Having cultivated myself into an immortal, all I want to do is raise female disciples.

The young man, with his legs crossed, looked at the disheveled boy who was eating instant noodles nonchalantly next to the smelting furnace not far away, dressed like a beggar.

The boy glanced at the young man disdainfully, adopting an attitude of not wanting to bother with him, and continued to enjoy the food in front of him.

He slurped down the last mouthful of chewy, golden gluten, then tilted his head back and drank the rich, fragrant broth from the bucket. With practiced ease, he tossed the empty instant noodle bucket into a nearby trash can.

"So, what do you want from me this time?" The boy wiped his mouth with the cloth from his sleeve without any regard for his image, staring disdainfully at Yunping who was shaking his leg incessantly. "I remember I just made you a scabbard a while ago, right? You're really exploiting your labor."

"Isn't it because I have a new magical artifact that I want you to take a look at? Besides, you might not even get a few jobs in a month or two. You live like a salted fish that can't turn over. Where did this talk of exploiting labor come from?"

The boy sneered, "Heh, if we're talking about salted fish, aren't you saltier than me? You have so many things to do, why did you have to come here and open an academy?"

"That's called advocating freedom. What do you know about Rasengan?"

"cut."

The boy knew that if he continued to argue with this fool, it would probably last until the end of the world. So he stretched out his hand to Yunping and said indifferently, "Give it to me, the new magic weapon you mentioned."

Yun Ping chuckled, took out the arm armor-style magic weapon he had modified from his storage ring, and tossed it to the boy in front of him.

He was actually quite confident in his forging skills. Although he couldn't compare to the guy in front of him who had become a saint through forging, the magical artifacts he created were at least presentable.

The boy took the arm armor artifact, his expression slightly trembling, and then his seemingly long-dead eyes slowly revealed a dazzling light.

He examined the artifact repeatedly, his voice tinged with excitement. "Although the craftsmanship is a bit rough, the idea is quite novel. This type of artifact is different from swords, spears, and halberds; it can truly be called a new type of artifact."

"The workmanship is a bit rough... Are you mocking me?"

The boy glanced at Yun Ping, whose face was covered in black lines, then at the arm armor artifact in his hand. After half a second, he nodded expressionlessly, "Yes."

The old rogue silently rolled up his sleeves, looking like he was about to fight him.

However, the boy didn't care at all, as if he was sure that the old rogue wouldn't fight him. His eyes were completely attracted to the magical artifact in front of him. His almost obsessive and serious appearance was quite different from the slovenly boy he had been before.

Without even glancing at Yunping, he said, "Anyway, I'll take this job. It's just a matter of helping you make some minor improvements. Don't worry, I still have plenty of materials left. Consider it a bonus when you bring me the new instant noodles."

"Oh? That's so kind?" Yunping was a little surprised. He had already prepared to bring out a few more boxes of mushroom and chicken noodle soup, but he didn't expect that this kid, Duan Sheng, would help him for free this time.

It seems that the allure of the new magical artifacts is no less than that of instant noodles for him.

In this way, Zhang Ruoxue's new magical artifacts could finally be enhanced by the Forging Saint. In other words, all the disciples of his Yuntian Academy now had magical artifacts forged by the Forging Saint.

This is absolutely unique in such a vast empire.

You should know that countless people in the three heavenly domains dream of having the Forging Saint forge a unique magic weapon for them. Even the "trash" that this kid forges casually is a king-grade magic weapon. When he's serious, he can easily create a heaven-grade magic weapon. If he has enough materials, he can even conjure up a saint-grade magic weapon for you.

If this kid hadn't become a lazy bum and been too lazy to try and break through to the half-immortal realm, he probably wouldn't even have a chance to get an immortal-grade magic weapon.

"Alright, then I'll leave it to you." Yunping stepped forward, patted the boy on the shoulder, and asked, "Approximately when can I come to pick it up?"

The boy didn't even bother to turn around and look at him, his tone icy cold: "One month."

Yunping was somewhat surprised: "So long?"

