"Of course. The requirements for speed were no lower than Mach 2.6, damage no lower than level 4.5, and spiritual energy consumption had to be within 190. I certainly would not joke about such data," Yaoguang said with a slight smile. "The reason it achieved these parameters was that while forging this flying sword, I utilized a technology I believe nobody else has access to! I call it the Spirit-Nurturing Technique."

He briefly explained the principles of Thousand-Spirit Master, which he had slightly modified.

"The Spirit-Nurturing Art allows the sword cultivator using this flying sword to quickly obtain the same benefits of having a life-bound flying sword. This increases the maximum burst speed of the sword from 2.2 to 2.8, an improvement of nearly thirty percent, and boosts its damage from 4.1 to 5, an increase of over twenty percent. It also has various positive impacts on other aspects," Yaoguang added.

If a sword cultivator's life-bound flying sword was destroyed, it not only required significant time to re-nurture a new one, but their own vitality would also be severely damaged, potentially even harming their foundation. It was no exaggeration to say that if a great cultivator using a high-grade spirit artifact had their life-bound flying sword destroyed, they could not expect to recover for the next three to five years. If they used a treasured artifact, the recovery and conditioning period would be no less than a decade.

Of course, the advantages were also clear: a life-bound flying sword could increase a sword cultivator's combat power by thirty to fifty percent.

"What an incredible secret art..." Zhao He was both surprised and delighted. "The high-tier sword cultivator phase is somewhat awkward. Due to cultivation limits, they can only wield spirit artifacts at most. Given the total volume of their true qi, wielding a treasured artifact would drain them after just two swings. Even high-grade spirit artifacts will quickly deplete their true qi. Therefore, low-grade and middle-grade spirit artifacts are the best choices. But if one refines a low-grade or middle-grade spirit artifact into a life-bound flying sword, would they replace it after becoming a great cultivator in the future? If they did, they would need to waste three to five years. If they didn't, they would be at a severe disadvantage against an opponent's life-bound flying sword. Your secret art solved this problem perfectly."

Yaoguang gave a slight nod in response. "That's true. However, the boost to combat power is a bit inferior compared to a true life-bound flying sword."

While a life-bound flying sword provided a thirty to fifty percent boost, Thousand-Spirit Master only offered twenty to thirty percent.

"You are underestimating this technology. Once a life-bound flying sword is destroyed, it doesn't just damage one's vitality; in severe cases, it can damage the foundation. Sword cultivators naturally have to consider this when they strike. But now, since this sword of yours isn't a true life-bound flying sword, what is there to worry about? Fighting head-on with all their might, that fearless momentum could easily add another ten or twenty percent to one's combat power. It's not inferior to a real life-bound flying sword at all," Zhao He said.

As the hall master of the Warfare Hall, he had a significant understanding of the quality of flying swords.

"It seems like this flying sword will have no problem meeting the requirements," Yaoguang said.

"In terms of comprehensive performance, this flying sword can be considered a third-generation model. There is absolutely no problem," Zhao He stated without hesitation. Then, he seemed to think of something. "Can this technology of yours be applied to other flying swords?"

"Not for the time being." Yaoguang shook his head. "This was a technology I developed specifically for this particular flying sword."

"Is that so?" Zhao He frowned slightly.

Yun Lai, who stood nearby, glanced at Yaoguang and immediately said, "Yaoguang is very young and has an active mind. Compared to us, his refining techniques are full of unconstrained imagination. Sometimes he has a sudden flash of inspiration and proposes extraordinary viewpoints."

Zhao He nodded after hearing this. He had actually reviewed Yaoguang's files more than once, and was quite familiar with his performance during the Immortal Shadow 60 project. He was indeed an artifact-refinement master full of whimsical ideas. Therefore, it was not impossible that he had developed such a technology specifically for this flying sword.

Zhao He couldn't help but praise Yaoguang, "Since you have this talent, you might as well continue researching in this direction. If the high-grade spirit artifacts or even treasured artifacts you forge in the future can also incorporate this technology, the flying swords produced by our Nine Cauldrons Sect will surely be held in high esteem by every sword cultivator in Cangwu."

Yaoguang listened and nodded, feeling relieved at the same time. An art like Thousand-Spirit Master carried significant influence, and he had taken a certain risk by bringing it out. Fortunately, he anchored this secret art to this specific flying sword, which was not enough to make people take desperate risks. At the very least, they would not gamble before they understood the technology behind the sword. By the time they decoded the technology within, years or even decades would have passed, and by then, he would have sufficient power to protect himself.

Of course, these were all worst-case considerations. From the information he currently possessed, the newly established Nine Cauldrons Sect was far from becoming corrupt, so the possibility of such an event was extremely low. This was why he was willing to share these technologies. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Alright, let's test the sword first," Zhao He said. Soon, a man approached. He was a young man who looked to be in his early thirties.

"Having Yun Qing test the sword will likely best showcase its various performances," Zhang Jianlin said with a smile.

A hint of gratification appeared in Yun Lai's eyes. Yun Qing was his son, a sword cultivator at the peak of the ninth realm of qi refinement. He was impeccable in every aspect.

"Let's go to our Warfare Hall's testing grounds," Zhao He said.

