Chapter 1721: Lingbao Sea-Settling Axe

Five years passed quickly.

In the Tianlan Realm, deep within the Fallen Immortal Ice Field, dense white snowflakes drifted down from high above.

On a snow-capped mountain that pierced the clouds, Wang Yingjie and others were chatting on the snowy ground, their expressions filled with excitement.

“Our ancestors have advanced to the Soul Transformation Stage, no wonder their nascent soul formation caused such phenomena. If both ancestors reach the Soul Transformation Stage, our Wang family could become the top cultivation family in the Dongli Realm!” Wang Yinghao exclaimed excitedly, thrilled at the thought of the family having two Soul Transformation cultivators.

“We are currently in the Tianlan Realm. Whether we can return is still uncertain,” Wang Rongxiang sighed, her face full of worry. “Unless we find Senior Fu, we probably won’t be able to go back.”

“I believe our ancestors will surely find a way,” Wang Yingjie said, his gaze firm. “Since they gained opportunities in the Tianlan Realm to advance to the Soul Transformation Stage, perhaps we too can find opportunities to reach the Nascent Soul Stage.”

Wang Yingjie’s gaze was firm, and he had full confidence in Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

Wang Rongxiang and the others were somewhat moved. They believed Wang Ruyan could advance to the Soul Transformation Stage, but for themselves to reach the Nascent Soul Stage, the difficulty was truly significant. The term ‘opportunity’ was hard to define. They were not like Huang Fugui, who ventured hundreds of thousands of miles deep into the Burial Demon Ice Field and emerged unscathed.

Boom!

A loud rumble echoed, and Wang Yingjie and the others all looked towards the snow-capped mountain, their faces filled with vigilance.

Wang Qiuming and Wang Xin rushed out of their dwelling immediately, their expressions solemn.

“Calm down,” a voice called out. “I’m testing the power of a magic treasure; there’s no need to be alarmed.”

Wang Qiuming and the others all breathed a sigh of relief. Wang Qiuming and Wang Xin then returned to their dwelling.

Inside a stone cave on the mountaintop, Wang Changsheng sat cross-legged on a blue futon. In his right hand, he held a three-zhang-long blue giant axe. Its blade surface bore dense blue runes, and the handle was inscribed with the small characters “Calming Sea Axe.” The axe emanated powerful spiritual energy, clearly indicating it was a Spirit Treasure.

Wang Changsheng was all smiles. A long crack stretched across the stone wall in front of him.

The Calming Sea Axe, a Spirit Treasure, was the first Spirit Treasure Wang Changsheng had ever refined.

After consolidating his cultivation, he successively repaired the Sea-Stabilizing Pearl, the Sea-Rending Gauntlets, and the Blazing Sun Divine Pagoda, and then refined the Calming Sea Axe Spirit Treasure.

The grade of a magic treasure depends on two factors: first, the materials – a clever cook cannot make a meal without rice, meaning even a high level of artifact refinement skill is useless with poor materials; second, the artifact master’s refinement skill.

The life-bound magic treasures of the family’s Nascent Soul cultivators were all refined by Wang Changsheng, indicating his artifact refinement skill was not low. He couldn’t refine Spirit Treasures in the Dongli Realm mainly due to a lack of rare materials. After arriving in the Tianlan Realm, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had eliminated several Nascent Soul cultivators, obtaining multiple Spirit Treasures and a large quantity of materials.

With the Tianlan Sect unifying the Tianlan Realm, most wealth was concentrated in the hands of high-level cultivators. The Nascent Soul cultivators in the Tianlan Realm generally possessed more assets than those in the Dongli Realm.

Wang Changsheng gazed at the Calming Sea Axe in his hand as if it were a rare treasure. Although he possessed several Spirit Treasures, he liked the Calming Sea Axe the most. The reason was simple: it was a Spirit Treasure he had personally refined. If he could refine one, he could refine a second, and then a third.

He now possessed six Spirit Treasures: the Ice Moon Ring, the Dragon Lock, the Seven-Star Demon Slaying Blade, the Sea-Rending Gauntlets, the Calming Sea Axe, and the Seven-Colored Glazed Bowl. Wang Ruyan had three Spirit Treasures: the Heavenly Illusion Pipa, the Blazing Sun Divine Pagoda, and the Phoenix Lock, plus one more Spirit Treasure, the Ocean-Sweeping Sword. However, they lacked defensive and flying Spirit Treasures.

