Chapter 201: Jiao Pearl

The next day, the Beast Fighting Arena officially announced the results of the match between General Bean and Gong Yu, along with a recording. General Bean had triumphed over Gong Yu, securing the top spot on the advancement list. While there was much discussion about this outcome, no one stepped forward to challenge it.

Firstly, Gong Yu was severely injured, so even if his supporters were dissatisfied, they couldn’t demand a rematch. Secondly, Gong Yu’s demonic beast went out of control and nearly harmed the spectators. If not for General Bean’s Beast Master intervening in time, the demonic beast might have broken through the barrier.

More than the result of the duel, people were intrigued by the demonic beast that General Bean’s Beast Master summoned at the end. The day the recording was released, the entire Flying Sea Pavilion was abuzz with speculation about the type of demonic beast it was.

Some even speculated that General Bean’s Beast Master had been deliberately holding back. If she had used that demonic beast from the start, she might have easily defeated Gong Yu in the first round.

Meanwhile, in the main hall of the Flying Sea Pavilion, the entire recording of the third trial was being played.

In an elegantly scented room, the noise was jarring, with the roars of beasts clashing against the refined surroundings.

“Is that… an Ice Jade Cold Flood Dragon?”

Bai Su stood before the recording, her gaze fixed on the imposing black figure, a hint of interest in her eyes.

“This General Bean’s Beast Master is full of surprises,” Bai Su remarked. “Such a Spirit Beast is incredibly rare across the Four Lands and Sixteen Nations. Even I have only seen one once, many years ago.”

Bai Lingque remained expressionless. “Who exactly is she?”

“I previously thought she might be from the Immortal Sects, but now I’m not so sure,” Bai Su replied. “She possesses two rare Spirit Beasts, one of which was once among the top five under the strongest of the demon race. Just this alone is enough for her to establish her own sect, without relying on any existing ones.”

Bai Lingque suggested, “Why not ask her directly, Pavilion Master?”

“There’s no need for a thorough investigation,” Bai Su said slowly. “All we need is General Bean. Whatever her personal affairs are, they’re not our concern. Prying too much could ruin our rapport.”

“As long as she hands over General Bean to us on the day of the finals, as promised.”

Bai Lingque asked, “What about the Black Flood Dragon? It seems no less impressive than General Bean. If you favor powerful Spirit Beasts, why not acquire it as well?”

Bai Su waved her hand dismissively. “I only want General Bean.”

“By the way, have the Spirit Materials she listed yesterday been prepared?”

Bai Lingque replied, “They’ve already been sent over.”

This reward was a special promise from Bai Su, not requiring them to wait until the finals.

“Good,” Bai Su said, extinguishing the image-recording stone and standing up. “Let’s go check on those rowdy mice in the Earth Pavilion.”

…

Flying Sea Street, Lingxiao Tower Refining Room.

Lian Mu stood amidst a pile of Spirit Materials, checking them off before taking a sip of water at the table to rest.

There was a knock at the door.

“May I come in, young friend?”

Lian Mu responded, and Silver Crane entered, carrying a large bundle of items.

Today, she planned to refine a sword, and Silver Crane was there to assist her… or more precisely, it was part of their deal.

Lian Mu had agreed to let Silver Crane examine Green Bean and her sword, while he would reveal the secrets of Modified Demonic Beasts to her, each fulfilling their needs.

In this aspect, Lian Mu wasn’t worried about Silver Crane deceiving her, as she was somewhat of an artifact refiner herself. If he fabricated false methods, she would notice during the process.

Once everything was ready, Lian Mu took out Wealth Bringer and placed it on the cooling surface of the forging platform. The greenish-blue sword gleamed brightly.

Silver Crane approached, momentarily silent upon seeing her sword: “…”

It had been quite beautiful before, but now it looked like this?

It was as if a blade of shiny grass had been placed on the forging platform.

Silver Crane couldn’t help but reach out, discovering that the sword had been upgraded from the seventh rank to the fourth rank.

Such rapid advancement in just two months?

“This time, I want to change its base materials, first integrating some first-rank Spirit Materials. Once I get the Refined Jade, I’ll upgrade the entire sword,” Lian Mu explained.

For a low-grade sword to replace a large portion of its materials with first-rank Spirit Materials, it needed to be tempered with Refined Jade. However, using Silver Crane’s method, she could directly replace the materials in parts like the hilt.

This was according to him.

“You have a Three Spirit Root, right? You should know that a Three Spirit Root can’t handle a first-rank sword,” Silver Crane pointed out. “Why are you so determined?”

“People used to say a fourth-rank sword was for dual Spiritual Roots, but I still used one,” Lian Mu replied. “Does a sword cultivator need any other reason to want a good sword?”

Silver Crane said, “If you could handle a first-rank sword, you could replace all the materials with first-rank ones. You wouldn’t need me at all.”

“That’s true. But in reality, I can’t use a sword made entirely of first-rank Spirit Materials unless guided by a Sword Spirit.”

In the Illusion Realm, Lian Mu had tried both Ying You’s and Lu Feishuang’s swords. When she attempted to resonate with the Pohong Sword, the obstacles weren’t just from the original owner and the sword contract but also from the rank difference.

