The world of martial arts, the immortal swordsman in the mortal realm.

Chapter 229, Section 244: Taiyi Refined Gold, Dragon-Seed Demon Beast
"Fellow Daoists, Lu Chen greets you."

"Greetings to Fellow Daoist Lu. Last time, my senior and junior brothers and sisters noticed that someone was testing swords and performing magic here. We were worried that there might be demons around, so we left a puppet to keep watch. If there was any offense, we hope Fellow Daoist Lu will forgive us."

"You two are too kind. This is unclaimed land, and anyone can come and go freely. How can there be any talk of offense?"

"Fellow Daoist Lu, what brings you here?"

"The earth's core is rich in minerals; I've only come here to find some materials for forging swords."

"I see……"

The two sides approached each other cautiously, chatted for a while, and the atmosphere was fairly harmonious.

This is also because neither party had any malicious intent.

Lu Chen could sense emotions, and after carefully examining them with his Heart Sword, he was able to determine that although Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue were wary, they had no intention of harming anyone.

Even their vigilance seemed somewhat superficial.

It gives the impression that although one is often taught, one has never had any personal experience, so the vigilance is just a formality.

Lu Chen felt that these two were probably newcomers with little experience.

Or perhaps in this Journey to the West world, the conflict between humans and demons is the most prominent, while the conflict between cultivators is not so prominent?
"Does Fellow Daoist Lu always rest here?"

"Indeed. May I ask where you two are staying?"

"us……"

Li Xinzhu mentioned that their lodging was on a floating mountain deep within thunderclouds. Upon hearing this, Lu Chen recalled a material mentioned in the Void Sword Sect's weapon-forging method, and used this as an excuse to ask:
"Since it is a floating mountain deep in the thunderclouds, I wonder if there is any thunder gold on the mountain?"

So-called Thunder Gold is a type of metal that has been bombarded by thunder for many years and has undergone a transformation due to the essence of thunder.

Adding a small amount of thunder metal when refining magical artifacts and flying swords can imbue them with the power of thunder and attract heavenly lightning, making them quite effective against demons.

Li Xinzhu said apologetically:

"Brother Lu, please forgive me. My Divine Beast Mountain is not skilled in weapon crafting and was busy collecting evil lightning. We did not thoroughly investigate the floating mountain and really do not know if there is any thunder gold buried on the mountain."

Lu Chen laughed:

"It's alright. I wish to explore that Floating Mountain to find some Thunder Gold for refining weapons. I wonder if you two would agree?"

"This……"

Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue exchanged a glance, recalling what Lu Chen had said earlier: this Black Stone Mountain was unclaimed land, where anyone could come and go freely. The floating mountain where they were currently staying was also essentially unclaimed land. Even if they didn't allow it, Lu Chen could use that as an excuse to go to that floating mountain on his own.

The two really didn't want to clash with anyone in such a dangerous place. In addition, Lu Chen had always appeared peaceful and friendly. Moreover, he was a successor of the Void Sword Sect and held the Heavenly Soldier Talisman. After a slight hesitation, the two agreed.

Seeing the two of them like this, and sensing their emotions with his "Heart Sword," Lu Chen became more and more certain that this pair of senior and junior brothers and sisters were probably novices. Otherwise, why would they bring strangers they met in this place to their temporary camp?

Aren't they afraid that once the other side finds out their background, they might suddenly launch an attack?

Of course, Lu Chen had no ill intentions; he was just somewhat moved by the naivety of the two senior and junior siblings.

now.

Li Xinzhu formed a hand seal, and her feathered robe shone with starlight, enveloping her and Hong Yue. The two of them then took off from the ground, lifted by the starlight.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, please come with us."

Lu Chen nodded, and with a whoosh, a pair of wide wings with a wingspan of more than ten feet unfolded behind him—the Wind and Thunder Wings.

Then, with a gentle flap of his wings, Lu Chen took off and flew up, catching up with Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue.

