Bai Yunfei sat on top of a giant mountain peak. His eyes were closed as he meditated among a cloud of red light.
Soon, the red light around him receded away and the soulforce within his body grew calm. When the flow was all but still, Bai Yunfei finally opened his eyes.
âPhewâŠâ
Exhaling a breath of warm air, Bai Yunfei allowed himself to feel the air and cool down. He looked down at his hands, clenching his fists tightly to test his new strength, he nodded in satisfaction at what he felt.
âA complete recovery. Itâs a good thing there were no irreversible damagesâŠâ
The last battle had taken a lot out of him. Berserk Mode, Soul Ignition, and the Vampiric Demon Edge. These three had a destructive power that couldnât be ignored when used all at once. He didnât even do much to prepare for the aftereffects when the battle was over due to his rush to save Huangfu Rui and Zi Jin. It was only when Zi Jin was saved and he himself woke up the next day that he went into recuperation.
And today, after a whole day and night of resting, he was fully healed.
Things were looking good. Zi Jin was no longer in danger and was actually steadily improving. Huangfu Rui was actually in a very good shape after she absorbed Dongfang Mingâs energy. Just a step shy of being a Late-stage Soul Emperor, Huangfu Rui was now a full-fledged Mid-stage Soul Emperor and overtook Song Lin as the next most promising student of the generation. Even the red magiboar had seen some results and was now a Mid-stage class seven soulbeast.Â
The losses had been as great as the rewards, however. Many of the crafters had been injured, if not killed. Chu Yintian and Yang Yao, for example, lost their strongest soul armaments to Dongfang Ming. Chu Yintian himself had his avatar sacrificed so that he could live and had dropped drastically in strength. Many other crafters would require an extraordinary amount of time to recover.
As of right now, the entire Crafting School was in a state of recovery.
Bai Yunfei wasnât in any rush to leave the Core World right now. Though his wounds were healed, he was still thinking about the recent battles and the experiences he gained from it.
In his last battle with Gu Lianhun, for example, Bai Yunfei felt his understanding of chaotic energy increase by a substantial amount. It was a valuable experience that he deemed worthy of spending time thinking about.
After a while, Bai Yunfei decided to switch topics to something else. Waving his hand, the helix sword popped out from thin air into his hand.
âUpgrade.â
âŠâŠ
A while later.
<table border="1px solid #000000" style="width: initial;height: initial;margin: 0 auto 10px">\nEquipment Grade: High HeavenElemental Affinity: Metal, DarknessUpgrade Level: +11Attack: 8000Additional Attack: 5300Soul Compatibility: 25%Equipment Effect 1: 40$ Chance to inflict Curse. All stats decrease by 35% for up to 20 seconds.Cooldown of 30 seconds.+10 Additional Effect: 30% Chance to strike twice.Cooldown of 10 seconds.Upgrade Requirement: 400 Soulpoints
</tbody>
</table>
Bai Yunfei nodded his head, appreciative of the stats and his own handiwork, âFrom now on, youâll be called the Double Dragon Specter.â
Standing up, Bai Yunfei stored the sword away and glanced over to the small âhutâ by the nearby tree.
âThat Lao Sha,â He muttered, âI wonder what his next evolution is after eating all that energy. How long will he sleep for?â
Shaking his head, Bai Yunfei disappeared from the Core World.
âŠâŠ
The first one to see Bai Yunfei when he appeared back in the real world was Zhang Sanxian. âBrother Bai!â He cried out, âYouâre back! Are you fully healed?â
âAh yes, Iâll just need some more rest to be back at full health.â Bai Yunfei nodded. âSo, are you planning to head into the crafting caves?â
âI am! I have to do my best to train. I want to be able to fight the next time someone else dares fight our school!â
Bai Yunfei noted Zhang Sanxianâs fists clenching tightly as he spoke. When the battle broke out, Zhang Sanxian had been one of the many that were forced to stay on the sidelines and watch as the others fought.
