Sword Nameless

After the commotion died down, everyone quieted and returned to their studying.

Having sorted through his study materials, Su Yi thought for a moment, then took a stack of letters in pink envelopes from his desk, arranged them neatly, and put them into his backpack.

Mao Qiutong, seated beside him, lit up. She tapped Su Yi's desk with her pen and asked softly, "Are you taking these home too?"

Su Yi lowered his head to glance at her and answered with a smile, "Yes. Every single one is a weighty token of affection."

"Will you write back?"

Mao Qiutong asked casually, her pen tip moving back and forth across the page.

Su Yi looked thoughtfully at Mao Qiutong and smiled gently. "I will. Giving a response is basic courtesy."

Seeing Mao Qiutong's spirits sink a little, he continued, "At least until graduation, I won't consider dating."

After graduation? That didn't seem so far away.

Mao Qiutong suddenly smiled. "Mm, exactly. The Martial Arts Exam is the most important thing."

After packing his things, Su Yi slung his backpack over his right shoulder, turned, and left.

Yet inwardly, he sighed. At most, he felt a little appreciation for Mao Qiutong; it was nowhere near the level of liking her.

At a time like this, all Su Yi could do was stall.

A young girl's dream should not shatter in his hands.

Let time wash everything away.

10 p.m.

It had to be said that Cheng Wen truly had the foresight of a prophet. Perhaps he wasn't sure whether they could get Su Yi drunk, so he had arranged not only the hotel, but also transportation.

Whether at the dinner table or in the bar, those guys always targeted Su Yi first when pouring drinks. But with his powerful qi-blood and Spiritual Power, Su Yi accepted all comers, drinking two or three classmates under the table in succession.

Only then did they retreat in the face of difficulty. A martial artist's metabolism was astonishingly strong; alcohol was digested quickly after being consumed.

Seeing that they couldn't get Su Yi drunk, they each toasted him once, then picked their own opponents to compete in drinking capacity. Once that was done, they ran onto the stage to dance wildly and howl at random.

Perhaps they had been suppressing themselves for too long. Aside from a few girls who still retained some reserve, everyone was letting their pressure loose.

As the organizer of this gathering, Cheng Wen was also subjected to countless toasts. He, along with Li Xian and Lai Yu, was among the first to collapse.

In the end, only Su Yi and the three girls who had barely drunk anything were able to leave the bar. Everyone else was sprawled about, lying or slumped over in all directions.

Su Yi found the person in charge of the bar. Once he learned that Cheng Wen had already made arrangements, he nodded in relief.

After seeing the girls off, Su Yi, reeking of alcohol, got into the car and went home.

Three days later, Su Yi had spent those three days tempering his foot bones.

He had successfully tempered two of them, averaging one every day and a half.

Normally, even someone at the First Grade Third Bone Tempering stage needed more than two days to temper a single bone.

The Tempering Method's two Optimizations had made his bone-tempering speed far exceed normal standards.

Though he still couldn't compare to that cheat-like Fang Ping, who could temper one bone a day with unlimited qi-blood—

—it was already enough to leave him deeply satisfied.

To temper his bones faster, Su Yi planned to buy more Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pills to speed up his cultivation.

It might be somewhat wasteful, but it would save quite a bit of time.

Qin Nansheng had returned from a mission today, which was why Su Yi had stopped cultivating.

"What? You want to use Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pills to speed up your bone tempering?" Qin Nansheng asked in shock.

After hearing why Su Yi had come, Qin Nansheng found it hard to believe, then shook his head.

"No. Even though you've achieved Third Bone Tempering, you still can't fully withstand the medicinal power of a Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pill. There's no need to waste them like that. Third Bone Tempering cultivation is already very fast.

"You should have successfully tempered one bone by now, right?"

Qin Nansheng thought that perhaps Su Yi had become anxious because it had taken him three days to successfully temper a single bone.

But for a Third Bone Tempering martial artist, that wasn't slow at all. Back when he was at Second Bone Tempering, it took him an average of four or five days to successfully temper one bone.

Using the explosive power of a Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pill could indeed speed up bone tempering, but there was simply no need. Cultivation was a long-term endeavor, not something accomplished overnight.

Very few martial artists would do this. It wasn't as though First Grade cultivation was impossible to advance in.

Su Yi shook his head, raised two fingers, and replied, "I've tempered two foot bones."

Su Yi's answer left Qin Nansheng somewhat bewildered.

Hadn't he only broken through three days ago?

One bone every day and a half.

Even with Third Bone Tempering, he shouldn't be this fast, should he?

A genius?

At this rate, wouldn't he be able to completely temper all sixty-two Lower Limb Bones in less than four months?

That way, I could break through to the Second Grade before school even started.

Eh? No, that wasn't right.

With a rate this fast, why would I still need to rely on Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pills?

Qin Nansheng came back to his senses and looked at Su Yi in confusion. He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Su Yi did.

As though sensing Qin Nansheng's confusion, Su Yi raised his head and met his gaze. "Uncle Qin, do you remember what you promised me?

"That once I reached the Third Rank, you would tell me the whole truth."

Su Yi paused before continuing, "Third Rank—I'll reach it very soon."

The firm gaze brimming with powerful conviction left Qin Nansheng slightly dazed.

That look was so much like Mingjie's back then.

So that was it?

