Chapter 132 The Spider Cave
"The cave is too small to display the power of the magical artifact. Please come with me, my two junior brothers."
As Zhao Lei spoke, he strode towards the outside of the cave, followed by the other two.
In his hand appeared a small, square flag, about the size of a palm, with a dark gold surface painted with golden lotuses and qilin beasts, exuding auspicious energy.
Upon arriving outside the cave, Zhao Lei stopped and proudly stated:
"The method of refining the Apricot Yellow Flag was obtained by the sect's patriarch during his travels in the Central Continent. It is said to be a replica of the innate spiritual treasure, the Wuji Apricot Yellow Flag."
It can not only block attacks from magical artifacts, but also block all kinds of magical light and sword light.
Theoretically speaking, as long as the magic power is sufficient, even enemies several minor realms higher would find it difficult to break through its defenses.
"My two junior brothers, feel free to attack."
He made a hand seal, and the small flag immediately grew larger and was held in his hand. The next moment, it released a yellow light that surrounded him, and lotus flowers bloomed in the air.
Compared to magical artifacts that cannot change their form, spiritual artifacts have the ability to change size at will, making them easier to control.
It is said that the magical artifacts of Golden Core cultivators can even take human form after years of refinement.
Like a divine dragon that can be large or small, can rise or hide, it can stir up clouds and mist when it is large, and hide its form when it is small, truly achieving the ability to change size at will.
"Senior brother, you are a weapon refiner, so you must have many high-level magical artifacts at your disposal. How about you use them to launch an attack?"
Ji An only had the Mountain and River Seal and the Stone Turtle Shield, both small gadgets used in the Qi Refining stage, so he didn't want to embarrass himself by taking them out.
"A set of high-grade magic artifacts that my senior brother commissioned was completed a few days ago. Today, I'll test its capabilities."
Zhang Yuanshan nodded slightly, then laughed loudly:
"Senior Brother Zhao, this is not fair. Your Apricot Yellow Banner is a spiritual artifact. Of course, we have no advantage in attacking with a magic weapon."
"I'll only input my mana once. Let's see how long it takes your attacks to wear down this protective aura."
Zhao Lei nodded. If he continued to channel his magic power, his two junior brothers would likely run out of magic power and be unable to do anything to him.
Ji An and his companion split up, forming a pincer movement to launch an attack.
Zhang Yuanshan wielded three cone-shaped magical artifacts, each about the length of an arm, which gleamed with a dull, precious light.
As the magical artifacts flew by, only blurry shadows could be seen appearing and disappearing.
The three magical artifacts swept towards Zhao Lei in a triangular formation, while the golden lotus blooming in the air shifted position to block the incoming artifacts.
The golden lotus, formed from spiritual energy, was pierced by the magical artifact, and its spiritual light dimmed slightly.
As the magical artifact pierced the protective aura, Zhang Yuanshan felt as if the artifact had sunk into a quagmire, and its speed decreased significantly.
"Relying on pure solidity will eventually be pierced by something harder, so the protective aura activated by the Apricot Yellow Banner has the properties of quicksand, with the dual function of defense and delay."
Zhao Lei laughed. He was a weapon refiner and not good at killing, but he believed that when it came to defense, he was among the top cultivators in the late Foundation Establishment stage of the sect.
Zhang Yuanshan controlled the magical artifact to fly back to his side and launched another attack.
This time, the magical artifact began to spin in the air, and flames spewed from its tail. The tip of the artifact was like a red-hot branding iron, and its flying speed increased even further.
As the buzzing sound rang out, the magical artifact pierced the target. The golden lotus outside pierced into the protective light, and the golden lotus that blocked the attack slowly dissipated.
Ji An made a hand seal, and a bright yellow fireball gathered in his hand, faintly emitting a blue flame.
The air was filled with intense heat as fireballs hurtled towards Zhao Lei, who unleashed four explosive fireballs in quick succession.
He used eight-tenths of his strength in this attack.