True gold does not fear the fire, so Yaoguang naturally followed. Since Yaoguang could not fly on a sword, Zhao He carried him, and the group soared through the air toward the Warfare Hall.

During this time, Yun Qing began to familiarize himself with the characteristics of the flying sword. Judging by how quickly his movements transitioned from awkward to proficient, he clearly possessed extraordinary talent in sword cultivation.

The Warfare Hall was the strongest enforcement agency in the Nine Heavens Domain. Because it was located near the East Sea, not only were there hundreds of great cultivators stationed there, but there were also over ten thousand high-tier cultivators.

However, Zhao He had no intention of taking Yaoguang on a tour. There were many classified matters within the Warfare Hall that Yaoguang was not authorized to know; allowing him to see things he shouldn't would only lead to the hassle of having to prepare various non-disclosure agreements for Yaoguang to sign.

***

Yun Qing spent the entire afternoon testing the sword. Although the process would take more than just a day or two, after that afternoon’s evaluation, Zhao He realized that Yaoguang had not exaggerated the performance of the flying sword at all.

"Hahaha! With such excellent performance, I believe this flying sword is essentially a done deal," Zhao He said with a loud laugh. "Only half a month has passed since the one-year project began, and you have already given us such a huge surprise. If the verification passes, the order will come through soon, and your rewards will certainly be substantial."

"Then I shall look forward to the good news from Hall Master Zhao," Yaoguang replied.

"I have a premonition that this sword will surely become famous throughout the East Sea in the future. Therefore, have you thought of a name for such a renowned flying sword?" Zhao He asked.

"I am counting on this sword to help the Purple Firmament Institute make a comeback. For that reason, let's just call it the Purple Firmament Type 12 flying sword, following the serial number," Yaoguang said.

"Actually, you could name the flying sword after yourself. It's destined to be famous. It would act as your business card," Yun Lai reminded him from the side.

Having a flying sword named with your name on it spread to every corner of the world was the dream of every artifact-refinement master.

"I thought about it, but then I decided against it. This sword... has not yet reached the limit of my artifact refinement skills," Yaoguang said.

Upon hearing this, Zhao He’s eyes brightened slightly. "Then we shall look forward to you developing an even newer fourth-generation flying sword, Chief Yaoguang."

Yaoguang nodded slightly. "I will do my best."

***

That night, Yaoguang set off and returned to the Purple Firmament Institute. Accompanying him was the artifact-refinement master, Yun Lai.

Yun Lai glanced at the surroundings and said with a smile, "If nothing unexpected happens, the order for these three thousand flying swords will fall into the hands of your Purple Firmament Institute. However, while the institute is vast, there are only a few refiners here. You must hurry with recruitment."

Yaoguang quickly realized the situation after hearing this. With the development of Immortal Shadow 60 completed, the Immortal Shadow 70 project was unlikely to be launched in a hurry, leaving Yun Lai with free time for the foreseeable future.

He then smiled and said, "Although the Purple Firmament Institute is about to undergo rapid development, it still lacks a cornerstone figure to sit at the center. I wonder if we can invite Master Yun Lai and your team to join us and coordinate the operations of the institute?"

"My team could hardly be called cornerstones..." Yun Lai responded with some modesty.

After some pleasantries, he eventually agreed to bring his team to the Purple Firmament Institute. For this, Yaoguang offered a three-year contract with a base salary of five hundred spirit stones plus a one percent profit share. artifact-refinement masters were the treasures of every artifact refinement institute; one could not keep them without paying a high price.

During the following period, Yaoguang had Yun Lai help expand the production scale of the Purple Firmament Institute. Meanwhile, he consumed the Indestructible Golden Body Pills he had purchased to increase his cultivation.

Pills costing six hundred spirit stones per bottle were far superior to the Heavenly Being Pills. In just ten days, Yaoguang’s heavenly being body reached the mastery stage. Moreover, as long as he continued to take the Indestructible Golden Body Pills, he would reach the perfection stage in one or two months at most. With his realm already meeting the standards, he would reach the star lord tier soon.

On the third day after Yaoguang reached the eighth realm of body refinement, Zhao He brought good news.

The main branch's Warfare Hall accepted the Purple Firmament Type 12 proposal and set a purchase price of four hundred spirit stones per flying sword. Compared to the Dragon Abyss, the mainstream flying sword among high-tier sword cultivators, the Purple Firmament was superior in every performance metric, so it was not surprising that they offered this price. Yaoguang even felt the price was a bit lower than he had expected. However, considering that the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s ultimate goal in purchasing these swords was to pacify the situation in the East Sea, and since the Nine Heavens Domain was closest to the islands, he accepted the offer.

As the Energy Department cooperated with the Warfare Hall, the first order for six hundred flying swords came in, and the necessary funds were soon released. It was a total of 240,000 spirit stones!

Unfortunately, the transaction was not yet complete, so those stones did not belong to him personally. Otherwise, with such a staggering amount of spirit stones coming in, his Merchant experience would have increased at a staggering rate.

Driven by the motivation of these 240,000 spirit stones, Yaoguang quickly entered the production of the Purple Firmament Type 12 flying swords. With all the artifact refiners at the Purple Firmament Institute working at full capacity, the six hundred flying swords were completed in just two months.