Ten Years to Polish a Sword

Xiao Ran was almost startled by the old man who had suddenly gotten so close.

Fortunately, the Art of Resonance protected him, and he quickly steadied his mind.

He realized that the reason the old man was so close might simply be...

Nearsightedness.

Next, the old man abruptly asked Xiao Ran's question: "Who are you?" Xiao Ran thought, shouldn't I be the one asking that question?

I'm a young, unfamiliar face appearing in the Elders' Meeting Hall. Besides being the Sword-Wielding Elder's new disciple, what else could I be?

Chunwa and Qiuchan were also startled by the old man's proximity, and had to crane their short, thick necks, looking up exaggeratedly to get a good look.

"Master Uncle Ink Case..."

The two girls were also very curious.

The Artifact Forging Elder, True Person Moxia, secluded himself in Sword-Tempering Mountain year-round, spending ten years forging a single sword. He rarely went out, only symbolically showing his face at Elder meetings, but he hadn't voiced any opinions at the meetings for decades.

Why did he suddenly run up to Xiao Ran and ask who he was?

Chunwa didn't think too much about it and immediately introduced the old man to Xiao Ran: "This is our sect's Artifact Forging Elder, True Person Moxia."

Xiao Ran had heard the two girls introduce True Person Moxia before, and thought that if the old man spent ten years forging a single sword, it was no wonder he'd become nearsighted.

Qiuchan then introduced Xiao Ran to the old man:

"This is Direct Disciple just accepted by Master Uncle Lingzhou Yue—"

Before she could say his name, the old man rudely interrupted her introduction.

"I'm not asking who you are now, but who you were before."

I used to be a great successor to socialism! Xiao Ran asked, "Why does Master Uncle ask this?"

The old man clasped his hands behind his back, his deep, obscure old eyes staring straight at Xiao Ran.

"Because you seem to have some opinions about the Sword Fence Wall..."

He saw through that? Could it be that the Sword Fence Wall is your masterpiece? Xiao Ran didn't understand much about spirit patterns, but its architectural level was quite high! He never expected that the Sword Casting Master was also an architectural expert.

Xiao Ran hurriedly explained, using what he'd just learned: "Like a steamed bun shop employee who knows nothing about painting, when faced with a masterpiece, they can only say it's good-looking or not good-looking. Master Uncle doesn't need to pay attention to this disciple's humble opinion."

A masterpiece? The old man stroked his beard. These four Sword Fence Walls were indeed his pinnacle work.

But this new disciple seemed to have different views on its details.

"What I see in your eyes is not a pinnacle, but... flaws."

Xiao Ran felt very strange.

This old man could see that he had some slight opinions on certain details of the Sword Fence Wall.

But the old man didn't curiously scan him with his divine sense like others would when they saw a Mortal Direct Disciple.

From beginning to end, he didn't look at Xiao Ran with his divine sense.

It was as if, in his eyes, Cultivation was just a trivial matter, and the Sword-Wielding Elder must have had special considerations when choosing a disciple.

The old man's tone seemed to be questioning, but in his deep, obscure eyes, there seemed to be a faint, suppressed brilliance.

Xiao Ran cupped his hands and bowed. "It was this disciple's impudence."

The old man smiled and shook his head.

"No one can presumptuously stop in front of the Heaven-Guarding Sword Fence without being hurt by its Heaven Protecting will."

Xiao Ran was speechless.

Just then, Master Boyun's ethereal, cloud-like androgynous voice came from outside the door: "Everyone's here, let's begin."

The old man looked slightly regretful, and then said:

"Perhaps... sometime after the Elders' Meeting, Nephew Xiao can come to Sword-Tempering Mountain for a visit. I will definitely brew tea and await you."

After saying that, he took his seat, leaving Xiao Ran slightly puzzled.

Brew tea and await me?

Are the elders of this sect all so amiable?

Not far away.

Lingzhou Yue beckoned Xiao Ran to take a seat.

It wasn't until the meeting was about to begin that she saw what had just happened.

She didn't expect that True Person Moxia, that taciturn fellow, would actually strike up a conversation...

Something must be amiss! Lingzhou Yue's sword-like eyebrows furrowed slightly, realizing that things were not so simple.

Could it be that this old codger has also taken a fancy to my precious disciple? Doesn't he understand the principle of first come, first served, and that a flower already has an owner!

After reuniting with Xiao Ran, she asked guardedly:

"What did that old man say to you?"

Xiao Ran answered truthfully:

"Senior Uncle Ink Case wants this disciple to visit Sword-Tempering Mountain when I have time, and he will definitely prepare tea and wait."

Prepare tea and wait?

Lingzhou Yue coughed dryly, leaned close to Xiao Ran's ear, and whispered:

"That old man spends ten years forging one sword, how could he have the time to study tea ceremony, it must be a trap, don't go."

Xiao Ran had no intention of going in the first place, but deliberately pretended to listen to his master's words.

"I will respectfully obey Master's instructions."

Xiao Ran's respect for his master and filial piety gave Lingzhou Yue a strange sense of distance, a feeling that she might lose him at any time.

So she pulled Xiao Ran closer, put her arm around Xiao Ran's shoulder, and said with a smile: "Don't be so polite, I'm very approachable, besides, we are all young people, there's no need to be too restrained, unlike getting along with older people, it's easy to have a generation gap."

