Chapter 258: Chapter 236: Change in the Rules

Fang Yun briefly controlled the Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact before putting it away.

He then took out the Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact, the Earth Yellow Sword.

He wanted to test the most noticeable effect.

’The Spiritual Power cost reduction for a Middle Grade Spiritual Artifact has reached ninety percent. Not bad, not bad at all.’

After seeing this result, Fang Yun put away the Middle Grade Earth Yellow Sword. There was no need to test controlling all his Spiritual Artifacts at once.

He could already do that back when his Combat Talent was at four stars and he was in the early Foundation Establishment Stage. Now that his Combat Talent had been upgraded to five stars, it was even more of a given.

Back with a four-star Combat Talent, he could clearly sense the weaknesses of early Foundation Establishment Stage enemies and could only vaguely sense those of mid-Foundation Establishment Stage enemies. Now that his Combat Talent was upgraded to five stars, this ability was sure to be enhanced.

Now, if he were to encounter two early-stage and two mid-stage Foundation Establishment Demons, he could probably end the fight in less than a breath.

After testing the Spiritual Artifacts, Fang Yun also tried out an Upper Grade Magical Artifact. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Controlling an Upper Grade Magical Artifact originally consumed little Spiritual Power; for someone in the early Foundation Establishment Stage like him, the cost was practically negligible.

On top of that, the Spiritual Power consumption for an Upper Grade Magical Artifact was now even lower, making the reduction barely noticeable.

’I wonder, how does the power of an Upper Grade Magical Artifact under my control now compare to that of a normal Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact?’

For now, Fang Yun had no way of verifying this.

He would definitely test it out if he got the chance later.

Combat Talent only provided a bonus; the Magical Artifacts and Spiritual Artifacts themselves were the foundation.

The foundation of an Upper Grade Magical Artifact was what it was. To truly reach the level of a Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact, it would require a bonus far beyond what a five-star Combat Talent could provide.

What was certain was that the power Fang Yun could now unleash with an Upper Grade Magical Artifact far surpassed that of a Top Grade Magical Artifact.

He owned many Yellow Iron Swords that were on the level of Upper Grade Magical Artifacts.

He had no intention of selling these Yellow Iron Swords.

For him, these Yellow Iron Swords were perfect for mowing down weaker opponents.

All the simple tests were complete.

After this increase in his strength, there was even more he could do.

For example, with the bonus from his five-star Combat Talent, if he used the Half-Hidden Spirit Boots with four Spirit Patterns to approach those Foundation Establishment Demons, a mid-stage Foundation Establishment Demon wouldn’t be able to discover him, let alone in three breaths—not even in ten.

All these enhancements further increased his safety when he was away from the sect.

The day before yesterday, he had a chat with Bai Qinying.

He wanted to know how the Shen Family was doing.

According to the news from Bai Qinying, after four Foundation Establishment Demons died, the Demons had quieted down for the time being.

According to Bai Qinying, this current lull might be in preparation for an even bigger offensive.

Fang Yun was inclined to agree with this point.

With the Stone Demon Sect having lost all its Foundation Establishment higher-ups, which Demon Foundation Establishment Influence would take its place?

Or was the Celestial Demon Sect going to step in personally?

None of this could be confirmed.

Offense is proactive; defense is reactive.

The sect’s strategy was very passive, but the benefits of defense were self-evident. With the support of the Grand Array, their combat strength at least doubled.

「Half a year later.」

Yang Yingjie appeared in Fang Yun’s cave residence.

The current Yang Yingjie was not far from the peak of the Qi Refining Tenth Layer. He would definitely reach that Realm in the first half of next year, and in the second half, he could probably begin his breakthrough attempt to the Foundation Establishment Stage.

If he were to make more preparations, his breakthrough attempt would be pushed to the year after next.

"Senior Brother Fang, these are the Spiritual Materials I’ve collected."

Yang Yingjie placed a Storage Pouch on the table. All the Spiritual Materials were inside a single pouch, along with the Spirit Stones for this Refining job.

In private, he was accustomed to calling Fang Yun "Senior Brother Fang."

"Mm, very comprehensive." Fang Yun glanced at the Spiritual Materials in the Storage Pouch. "It must have taken you a lot of effort to gather all these."

These Spiritual Materials were not for refining an Upper Grade Magical Artifact, but for a Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact.

At Yang Yingjie’s current Realm, controlling a Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact was extremely difficult. This was something he was preparing for his future.

"It was alright. My luck was pretty good."

Yang Yingjie wanted Fang Yun to refine a Lower Grade Spiritual Artifact, but not an ordinary one. He wanted one that would be exceptionally effective against Demons. Many of the required Spiritual Materials could only be gathered within the Celestial Demon Sect’s Earth Realm.

"I can still gather some Spiritual Materials now. If I really succeed in Foundation Establishment in the future and become a Sect Elder, it will be much harder for me to collect these materials." At this point, Yang Yingjie paused before continuing, "Right now, there are many tasks in the Task Hall to collect Spiritual Materials in the Celestial Demon Sect’s Earth Realm."

Without a doubt, these tasks were mostly posted by the Elders.

Under the sect’s regulations, it was not advisable for Sect Elders to travel to the Celestial Demon Sect’s Earth Realm at this time.

Both sides had supported their subordinate forces, but the real contest between the two great Core Formation Sects had not yet begun.

"The rewards for these tasks are very generous."

Yang Yingjie knew with a little thought that the Elders posting such tasks must also want to refine Lower Grade Spiritual Artifacts that were especially effective against Demons.

Doing this in advance was also beneficial for him.

"Perhaps by the time you succeed in Foundation Establishment and become a Sect Elder, you won’t need to post similar tasks. You’ll be able to go to the Celestial Demon Sect’s Earth Realm yourself." Fang Yun brought up the topic of the war. "The Celestial Demon Sect has already taken over the Stone Demon Sect."

This was news Fang Yun had gotten from Bai Qinying.

The Shen Family’s ancestral land had quieted down considerably. They could use this time to rest and recuperate. The Elders stationed as Guardians at both the Shen and Xiao Families had now returned to the sect.