"This is Huaxia-well, what used to be the territory of the Yan State. More broadly, it was the territory of the Zhou Dynasty, but it covers a larger area now-this is the capital of Huaxia-"
"The year is now 225 CE-since Zhang Liang passed away-if you still remember Zhang Liang-more than 2,200 years have passed-"
"The Han Dynasty fell, and many other dynasties followed it. Now this is New China-"
Shen Le patiently communicated with the new Artifact Spirit. After a few sentences, he deftly switched on his computer, brought up a map, and pointed things out to the newly awakened spirit.
Light and shadows swirled around him as Lan Zhuang, the silk skirts, Little Oil Lamp, and even Huang Yutong and Zhong Xiaomei gathered around.
They all greeted their new companion at once, expressing their friendliness and assuring it that Shen Le was telling the truth.
But no matter what they said, the sword phantom remained silent atop the lacquered chest. Its sharp aura stayed poised but unreleased, neither moving nor withdrawing.
Shen Le talked and talked until his mouth was almost dry. Finally, he drew a breath and said earnestly, "Oh, right! Under current law, every Artifact Spirit has its own independent legal identity. Someone will come to register your information and open an account for you-that's a ledger recording the money in your name.
"First, though, do you have a name?"
[A name-] The voice sounded hesitant, as though it had never considered needing a name-or perhaps, over the long passage of time, it had forgotten the name it once had.
It stayed silent for a long time before its blade gave a slight tremor. Though it was a phantom that fingers could pass straight through, it rang with the icy sound of metal:
[The past is