370: My father is Liu Xuan

To put it simply, Liu Xuan was trading increased difficulty for shorter refining times and a reduced workload.

Industrialized Artifact Refining sounded simple, but in practice, it was more difficult than conventional refining.

In addition to requiring a massive Foundation of professional Artifact Refiners, it also needed vast resources and background support. Most importantly, it required a top-tier Artifact Refiner to oversee it; otherwise, all that would be produced was a pile of useless parts.

“Daddy, spaceship!”

Little Xin Ci stretched out her small hand, pointing toward the great sun flying boat in mid-air. Under Liu Xuan's refinement, runes flickered as it gradually took shape, her eyes filled with excitement.

“Does little Xin Ci like spaceships? When you grow up, how about I teach you how to build them?”

Refining a Second-Rank Medium Grade great sun flying boat was a simple task for Liu Xuan. It was no trouble at all for him to multitask and spare a sliver of attention to look after his daughter.

Unlike other Artifact Refiners who treated the process as a way to learn and comprehend, Liu Xuan only needed to achieve the goal of a successful refinement. This was because he didn't need to learn at all.

“No!” Little Xin Ci shook her head repeatedly. “Xin Ci doesn't want to learn how to build spaceships. I want to ride them to fight Yao Beasts!”

After saying that, her big eyes became even more excited, and she waved her small fists around in a flurry of punches.

“Oh no!”

“This girl has violent tendencies!”

Xin Ci possessed the Ten Thousand Poisons Spirit Body. Fearing she might hurt herself or others, Liu Xuan had always raised her to be a well-educated and refined lady.

Usually, he wouldn't even let her watch a chicken being slaughtered. Whenever the other children sparred and blood was drawn, he would cover her eyes. After doing so much, how did it seem to have the opposite effect?

“Xin Ci! What's so fun about fighting monsters? How about Daddy teaches you Alchemy? Don't you love eating medicinal pills the most?”

“No!” The little girl shook her head repeatedly, like a rattle-drum.

“What about Formations? Don't you like playing games? Formations are pretty much like games.”

“No!”

“Talismans? Drawing Talismans is interesting.”

“No!”

“Planting flowers, Spirit Medicine, spirit fruits...”

“No!”

...Liu Xuan was amused. He reached out and rubbed her small head. “So you just want to fight Yao Beasts, huh?”

“Mm-hmm!”

The little girl nodded repeatedly, the light of excitement flickering in her eyes again.

Xin Ci was not even four years old yet, so Liu Xuan didn't pay it much mind. Children's interests changed frequently. Perhaps once she grew up and encountered the Martial Dao and the path of Cultivation, knowing the hardships involved, she would lose her taste for fighting and killing.

In just half a day, Liu Xuan completed the critical steps for five great sun flying boats. The remaining work only required An Yunxi to send people to nurture them for a period of time to be completely finished.

black crow flying boats, Yuan Magnetic Flying Boats, and great sun flying boats—the Liu Family Artifact Refining Workshop operated without pause. Although its business was currently slightly behind Alchemy, its prospects were broader and its future was limitless... Peach Blossom Sect.

Peach Blossom Secret Realm.

Peach Blossom Demon Lord sat on a chair woven from vines. The vine chair was not an inanimate object; the upper part of the chair was a lush emerald green, with countless small light-purple trumpet-like flowers in bloom.

Beside her was a pile of scrolls, all containing detailed intelligence on Bone Fiend Immortal Master, Immortal Master Wang Qiao, Immortal Master Xiao Changfeng, Liu Xuan, and others.

Starting with Bone Fiend Immortal Master, Peach Blossom True Monarch reviewed all his recent experiences before finally locking her focus onto Liu Xuan.

“Liu Xuan!”

“Wang Qiao!”

The Gu insect in Bone Fiend Immortal Master's Divine Soul and the Essence Blood in his body were very likely related to one of these two.

Liu Xuan: fifty-one years old, of humble origin, poor Spiritual Root, suspected of possessing a special fertility Spirit Body, cultivation at Early Foundation Establishment Stage.

A fifty-one-year-old Early Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator could be considered a top-tier Genius, but it wasn't enough to interest Peach Blossom True Monarch.

