Chapter 592: Trading Swords for Treasures

Wang Sheng had become well-practiced in creating flying swords thanks to the experience he had gained from forging multiple Flying Clouds. This time, however, he chose to make the flying swords' initial quality much higher to reduce his long-term Dawnlight consumption.

He took Mu Wanxuan to the Xinghai Sect's treasury to collect materials. Naturally, he wasn't freeloading. He was simply drawing from his salary as an elder, though the materials he took amounted to roughly one or two hundred years' worth of his salary.

Afterward, Wang Sheng met with three elders in the front palace to discuss a few matters. He had his senior sister sit beside him on a circular chair, while he casually began smelting celestial-grade materials and shaping flying swords.

To avoid drawing attention, he infused them with two portions of Dawnlight during the sword forging itself. He relied on his greatly heightened perception, which he had gained from the ascension of his bloodline power, to carefully refine the sword. He succeeded in the first attempt.

Forging five immortal swords this way only consumed about one or two

liang

of Dawnlight, which wasn't too wasteful.

By the time Linyuan and the others finished their discussion, Wang Sheng had discreetly completed a flying sword.

The instant the flying sword took shape, it erupted with intense immortal light, as though a spiritual treasure had just emerged.

Wang Sheng only used the sword-forging method from the Sword-Controlling Art; he didn't employ the sword-nurturing technique. Even though the flying sword had taken shape, he chose not to refine it into a sword core.

The finished product made him frown slightly. To his shock, his Dao of the Sword had been projected onto the materials, causing the sword to contain a trace of it.

In the hands of other sword cultivators, such a weapon could be exceptionally powerful and could even be used to comprehend the Great Dao of the Sword, providing far more reference than usual.

For True Immortals and Heavenly Immortals, his Dao of the Sword realm could be considered fairly decent.

A rather profound question made him frown.

Would other sword cultivators consider it too generous if I sell this?

Dawnlight had made the immortal sword extremely rich in spirituality. Moreover, not only was its quality as high as top-tier immortal treasures, but its spirituality also far surpassed most of them. With proper nurturing over several thousand or even tens of thousands of years, it could even become a spiritual treasure.

The sword was duller and still slightly weaker than the Flying Clouds due to the differences in formula. It also looked different, essentially making it a discount Flying Cloud.

A simple name will do. Let's call it Falling Cloud.

With complicated expressions, the nearby True Immortal Realm elders stared at the sword in Wang Sheng's hand. During their short meeting, he had somehow shaped a top-tier immortal treasure!

An elder laughed. "Congratulations on obtaining an immortal sword, Elder Pi. With such abundant spirituality, it could even transform into a forged spiritual treasure."

Even if it becomes a forged spiritual treasure, it won't be particularly powerful. At most, it'll be on par with quasi-spiritual treasures,

Wang Sheng thought.

Linyuan asked curiously, "Why did we never realize before that you also possess artifact-crafting skills?"

Wang Sheng smiled. "It isn't that rare, and it's not really artifact crafting. I just used some secret techniques and fused them with my Dao of the Sword. Since my senior just arrived, she doesn't have any treasures suited to her yet. I thought I would refine a few immortal swords and exchange them for other immortal treasures that could protect her."

For a moment, the elders were stunned.

"Exchange that for treasures?"

"Immortal treasures with such rich spirituality are rare. It's also imbued with a profound and mysterious Great Dao of the Sword. How many sword cultivators on the thirteen qi stars could possibly afford to trade for it?"

Linyuan flashed forward and grabbed Wang Sheng's arm.

𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The old Daoist elder had recently achieved a small breakthrough. Upon revisiting Lishang's ancestral land, Wang Sheng's remarks had shattered his heart devil, erasing the bottleneck in his cultivation overnight. He had since reached the peak of the True Immortal Realm.

Unfortunately, Linyuan had not previously comprehended the Heavenly Immortal Realm. With only a few thousand years of lifespan remaining, it was uncertain whether he could successfully break through.

He smiled. "Kachew, what treasure do you want? One of my disciples admires you greatly and is also very interested in the Dao of the Sword. This sword would be perfect to exchange for her."

Wang Sheng glanced at his senior sister, who was playing with her phone nearby. He then replied, "An immortal dress, jade hairpin, pendants, or any other accessories like those are fine."

Mu Wanxuan looked up at her junior brother and smiled softly. She didn't care much about such things. With the Great Dao of Yin and Yang at her side, what use were treasures? In truth, what she needed now was simply a period of steady cultivation.

The elders found themselves in a difficult position. Even Linyuan hesitated.

Although Linyuan wasn't a sword cultivator, Wang Sheng could see that he truly wanted the immortal sword. Considering it would be wasted on him, the elder clearly hoped to give it to his disciple.

Wang Sheng couldn't help but think of his own master.

Wasn't Master the same? He never hesitated to give it his all to provide my senior sister and me with everything we needed.

A wave of emotion rose in his heart. Wang Sheng seemed to see Qing Yanzi, weary yet still running from place to place. A faint ache surfaced in his chest.

Wang Sheng had always wanted Earth's cultivators to step out into the endless space since that would free the Hua Republic from their chaos. However, was he not also doing it to ease his master's burden?

Smiling, he casually handed the flying sword over. "Since you like it, Senior, then please consider it a gift for that martial nephew. I can just refine more later."

"No, no, how could we possibly take your treasure for free? We can't do that," he replied.

Yet his actions contradicted him. Smiling so broadly that his face nearly split, he reached out and took Falling Cloud.

He then laughed. "How about this, you head to Xinghai City first and set up the recruitment pavilion. I'll go search for treasures around Fengmo."