"Nonsense, of course I have to think about this new magic artifact a bit. The reason I've only worked on it for a month is because I'm confident. If it were someone else, they might not be able to do it even in a lifetime."

—That's not an exaggeration at all. Yunping only dared to entrust this new type of magical artifact to the Forging Saint. He didn't have much confidence in other craftsmen.

A month...that's just right.

Yunping smiled and remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Having resolved the issue of the ritual implements, he slowly rose from the stool, preparing to proceed to the next location.

—In fact, his trip to the city was just a side trip; his main purpose was to take Ye Yuchan to the Lei Yu Sect.

After all, there are acquaintances there.

That being said—

Staring at the deserted street, Ye Yuchan, who hadn't said much, frowned curiously.

She turned around and looked at the boy curiously, "Speaking of which, why is there hardly anyone in Jinglin City today?"

"There's hardly anyone on this street to begin with, is there?" Yunping interjected.

"But when I passed by the shopping street just now, I noticed that all the shops there seemed to have closed down..."

"Maybe the City Lord's Mansion is up to something again? Or maybe the city management officers are here or something..."

Ye Yuchan glared at Yun Ping, who kept interrupting, then looked at the boy sitting in front of the smelting furnace.

The boy finally recovered from that strange state. He slowly raised his head and looked at Ye Yuchan and Yunping with a puzzled expression.

"You two...don't know?"

Ye Yuchan was taken aback. "Know what?"

Yunping silently spread his hands, indicating that he had no idea what the boy was talking about.

Seeing their reaction, the young Forging Saint scratched his head and looked at them with disdain. "Are you two really savages from the mountains? With all the commotion in Jinglin City lately, you haven't heard a thing?"

"So what exactly happened?" The old rogue slowly straightened his expression, vaguely sensing that things didn't seem so simple.

The boy lowered his head and pondered for a few seconds, seemingly organizing his thoughts, before recounting the events of the past few days in a calm tone.

"It seems that the original giant of Jinglin City, Lei Yu Sect, has fallen apart. Lei Yu Sect was disbanded on the spot, the sect leader retired, and all the disciples went to join other sects. Then Lei Yu Sect's mountain gate was in trouble."

"Something happened?"

A sense of foreboding rose in Yunping's heart; he seemed to already know what had happened.

—Could it really be such a coincidence?

The old rogue forcibly suppressed his worries and waited for the boy to tell the rest of the story.

The young man nodded slightly and said, "Something terrible has happened. The area within a hundred miles of the Thunder Feather Sect has been covered by thunder. I heard that the Thunder Feather Sect's mountain gate suddenly turned into a thunder pool, and a dead city emerged from the ground."

"What's your name... the Lightning Strike Sect?" The young man noticed the awkward and complicated expression on Yun Ping's face as he said this, and a bad feeling immediately arose in his mind. "Hey old rascal... this isn't going to have anything to do with you again, is it?"

"If I had to say, it does have a tiny bit to do with me."

Yunping silently extended his index finger and thumb, vividly illustrating what "a tiny bit" means.

However, the truth is quite different—this has a huge connection to Yunping, okay?!

That's the Lightning Sect! It was the first sect that Emperor Wen Xuanlei joined since his appearance in the world, and it was also one of the most glorious sects in the Desolate Heaven Domain!

More importantly, while others might not know, Yun Ping did: the Lightning Thunder Sect still harbored an ancient demon whose strength rivaled that of a Void Realm cultivator…

The boy and Ye Yuchan exchanged a glance. They could both tell that the "tiny bit" Yun Ping mentioned was definitely related to him!

Recalling the events that took place in front of the courtyard house, Ye Yuchan couldn't help but ask, "How come I remember that the Lightning Sect was your former sect, you old rogue?"

"That's true, but this time the direct cause is definitely not me."

Ye Yuchan narrowed her eyes. "You said you were going to take me to the Thunder Feather Sect, right? Were you going there for the Thunder Flash Sect ruins?"

Yunping blinked, pursed his lips, and a slowly awkward smile appeared on his face.