Seeing that Lu Chen didn't use any magical artifacts, but instead directly condensed a pair of wings with the power of wind and thunder, Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue were slightly taken aback. When they looked at Lu Chen again, their eyes already showed a hint of awe.

Noticing a hint of awe in their eyes, Lu Chen felt a little strange.

Because of the immense fame of Journey to the West, he dared not overestimate his own strength.

Even though his flying sword was stronger than that of the founder of the Void Sword Sect, he only regarded himself as a "Grade B, Class A" auxiliary soldier, believing that he was not even as good as a "Grade A" auxiliary soldier and was not qualified to be a regular soldier of the Heavenly Court.

They are not even comparable to the "heavenly soldiers," let alone those famous gods, immortals, demon kings, and devils.

But now, looking at the eyes of Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue, it seems that I do have some skills.
Of course, it's also possible that Li and Hong were simply too incompetent, while his Wind and Thunder Wings, which originated from his sword body, were truly mysterious.

After all, it is the inheritance of the "Zhu Xian Sword Intent", so it is only natural that it would perform at a level beyond the norm.

Li Xinzhu rode the starlight, carrying Hong Yue into the thunderclouds.

Lu Chen flapped his wings gently, following behind the two.

As they rose more than a thousand feet, approaching the towering, thunderous dark clouds, Li Xinzhu reminded them:

"Fellow Daoist Lu, the thunder in the clouds is extremely fierce, and occasionally there will be malevolent lightning. Please be careful."

After saying that, he smiled sheepishly.
"Since you are able to control wind and thunder, my reminder is probably too much of a fuss."

Lu Chen smiled:
"Fellow Daoist Li meant well."

As they spoke, Li Xinzhu activated the starlight and flew into the clouds with Hong Yue.

Lu Chen flew in and saw that the thunderclouds were filled with the aura of calamity, and every now and then a blood-red lightning bolt would tear through the sky, illuminating the dark clouds.

The thunder in the clouds was truly fierce, with streaks of blood-red lightning striking the three of them every now and then.

Li Xinzhu, standing in front, brandished a gleaming bronze mirror. Whenever lightning struck, the mirror would absorb it.

After absorbing three or five bolts of lightning in succession, the bronze mirror seemed to have reached its limit, and the spiritual light on the mirror began to show signs of instability.

At this moment, Li Xinzhu recited a short incantation, and a beam of crystal light shot out from the mirror. Wherever it passed, the dark clouds melted away, the thunder vanished, and a wide passage was opened up.

Of course, this passage will not last long, as thunderclouds surging from all directions will soon fill the passage carved out by the mirror light.

Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue used the bronze mirror to block the lightning, and occasionally cleared a path for it.

Lu Chen responded with wind and thunder wings.

Whenever a crimson lightning bolt hurtles toward him, he flaps his wings lightly, and the lightning bolt deflects on its own.

Seeing how easily he handled the situation, Li and Hong couldn't help but feel great admiration.

I don't know how far it flew in the clouds.

Suddenly, a huge, indistinct black shadow appeared ahead.

Upon closer inspection, it was clearly a mountain range floating in the dark clouds.

This mountain is larger than the Black Stone Mountain where Lu Chen settled. It has a circumference of about ten miles and a height of about one hundred feet from the foot to the highest point. The terrain on the mountain is also rugged and uneven, with cliffs and valleys.

Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue landed in front of a man-made cave halfway up the mountain and said to Lu Chen, who had followed them:
"Fellow Daoist Lu, this is where my senior brother and I will be staying temporarily."

Lu Chen nodded:
"Thank you both for bringing me here. I won't disturb you any longer; I'll go search for Reijin myself."

Li and Hong also had heavy tasks, so they didn't invite him in to sit down and let him go into the mountains to search on his own.

After Lu Chen left.

Li Xinzhu whispered:

"Senior brother, what do you think of this Fellow Daoist Lu?"

Hong Yue hesitated for a moment, then said:
"Although I don't know how good his flying sword is, just by looking at Fellow Daoist Lu's ability to control wind and thunder, I know that this fellow Daoist is extremely strong. Even a sect elder-level expert is probably no more than this."

