The Modern Martial Immortal

The moment he said this, the crowd went still for a moment.

Then a Void-Refining cultivator of the Taiyi Immortal Sect shot to his feet. "Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang, are you serious?! You're accepting private orders for void-type Dao Artifacts?!"

Before Yaoguang could even answer, one Void-Refining cultivator after another was firing off questions.

"You can forge Dao Artifacts?! Is this for real?!"

"Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang, which artifact paragon did you manage to bring on board for these orders? Is it only void-type Dao Artifacts? Can you take orders for artifacts attuned to other Great Dao as well?"

"An artifact paragon?! Has another artifact paragon been born on the North Sea Star? Or has one come to us from beyond the stars? This is wonderful! A custom order means a Dao Artifact made just for you! A Void-Piercing or Void-Refining cultivator with a tailor-made artifact and one without are worlds apart in how fast they advance."

With Yaoguang's announcement, not a single person could sit still any longer.

The Penglai Immortal Sect's Void-Refining and Void-Piercing cultivators even began to wonder whether this so-called artifact paragon behind Yaoguang was none other than the Penglai Dao Lord herself.

And they were not the only ones to suspect it; the Heavenly Dao Sect's cultivators thought the same.

"Dao Artifacts! Taking custom orders for Dao Artifacts! How is that possible?! Is there really an artifact paragon standing behind him?!"

"This is bad. The sect master's in real trouble now. Yaoguang, of all people..."

"What nonsense! Yaoguang's just building momentum with this! He still has a few void-type Dao Artifacts on hand, and by advertising that he can take custom orders, he's letting the world think an artifact paragon is backing him. Then he can throw that paragon's name around to recruit people far and wide, build up his strength, and stand against the sect master once he reaches the Void-Shattering Realm someday! An artifact paragon? Do you know how precious such an existence is? The instant someone becomes an artifact paragon, the whole world hears of it. How could it wait until now, until Yaoguang lets it slip?"

The Heavenly Dao Sect's cultivators were either shocked, doubtful, speculative, or, in some cases, flushed with anger and humiliation.

Some who stood fully on Zong Wenxian's side directly concluded that Yaoguang was bluffing, laying the groundwork to one day contend with Zong Wenxian for the position of sect master. And this view won quite a few agreements.

An artifact paragon! In weight, that ranked a notch above even a Void-Shattering supreme elder. Whenever a force produced an artifact paragon, it would do everything in its power to hide them away, preventing any contact with the outside world and with any possible danger.

But the moment an artifact paragon openly declared his intent to join some top-tier force, that force would spare nothing to bring them home, even dispatching a handful of Void-Shattering cultivators and risking the enmity of another top-tier power to do it.

So the idea that an artifact paragon capable of forging Dao Artifacts stood behind Yaoguang simply did not make sense.

Of course, this was the thinking of those who stood firmly behind Zong Wenxian.

Many Void-Piercing and Void-Refining cultivators knew that the Void Sword was the second Dao Artifact Yaoguang had sold. And in his battle with the Yin Lunar Sect's fiendish cultivators, some had seen him use several Dao Artifacts.

For a single Void-Refining cultivator to carry so many Dao Artifacts defied all reason. But if an artifact paragon was backing him, then everything made sense.

"Everyone, our delivery times range from ten years to a few hundred. If you don't trust us, you're welcome to wait and watch. Only bear in mind that we fill orders in the sequence they're placed, so when it comes to forging Dao Artifacts, it's first come, first served." Yaoguang's psychic thought once again spread across the whole venue.

"I'll take the gamble!"

At those words, the Void-Refining cultivators who had already half believed an artifact paragon really stood behind Yaoguang rose one after another.

"Sect Master Yaoguang, do you mean it? I happen to need a void Dao Artifact made. Can you take the order?" The Mountain Guardian King of the Great Shang Immortal Dynasty was the first to act.

"Mountain Guardian King, your life-bound Dao Technique is the Single Thought Void, correct? You'd want an artifact forged around that technique?" Yaoguang asked.

The Mountain Guardian King nodded. "Precisely."

He was a Void-Refining cultivator who had remained at that realm for a full three thousand years. Back when he was still a Void-Piercing cultivator, he had borrowed a lot of resources to attempt his breakthrough to the Void-Refining Realm, and only recently had he built up enough savings to afford a Dao Artifact.

The Single Thought Void was a sealing-type void Dao Technique, and in theory it matched the properties of the Heaven-Sealing Stele very well.

But for many Void-Refining cultivators, simply obtaining a Dao Artifact of the same Great Dao type was already a blessing from the heavens. Who would dare hope for a perfect match?

This was why he had come to bid on the Void Sword. Now that Yaoguang had actually said he could take custom orders, it was, for him, an unexpected delight.

Even though he could not yet be sure whether the news was true, he was willing to put up at least a hundred million Pure Yang Grand Pills to give it a try.

"I can," Yaoguang answered. "Forging an artifact of this kind isn't difficult. I can deliver it within a hundred years."

As he spoke, he weighed it briefly. "Given the properties of the Single Thought Void, I'll charge you 1,500,000,000, with a deposit of one hundred and fifty million. Does that suit you?"

"Delivery within a hundred years?" The Mountain Guardian King was taken aback. How can it be a hundred years?!

At this, a Void-Piercing elder of the Heavenly Dao Sect could not help but say, "A hundred years? Heh. Unless a Dao Lord helps, even an artifact paragon at the Void-Shattering Realm would find it hard to forge a Dao Artifact in a century. Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang, don't go making jokes with our sect's good name."

