I'm determined to become an immortal!

A few days later, in Yuanxia Immortal City.

It's still the Lanyue Pavilion on the top floor of the Xianyoulai Inn.

He Sheng climbed the spiral staircase and passed through the hanging beaded curtain, where he saw Ying Ruyue already waiting in the pavilion.

Today she wore a moon-white Taoist robe, her black hair still casually tied up with a white jade hairpin, leaning against a rosewood chair by the window, a cup of spiritual tea beside her steaming gently.

Outside the window, the treasure ships on the airport rose and fell, and the shimmering light reflected on her cool profile, making her already ethereal features appear even more otherworldly.

Compared to a year ago, the cool aura surrounding this woman has become even more refined, and the faint moonlight halo around her body is more gentle and restrained than when they first met at Tianyuan Pavilion.

When she saw He Sheng enter, she merely raised her eyes slightly, without offering any polite greetings.

"Fellow Daoist Xiang, it's been over a year since we last met. Have you managed to forge an even more advanced [True Water] sword?"

She maintained her straightforward manner, speaking in a cool, clear tone, unhurried and unhurried, as if nothing in the world was worth her time.

He Sheng was already used to the way these high-born prodigies acted, so he didn't feel slighted. He simply nodded slightly, took out a set of high-quality Water Moon Heart Swords, and handed them over.

"A complete set of swords? That's interesting."

Ying Ruyue took the Water Moon Heart Sword, gently stroked the blade with her fingertips, and immersed her consciousness into it to sense it carefully.

A moment later, a hint of disappointment flashed in her eyes. She placed the sword back on the table and said indifferently:

"Although it is a top-grade sword, the improvement in the quality of [True Water] is limited. For my Water Moon lineage, it is only slightly better than a chicken rib."

These words were easy to understand, and He Sheng naturally comprehended them.

He knew that in Ying Ruyue's eyes, the grade of the magic weapon was not important at all; what mattered was whether the quality of the [True Water] was pure enough.

In short, Ying Ruyue wanted to use the [True Water] sword that He Shengxin had crafted to determine whether he was capable of crafting [True Water] Dao artifacts.

This set of fine Water Moon Heart Swords was made with too much Divine Sand during its forging, resulting in an impure composition that naturally failed to meet her standards.

He Sheng had anticipated this and did not argue. He simply flipped his palm and took out another set of Water Moon Heart Swords, which was the last set of exquisite Water Moon Heart Swords he had forged!

As soon as the Water Moon Heart Sword was taken out, the cold moonlight on the sword spine spread across half of the sandalwood table like mercury spilling onto the ground.

The swords were a deep blue, shimmering with spiritual light. The three swords were intertwined, their momentum flowing like a tide, with a faint sense of moonlight rippling across them.

Ying Ruyue's fingers, which were resting on the back of the chair, suddenly tightened.

She practically snatched the sword into her hand, her pale fingertips tracing the spine of the blade inch by inch, and for the first time, her usually calm eyes showed a distinct ripple.

"What a fine sword!"

She sighed softly, her voice unusually warm.

"Truly a fine sword! It is made from a mere first-grade spiritual material, yet it possesses three or four parts of the qualities of an ordinary [True Water] Dao-inheriting weapon, and its spirituality is extraordinary, with a profound sword charm." She raised her eyes to look at He Sheng, and a trace of solemnity finally appeared in her clear and cold eyes. "This sword is perfect for my Shuiyue lineage and can serve as the main sword for a late-stage Qi Refining disciple."

Hearing this, He Sheng felt a weight lifted from his heart, and then calmly replied:

"Da Xiu has keen insight."

The Cold Moon Arc Sword was ultimately too poor in its base quality; this was the best it could be made.

However, after several months of hard work, I have come up with a couple of ideas for improvement...

Ying Ruyue nodded slightly, placed the sword back on the table, and stared directly at He Sheng with her clear, cold eyes, her tone resolute:

"Fellow Daoist Xiang's crafting skills are extraordinary. If you have suitable spiritual materials and blueprints, you should be able to craft a [True Water] Dao artifact."

