Chapter Twenty-Four: Soaring

  Zhao Baiwan also knew that this flying sword's problem was indeed a bit out of the ordinary. In fact, he had already recommended it to many people, but no one was willing to accept its flaw. The reason was simple: those who didn't mind spending more spirit stones would rather buy a genuine mid-grade flying artifact. As for those who wanted to save money, they couldn't bear the sword's spirit stone consumption. Therefore, even though this flying artifact had a good effect, Zhao Baiwan still hadn't been able to sell it off until now. The highest bidder so far was only 120 spirit stones, but that price was not acceptable to Zhao Baiwan.

  "Junior brother, it's precisely because of this flaw that the flying sword is only worth 300 spirit stones. Otherwise, I would have marked it at 1,500 spirit stones." Zhao Baiwan put on a majestic air: "Alright, junior brother, today I'll give you some face, take it for 250 spirit stones and leave."

  You're the idiot! Lei Dong grumbled to himself, rolling his eyes and saying, "Elder brother, your words are wrong. Every thousand miles flown will consume an extra spirit. As long as we reach a flying distance of over 100 million li, flying an additional thousand miles would be equivalent to gaining an extra spirit."

  "Junior brother, you're joking, right? By the time junior brother you fly a million miles, you'll already be a senior in the foundation building stage. Who would still use such low-grade flying artifacts?" Zhao Baiwan also gave a flattering remark, but refused to be outdone.

  "One hundred yuan, one more coin and I won't want it." Lei Dong picked up the teacup, took a light sip, and calmly began to haggle.

  Zhao Baiwan's face twitched, and he said with a mixture of laughter and tears: "Lei Shidi, don't joke around. This treasure cost me 200 spirit stones. Alright, I'll be kind this time. Take it for 200, if you think it's worth it, or we can do business another time."

  "I only have 120 spirit stones on me, if you're willing to sell it to me, brother. If not, then I won't be coming back here again. In the future, I'd rather go to our sect's main branch market to buy things, even if it means taking a few more steps." Lei Dong stood up and seemed like he was about to leave.

  "Don't be angry, don't be angry. Sit down and talk slowly." Zhao Baiwan also smiled wryly: "It's not that I don't want to sell, but you're killing the price too much, little brother. Alright, alright, 180 spirit stones. Let's just say big brother loses a bit of money and we'll consider it a friendship between us brothers."

  The two of them went back and forth in a difficult tug-of-war. After a whole hour, the final price was finally set at one hundred and fifty ling. As for who made a profit and who lost out, that was something each of them knew in their own heart.

  He brought the demon shadow back home and first refined it for several days, but it didn't reach the level of spiritual connection and unity with the sword. However, he was able to imprint his thoughts on it and barely managed to control its flight in the sky.

  On the platform of Wan Gui Ku, one side of the mountain waist, Lei Dong's face was solemn and somewhat tense, his mouth murmuring words as a part of his mind gradually attached itself to Mei Ying. At the same time, Mei Ying's flying sword skull began to absorb the spiritual energy embedded within it. The greenish-black color seemed to swallow all the surrounding light, forming a dark shadow.

  Mobile energy, slightly outward ripples, like flames jumping restlessly, changing unpredictably, yet mysterious and gorgeous, with noble elegance in the dark.

  Next, it's time to fly with the sword. Even Lei Dong, a guy who has lived twice, can't help but feel a little distracted. It's not that he hasn't flown before in this life or his previous one. In fact, whether it was by airplane or the Yin Ye Sect's skeletal flying boat used to transport large groups of new disciples, he never felt the joy of flight, let alone soaring freely at will.

  Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself down as much as possible. With his heart's intention, the shadow immediately left his hand. It drew a perfect arc in the air and gently floated down to Leidong's feet before quietly suspending there. With a light jump, both feet landed on the shadow. For a moment, he lost his balance, and his body shook twice. Fortunately, Leidong was already a cultivator at the second layer of the Refining Qi stage, with abilities far beyond those of ordinary people. He quickly found his balance point and stood steadily.

