Chapter 95: The Sword
A moment of silence, then: Qin Mu's hair finally stopped growing, reaching down to his waist. He took a cloth band and tied his hair back, his expression grave as he walked forward to the furnace.
Granny Si frowned and said, "Mute, you can refine Cold Iron Essence at the Spirit Embryo stage?"
The mute nodded.
Granny Si spat in disgust: "Freak!"
The Medicine Master, Blind, and the others also nodded in agreement, chiming in: "Freak! Mute, you really are a freak!"
The mute beamed with pride, grinning from ear to ear.
Cold Iron Essence was far superior to Cold Iron Crystal. It was the essence extracted from Cold Iron Crystal. Cold Iron Crystal could still be melted by furnace fire to forge weapons, but the cold aura of Cold Iron Essence could directly extinguish the furnace flames, making it extremely difficult to refine!
The mute tossed two pieces of Cold Iron Essence to Qin Mu, signaling that he should melt both pieces, forge them into one, and then craft a weapon!
If Qin Mu could accomplish this step, he would have passed this trial.
Qin Mu activated his primordial energy, transforming it into Vermillion Bird primordial energy. Flames ignited in his palm, and he reached into the furnace. With his other hand, he pumped the bellows rhythmically, trying to fan the flames in the furnace and ignite the charcoal.
But the moment his palm entered the furnace, he felt an intense chill. Even the flames on his hand nearly went out, and his Vermillion Bird primordial energy showed signs of freezing!
The mute was smug, gesturing animatedly to Deaf. Deaf translated: "You're saying that lighting the furnace fire is a test in itself, requiring skill? It involves the mysteries of forging, and brute force alone can't light the fire?"
The mute was all smiles. Suddenly, with a *puff* sound, flames burst forth from the furnace. The charcoal was forcibly ignited by Qin Mu's violent Vermillion Bird primordial energy, suppressing the cold aura of the Cold Iron Essence.
Deaf looked at the mute and said sympathetically, "Mute, if brute force can't light the fire, it only means your cultivation at the Spirit Embryo stage isn't up to par. He has enough brute force to light the fire—he doesn't need skill."
The mute made dejected gestures, and Deaf chuckled: "Cunning. The charcoal fire can't melt Cold Iron Essence—so you were holding back a trick there."
Qin Mu had lit the furnace fire and immediately surged his primordial energy, pushing the flames to their extreme. But the Cold Iron Essence remained unmelted, not even turning red-hot.
Qin Mu frowned. Suddenly, he plunged both hands into the furnace, grabbed the two pieces of Cold Iron, and activated the Tyrant Body Three Elixir Art. His spirit embryo went wild as well, the primordial energy around it forming a massive furnace, pushing the Vermillion Bird primordial energy to its limit!
The Cold Iron Essence in his hands gradually turned red-hot, and before long, droplets of molten iron began to fall.
Qin Mu directed the molten iron into the trough. The two pieces of Cold Iron melted faster and faster, and soon, all the Cold Iron had liquefied, the molten metal merging together.
Deaf looked at the dumbfounded mute and asked, "What were you testing him on again?"
The mute slumped in defeat. His original intention was to test Qin Mu's forging skill.
To refine Cold Iron Essence, one first needed to light the furnace, but the furnace fire's temperature couldn't melt the Cold Iron Essence. However, with deep enough cultivation, one could use Vermillion Bird primordial energy to soften the Cold Iron Essence.
In his plan, Qin Mu would soften the two pieces of Cold Iron, then repeatedly hammer them to forge them together, and then temper them into a weapon through a hundred refinements. He never expected Qin Mu's primordial energy cultivation to be so monstrously deep that he simply melted both pieces of Cold Iron with raw primordial energy!
His goal was to test skill, but Qin Mu's brute force directly overpowered skill, achieving the same result—and more simply. The mute had nothing to say.
Clang! Clang! The sound of hammering rang out. Qin Mu swung the massive iron hammer, sending sparks flying. Every strike was infused with surging primordial energy, using Vermillion Bird primordial energy to soften the metal and Black Tortoise primordial energy to cool it, repeatedly tempering and striking.
He hammered and refined it countless times, and gradually, a butcher knife took shape.
The mute inspected it and nodded listlessly. Qin Mu had passed this trial.
Qin Mu finished the butcher knife and tested its sharpness, quite satisfied. He finally had a weapon he had forged himself.
Blind smiled and said, "Mu'er, don't test the knife just yet. You still have my trial to pass. This time, you and I will compete in composing poetry."
Qin Mu's face turned pale, and he stammered, "Grandpa Blind, I definitely can't beat you..."
Deaf pulled out his two iron ears with a *pop* to indicate he wasn't listening. Granny Si and the others also looked disgusted and said in unison, "Blind, pick something else!"
Blind scratched his head, unable to refuse their enthusiasm, and said, "Then let's compete in spear technique. Condense qi into a spear!"
