Chapter 242: Smelting Sword Refinement

"No need to be alarmed, Fellow Daoist Wyrm 15. I contacted you today because there's a special mission that I'd like to invite you to complete with me," the azure figure said.

"If my memory serves me correctly, we haven't had many past interactions, so why have you come specifically to invite me?" Han Li asked.

"You've been forging quite a reputation for yourself recently, Fellow Daoist Wyrm 15. We've only worked together once in the past, but you left a very deep impression on me. I know that your reputation is very much deserved, and that's why I came to invite you to undertake this mission with me."

Qilin 9 was praising Han Li, but the tone of his voice was very neutral, as if he were merely stating facts rather than trying to flatter Han Li.

"My reputation is nowhere near as resounding as yours, Fellow Daoist Qilin 9. Seeing as this is a mission that's caught your eye, I'm assuming it's not going to be an easy one to complete, right?" Han Li asked with a smile.

"My apologies, but this mission is indeed quite special. Low-level members are barred from undertaking the mission, and I'm afraid I won't be able to reveal the contents of the mission to you unless you agree to accept it," Qilin 9 replied.

"Even if you can't reveal the contents of the mission to me, surely you can at least tell me the mission location," Han Li said.

"The location is on the Infernal Frost Continent," Qilin 9 replied.

"In that case, I'm afraid I'll have to turn down the mission. There are many things that I'm busy with at the moment, so I can't make any far journeys. My apologies, Fellow Daoist," Han Li refused as his brows furrowed slightly.

To the north of the Ancient Cloud Continent was a vast frozen sea, and across that sea was a continent that was perpetually enshrouded in ice and snow. That was the Infernal Frost Continent.

Crossing the frozen sea wasn't as difficult as crossing the Thunderstorm Sea, and there was supposed to have been a teleportation array for this purpose as well, but even so, the journey would've taken at least several years there and back.

Qilin 9 wasn't surprised by Han Li's refusal, and he said, "Don't be in such a hurry to refuse. Fellow Daoist. I suggest you hear the reward for the mission before you decide whether to accept it or not."

"Go ahead," Han Li prompted.

"Aside from 300 Immortal Origin Stones, you'll also receive a Jade Gleam Cloud Stone," Qilin 9 said, and he seemed to be quite confident that his reward would be sufficient to tempt Han Li.

Instead of being pleased or elated to hear this, Han Li remarked with a cold expression, "The fact that you know that I'm searching for a Jade Gleam Cloud Stone indicates that you've done your homework before coming here, Fellow Daoist."

"It's already been a few years since you released the mission searching for a Jade Gleam Cloud Stone, and to this day, no one has answered your call. Surely you're not going to pass up this opportunity, are you?" Qilin 9 asked.

Han Li fell into deep thought upon hearing this.

Seven or eight years ago, while carrying out a mission for the Transient Guild, he had decided to read through the beasthide book that he had obtained from the old man that had attacked Bai Suyuan, and in that book, he had read about a very strange type of smelting sword refinement technique.

The technique allowed one to smelt special metals and materials to drastically enhance the power of a flying sword, and if a set of multiple flying swords were smelted at once, those swords would be able to fuse as one during battle, making them significantly more powerful than before.

Most importantly, after the smelting process, not only would the physical forms of the flying swords be completely transformed, the auras that they gave off would also change as a result of the materials used in the smelting process.

Right there and then, Han Li had decided that he was definitely going to smelt his 72 Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords again.

However, the spirit materials required for this smelting process were very difficult to acquire, with the most important material being the Dendrobium Gold Essence, while the most important supplementary material was the Jade Gleam Cloud Stone.

Coincidentally, Adam already had some Dendrobium Gold Essence. It was that dark golden metal that he had obtained from the Origin Mirage Beast's palace, and he had acquired more of the material from the elderly man in the Profound Ice Mountain Range.

As for the other materials required, Han Li had managed to gather all of them from within the Blaze Dragon Dao at the cost of some Immortal Origin Stones. All that was left to find was the Jade Gleam Cloud Stone, which he had been unable to find in the sect or in the Transient Guild.

After a long silence, he asked, "How big is this piece of Jade Gleam Cloud Stone?"

"I'm sure you're aware of how precious the material is, Fellow Daoist. The reward is only a fist-sized chunk. Even so, that's already more than enough to be used as the main material to refine a flying sword," Qilin 9 said.

After a brief hesitation, Han Li finally said, "Alright, I'll accept this mission."

Even a fist-sized chunk of Jade Gleam Cloud Stone was sufficient to be used as a supplementary material to refine his 72 flying swords.

"Fantastic! With your inclusion, I'm sure we'll be able to complete this mission smoothly."

Only now did a hint of a smile creep into Qilin 9's voice.

"I've already accepted the mission, so you can tell me exactly what needs to be done now, right?" Han Li asked.

