The Elven Cultivator

”Anton, is this the airship you’ve been crafting all this time?”

On a plaza in the northern part of Taichu City, Romance looked up at the behemoth before her, her eyes filled with novelty and wonder.

Sunlight poured down through a break in the clouds, coating the entire vessel in a faint golden halo.

The vessel was colored azure and white, as if the clear sky and white clouds had been fused into one. Its body was long and streamlined, with the bow and stern curving slightly upward, outlining an elegant arc. It looked like a silver flood dragon leaping from turquoise waves, about to ride the wind and take flight.

The bow was carved with intricate auspicious cloud patterns, layered one upon another like unfurling clouds or swirling mist. At a glance, it seemed as if clouds were actually flowing slowly within the carvings.

Amidships, a three-story pavilion stood tall, its upturned eaves, dark tiles, and crimson railings perfectly matching the architectural style of Taichu City.

The entire vessel hovered silently about half a meter off the ground, perfectly still, as if held aloft by some invisible force field. It didn’t even stir the slightest wisp of air.

”This isn’t an airship. It’s more appropriate to call it a Flying Ship,” Eleanor gently corrected Romance from the side. ”Its full name is the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship.”

Many Elves had gathered in the plaza. All of them stood beneath the Flying Ship, craning their necks to look up at the behemoth, their eyes filled with shock.

On the Dawn Continent today, the technology to build airships was held only by a few powers, led by the five great factions.

Due to the high difficulty and long time required for construction, these factions owned few airships and almost never sold them.

In fact, given the exorbitant cost of an airship, few factions could afford one even if they were for sale.

And that’s not to mention the enormous annual expenses required for subsequent maintenance.

This situation would persist until Demon Crystal technology became widespread, drastically reducing the difficulty and cost of airship manufacturing. Only then would airships gradually become common across the continent, sparking a revolution in transportation.

Before today, it wasn’t that the Elves present had never seen an airship.

But compared to the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship before them, those airships were completely outclassed.

For one thing, the difference in size alone was more than an order of magnitude.

The largest airship they had ever seen was only fifty or sixty meters long, less than half the length of the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship.

Not to mention the carvings, the pavilion, the array patterns... every detail of the Flying Ship radiated meticulous craftsmanship.

It was less a mode of transport and more a work of art.

In contrast, the disciples of Taichu City were relatively calm.

After all, they had already seen descriptions and diagrams of Flying Ships in the ancient records.

”I’ve read the description of the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship in the records. It says it can travel 300,000 li a day. Doesn’t that mean it could cross the entire continent in just seven or eight days?” Mia said, her eyes sparkling.

The Elves nearby heard this and their eyes all widened in disbelief.

300,000 li a day?

What kind of outrageous speed was that?

The fastest airships they had heard of could only travel forty to fifty thousand li a day, and that was by burning through Magic Stones without regard for cost and pushing themselves to the limit.

But the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship’s speed was actually six or seven times faster than those airships!

What did that even mean?

To get from the Eldron Plain to the Holy Dragon Mountain Range in an ordinary airship would take at least ten days to half a month, and you’d have to account for factors like Magic Stone consumption and crew rest.

But with the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship, you could arrive in two days at most!

With almost no need for supplies along the way!

The difference between the two was simply staggering!

They had originally thought airships were impressive, but now, compared to the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship, they suddenly seemed rather ordinary.

Those steel behemoths, built by piling up massive amounts of resources, looked like crude toys in front of this azure-and-white Flying Ship.

The Clan’s upper echelon thought even deeper.

They almost immediately realized the immense significance behind this type of Flying Ship.

If this kind of flying vehicle became widespread, the entire continent’s transportation industry would likely be thrown into turmoil.

Trade routes would be redefined. The rise and fall of towns and cities would no longer depend on their access to land routes, but on whether they could connect to Flying Ship routes.

Even resources from remote regions could be gathered and distributed quickly.

And that was just for civilian use.

If this kind of Flying Ship were used for military purposes, the implications would be revolutionary.

A top speed of 300,000 li a day meant that the radius for troop deployment would leap from a regional to a continental scale.

Elite forces could be deployed to any battlefield on the continent within a matter of days.

The enemy would never know from which direction the next unit would descend. Traditional defensive lines, fortress locations, and logistical supply lines would all be completely rewritten.

This unprecedented strategic mobility would give the Silver Moon Race’s military potential an astonishing boost.

The only problem was that the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship’s passenger capacity was a bit too small.

”Clan Leader,” the Great Elder suddenly spoke up. ”Can the internal space of this type of Flying Ship be expanded?”

Anton turned to look and saw all the Clan’s upper echelon staring at him with burning intensity.

He of course knew what they were thinking. He smiled and said, ”Among large flying Magical Treasures, the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship is considered a smaller model. There are larger ones, like tower-type Magical Treasures, that can hold hundreds or even thousands of people.”