He tossed aside his bamboo staff, spread his five fingers, and his Black Tortoise primordial energy turned into flowing water. A Water Dragon Spear appeared in his hand.
Qin Mu's primordial energy erupted, and a Fire Dragon Spear appeared in his hand. The two began to move, their long spears constantly trembling, like venomous dragons poised to strike from the abyss.
They circled each other, footsteps never ceasing, yet the Water Dragon Spear and Fire Dragon Spear never touched.
Qin Mu activated his Divine Firmament Eye, fixing his gaze on Blind, searching for an opening. But he found none. Despite being blind, Blind revealed not a single flaw.
"No flaws? Then I'll create one!"
They circled for a long time. Suddenly, Qin Mu stomped his foot, and the ground beneath him sank, a large pit forming from the force of his step. The ground rippled like waves, throwing Blind off balance.
*Whoosh!*
He thrust his Fire Dragon Spear forward, but Blind smiled slightly. His Water Dragon Spear, released after but arriving first, swept toward Qin Mu. Though Qin Mu had struck first, Blind's spear hit Qin Mu's chest a step ahead!
Qin Mu smiled. Water splashed at his chest, forming a vortex that blocked Blind's strike. Blind's Water Dragon Spear shattered instantly, and he was sent flying backward by the recoil. Qin Mu's spear lengthened, transforming into a fire dragon that struck Blind in the chest.
Blind tumbled and landed, staggering. He hastily unsealed his sealed Divine Treasury to steady himself, then shouted angrily, "That's cheating! You used two types of primordial energy at once! In terms of technique, you've already lost. You're just relying on your Tyrant Body's powerful primordial energy to bully me!"
Qin Mu stammered, "Grandpa Blind, how about we do it again?"
Blind's anger turned to joy, and he said, "Isn't the Tyrant Body meant to bully people? This is your strength. You've passed my trial. Granny, it's your turn."
Granny Si looked at Qin Mu, who had just won, with a complex expression. She said, "Mu'er, in my heart, you've already passed my trial long ago. When you opened the three hundred and sixty chambers, you had already passed."
Qin Mu was taken aback: "Granny?"
"Which child never leaves home?"
Granny Si said softly, "When you grow up, you have to leave. I can't keep you forever. All these old folks have let you pass. If I don't, I'd be too selfish..." She picked up her basket and returned to the house, closing the door behind her.
Qin Mu stood there, stunned.
The Village Chief coughed to snap him out of it and said, "Mu'er, if you pass my trial, you can leave the Crippled Elder Village, leave the Great Ruins, and go out into the world to train."
Qin Mu turned around and said, "Please instruct me, Village Chief."
The Village Chief smiled slightly and said, "Everything we old folks have taught you is the skill to survive in this world. Horse Lord taught you strength and dignity. The Butcher taught you courage and fearlessness. Deaf taught you artistry and grace. The Cripple taught you escape and cunning. Blind taught you to see through appearances to the truth. The Medicine Master taught you alchemy and healing. Granny taught you wisdom and kindness. The Mute taught you adaptability and composure. What I can teach you is a ruler—using conscience as the measure, to weigh right and wrong, good and evil. Raise your sword."
Qin Mu drew the Young Protector Sword and held it horizontally before him. The blade ridge facing Qin Mu divided the blade into two sides—one side reflected Qin Mu's face, and the other also reflected Qin Mu's face.
"A sword has four edges. The side facing you reflects your heart—one side is good, the other is evil."
The Village Chief said calmly, "The side facing your enemy reflects your enemy's conscience—one side is good, the other is evil. The sword is your ruler, used to measure good and evil, right and wrong. It measures both you and your enemy. Sword technique is about measuring the opponent's good and evil, and also measuring your own. I will now teach you the first form of my sword technique. Once you learn it, you will have passed my trial and can leave the village to make your way in the world."
Qin Mu's heart surged with excitement. The Village Chief was finally going to teach him sword moves!
Horse Lord, Blind, and the others felt a tremor in their hearts and looked toward the Village Chief. Granny Si also pushed open her door and looked over.
The Village Chief was finally going to pass down his sword technique to Qin Mu. To others, this might seem like a small matter, but to them, it was an earth-shaking event.
Especially the Medicine Master, who knew the deeper meaning behind the Village Chief teaching Qin Mu his sword technique!
The Village Chief's sword technique was not just a legacy—it carried even more responsibility!
To learn the Village Chief's sword technique was to shoulder a responsibility that even the Village Chief himself had not been able to fulfill!
The Medicine Master said quietly, "Village Chief, do you think he can bear it?"
The Village Chief smiled and said, "Just because I couldn't doesn't mean he can't either. The Demon Cult's founder is old, with only seven years left to live. I'm old too—at best, I'll die a few years after him. It's time to pass down the legacy."
His spirit surged, and he said to Qin Mu, "My sword technique is called the Sword Diagram. The first form of the Sword Diagram is called 'Sword Treading Mountains and Rivers.'"