Chapter 23: Arrival at Refining Peak

Su Yun leaned against the window, observing for a while, a faint smile gracing her lips.

‘Truly, she is my wife,’ Su Yun thought, her heart swelling with delight as she watched Lin Xue’s sword dance. ‘Even her swordplay is so graceful. Her posture undeniably reveals a past life spent in dance. One word: beautiful. A beauty dancing under the moon, like a celestial being.’

Just then, Lin Xue executed a sudden turn, her gaze landing directly on Su Yun, who was peeking from the window, secretly watching her dance.

“Hm?” Lin Xue paused, a flicker of surprise in her eyes.

Su Yun was startled, but she quickly composed herself. She offered Lin Xue a cheerful wave, intending it as a casual greeting.

To act guilty now would only invite suspicion.

Lin Xue merely nodded in response. She didn’t dwell on it, simply resuming her elegant sword dance.

Seeing that Lin Xue harbored no excessive suspicion, Su Yun let out a soft sigh of relief. She then closed the window and returned to her bed. Knowing tomorrow would bring new tasks, she decided it was best to rest.

****

Soon, the night passed.

The next morning, a tall young man descended from the sky atop a massive greatsword, landing precisely on the peak where Su Yun and the others resided.

The newcomer was Fan Yang, the senior disciple of Refining Peak and Lei Yan’s very first apprentice. He was currently a second-grade high-rank refiner, a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator, and an inner sect disciple.

Upon his arrival, he surveyed his surroundings, unsure of which pavilion housed Su Yun. He then opened his mouth and bellowed a loud summons.

“Junior Sister! It’s Fan Yang! Master sent me to escort you to Refining Peak to learn the art of refining!”

His voice boomed, yet it didn’t disturb Lin Xue or Lin Shuang. Their residences were protected by isolation arrays, designed to block out sound and spiritual sense probes, as well as prevent unauthorized entry.

These were inherent features of the pavilions, something Su Yun was simply unaware of, having only just arrived and still unfamiliar with everything.

Hearing the resounding call, Su Yun suddenly sprang up from her bed.

“Who’s that? Who’s calling me?” Su Yun muttered, still dazed after getting up.

From the look in her eyes, it was clear that despite resting, she hadn’t truly slept. She had spent the entire night pondering how to reveal her identity to her past life’s wife and sister: should she take the initiative, or let fate guide them?

These two questions plagued her, making sleep impossible and highlighting the depth of her internal struggle.

Su Yun immediately went to the window to glance outside. It was then that she spotted Fan Yang standing there, prompting her to quickly open the door and step out.

Seeing Su Yun emerge from the pavilion, Fan Yang hastened forward with a broad, welcoming smile.

This was no ordinary disciple; she was a direct disciple of Refining Peak, and a rare female one at that. There was no doubt in his mind that Su Yun would become the darling of the entire peak.

“Junior Sister, why do you look so unrested?” Fan Yang asked, observing Su Yun’s hazy eyes and continuous yawns. “Are you not accustomed to the environment?”

Su Yun rubbed her eyes and gently patted her cheeks, attempting to rouse herself.

Yet, these seemingly casual gestures, to Fan Yang’s eyes, spelled only one word: adorable.

“Perhaps I was too excited,” Su Yun replied quickly. “I couldn’t sleep all night, knowing I’d be learning refining soon. But I’m fine. Oh, right, Senior Brother, why have you come for me? Is Master finally going to teach me refining?”

Fan Yang nodded with a smile.

“Master only instructed me to take you to Refining Peak,” Fan Yang explained. “I’m not entirely sure what for. We should get going.”

With that, he resummoned his massive greatsword and gestured for Su Yun to step aboard.

“This flying sword is quite large,” Su Yun remarked, before stepping onto it. She activated her Spirit Condensing Qi Refining Art, allowing power to adhere to her feet, effectively suctioning her to the sword. This ensured that no matter how fast Fan Yang flew, she wouldn’t fall.

Such was the advantage of mastering control over one’s inner strength.

****

Moments later, they arrived at Refining Peak.

The moment Su Yun arrived, her senior brothers swarmed around her, abandoning their work as if they had never seen a woman before. They bombarded her with warm greetings and questions, a level of attention Su Yun had never experienced at Moonfall Sect.

“Aren’t you all going to work?” Lei Yan grumbled, watching his disciples. “Stop crowding around! I’m taking your junior sister to see the refining room we built last night. Now, go back to your tasks, all of you, like a swarm of flies!”

