Talent

"I would like to meet him and talk with him to exchange ideas on artifact refining. His concepts... might very well offer me some inspiration as well," Dong Liushui requested in all earnestness. "There will be an opportunity," Xu Qiexing said before turning to Zhang Jianlin. "This Artifact Refining Master... his name is Yaoguang, correct? Does he have any requests regarding his living conditions or work?" He immediately added to Zhao Siliang, "We must ensure his personal safety." "Rest assured. I have already issued orders: a Rank 3 Star Lord is personally leading a squad to guard him," Zhao Siliang answered at once. "Not enough!" Dong Liushui interjected immediately. "I suggest we apply the security standards of an Artifact Refining Grandmaster directly, assigning a protection detail composed of one Origin Spirit cultivator, one Foundation Establishment cultivator, and two Star Lords to ensure his safety." "The standards for an Artifact Refining Grandmaster?" Xu Qiexing, Zhao Siliang, Xiang Tianheng, and the others were inwardly startled. "While verifying the performance of this flying sword, I had a distinct feeling," Dong Liushui said solemnly. "It isn't that Lord Yaoguang lacks the ability to forge dharma treasure-grade flying swords, nor that his vision or knowledge is insufficient. Rather, he is stuck on a particular hurdle. Yet this hurdle isn't an insurmountable bottleneck. He only needs to cross it, and he should immediately be able to step into the realm of an Artifact Refining Grandmaster." "A hurdle?" "He's stuck? Where is he stuck?" "Formations?" The others were bewildered. "I don't know either. That's why... I want to see him. If we can have a candid exchange, perhaps we can identify the crux of his problem and enable him to genuinely acquire the ability to forge dharma treasures." Dong Liushui shook his head. "I will do my best to arrange it," Zhao Siliang replied after a moment's contemplation. At this moment, Zhang Jianlin weighed his words before speaking up: "Perhaps... I know where he is stuck..." "Hmm!?" Everyone's eyes immediately fell upon this Origin Spirit Great Cultivator. Without beating around the bush, he glanced at Zhao Siliang. "Has the Sect Master forgotten? He is neither Foundation Establishment nor Origin Spirit." Hearing those words, a bolt of lightning seemed to flash through Zhao Siliang's mind! "A Great Cultivator! He... he isn't even a Great Cultivator!" The others understood his meaning in an instant. Without being a Great Cultivator, the heaven and earth one perceived were naturally far less vivid and profound. Whether in ability, vision, perception, or reaction speed, non-Great Cultivators were a cut below. When researching secondary professions like artifact refining, formations, and alchemy, their progress naturally could not match that of a Great Cultivator. "So that's it! That's it!" Dong Liushui was struck by a sudden realization as well. He quickly added, "There's no mistaking it! Nine times out of ten, that's where he's stuck! If we can help him become a Great Cultivator, he is bound to break through this hurdle in no time and become a true Artifact Refining Grandmaster!" "Yaoguang must realize this as well!" Zhang Jianlin said in an astonished voice. "Earlier, I asked Yaoguang what help he would need if the higher-ups confirmed his potential to become an Artifact Refining Grandmaster. His answer was simply: a hundred thousand spirit stones! A hundred thousand spirit stones—does that remind everyone of anything?" "A hundred thousand spirit stones..." With the prompt of "Great Cultivator" fresh in their minds, they pondered briefly and quickly arrived at the answer: "A Spirit Transformation Pill?" "Precisely! The Spirit Transformation Pill that aids in bolstering the divine mind and refining qi into spirit!" Zhang Jianlin said. "A Spirit Transformation Pill... merely simulates a trace of a Dharma Idol's wondrous marvel, using the Heaven-Earth Law Body form to accommodate vast quantities of spiritual energy before refining qi into spirit... I fear it wouldn't be enough on its own to allow a ninth-layer spirit refining cultivator to condense an Origin Spirit," Xu Qiexing remarked with some doubt. "Yaoguang is different," Zhang Jianlin said solemnly. "Someone at the Zixiao Institute mentioned that First Seat Yaoguang can already exhibit a hint of the Origin Spirit's profound mysteries. It's clear his foundation in the path of spirit refining is exceptionally deep. Combined with the fact that the Spirit Transformation