Chapter 27: The Ultimate Hidden Weapon and a Master’s Astonishment

Though Lei Yan appeared composed at that moment, a profound shock had already seized his heart.

He had been meticulously observing Su Yun’s hidden weapon. Despite being crafted from artifact-refining materials, it exhibited no magical fluctuations whatsoever, signifying it was merely a mundane object, not a true magic treasure.

For a mere mortal item to possess the power to slay a Qi Refining cultivator and even pose a threat to a Foundation Establishment cultivator, it utterly defied Lei Yan’s understanding of common sense.

“Master, I have one more hidden weapon,” Su Yun announced, “and you must be careful. This time, its power is absolutely several times greater than the last.”

As she spoke, Su Yun produced a pale golden sniper rifle. She then retreated a considerable distance before dropping to a prone position, aiming the weapon directly at Lei Yan.

Crafting this particular firearm had consumed the most of Su Yun’s time, for its manufacturing process was significantly more intricate and demanded far greater precision than any of her other weapons.

Through the eighteen-power scope, Su Yun had already locked onto Lei Yan. Indeed, the scope itself had taken the most time to construct out of the entire sniper rifle.

“Come,” Lei Yan rumbled, his voice low and steady.

Su Yun drew a deep breath, then decisively squeezed the trigger. The round chambered this time was the most potent armor-piercing projectile she had yet devised.

“Bang!”

Another deafening gunshot echoed, and a large-caliber bullet erupted from the barrel, instantly appearing before Lei Yan’s eyes at a speed of a thousand meters per second.

This time, Lei Yan’s composure faltered. While his divine sense could still track the bullet’s trajectory, and he could theoretically evade it, the sheer velocity of this shot already surpassed the reaction speed of even a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

As the bullet finally struck Lei Yan’s chest, his body trembled almost imperceptibly. This time, however, the projectile did not simply deflect; instead, it began to spin furiously on his sternum, akin to a high-speed drill, threatening to bore straight through him.

After a moment of relentless rotation, the bullet finally sparked, then deformed, and clattered to the ground.

Witnessing this, Su Yun found herself utterly speechless with shock. The sniper rifle in her hands, a weapon she knew as a Barrett, possessed a destructive power that had been unmatched by any other sniper rifle in her previous world.

‘What a pity,’ Su Yun murmured, letting out a soft sigh. ‘It seems I still underestimated the cultivators of this world.’

Turning her gaze back to Lei Yan, Su Yun watched him inspect his chest. The impact point of the bullet had visibly reddened, a clear indication that the sniper rifle had indeed inflicted some degree of harm upon his formidable body.

‘Remarkable,’ Lei Yan mused inwardly, offering a high appraisal of Su Yun’s sniper rifle. ‘Though its speed still falls slightly short of a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator, its sheer destructive power is sufficient to wound even an unprepared one.’

Clutching her formidable sniper rifle, Su Yun approached Lei Yan, her expression a picture of disappointment, her shoulders slumped in dejection.

‘Alas!’ Su Yun sighed, her gaze fixed on the sniper rifle in her hands, her face etched with profound disappointment. ‘It appears the power of my hidden weapons has reached its limit.’

Upon hearing Su Yun’s lament, Lei Yan was rendered utterly speechless. His mind churned with a tempest of astonishment; how could a mere mortal object, not a magic treasure, possess the lethal force to fell a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator? It was tantamount to suggesting that a common mortal, armed with such a weapon, could challenge an immortal cultivator.

“My dear disciple, you are a true genius!” Lei Yan exclaimed, suddenly placing his hands on Su Yun’s shoulders and shaking her vigorously. “Your master suddenly feels I should learn from you! Quickly, tell me, what is the principle behind this hidden weapon of yours? How can its power be so immense?”

Su Yun was utterly taken aback by Lei Yan’s sudden, enthusiastic actions.

Lei Yan, it seemed, was genuinely overcome with excitement. Su Yun found herself dizzy and disoriented from his relentless shaking, her attempts to speak swallowed by the motion.

Soon, Su Yun’s eyes began to roll back in her head from the shaking. Only then did Lei Yan finally realize his intensity.

“Huh? Oh, crap, cough cough, my dear disciple, are you alright?” Lei Yan stammered, quickly ceasing his actions. “Your master got a little too excited there.”

The moment he stopped, Su Yun exhaled a long, heavy breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

“Whew… Master,” Su Yun gasped, casting a weary glance at Lei Yan. “Were you trying to shake me to death?”

She then proceeded to explain the intricacies of her firearm to Lei Yan, taking care to articulate its principles in terms he could readily comprehend.

The more Lei Yan listened, the more astonishment grew within him. He sensed that this device harbored immense potential for further development.

“A firearm?” Lei Yan mumbled, gazing at the peculiar metal contraption in his hand. “Hearing your explanation, I now largely understand why you asked me earlier how to imbue flying hidden weapons with greater power.”