âAh, brother Bai, since youâre here, why donât we head down the mountain? Senior Zhi Tian is planning to leave soon, heâs with the headmaster right now A student came by earlier to notify you, but you were preoccupiedâŠâ
âOh? Senior Zhi Tian and Nalan Yin are leaving? Alright, Iâll head on over then.â
He turned around to head down from the mountain. The only reason their school could prepare for the battle was due to Zhi Tianâs warning. He and Nalan Yin were acquaintances anyhow, so it was only proper that he sent the two off.
Down by the base of the mountain, Bai Yunfei saw Zhi Tian and Nalan Yin turning to leave while Kou Changkong and Xiao Binzi stood by the gates.
The two of them paused when they felt Bai Yunfeiâs presence. Quickly catching up to them, Bai Yunfei bowed deeply to Zhi Tian, âOur school was able to prepare for the worst due to your aid. This junior will pray for your safe trip.â
âHaha, youâve done us soulbeasts a great favor by ridding us of the Beast Taming School, young Bai. A favor like that warrants a favor returned. There is no need for you to thank me.â
ââŠâŠâ
A few words of conversation later, and Bai Yunfei watched as Zhi Tian and Nalan Yin disappear into the distance.
It was only after a considerable distance had been gained between them and the Crafting School that Nalan Yin deigned to speak. âHey, Zhi Tian, did you really mean what you said about returning a favor? Our lives wouldâve been forfeit if the Crafting School didnât manage to hold out!â
âOh?â Zhi Tian raised an eyebrow, âDid you perchance think we would die there?â
âOf course not,â Nalan Yin shrugged, âMaster said before that Iâd live for several hundred years. Thereâs no way Iâd go and get killed before then.â
âThen why speak as you did?â
âWe canât always be so sure. Fate can change at the drop of a hat, thereâs no way of knowing if my âfortuneâ will be as what my master said. Itâs not like I can predict my own fateâand you wonât predict it for me either.â
âThatâs enough. Thereâs no value in such topics. Even had I not gave a warning, the Crafting School would still stand. We only served to expedite the results. Just think of this as something we were âpredestinedâ to do. For us and the world of soul cultivators and soulbeasts, this is something that will bring good âfateâ to us allâŠâ
âWhat!? Arenât you exaggerating? This battle determines the âfateâ of our world? How did you think that?â
âThose are my thoughts. It is a possibility, after allâŠbut thatâs enough talk. Let us hurry.â
âSighâŠwhere are we going next then?â
âThe Soulbeast Forest.â
ââŠâŠâ
âŠâŠ
On his return to the top of the mountain, Bai Yunfei found Li Chengfeng talking with Tang Xinyun and several others. From their conversation, he learned that Huangfu Rui was by herself familiarizing herself with her new powers. Now was an especially precarious time for Huangfu Rui. Having spent so long under the Symbiosis Imprint meant Huangfu Rui had a lot to catch up on.
He also heard that the lord-mayor of Redfire City came by. Because of chaotic incidents caused by several refiners, the lord-mayor was far too busy stabilizing the city and wasnât able to send any reinforcements over to the Crafting School.
âHey, Yunfei, I have a few materials on hand. Mind taking a look to see if you can craft me a soul armament from them?â
Li Chengfeng changed the topic after a while.
âOf course I donât mind.â Bai Yunfei laughed, âIâll naturally help you craft a soul armament. What materials did you bring? Let me take a lookâŠâ
âI found a pyrium meteorite, a chunk of it that took forever for me to find. Can you craft a longsword from it for me?â
A flash of red light appeared over Li Chengfengâs hand as he brought the said item out from his space ring.
A wave of intense heat shot out from the item the moment it appeared.
âPyrium meteorite?! You have some? That thingâs massive!!â
Bai Yunfeiâs eyes grew wide open at the sight of the chunk. It was nearly as tall as he was and half his width. Pyrium meteorites were a rarity in this world and hardly ever mentioned aside from ancient records from the past. With how rare they were, Bai Yunfei was naturally surprised Li Chengfeng had a chunk of that size with him.
Bai Yunfei took the chunk from Li Chengfeng after his excitement faded away. âDonât you worry, Chengfeng. Iâll definitely craft you a powerful soul armament like none other!â