Pill inherently aids in condensing an Origin Spirit... taking such an elixir might well allow him to step directly into the Origin Spirit realm in one go and become an Origin Spirit Great Cultivator!" "He already displays a hint of Origin Spirit mysteries?" "Then it's settled." "If I recall the files correctly, Yaoguang seems quite young—under thirty?" As the group exchanged remarks, Xu Qiexing gave a self-deprecating chuckle. "Now there is no way I could ever believe Yaoguang joined our Nine Cauldrons Sect with malicious intent." The status of a master in a secondary profession was generally higher than that of a ninth-layer cultivator in body refining, qi refining, or spirit refining, and slightly lower than that of a Great Cultivator. As for the status of a grandmaster... It was second only to a Golden Core! It was enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with cultivators who had established an Immortal Foundation. Someone under thirty who could cultivate an Origin Spirit and already possessed the caliber of an Artifact Refining Grandmaster—infiltrating the Nine Cauldrons Sect as a spy? To put it bluntly... The Nine Cauldrons Sect wasn't worthy. "Yaoguang hails from a subsidiary world. According to the records, upon his arrival, he didn't immediately choose to join our Nine Cauldrons Sect, but stayed at a place called the Hundred Refinements Sect in Longxiang City to observe. It's clear that while we were evaluating him, he was also evaluating us. Therefore... we must never disillusion a true talent," Zhao Siliang said. "Based on the third-generation top-grade spirit sword he produced, he is well worth a hundred thousand spirit stones!" Xu Qiexing made a prompt decision, waving his hand magnanimously. "Isn't it just a Spirit Transformation Pill? Give it to him! Furthermore, we will allocate an additional thirty thousand spirit stones as a personal reward for him!" With that, he turned to Xiang Tianheng. "The orders from Zhanlu can be halted. Shift all procurement of high-end spirit swords to the Zixiao Institute—start with an order of three thousand!" "Cough, cough..." Hearing the number "three thousand," Xiang Tianheng nearly choked. Only after quite a while did he say with a wry smile, "We don't have the spirit stones." At a production cost of 1,600 and a procurement price of at least 1,800, an order for 3,000 flying swords would come to 5.4 million spirit stones. The annual procurement budget for the sword cultivator department was only a little over two million. If this order went through, the sword cultivator department wouldn't be able to replace any other equipment for the next two years. "Let's reduce the order size," Zhao Siliang said. "After all, the consumption of top-grade spirit artifacts is rather steep." Whether spirit artifacts or treasure weapons, theoretically, low-grade equipment offered the best cost-effectiveness, while top-grade gear boasted the highest-end, most refined performance. However, the high-end capabilities of top-grade equipment were unnecessary most of the time, yet their energy consumption was several times higher than that of low-grade gear. Therefore, weighing cost against performance, many sects equipped roughly 60% low-grade gear, with mid-grade and top-grade making up 20% each. Spirit stones were needed for cultivation, daily operations, and practically every facet of life; everyone was short on them, and they had to be spent frugally. Of course... When it came down to total war and life-or-death struggles, cost-effectiveness took a back seat to raw performance. Moreover, if one had ample spirit stones, energy consumption was no longer a concern. "The order quantity cannot be reduced; otherwise, wouldn't all the time and effort Yaoguang poured into this flying sword go to waste?" Xu Qiexing argued. Beside him, Xiang Tianheng gave it some thought and said, "The spirit artifacts First Seat Yaoguang provided have shown us the hope of rapidly routing the Xuanming Sect. In that case, let us equip only our most elite disciples with the top-grade spirit swords. As for the quantity... I believe one thousand is appropriate. One thousand disciples will be enough to shatter the Xuanming Sect's vanguard." The Xuanming Sect's elite high-tier sword cultivators likely numbered fewer than a thousand. Once they were crushed, the sect's Level 9 qi refining sword cultivators would suffer a devastating generational gap. While the remaining seventh- and eighth-layer cultivators might manage defense with the aid of formations, marching