The skeleton of that fifth-order demonic bird could be refined into a Spirit Treasure, or even a Heaven-Reaching Spirit Treasure. With Wang Changsheng’s current artifact refinement skill and the materials he possessed, he could refine it into a Spirit Treasure. However, he was not in a hurry. The skeleton of a lightning-attribute fifth-order demonic bird was immeasurably valuable, and he wouldn’t easily use it for artifact refinement. If utilized well, it could be refined into a fifth-order puppet beast, significantly enhancing his strength.

The Sea-Stabilizing Pearl was a set of magic treasures, and upgrading it to a Spirit Treasure required a large amount of rare materials; the Grand Yin Divine Crystal alone wasn’t enough. Wang Changsheng intended to further improve his artifact refinement skill and collect enough materials before upgrading the Sea-Stabilizing Pearl to a Spirit Treasure.

As far as he knew, not even Soul Transformation cultivators necessarily possessed Heaven-Reaching Spirit Treasures; owning a set of Spirit Treasures was already quite remarkable.

He stood up and walked out. Wang Ruyan was seated cross-legged on a blue futon, with numerous beast skins laid out in front of her. These beast skins bore topographical maps, which they had seized from Tianlan Realm cultivators. The maps were incomplete, but at least they no longer had to wander aimlessly like headless flies.

“Husband, I’ve organized the maps we acquired,” Wang Ruyan said. “If we leave here, we can only exit through the entrance. This would make it difficult to find a safe place to settle.”

Wang Ruyan’s expression was troubled. They couldn’t stay here indefinitely, but the outside world was perilous, leaving them in a dilemma.

“Leave here?” Wang Changsheng chuckled softly. “I have no such intention. I plan to refine more treasures before departing, at the very least a flying Spirit Treasure and a defensive Spirit Treasure.”

Wang Changsheng chuckled softly. Throughout the Tianlan Realm, the three major perilous areas were relatively safe. The Xuanwater Palace could even withstand attacks from complete sets of Spirit Treasures and fifth-order demonic beasts. Wang Changsheng planned to venture deep into the Burial Demon Ice Field to search for treasures and collect rare materials for refining Spirit Treasures.

The Nether Moon Water, in particular, could be refined into a formidable weapon.

Wang Ruyan nodded. “Huang Fugui ventured deep into the Burial Demon Ice Field to find treasures and returned unscathed. We could have him lead the way.”

“There’s no rush to search for treasures now,” Wang Changsheng said, his gaze resolute. “I have too few powerful offensive artifacts. If I encounter a fifth-order demonic beast or a Soul Transformation cultivator, I might not be able to contend with them. First, I’ll go outside and refine a few powerful weapons using the Nether Moon Water.”

Wang Changsheng’s gaze was resolute. He had obtained a fifth-order jade talisman when he killed True Monarch Lihuo. It was an offensive talisman that could be used multiple times, but killing a Soul Transformation cultivator with it would be extremely difficult.

Given the Nether Moon Water’s property of freezing all things, if it could be refined into a magic treasure, it would undoubtedly be a formidable weapon.

While the Azure Lotus Creation Cauldron could purify artifact refinement materials, Wang Changsheng wasn’t sure if it could contain the Nether Moon Water. He wanted to try refining near the lake to see if he could succeed.

“Nether Moon Water!” Wang Ruyan frowned. “The Grand Yin Divine Crystal might be able to contain this material, but ordinary artifact refinement furnaces probably can’t hold Nether Moon Water! Refining artifacts by the lake would make it much more difficult.”

“The difficulty is indeed high,” Wang Changsheng stated, his expression serious. “But precisely because of that, cultivators in the Tianlan Realm haven’t been able to use Nether Moon Water for artifact refinement. I intend to try it. There’s no harm in failing, but if I succeed, we’ll have a powerful asset when we leave this place.”

Wang Changsheng’s expression was serious. He took out his communication plate and contacted Huang Fugui, asking him to come over.

Not long after, a fawning voice came from outside: “This junior, Huang Fugui, requests an audience with Senior Wang.”

“Come in, little friend Huang.”

With a soft rustle of footsteps, Huang Fugui entered. He bowed to Wang Changsheng and said, “Senior Wang, how may I be of service? This junior is willing to do anything for you. Of course, as you know, my abilities are limited, so I can’t do much.”