As soon as Li Xue returned to the Xuedan Workshop, she heard the excited shout of Bugui Sanren. "Girl, you’re out of seclusion! Come, come, look at the good thing this old man has for you!"
Li Xue asked suspiciously, "Senior, what is this?" She watched as Bugui Sanren produced a cerulean treasure shaped like a circular disk.
"Heh, watch closely!" Bugui Sanren casually performed a hand seal, and the cerulean disk slowly expanded. Li Xue’s eyes widened as she watched. *What is this? A flying saucer?*
Seeing Li Xue’s astonished expression, Bugui Sanren looked quite pleased. "This is a Nebula Boat. It was crafted using a boat hull from the Tie family, infused with Nebula Sand. Hehe, I managed to demand every last grain of Nebula Sand the Tie family had in their collection. It’ll be enough to make them weep for a while!"
At this, Li Yuhong was also drawn over. He asked, "Senior, is this the Nebula Boat specifically designed for interstellar flight?"
Bugui Sanren replied proudly, "This Nebula Boat is more than just a treasure for void flight. Its primary feature is its powerful defense. If its maximum defenses are activated, even a Loose Immortal below the Fifth Tribulation would find it difficult to break. Of course, that requires it to be upgraded to its highest form!"
"That powerful? Wouldn't it be perfect for making an escape then?" Li Xue’s eyes sparkled.
"Exactly! Although the quality of the Tie family’s Nebula Sand is only average, it’s enough to ensure a safe escape from anyone below the Great Ascension stage," Bugui Sanren declared with pride.
Li Yuhong and Li Xue could not help but marvel at the sight. Li Xue then asked, "Senior, how many of these did you refine?"
Bugui Sanren nearly fell off his chair upon hearing this. He hollered, "Do you think these are just Flying Cloud Boats? Without enough Nebula Sand, how am I supposed to refine them?"
Li Xue secretly stuck out her tongue and hurried to apologize. "It was my lack of experience. Please don't be angry, Senior!" She then followed up with another question. "Was the Tie family really so kind as to give us the boat hulls?"
Bugui Sanren gave a disdainful snort. "If it weren't for the fact that this place is so far from the Fangyuan Star Region, and that you all intend to stay here, I wouldn't have let them off so easily after catching them red-handed. To dare heavily injure my disciple—it truly infuriated this old man!"
Only then did Li Xue learn of the subsequent developments. The Yuanshi Sect had agreed to Bugui Sanren’s demands: the Tie family was banned from participating in this session of the Nascent Soul Magic Arts Assembly, and they were not even permitted to attend as observers. Combined with the measures taken by the Bai family, the Tie family finally could no longer sit still.
The Nascent Soul Magic Arts Assembly was held only once every thousand years. The Tie family had many Nascent Soul cultivators; they could not afford to lose even the right to observe because of this incident. Furthermore, aside from the fixed supply the Bai family provided to the Jade Profound Sect, their other medicinal pills were traded with various sects. As the Bai family was the head of the four great families of Danxia Star, this represented a massive loss for the Tie family.
Therefore, to show their sincerity, the Tie family sent a high-grade treasure to each of the six injured people as compensation. As a clan of refiners, the Tie family had plenty of treasures and hoped to settle the matter with a few high-grade items.
But who was Bugui Sanren? He was a Grandmaster Refiner. He looked down upon ordinary high-grade treasures. Consequently, the Tie family had to painfully part with two boat hulls and four ultra-high-grade Flying Cloud Boats as compensation. Boat hulls were flying treasures specially crafted from rare materials that could be upgraded; by adding specific materials, they could be refined into peak-grade treasures that integrated attack, defense, and flight.
Although the Tie family was a refining clan, rare materials were hard to find. Giving up two hulls at once truly made their hearts ache for a time. As for the method of refining a Nebula Boat using Nebula Sand, the Tie family naturally did not possess it; otherwise, they wouldn't have let Bugui Sanren take the Nebula Sand so easily.
Li Xue sighed inwardly. Once a clan grew large, it was inevitable that a few black sheep would emerge, and the clan had to take responsibility for their actions. In that sense, what was so good about a great clan? It wasn't as free as a small family, and teaching the younger generation was much easier in the latter.
