Chapter 313 : Refining the Treasure Ship, Developing Tianxu State

The Tianxu Province alone, with a territory slightly larger than the combined 3 provinces, nurtured rare resources such as spirit herbs, mineral veins, and demonic beasts.

The 3 states needed the resources of Tianxu State, while Tianxu State required the cultivators from the 3 states—1 might say they depended on each other for survival.

However, this territory was far too vast, and the distance between the 2 sides was far too great. A single round trip often required 5 or 6 years of arduous travel.

For Qi Refinement cultivators with a lifespan of merely over a 100 years, this was far too protracted and arduous.

At this thought, everyone fell into deep contemplation.

Chen Changxuan swept his gaze over the assembly and declared, "Through several beast tide onslaughts, we have successively seized over a dozen third-order demon beast carcasses."

"If we gather a large quantity of Rank 1 spirit wood and prioritize scale over speed and combat capability, we could refine several medium-to-large treasure ships."

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces lit up with joy.

Xu Daoyuan (Person Name), who was also an artificer, nodded and couldn’t help but exclaim with delight, “If we use the bones of a third-order demon beast as the keel and incorporate a large quantity of low-grade spirit wood, we can forge a third-grade treasure ship.”

"This treasure vessel is relatively weak in combat, with a speed of merely 10 1000 miles per day, yet it is fully capable of carrying over 5 100 low-level cultivators."

Lyra's eyes lit up as she looked at Elara and asked, "How many third-order demon beast dragon bones do we currently have left here?"

"Many of the bones were previously refined into magical instruments." Elara calculated briefly before stating, "Only 3 remaining skeletons are now suitable for crafting into a treasure ship."

"3 precious ships alone are far from sufficient." Lyra shook her head, her gaze sweeping over the assembly. "Your respective clans previously exchanged for some Third-Order demon beast remains as well. I wonder how much still remains in your possession now."

The old clan leader smiled faintly and replied calmly, "Our Chen Clan possesses 4 third-order skeletons suitable for crafting treasure ships."

Everyone chimed in with their own accounts, and they soon discovered that the combined clans of the Sky Ruins Alliance still possessed a total of 12 demon beast skeletons.

12 demon beast skeletons were sufficient to refine 12 treasure ships, capable of transporting 6,000 cultivators in a single voyage.

Once these treasure ships are forged, they will be able to establish multiple routes within the territory of the Sky Ruins Alliance, thoroughly interconnecting the spiritual mountains of all the great families.

Eldrin calculated and found that across the 4 provinces of the Sky Ruins Alliance, there were 37 third-grade spirit veins and over a 100 second-grade spirit veins.

There were over a 100 1000 cultivators gathered here. Once these routes were established, even charging just 10 spirit stones per person would yield an immense fortune.

If Qi Refining cultivators only returned to their clan once every 10 years, with an estimated annual flow of 20,000 visits, they would likely generate 200,000 spirit stones in revenue each year.

After deducting the cost of using the spiritual vein's energy to recharge the treasure ship, the annual profit still reached 100,000 spirit stones. Over a century, this would amount to a business generating 10,000,000 spirit stones in profit.

It must be understood that although the Chen Clan was 1 of the most elite Purple Mansion immortal families, with spiritual veins and earth veins rivaling those of weaker Golden Core clans, their annual income amounted to merely 70 to 80 1000 spirit stones.

Everyone present began calculating in their minds, each feeling a stirring of temptation.

Yet they understood full well that while the sum appeared vast, not just anyone could claim a share of the spoils.

With Lyra (Person Name), a Golden Core Ancestor, and Eldrin (Person Name), whose strength rivaled that of a Golden Core cultivator, present, this business opportunity was certainly beyond their reach.

However, since the beast bones in his hands could be refined into a treasure ship, Xavier still held some hope. He couldn't resist asking, "May I ask, Honored Ancestor, how are the shipping routes and business operations for these treasure vessels arranged?"

Eldrin exchanged a glance with Lyra. After all, they still needed the treasure ships of the celestial clans. Thus, he declared, "For these shipping routes, the Violet Manor celestial clans possessing treasure ships may also claim a share of the business."

"You can contract the flight routes, but you must hand over 50 percent of the profits as the contracting fee."

Everyone nodded in agreement. There were 12 treasure ships in total, with the Chen Clan and Lyra (Person Name) claiming 7, while immortal clans like the Pan and Xu families combined could produce 5.

For immortal clans like the Xus, possessing even a single treasure ship meant they could secure an annual income of 5,000 spirit stones—a substantial gain, despite surrendering half the profits.

Although this amount would still need to cover various expenditures such as stipends for clan members, distributing allowances to the clan was in itself a necessary expense.

What the great immortal clans truly fear is not the distribution of allowances, but the inability to provide them. If there aren't enough positions to assign to the clan's cultivators, that family would truly be living off its dwindling resources, inevitably destined to decline over time.

The Chen Clan and Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location) were no exception—operating the trade routes required cultivators, and safeguarding the treasure ships demanded a considerable number of them as well. A designated portion of these profits would be allocated and distributed as official stipends.

Since they had decided to establish the route, the group immediately returned to the clan to begin gathering materials for refining the treasure ship.

Forging a massive treasure ship required the consumption of vast quantities of first-grade spirit wood. A single vessel demanded over 10,000 logs of first-grade spirit wood. Even with the influence of the Chen Family, gathering such an immense amount of spirit wood in a short time was nearly impossible.

