Chapter 369: Enlightened High Monk

The moment the Immortal Sword broke, Fifth Elder had already mapped out the rest of his life.

He, Zhou Xin, had diligently cultivated for two millennia, finally reaching a realm just a step away from the Tribulation Transcendence stage. He had become the Peak Master of Hundred Refinements Peak, holding countless patents, and bringing immense wealth to the Dao Inquiry Sect annually.

It was hard to say if the fortune he had amassed over a lifetime would suffice to purchase an Immortal Sword. These were incredibly difficult to forge, the exclusive weapons of true immortals.

An Immortal Sword was entirely different from the Immortal Treasures of the Immortal Cult. The Immortal Treasures of the Immortal Cult were, at best, semi-finished immortal artifacts. The Immortal Sword in Lu Yang's hand, however, was a genuine immortal artifact, with a vast difference in power.

Legend had it that the moment an immortal artifact fully materialized, its immense quality rendered it intolerable to the heavens and earth. Innumerable tribulations would befall the artifact; if left unattended, it would inevitably crumble. To preserve it, an immortal had to contend with the formidable powers of heaven and earth, a challenge no less arduous than achieving immortality anew, fraught with indescribable perils.

Considering the myriad hardships required for an immortal artifact to take form, its value was immense, far beyond what he, a mere Body Integration stage cultivator, could ever hope to compensate for.

Optimistically, he might be able to afford a single immortal artifact if he worked his entire life.

Observing Fifth Elder's vivid expression, Lu Yang cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Fifth Elder, this Immortal Sword isn't as durable as you might think. According to my findings, it was likely specially crafted by an immortal to overcome a certain challenge. It merely *looks* like a true immortal artifact but possesses very little actual power."

This Immortal Sword was forged by Ying Tianxian, who governs lightning tribulations, specifically to deceive the prodigies of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans. Both of them were semi-immortal level grand cultivators.

If it could deceive those two, it could naturally deceive Fifth Elder as well.

"Is that so?" Fifth Elder breathed a slight sigh of relief upon hearing Lu Yang's explanation.

However, fearing Lu Yang might simply be making excuses, he began to examine the sword meticulously.

Through Divine Sense scans, quenching and alchemy, metal forging, and other various tests, Fifth Elder finally deciphered the Immortal Sword's true composition.

"What lunatic forged this sword?! You scared the living daylights out of me!"

"First, they combined Firestone and Mountain Peak Spirit Stone to refine a sword embryo. Then, using some unknown technique, they rapidly shaped the embryo into a spirit sword. Finally, immortal gold powder was coated onto the spirit sword, counterfeiting the appearance of having endured lightning strikes. This made even an expert like me mistake it for a true Immortal Sword. No, not just me—even a Tribulation Transcendence stage cultivator would have been fooled."

"Unless one touches it directly, merely observing with eyes or Divine Sense, this sword *is* an Immortal Sword!"

Fifth Elder turned to Lu Yang and asked, "You just said this Immortal Sword was used by an immortal to overcome a challenge. What kind of challenge? Was the immortal short on cash, pulling a 'faked accident' scam?"

Lu Yang merely responded with silence.

While Immortal Qilin did trick me into eating dirt, it wouldn't be appropriate to publicize the fact that he deceived his wife.

Lu Yang believed in forging one-sided feuds.

Besides, Fifth Elder, are you aware that the 'lunatic' you just cursed is an ancient immortal who oversees heavenly tribulations?

"You just mentioned wanting to forge a sword? Consider it done! Leave this matter to me!" Fifth Elder glared at the Immortal Sword in his hand, seething with anger. He swore he'd change his surname if he didn't refine this wretched Immortal Sword into something else entirely!

"This layer of immortal gold powder is useless; it's merely for disguising it as an Immortal Sword. However, the Firestone and Mountain Peak Spirit Stone are excellent materials, perfectly suited for you."

"How so?"

