Golden Inch

Five minutes later, two "brand-new" blade swords came blazing out of the forge.

They were called "brand-new" because, compared to the original blade swords, the gilded versions Zuo Yi had made were vastly different in appearance. Even if Joker came back to life, he might not recognize them as weapons that had once belonged to him.

The original Water-Cleaver swords had been exceptionally eye-catching, their sharp edges exposed and their killing intent chilling. One glance was enough to tell they were deadly weapons.

However, after being coated in Red Crow Gold, the blade swords' radiance became restrained. They looked understated yet elegant, and countless fine patterns faintly appeared across the surfaces of the blades. Viewed from different angles, they offered entirely different visual impressions.

Zuo Yi even coated the python-skin wrapping on the hilts and scabbards with Red Crow Gold, making the two swords into a unified whole, as though they had been forged from the same piece of metal. Placed together, they possessed a breathtaking beauty.

Just as makeup could raise a woman's looks from a seven to an eight or nine!

But Red Crow Gold did far more than improve their appearance. After Zuo Yi finished modifying them, the pair of blade swords had improved greatly in quality, while their resistance to corrosion and wear had been significantly enhanced. It was practically an extension of their service life.

In the Sadea World, gilding weapons and equipment was an essential skill for rune craftsmen. Weapons covered in Red Crow Gold were known as "Dark Gold Equipment," and their prices were usually much higher.

However, even gilding had varying levels of skill. Zuo Yi could perfectly coat both the metal blades and the leather hilts with Red Crow Gold at the same time. That ability alone was enough to make ninety-nine percent of rune craftsmen bow in defeat.

After applying the Red Crow Gold, Zuo Yi was still not satisfied.

He took out a rune engraving knife forged from Falling Star Core Iron and began etching a Rune beneath the blade, where the seal-script characters for "Water-Cleaver" had originally been carved.

The two characters "Water-Cleaver" had already been filled in during the gilding process. Zuo Yi's knife moved like lightning, and hair-thin lines swiftly appeared, gradually forming a complex rune pattern.

Etching Runes was the basic skill that tested a craftsman's technical level the most. Any Rune had to be completed in one uninterrupted effort. A single mistake could ruin the entire piece of equipment, and even if it could be salvaged, the quality of the final product would often be affected.

Zuo Yi had become a rune craftsman entirely by chance. During a planar war, he had been trapped in an underground ruin for twenty years.

At the time, the only way to escape was to completely inherit the legacy left behind by a grandmaster, master all of the secret techniques of crafting, rune engraving, enchantment, and more, then create a Rune Artifact that met the requirements to unlock the final seal.

The legacy system left behind by that grandmaster, who had a wicked sense of humor, was unimaginably vast. Anyone else would probably have been driven mad by it. Zuo Yi had relied on his powerful will to persevere until he finally escaped.

When he returned to the Sadeya Plane, he had already become a true Rune Grandmaster.

The Rune Zuo Yi was currently etching was called "Sharpness." Among all Law Runes, it was a low-tier Rune, so he engraved it with great ease and speed, finishing in less than a minute.

The Sharpness Rune was usually etched onto weapons. Its effect was to make a weapon sharper, thereby increasing its killing power.

For a sword, what attribute could be better than that?

Zuo Yi engraved this Rune onto the blade swords because he wanted to sell them for a higher price and solve his problem in one go.

(In Bao'er's room, Taike yawned boredly and stuck out a tongue to lick its lips: What?)

After engraving the Sharpness Rune onto both blade swords, Zuo Yi set down the engraving knife, held the swords in his hands, and injected a thread of Battle Aura into them simultaneously.

Buzz—

The twin swords rang in unison, and the newly engraved Runes erupted with dazzling light at the same time!

Resonance of Laws!

This was the final step in Rune engraving, as well as the key to success.

Only when a newly formed Rune resonated with the Web of Laws enveloping the plane could a Law Rune truly take effect.

Zuo Yi succeeded without any suspense.

That meant the two blade swords in his hands had become Rune Weapons.

Of course, since they each had only one Rune, and it was a low-tier Rune at that, they were merely the lowest-grade Rune Weapons.

It was not that Zuo Yi did not want to add another Rune. Rather, the materials of the two weapons themselves limited them, preventing them from carrying any more Law Force. It had nothing to do with Zuo Yi's skill or ability.

