173: Chapter 173 Refining the Natal Magic Treasure

Li Qing leaned against the stone wall of the cave and panted for a long while. The whistling of the wind in his ears and the distant clamor of the Du Family members gradually faded away, and his tense nerves finally began to relax.

Killing Manager Du He in an instant at the city gate just now, and then fleeing all the way using the Five Elements Evasion Technique, had consumed more than half of the Spiritual Qi in his body. His Divine Soul was also feeling a bit unstable. After all, the Immobilization Technique consumed too much Divine Soul power. For an ordinary quasi-Foundation Establishment Cultivator, using it once would leave them collapsed on the ground. It was only because his Divine Soul was stronger than that of ordinary Cultivators that he could endure and flee all the way into the Yunling Mountain Range.

He looked up and scanned the cave. This place was extremely well-hidden; the entrance was blocked by dense vines and jagged rocks. The inside was dry and spacious, and being deep within the mountain range, ordinary wild beasts and Cultivators would not easily come here. It was temporarily safe.

But Li Qing knew in his heart that this safety was only temporary.

The Du Family had lost a Foundation Establishment deacon, and he had escaped right in front of everyone at the gates of Luoshui City. The Du Family would definitely not swallow this insult.

Calming his mind, with a thought, Li Qing flickered and entered his Portable Cave Abode.

Entering the Immortal Cave, Li Qing let out a long sigh of relief, his hanging heart completely settling down. He then retrieved five palm-sized Flying Swords from his Storage Pouch.

The five Flying Swords were lined up in a row, each with a different design, corresponding to the Five Elements attributes of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Every single one was brimming with Spiritual Qi, clearly showing they were no ordinary items.

The metal sword gleamed with a cold light all over, its blade sharp and made of rare Gengjin, capable of cutting through iron like butter.

The wood sword carried a faint green hue, its blade swirling with vitality and containing wood-attribute Spiritual Qi.

The water sword was crystal clear, as if carved from ice, exuding a trace of chill.

The fire sword was crimson all over, faintly radiating waves of heat, with flames seemingly flowing across its blade.

The earth sword was heavy and simple, dark yellow in color, carrying the steady aura of the earth.

For these five Flying Swords, the moment to finally refine them into his Lifebound Treasures had arrived.

A Lifebound Treasure was different from a common Magical Artifact. Once refined successfully, it would be linked to the Cultivator's Divine Soul, sharing a telepathic connection and striking wherever directed. Its power would be several times stronger than a normal Magical Artifact, and it could grow stronger as the Cultivator's cultivation level increased. It was a Cultivator's second life, so the refining process could not tolerate the slightest carelessness.

Li Qing sat cross-legged. First, he closed his eyes to rest, circulating the Spiritual Qi in his body to slowly replenish what had been consumed. He then stabilized his Divine Soul to put himself in the best possible state. Only after a full half-hour did he open his eyes, his gaze becoming incredibly solemn.

The first step in refining a Lifebound Treasure was to bind it with blood. By merging his own essence blood into the Flying Swords, he would establish a connection channel between the Magic Treasure and his Divine Soul.

Li Qing bit his fingertip and forced out a droplet of golden essence blood. This essence blood was no ordinary blood; it was his Origin essence blood condensed over many years of cultivation, containing his Divine Soul's aura and Spiritual Qi. A single drop would deplete a significant amount of his Origin Qi, so ordinary Cultivators would not easily use it.

Without hesitation, Li Qing dripped the essence blood from his fingertip onto the center of the blades of the five Flying Swords.

The essence blood did not slide off when it landed on the Flying Swords; instead, it was instantly absorbed. Immediately after, the five Flying Swords lit up simultaneously. Five spiritual lights of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth soared into the sky, illuminating the entire Immortal Cave in a kaleidoscope of colors. The Flying Swords began to tremble slightly, emitting buzzing sword hums as if responding to Li Qing's essence blood.