Li Xinzhu shook her head: "I was asking about his character."

"His character? How can you tell from just a brief conversation? But I didn't sense any malice from him; he seemed like an honest person."

"Since Senior Brother also thinks Fellow Daoist Lu is an honest person, why not ask him for help in subduing that Cold Dragon?"

"Please ask Fellow Daoist Lu for help?" Hong Yue was startled: "My junior sister discovered that cold dragon, and even the elders of our sect dared not tell her. Fellow Daoist Lu is just an outsider..."

Li Xinzhu said:

"It is precisely because Fellow Daoist Lu is an outsider and cultivates the flying sword techniques of the Void Sword Sect that I wish to ask for his help. If the elders of Divine Beast Mountain were to see Han Chi, how could we possibly have a chance?"

Hong Yue thought about it and realized that it made perfect sense.

There are two paths to cultivation on Divine Beast Mountain.

One type is beast taming, which involves subduing and using monsters for one's own purposes.

One method involves refining the essence of a demon beast to directly acquire its abilities, while using its physical body to craft puppets and magical artifacts.

For example, the feathered robe worn by Li Xinzhu and the animal skin robe worn by Hong Yue were both made from materials refined from the flesh of demonic beasts.

These two approaches are not contradictory and can be pursued simultaneously.

Both paths of cultivation require powerful demonic beasts.

The cold dragon that Li Xinzhu discovered was a dragon species, and not just any ordinary dragon species. It was a rare treasure among demonic beasts. Once the elders of Divine Beast Mountain found out, it would certainly not fall into their hands. At most, they would be given a small reward.

But Lu Chen is different.

He was a flying sword cultivator who preferred rare and exotic metals such as "mysterious iron elites" and "thunder gold," and had no need for the cold dragon.

“Fellow Daoist Lu can control wind and thunder, which is perfect for countering the icy wind and thunder of the Cold Dragon. If we can persuade Fellow Daoist Lu to help us, we will have a 60-70% chance of subduing the Cold Dragon.”

"But how can we persuade Fellow Daoist Lu to take action?"

"I had a fortuitous encounter in my early years and obtained three qian of Taiyi refined gold, which is a treasure for forging flying swords. Although three qian of refined gold is far from enough to forge a flying sword, incorporating these three qian of Taiyi refined gold into the flying sword will greatly increase the power of Fellow Daoist Lu's flying sword."

Li Xinzhu was confident:
"Furthermore, the Cold Dragon possesses dragon-like qualities and has a passion for collecting rare and precious metals. There might be some in its lair. Such treasures are useless to us, so we can hand them all over to Brother Lu."

Hong Yue reminded him:
"That cold dragon is still young and may not have even left its nest to travel far. There may not be any treasure in its nest."

It was precisely because the cold dragon was still young that the two dared to consider subduing it.

They wouldn't even dare to dream of a fully grown Han Chi.

Li Xinzhu knew that her senior brother's words made sense. She frowned and thought for a moment, then sighed:

"I know about my little sister's situation. Apart from those three qian of Taiyi refined gold, she really has no other treasures to offer."

Hong Yue was also penniless. He had spent all his savings on the leather magic weapon he was wearing. Otherwise, the two of them wouldn't have taken on the sect's mission to collect the evil lightning and come to such a miserable place deep in the earth's core.

They looked at each other for a while.

Hong Yue said:
"Let's discuss this with Fellow Daoist Lu first."

Li Xinzhu said helplessly:

"That's all."

The two then found Lu Chen, who was wandering around the mountains searching for Thunder Gold according to the sensing methods recorded in the weapon-refining manual, and told him about the Cold Dragon.

Lu Chen thought the two senior and junior siblings were truly innocent and adorable.

I had absolutely no doubt that he was just a villain pretending to be kind.

Furthermore, Li Xinzhu not only mentioned that she had three qian of Taiyi refined gold, but also truthfully stated that the Han Chi was still young and its nest might not contain any rare gold or iron.