Seeing that smiling face, Ye Yuchan knew that the old rogue was definitely going to take her to that Lightning Sect ruins.

but--

Ye Yuchan sighed and looked at the young Forging Saint again, "And then... if it's just ruins, what does it have to do with so many people disappearing? Are there treasures in the ruins?"

"Whether there are any treasures or not, I really don't know." The young man waved his hand and said indifferently, "But I heard that the people from the City Lord's Mansion have called on all the cultivators in the city to go to that Lightning Sect Ruins, not to plunder treasures, but to hunt down a demonic beast."

"A demonic beast?"

"Yes, it seems to be a demon beast with a cultivation level no lower than the Kaiyuan stage. It appears that the Thunder Pool was created by it. In order to prevent it from harming the people in the city, the city lord's mansion sent people to subdue it."

Upon hearing this, Ye Yuchan lowered her head and murmured, "The Kaiyuan stage, huh? If it's a Kaiyuan stage demon beast, then it is indeed possible to defeat it."

Yunping listened to these words, but dared not utter a single word.

He had no doubt that if he said that the monster was actually a Thunder Demon from the ancient era, with a cultivation level as high as the peak of the Void Realm, and that it could even fight a Forging Saint several times when it went all out... Ye Yuchan probably wouldn't have gone to the Thunder Feather Sect with him, right?

However, the problem is...

How did Xiao Lei wake up so suddenly? And even if he did wake up, how did he bring the ruins of the Lightning Thunder Sect out with him?

I had repeatedly told it that if it woke up, it should not involve the Lightning Sect. Given its personality, it should have listened to me.

This is definitely not normal.

An eerie atmosphere hung over Yunping's mind. He knew that his return to Lei Yu Sect would likely bring more trouble.

Yunping looked at the boy with deep emotion, and after a long while, he inexplicably blurted out a sentence.

"Being a salted fish is actually quite difficult."

Forging Saint, Ye Yuchan: "..."

68. A potential star in the women's apparel industry?

After bidding farewell to the young forging master, Yun Ping took Ye Yuchan and set off for the Thunder Feather Sect.

To be more precise—the former Lei Yu Sect.

It was once a grand sect standing on the distant border outside Jinglin City, but unfortunately, everything there has changed.

The sect leader of Lei Yu Sect was crippled and went into seclusion. His disciples scattered and fled to other sects. The foundation that had been accumulated over a long period of time was wiped out overnight, and the once behemoth collapsed into dust in an instant.

It must be said that Lei Yuzong's situation is truly lamentable.

Before the other sects in Jinglin City could mobilize to plunder the Lei Yu Sect's legacy, a terrifying lightning bolt descended from the sky, covering an area of ​​a hundred miles and turning every living being in the vicinity into ashes.

Meanwhile, the Lightning Sect, which had been destroyed hundreds of years ago and disappeared into the annals of history for unknown reasons, has reappeared in the eyes of the world as a ruin.

The sunlight shone down unhindered onto the scorched earth.

Stepping onto the soft ground that exuded a strange aura, the young man, dressed in a white robe that clashed with the endless darkness around him, looked around with a sense of感慨 (gǎnkǎi - mixed feelings of emotion and reflection).

"Just like that kid said, we've only just left Jinglin City and haven't gone very far."

Yunping reached out and grabbed the soft soil on the ground, which looked as if it had been dismantled, and the smell of burnt black soil filled his nostrils.

Just like that kid said, this land has already been tainted by the Thunder Pool.

However, Lei Yuzong is still quite a distance away. Therefore, it seems that the only one capable of causing such a strange phenomenon is Little Lei Zi.

Why did it suddenly awaken? And why did it bring the ruins of the Lightning Sect to the world?

Yunping was unaware that all he wanted to do now was to meet Xiao Leizi in person and get to the bottom of things.

Ye Yuchan followed closely behind Yun Ping. For some reason, when she stepped onto this scorched soil, the thunderous energy hidden deep within her began to surge involuntarily.