With the sword in hand, Linyuan naturally prioritized Wang Sheng's request. He hurried out the door and scoured the cities of Fengmo for accessory-type treasures.

He had lived through the peak of the Xinghai Sect and had a substantial foundation. Although he had once lost a storage artifact, a seasoned veteran like him would still carry some of his assets on his person, allowing him to trade for immortal treasures of equivalent rank to Falling Cloud or simply buy them using Immortal Stones.

Wang Sheng stood up. "Let's head into the city."

The two elders rose to follow, while Mu Wanxuan quietly put away her phone and gracefully stayed by Wang Sheng's side.

The last time the Xinghai Sect recruited people, they conducted it in the two celestial bodies that were within their sphere of influence. The sect master personally presided over the event as well. They truly appeared to be desperate for talent at the time.

They intended to recruit more people and use higher standards this time, yet they were only going to set up a recruitment pavilion in Xinghai City. Instead of having Yao Xingzi or Lishang promote it personally, they simply posted notices everywhere.

Times were very different now.

According to reports from their disciples, the number of unaffiliated practitioners in Xinghai City had increased by several thousand in recent days. Unaffiliated True Immortals with established reputations had also started arriving one after another.

Their vice sect master, a descendant of Nuwa, could send Long Aotian flying ten thousand

li

with a single tail sweep. The Xinghai Sect could recruit people with nothing to fear.

The sense of security within the sect was overflowing. Moreover, it had immense potential, and its influence was clearly on the rise. This was the perfect time to board its ship with sails raised.

With Yao Xingzi at the helm, Lishang as vice sect master, and Wang Sheng as one of their elders, their place as the third major power of the thirteen qi planets was already assured.

Those factors eliminated the need for excessive publicity. The unaffiliated practitioners of the ancient battlefield flocked over on their own.

However, Wang Sheng and Linyuan had discussed beforehand that they would only recruit a fixed number of people to not imbalance the strength of the direct disciples and the off-heritage sect members. For the sect to remain stable, the inner circle had to remain as its core strength.

Like the Pure Yang Sword Faction's system, the inner circle referred to their own people, including the elders and disciples. The outer circle broadly referred to Protectors and celestial soldiers.

The Xinghai Sect possessed the complete Daoist heritage that the Old Man of Xinghai had left behind. In this regard, it was similar to the Fengli Sect and fundamentally different from the Celestial Wind Sect.

The two elders led a group of disciples and celestial soldiers to set up the venue. Wang Sheng gave a few pointers from the side, then took his senior sister to an unoccupied building nearby and laid out a pile of materials.

By the time the venue was fully prepared and Wang Sheng's suggestions had been thoroughly implemented, he had already created four more Falling Clouds.

According to Wang Sheng's plan, this recruitment would be divided into inner and outer trials. The outer trial consisted of three tests, while the inner trial would be conducted within the sect, where candidates would face the vice sect master's illusion techniques and the sect master's divination.

Although Lishang's illusions were a joke in the past, they could no longer be underestimated now that she had reached the Heavenly Immortal Realm.

The first stage of the outer trial involved asking about the applicant's background, whether they had enemies, and what cultivation techniques they practiced. Several disciples could handle this task.

Two elders handled the second stage. They evaluated character and Daoist arts.

Meanwhile, Wang Sheng himself handled the third stage. As the final gatekeeper of the outer trial, how the assessment was conducted depended entirely on his mood. He also had to strictly control the numbers. Whether Protector, celestial soldier, or disciple, they all had to pass these three trials.

People first needed to pass the second stage before Wang Sheng had to make an appearance. With nothing to do at the moment, he brought Mu Wanxuan outside the venue and examined the many unaffiliated practitioners who had already gathered. He conveniently rode the momentum of his own sect's recruitment.

When they reached the six disciples who were already prepared to receive people and record information, the disciples immediately stood up nervously and called out, "Elder."

Wang Sheng first offered a few words of encouragement to the disciples, who were much older than him. Afterward, he asked for paper and a brush, then handed the brush to his senior sister.

Her handwriting was better.

"Senior Sister, I dictate, you write. Let's start with a title. 'Xinghai Sect is now recruiting those with ambition to recreate the brilliance of the Ming era!' No need to include the exclamation mark; brush writing does not use that many punctuation marks. Below that, write 'Its sect master and elders are recruiting several core disciples, Protectors...'"

The paper was soon pressed onto the table at the entrance of the venue. Waves of immortal perception instantly enveloped it.

Done with his official business, Wang Sheng took Mu Wanxuan, the paper, and the brush to a corner off to the side. He then spread out a mat and sat cross-legged on it with his senior sister. As Mu Wanxuan took out a manga, he wrote several large characters on the mat.

Trading swords for treasures!

Note: The sword trader holds the right to the final appraisal. Whether an offer is accepted is entirely at his discretion.

He took out the four Falling Clouds and suspended them before him with immortal power. With a light tap of his finger, immortal light flared. The four top-tier immortal swords emitted strands of strange sword rhythm, causing sword cries to ring out repeatedly.

Wang Sheng closed his eyes and sat calmly, waiting for people to bring treasures to his "stall".

Mu Wanxuan secretly laughed to herself. Although she wasn't interested in treasures, it would be disrespectful to refuse now that he had gone this far. Hence, she just went along with him.

She didn't yet know that all of Wang Sheng's elaborate efforts were actually to prepare a "living figure" for her.

It was quite a strange sight. While the Xinghai Sect was recruiting talent, its chief examiner had set up a roadside stall outside the recruitment pavilion to sell swords.