"There's no hurry. The people undertaking the mission haven't all been assembled yet. You can make some preparations, then meet us on Everlone Island situated at the northernmost tip of the Ancient Cloud Continent. There, I'll reveal the exact contents of the mission to you," Qilin 9 said.

"In that case, I'll see you there," Han Li replied with a nod.

Qilin 9 didn't stay any longer, instantly vanishing from the spot.

Han Li stowed his Transient Guild mask away, then departed from his secret chamber.

……

Three years passed by in the blink of an eye.

There was a peninsula situated in the northernmost tip of the Ancient Cloud Continent. It was a thin and long landmass with a slight curvature, extending into the boundless white sea.

The entire island had a black coloration, and it was completely encased under a thick layer of ice without any vegetation to be seen.

At the end of the island was a giant black rock, atop which sat a tall and imposing figure with his legs crossed. The figure was wearing a loose-fitting black robe with an azure deer mask on his face, and it was none other than Qilin 9.

Beside him at the foot of the rock was a tall and thin man wearing an ochre robe with plum blossom designs embroidered upon it. He was wearing a rat mask that was also azure in color.

Through the eye holes on the mask, one could see that he had a pair of extremely tiny pupils, and quite fittingly, his eyes were giving off a sly and sneaky gleam, much like one would see in the eyes of a rat.

"We've already been waiting for seven days, why has he still not shown up? He's certainly making us wait?" the rat-masked man complained in a high-pitched voice as he took a disgruntled glance in the direction of the Ancient Cloud Continent.

"We're the ones who got here earlier. The agreed time still hasn't arrived yet, so you'll have to wait a bit longer," Qilin 9 said.

The rat-masked man habitually flexed his neck from side to side upon hearing this and didn't say anything further.

Around 15 minutes later, a streak of azure light suddenly appeared in the distant sky before quickly landing in front of the giant black rock.

The azure light contained none other than Han Li, and he swept his gaze over Qilin 9 and the rat-masked man as he cupped his fist toward them in a salute.

Qilin 9 rose to his feet atop the giant rock, then introduced to Han Li, "Fellow Daoist Wyrm 15, this is Fellow Daoist Qilin 17."

"I've heard much about you," Han Li said with a nod.

"You sure kept us waiting!" Qilin 17 complained in an inhospitable voice as he sized up Han Li.

Han Li could hear the displeasure in his voice, but he merely smiled and didn't say anything.

Qilin 9 jumped down from the rock, landing beside Han Li's duo as he said, "Now that everyone's here, allow me to reveal the contents of the mission."

Han Li immediately turned to him, as did Qilin 17.

"According to the mission description, there's a certain valley in the Snowstorm Forest to the south of the Infernal Frost Continent, and there's an extremely high-level array set up in the valley. Our mission is to infiltrate the valley without triggering the array and kill the mid-True Immortal cultivator inside," Qilin 9 said.

"Do we know why the array exists and if there's anything special about it?" Han Li asked.

"That's all I know about the mission, we'll have to figure out the rest after we get there," Qilin 9 replied.

"It sounds like it's not a very difficult mission at all. By the way, why are all of the special missions in the guild like this? They're always so ambiguous and lacking in details," Qilin 17 complained.

Qilin 9 paid no heed to Qilin 17 as he declared, "Alright, time is of the essence, so let's set off right away."

He swept a sleeve through the air as he spoke to release a cascade of starry golden light, within which was a three-level louchuan that was entirely golden in color.

The louchuan was around 300 feet in length and over 50 feet tall, with many runes engraved on its surface for speed enhancement and other purposes. Furthemore, the exterior of the three-story pavilion on the louchuan was extremely ornate and embedded with all types of precious jewels, presenting an extravagant sight to behold.

"In order to get to the Infernal Frost Continent, we can take a teleportation array from Smoke Tomb Island. Prior to that, we can make the journey to the island on my Golden Veined Spirit Boat," Qilin 9 said, then rose up into the air before landing on the deck of the louchuan.

Han Li and Qilin 17 also did the same, landing on the spirit boat one after the other.

Upon his landing, Han Li swept his gaze over the spirit boat to find that there were also all types of complex patterns engraved onto the pillars, doors, and windows on the louchuan, all of which were giving off bursts of spiritual power fluctuations.

Standing outside each level of the pavilion were several slender and extremely beautiful young women, all of whom were wearing rainbow-colored or golden silken robes, appearing as if they were celestial maidens.

However, Han Li quickly came to realize that these stunningly beautiful women were actually all just intricately crafted puppets.

"Each of you can choose a level of the pavilion to stay in. If you need something done, just issue an instruction to the puppets," Qilin 9 said, then flew onto the top-floor of the pavilion before making his way inside.

Qilin 17 took a glance at Han Li, then didn't say anything as he rose up onto the second floor. He then reached out to stroke the cheek of one of the puppets standing in front of the door as he praised, "Oh, that's quite pleasant on the hands."

After that, he chuckled to himself as he opened the door of the pavilion and made his way inside.