Understanding dawned on Qin Nansheng. Perhaps this had already become his obsession.

After thinking it over for a while, he finally nodded in agreement.

"Fine. But try to use Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pills only when I'm around. Even with your Third Bone Tempering, there's still a risk.

"For your regular training, use First Grade Qi-Blood Pills."

Seeing Qin Nansheng finally relent, Su Yi let out a long breath.

"Then help me buy twenty first. I also want to commission a sword—a C-Grade Alloy one, about 1.1 meters long."

Su Yi was 1.83 meters tall, and after trying swords of various lengths, he had found that a 1.1-meter sword suited him best.

"C-Grade?" Qin Nansheng was somewhat stunned. He himself had only just upgraded Fatal Blade to A-Grade. Before that, he had always used B-Grade weapons.

"Yeah. It'll last longer."

"Well... that's true." Qin Nansheng reluctantly accepted the explanation. A C-Grade sword could be used all the way through the Mid Grade realm.

"But this won't be cheap. Twenty Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pills cost twenty Credit Points each, or six hundred thousand in cash. Twenty of them comes to twelve million.

"A C-Grade weapon costs forty Credit Points per kilogram. A 1.1-meter longsword would probably weigh twelve to eighteen jin, so that'll also be close to ten million. If you don't have enough, I can—"

"I have enough."

Before Qin Nansheng could finish, Su Yi hurriedly interrupted him. He still had enough resources.

It was one thing to occasionally accept resources such as Qi-Blood Pills, but Qin Nansheng absolutely could not be the one covering such major expenses.

He took out a bank card and handed it to Qin Nansheng. "There's thirty million in this card. The password is 930830. Please exchange all the rest for Body Tempering Pills."

With his own bone-tempering speed, compounded by Bone Tempering Pills and Second-Grade Qi-Blood Pills, Su Yi was not sure whether his physique could keep up with the pace of bone tempering.

Qin Nansheng immediately understood what he meant and nodded. He had thought it through thoroughly.

Hm? 930830, wasn't that...

Qin Nansheng gave Su Yi a deep look, then said as if nothing had happened, "All right. I'll exchange the pills for you in a moment. Come back this afternoon."

But upon hearing Qin Nansheng's words, Su Yi did not leave at once. Instead, he hesitated, unsure whether he should speak.

He was considering whether he should start learning a Mid Grade Combat Method in advance.

"Go on. What else is it?"

Qin Nansheng had taken in his hesitant expression completely and spoke with some helplessness.

He had already asked for pills and weapons. Could there be anything even bigger?

Su Yi voiced his thoughts.

Yet Qin Nansheng shook his head. "I don't recommend that you train low-grade combat methods. Your cultivation speed is very fast, and you'll break through to the Second Grade soon. Once you do, your qi and blood will be sufficient to support the use of Mid Grade Combat Methods.

"But Mid Grade Combat Methods consume far too much for you right now. After only a few moves, your qi and blood would be exhausted. Basic combat methods are already enough for you to use."

Major Achievement in Basic Swordsmanship and Minor Achievement in the Leg Technique were already enough for Su Yi.

Su Yi pondered for a moment, then ultimately chose to accept Qin Nansheng's advice.

It would not be too late to train them after breaking through to the Second Grade. For now, bone tempering was the key.

Su Yi had originally planned to Optimize a Mid Grade Combat Method. If Optimization reduced its qi-and-blood consumption, it should be enough for him to use. Once he reached the Second Grade, he could immediately start taking missions.

But since Qin Nansheng did not agree, then forget it.

If Su Yi insisted, Qin Nansheng would probably still agree.

But forget it. He had originally planned to start taking missions only after reaching the Second Grade anyway. At worst, he could train a Mid Grade Combat Method first when the time came.

Seeing Su Yi be so receptive to advice, Qin Nansheng nodded in satisfaction.

In his eyes, a First Grade Martial Artist should simply focus on bone tempering. There was no need to reach for the stars before one could walk.

What use was there in mastering a Mid Grade Combat Method? So long as someone dodged your attacks, after just a few moves your qi and blood would run dry. Then you could only wait for death, unable even to run away.

Besides, Mid Grade Combat Methods were not so easy to train. They involved many theories and were broken down in great detail, requiring no small amount of time.

"Oh, right. Your sword needs to be custom-made. You can have any style you like made."

"Longyuan, then."

Su Yi did not care much about the style of the sword and casually named one.

Qin Nansheng was not surprised either. The Ten Famous Swords had been renowned since ancient times, and many people chose to have their weapons customized after those styles.

The templates should all be available.

"Have you decided what to call it? This is your first sword."

Qin Nansheng asked with a teasing smile.

Most martial artists poured a great deal of emotion into their weapons. Especially when customizing their first weapon, the names they gave them tended to be rather cringe-worthy.

Things like the Emperor-Slaying Heavenly Blade, or Godslayer.

Qin Nansheng was very curious what sort of name Su Yi would give his sword.

As if sensing that Qin Nansheng was hoping for a laugh, Su Yi smiled with easy confidence. "No need. A sword is just a sword. Its name doesn't matter."

A famous sword was nameless by nature; so-called sword names were merely desires imposed upon them by men.

Of course Su Yi had considered what name to give it, but now was not the right time.

Not getting the answer he wanted, Qin Nansheng did not mind. He waved a hand to show that he understood.