Forging Swords

Three days flashed by in the blink of an eye, and the sun had already climbed high overhead.

Yun Ji opened his eyes from cultivation, his face drawn long and full of pent-up frustration.

He had thought that with his bit of talent, cultivating this Wudang Xiantian Gong would surely yield twice the results with half the effort. Who could have imagined that after a full three days, he still had not even entered the door!

How could an orthodox Daoist cultivation method be so easy to master?

No matter how thoroughly his daughter Yun He explained the Wudang Xiantian Gong, there was still a layer between them. It could not compare to directly fusing with an Inheritance Card, which was far more straightforward and satisfying.

Over there, Yun He and Yun Hu, the brother and sister, presented an entirely different scene.

Once the Inheritance Cards were fused, the cultivation methods and martial skills they obtained became as easy to wield as their own arms, and both had formally entered the beginner stage. Their cultivation had also broken through its shackles together, steadily stepping into the Body Tempering Realm!

Yun He's cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds; in one stroke, she had caught up to her brother Yun Hu.

Seeing this, Yun Hu grinned from ear to ear. There was not the slightest knot in his heart. Instead, he was sincerely delighted by his sister's rapid progress.

The inheritances the two received were the Ladder Cloud Leap movement technique and Qingcheng Swordplay. Both were orthodox Daoist arts: one nimble and elegant, the other sharp and exquisite, perfectly complementing each other.

Over these three days, the siblings had not been idle either. They traded moves and taught each other—one passing on the shifts, evasions, and turns of the movement technique, the other explaining the essential transformations of swordplay. Shouts rang endlessly through the courtyard, making it quite lively.

Yun Long, meanwhile, focused on what he himself had obtained. His inheritance already balanced offense and defense, smooth and complete. Distracting himself by learning other things would only mean biting off more than he could chew, doing more harm than good.

The Yun Clan had hunted for generations. They were accustomed to bows, crossbows, and snares, while a weapon like a sword was truly useless for hunting in the mountains and forests. Naturally, there was not even a decent iron sword to be found in their home.

Now that Yun Hu and Yun He wanted to practice swordplay, they could not do without swords.

Yun Ji gritted his teeth, returned to his room, and rummaged through chests and cupboards until he found a small, heavy pouch of silver.

This money had been saved copper coin by copper coin through years of hunting and scrimping. He had originally planned to take the three siblings to the county town this year for an Immortal Fate test, to see whether they could test positive for Immortal Fate, ascend to immortality in a single step, and bring glory to the family name.

But now, he could not worry about all that.

The Yun Clan already had Immortal Fate. From now on, they only needed to cultivate steadily and surely. The inheritance had made it clear: the three Xiantian cultivation methods obtained by the Yun siblings could all break through to the Qi Refining Stage once cultivated to great completion.

There was no need for any Spiritual Root at all.

Besides, ordinary folk knew very little about the Changqing Immortal Sect. Beneath the bustling world, all came for profit; wherever there were people, things were bound to be complicated. Yun Ji understood that the Changqing Immortal Sect might not necessarily be a good place.

He tucked the money pouch tightly against himself, his resolve already made, and turned to leave the house. First, he had to go to the smithy and have several proper swords forged.

The Shi Family Smithy in the east of town was the best smithy in Nanshan Town. Shi Tie, the smith from the Aristocratic Clan's smithy, was also a Xiantian realm martial artist.

Nanshan Town had a population of thirty or forty thousand, yet fewer than thirty Xiantian realm martial artists. As for Qi Refining Stage immortals, there was not a single one.

Yun Ji had broken through to the Xiantian realm decades ago and was an old acquaintance of the other Xiantian realm martial artists in town. He had barely entered the smithy when he heard Shi Tie tease, "Well, well, a rare guest. Old Yun, it's hard to catch sight of you in the eastern part of town."

"Forge three good swords for me." As Yun Ji spoke, he slapped the silver in his hand onto the table.

"Damn, you're really willing to spend. Your kids don't want Immortal Fate anymore?" Shi Tie was greatly surprised.

They were all old residents of the town—who did not know whose circumstances? One look at the silver on the table told Shi Tie that Yun Ji had dug out all his savings.

