Chapter 38: The Sect Master (Part 1)

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  The red light shattered the clouds above Tianhuo Peak, and the fierce flames dyed the clouds a deep crimson like blood. Pieces of bloody cloud scattered in all directions. The entire sky turned blood-red, with layers of rolling bloody clouds. Amidst this, a furnace appeared, one hundred and eight zhang tall, supported by three dragon claws at its base. It was thick and heavy, with four sides on the lid cast with the four great spiritual beasts: Qinglong, Baihu, Zhuque, and Xuanwu. The eyes of the spiritual beasts were inlaid with precious gems that shone brightly, illuminating the air hundreds of zhang away. The furnace slowly flew towards a group of Daoists.

  Lin Xiao only provided the material list and internal structure diagram required for the alchemy furnace, as well as the array diagrams that needed to be inscribed on each part of the furnace. As for the external shape of the furnace, Lin Xiao did not make any rigid requirements.

  A true alchemist is someone who pursues perfection in their craft. This dan furnace has three legs that are completely cast into the shape of dragon claws, with each leg having sharp five-clawed feet that can tightly grip the ground. At the same time, if the dan furnace were to be used as an attacking treasure, these three sharp dragon claws would become a powerful lethal weapon. The dragon claws are wrapped in wispy cloud energy, and scales clearly protrude from them. On the scales are embedded small thunder pearls, with a total of 9,999 scales having 9,999 thunder pearls the size of soybeans on them. These many thunder pearls form an extremely powerful "Three Thunder Array". Once activated, it can instantly unleash forty-nine consecutive heavenly lightning attacks on the enemy.

  The Three Thunder Formation is not only an attacking technique, but also a defensive array that comes with the alchemy furnace. It can avoid being attacked by enemies or disturbed by external demons during alchemy.

  The outer shell of the Dan furnace is carved with countless medicinal herb maps. On each herb, a faint red mist floats like thin silk, and as the mist sways, the herbs seem to come alive, gently shaking on the surface of the Dan furnace. The outline of the herbs is made from molten fire crystal solution poured into fine red lines. These lines form a 'Heavenly Fire Burning God Array' on the Dan furnace, which can release high-temperature flames to attack enemies or set up defensive formations.

  The four-phase spiritual beast on the furnace cover. Also formed the 'Four Spirits Demon Array'. External attacks have great power. Self-defense is unshakeable. Another kind of offensive and defensive spiritual array.

  One True Daoist was also under the guidance of One Line. Intentionally perfecting Lin Xiao. When One Line heard Lin Xiao say that this dan furnace can not only be used for alchemy, but also become a portable treasure after being refined, he instructed One True Daoist to put more effort into the dan furnace, 'Three Thunder Arrays', 'Heavenly Fire Burning God' Great Array, and 'Four Spirits Exorcism Array'. These three arrays not only consumed an unknown number of precious materials from the Yuan Sect, but also exhausted One True Daoist's mental energy. However, with these three spiritual arrays, the dan furnace's attack and defense capabilities were elevated to a shocking level.

  A true Taoist with a gaunt face, accompanied by eighty-one fellow disciples, stepped onto the clouds and slowly controlled the massive alchemical furnace as it floated over. With a smile all over his face, he bowed to Lin Xiang in greeting. "Haha!" He laughed loudly at Lin Xiang: "Lin Xiang, my young friend! This alchemical furnace has cost me, the old Taoist, a great deal of effort! Hehe, this massive furnace is to be formed in one go, and just smelting those materials has exhausted over two hundred disciples from our sect. Hehe, if you successfully refine the elixir in the future..."

  Lin Xiao nodded and said in a low voice, "In the future, if we refine excellent elixirs, Senior Yizhen can naturally choose one first." He made a fist with his hand and knocked it against his chest, indicating that he had already remembered Senior Yizhen's kindness.