  This was done through mental commands, directing the shadow to fly forward. The shadow immediately transformed into a black rainbow, flying forward at an extremely fast speed, and poor Lei Dong directly fell to the ground with a thud, got up, rubbed his sore spot, and his face was also somewhat crying and laughing. He secretly scolded himself for being too careless and urging too hastily.

  With a gentle motion, he summoned the fleeting shadow back to his feet. After repositioning himself, Leidong was more cautious this time and didn't dare to urge too much force. Instead, he started with the lightest degree he could manage, as if it were almost imperceptible. The shadow, being extremely sensitive, actually moved forward at a turtle-like pace. Leidong's heart skipped a beat in excitement, but he didn't rush to accelerate, instead maintaining this slow speed, turning and practicing for about half an hour before gradually increasing the intensity of his mental force. As expected, the shadow's speed also rose simultaneously.

  Next, Lei Dong spent the whole day flying low and fast in the Shadow, not to mention mastering the skills, but barely controlling it. Of course, the cost was not small. Although he didn't reach even a third of the Shadow's top speed by the end, he still consumed two spirit stones throughout the day. This Shadow really was a big consumer of spirit stones.

  The top priority is to rush to that distant town, get rid of the extra mid-grade spirit ghost, and buy an excellent soul-replenishing pagoda. In this way, in the next few years, I can quietly retreat and practice, catching up with others who have fallen behind.

  After resting in his own room for a whole day, at dusk, the sky had already turned gray. Taking advantage of this moment, Lei Dong drove the Shadow Chaser, transforming into a black rainbow, drawing an arc, and sweeping towards the sky.

  As it was a straight flight, the speed was gradually accelerated, and in no time, it reached half of its maximum speed. The deep green, black, and white energy that was jumping around, at such a high speed, seemed like a shooting star in the sky, leaving behind a long trail of flames. Due to the color of the sky and the concealment of light, flying in the sky did not attract much attention. This was also one of the main reasons why Lei Dong chose to fly at night. Near the Wan Gui Cave, it was still okay, but once outside the territory of the Wan Gui Cave, although all the other caves and mansions were considered to be of the same sect and alliance, you couldn't guarantee that you wouldn't run into some ruthless and bloodthirsty individual. Many people's thoughts couldn't be measured by common logic. Especially since the Yin Xie Sect wasn't a renowned or orthodox school, murder and robbery were common occurrences, and Lei Dong had seen his fair share of them.

  As soon as he thought of that matter, which had been left unspoken for months, he didn't know whether it was Old Ancestor Wan Gui covering it up or other reasons. But Lei Dong had a premonition that this matter wouldn't end so easily. This was also the main reason why he had been desperately capturing yin souls and cultivating soul pearls to plant ling ghosts during this period of time. Although there was temporarily Old Ancestor Wan Gui's protection above his head, in this perilous and ruthless world, what one could truly rely on was oneself alone. A sense of insecurity surrounded him at all times.

  Shaking his head, he temporarily put the thought aside. After gradually getting used to this speed, Lei Dong started to take advantage of the night to accelerate again, and after a moment, Mei Ying's speed was pushed to its limit. The power of his mind was being consumed intensely at the same time, and the terrain was constantly being traversed. A thousand miles in an hour had already become equivalent to a speed of 250 yards per second in Lei Dong's understanding. At such a speed, even if he managed to block half of the gale with his agility, the remaining wind still blew him so hard that his body shook and swayed, making it difficult for him to stand firm. He had no choice but to separate another part of his true energy, swirling around his body to counteract the gale. At the same time, he leaned forward, his body half-crouched, trying to minimize air resistance. Only then did he feel much better.

  Two nights, a whole two nights' worth of time. Lei Dong had finally flown to the vicinity of the town shown on the map, and the intense consumption of spiritual stones didn't even need to be mentioned. Even he himself was exhausted, too tired to move an inch. He had previously been immersed in the joy of flying, but after flying in a nearly straight line for so long, all sense of pleasure had vanished.

  Lei Dong, who had long been prepared, changed into a set of unremarkable clothes that didn't reveal his sect, and walked quietly with a low profile. Although he wasn't proficient in disguise techniques, as long as he didn't want to look good, it was still simple to greatly change his appearance. After doing all this, Lei Dong slowly stepped into the bustling market that resembled a small rural town...