Chapter 257: Super Tier Weapon Refiner Under the Heavenly Flame!
Boom!!!
In the sky above the desert city and Stone Desert City, three streaks of light raced across the sky, drawing astonished gazes from other Dou Practitioners along the way!
"Look! My god! Two Dou Huang experts are fighting! No—there are three of them!"
"Are you trying to die?! You dare to spectate a battle between Dou Huang experts? Run as far as you can!"
"Wait... I thought the Jia Ma Empire only had ten Dou Huang experts? Why are there three all of a sudden?!"
The three rapidly streaking figures in the sky caused quite a commotion below, and some even mistook it as a battle between Dou Huang experts. After all, with that kind of desperate chase, it was hard not to assume someone was being hunted down.
However, the trio speeding through the sky didn't care about the misunderstandings of the people below. Xiao Yan didn't have the mind to care—he was going all out just to keep up with the two ahead of him. His Dou Qi was operating at overload, his whole body flushed red and his blood vessels bulging. Hai Bodong didn't care either—he was a Dou Huang. As long as he didn't go around slaughtering people, he was essentially a king within the Jia Ma Empire. As for Jiang Lin in the lead, he had no intention of stopping, especially not if it meant letting Hai Bodong catch him and start "hehehe" again. No way that was happening.
In the end, what had originally taken Xiao Yan ten days to travel from Stone Desert City to Desert City was compressed into less than a single day, thanks to Jiang Lin dragging them all along. Hai Bodong ultimately failed to catch Jiang Lin, who successfully preserved his "hehehe."
"Stone Desert City, we've arrived."
A majestic earthen-yellow city emerged on the desert horizon. The trio gradually slowed their flight and began to descend. Flying directly into the city would draw too much attention, and both Jiang Lin and Xiao Yan weren't the showy type.
"You... I've never seen a Da Dou Shi fly faster than a Dou Huang before..."
Hai Bodong dispelled the icy crystal wings behind his back and walked behind Jiang Lin toward the city. His expression showed mixed emotions. Even though he had gone all out with his top speed, he still couldn't catch Jiang Lin's highest burst. Originally, Hai Bodong thought he could rely on his deeper reservoir of Dou Qi to outlast Jiang Lin in endurance.
But in the end, that didn't go as Hai Bodong expected. After maintaining high-speed flight for over an hour, both he and Jiang Lin gave up the meaningless race. They had developed a clear understanding of each other's flight capabilities—and besides, they had to wait for Xiao Yan, who was so far behind he couldn't even see their tail lights. Xiao Yan was in terrible condition and had nearly been left in the dust by the two of them.
"If it were just burst speed, I'd understand. But that endurance of yours... it's just too much."
Hai Bodong could comprehend Jiang Lin's speed—but not his stamina. Where the hell did this guy get so much Dou Qi?
"Haha, wanna learn? I can teach you."
Clad in black armor, Jiang Lin turned his head and grinned at the two walking behind him. His eyes gleamed with an odd glint as he looked Hai Bodong up and down, as if admiring a masterpiece of nature's craftsmanship.
That look made Hai Bodong feel uncomfortable. He instinctively tightened his collar and coughed. "What's with that look? I admit I need high-grade Feather Sheath Wings, but why do you look like you're thinking of doing something to my body?"
"Hehehe."
Jiang Lin just laughed and walked shoulder-to-shoulder with them. "You know about Brother Xiao Huo Huo's Heavenly Flame. It helped me overcome a big hurdle—my weapon refinement tier was limited by my cultivation level. I couldn't refine many high-grade materials, especially sixth or seventh-tier ones."
With the aid of the crystal core, Jiang Lin could barely manage to refine fifth-tier Xuan-class weapons. What had always limited his forging wasn't knowledge or blueprints—it was his smelting capabilities. For instance, he had a piece of material as valuable as Xiao Yan's Heavy Xuan Ruler: a seventh-tier Blazing Flame Goldstone. But he simply couldn't refine it.
(Hmm... the Heavy Xuan Ruler plus the Blazing Flame Goldstone... this just gave me inspiration on how to reforge the ruler.)
"..."
Xiao Yan was helpless about Jiang Lin calling him "Xiao Huo Huo," but he didn't argue—after all, it wasn't technically incorrect.
"But the Heavenly Flame's temperature compensates for that flaw. Now, I can attempt to craft things beyond my current rank," Jiang Lin continued, glancing at the clearly tempted Hai Bodong. "Of course, sixth-tier materials are hard to find—even with my connections in the Blacksmith Guild, it's nearly impossible to obtain them. But fifth-tier materials are much easier. If you're willing, I can forge a fifth-tier Feather Sheath Wing for you—ice-element enhanced, quality on par with a sixth-tier weapon. How's that sound?"
"...That sounds great, obviously. But I don't know what you want in return."
Hai Bodong frowned slightly and turned to look at Jiang Lin. A hint of shock flashed in his eyes. The robust young man before him was confident in crafting fifth—or even sixth—tier weapons. That was something Hai Bodong couldn't even imagine.
Back when they were traveling together, Hai Bodong had been stunned to learn from Xiao Yan that Jiang Lin was the very same "Young Lin" who invented the Feather Sheath Flight Weapons and had united the upper echelons of the Jia Ma Empire. He never imagined that this master weapon refiner would be so young!
"It's simple. Over the next year, just help me with a few Dou Technique experiments. Don't worry, I'm not going to dissect you."
Seeing Hai Bodong's hesitation, Jiang Lin added a line to ease his worries.
"..."
Hai Bodong's face twitched. Honestly, he hadn't been that worried—until Jiang Lin brought it up. Now he couldn't help but imagine something cruel and inhumane.
What he didn't realize was that Jiang Lin's idea wasn't entirely spontaneous—it had been brewing for a while.
Among all the Dou Huang experts Jiang Lin had contact with, Fa Ma held a prestigious status and wouldn't indulge in Jiang Lin's "games." Jia Xingtian from the royal family wasn't someone Jiang Lin was close with. That left Yun Yun, Hu Lei, and Hai Bodong. Yun Yun, as the leader of a sect, was not someone easily persuaded—especially when the experiments involved using someone's body. If word got out, the former sect leader of Yun Lan Sect might just tie him up and beat him herself.
As for Hu Lei, he was both the best and worst candidate. As a fellow weapon refiner, he'd easily notice Jiang Lin's exceptional talent. On top of that, Hu Lei was well-informed about the eight clans—meaning Jiang Lin's secret identity as a Spirit Clan youth could easily be exposed.
(END CHAPTER)
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