Huoxuan estimated that with a sword of the Dark Moon Greatsword's caliber, merely leaving her own imprint on it would take at least a full week.
Completing the refinement in half a day?
She wouldn't even dare imagine it.
But when she thought of Arthur's unfathomable strength, she felt it was… somehow understandable—
No, it wasn't!
Why did his Dark Moon Greatsword already have a spirit?
She'd been so focused on marveling at the sword's extraordinary material that only now did she notice the faint spiritual glow surrounding it—the unmistakable sign of a nascent weapon spirit.
Her own natal flying sword had taken nearly twenty years of careful nurturing. Even with her status as an Artifact Refining Elder, she'd needed a steady supply of precious materials from the sect just to cultivate its spirit.
So why did Arthur's sword gain one the moment refinement finished?
She couldn't accept this.
"…Then I won't disturb you while you try sword flight."
With that, Huoxuan summoned her flying sword and shot off like she was fleeing.
She needed to leave this place immediately—stay any longer and her mentality would collapse.
Arthur, unaware of her inner turmoil, assumed she was simply eager to study the glintstone crystal he'd given her.
After Huoxuan left, Arthur began testing sword flight.
The Dark Moon Greatsword's speed exceeded his expectations. In under a minute, he'd circled the entirety of Mount Shu's cave-heaven.
He made a rough estimate—around 600 kilometers per hour, roughly ten times the speed of a standard flying broom. If this were used in Quidditch, the match would be over the moment it began.
And this wasn't even its top speed.
This was Arthur's first flight, and his control was still crude. Once he mastered sword flight, he was confident the speed could at least double.
As for testing the sword's destructive power—he didn't dare. He didn't want to accidentally cleave off a mountain or two from Mount Shu.
After all, even before refinement, the Dark Moon Greatsword could level a small mountain with its skill. Now, combined with sword flight techniques, its power was on an entirely different tier.
When Arthur returned, Hermione immediately leaned in.
"Arthur, how did organizing the contents of those jade slips go?"
With Huoxuan present earlier, she hadn't found a chance to ask.
"All done. I archived everything into the iPad and sent copies to both of you. Just remember—no sharing them outside."
These were Mount Shu's inheritances. As guest elders, they had no right to disseminate them.
Hermione nodded and pulled her own iPad from her extension pouch, flipping through the files.
As an aside, Hermione's pouch had been crafted by Arthur before their trip, purely for convenience. Ranni had one as well.
But after only a few pages, Hermione closed the device.
She couldn't understand most of it.
Though she had learned Chinese, Daoist terminology left her completely lost—nine holes open, one sealed shut.
Back in the library, she'd managed that fire spell jade slip only because it was designed for beginners at the Essence-Refining stage and explained things plainly.
She looked at Arthur pitifully.
He immediately understood and chuckled.
"Can't make sense of it?"
Hermione nodded.
Arthur patted her head gently.
"Start with the Daoist classics. If you don't understand something, just ask me."
She nodded again and plunged back into study.
Two days later, Arthur bid farewell to Mount Shu.
They had stayed long enough—it was time to move on to their next destination.
Arthur had wanted to say goodbye to Li Xuánjiàn as well, but even by the time they departed, neither Li Xuánjiàn nor his master had emerged from seclusion.
In the end, Arthur left behind a letter instead.
What he didn't know was that not long after they left, Qingxuan Daoist and Li Xuánjiàn emerged.
Strictly speaking, they hadn't even been in seclusion—Qingxuan had simply found his defeat at Hermione's hands too humiliating and dragged Li Xuánjiàn into hiding.
Naturally, Arthur and the others never learned this.
Leaving Mount Shu's cave-heaven, the three took out the flying carpet and headed toward Kunlun.
They hadn't gone far when Huoxuan came chasing after them on her flying sword.
"Sister Huoxuan? Why are you out here? Something else you need?" Arthur asked.
"Nothing special. Just figured you're unfamiliar with the place and could use a guide, so I came along."
Arthur went silent.
Hadn't she said earlier that she hadn't left the sect in ages?
Would this guide lead them into some remote ravine instead?
"And didn't you say two elders always accompany you when you go out? I don't see anyone else. You didn't sneak out, did you?"
Arthur's spiritual sense detected only Huoxuan. Unless Mount Shu had someone who could evade even his perception—which seemed unlikely.
"Aren't you three my escorts?" Huoxuan pointed at them.
"I told the sect master I'd act as your guide, and he approved it immediately."
From Dao Xuan's perspective, with Arthur around, safety wasn't an issue in the slightest—so he hadn't assigned anyone else.
Arthur thought it over. Even if Huoxuan hadn't traveled in years, she was still far more familiar with the country than they were.
And since Arthur had no idea where phoenixes might appear in Kunlun, having someone to consult would help.
Just like that, their travel party gained one more member.
"Oh, right—where are you heading next?" Huoxuan asked as she settled onto the flying carpet.
"Kunlun. We're hoping to run into a phoenix," Arthur replied.
"Kunlun's massive. Finding a phoenix there won't be easy," Huoxuan said. "By the way, are you in a rush?"
"Not really. Why?"
If they were in a hurry, they wouldn't be using a flying carpet in the first place.
Huoxuan scratched her head sheepishly.
"It's just… I've been stuck in the sect too long. I want to visit some cities first. How about we stop in town for a couple of days?"
Arthur was tempted.
Since arriving in the country, he'd only had a quick breakfast in the city before heading straight to Mount Shu. He hadn't actually explored at all.
Travel wasn't just about scenery—it was also about food and local culture.
Flying straight to destinations saved time, but even landscapes grew dull eventually.
So Arthur adjusted their route.
They had plenty of time.
They'd set out in late June, spent over a week at Mount Shu, and it was only early July now.
With two months before term began, they could travel at leisure.
The four departed from the Sichuan–Chongqing region, heading north.
Whenever they encountered a city, they stopped for a few days—sampling local cuisine, learning customs, enjoying the rhythm of daily life.
In this way, moving slowly and stopping often, it took them over a month to finally reach the foot of the Kunlun Mountains.
The Kunlun range stretches from the eastern Pamirs across three provinces, spanning roughly 2,500 kilometers, with an average elevation of 5,500–6,000 meters and a width of 130–200 kilometers—covering more than 500,000 square kilometers.
In the nation's cultural history, Kunlun is revered as the Ancestor of All Mountains, also called the Root of the Dragon Veins.
Ancient myths speak of a deity dwelling within—the Queen Mother of the West, with a human face and leopard body, attended by two blue birds.
A Daoist proper deity, she governs ascension alongside the Eastern King.
Arthur had no intention of verifying how much of that was real.
He hadn't even explored the space beyond the Death God's altar yet—probing the truth of an immortal realm could wait.
After all, mythology spoke of 365 celestial deities. With his current power, whether he could even defeat Death itself was uncertain.
Provoking an entire mythological system was unwise.
At the moment, the four rested beside a river at Kunlun's base.
Huoxuan gazed at the endless mountains, then turned to Arthur.
"Little brother, Kunlun's huge. Where do we even start looking for a phoenix?"
"Sister, shouldn't I be asking you that?" Arthur sighed.
"And didn't you say you were our guide? Also—why do you call Hermione and Ranni 'young ladies,' but add little when you address me?"
Huoxuan burst into laughter.
"I don't know where the phoenixes are either! And as for you—I'm used to it. If you don't like it, I can change."
Not a shred of embarrassment on her face.
Arthur could only sigh again.
After a month together, he'd thoroughly grasped Huoxuan's personality.
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