The Sword Qingli

"Fire of Spiritual Power."

This is a strange flame that can only be produced when spiritual power is condensed to its absolute limit.

The reason Spirit Rune Masters are so formidable is, to a large extent, because they can wield this spiritual flame.

Facing such a flame, even a powerhouse who has reached the Qi-Shaping Realm must temporarily avoid its edge.

Given Lin Yiqing's current level of spiritual cultivation, it is clearly impossible for him to condense this spiritual flame.

However, because alchemy, artifact refining, and many other methods are extremely dependent on fire, he devised a clever plan using the Life-Transforming Rune Array, all for the sake of being able to use the Myriad Transformation Flame.

The moment the illusory Myriad Transformation Flame appeared, it scorched the air in the entire cave until it seemed to be on the verge of burning.

"Hiss!"

Merely by wrapping around the Star-Fall Profound Steel for a moment, the entire piece of steel became visibly red-hot.

Before long, its surface began to melt slowly, and under such high temperatures, strands of impurities were burned away entirely.

Whether it is alchemy or artifact refining, both require great patience from a cultivator. Under Lin Yiqing's continuous output of spiritual power, the Myriad Transformation Flame also put its full effort into the refining process.

After a long time, the giant rock in the center of the Life-Transforming Rune Array had vanished, leaving only a ball of bright silver molten iron about the size of a human head, suspended in the air and rotating.

At this point, Lin Yiqing's expression became solemn. He grew even more cautious; the closer he came to success, the less he could afford to slack off.

With a thought, he activated his Origin Qi Vision and, combined with his spiritual power, carefully removed the flaws in the molten iron, striving for perfection.

Soon, only the white-gold metal-attribute Origin Qi remained in the molten iron suspended within the rune array.

Although it was still in a liquid state, a strong sense of sharpness emanated from it, making one's hair stand on end even from a distance.

"Condense!"

Following Lin Yiqing's shout, his massive spiritual power instantly changed the shape of the molten iron, slowly solidifying it according to the image of the ancient sword in his mind.

That's right, the weapon Lin Yiqing intended to forge was a longsword!

In his past life's memories, the sword spanned history and was endowed with a sacred culture!

Emperors used the sword as a symbol of power and status, imbuing it with majesty and strength!

Gentlemen used the sword as a metaphor for wisdom and courage, gifting it with freedom and romance!

It could be said that Lin Yiqing held deep emotions for the sword, and thus, he chose to forge the Star-Fall Profound Steel into a Dao-protecting immortal sword!

Once the sword body was initially formed, Lin Yiqing immediately channeled a wisp of Greater Yin Qi from his Dantian. A surge of extremely cold and yin-natured Origin Power instantly covered the entire sword body; he intended to use this to quench the blade.

"Click, clack."

Almost visibly, the entire sword body solidified instantly, setting completely, and a thick layer of frost appeared over the entire length of the blade.

After quenching was complete, Lin Yiqing immediately channeled a wisp of Sun Qi from his Dantian. Similarly, a surge of extremely yang-natured and rigid Origin Power melted the frost on the sword, completing the tempering process.

Quenching was meant to solidify it and grant it the characteristic of hardness, while tempering was meant to give it a hint of flexibility, granting it toughness.

That which is too rigid is easily broken; the highest good is like water.

At this point, the entire artifact refining process was still not finished; he still needed to engrave runes onto the sword!

Runes are also an indispensable part of the entire Spirit Rune Master system. Whether it is the weapons sold at the Curio Pavilion in Yan City or various spiritual treasures and divine weapons, all possess runes.

If a weapon were described as a person, then the runes would be its meridians. When a cultivator inputs Origin Power into the weapon, that power flows through the runes, allowing it to unleash immense lethality.

Lin Yiqing happened to have deep insights into this field. As early as when he advanced to the Heaven Origin Realm, he had obtained the Introduction to Artifact Refining from the Heavenly Book within his Mud Pill Palace, which recorded the applications of many runes.

"Armor-Piercing Rune," "Sharpness Rune"... he selected a full array of runes related to the weapon, including those for lightness and weight.