Seeing that the golden lotus surrounding him had been exhausted and the protective aura had completely dimmed, Zhao Lei laughed:
"We can stop for now. I didn't expect both of my junior brothers' attacks to be so sharp."
His two junior brothers were a spirit farmer and a weapon refiner, and he thought he could hold out for a long time.
Unexpectedly, the magic weapon crafted by Junior Brother Zhang was unique, with an attack power far exceeding that of ordinary high-grade magic weapons, and not far from that of ordinary attack-type spiritual weapons.
The effects of Junior Brother Ji's spells made him secretly alarmed, as if he were facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the mid-to-late stage who practiced fire-based techniques.
After speaking, he changed the hand seals, and the apricot-yellow flag grew larger in the wind, with the flagpole about the height of a person and the flag surface also growing larger.
He flicked it downwards gently, and the handle of the magical artifact sank into the solid stone. The ground beneath his feet turned golden, as if cast in bronze.
"The strongest defensive state of a spiritual artifact is when it is inserted into the earth, at the same time absorbing the earth element spiritual energy from the nearby ley lines to make up for the loss when attacked."
The more abundant the earth elemental energy in the ley lines, the faster the absorption efficiency. If the enemy's attack does not reach a certain level, it can be basically ignored.
"My two junior brothers, please try again."
Ji An and the other man exchanged a glance and continued their attack.
This time, after he cooperated with Zhang Yuanshan to release six explosive fireballs, he barely managed to extinguish the protective aura of the apricot yellow flag.
Zhao Lei gestured for the two to stop attacking, made a hand seal to put away the apricot-yellow flag, and smiled:
"Junior brothers, are you satisfied with the defensive capabilities of this magical artifact?"
His tone was confident. He had crafted this apricot-yellow banner for himself, using the best materials he could find, with the aim of preparing for the impending demonic calamity.
Meanwhile, the handle of the magical artifact has reserved space, so that if better materials can be found in the future, the number of magical restrictions can be added to it, thus upgrading it to a mid-grade quality.
In that case, even if he were to break through to the Chaoyuan stage by chance, he would still be able to use it.
"Extremely satisfied."
Zhang Yuanshan smiled, this was the first time he had experienced the power of a defensive magical artifact, and it certainly did not disappoint him. Such a magical artifact was exactly what he needed.
Ji An smiled and nodded. Putting aside the final defensive mode of drawing a circle on the ground, it was already quite remarkable that the opponent could withstand several attacks from him and Zhang Yuanshan while standing still.
In a battle of magic, one cannot stand still and become a target; one will always use the method of flying to avoid attacks.
For example, with a burst fireball, even if you can't completely dodge it, the difference in damage between a direct hit from a spell and the damage from the aftershock of mana is huge.
"Senior Brother Zhao, how much would it cost to forge a spiritual weapon with similar defensive capabilities to the one you have?"
"Junior Brother's request is quite expensive. It takes several months to refine such a spiritual weapon, and the cost is 1,500 spirit stones."
I don't need the money for the refining process right away, but my junior brother must find the necessary materials himself.
Zhao Lei nodded slightly. Each time he refined a spiritual weapon, he gained a rare insight, so the craftsmanship fee could be paid gradually.
He took out a blank jade slip, entered the required material information into it, and threw it out, saying:
"They are all second-tier spiritual items, and there are quite a few mid-grade second-tier items among them."
We also need to use the silk of the late Foundation Establishment stage Golden Spotted Spider to weave the flag. As far as I know, only Junior Sister Su Yun of the Beast Taming Hall in the sect raises this kind of demon beast.
Junior Sister Suyun is skilled at weaving robes; this banner of mine was made by her. If you want to refine the Apricot Yellow Banner, you'll also need her help.
The cost of weaving the flag was also considerable, but the reason he only charged 1,500 spirit stones for the crafting fee was because the work of weaving the flag was not his responsibility.
