Grinding EXP From a Demon Hunting Ship

「Two months later.」

WHOOSH.

A scorching, searing wind blew.

Rivers and lakes of magma and mountains of blackish-red molten rock seemed to stretch on for eternity, making up the landscape of the volcanic Grotto Heaven.

At that moment, two Floating Spiritual Ships were soaring through this purgatorial world, leaving two trails of differently colored light in their wake.

These two spiritual ships were none other than the Ghostly Flood Dragon and the Dust Crossing Flying Boat.

Su Ye stood at the prow, hands clasped behind his back. His gaze was profound as he surveyed the ground below.

Just then.

The Dust Crossing Flying Boat gradually slowed, coming to a stop and hovering in mid-air.

A message arrived from Lu Chen. "Mr. Su, we’ve arrived. Please stop your ship and join us."

"Alright." Su Ye halted his ship and gave a slight nod. His body transformed into a beam of icy-silver Escape Light, and a moment later, he was on the deck of the Dust Crossing Flying Boat.

The Dust Crossing Flying Boat was a long and narrow type of spiritual ship, but regardless of its shape, it was still a fourth-rank vessel.

The deck was at least a hundred feet wide, yet at this moment, it seemed somewhat crowded.

THUD.

He set foot on the deck.

Su Ye looked up and saw, in the middle of the deck, a large Orbit that took up a great deal of space. It stood nearly thirty feet tall and wide, resembling a longsword of pure silver.

"So this is the ’Celestial Observation Instrument’?" Su Ye asked with great interest as he walked closer to get a better look.

"The very same."

"However, the Celestial Observation Instrument isn’t ready yet. We need you Array Masters to perform the final setup and calibrate its void parameters."

Lu Chen walked over, his attitude sincere. He explained that using the Celestial Observation Instrument required several Array Masters to set it up according to the local conditions, otherwise the results would be unsatisfactory.

This was precisely why he had commissioned Su Ye and the others in advance.

"Of course."

Su Ye nodded.

’I’m still after the "Dragon Fiend Heart,"’ he thought, ’so I’d better be polite to these Sword Sect cultivators.’

The other two Array Masters, Zheng Yunzhe and Wu Yiling, naturally wouldn’t refuse. Helping with the Array Formation counted toward their contribution score!

Besides, a device like the Celestial Observation Instrument was a rarity even among the Nine Sects of the Inner Sea. For an Array Master, the chance to calibrate its void parameters was a precious opportunity.

They would have begged for the chance even without any reward!

After all, the Celestial Observation Instrument involved the void and the Dao of Space—a domain that only Nascent Soul True Monarchs could access.

Then.

Su Ye stepped forward, took hold of an Array Plate, and extended his Divine Sense into it.

In an instant, a torrent of complex, intricate runes containing all the data for the Celestial Observation Instrument surged along his Divine Sense and flooded into his mind.

However, with the current strength of his Divine Sense, this torrent of data wasn’t even enough to make him dizzy for a moment.

After a brief moment of acclimation, he was fully in control and began calibrating the Celestial Observation Instrument.

’Mr. Su’s Divine Sense is truly humbling...’

Seeing Su Ye’s calm expression, Zheng Yunzhe was slightly taken aback. Generally, it took some time to adapt when first calibrating the Celestial Observation Instrument.

He recalled being in discomfort for a good few minutes when he’d first linked his Divine Sense back at the sect.

But since they had met, Su Ye had surprised him so many times that he was no longer shocked by it. He took hold of his Array Plate and began to calibrate the coordinates.

The composed manner of the two men, however, made Wu Yiling feel quite awkward.

’Oh, crap. I’ve never calibrated a Celestial Observation Instrument back at the sect... I can’t go and make a fool of myself.’ Wu Yiling clutched the Array Plate, her expression hesitant.

’Forget it. If Mr. Su can do it, so can I!’ She gritted her teeth and plunged her Divine Sense into the plate.

"Ngh?!"

The massive wave of information that swarmed in instantly caused the color to drain from Wu Yiling’s face.

"Mr. Wu, are you alright?" Zheng Yunzhe asked.

"I’m... fine!"

Beads of sweat formed on Wu Yiling’s forehead as she answered, trying to sound convincing.

「At the same time.」

Su Ye’s eyes were tightly shut, his Divine Sense like silken threads already deep inside the Celestial Observation Instrument.

Countless silver runes flickered and flowed around his Divine Sense like an ocean tide.

These were void runes.

They were the foundation upon which the Celestial Observation Instrument was built.

Innumerable void runes were linked together.

This allowed the Celestial Observation Instrument, a mere inanimate object, to partially replicate a Nascent Soul True Monarch’s ability to warp space!

’But... these void runes are out of harmony with the surrounding void environment.’

Su Ye’s Divine Sense flickered as he began to adjust the runes within the Celestial Observation Instrument that were behaving abnormally.

He worked to bring the Celestial Observation Instrument’s void parameters into harmony with the natural void parameters of the surroundings. As the void runes gradually synchronized, the aura of the instrument’s Array grew increasingly immense.

At that moment, a feeling surfaced in Su Ye’s mind. ’If I just modify a few parameters, I can use this Celestial Observation Instrument to achieve Void Teleportation!’

’So, this is the Dao of Space.’

Su Ye had a flash of insight. ’Is this what a Nascent Soul True Monarch feels when they warp space?’

At the same time, the exquisite Array within the Celestial Observation Instrument left Su Ye deep in thought, and several ideas for improving his own Array Formations came to mind.

By standing on the shoulders of giants, even a cultivator like Su Ye—who had no particular talent for Arrays—could reap great rewards.

His mastery of Arrays had advanced.

’I’m one step closer to the intermediate fourth rank,’ Su Ye mused.

...

「A long while later.」

The calibration was complete.

Su Ye opened his eyes and saw Lu Chen and Zheng Yunzhe.

Lu Chen was fine; as a supreme fourth-rank Array Grandmaster, he had little to gain.

Zheng Yunzhe, however, looked ecstatic. Calibrating the parameters had clearly led to a significant improvement in his mastery of the Dao of Arrays.

’It’s just...’

Su Ye’s eyes flicked to the side.

’Why does Wu Yiling look like she’s seasick?’

"Mr. Wu...?"

"I’m fine! Just a little... ngh." Wu Yiling stomped her foot, about to argue, but her face suddenly turned green and she quickly clapped a hand over her mouth and nose.