to the front lines would be pure suicide. When an entire layer of cultivators was wiped out, the Xuanming Sect wouldn't recover for the next decade, and the conflict over Posuo Island would naturally be resolved. "Can your side produce 1.8 million spirit stones?" Xu Qiexing asked. "No, so we will need the senior martial brothers in the spell cultivator and body cultivator procurement departments to cooperate and reallocate funds," Xiang Tianheng said. "As they should. Even if we have to borrow spirit stones from other departments, we cannot let the painstaking work of our designer go to waste—especially when this flying sword is so exceptional." Xu Qiexing finalized the matter and said to Xiang Tianheng, "Accompany Sect Master Zhao and the others when they go. Meet First Seat Yaoguang, deliver the Spirit Transformation Pill under escort, and explain our constraints to him." "Understood," Xiang Tianheng agreed. Zhao Siliang and Zhang Jianlin nodded as well. This was the best possible outcome. *** Jiuxiao City. Unlike Zong Yan and Ji Pingtian, who were still lingering in Longxiang City, the Xie family had gradually relocated to the provincial capital of the Jiuxiao Domain—Jiuxiao City. The celebratory banquet for the sect admissions was being hosted at a renowned restaurant in the capital. To ensure the success of this admission banquet, and eager to seize this chance to break into Jiuxiao City's upper crust, the Xie family had poured in immense manpower and material resources. It was said the cost of the banquet alone was no less than a million. Moreover, more than a month ago, they had reconnected with the Murong family, with whom the Xie family had enjoyed good personal ties in the past. They had even spared no expense in presenting heavy gifts exceeding ten spirit stones. Courtesy of the Murong family's reputation, every single guest invited was a figure of standing and status in Jiuxiao City. At that moment, standing as the Xie family's public figurehead, Xie Yushu—who had become a high-tier cultivator with the help of a Heavenly Being Pill—was greeting the distinguished guests alongside Sixth Master of the Murong family, a Level 7 qi refining spell cultivator named Murong Yun. Yet even as they welcomed guest after guest, both Xie Yushu and Murong Yun frequently craned their necks to look in one direction with eager anticipation. Just then, a man who appeared to be in his fifties stepped forward. "Deacon Liu, President Fang, and Dean Luo haven't arrived yet?" "Third Brother," Murong Yun greeted him before answering, "Those three didn't give a definitive reply, so I don't know either." "If even they haven't arrived, it seems that great figure is even less likely to show up," the man addressed as Third Brother, Murong Yuan, remarked with regret. He then cast a glance at Xie Yushu. "You in the Xie family missed a prime opportunity. Knowing full well how prodigiously talented he is, why did your attitude change completely after arriving here?" Xie Yushu smiled wryly. "We haven't lacked the proper courtesy. Every few days, we still go to pay our respects... It's just that he's too busy and simply has little time to receive us..." "In the end, your attitude during that first month simply wasn't sincere enough, and you threw away your chance," Murong Yuan said. "We've done everything we ought to do. A few days ago, we even had someone deliver a gift of local specialties, but we couldn't see him. Now... the gap between us has widened completely; we simply aren't on the same level anymore." Xie Yushu shook his head. Hearing this, Murong Yuan said nothing more. Even with the Murong family's assistance, the Xie family was at best on par with wealthy gentry. Relying on the wealth brought from the subsidiary world, they had established tens of millions in assets here and accumulated dozens to a hundred spirit stones—though how many remained now was hard to say. They possessed no technical skills or extraordinary capabilities. Unless Xie Yushi made a name for himself in the future, they would merely scrape by managing those assets. Achieving moderate wealth was easy enough, but hoping to gain real status or wield power was a distant dream. "I'll head inside to keep the other guests company," Murong Yuan said, turning to leave. Xie Yushu nodded with a bitter smile. Right at that moment, an expensive hovercar—though by no means standout among the array of luxury vehicles present—came to a stop. Immediately after, Yaoguang and Zong Yan stepped out of the vehicle together.