Her Spiritual Root was too unique, almost as if it had found a loophole in the world. While all three of her Spiritual Roots were Heavenly Spiritual Roots, the number was insufficient, and the Pohong Sword seemed to recognize her as a Three Spirit Root.

The situation was too complex for Lian Mu to fully explain, but she knew she couldn’t wield a sword made entirely of first-rank materials.

She had pondered why, as a Three Spirit Root, she could use the fourth-rank Wealth Bringer. There was only one possibility: the base material of Wealth Bringer still contained a trace of seventh-rank Spirit Materials. This trace acted like a key, allowing her to resonate with the Wealth Bringer sword.

For higher-ranked swords, she needed an entry point.

If she could increase the proportion, perhaps she could achieve even greater improvements.

That’s why she needed a method to bridge the rank gap in artifact forging.

“You’ve used a sword with a Sword Spirit?” Silver Crane’s eyes widened with intrigue.

Indeed, she was a mysterious figure. He had never even seen a sword with a Sword Spirit.

Sword Spirits were a type of artifact spirit, extremely difficult to cultivate, requiring both opportunity and time—no less than five hundred years.

“Something like that,” Lian Mu replied vaguely. “It wasn’t mine, just borrowed temporarily.”

Mentioning the Flying Swan sword, Lian Mu couldn’t help but think of Ying You. Since she had been away, she wondered how he was doing…

“I see that your sword already contains elements of cross-grade fusion. Don’t you know how to use it?” Silver Crane asked.

Lian Mu replied, “This isn’t my doing. I derived it from another sword. It was inherently a cross-grade fusion body, which is why it can be compatible.”

As she spoke, she took out the discarded sword. Since retrieving it from the sword pavilion of the Returning Immortal Sect, she hadn’t used it much. The last time she brought it out was to trim the edges while repairing the Wealth Bringer.

Silver Crane glanced at the dull sword, surprised. “It’s indeed perfect. However, it’s made of water gold, which clashes with your flame gold. You can’t integrate too much.”

Lian Mu had only taken a small portion, knowing that any more would ruin her Wealth Bringer.

Silver Crane withdrew his hand and began explaining his method. “In fact, the reason my Modified Demonic Beast can combine different grades of demonic beast limbs is because I mixed a spirit plant juice called ‘Seven Star Leaf’ into the modification process.”

“I’ve spent half my life studying demonic beasts. Once, while out, I discovered this spirit plant could parasitize on higher-grade plants. I found it fascinating and brought it back to experiment.”

“The Modified Demonic Beast, rather than being a mere patchwork, is more of a parasitic fusion, allowing a demonic beast limb to remain alive by parasitizing on another demonic beast. This method is known only to me. The Modified Demonic Beasts sold outside are counterfeit, inferior products that don’t live long after creation.”

“The juice of the Seven Star Leaf can form a transitional bridge between two items of vastly different grades. You could try mixing it into your sword.”

Lian Mu was silent for a moment. “…”

So the key was a spirit plant? But if a spirit plant entered the forging platform, it would be reduced to ashes in an instant, let alone its juice…

“I know what you’re worried about,” Silver Crane said. “I had the same thought, but after trying, I discovered that spirit plants can’t withstand the heat of the forging platform unless… they are covered with a layer of Spirit Water Membrane when dropped in. When the sword is about to solidify, the Spirit Water Membrane bursts open, mixing in.”

“The Spirit Water Membrane requires a high level of spiritual power essence. It must not affect the heat of the forging platform while protecting the spirit plant juice from destruction. The timing of the explosion must also be precise,” Silver Crane explained. “It took me five or six years just to find the spiritual power essence needed to create the Spirit Water Membrane.”

Lian Mu remarked, “That’s incredibly troublesome.”

Silver Crane shrugged. “Being an artifact refiner isn’t just about ideas. Sometimes, forging a Spirit Artifact can take over a decade just to find the right Spirit Materials. And even then, success isn’t guaranteed. If you encounter rare Spirit Materials and fail once, you might have to wait another decade.”

“To become a master in our field, you need at least four hundred years, and that’s with a Heavenly Spiritual Root. For those with lesser roots, lasting fifty years is already impressive.”

Lian Mu commented, “No wonder there are so few artifact refiners.”

No wonder Xu Xianxing would cry for half a day after failing to refine a Spirit Artifact.

“Don’t say ‘you people.’ You practice both sword and artifact refinement. Keep working hard; the tougher days are still ahead,” Silver Crane said, patting her shoulder.

“So, how do I find the spiritual power essence for the Spirit Water Membrane?” Lian Mu returned to the main topic.

Silver Crane finally revealed his true intentions, his eyes eagerly fixed on her. “Perhaps you could try using your Jiao Pearl to control water.”

Lian Mu was puzzled. “?”

Silver Crane urged, “Don’t hesitate any longer. Time waits for no one. Quickly, take out your Jiao Pearl and let me give it a try.”

— Translator’s Notes —

• Jiao Pearl: A mystical pearl harvested from a flood dragon (Jiao), a dragon-like mythical beast in Chinese folklore. In cultivation novels, Jiao Pearls are prized artifacts that enhance water-based spiritual powers, allowing control over water elements or aquatic abilities.