“Master,” Su Yun promptly asked, “my understanding is limited. Do you possess any artifact-refining techniques that could imbue this firearm with the power of a cultivator?”

Lei Yan glanced left and right, momentarily at a loss. Though the object was indeed fashioned from artifact-refining materials, it was modular, not a single, integrated piece—a stark contrast to true magic treasures, which were typically monolithic.

While he could imbue an individual component with artifact-refining power, to apply such techniques to every piece simultaneously and then control them all with spiritual energy would be akin to one person manipulating several, or even a dozen, magic treasures at once. It was simply an impossible feat.

“This… with my current abilities as your master, I find myself at a loss,” Lei Yan admitted, shaking his head. “However, this contraption certainly has room for improvement. Perhaps by scaling it up, it could launch even faster and more potent hidden weapons. As for transforming it into a true magic treasure, that remains a formidable challenge.”

Seeing Lei Yan’s helpless expression, Su Yun’s hopes once again plummeted.

“My dear disciple, do not be hasty,” Lei Yan gently advised. “You are a genius, and your master believes you will surely devise a solution. However, I suspect that wielding this hidden weapon with spiritual power transcends the realm of artifact refining.

Instead, why not dedicate some time to cultivation, elevate your spiritual attainment, and then observe the sparring matches of other disciples at the sect’s Sword Discussion Platform? You might just find new inspiration there.”

Su Yun considered his words and conceded that Lei Yan had a point. Currently, she was only at the first level of Qi Refining, still in its nascent stages, and her understanding of cultivators was profoundly limited.

Perhaps, once her cultivation advanced and her command over spiritual energy strengthened, novel ideas would indeed begin to surface.

“You’re right,” Su Yun agreed. “For the foreseeable future, I’ll set aside artifact refining and dedicate myself entirely to cultivation.”

With that, she granted herself a temporary reprieve from her current obsession.

“Indeed, that’s the correct approach,” Lei Yan affirmed. “One must not rush anything; there’s still a long journey ahead. If you wish to cultivate, you may visit the sect’s Sword Comprehension Pagoda. It houses a Spirit Gathering Array, meticulously arranged by the sect, where cultivating yields twice the results with half the effort.”

Su Yun nodded in understanding.

“Alright, I’ll go take a look,” Su Yun replied, offering an awkward smile. “It’s just that, Master, I can’t fly yet.”

Lei Yan, naturally discerning Su Yun’s implication, turned towards the Artifact Refining Peak and bellowed a command.

“Your junior sister intends to cultivate at the Sword Comprehension Pagoda,” he boomed. “Who among you has the time to escort her?”

The moment the words left his lips, a “whoosh” echoed, and a grimy, unkempt group of burly men materialized before Su Yun.

“Me, me, me! I have time, Junior Sister!” one eagerly shouted. “I’ll escort you!”

“Get lost, you oaf!” another retorted. “Look at the state of you! Do you have no shame?”

“Damn it, all of you step aside!” Fan Yang declared, his voice brimming with authority. “I am the Senior Brother; what I say goes!”

Observing their fervent antics, Su Yun’s face burned with an almost unbearable embarrassment.

‘Are you serious?’

Su Yun sighed heavily. ‘Am I really this popular? Or is it simply that none of you have seen a woman in eight hundred years?’

And truthfully, it wasn’t far from the mark. The disciples of Artifact Refining Peak were indeed a collection of bachelors, rarely interacting with their counterparts from other peaks. As dedicated artifact refiners, they were largely exempt from many of the sect’s mandatory activities.

“Are none of you working?” Lei Yan grumbled, rubbing his forehead in exasperation. “All of you, scram! Luo Yang, you take your junior sister.”

Having designated one of them, he dismissed the rest.

Luo Yang was the youngest disciple on Artifact Refining Peak before Su Yun’s arrival, only slightly older than her.

“Wonderful, Junior Sister, let us go!” Luo Yang exclaimed, beaming with delight. His bright white teeth stood out conspicuously against his soot-stained face.

The remaining disciples, upon hearing Lei Yan’s decision, collectively slumped in disappointment.

“Go nowhere, you fool!” Lei Yan snapped, raising a hand to lightly smack the back of Luo Yang’s head. “Look at yourself! Do you truly think you’re presentable? Go back and scrub off all that soot!”

Luo Yang, suddenly reminded of his unkempt state, bolted back to the artifact-refining room with utmost haste, knowing there would be facilities there to clean himself.

As for the rest, Lei Yan simply shooed them away.

“Honestly,” Lei Yan grumbled, “a swarm of flies, utterly maddening.”

Upon hearing this, Su Yun once again felt the urge to retort.

“Master,” she sighed, “I’ve already asked you not to compare the Senior Brothers to flies, alright?”

Unfortunately, for someone with Lei Yan’s straightforward nature, remembering such a minor detail would likely prove quite difficult.