  A True Daoist was overjoyed, grinning from ear to ear. He hastily pulled Lin Xian's hand and led him around the dan furnace, explaining its benefits nonstop. The internal structure and functions of the dan furnace were clear to Lin Xian, but the external layout and some ingenious uses were only understood by A True Daoist, this master craftsman. Many small auxiliary functions seemed insignificant at first glance, yet they were the result of A True Daoist's immense effort and discussion with his fellow disciples. These auxiliary functions would greatly facilitate the alchemy process for dan furnace masters.

  A true Taoist, especially emphasized the introduction of a mustard array below the dan furnace, which hid an eighteen-mile-long fire crystal pillar. Once the mustard array is activated, the fire crystal pillar will bring out the raging heavenly fire from the dan furnace. Burning through the rock layer and penetrating underground, once the spiritual veins are connected, the crystal pillar can extract the spiritual energy from the spiritual veins, transform it into a surging flame that rushes into the dan furnace, providing endless power for the alchemy furnace. The crystal pillar also has a incomplete ancient array carved by the true Taoist and his 81 fellow disciples when they were facing life-and-death situations. The crystal pillar can extract all the accumulated spiritual energy in the dan furnace, compressing it into a powerful red light that suddenly attacks the enemy's hand. This is also the killer of this dan furnace.

  Lin Xiao looked at the dan furnace with satisfaction, a rare smile appearing on his face. He said softly, "So good, today I can start refining the elixir and see if this dan furnace is as wonderful as Master Luo Yu said." After a pause, Lin Xiao suddenly asked, "Yi Zhen senior, what level is this dan furnace?"

  A truly smiling and twirling long mustache, proudly gazing up at the sky with a loud laugh: "The old Tao's alchemy skills are top-notch in today's cultivation world, but to be honest, they can't compare to the ancient times when a single small finger could refine equipment! The old Tao usually refines middle-grade treasure equipment, but this cauldron has consumed too many good materials and with the help of all you fellow cultivators, its grade should exceed that of top-grade treasure equipment. However, it still falls short of being a spiritual artifact by a tiny bit!"

  He nodded with satisfaction. The old Taoist chuckled and said, "However, this is just its grade, if we talk about its own quality, I'm afraid even ordinary spiritual instruments are no match for it."

  He heavily patted the dragon claw on the ground of Dan furnace. The old Taoist hummed with a bit of gnashing teeth: "A thousand million jin heavy treasure, who has seen it in the cultivation world? The furnace wall is three feet six inches thick! And they are all made of top-grade materials, I'm afraid it's the legendary fairy instrument that wants to break open this Dan furnace. It will take a huge amount of effort!"

  One True Old Dao patted Lin Xiao's shoulder and said in a strange tone, "Lin Xiao, little brother! From now on, when you're traveling outside and encounter an opponent you can't defeat, just open the lid of the dan furnace and hide inside. There aren't many people in the entire cultivation world who can do anything to you." One True Daoist's words sounded bizarre, but they were indeed true. This dan furnace was too huge, too cumbersome, and too sturdy. Its attacking power was unknown, but for defense and survival, it might be even better than a top-grade spiritual artifact!

  Lin Xiao was about to say something. A Taoist priest beside him opened his mouth and said, "Since this Dan furnace is a treasure, then, True Master, help Lin Xiao's friend take this Dan furnace. If the alchemist can resonate with their own Dan furnace, the elixir they refine will be even more effective."

  Before Lin Xiao could react, a True Dao person had forcibly grabbed his wrist and dragged him to fly above the Dan furnace. The True Dao person's fingernails opened up the blood vessels on Lin Xiao's wrist. A stream of fresh blood spurted out, and droplets of hot blood splashed onto a red gemstone the size of a human head on the furnace lid, all of which was absorbed by the gemstone.

  "Hold your breath, concentrate. Use the ancient Dao's instrument refinement method to subdue this dan furnace." A true Daoist shouted loudly, awakening Lin Xiang who was slightly dazed, and then quickly recited a short incantation for refining treasures. This incantation was extremely concise, with only over 200 words from start to finish, yet every word was precious. Every phrase was perfectly placed, subtle and wonderful beyond compare. It was truly the ultimate method for refining treasures, far surpassing the half-baked refinement methods of the Great Luo Dan Dao and the flying sword techniques, this incantation was at least ten times more profound and powerful!