Immediately following that, an excruciating pain radiated from the depths of his Divine Soul. Li Qing furrowed his brows tightly and clenched his teeth, dense beads of cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

Refining a Lifebound Treasure was inherently a process of merging the Divine Soul with the Magic Treasure. The Divine Soul had to seep into every single pattern of the Flying Swords bit by bit. This pain was like someone pricking his Divine Soul with needles. Had it been a Cultivator with weak willpower, they would have long since fainted from the pain, directly causing the refining to fail.

Li Qing endured it with sheer determination, not daring to be distracted in the slightest. While circulating his Spiritual Qi to protect his mind, he guided his Divine Soul power along the connection of the essence blood, gradually boring into the interior of the five Flying Swords. He carefully combed through every spiritual inscription of the Flying Swords, engraving his own mark into the core of each sword.

This process was extremely slow and tolerated no impatience. Once the Divine Soul became unstable or the Spiritual Qi failed to keep up, at best, the Flying Swords would be damaged and the refining would fail; at worst, his own Divine Soul would be damaged, his cultivation would regress, or he might even become an idiot.

Time passed bit by bit. Li Qing sat before the refining platform like a stone statue, motionless, allowing his Divine Soul and the Flying Swords to merge. Sweat soaked his clothes and his face gradually turned pale, but his eyes remained steadfast, without a single trace of retreat.

He knew in his heart that the Du Family's pursuit was right behind him. Only by refining the five elements flying swords into his Lifebound Treasures as quickly as possible could his strength increase significantly, giving him the capital to contend with the Du Family. This bit of pain was nothing.

Before he knew it, when the final trace of his Divine Soul mark was engraved into the core of the earth sword, the spiritual light of the five Flying Swords suddenly surged. The sword hums became crisp and resonant, and the spiritual light around them perfectly fused with Li Qing's aura, becoming indistinguishable from one another.

The excruciating pain vanished instantly, replaced by a sense of intimacy akin to being connected by blood. Li Qing could clearly feel that he and the five Flying Swords shared a telepathic connection. With just a single thought, the Flying Swords would take flight immediately, allowing him to control them at will, as flexible as controlling his own limbs.

Li Qing rejoiced in his heart, knowing that this step of blood-binding was a success!

But the refining was not over yet. Next was nurturing and tempering. He needed to use his own Spiritual Qi to repeatedly nourish the Flying Swords, reinforcing the connection between his Divine Soul and the Flying Swords, allowing them to completely become his Lifebound Treasures and unleash their maximum power.

Not daring to pause, he immediately circulated the Spiritual Qi in his body. The Spiritual Qi, like a flowing stream, slowly enveloped the five five elements flying swords. At the same time, he channeled the dense Spiritual Qi within his Portable Cave Abode, merging it into the Flying Swords.

Under the envelopment of the Spiritual Qi, the five Flying Swords slowly levitated and rotated in the air. The five spiritual lights of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth intertwined, forming a colorful halo. The patterns on the blades became increasingly clear, the Spiritual Qi grew richer, and their quality improved bit by bit.

Li Qing threw himself into it completely, nurturing the Flying Swords while consolidating his own cultivation, and simultaneously operating his Divine Soul to familiarize himself with the feeling of controlling the Flying Swords.

He tried silently chanting "Go" in his mind, and the metal sword instantly unsheathed, turning into a golden streak of light that zipped through the Immortal Cave at a speed so fast it left afterimages. Silently chanting "Return," the metal sword immediately flew back obediently to the refining platform, incredibly submissive.

After trying a few times, Li Qing completely mastered the trick of controlling the five elements flying swords. He could not only control one individually but also control all five at the same time. The Five Elements Spiritual Qi coordinated with each other, possessing infinite power, making him unable to suppress the excitement in his heart.

Having gained control over the five elements flying swords, the next step was to Cultivate the Five Elements Sword Art.

With these lifebound five elements flying swords combined with the Five Elements Sword Art, his strength would directly leap by a massive margin. Even if he encountered a Peak Foundation Establishment expert, he would have the power to fight.

Thinking of this, Li Qing recalled the five elements flying swords, sending them into his Dantian to be slowly nurtured.

Then, he flickered into the training room and began to Cultivate the Five Elements Sword Art!