True Person Yinyue behind her: "..."

Generation gap?

Hall of Affairs.

Five green wooden long tables embroidered with red patterns were arranged in a pentagonal formation, facing each other.

These were the seats for the Sect Leader and the four Great Elders.

Each Direct Disciple stood behind their respective master's long table, listening in.

Except for the Sect Leader's seat in the due north position, which was fixed, the other four seats were taken at random.

Lingzhou Yue, being the strongest of the four Great Elders, sat in the lower southeast position, giving the higher northeast position to True Person Yinyue.

Xiao Ran stood behind her to her side, his mind filled with generation gaps.

He felt deeply guilty.

But there was nothing he could do, he was just a Mortal, unable to suppress the impure thoughts brought about by hormones with Cultivation.

He could only shift his attention.

So he looked around.

The Sword Casting Elder, True Person Moxia, who had struck up a conversation with him earlier, sat in the northwest position.

Theoretically, this was a more honorable position than the other three Elder positions.

And it was in line with his status.

According to Chunwa Qiuchan's introduction, Zongzhi Mountain is located at the end of a fire vein, and the surface water source is very abundant, so it has been good at forging and refining since ancient times, especially sword casting.

The swords and flying swords produced by Zongzhi Mountain are bestsellers in the True Spirit Continent, and are the main reason why Zongzhi Mountain can stand tall in the Dharma Ending Era.

Among them, Sword Casting Elder True Person Moxia has made great contributions, and can be said to be the mainstay of Zongzhi Mountain, making his position convincing.

Behind True Person Moxia.

His Direct Disciple was a tall, thin young man, sealing his eyes and ears with an iron ring, with a bit of ancient martial arts science fiction.

A famous teacher produces a brilliant student, but this person is named Gao Shi, and it is said that he may surpass his teacher in the future, the future of Zongzhi Mountain.

It is said that he was originally a talented sword sharpener, but his thinking was divergent, he had too many ideas, and he was easily distracted by external things, so True Person Moxia forcibly put an Eye Sealing Ring on him. Since then, he has turned a deaf ear to things outside the window and only sharpens great swords with one hand.

When Xiao Ran looked at him, he was also looking at Xiao Ran, the Sen Sen iron ring flashing with a blue light, making people shudder.

Xiao Ran quickly withdrew his gaze.

Southwest position.

Sitting there was the great villain in the mouths of Chunwa and Qiuchan, the Disciplinary Elder—

Huangfu Qun.

This was a middle-aged man who didn't smile, with a restrained fierce look on his face. His features were like carvings, but there was no sense of handsomeness, only a gloomy and terrifying feeling.

Behind him was a Direct Disciple, a fat man with an equally stern face.

Named Luo Sheng, according to the two girls, his original name was Huangfu Luo Sheng, the son of Huangfu Qun. His talent was average, and he relied on resources and hard work to reach the standard of a Direct Disciple.

This was almost an open secret in Zongzhi Mountain.

The father and son kept their eyes closed from beginning to end, without looking at anyone else.

Finally.

Xiao Ran looked to the north.

The long table was empty.

The Headmaster did not come.

Next to him, a white-clothed cultivator with a neutral appearance stood alone, it was Master Boyun, who had previously notified the convocation of the Elders Meeting.

Different from the gentleness of their first meeting, this time, Xiao Ran felt a powerful aura from Master Boyun.

Chunwa and Qiuchan said that Master Boyun was the strongest in the sect besides the Headmaster and Lingzhou Yue, even stronger than the other three elders.

Xiao Ran guessed that a junior suddenly becoming strong in front of many elders might mean something was about to happen.

Not seeing the Headmaster, Disciplinary Elder Huangfu Qun asked sternly: "Where is Headmaster Brother? Why hasn't he arrived yet?"

Master Boyun explained: "Because the Wraith suddenly broke into the Mountain-Guarding Grand Array, it caused my master's old illness to recur. It has just been decided that I will preside over the meeting as an agent."

"You?"

Huangfu Qun looked displeased, his eyes full of suspicion.

Xiao Ran could understand why the Disciplinary Elder was so arrogant, not even putting the Headmaster in his eyes.

With the advent of the Dharma Ending Era, the cultivation world suffered heavy losses. In order to jointly resist the Wraith, all the sects in the True Spirit Continent jointly formed the Dao Alliance.

The Dao Alliance emphasized laws and would parachute a Disciplinary Elder to each sect.

The duty of the Disciplinary Elder was to supervise and adjudicate all illegal activities within the sect, and even the Headmaster could not do whatever he wanted.

However, for independent major sects like Zongzhi Mountain, the power of the Dao Alliance was difficult to penetrate, and its Disciplinary Elder was still appointed by the sect, only needing to report to the Dao Alliance regularly.

This invisibly elevated the status of the Disciplinary Elder.

Being stood up, Huangfu Qun was not satisfied with Master Boyun's explanation.

"If Senior Brother can't come, can't he send a voice transmission?"

Master Boyun hurriedly bowed and said, "Master observed the celestial phenomena last night and predicted that the concentration of spiritual energy in the cultivation world may drop sharply in three years. Therefore, he wants to try to break through and transcend the tribulation within three years."

"What!"

Huangfu Qun's sharp eyes froze, and he slammed the table and stood up.

Everyone was also shocked and speechless.