  Lin Xiao had no time to think about anything else. A strand of extremely hot energy from the dan furnace flowed into his body through the invisible connection of his refined blood, directly piercing his sea of consciousness. Lin Xiao held his breath and focused his mind, silently operating his mysterious technique. According to the true Taoist's transmitted spiritual key, he pinched a seal for collecting the treasure, following the vague information transmitted from that strand of energy. He carefully infused his own divine thought into the dan furnace, slowly engraving his heart's imprint onto the core of hundreds of array formations within the dan furnace.

  None of the onlookers, including Lin Xiao himself, noticed. A strand of seven-colored spiritual energy hidden in his body, transformed from a lotus seed, followed his divine thoughts and opened up a network of meridians in the cauldron, surging into it at the same time. This fine spiritual energy merged with Lin Xiao's divine thoughts. In the core of those arrays, they condensed into shiny, gem-like seals, each seal connected by extremely fine seven-colored spiritual energy, forming a dense, large web that tightly wrapped around the entire cauldron. It was only later that Lin Xiao slowly discovered that this cauldron's spirituality was much stronger than what Luo Yu Zushi had anticipated. When he controlled the cauldron, it was as if his arm was an extension of himself, extremely convenient and effortless.

  Several spiritual seals were struck, and the elixir furnace shook slightly. The massive furnace body, which was over 108 zhang tall, shrunk slightly from its original height of 108 zhang to around 107 zhang and 8 chi.

  Lin Xiang stared blankly at the huge dan furnace. Qing Chu also stared blankly at the dan furnace, and asked in confusion: "Brother Lin, why not make that dan furnace small enough to hold in the palm of your hand?" Although he was only a miscellaneous disciple of the lowest level of Yuan Zong, Qing Chu knew a thing or two about these flying sword treasures. They could all be shrunk down to an extremely small size, or even merged into the body.

  A Taoist priest raised an eyebrow, and both Yi and Xin simultaneously looked up at the sky where pieces of bloody clouds were constantly rolling.

  A true Daoist smiled awkwardly at Lin Xiao, shaking his head and saying: "The cauldron's volume is too large. The materials consumed are too many. Compared to Lin Xiao's small friend's cultivation, its grade is also slightly higher. Hmm, wanting to refine it to the point where it can be carried around... probably... maybe... possibly... should... without error... would require a scattered immortal's cultivation?"

  Lin Xiao was applying ointment to the wound on his wrist when he heard a voice and almost spat blood onto the face of the True Daoist! The cultivation of a Loose Immortal? Does one need the cultivation of a Loose Immortal to refine this Dan furnace to the point where it can be controlled at will? A Loose Immortal? In today's Cultivation world, finding even a single hair from a Loose Immortal would be a monumental task. Not to mention encountering a real Loose Immortal!

  However, Lin Xiao didn't feel disappointed. He had originally built this dan furnace to refine pills. He never thought of using it as a treasure for attack and defense - although Luo Yu's design included this function. But Lin Xiao understood his current actual conditions, his cultivation was too low. Even if he had a top-grade treasure dan furnace, what could he do against the Blood God Old Ancestor, that demonic path giant? It was better to just quietly refine pills in the Yuan Sect and wait for an opportunity!

  Lin Xiao has become very realistic. He doesn't want to do things like taking revenge for his fellow disciples and Yao'er with his own hands. He just wants to rebuild the Great Luo Dan Dao and bring Yao'er back by his side! Actually, since he found out that his mother was poisoned to death by Hua Wenyi and Lin Shandao was powerless at that time, Lin Xiao has become very realistic! He never thought about those arduous tasks that he couldn't accomplish. Of course, if he had enough power one day, what would he do? Even he himself didn't know!

  One heart gently patted the small head of Qingxiao. Softly said: "Cultivation, is slowly making progress, Lin Xiao little friend doesn't need to be anxious."

  Lin Xiao nodded solemnly and said calmly, "The junior is not in a hurry, the path of cultivation is endless. What's there to be anxious about? In short, take it one step at a time, and there will definitely be a result."