Over the years, everyone had seen Yun Ji scrimp and save. He had also sold off all the good medicinal herbs he gathered in the mountains.

If he had used them all on himself, Yun Ji might have broken through to the late Xiantian realm long ago.

For his children's sake, Yun Ji had not rushed to break through. Mid-Xiantian realm strength was enough for hunting.

"Those useless brats refused no matter what to take the Immortal Fate test. Yun Hu in particular even dug out the swordplay inheritance my old Yun Household had tucked away at the bottom of the chest."

As he spoke, Yun Ji sighed.

"He even dragged Yun He along. The two of them keep shouting that they want to practice swordsmanship and inherit my old Yun Household's ultimate arts. They don't want to hunt with me anymore."

Shi Tie's gaze flickered, and a few suspicions arose in his heart. Whether the old Yun Household had a swordplay inheritance hidden at the bottom of the chest before or not, they certainly would have one from now on.

He simply did not know how good this swordplay was, or whether it could stand shoulder to shoulder with the inheritances of Nanshan Town's two martial arts schools.

As for Immortal Fate, the thought never even crossed Shi Tie's mind. There were surely many things related to immortal cultivation among ordinary folk, but one still needed the qualifications to use them.

Over all the years Nanshan Town had existed, plenty of people had participated in Immortal Fate tests, yet not a single immortal had appeared so far.

Only those with a bit of ability would send their children for testing.

Shi Tie felt that the Yun Clan children refusing to take the Immortal Fate test meant they were filial. Unlike his own children, who clamored every day that they possessed Immortal Fate.

Thinking of this, Shi Tie glanced at his youngest son, Shi Chen, beside him. The more he looked, the less pleasing the boy became, and he directly gave him a blow to the head.

Smack—

That blow was no light one. Shi Tie's youngest son, Shi Chen, immediately looked aggrieved, but under his father's imposing might, he did not dare talk back.

Yun Ji carefully explained the requirements for forging the treasured swords twice. The more Shi Tie listened, the more alarmed he became. Judging from the requirements alone, the Yun Clan's swordplay inheritance was anything but simple.

"Fine, leave it to me. Come collect the swords in three days." Shi Tie promised.

After settling the matter with Shi Tie, Yun Ji went to the Lingyue Martial Arts School.

Li Pinghu, master of the Lingyue Martial Arts School, was at the peak of the Xiantian realm and one of Nanshan Town's two greatest experts. Apart from his high cultivation, he was also a master physician. The front of the Lingyue Martial Arts School was a clinic and medicine shop, while the rear courtyard was the martial arts school.

The moment he entered, Yun Ji spotted Li Pinghu reclining in a chair and drinking, while his daughter Li Lingyue busied herself around him.

Yun Ji handed Li Lingyue a slip of paper covered with the medicinal ingredients Yun He wanted.

"You old bastard are here to waste medicine again. I looked at that wound medicine of yours—it's nothing but wasteful." Li Pinghu did not even open his eyes before immediately laying into him.

"That's what Yun He wants. If you're dissatisfied, then don't drink the medicinal wine Yun He makes anymore." The two were old friends. As Yun Ji spoke, he walked over to Li Pinghu and directly poured himself a bowl of wine.

Li Pinghu had a flaw—he loved wine as dearly as his life. It was precisely because Yun He knew how to brew wine that he gave the Yun Household a twenty percent discount.

"Has that girl come up with some special formula again?" Li Pinghu sniffed lightly and immediately realized that the medicinal ingredients requested this time differed from those in the past.

That girl really is remarkable. Li Pinghu sighed inwardly.

He knew a little medicine, but not much. With the assistance of his own true qi, ordinary ailments could not stump him. His main skill was recognizing herbs; he was lacking when it came to medicinal principles.

"How would I know? I don't understand that stuff."

Yun Ji spoke with perfect confidence, drained the bowl of wine in great gulps, and saw Li Pinghu putting away the other wine. He took the bundle of medicine from Li Lingyue and turned to leave.

"Wait, wait, don't rush. There's something else." Li Pinghu called out to stop Yun Ji.