"A secret technique... No, it is a divine ability!" When Yaoguang realized the power of the ability he had just acquired, he felt a surge of shock.

By utilizing this divine ability to coordinate others, especially other refiners, he could essentially run an entire factory single-handedly. The production efficiency of one person operating a factory compared to a group of people maintaining it was on an entirely different level.

If used in group combat, the boosting effect would be just as noticeable. It could allow him to cross an entire tier. An entire tier! In today's world, nine sects possessed Golden Core cultivators. More specifically, there were seven sects, including the Nine Cauldrons Sect, that possessed Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators. If their supreme elders were to self-detonate their Golden Cores, it would create a destructive power similar to a supernova explosion, capable of destroying entire continents.

With the elders acting as a deterrent, battles between top immortal sects occurred almost exclusively at the great cultivator tier. Within this tier, sword cultivators, known for their superior assault and breakthrough capabilities, were the primary representatives.

A gap of one tier would easily mean a one to ten casualty ratio. The boost to a sect's deterrent power would be immeasurable.

It was no exaggeration to say that if the combat power of all the great cultivators in the Nine Cauldrons Sect was raised by one tier, the chaotic East Sea's islands would quiet down at a visible rate. Sects like the Xuanming Sect, the Great Yue Dynasty, the Ancient Immortal Sect, and the Star Sea Sect would all withdraw from the East Sea immediately. Even a large sect like the Great Sun Sword Sect would become respectful and friendly.

"Phew!" After a long while, Yaoguang withdrew his psychic mind from this divine ability.

The key of the ability lay in resonating with the psychic thoughts, psychic consciousness, and combat-oriented psychic wills of other cultivators. But because his own psychic thought was not strong, the total amount of psychic thought he could guide and coordinate was quite limited.

I need to raise my body cultivation to the eighth realm as soon as possible, and then increase my psyche refinement to the seventh realm. At the seventh realm, I can barely condense a primordial psyche. Although the consumption will be high and the range small, it will be more than enough to coordinate the Purple Firmament Institute. As he continued thinking over the matter, he began to operate the workbench in front of him.

As a near-master-level refiner with all-rounder skills in artifact refinement, he optimized the Immortal Shadow 60 very efficiently. In particular, since he possessed the Refiner's Heart and the Refiner's Soul, he knew exactly how to forge a flying sword to make it more stable and easier for others to refine.

In a single morning, he improved the overall performance of the flying sword by 27%, bringing it up to the world's advanced standards.

"After optimizing it for a few more days, its performance should be comparable to flying swords of the same tier refined by powers like the Great Sun Sword Sect, the Infinite Star Palace, and the Immortal Alliance," Yaoguang mused.

With this level of performance, combined with the Nine Cauldrons Sect's own brand recognition, he could foresee that the Immortal Shadow 60 would become the most popular civilian flying sword on the market in the near future.

"The market for civilian and daily-use flying swords is ultimately too competitive. The artifact refinement institutes of the large sects have already optimized these swords to the limit, so even I won't have a massive advantage. After all, artifact refinement also involves carving array patterns, an area where I am far from proficient," Yaoguang said.

Yaoguang had thought about it, but he had no intention of diving deep into the study of array art. "This order can only be considered as earning some extra pocket money. My focus in the future must still be on the life-bound flying sword market. If I can secure a place in that market, I can easily earn a fortune."

The Immortal Shadow series was merely a low-to-mid-end product line. The Purple Firmament series of life-bound flying swords were the true custom-made luxury items. Their profit margins were significantly higher than those of the Immortal Shadow series. Of course, the prerequisite was actually being able to sell them.

***

As Yaoguang packed his things to leave, Xiang Guangming knocked on the door.

"Come in," Yaoguang said.

Xiang Guangming entered and saw that Yaoguang had already shut down the workbench. He was slightly taken aback. "Are you heading out, Chief? I will arrange a vehicle for you immediately."

"Mhmm. Arrange a vehicle with a larger interior; I need to move some things," Yaoguang said. "Is my residence cleaned?"

"The cleaning is finished, and you can move in at any time. If you need anything else, just let me know, and I will go buy it," Xiang Guangming replied.

As the chief officer, he was essentially the head steward of the factory. Not only did he handle promotion and business development, but he also managed the daily needs of all the artifact refiners. Of course, the actual work was carried out by the officers and attaches.

"Mhmm." Yaoguang nodded and then asked, "Did you have something to discuss?"

"Several high-tier artifact refiners residing in the institute wish to meet you," Xiang Guangming said.

These high-tier refiners were the production core of the Purple Firmament Institute. Once Yaoguang finished the optimization of the Purple Firmament models, they would be the ones producing them.

"It is getting late today. Let's make it tomorrow. I will review the specific designs of the Purple Firmament in the morning. In the afternoon, gather all the refiners, and I will meet with them all at once," Yaoguang said after a moment's thought.

"Understood. I will go and arrange it now," Xiang Guangming replied.

When Yaoguang left the main building, a man in his forties was already waiting in a hovering car at the entrance.

The Purple Firmament Institute was located in the suburbs of Longxiang City. It was rectangular in shape and covered an area of over 800,000 square meters. This was not because the factory had a massive workforce, but because testing flying swords required sufficient space. Given the size of the facility and its suburban location, vehicles had to be ready at all times.

Since it happened to be around six in the evening, Yaoguang ran into a traffic jam as soon as they entered the city.

"This traffic..." Yaoguang was somewhat speechless.