Lin Yiqing focused his mind and calmed his spirit, using his spiritual power as a brush to engrave them bit by bit. During this process, he had to be consistent and could not afford the slightest mistake.

Engraving runes is not like reading or writing; it cannot be broken into different strokes. It must be done in one go.

No matter which stroke was engraved with the slightest deviation, re-forging the sword would be the best-case scenario.

"Hum."

As time passed, a series of ringing sounds echoed in Lin Yiqing's mind. He couldn't help but furrow his brows, his nerves stretched taut.

The prolonged use of the Life-Transforming Rune Array, coupled with the consumption of refining the artifact, meant that his spiritual power in his Mud Pill Palace was now truly exhausted, and even the three spirit runes appeared somewhat dim.

However, he could not relax; he could only grit his teeth and squeeze the remaining spiritual power from his Mud Pill Palace.

"Hum, hum!"

As the final stroke fell, Lin Yiqing nearly blacked out and almost collapsed to the ground.

At that moment, the longsword suspended in the center of the rune array suddenly erupted with a blinding white light, and a powerful, sharp aura burst forth.

"Phew! Finally succeeded!"

Seeing this, Lin Yiqing's tense mind finally relaxed, and he couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.

Putting away the Life-Transforming Rune Array, Lin Yiqing beckoned slightly toward the sword in the air, and a wisp of spiritual power wrapped around it, bringing it into his hand.

As the sword entered his grip, Lin Yiqing couldn't wait to examine the divine weapon he had forged with his own hands. The sword was an eight-sided Han sword, silver-white overall, with the pommel and guard appearing white-gold.

The blade was straight, long, and narrow, ground into eight facets. The edge extended in two curves, and the entire body was cast with intricate patterns, appearing extremely magnificent.

Stroking the blade, a sense of weight came through. The more Lin Yiqing looked at this sword, the more he liked it.

The Star-Fall Profound Steel had already been refined by gale winds, lightning, and fire, and now, after being forged in the flames of spiritual energy, it was even more extraordinary.

As a stream of Yuan Power flowed into the blade, Lin Yiqing felt as though the sword was an extension of his own arm; not only was there almost no consumption of Yuan Power, but the blade itself seemed to grow sharper as it was nourished by his energy.

A low-grade Spirit Treasure! There was no doubt that this sword had reached such a level.

Lin Yiqing tested it several times, finding that not only did his Yuan Power circulate with extreme smoothness, but his spiritual energy was also barely depleted.

Rubbing the hilt where he had intentionally engraved the characters "Qingli" during the quenching process, Lin Yiqing felt a surge of excitement; this was the first Spirit Treasure he had ever crafted.

He named the sword: Qingli, the Qingli Ancient Sword!

Mist and rain, a crescent moon, and the clear ripples of the Qingli; just like a gentle breeze brushing against my heart!

He fashioned a scabbard from a piece of ironwood and sheathed the Qingli Ancient Sword. After regulating his breathing for a moment, he used the other rare ores he had collected to forge six more palm-sized daggers.

He intended to use these six daggers in conjunction with his spiritual energy to catch his opponents off guard.

As for the Refined Iron Dagger, he tucked it away carefully; it was a memento left behind by his parents in this world, though it could no longer keep up with his rising cultivation level.

Taking out a map, Lin Yiqing confirmed his route; he planned to cross the Tianyan Mountain Range and head toward the Great Wilderness Prefecture.

At this point, there was nothing left in Yan City worth his time.

There was indeed an ancient tomb left behind by a powerhouse at the Nirvana stage within the Tianyan Mountain Range, but it was not something he could find at this moment.

Moreover, setting aside whether he could even locate it, he had no way to break the seal even if he spent a great deal of effort to find it!

According to his calculations, it would be at least four years before the ancient tomb emerged and the seal was broken!

Staying here would clearly not fit his plans; it would be better to go and seize the Devouring Ancestral Rune first, then return to claim the Nirvana Heart once his cultivation had improved!

As for the Wanjin Chamber of Commerce and the Blood Wolf Gang in Yan City, he could only say: let them tear each other apart!

If they thought they could scheme against him, they were thinking far too much.

This place was merely a passing view on his journey of cultivation; by the time they met again, he would surely be standing high above them all!