This is not just a compliment, but also represents an affirmation and Ying Ruyue's decision.

She then took out a roll of light blue silk paper and pushed it in front of He Sheng.

He Sheng took the unfolded document, glanced at it, and his pupils contracted slightly.

The Sword That Congeals the Moon over a Thousand Waters.

This was clearly a Daoist artifact diagram.

The diagrams were densely filled with the methods of refining, and He Sheng glanced at them briefly before his heart sank.

The forging of the Thousand Waters Condensing Moon Sword was far more complicated and intricate than any of the Dao artifacts he had seen in the "Illustrated Record of Refining Yuan and Mastering Divine Artifacts".

This sword requires thousands of drops of spiritual water to be repeatedly condensed and purified. Each drop of spiritual water is then condensed and engraved with a restriction. Finally, a complex set of restrictions is used to connect all the water droplets together before it can be forged into a water sword that can be gathered and dispersed at will.

Roughly estimated, it would take at least half a year to forge a Thousand Waters Condensed Moon Sword.

This is only the ideal situation.

If the restriction on even a single drop of spiritual water goes wrong during the refining process, the entire sword will be ruined.

For He Sheng, spending more than half a year on a single sword, while also bearing the risk of failure, was far too much of a drag on his cultivation pace.

He put down the diagram, looking troubled.

Ying Ruyue was not surprised. She knew very well how difficult it was to forge the Thousand Waters Condensing Moon Sword. Few ordinary second-tier water-based weapon refiners from the Hundred Arts Sect were willing to take it on. Therefore, she was not surprised by He Sheng's reaction.

But she believed He Sheng wouldn't refuse, because she had leverage that no rogue cultivator could refuse.

"Fellow Daoist Xiang, from now on, in addition to the fifteen Cold Moon Arc Swords, my Shuiyue lineage also needs a set of the Shuiyue Heart Swords every year." Ying Ruyue calmly stated the price. "As for the Thousand Waters Condensing Moon Sword, Fellow Daoist can study it carefully. I will not rush you. You only need to forge one within five years."

Therefore, my Shuiyue lineage is willing to offer five thousand drops of Lake Moon Water for you to practice with.

As she spoke, Ying Ruyue took out a light blue, slender-necked bottle and placed it in front of He Sheng. This was a special magical artifact, containing exactly five thousand drops of Lake Moon Water.

"The lake is full of moon and clear water?" 』

He Sheng's eyebrows twitched slightly when he heard those four words.

This is a mid-grade second-tier spiritual water, far superior in quality and uses to sinking water, and its market price is at least sixty spirit stones per drop.

Five thousand drops equals a full three hundred thousand spirit stones.

Forging a Thousand Waters Condensed Moon Sword would consume at most a thousand drops, and five thousand drops would be enough for him to try four times, more than enough for practice.

But He Sheng didn't rush to agree.

He is waiting.

Based on his previous conversations with Luo You and his understanding of these privileged young talents, he believed that Ying Ruyue's price was definitely more than that.

really!

Ying Ruyue flipped her palm and took out a jade slip, placing it on the table.

"Of course, if you are willing to accept this task, the real reward is this item."

She paused, her tone still cold, yet every word carried immense weight.

"This is a secret method for forming the Golden Core called the 'Spiritual Water Refining True Method'."

As the name suggests, it involves using various spiritual waters to temper one's own magical power.

Fellow Daoist, you should know that the most important thing in Core Formation is magical power. With sufficient spiritual water, this method can refine magical power to two or three times its original strength within one or two years, which can genuinely increase the success rate of Core Formation by at least 20%.

He Sheng's gaze was fixed on the jade slip, and his breath hitched almost imperceptibly.

Ying Ruyue continued:

"More importantly, if you obtain this method, you can refine your magical power with the clear water of the lake and make it more in line with the Dao of True Water."