"The situation in the East Sea has been unstable recently. Many people who used to live there migrated to the Nine Heavens Domain and Longxiang City. The sudden increase in the immigrant population has caused this congestion. It should get better once the situation stabilizes," the driver explained with a smile.

The Nine Heavens Domain was adjacent to the East Sea's islands. Excluding the small towns with populations of only a few hundred thousand, Longxiang City was the first major city directly facing the East Sea.

Some said that, thirteen years earlier, Nine Heavens City had used the excuse that Longxiang City was too close to the East Sea's islands, making it difficult to ensure the safety of the Energy Department, to have the department moved to the capital. If not for that, Longxiang City would have remained the largest city in the Nine Heavens Domain, without having millions of people siphoned away in just over a decade and its GDP cut in half.

Soon, the vehicle stopped at the Hundred-Refinement Sect. As it was already night, the disciples who paid to learn martial arts had already returned home, and the place looked somewhat deserted. However, when the high-end hovering car pulled up at the entrance of the Hundred-Refinement Sect, it still drew the attention of several people who stepped out to take a look.

Among them was Yang Kaitai. Seeing Yaoguang enter, the high-tier body cultivator spoke with a half-smile, "You’ve been heading out early every morning lately and only showing up when it's time to sleep. What have you been doing? Why so busy?"

"I found a job," Yaoguang replied. He then added, "Since Sect Master Zong Lian isn't here, please let him know that I appreciate the hospitality during my stay."

Yang Kaitai was slightly taken aback. Although he, Huang Yunqi, and the others were all eyeing the Hundred-Refinement Sect and didn't want an outsider like Yaoguang to get a share, if Yaoguang left while the sect master was away on patrol, it might lead to a misunderstanding. If the sect master thought they had driven him away, they would certainly be punished.

He immediately said, "Why so sudden? Aren't you living comfortably here at the Hundred-Refinement Sect?" After speaking, he called out toward the courtyard, "Eldest Senior Sister, Yaoguang says he’s leaving..."

"I found a job and was assigned a residence, so naturally, I’m moving in," Yaoguang said.

"A job? What kind of job? Recently, the Nine Cauldrons Sect has accelerated communication with the lower vassal worlds to encourage their return, causing a large influx of outsiders. Their arrival has also led some ill-intentioned people to hatch schemes, tricking people under the guise of finding them work. You mustn't be fooled," Yang Kaitai said quickly.

"It’s a unit under the Flying Sword Department of the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s Artifact Refinement Hall," Yaoguang replied.

Huang Yunqi, who had just come out of the courtyard, felt a surge of joy upon hearing Yaoguang’s response. Yaoguang had ultimately chosen the path of joining the Nine Cauldrons Sect. That meant he could no longer stay at the Hundred-Refinement Sect.

She stepped forward with a smile to interject, "The Nine Cauldrons Sect... That is indeed one of the best choices for you. You became a high-tier body cultivator at the age of only twenty-one; if you work hard in the Nine Cauldrons Sect, you might even become a star lord."

She added with a face full of feigned regret, "Actually, the sect master thought very highly of you and always wanted to keep you here for careful instruction. But he also knew that with your talent, you would surely look down on a small place like the Hundred-Refinement Sect..."

She was clearly trying to sound gracious after getting what she wanted.

Yaoguang glanced at her and said calmly, "How could I look down on it? I am quite satisfied with the Hundred-Refinement Sect. In a few decades, if your Eldest Senior Brother Zong Wuya successfully achieves Foundation Building, then so be it. But if he cannot, the Hundred-Refinement Sect will eventually need a backer. By then, I should have achieved some success in my cultivation, and I will have a proper talk with the sect master."

Upon hearing this, Huang Yunqi frowned, her heart filled with displeasure. After a long while, she said coldly, "With Eldest Senior Brother's talent, achieving Foundation Building in the future will certainly not be a problem."

"Sacred Lord." At that moment, Kong Xuan walked out from inside.

"Pack our things," Yaoguang instructed.

Kong Xuan quickly returned to their quarters and got himself busy. The driver who had come with Yaoguang was also observant and followed so he could help.

This scene caught Huang Yunqi by surprise. Why was there someone specifically assigned to assist him as soon as he joined the Purple Firmament Institute?

"Yaoguang, were you... hired as a refiner for the Purple Firmament Institute?" She seemed to recall Zong Yan mentioning that Yaoguang’s attainment in artifact refinement was not low.

"No," Yaoguang replied briefly, ignoring her further.

"No?" Huang Yunqi was confused. If he isn't an official refiner, how can an apprentice receive such treatment? Is he a... high-tier refiner?! He is already immensely talented in body refinement, reaching the seventh realm at twenty-one; has he also mastered artifact refinement to the level of a high-tier refiner?! How is that possible?!

Nearby, as he watched Yaoguang packing up to truly leave, Yang Kaitai felt conflicted. He felt relieved that he didn't have to worry about the Hundred-Refinement Sect falling into Yaoguang's hands, but he also felt the sting of a genius who should have belonged to their sect being pulled away by the Nine Cauldrons Sect.

Yaoguang didn't have many belongings. Furthermore, when he had expressed his intention to join Zhang Jianlin and the others, he had mentioned it to Kong Xuan, who was already prepared.

In less than half an hour, Kong Xuan and the driver brought the luggage into the courtyard.

"Chief, everything is here. Please check if there’s anything else that needs to be moved," the driver said.

"Alright, let's go," Yaoguang said, turning to leave.

Meanwhile, Huang Yunqi, who was still wondering if Yaoguang was a high-tier refiner, was left stunned by the way the driver addressed Yaoguang. "Chief?"