Fortunately, the Greenleaf Bamboo of Mount Qingyang was renowned throughout the Chu Kingdom. Lyra had tens of thousands of them felled and gathered massive quantities of first-order spirit wood, finally securing all the necessary materials.

This third-grade treasure ship was not particularly difficult to refine, yet it demanded an immense amount of time and effort. While Eldrin and Lyra did not personally undertake the task, they mobilized over a 100 artifact forgers and formation masters from the Chen Clan and the Tianxu Alliance.

The artificers carved low-grade formation patterns onto each piece of spiritwood, while a third-rank artificer oversaw the overall structure and design. After more than a year of meticulous work, they finally succeeded in constructing these 7 treasure ships.

The other major clans, though proceeding at a slower pace, also succeeded in refining it after expending over 2 years.

Once these treasure ships were forged, they immediately began operation, and cultivators from the 3 provinces started entering the Tianxu Province.

For a time, with the influx of numerous cultivators, the development of Tianxu Prefecture accelerated severalfold. In just a few years, new small spirit stone mines had already been excavated.

Just as the major immortal clans were carrying out the development of Tianxu Province in full swing, the high-level cultivators of the Tianxu Alliance had all entered seclusion.

Xavier, Patriarch Fang, Elara, and the others were all nourishing their meridians, awaiting the next opportunity to assault the Golden Core.

The Old Patriarch also engaged in relentless arduous cultivation, striving to reach the Great Perfection of the Purple Mansion as soon as possible in order to assail the Golden Core Realm.

Eldrin (Person Name) finally found respite from his hectic schedule, ready to advance his final Natal Magic Treasure.

Now, his Sky-Severing Twin Swords, Earth-Sovereign Bell of Honor, and Water-Lotus Throne of Azure had all advanced to the fourth rank, with only the Magnetic Treasure Mirror failing to achieve its ascension.

This time, he and Lyra had obtained 4 Void Gems. 3 of them were forged into Teleportation Array Disks, while Eldrin kept the remaining 1 specifically to advance the Primordial Magnetic Treasure Mirror.

This Magnetism Treasure Mirror restrains all metal-attributed magical treasures and supernatural powers. If a Void Gem (Spiritual Object) is integrated into it, it will gain the wondrous ability to suppress and seal opponents.

Chapter 1 The biting cold wind swept across the mountain peaks, howling like countless blades scraping across the rocks. Lin Xuan stood at the edge of the cliff, his robes fluttering wildly in the gust. He gazed into the distance, his eyes as deep as the starry sky. "1 100 years had passed." He murmured to himself, his voice barely audible over the wind. In his palm rested a faintly glowing spirit stone—a Middle-Grade Spirit Stone, to be precise. It was the reward he had received for completing the sect's mission. "32,000 spirit stones," he calculated silently. "Just enough to exchange for the third layer of the 'Primal Chaos Codex'." The Primal Chaos Codex was a legendary cultivation technique said to have been created by an ancient supreme elder. It was divided into 9 layers, each more profound and powerful than the last. Reaching the third layer would allow him to condense a Golden Core, a milestone that countless cultivators dreamed of achieving. Suddenly, a sharp voice cut through the wind. "Lin Xuan! Hand over the spirit stone, and we might let you leave unharmed!" 3 figures emerged from the shadows, their auras sharp and menacing. The leader was a tall, thin man with a sinister smile. He was Wang Lin (Person Name), a disciple from the rival Burning Flame Sect. Lin Xuan's expression remained calm. "If you want it, come and take it." Wang Lin sneered. "Arrogant fool! Do you really think you can defeat the 3 of us alone?" He gestured, and his 2 companions spread out, surrounding Lin Xuan. The air grew heavy with the pressure of their spiritual energy. Lin Xuan's eyes narrowed. He knew this fight was inevitable. With a thought, he summoned the Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss (Magic Treasure). The sword glowed with a faint crimson light, its edge sharper than a dragon's fang. "Since you seek death," Lin Xuan said coldly, "I shall grant your wish." He moved like lightning, the Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss leaving a trail of fire in its wake. The first cultivator barely had time to react before the sword pierced his chest. He collapsed, his eyes wide with disbelief. Wang Lin's face paled. "You... you've reached the Foundation Establishment stage!" Lin Xuan didn't answer. He turned to the second cultivator, his movements fluid and precise. The Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss danced through the air, each strike carrying the force of a raging inferno. The second cultivator tried to block, but his weapon shattered under the impact. He was sent flying, crashing into a nearby tree with a sickening crunch. Only Wang Lin remained. He trembled, his earlier confidence gone. "Please... spare me! I was forced to do this!" Lin Xuan looked at him, his eyes cold. "The path of cultivation is fraught with peril. You made your choice." With a swift motion, he ended Wang Lin's life. The 3 cultivators lay dead at his feet, their blood staining the ground. Lin Xuan sheathed his sword. He felt no joy in the kill, only a sense of weary resignation. This was the law of the cultivation world—the strong preyed on the weak. He glanced at the spirit stone in his hand. "32,000 spirit stones... enough to take the next step." He turned and walked away, his figure disappearing into the mist-shrouded mountains. Somewhere in the distance, a lone eagle cried, its voice echoing through the endless sky. For thousands of years, countless cultivators had walked this path, seeking immortality and power. But only a handful would ever reach the pinnacle. Lin Xuan was determined to be 1 of them. His journey had only just begun.