Galaxy Peak, Weapon Refining Room.
Zhang Yuhe suddenly opened his eyes.
With a wave of his right hand, the lid of the cauldron flew open. Nine flying swords, each radiating a powerful aura, rose slowly into the air.
He reached out and took hold of one of the golden swords, examining it carefully.
The surface was crystal clear, and it exuded an astonishing pressure.
On the hilt, a few small characters were engraved: Galaxy. Gold.
"Huh, finally done."
All nine of his natal magic weapons had now been upgraded to mid-grade magical treasures.
A mid-grade Tongtian Lingbao-level natal weapon was far superior to lower-grade ones.
If I run into that horned demon from Jingkong City again, he thought, I'll probably only need a few strikes to cut it into pieces, rather than relying entirely on overwhelming waves of sword energy to slowly wear it down like before.
After storing the flying sword in his dantian to nourish it, Zhang Yuhe let out a long sigh of relief.
Over the past few days, he had not only completed the refining of the second-level Five Elements Spirit Gathering Array but had also prepared the required array plates and flags.
Moreover, his natal weapons had now reached the mid-grade Tongtian Lingbao level.
Most importantly, he had formulated a rough plan for improving the Renshui Thunder Absorption Array.
In short: bigger, more, stronger.
Zhang Yuhe intended to enhance the lightning-absorbing pillars, refining them into mid-grade Tongtian Lingbao-level treasures. These would serve as the foundation for an upgraded Renshui Thunder Absorption Array.
The original array used by the Daosheng Sect was built with lower-grade lightning-absorbing pillars.
He planned to scale up from the original twenty-eight pillars to one hundred and eight.
Of course, things weren't so simple.
If improving the Renshui Thunder Absorption Array were that easy, someone else would've done it already. There would've been no need for him to take it on.
The key to his enhancement lay in the redesign of the formation pattern that connected the pillars.
Through his modifications, one hundred and eight mid-grade lightning-absorbing pillars could now be seamlessly linked, forming a massive, cohesive thunder-absorbing formation.
Zhang Yuhe had already run the calculations.
Based on the heavenly tribulation he previously endured, this improved Renshui Thunder Absorption Array could weaken its power by at least half.
That level of mitigation was astonishing.
Once weakened, the tribulation would no longer pose a serious threat.
He wouldn't even need to deploy the Nine Heavens Hunyuan Sword Formation—just one or two decent defensive treasures would be enough to withstand it.
"Well, now that I've improved the formation," he mused, "should I give it a new name?"
It was his first time modifying an array.
Despite his talent, Zhang Yuhe was not the type to tinker for the sake of innovation. He had never bothered with improving martial techniques, spells, pill recipes, or crafting blueprints.
To him, good enough was truly enough.
This time, however, he had been pushed into a corner.
Without investing time and effort into upgrading the Renshui Thunder Absorption Array, he risked being killed by the next tribulation.
So, for the sake of survival, he had thrown himself into the study and improvement of the array.
Now that it was done, he wondered again—should the improved version receive a new name?
"…Forget it. Let's just call it the Level 2 Renshui Thunder Absorption Array."
Zhang Yuhe was never good at naming things.
He had thought long and hard, but no better name came to mind.
Keeping it simple worked. And who knew—maybe there'd be a Level 3 or Level 4 version in the future.
After tidying up, he walked out of the cave.
He took out a jade talisman and made a gesture.
A moment later, Wang Guofeng flew up from the base of the mountain.
"Senior, what do you need me to do?" he asked.
Zhang Yuhe had previously mentioned that he'd need Wang Guofeng's help in a few days. So, despite already having the Infant Transformation Pill in hand, Wang Guofeng had not yet entered seclusion to attempt his breakthrough.
How could he cultivate peacefully before completing Zhang Yuhe's task?
As a follower, Zhang Yuhe's priorities came first. His own advancement could wait.
And honestly, whatever slipped from between Zhang Yuhe's fingers was likely worth more than anything he could gain from isolated cultivation.
He understood that well.
Zhang Yuhe gave an approving nod.
As the president of the Blue Star Immortal Cultivation Alliance, Wang Guofeng was a prominent figure.
Yet he remained humble and cautious.
There was no trace of arrogance in him.
It showed that he was grounded and practical—someone who understood his place in the world.
In the realm of immortal cultivation, such people were the ones who survived the longest and climbed the furthest.
Zhang Yuhe took out a jade slip containing a list of materials needed to refine mid-grade lightning-absorbing pillars and handed it to Wang Guofeng.
"Help me collect the materials listed here."
After a brief pause, he added, "It's quite an extensive list. You'll need to get creative. Mobilize the players to assist with the collection. Also, check with the folks at Wangxian Peak to see if they have a faster method for sourcing everything."
Then he handed over a storage ring.
"It contains elixirs and magic weapons I refined earlier. Selling them should generate enough spirit stones to purchase what we need."
"Yes, Senior."
Wang Guofeng accepted both the jade slip and the storage ring respectfully, then flew off without another word.
Zhang Yuhe stood silently at the peak of Galaxy Mountain.
The newly enhanced formation required one hundred and eight lightning-absorbing pillars—all mid-grade magical treasures.
Refining them wouldn't be hard—but it would take time.
The real challenge was sourcing the materials.
The resources needed for refining so many mid-grade Tongtian Lingbao-level items were no small matter.
Even when optimizing the formation design, he'd already tried to use the most common ores found throughout Yufantian.
Still, the required quantity was immense.
Acquiring all of it through player trading markets alone might prove difficult.
It would take serious effort to gather everything.
Fortunately, Wang Guofeng was up to the task.
Zhang Yuhe trusted that he'd be far more efficient than himself at this kind of logistical challenge.
Everyone had their strengths.
Wang Guofeng hadn't risen to the presidency of the Blue Star Immortal Cultivation Alliance by chance. It wasn't just his background or his ninth-grade spiritual root.
He had true skill—especially in negotiation, leadership, and resource coordination.
In that regard, he far surpassed Zhang Yuhe.
"Now that all that's settled," Zhang Yuhe muttered, stretching a little, "I can finally get back to cultivating. I haven't trained in a few days, and I'm already feeling restless."
With that, he turned and walked back into the cave.