage of Great Cultivators who lived within the Zixiao Divine Lightning layer for prolonged periods yet still failed to comprehend the profundities of chaotic spacetime. At that point, one could only seek out Chaos Divine Lightning to gamble on that fleeting opportunity. As for the Blazing Sun Heavenly Lightning before that, it was, quite literally, lightning present within the Nine Heavens Astral Wind layer. Origin Spirit cultivators had to pass through the Nine Heavens Astral Wind layer before they could reach the Zixiao Divine Lightning layer. Hall Master Bailu, who was already capable of entering the Zixiao Divine Lightning layer... ...was theoretically already close to the pinnacle of the Origin Spirit realm. So long as she could withstand the tempering of Zixiao Divine Lightning, it was tantamount to launching an assault on the Dharma Idol realm. "With Hall Master Bailu there, it can truly be called foolproof." Yaoguang nodded. At the same time, he said, "These figures are very helpful. Based on this data and feedback from the sword cultivators, I'll see if I can continue optimizing the Zixiao 12 and strive to produce the Zixiao 13 as soon as possible." Yun Lai nodded. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but after weighing his thoughts, held his tongue. Because as an artificer, Yaoguang had already done the absolute best. Just then, Xiang Guangming knocked on the door. Following Yaoguang's invitation to enter, he smiled and presented a sheet of gold foil with both hands. "First Seat, the funds for the second batch of six hundred Zixiao Type 12 flying swords have arrived." "So fast?" Yaoguang was slightly surprised. "I thought they would use them for a while before making a second purchase." "The Zixiao 12 performed outstandingly during training; it must have won them over completely. That's why they want us to forge them as quickly as possible," Yun Lai said with a smile from the side. Yaoguang nodded. "Everyone just received their bonuses today and spirits are high. Let them rest for a day. We start work tomorrow and put in another two months." "Understood," Xiang Guangming agreed. *** In the lounge. Yaoguang glanced at the newly deposited 240,000 spirit stones, his mood buoyant. "The purchase price offered by the Nine Cauldrons Sect didn't leave much margin, only around fourteen percent. I took sixty percent of the profits, roughly 8.4 percent. However, when submitting the proposal, I factored my secret method into the production cost of the flying swords. In the end, the earnings from the previous order that belonged entirely to me reached my original estimate of fifteen percent." The first order was 240,000 spirit stones. A fifteen percent return... "Thirty-six thousand spirit stones in the bag." Sure enough, as long as a sect wasn't corrupt, doing business with it was the most profitable venture of all. Now... The second order had arrived. Once completed, that would be another thirty-six thousand spirit stones. He focused his mind on his spiritual world. His gaze lingered between Martial Path and Divine Path. This time, his attention centered primarily on Divine Path. "Once Divine Path reaches the Origin Spirit stage, one's realm becomes increasingly paramount. As long as a cultivator's mastery, comprehension, and application of Origin Spirit power reach a sufficiently high level, they can attempt to draw upon heavenly lightning for tempering. Passing through twenty-seven, fifty-four, and eighty-one temperings respectively allows the Origin Spirit's strength to make a three-stage leap, thereby earning the qualification to enter the Zixiao Divine Lightning layer and undergo tempering by Zixiao Divine Lightning..." Yaoguang felt that if he truly pursued the Divine Path, his subsequent cultivation would surely progress by leaps and bounds. However... The Divine Path was a support path. Facing a body cultivator, sword cultivator, or spell cultivator of the same realm head-on was virtually suicidal. Moreover... With the changing times, the importance of spirit cultivators had become widely recognized across the world; once a battle broke out, the enemy's first priority was often to eliminate the spirit cultivators. Not only was their combat power inferior, but they drew the most concentrated fire. Crucially... In today's world, only the Wuji Astral Palace, the Immortal Alliance, and the Myriad Beasts Sect possessed Dharma Idol spirit cultivators. If a Dharma Idol spirit cultivator emerged from the Nine Cauldrons Sect... ...it might not be a blessing. "A breakthrough in spirit refining requires entering the Nine Heavens Astral Wind layer, which cannot be hidden. Once I achieve a Dharma Idol... the Nine Cauldrons Sect won't be able to protect me," Yaoguang thought to himself. For a moment, he turned his gaze back to the Martial Path branch. Yet after lingering briefly, he ultimately turned toward the Artifact Refining branch. Compared to the Martial Path, he needed Artifact Refining more right now to acquire more spirit stones, and likewise... ...it could arm the Nine Cauldrons Sect. With this thought, the recently broken-through Artifact Refining branch began to grow rapidly!