”However, this kind of Magical Treasure is very difficult to craft and has stringent material requirements. I can’t make one right now. We’ll have to wait a few years.”

Hearing this, the Clan’s upper echelon wasn’t disappointed at all. Instead, their faces lit up with joy.

As long as it was possible to build one, that was enough.

Their faith in Anton had reached a point of near-blind trust.

As long as he said it was possible, it would definitely happen in the future.

They had witnessed similar ’miracles’ countless times before.

And once Anton crafted the tower-type Magical Treasure he spoke of, the boost to the Clan’s military strength would undoubtedly be immense.

Imagine a thousand-strong legion crossing half the continent in a few days to suddenly appear deep in enemy territory. Or when a border was in crisis, reinforcements wouldn’t trudge in by land, but would descend abruptly from the clouds.

Just thinking about that kind of strategic mobility was enough to make one’s scalp tingle.

At this thought, a fire ignited in the hearts of the Clan’s upper echelon.

The other Elves didn’t speak, but the expressions on their faces said it all.

Shock, admiration, excitement... all sorts of emotions intertwined and filled the air of the plaza.

Anton paid no mind to the crowd’s reaction and turned to Laine and the others.

”Laine, you and the others go aboard. Familiarize yourselves with the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship’s controls and operation. There’s a manual on the table in the first-floor hall.”

”Yes, Teacher!”

The disciples of Taichu City respectfully complied, then leaped up onto the Flying Ship, crossing the deck and entering the hall of the pavilion’s first floor.

There were eighteen Taichu City disciples in total, the control and maintenance crew Anton had prepared for the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship.

After all, the Cloud-Surging Flying Ship was essentially a large Magical Artifact, and only Cultivators could operate it.

Of course, eighteen people was a bit much.

Under normal circumstances, four or five would have been enough.

But Anton wanted to use this opportunity to train a batch of personnel familiar with the Flying Ship’s controls ahead of time.

In the future, when more Flying Ships or tower-type Magical Treasures were crafted, this crew could act as instructors, passing their experience on to new recruits so he wouldn’t have to handle everything himself.

Tearing his gaze away from the Flying Ship, Anton stopped an enthusiastic Romance, who also wanted to go aboard, and smiled. ”Did you master the Golden Wheel Lightning Body?”

Romance grinned and nodded. ”I knew I couldn’t hide it from you.”

The moment she finished speaking, a faint golden phantom emerged from her body, flowing slowly around her like a reflection in water.

The phantom had the vague outline of wheels. There were nine of them in total, extending from the top of her head to the soles of her feet, like nine miniature suns circling her body.

With each rotation of the golden wheel-like phantoms, fine arcs of electricity shot out, crackling softly as they danced across Romance’s skin.

Seeing this, a look of gratification flashed in Anton’s eyes.

Back during the battle with Gustus, Romance could already barely use a nascent form of the Golden Wheel Lightning Body. In the three years since, she had been engrossed in comprehending it on the Enlightenment Platform. For her to take this step now was a natural outcome.

Watching this, the Clan’s upper echelon all showed looks of joy and offered their congratulations.

Now the Clan had another Golden Peak combatant.

A complicated emotion flickered in Eleanor’s eyes as she watched.

Her friend had broken through, and she was naturally happy for her.

But deep down, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of urgency.

Her current Cultivation Level had only just reached the Fifth-Layer Foundation Establishment. She was still a long way from reaching the peak of Foundation Establishment.

Compared to Romance, she had already fallen too far behind.

’I’ll have to put more time and energy into my cultivation from now on.’

Eleanor secretly made up her mind.

Fortunately, with Furlo’s help, her workload was much lighter than before, allowing her to focus more on her cultivation.

Elena also had mixed feelings.

She was older than Romance, but had only reached the peak of the Second Transition of Force two years ago.

She was now cultivating the Wind-Feather Evasion Shadow, trying to awaken the Power of Law and step into the ranks of Golden Peak.

But it had been too short a time. Even with the help of the Enlightenment Stele, she was still a long way from crossing that threshold.

’It’s doubtful I can break through within ten years.’

’I won’t be able to think about joining the battle anytime soon.’

Once the commotion died down a little, Anton finally spoke. ”In three days, we depart for Darkness Fortress. If you have any other preparations to make in these three days, arrange them as soon as possible.”

”Yes, Clan Leader!”

The three elders, Cedric, and Romance all grew serious and nodded solemnly.

Anton then looked at Eleanor. ”Eleanor, while we’re away, I’ll have to trouble you to look after things here.”

”I know.” Eleanor nodded, suppressing the complicated feelings in her heart and showing a steady smile. ”With me here, there won’t be any trouble in the Clan.”

Anton nodded slightly and said no more.

With Eleanor holding down the fort, plus the defenses of the various grand arrays, they could hold off any external invasion for some time until he and the others could return to provide support.

Once they reached Darkness Fortress and established a Teleportation Array, they could travel back and forth at any time, and there would be even less to worry about.