The Star Pavilion's ninth-floor master's chamber was thick with spiritual energy, as if dew had condensed in the air. Faint light flowed through the star patterns carved into the walls, lending the chamber a quiet, sacred atmosphere. Yun Ce sat cross-legged on a jade couch, gripping the Ancient Ironwood sword Jiang Lan had given him. The spiritual energy around him circulated slowly as he focused all his attention on refining it.
The spiritual energy of the late Emptiness Realm surged like a mighty river into the black sword, yet the blade showed no reaction, as though it were a bottomless abyss, absorbing every last trace. Yun Ce remained patient. He knew Ancient Ironwood was one of the hardest materials in the Divine Realm to work with, and refining it would be no easy task. Only by using his heart as a guide and spiritual energy as a medium could he resonate with the sword and truly master the weapon forged from this divine material.
Time passed quietly, and a day and a night slipped by in an instant. In the chamber, the spiritual energy around Yun Ce grew ever denser, faintly answering the black sword in his hand. At last, the blade glimmered with a hint of black light. It was faint, but carried a deep, imposing aura. Yun Ce was delighted to see that the refining had begun to take effect. He abruptly increased the flow of spiritual energy, formed a hand seal with his fingers, and cried, "With my spiritual energy, I summon your spirit. Accept me as your master!"
As soon as his words fell, the black sword trembled violently. An ancient, boundless aura burst from the blade and fully melded with Yun Ce's spiritual energy, flowing along his meridians into his dantian. Yun Ce felt a