Ji An took the jade slip, placed it on his forehead, glanced through it briefly, and nodded slightly.
Most of them are earth-elemental spiritual items, with a few metal-elemental spiritual items. He can gather half of the metal-elemental spiritual items in his possession.
It shouldn't be difficult to find an opportunity to exchange the gold and fire spirit items obtained from Crimson Flame Peak for some earth-element spirit items, so the most urgent task now should be weaving the flag.
"Junior brother, let me make a copy too."
Zhang Yuanshan said that in the future, whether he refines it himself or asks Senior Brother Zhao to refine it, he will need to collect the materials.
Ji An used his object manipulation technique to send the jade slip to the other person's side, then turned and said:
"Senior Brother Zhao, I wonder if you could help introduce me to Senior Sister Suyun?"
He never hesitates to do what he decides to do, and getting the magical artifact sooner makes people feel more at ease.
"Of course, there's no time like the present. Junior Sister Suyun rarely goes out, so as long as Junior Brother is free today, we can set off now."
Zhao Lei said that, within the sect, besides his master, only he himself was a weapon refiner capable of crafting the Apricot Yellow Banner.
If the other party gathers all the materials, they will most likely still ask you to refine it yourself.
He only learned how to refine the Apricot Yellow Flag in recent years and urgently needs to improve his refining experience.
Zhang Yuanshan knew his senior brother Zhao's impulsive nature and shook his head, saying:
"You two are leaving without even having a sip of water. Doesn't that make it seem like I haven't been hospitable enough? Why not have a cup of spiritual tea before you go?"
Ji An smiled and said:
"Since Senior Brother Zhang has been so kind as to invite us, let's just have a cup of spiritual tea. It will only take about 15 minutes."
Zhao Lei scratched his head: "Okay."
In his eyes, drinking tea is not important.
Yunmeng Peak, Pansi Cave.
Ji An controlled the shuttle to slowly descend to the mountainside. Senior Brother Zhao introduced him to the sect's senior sister, and he would naturally be the 'driver'.
When he saw the three large, flowing characters carved on the rock wall above the cave, he fell silent.
A gentle breeze ruffled his hair; these three words held special significance in his memory.
Zhao Lei laughed and said, "Junior Sister Suyun is especially skilled in various spider-like demon beasts, so she named her cave 'Spider Cave,' which is quite fitting."
The magical barriers around the cave slowly opened, and a clear, cold voice rang out:
"Please be seated in the living room. I am currently tending to my beasts and will be able to entertain you in a moment."
Zhao Lei was quite familiar with this and said without any surprise:
“Junior brother, let’s sit down. Junior sister Suyun has a cold personality and has not taken any disciples.”
Ji An looked around. The living room was extremely simple. There were only two plain light blue vases on the stone table, with silver willows inserted in them.
The branches were withered, and the flower buds had dried up, as if they hadn't been replaced for a long time.
Fifteen minutes later, a flash of light appeared at the back of the living room, revealing an archway that could only accommodate two people side by side in what was originally a brick and stone area. A middle-aged female cultivator dressed in a pale yellow robe walked out.
The female cultivator had a cool and aloof expression. Her black hair was tied up high with a yellow jade hairpin inserted in it, and her loose-fitting robe could not hide her proud curves.
Zhao Lei stood up and smiled:
"Junior Sister Liu, let me introduce you. This is Junior Brother Ji An. He wants to refine the Apricot Yellow Banner and needs you to weave the banner surface."
"Greetings, Senior Sister," Ji An cupped his hands in greeting. The female cultivator opposite him exuded the spiritual pressure of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, even stronger than Zhao Lei.
"Please be seated."
Liu Suyun spoke calmly, and then said:
"It will probably be more than ten years before we can buy second-tier golden-spotted spider silk."
The golden-spotted spider I'm raising, which is in the late stage of Foundation Establishment, recently laid eggs and is severely weakened. It's not advisable to force it to continue spinning silk.
(End of this chapter)
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