Chapter 1004 - Blacksmithing Skills

A heavy atmosphere hung in the main hall.

As an outsider, Liu Wuxie knew it wasn't his place to speak or interfere in their internal affairs.

"Brother Liu, you've seen what's going on around the manor. We'll be busy over the next few days. For now, I'll arrange a place for you to rest, and I'll personally inform you as soon as there's news," Ji Qiu said.

Ji Qiu didn't see Liu Wuxie as an outsider and told him to make himself at home.

"Thank you, Big Brother Ji," Liu Wuxie replied.

He knew that being overly polite would only create distance between them.

Ji Qiu and Tang Hong soon arranged a small courtyard for him. Though the courtyard wasn't large, it offered peace and quiet. Through their thoughtful arrangement, they demonstrated their high regard for Liu Wuxie.

Usually, visitors stayed in guest rooms rather than private courtyards.

After settling in, Liu Wuxie spent most of his time in the courtyard and rarely went out. At dusk, Ji Qiu and Tang Hong visited him briefly before leaving after chatting for a moment.

They needed to attend the meeting to decide on the challenge representatives, leaving them no time to host their guest properly. But they promised to welcome him properly after the challenge, three days from now.

As core members of the Renowned Sword Manor, Ji Qiu, and Tang Hong had to attend the meeting.

In the two years since they had last met, the couple had advanced to the upper levels of the Spirit Profound Realm.

Liu Wuxie stood in the courtyard, gazing at the stars in the sky. Although the Northern City was freezing, the sky was clear, with occasional snowflakes drifting down.

He could feel it—Xu Lingxue and Murong Yi were somewhere in this city. Though their spiritual connection was faint, he could sense it despite the vast distance.

......

Likewise, two women clad in white fur cloaks stood on a distant mountain, their beauty highlighted.

"Big Sister Murong, what do you think Big Brother Liu is doing right now?" asked the woman on the right.

Her side profile revealed a peerless beauty that dimmed the stars.

Even the heavens seemed to admire the two beauties as snowflakes danced in the air, swirling gently as they drifted from the sky. The snowflakes twirled and settled softly on their shoulders.

"He's probably looking at the stars as well, just like us," Murong Yi replied, pulling her cloak tighter. Perhaps they were under the same sky, sharing the same thoughts. The only difference was their location.

Even after spending months in the Northern City, she still hadn't adapted to the extreme environment, especially atop this mountain, where the temperature was lower than in the city.

Living here was harsh, but the benefits were clear. The spiritual energy was rich and pure, making cultivation far more efficient.

......

The clash of weapons snapped Liu Wuxie out of his star-bound trance. He had been lost in thought, pondering what lay beyond the Astral Domain.

He needed to enter the Astral Domain within three years to save Han Feizi.

Curious, he opened the door and followed where the sound came from. The nearby residences were quiet, and they were likely private quarters.

Passing through several courtyards, Liu Wuxie stopped before the courtyard where the sound came from. The doors were open, with a one-armed man hammering a longsword against an anvil.

Sparks flew with each hammering. Liu Wuxie was surprised to see him using an ancient swordsmithing technique.

As human civilization progressed, cultivators refined weapons by inscribing runes, just like Liu Wuxie did, and they no longer used hammers to shape metal.

The one-armed man stood before a massive furnace that radiated enough heat to push back the Northern City's chill.

Most blacksmiths forged indoors, but this man chose to work in the courtyard. Likely because of the Northern City's frigid climate.

Forging weapons required fire, but the Northern City remained cold all year round.

When the hammer struck the longsword, terrifying flames enveloped the sword.

About a minute later, he plunged the sword embryo into cold water, and a thick cloud of steam blurred Liu Wuxie's vision.

Shortly after, a sharp snapping sound echoed. The sword embryo snapped in two and clattered to the ground. The man stared blankly in defeat at the fractured sword when the steam cleared.

"Why does this keep happening?"

The man hurled the broken sword into the furnace and clutched his head with his remaining hand, questioning himself.

The Renowned Sword Manor was known for their sword forging. But a blaze had destroyed the Renowned Sword Manor's library and wiped out its most precious forging techniques.

As a result, the Renowned Sword Manor had regressed by at least ten years in swordsmithing skills. They had lost their famed Silver-Threading Forging Art.

The Renowned Sword Manor had guarded that secret, passing it down only to the manor lords of each generation. But the old manor lord had died before he could pass it to his successor.

Just as Liu Wuxie was about to leave, a faint crunch beneath his foot gave him away.

"Who's there?" the one-armed man asked.

