With old Myōga leading the way, the group soon found a deserted volcanic crater.
This was the home of Totosai, a renowned swordsmith in the Demon World.
Totosai had served the Dog General, father of the brothers Inuyasha and Sesshomaru, and had forged both Tessaiga and Tenseiga.
He was a demon who loved playing dumb but held firmly to his principles. His strength was nothing to scoff at, either: he could breathe flames of extraordinary heat and strike the ground with his weapon, the Great Iron Hammer, to create a sizable field of lava.
Li Xia and his companions were in luck this time. They arrived while the swordsmith happened to be home and thus managed to meet him as hoped.
As for whether they could also persuade him to forge a suitable weapon?
That would depend on whether Inuyasha's connections carried any weight, and whether old Myōga was willing to put in a good word for Li Xia.
Totosai only forged swords for people he acknowledged or even liked.
As for those he disliked but could not handle, he avoided them whenever possible.
"Myōga, long time no see. But you actually brought Tessaiga here? Have you come to test it? Oh, right, don't tell me this young brat is Inuyasha?"
At their first meeting, before anyone could introduce themselves, the old swordsmith recognized Inuyasha.
More precisely, he recognized Tessaiga in Inuyasha's hand at a glance, then identified Inuyasha from that.
"It's been a long time, Master Totosai."
On Inuyasha's shoulder, old Myōga greeted him politely.
They exchanged pleasantries.
At last, the conversation turned to business:
"Grandpa Totosai, I've heard you're the amazing swordsmith who forged Tessaiga, with truly unparalleled skill! We've come for two reasons. First, we're sorry for the trouble, but we'd like you to sharpen Tessaiga again for Inuyasha! After all, it hasn't been maintained in over two hundred years!"
"Second, I was hoping you could use this material to forge a suitable weapon for me!"
"Inuyasha and I have teamed up to gather the Shikon Shards scattered across the land. We're bound to encounter troublesome greater demons along the way. I don't want to be a burden to the team, so I need a weapon to protect myself!"
As Li Xia spoke, he took out the Thunderstrike Blade left behind by the Thunder Beast Brothers.
The Thunderstrike Blade's main body remained intact. With Demon Power fueling it, it could still unleash formidable lightning techniques.
But with only the Thunderstrike Blade's main body remaining, it was awkward to use.
That was why he had come specifically to seek out Totosai.
Totosai did not immediately answer Li Xia's request. Instead, he accepted the weapon and examined it for a while.
"This should be a spear forged from superior thunderstrike iron and thunder accumulation wood...
"Hm? Why does it look like the Thunderstrike Blade, the ancestral weapon of the Thunder Beast Tribe?"
"It is the Thunderstrike Blade!"
Li Xia nodded in reply.
"A fairly decent weapon. But how did its shaft get cut in half? A cut this smooth would require an extremely sharp blade... Wait, was this Thunderstrike Blade cut by Tessaiga?"
Totosai rubbed the mirror-smooth cut while staring at Tessaiga at Inuyasha's waist, his question tinged with suspicion.
"Yeah, I cut it in half with Tessaiga! What about it?"
Inuyasha folded his arms, looking utterly unconcerned.
His dog ears, standing straight up, betrayed how he really felt.
"A half-baked amateur like you managed to cut through a shaft made from thunder accumulation wood, a spirit-conducting demon wood?"
Totosai tilted his head, making it clear he did not believe a word of it.
No matter how he looked at him, he did not think Inuyasha, whose "VIP subscription had temporarily expired," was all that impressive.
Myōga spoke up for his young master. "Master Totosai, Young Master Inuyasha still has much to learn, but he does occasionally show some promise!"
"I see. Just what I'd expect from my Tessaiga!"
The old swordsmith nodded, indicating that he understood.
At that, Inuyasha felt a fire burning in his chest, with nowhere to let it out.
He wanted to hit someone.
But this was their first meeting, and they needed a favor. Besides, his companion Mr. Xia urgently needed a suitable weapon. In the end, he suppressed his irritation and used his left hand to hold down his right.
He would remember this beating he owed the old man and make sure to deliver it next time.
"Old man, if you're so amazing, forging a weapon for my companion shouldn't be a problem, right?"
At those words, Totosai breathed fire onto the remaining spearhead of the Thunderstrike Blade and struck it with his hammer, his thoughts unreadable. Several times during the process, he raised his two light-bulb-sized eyes to scrutinize Li Xia.
