Chapter 376

Chapter 376: A Chance to Increase Power Again

"How did you do it?"

Beichen Ming and Leng Cangqiong nearly asked the exact same question simultaneously once more!

Lou Yun did not immediately answer them. Instead, he first glanced at Yi Xuan, who had fallen asleep. Before one could perceive the soul, the magical weapon in the dantian was absolutely vital to a person—it could practically be considered a second soul. Now that Yi Xuan’s second soul had just undergone a cataclysmic transformation, it was entirely natural for him to collapse into deep slumber.

Assured that Yi Xuan’s evil weapon had been fully transformed into a magical weapon by him, and foreseeing no major issues in the future, Lou Yun stood up. He gently lifted Yi Xuan with both hands and carefully laid him on the bed.

Standing motionless, Lou Yun stared at Yi Xuan for a long while before suddenly shaking his head. "What a pity, what a shame!"

"What’s a pity?"

Leng Cangqiong and Beichen Ming exchanged baffled glances, unable to fathom any unfortunate aspect. Yi Xuan had turned misfortune into fortune—not only had his innate constitution improved, but he had also condensed a magical weapon. This was overwhelmingly lucky; how could there be room for regret?

Of course, they did not know the magical weapon inside Yi Xuan had been forged not from pure spiritual energy, but from the all-encompassing energy of the world. Had Yi Xuan been able to cultivate by absorbing world energy like Lou Yun, this magical weapon might have retained its form, and his future achievements could even surpass Lou Yun’s!

After all, a magical weapon condensed from world energy unleashed vastly greater power and force than one formed from spiritual energy.

But Yi Xuan currently lacked the capacity to absorb world energy for cultivation, which was why Lou Yun lamented the loss!

Lou Yun saw his two brothers growing restless and responded with a faint smile. He waved Yi Ru over, took her hand, led her to them, and had her sit down before speaking quietly. "First brother, Second brother, please be patient. Once I transform Yi Ru’s evil weapon too, I will address all your questions in detail."

Though Leng Cangqiong and Beichen Ming were bursting with curiosity, they recognized this as a secondary concern to Yi Ru’s immediate transformation. Resigned, they suppressed their questions and nodded.

Lou Yun himself rushed against time, sensing his own near-perfect state would not last. He had to alter Yi Ru’s weapon before it vanished, or unforeseen issues might arise.

Having done this once already and being at his peak, the conversion of Yi Ru’s evil weapon happened effortlessly, completing in much shorter time.

He placed the sleeping Yi Ru onto another bed and signaled his brothers. They tiptoed out of the room.

Yi Jin Guan had been guarding the door outside and sprang up at its faint creak. But before he spoke, he recognized Lou Yun’s beaming face—confirming the outcome.

Lou Yun patted Yi Jin Guan’s shoulder. "Brother Yi, it’s done. From now on, both can cultivate magical weapons. Soon, I’ll provide two sets of techniques: one for magical weapons, one for common weapons. I’ll have them delivered. I ask that you oversee their training—they must practice both magical and ordinary skills concurrently. Do not neglect either. Remember this above all!"

While Lou Yun explained, Yi Jin Guan kept nodding, then abruptly halted and gaped at him.

"W-wait, Brother Lou… w-what did you say?" he stammered unsteadily. "That… that both will cultivate magical weapons?! How?! Have they truly… condensed their own magical weapons?!"

That Leng Cangqiong and Beichen Ming—who witnessed it—struggled to accept this reality made Yi Jin Guan’s disbelief far greater.

He’d trusted Lou Yun could only heal the children to their prior state—free of evil weapons—allowing them to refine common weapons and become common weapons masters like him someday. Lou Yun hadn’t just stripped their evil weapons away, though… he had crafted magical weapons. This shattered Yi Jin Guan’s conception entirely!