"You're currently at the Golden Core stage. Given your talent, fighting a Nascent Soul stage cultivator poses no challenge. The Firestone and Mountain Peak Spirit Stone are precisely what's needed to forge a Nascent Soul-level spirit sword."

Given Fifth Elder's eminent standing in the artifact refining world, forging a Nascent Soul-level spirit sword was beneath him. He typically delegated such tasks to his disciples, but this time, to vent his frustration, he agreed to do it himself.

"Oh, by the way, do you prefer a spirit sword or a magic sword?"

A spirit sword is used directly for combat, whereas a magic sword serves as a medium for casting spells. Both fall within my expertise, but currently, Lu Yang has only mastered the spirit sword.

"A spirit sword, please."

"Very well."

Fifth Elder led Lu Yang to his personal artifact refining chamber. Before they even stepped inside, Lu Yang felt an intense wave of heat wash over him, as if it weren't a mere refining chamber but an erupting volcano.

Fifth Elder casually explained, "Ordinarily, at your cultivation level, you wouldn't be able to enter here. However, you possess a true flame, which protects you from the refining chamber's scorching heat."

"I've established rules here preventing true flames from exploding upon collision. Various true flames can cooperate, assisting me in forging magic treasures."

The chamber was vast and semicircular, with small bottles of various colors displayed on the walls.

Fifth Elder casually took a small azure bottle from the wall, uncorked it, and a wisp of flame emerged, turning the bottle jade-white.

The small bottle was originally white, but it had changed color due to the flame's intense heat.

"I've journeyed across the world and collected eighty-eight of the one hundred and eight types of true flames. Each true flame seed is stored in a specially made small bottle, and I take them out whenever I refine artifacts."

"Later, I accumulated another twelve true flames, which accounts for the current scale of my collection today."

Lu Yang was amazed. Fifth Elder truly lived up to his reputation as a celebrated master in the artifact refining world; simply his collection of true flames alone would make countless other refiners green with envy.

Fifth Elder continued, "Unfortunately, the remaining eight types of true flames are either extremely difficult to acquire—my high bounties go unanswered—or they are prohibited items, forbidden from being collected."

"True flames are considered contraband?"

"For example, the True Flame of Lust. Just a tiny flicker can induce intense arousal, making one unable to control themselves. Failure to release this urge would lead to literal suffocation. The imperial court deems this true flame too dangerous and has strictly prohibited its collection."

"Of course, if I genuinely wished to collect it, I could find it; some clandestine brothels use this flame. However, it's useless for artifact refining, so there's no necessity to acquire it."

Holding the azure flame in his hand, Fifth Elder smiled faintly, "I wonder if you've heard of it: this is the True Flame of Apathy, the counterpart to the True Flame of Lust. Originating from the Golden Buddhist Kingdom, igniting this flame within one's heart allows you to become desire-free, with a clear and tranquil mind, dedicating yourself wholeheartedly to the Dao."

"When I was young, I traveled with Third Elder to the Golden Buddhist Kingdom, hoping to find the True Flame of Lust in a brothel. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on our side; we didn't find it there. Instead, we encountered an enlightened monk within the brothel."

"An eminent monk, seeing that Third Elder and I possessed profound Buddhist affinity, felt a connection and bestowed the True Flame of Apathy upon me. That same eminent monk also demonstrated the Arhat Fist technique to Third Elder, who then experienced profound enlightenment and, upon returning, created the Six Shakes the Heavens."

Lu Yang was speechless.

"Wait, I recall Third Elder getting a good beating with the Arhat Fist in the Golden Buddhist Kingdom, then returning to work relentlessly and create the Six Shakes the Heavens?"

"Hold on a moment, why was an enlightened monk in a brothel?"

Fifth Elder showed no surprise; he had asked the very same question back then, and the eminent monk had indeed provided an explanation: "Oh, the eminent monk clarified that point as well."

"He said it's called 'passing through the brothel unclad, with the Buddha remaining in the heart.'"