The elder's words quickly calmed the many Void-Refining experts who had become excited.

How could anyone forge a Dao Artifact within a hundred years? If Dao Artifacts could be produced that fast, they would long since have flooded the market. How would they be as scarce as they were now? Could this be some huge swindle?

It was only a ten percent deposit, true, but multiplied across many orders, it still amounted to a staggering fortune. With Yaoguang's talent, if he took the deposits and ran off into the starry cosmos, who could do anything about it?

The odds of that were low, yet the thought brought many Void-Refining cultivators back to their senses.

Yaoguang glanced at the elder and recognized him. Zuo Xingchen, an elder of the immortal lineage. It was obvious that he belonged to Zong Wenxian's faction.

"I'm not entirely unwilling to hear doubts, but since your lineage doesn't trust me, then from now on, don't come to the southern domain to do business," Yaoguang said evenly.

The lineage he spoke of meant the entire immortal lineage. The words made the Void-Piercing elder's face change.

Then Yaoguang turned back to the Mountain Guardian King. "If you don't believe me, I won't press you."

The Mountain Guardian King looked at Yaoguang and immediately thought of the rumors about Yaoguang.

Word has it that he is connected to the Penglai Dao Lord. If that's true, then with the Penglai Dao Lord lending a hand, forging an artifact suited to the Single Thought Void within a hundred years would be child's play.

And even if the rumor is false, it doesn't matter. Even assuming Yaoguang has no Dao Lord backing him, he still reached the Void-Refining Realm in such a short time, and has the strength to slay a veteran Void-Refining cultivator like Evil Eye; in that case, just how monstrous would his talent be?

Reaching the Void-Shattering Realm is almost certain for someone like him, and even integrating with the Dao to become a Dao Lord is not out of the question. If Yaoguang really lied to me, I would simply count it as an early investment in a peerless figure with a shot at becoming a Dao Lord.

At that thought, the Mountain Guardian King said firmly, "I trust you, of course."

He took out a portion of the goods he had originally meant to bid on the Void Sword with. "Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang, what's in here should easily come to a hundred and fifty million Pure Yang Grand Pills in value. Part of the deposit consists of materials I specifically gathered, hoping that a day would come when I could find someone to forge the right Dao Artifact for me. Please have a look."

"Very well." Yaoguang gave a slight nod. "Supplying the right materials of equal value yourself may even let me deliver sooner."

Deliver sooner... Unless a Dao Lord really stood behind Yaoguang, it was more than they dared imagine.

The Mountain Guardian King said with a smile, "Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang, you and that master behind you just forge it as you see fit. If you can't deliver within a hundred years, another century or two is fine by me. I've gotten through three thousand years already. No need to rush."

Yaoguang nodded slightly and took the storage treasure. And the moment he took the materials from the Mountain Guardian King's hands, several more Void-Refining cultivators stepped forward at once.

"Sect Master Yaoguang, I'd like to order an artifact from you as well..."

"My life-bound Dao Technique is the Sword Opening of Heavenly Gate. May I ask you to forge a matching artifact for me? Name whatever price you like."

"Me too, Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang..."

Clearly, these Void-Refining cultivators were thinking much the same as the Mountain Guardian King.

If Yaoguang failed to deliver on time, or even absconded with the funds, they would count it as an early investment in a future Dao Lord. Even if he could not deliver the Dao Artifacts as soon as he had stated, once he reached the Dao Lord Realm and could forge Dao Artifacts with ease, surely he would not continue stiffing them.

Of course, there was risk involved in this... Yaoguang might fail to advance and integrate with the Dao. But an investment, by its nature, could never be wholly without risk.

Soon, of the thirty-plus Void-Refining cultivators present, six had placed orders. Among the Void-Piercing cultivators, three more took the gamble, paying deposits of over a hundred million each.

The sheer scale of the funds these nine handed over rivaled the sale of a Dao Artifact in itself, bringing Yaoguang's total wealth to over four billion.

Seeing this, Zuo Xingchen, Qian Ren, Li Baijie, Lu Wanshi, and Yue Kuhai frowned worriedly.

Four billion! A fortune amounting to four billion Pure Yang Grand Pills! Even Zong Wenxian, with his status as sect master, would likely need a thousand years to amass such an enormous sum. After all, the sect master's everyday expenditures were staggering.

The Void-Refining Realm happened to be a realm that placed great weight on resources. With income like this, the time Yaoguang would need to reach the peak of the Void-Refining Realm would be drastically cut down.

After a long while, Lu Wanshi let out a long breath, his brow at last unknotting. "We can't afford to provoke him."

He glanced at Qian Ren. "Unless the sect master makes some other grand, striking move soon, our family doesn't plan to provoke Deputy Sect Master Yaoguang any further."

Qian Ren was in truth backing down himself, but he could not let it show, and only said, "Yaoguang killed a Void-Refining cultivator of the Yin Lunar Sect, and now he has this staggering fortune. The Yin Lunar Sect is bound to make a move. I'd say he may not be able to weather the storm that is coming."

"Then let's wait and see how it goes. But going forward, our family will change its stance. If within ten years neither the Yin Lunar Sect nor the sect master has made a move, the Li family will pull out of the southern domain," Li Baijie said.

Qian Ren nodded. He knew Li Baijie was afraid; in his place, he would be afraid too.

Yaoguang had such astonishing talent, a crazy amount of resources, and on top of it all a territory that was entirely his own. As long as he retreated into the Heavenly Dragon-Slaying Array, even a Void-Shattering cultivator could only look on, helpless.

Yaoguang was unstoppable now.

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