  It was just a simple sentence, yet it caused Yi Hang, Yi Xin, Yi Yi, and Yi Zhen to simultaneously let out a sigh. They looked up at the sky, where the bloody clouds were rolling in. Unconsciously, they fell into a daze, as if lost in thought. The path of cultivation was endless, but life had its limits. Could taking one step after another really lead to a result? Yi Hang softly sighed: "The path is difficult! Difficult! Difficult! We can only do our best to climb up."

  One heart slightly came out of a trance. A pair of rippling water-like eyes, however, looked at the side face again, and she extremely lightly let out a sigh. In an almost inaudible voice, she muttered to herself: "Can it really have a result? One heart doesn't ask for much. What one heart asks for is only... if he could look at me a little more every day, one heart would be content."

  She felt a pang of sympathy for Yixin, who suddenly looked pitiful. It was as if she had found a rabbit with a broken hind leg in the backyard garden. Qingchu's eyes were filled with a pure and genuine pity as he gently stretched out his hand to lightly stroke Yixin's wrist.

  A disciple of the Yuan Sect who hadn't even mastered the most basic Qi-refining techniques, yet dared to look at a senior elder seven or eight generations her senior with such a pitiful gaze! If it were any other elder, Qingchu might have gotten into big trouble, but Yixin merely glanced at Qingchu, gently pinched his earlobe, and slowly lowered his head.

  But a group of Taoist priests had already gotten busy.

  He relied on Lin Xian's cultivation to drive this enormous and extremely heavy cauldron, he could only entrust a group of Daoist priests and a group of Yuan Zong elders to slowly move the cauldron to an empty space by the lake where he lived. The huge cauldron was surrounded by nearly a hundred Yuan Zong elders. A colorful cloud held the cauldron and the elders, followed by nearly a thousand senior disciples with status and duties within the Yuan Zong, this procession marched from Tian Huo Peak to Lin Xian's lakeside pavilion, disturbing countless Yuan Zong disciples along the way.

  Those with low cultivation stood on the ground, mountains and hills, looking up at it; those with high cultivation rode flying swords or treasures and rose into the air. Far away, following the edge of the crowd, dozens of disciples who manipulated flying boats couldn't hold back their curiosity. On the flying boat, amidst the loud shouts of fellow sect members, they followed Lin Xiao and his group, pointing and gesturing along the way.

  Not long after, nearly a thousand sword lights caught up from behind, making the scale of this team even more grand. However, it was the disciples of Yao Shan who were in charge of carrying various medicinal materials needed by Lin Xiao with their storage bags, and they were summoned over by a certain Daoist halfway.

  The team arrived at Lin Xiao's residence by the lake. The lakeside had already been cleared of a large area using magic, and the empty space was filled with white jade plates, perfectly flat. Along the edges of the empty space were built huge warehouses, which were also equipped with arrays to maintain a constant temperature and humidity. This was prepared for the large quantity of medicinal materials that Lin Xiao would need. In the center of the open space stood two hundred young Daoists wearing green robes, standing at attention with their hands hanging down, each looking up towards the direction from which Dan Lian's furnace was flying. These were the people arranged by Yi Dao to be responsible for refining the medicinal materials according to Lin Xiao's requirements, as well as helping him handle various miscellaneous tasks during the alchemy process.

  Various treatments. Compared to Lin Xiao's arrival at the Yuan Sect more than 100 days ago, he has been treated much better since it was discovered that he had memorized a complete Da Luo Dan Jing in his mind, and he has already been promoted to the highest level of "Tian Ji Gong Feng" in the Yuan Sect. This is not comparable to when he first entered as a "Xing Meng Gong Feng". The five levels of division in the Yuan Sect are Tian Di Ri Yue Xing, and Lin Xiao, who possesses the complete inheritance of Da Luo Dan Jing, naturally should become Tian Ji Gong Feng. Even just his contribution of the Condensed God Array would be enough for the Yuan Sect to give him such treatment.

  @！！——"The Legend of Xiao Yuhe"