There were two Nebula Boats and six ultra-high-grade Flying Cloud Boats—the extra two Flying Cloud Boats were sent by the Jade Profound Sect to appease them. One of the Nebula Boats was specifically refined by Bugui Sanren for his disciple, Li Lin. As for who should receive the other one, Li Xue had some thoughts. After consulting Li Lin and Yu Ming, they all agreed to give it to Ji Rufeng and Bai Xingyu.
With the Dream Realm, Li Xue, Li Lin, and Yu Ming only needed one for themselves. Bai Xingyu had been caught in the crossfire for their sake, and everyone felt quite bad about it; giving the Nebula Boat to her was perfectly justifiable. As for Dongfang Jing, that poor lad was automatically filtered out by everyone.
The other Flying Cloud Boats were distributed one to each person. The two extra ones were given to Li Yuhong and Bai Ruihua. It was somewhat heart-wrenching to think that these two Nascent Soul elders didn't even have their own void-flight treasures yet.
Bugui Sanren glanced at Li Yuhong and said, "Sigh, you are my precious disciple’s ancestor; you can’t look too shabby. How about this: I’ll modify your Flying Cloud Boats for you. It will improve their efficacy significantly!"
Bugui Sanren then asked Li Xue, "Girl, you still have Kun-Thunder Soil, right?" He thought for a moment and added, "Li Lin’s injuries should be much better by now. Have him come out of seclusion first. This old man wants to teach his disciple!"
Li Yuhong and Li Xue were overjoyed upon hearing this, knowing that Bugui Sanren intended to teach Li Lin how to refine the Flying Cloud Boats.
Li Xue hurried back to the cave dwelling and entered the Dream Realm to call them. By the time Li Xue, Li Lin, and Yu Ming emerged, Yu Nanqing had also rushed over. He rubbed his hands together happily, his simple face brimming with an excited smile as he said to Li Lin, "Junior Brother, I’m riding on your coattails! I get to see Master refine flying treasures so soon!"
Li Lin exchanged polite greetings, though he was also very excited, a faint flush appearing on his pale face.
Li Xue produced a large pile of Kun-Thunder Soil. Although Chize would eat some when he was craving it, this was a rare refining material, and she couldn't bear to let him eat too much. Bugui Sanren was also startled to see so much Kun-Thunder Soil. He quickly swept half of it into his storage ring without feeling the slightest bit of embarrassment.
Everyone watched, dumbfounded. He didn't show the grace of a late-stage Soul Transformation cultivator at all, taking it without a word. Yu Nanqing’s eyes were also shining, but he politely asked Li Xue for some. Li Xue naturally gave him a pile generously.
Bugui Sanren first used true fire to sear the Flying Cloud Boat, adding Water Spirit Jade to make it supple, then adding Kun-Thunder Soil to give it rigidity before finally shaping it. The white flying boat turned sky-blue, and one could even see patterns of blue lightning within it.
"Master, we probably shouldn't call this a Flying Cloud Boat anymore!" Yu Nanqing said, swallowing hard.
"Mhm, let’s call it the Thunder Cloud Boat! The lightning increases its speed, the blue flashes strengthen its attack, and the properties of the earth improve its defense!" Bugui Sanren introduced each feature one by one.
The group marveled at the explanation, never expecting Kun-Thunder Soil to have such effects.
Bugui Sanren refined one more, then tossed the rest to Yu Nanqing to refine while he merely supervised. Li Lin watched with itching hands, picking up a Flying Cloud Boat as if to start refining.
Li Xue shot him a sharp glare and immediately snatched the boat away. "Your injuries aren't healed yet. You are not allowed to move recklessly!"
Li Lin could only pull a long face, watching Yu Nanqing refine with eyes full of envy.
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
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星云舟 | Nebula Boat | A high-level flying treasure for void/interstellar travel.
星云砂 | Nebula Sand | A rare material used to refine the Nebula Boat.
舟胚 | Boat Hull / Vessel Base | The unfinished foundation of a flying treasure.
坤雷土 | Kun-Thunder Soil | A rare refining material with earth and lightning properties.
雷云舟 | Thunder Cloud Boat | An upgraded version of the Flying Cloud Boat.
元始门 | Yuanshi Sect / Primordial Gate | A major sect mentioned in the text.
元婴法术大会 | Nascent Soul Magic Arts Assembly | A major competition/gathering for Nascent Soul cultivators.
水灵玉 | Water Spirit Jade | A material used to add flexibility/suppleness in refining.