As for whether he would actually help, he seemed genuinely undecided.
Seeing his old friend hesitate, Myōga hurriedly leaped over onto Totosai's shoulder. Then he whispered into his old colleague's ear, recounting the many times Li Xia had looked after Young Master Inuyasha.
With that crucial point added to the balance, the old swordsmith's gaze became much friendlier when he looked over again.
His tone softened as well.
"Human brat, I could forge you a superior weapon. But the question is, how would you wield it?
"You're just an ordinary human, aren't you?
"Without Demon Power, how would you wield a demonic weapon that only demons can use?"
"Ordinary humans don't have Demon Power, true. But I'm different..."
As he spoke, Li Xia took out the Great Katsura Tree Mask and put it on.
"Though I don't possess Demon Power myself, I can temporarily acquire it through a Shikigami!"
"A mask-type Shikigami? Quite a clever trick! All right, Inuyasha, hand over Tessaiga. Let me see what sort of state you've reduced my Tessaiga to..."
"What do you mean, 'reduced it to'?"
Inuyasha ground his teeth in anger.
Yet after inspecting it, Totosai really did find quite a few problems.
"So many scratches on the edge! My poor Tessaiga! Inuyasha, don't you ever take care of your sword?"
"Scratches? Isn't that normal?"
"This is one of the finest famed demonic swords. How could it get scratched so easily? Do you even know how to use Tessaiga? When you fight, don't tell me you just swing it around, hacking and smashing at random? Oh, right, can you see the wind force contained within this sword?"
"Wind force? What's that?"
"General, just what sort of unreliable wielder did you choose for Tessaiga?"
Totosai was filled with dismay.
He turned back to Inuyasha with a look of disgust.
"Inuyasha, you've had Tessaiga for a while now, haven't you? Don't tell me you still can't even use the Wind Scar!"
"What's the Wind Scar?"
What was the Wind Scar?
Tessaiga's basic technique, of course.
As a top-tier demonic sword renowned for its destructive power, it naturally had its own pride.
A Wind Scar unleashed with a light swing could destroy a hundred demons in one strike!
With a little more force, it could even shear away the side of a mountain!
And the Wind Scar was merely Tessaiga's beginner-level technique!
Dig deeper, and even greater surprises awaited.
"Inuyasha, use Tessaiga properly. Treat it as part of your own body! The next time I see it, I don't want my beloved Tessaiga covered in wounds again!"
Totosai's words seemed to carry a deeper meaning.
Inuyasha, however, barely listened and answered rather perfunctorily.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it..."
"Hmph! If there's nothing else, you can leave. Human boy, forging your weapon will take three days, so come back to collect it then!"
Old Totosai handed the newly sharpened Tessaiga back to Inuyasha, then sent them on their way.
"Thank you, Grandpa Totosai!"
Li Xia thanked him, delighted.
Meanwhile, Inuyasha took out a small iron wheel.
"Old man, do you think you could make another Wind-Fire Wheels exactly like this one?"
This small iron wheel was another of the Thunder Beast Brothers' belongings.
Its function was similar to the pair of Wind-Fire Wheels wielded by Nezha in myth and legend.
Unfortunately, the other one had been destroyed by Kagome's Sacred Arrow.
Of course, it was also fortunate that Kikyo had possessed Kagome at the time and precisely destroyed one of the Wind-Fire Wheels. Otherwise, he would have been in serious trouble.
"Oh, a rather rare flying auxiliary artifact! Unfortunately, I'm a swordsmith. Forging blades is one thing, but if you want other items made, you'll have to find someone else..."
Totosai shook his head.
"Even you can't do it?"
Inuyasha frowned slightly.
"Old man, you should know that as a half-demon, I can't fly! That means I can't fight anyone in the sky! But with a pair of Wind-Fire Wheels helping me, I could make up for that weakness! Can't you think of some way?"
"That's right, Master Totosai. Young Master Inuyasha's weakness is far too glaring!"
Old Myōga also did his utmost to persuade him.
Watching from the side, Li Xia silently gave Inuyasha and Myōga a thumbs-up.
Without question, this had been his suggestion beforehand.
All this time, Inuyasha had never realized what a wealth of resources he had behind him, so he had made no particular effort to collect spoils like the Thunderstrike Blade and the Wind-Fire Wheels.
But Li Xia knew.
Naturally, he had to strengthen Inuyasha as much as possible now, while picking up a little benefit for himself along the way.
Before you continue