Even if you haven't cultivated any supernatural techniques related to the [True Water] path, you can still make your [True Water] destiny more easily manifest.

In other words, it will make it easier for you to refine [True Water] Dao artifacts in the future.

After she finished speaking, she added:

"However, this method is a secret of the Water Moon lineage of my Moon Glow Sect. If you really want to obtain this secret method, you must make a vow of Dao heart that you will never pass it on to outsiders."

Secret methods for forming the elixir.

The true secret method of Core Formation!

He Sheng was shaken, but he forced himself to keep a straight face and not show too much emotion.

Among the secret manuals on Core Formation that he had previously obtained, there were more than one mention of secret methods that could truly improve the success rate of Core Formation. These methods had always been regarded as the exclusive property of major immortal sects, and were completely unavailable to independent cultivators.

Now that such a secret method for forming the Golden Core is right in front of him, He Sheng naturally cannot refuse it.

However, He Sheng suppressed his excitement and did not immediately take the jade slip. Instead, he tentatively asked:

"I am but a rogue cultivator, with no way to achieve the Golden Core stage. I wonder if I could purchase a Golden Core from the Moonlit Cloud Sect in the future?"

Upon hearing this, a rare smile flashed in Ying Ruyue's usually cold eyes.

"What's so difficult about that?"

While spiritual objects that have formed a core are rare, those that have formed a golden core are not uncommon.

"If you can help my Shuiyue lineage forge three Thousand Waters Condensed Moon Swords, I will reward you with a Golden Core pill."

Three Thousand Waters Condensed Moon Swords can be exchanged for one Golden Elixir.

A single Golden Core pill is worth at least 300,000 spirit stones, and would fetch even higher at auction. Yet, in Ying Ruyue's words, it seemed like nothing more than a trivial matter.

He Sheng finally experienced firsthand what it meant to be "extravagant" and inhumane.

But he knew even better that the reason the other party was so generous was ultimately because of the scarcity of his true water artifacts, and even more so because of the difficulty in forging the Thousand Waters Condensing Moon Sword.

Having figured this out, He Sheng no longer hesitated and immediately made a vow of Dao heart. He then put the jade slip of "Spiritual Water Tempering True Method", the Thousand Water Condensing Moon Sword Manual, and the long bottle magic artifact containing five thousand drops of Lake Moon Bright Water into his pocket.

"Within five years, I will definitely forge a Thousand Waters Condensed Moon Sword."

He Sheng reassured Ying Ruyue.

Then, he took out fifteen Cold Moon Arc Swords and handed them to the other party.

"For the next nine years, Ying Ruyue will be given fifteen Cold Moon Arc Swords every year, and a set of top-quality Cold Moon Arc Swords."

In addition, a Thousand Waters Condensed Moon Sword must also be delivered.

He Sheng felt that the task on his shoulders was not easy, but the reward would naturally be generous.

Besides the 300,000 spirit stones already in hand, the Core Formation Secret Technique "Spirit Water Tempering True Method," and five thousand drops of Lake Moonlight Water, there was also a promise to form a Golden Core.

"And this should only be the beginning of the collaboration, right?"

Although Ying Ruyue appeared aloof, He Sheng still managed to glean some of her inner desires, realizing that she was willing to pay such a high price for more than just a few True Water [Dao Artifacts].

With some speculation, He Sheng took his leave, but just as he reached the beaded curtain, a cold voice suddenly came from behind him.

"If you are interested in the way of the sword, you may take out the Water Moon Sword Token and study it in your spare time. After all, it is difficult to forge a truly superior sword if you do not understand the way of the sword."

Ying Ruyue's pointed remark further convinced He Sheng that his guess was correct.

"Is Ying Ruyue planning to have me forge some superior sword, or even a sword-wielding magic weapon, after I've further improved my weapon-forging skills and gained a basic understanding of swordsmanship?"

While He Sheng's mind raced, his actions were swift. He turned around, bowed to Ying Ruyue, and said:

"Thank you for your guidance, Master Xiu."

After saying that, He Sheng strode away.