Such honesty left Lu Chen speechless.

However, Lu Chen liked this kind of honest person.

Besides, he needed these two to lead the way out, so he readily agreed with a smile:

"Since you have Taiyi Refined Gold, I, Lu, will definitely help you with this."

Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue were overjoyed.

Lu Chen asked again:

"When do you two plan to go and subdue the Cold Dragon?"

Li Xinzhu said:

"We need to collect five gourds of evil lightning. We've only collected one and a half gourds so far, and it will take us more than half a month to complete the collection. After completing this sect mission, we can leave this place and go to subdue the Cold Dragon."

Lu Chen nodded:
"That's fine too."

After inquiring about the abilities of the Cold Dragon and getting a general idea of ​​its strengths, they continued searching for Thunder Gold. Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue also began collecting Fiend Thunder.

While Lu Chen was searching for Lei Jin, he also watched the two of them collect the evil lightning for a while.

The so-called "fierce lightning" was actually a crimson lightning bead the size of a marble. Only when a sufficiently powerful thunderbolt struck would a few pieces of fierce lightning briefly appear.

As for its uses, this kind of lightning can be combined with other materials to refine it into a powerful and stable thunderbolt that can be easily activated. It can also be used as food to feed lightning-attribute monsters.

Li Xinzhu's bronze mirror can not only absorb lightning and turn it into crystal light to counterattack, but it also has a special ability to sense the direction of the lightning strikes, allowing her and Hong Yue to get into position in time to wait.

After the thunder subsided and the fiery lightning appeared, Hong Yue summoned a red gourd, formed hand seals to collect the lightning bolts. If he was lucky, he could collect three to five at a time. If he was unlucky, he could still collect one or two.

Of course, lightning strikes don't happen all the time.

Sometimes, it might take up more than half an hour for a single, powerful bolt of lightning to appear, enough to generate a malevolent thunderbolt.

However, the thunder was unpredictable, and the bronze mirror's "prediction" could only be made a dozen or so moments in advance. Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue had to keep a close watch on it at all times, without letting their guard down for even a moment, lest they miss it.

This work was time-consuming, laborious, and tedious. Just watching from the sidelines made Lu Chen feel restless for the two of them.

"They really are two poor, struggling laborers..."

Lu Chen muttered to himself as he continued searching for Lei Jin.

This floating mountain is suspended deep in thunderclouds and is often bombarded by lightning. The surrounding area is also filled with the essence of lightning. Over the years, lightning metal has indeed been born in the mountain.

After searching for most of the day, Lu Chen sensed a trace of Thunder Gold essence in a cliff. He used his flying sword to dig open the cliff and, after going several feet deep, he indeed dug out a piece of Thunder Gold the size of an egg.

Thunder Gold is even rarer than the essence of Xuan Iron, and it cannot be artificially refined. It can only be generated naturally. Furthermore, Thunder Gold is soft in texture and is not suitable for making flying swords purely from Thunder Gold. It is only suitable as an additive material.

Therefore, this egg-sized amount of Regin is enough, even enough for several flying swords.

By fusing it into the flying sword, it would be enough to give the flying sword the ability to attract heavenly lightning.

Lu Chen himself can control wind and thunder, and his calamity sword has also been refined with thunderous calamity energy, so it also has the ability to trigger heavenly thunder. Therefore, his own flying sword does not need to be refined with thunder metal, but it can be used for Rong'er and the others' flying swords.

After searching for a while, Lu Chen found Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue. Using the excuse that he had found Lei Jin and needed to search for more refining materials elsewhere, he bid them farewell and left the floating mountain.

Li Xinzhu and Hong Yue came here to collect evil lightning, relying entirely on the "Bigu Pill" to keep them going. Lu Chen didn't want to stay here with them and suffer the wind, so he went back to the Twin Dragon World to digest what he had gained and would meet up with them when it was time to leave.

Chapter Two is here! Please vote with your monthly tickets!

(End of this chapter)