Lou Yun smiled warmly as he nodded. "Yes. Explaining this may grow lengthy—I’ll do it another time. They remain asleep; let them wake naturally. Check on them if you wish… but remember, Brother Yi: they must practice both spirit and common skills! Neither path is optional! Now… I must go."

After that, Lou Yun spun swiftly away. Leng Cangqiong and Beichen Ming each offered Yi Jin Guan a quiet nod and hurried after Lou Yun.

Stunned and silent, Yi Jin Guan lingered until thumping his head. He then dashed inside to see the children.

Both slept soundly, faces rosy and smiles angelic. Trembling, Yi Jin Guan rested his hands on their small bellies. The pulsing energy from the dantian region—indeed, a magical weapon! This was real! Ecstasy flooded him. As one born unable to form a magical weapon, Yi Jin Guan had resigned himself to being a common weapons master. He’d gained a measure of renown, yet knew he would never attain the highest echelons—a lifelong regret. Seeing his children now wielding magical weapons meant they would never tread his limited route. Tears flowed freely then.

Yet Yi Jin Guan couldn’t fathom that in time, this pair of children would trail close behind their master… scaling the summit of Spirit Weapon Star.

…

Back in his quarters with two brothers ready to throttle answers out of him, Lou Yun chuckled. "Forgive me—wait just a moment. During their transformations, I gained insight of my own. It appears… I can now advance my magical weapon realm further! This time, up to Earth level!"

Lou Yun’s words froze Leng Cangqiong and Beichen Ming mid-action. They stared at him as if confronting a monster. "S-so little training… can raise your magical weapon’s major realm?!"

While small steps—like climbing from one-star to five-star levels—required mere effort to achieve, major realms signified quantum-leap breakthroughs. Gaps between such stages often spanned a decade; worse, higher levels demanded exponentially more time.

Lou Yun had devoured heavenly fire and elevated to human level barely six months prior. Now, a month later… Earth level? This speed was not just fast—it was terrifying.

"Correct!" Lou Yun affirmed. "Truth told, this shouldn’t have happened so soon. But I learned: an evil weapon contains intensely pure sinister energy. After absorbing both children’s sinister energies into my world energy, my magical weapon hit saturation. And so… advancement began anew."

Others cultivated via spiritual or sinister energy, yet natural environments never yielded pure forms. In gathering them, the process also drew impurities. Be it evil or magical weapons, however, they formed only after endlessly compressing energy and expelling all impurities—leaving behind the most refined, untainted variants. Thus, these weapons embodied ultimate purity.

Much like spiritual crystals—which house spiritual energy but rank by purity—variation abounded. Consider two crystals of identical size: while a mere first-rank piece held little use, a ninth-rank one overflowed. If a ninth-rank gem fully replenished one’s core, a first-rank stone would demand countless millions to match it.

Those evil weapons were comparable to ninth-rank crystals. Lou Yun absorbed dual surges of pure sinister energy and fused them into his world energy, rocketing his magical weapon’s progress to this imminent threshold.

Shocked they were, yet both brothers trusted Lou Yun. "Must we guard as you ascend now?" they offered.

"No. I’ll delay it," Lou Yun refused plainly. "This growth feels unnervingly rapid—likely harmful. Set that aside. Brothers… ask what you crave to know."

Freed to inquire, Leng Cangqiong and Beichen Ming unleashed their questions like torrents…

By that evening, Lou Yun had finally dismissed them. Calling urgently for paper and brush, he crafted two cultivation paths—one spiritual, one common—tailored to Yi Xuan and Yi Ru’s needs and sent them off via messenger.

Finished at last, he turned to Chang Xiang. "Brother Chang… wait but a moment. First, I’ll summon Little Lan to say farewell before we depart."

"Taking Little Lan?" Chang Xiang snapped from his pondering over Lou Yun’s heaven-defying acts. "You’ve decided? She journeys alongside us?"

"Exactly!" Lou Yun declared, brimming with resolve. "Having conquered one heaven-defying act… I shall conquer another."