Su Yun shivered at his words, a sudden chill running down her spine. She promptly reminded Lei Yan.

“Master, if you’re comparing our senior brothers to flies,” she asked, “then what are you comparing me to?”

Lei Yan instantly realized his blunder.

“Ah, my dear apprentice,” he stammered, “this master didn’t mean that. I wasn’t comparing you to anything unclean. I was merely describing those lads.”

Su Yun could only look at her simple-minded, brawny master with a speechless expression.

The others, meanwhile, burst into laughter before returning to their own tasks.

Lei Yan then led Su Yun into an exceptionally clean refining room. Unlike the other grimy refining rooms, this one was remarkably bright. Its walls appeared to be tiled with pristine white, and the floor had been meticulously cleaned, not a speck of black metal dust visible anywhere.

The interior resembled a laboratory, complete with several brand-new forging platforms and an array of tools.

“This?” Su Yun exclaimed, her face etched with astonishment.

It was a stark contrast to everyone else’s refining rooms.

“Haha, impressive, isn’t it?” Lei Yan chuckled. “Your senior brothers and I worked through the night yesterday to set this up using Moonlight Silver. This material is dust-repellent and highly resistant to extreme temperatures, as well as incredibly durable. So, no matter how long you use your refining room, a simple wipe will leave it spotless.”

“And these forging platforms and tools? They were all meticulously crafted just for you…” Lei Yan spoke as if presenting a priceless treasure, detailing every aspect of the room’s arrangements to Su Yun.

In short, Su Yun’s treatment surpassed that of other disciples by an immeasurable margin; her refining room was even more exquisite than Lei Yan’s own.

Of course, this was primarily because Lei Yan considered Su Yun a girl, and a very beautiful one at that. He simply didn’t want her to end up covered in grime like the others.

“Master, why aren’t the other senior brothers provided with such refining rooms?” Su Yun inquired.

Lei Yan waved his hand dismissively.

“A bunch of grown men, what’s the point of such elaborate refinement?” Lei Yan stated with a perfectly straight face. “Can they look at it or eat it?”

Hearing his words, Su Yun let out another deep sigh inwardly.

‘Ah! Indeed, no matter the world, being a girl always comes with special privileges.’

“Thank you, Master.” Su Yun still expressed her gratitude to Lei Yan.

To have arranged such an exquisite refining room in a single night, Lei Yan and the others must have poured a great deal of effort into it.

“Thank me for what?” Lei Yan said, waving off her thanks. “You are the only female refiner in our Spirit Sword Mountain—no, in the entire Southern Wilds! Such treatment is befitting of you. Oh, right, here are my personal refining insights and the Spirit Sword Mountain’s refining techniques. Take them back and study them carefully.”

“Also, the Sect Master specifically emphasized that your talent shouldn’t be limited to refining; your cultivation must not fall behind either.” Lei Yan handed Su Yun two books.

These were precisely what Su Yun desired most. She eagerly took them, immediately opening them to glance inside. The moment she did, her eyes became utterly captivated.

During her time at Moonfall Sect, she had read introductions about refiners. She believed that the refiners of this world were, in a sense, even more formidable than the great inventors of her previous world. They possessed the ability to combine various materials, imbuing them with extraordinary power.

At that moment, a thought had sparked within her: what if she could merge this world’s refining techniques with the weapon and equipment manufacturing technologies she had learned in her past life?

Now, reviewing the refining techniques Lei Yan had given her, she felt even more confident that she could elevate Earth’s weapon manufacturing, propelling it across multiple tiers of advancement.

As for Lei Yan’s personal refining insights, they were even more invaluable, promising to accelerate Su Yun’s mastery significantly.

“Little apprentice, little apprentice,” Lei Yan called out, gently rousing Su Yun from her deep absorption.

“Ah! My apologies, Master,” Su Yun quickly replied, closing the manual with a hint of embarrassment. “These techniques are simply too profound; I became completely engrossed.”

Lei Yan chuckled softly.

“You’ll have plenty of time to study these,” Lei Yan assured her. “First, let me introduce you to these tools.” He gestured towards the forging platform and the various items upon it.

Su Yun certainly needed to familiarize herself with them. Beyond just the tools, after explaining each one, Lei Yan handed Su Yun a large compendium.

Titled the ‘Refining Material Compendium’, this book meticulously documented every known refining material currently found in the Southern Wilds.