In fact, without the reinforcement provided by the Red Crow Gold coating, even the Sharpness Rune he had just engraved would not have been able to achieve Resonance of Laws.

Even so, the two blade swords had undergone a fundamental transformation.

Ordinary weapons and Rune Weapons were two entirely different concepts!

Zuo Yi was not especially satisfied with this new work, but as long as it could help him earn back a large sum of money, that was more than enough.

Just as Zuo Yi was about to store the two blade swords in his Spatial Ring, an idea suddenly struck him.

Picking up the rune engraving knife again, Zuo Yi carved the two characters "Golden Inch" onto the guards of both blade swords.

Original name: Water-Cleaver. New name: Golden Inch, taken from the saying "an inch of time is an inch of gold."

Golden Inch Swords!

Only then was Zuo Yi a little more satisfied, and he put the twin swords away.

Now, it was time to shower and sleep.

In the morning, Sun Qiang left home carrying the same three-tier lunchbox as yesterday.

Mother Qiang, who saw him off, was delighted. Yesterday, Little Qiang had not only finished every last one of the pastries she had made, but had also taken the initiative to ask her to make more. He was no longer starving himself to lose weight.

In Mother Qiang's eyes, it was best for her son to be plump and sturdy. That was what gave her the greatest sense of accomplishment.

Being able to eat was a blessing. Fat people were the most blessed!

"Be careful on the way."

When she saw him to the elevator, Mother Qiang specifically said, "If the pastries aren't enough, Mom will prepare more for you tomorrow."

Martial arts and sword practice consumed a lot of energy. It was only natural for him to eat more.

Sun Qiang giggled. "Got it."

Thinking of Taike's greedy appearance and bottomless appetite, he felt very fortunate.

However, that feeling completely vanished just a few minutes later!

The moment he left the residential complex, Sun Qiang had his path blocked again.

"You dead fatty, let's see where you run this time!"

The ones surrounding Little Qiang were still the same gang of delinquent teenagers from yesterday, but they had gotten smarter today. Three had ambushed him in front, while two followed behind, tightly encircling him!

This road connected the main gate of Sun Qiang's residential complex to the main road. Aside from residents, few people usually passed by, so it was rather secluded.

The few pedestrians passing through did not dare meddle in other people's business either. Upon seeing the scene, they all quickened their pace and hurried away.

With no one to help him, Sun Qiang forced himself to ask, "What do you want?"

"What do we want?"

The delinquent leader spat viciously onto the ground, spraying Sun Qiang with saliva as he snarled, "What do you think we want? Why aren't you running now? Didn't you run pretty happily yesterday? Go on, keep running, damn it!"

Sun Qiang's escape yesterday had been an enormous humiliation to him. That was why he had deliberately gathered his men again this morning to ambush Sun Qiang. He was determined to recover the face he had lost.

As he spoke, he suddenly swung his palm toward Sun Qiang's face!

Sun Qiang was startled and instinctively leaned backward to dodge.

In the past, caught so off guard, Sun Qiang would have found it difficult to avoid the slap. But after his recent training at the martial arts gym, both his physical fitness and reaction speed had improved, allowing him to narrowly evade it.

However, the other boy's fingernails still grazed Sun Qiang's face, leaving it burning with pain.

"You still dare dodge?"

The delinquent missed with his slap and immediately flew into a rage. "I'm beating you to death today!"

But before the delinquent could swing his hand again, Sun Qiang suddenly erupted!

When Sun Qiang returned home from the martial arts gym yesterday, he had brought back the wooden sword Zuo Yi had given him.

On one hand, he wanted to practice swordsmanship more at home. On the other, he intended to use it for self-defense. The wooden sword could be brought onto the subway, making it quite convenient.

When he left that morning, Sun Qiang carried the lunchbox in his left hand and the wooden sword in his right.

The delinquents surrounding him had seen it, but none of them took it seriously—five against one. Was the fatty really going to fight back?

But Sun Qiang really did fight back!

"Slash!"

His eyes widened as he roared, raising the wooden sword in his hand and chopping heavily at the delinquent in front of him.

At the instant he swung the sword, something within Sun Qiang suddenly awakened, turning his eyes blood-red!

Like a furious wild beast!

Here was the second update. I took my daughter out to play today, so please forgive the late update.

As usual, please support with votes. Also, thanks to my friend "Wu Liang" for the ten-thousand reward. Congratulations on becoming this book's Patron!