However, the most special thing about Liu Xuan was not his cultivation, but the things that happened around him.

A fifty-one-year-old Third-Rank Alchemist with extraordinary attainments in Alchemy, Artifact Refining, Talismans, and Formations. He was a Disciple of the Late Golden Core Great True Person Shen Yunshu and the South Courtyard Head True Lord Haoran, moving among a crowd of high-level Cultivators... The anomalies surrounding Liu Xuan were too many to count; he was definitely not as simple as a Genius Cultivator at the Early Foundation Establishment Stage!

Compared to Wang Qiao, who had openly wounded the Late Golden Core Stage Void Rat Wu Xu, her intuition told her that Liu Xuan was more suspicious.

She had also investigated Wang Qiao's intelligence. This person had been mediocre before his Core Formation, with nothing noteworthy about him.

According to common sense, it should have been impossible for Wang Qiao to form a core. Even if he had managed it by fluke, it was absolutely impossible for him to possess such strong combat power!

‘Wang Qiao!’

Peach Blossom Demon Lord tossed aside a scroll in her hand. ‘This person is likely not Wang Qiao at all!’

Wang Qiao's identity was questionable, and he was currently missing. The greatest suspicion was now concentrated on Liu Xuan.

“If all the intelligence on Liu Xuan is true, he can be called a Prodigy of natural talent, but...”

Peach Blossom Demon Lord's willow-leaf brows furrowed slightly. “It is basically impossible for him to possess a Divine Beast Bloodline!”

The terrifying scene she had glimpsed through the Essence Blood surfaced in her mind again. How could such a noble Divine Beast Bloodline be mixed up in a small place like the Red Pine Sect for decades?

Furthermore, such a noble Bloodline could never be awakened within a member of the Human Race. Those who possessed such a Bloodline would have a background that reached the heavens; they couldn't possibly have an ordinary origin like Liu Xuan.

“Sect Master, the person you wanted has been brought!”

After a ripple in space, Lü Luo appeared with a young girl. The girl was motionless, only her large eyes darting around; it appeared she had been placed under a binding technique.

“Her name is Liu Linglu, twenty-five years old, Sixth Layer of Qi Refining cultivation. She is Liu Xuan's eighty-fifth daughter.”

Peach Blossom Demon Lord put down the scroll in her hand and asked, “Were you discovered?”

“No!” Lü Luo replied. “Everything was done according to your instructions. I used the highest-level secret agents to find an opportunity to trick and kidnap her. Liu Xuan's side won't react for at least three days.”

“Good!” Peach Blossom Demon Lord nodded. “Leave her here. You may go.”

“Yes!”

Lü Luo turned to leave, but after a moment, she looked back and asked, “Sect Master, if I may ask... if you wanted to capture someone, why not just take Liu Xuan? Why grab a little girl?”

She truly couldn't understand. Not only the kidnapping, but Peach Blossom Demon Lord had also instructed her not to let the Liu household find out and not to harm the girl. Liu Xuan had hundreds of children; did she intend to use one daughter to threaten him?

The Peach Blossom Sect was a Nascent Soul Upper Sect, and Peach Blossom Demon Lord was a world-renowned Late Nascent Soul Stage Demon Lord. To kidnap a Qi Refining stage girl to threaten an Early Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator... wasn't that a huge joke?!

“Don't ask what you shouldn't ask. This is not a matter you can get involved in!”

“This Disciple understands!”

Lü Luo bowed respectfully and withdrew. In all these years, it was the first time Peach Blossom Demon Lord had used such a tone with her. She quickly realized that the matter was definitely not as simple as it appeared.

After Lü Luo left, Peach Blossom Demon Lord waved her hand to release the binding on Ling Lu and smiled. “Don't be afraid, little sister. Big sister means no harm.”

Ling Lu backed away in terror, a layer of shield light appearing on her body as she assumed a defensive-counterattack posture. She stammered at Peach Blossom Demon Lord:

“Don't... don't come over! I... I...”

“If you kill me... my father will seek re... revenge on you!”

“My father is Liu Xuan!”