There was no point in hiding now that he had discovered Liu Wuxie.

"Greetings, Senior. I didn't mean to intrude. The sound of your forging brought me here," explained Liu Wuxie as he stepped forward.

"What's your name, and why are you here?" asked the man after studying Liu Wuxie momentarily.

Only core members of the Renowned Sword Manor were allowed in this area, and he didn't recognize Liu Wuxie. Thus, his suspicion was understandable.

"I am Liu Wuxie, a friend of Ji Qiu and Tang Hong," Liu Wuxie replied, clasping his hands together. He had already guessed the one-armed man's identity.

The one-armed man's expression softened after hearing that Liu Wuxie was Ji Qiu and Tang Hong's friend.

"It has been a while since someone chatted with me. Come and have a seat!" said the one-armed man with a wave of his hand, welcoming Liu Wuxie in since he was a friend of Ji Qiu and Tang Hong.

"Won't I disturb your forging?" Liu Wuxie asked.

"Not anymore!" replied the one-armed man and shut off the furnace.

In the Northern City, igniting flames required much energy, especially forging outdoors.

With that said, Liu Wuxie could only step in and stand before the one-armed man.

𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"May I ask... are you Brother Miao Jianying's father?" Liu Wuxie probed.

He had heard earlier that Miao Jianying's father had lost his arm due to an accident after adding the wrong material, which had resulted in the explosion of the cauldron.

"I didn't expect someone to recognize a cripple like me," said the one-armed man with a bitter smile as he led Liu Wuxie inside.

The furnishing was simple: a table, a chair, and a bed.

Miao Feiyu, Miao Jianying's father, was also the husband of Tang Hong's elder sister.

When the two sat down, Miao Feiyu lit the stove and poured tea for his guest. The crackling flames warmed the room. The kettle whistled and released a rich fragrance that filled the room.

"Senior," Liu Wuxie began, "May I ask why you're still using such an old-fashioned forging method instead of inscribing runes?"

Judging by Miao Feiyu's aura, Liu Wuxie could tell he had reached the third level of the Earth Profound Realm, and it would be easy for him to forge using runes.

"Why don't you try it yourself?" Miao Feiyu smiled, gesturing Liu Wuxie toward the forge in the courtyard.

Liu Wuxie was baffled. He wondered if he had said something wrong.

But it was rude to refuse Miao Feiyu's request, and a half-complete sword embryo was on the table.

He summoned the sword with a wave, and fire gushed out from his finger with another tap.

In the Northern City, few cultivators practiced fire-attribute techniques, focusing more on ice elements.

Miao Feiyu looked at Liu Wuxie with a hint of envy. Fire-attribute cultivation techniques were far more efficient when it came to blacksmithing.

Liu Wuxie inscribed runes into the sword embryo, and a bizarre scene unfolded before him. The terrifying chill in the surroundings started pouring into the embryo, causing the rune Liu Wuxie had inscribed to shatter into pieces.

Liu Wuxie looked at Miao Feiyu in confusion as the sword embryo remained on the table. He couldn't fathom why the runes couldn't merge with the sword embryo.

"It's because the laws in the Northern City are too cold, while runes have a fiery nature. When the two opposing forces collide, it's natural for them to repel each other. The Northern City isn't suitable for forging with runes," Miao Feiyu explained.

Liu Wuxie nodded and finally understood what was going on. Cultivators in the Northern City hadn't abandoned rune forging by choice, but the local laws prevented it unless one possessed fire elements powerful enough to suppress the cold here.

Only an expert at the Heaven Profound Realm could accomplish that.

"I see... forgive me for my ignorance," Liu Wuxie said and bowed.

Although he had questioned their techniques earlier, he now understood they had no choice.

"You're not from the Northern City, are you?" Miao Feiyu asked, with a hint of genuine curiosity in his voice.

He could tell from Liu Wuxie's speech and behavior that he didn't belong in the Northern City. Moreover, many foreign cultivators also asked similar questions when they first visited the city.

"I'm not. I'm from the Central Plains, and I've come to ask Brother Ji to help me find two people," Liu Wuxie replied.

It seemed Miao Feiyu hadn't spoken to anyone for a long time, and he soon warmed up to Liu Wuxie. He relaxed and no longer kept his usual stiff expression.

"From how you inscribed those runes earlier, I can tell you're a blacksmithing grandmaster. You also saw how I forged earlier. Can you help me analyze why the sword snapped?" Miao Feiyu asked.

As a fellow blacksmithing grandmaster, he could recognize Liu Wuxie's skills at a glance.