The next morning after the breakthrough, Qin Tiexin woke up at his residence.
It was still dark and the room was gray. He sat cross-legged on the bed and unfolded Divine Sense out of habit.
One step, five steps, ten steps... Divine Sense spreads out like water waves. In the past, reaching twenty steps was the limit, but now it is easy to cross this limit. Twenty-one steps, twenty-three steps, twenty-five steps - only at the twenty-fifth step do I feel a slight sense of stagnation.
The range has been expanded by a quarter.
Not only that, the clarity has also improved. In the past, Divine Sense felt like he was seeing things through a layer of gauze, but now the gauze was lifted. He could "see" the dewdrops on the cobwebs in the corner, the direction of the wood grain on the table, and even the dust particles floating in the air.
He took back Divine Sense and got up to wash up.
Splashing cold water on his face made him sober up. He picked up the 3,000-jin Edgeless and weighed it. He felt it was easy to hold in his hand before, but now it feels lighter. It's not that the Edgeless has become lighter, it's because his strength has grown again. Now it is estimated that it weighs more than 5,000 kilograms before he can take advantage of it.
After a simple breakfast, he went to a secluded forest in the back mountain.
"Mountain Shaking Step" and "Zhongyue Sword Technique" require space. When practicing in the past, he just wanted to get the posture in place and exert force smoothly. Now that he has a more condensed Divine Sense, he wants to see if he can practice it more precisely.
Practice footwork first.
"Mountain Shaking Step" pays attention to calmness, and every step should be as if it is rooted in the earth. Qin Tiexin steps slowly, and at the same time concentrates Divine Sense under his feet. He can "see" the moment the soles of his feet touch the ground, how the force is transmitted from the heel to the soles of the feet, and then spreads to the entire foot.
In the past, I relied on feeling, but now I practice by "watching".
He adjusted the angle of his steps. When stepping out with his left foot, the toes were slightly turned in for three points; when following up with his right foot, the sole of the foot was turned out for half a minute. It was a very subtle adjustment, but the stability when stepping on the ground was immediately improved.
After practicing for half an hour, his whole body felt hot. He stopped and took out Edgeless.
The first form of "Zhongyue Sword Technique".
Hold the knife with both hands, raise it above your head, and chop it down. The blade cuts through the air, making a dull sound of breaking wind. During the chopping process, Qin Tiexin uses Divine Sense to track the trajectory of the blade.
In the past, chopping was an arc, but now he saw that this arc actually had slight fluctuations - his wrist would shake unconsciously at a certain angle, causing the blade's trajectory to shift by half a minute.
He readjusted.
When raising the knife, tighten the wrist a little more; when cutting down, the shoulders should drop half an inch; when closing the knife, twist the waist and abdomen three more times. It is a trivial adjustment, but the trajectory of the next knife will be straight and the sound of the wind will be stronger.
After practicing for another half an hour, he put away the knife and panted slightly.
The sun has risen, and there are spots of light in the forest. He sat under the tree to rest, thinking in his mind: Divine Sense is more helpful to the battle than imagined. It is not to directly increase the power, but to make each movement more precise and waste less power.
The same strength can produce twelve points of effect.
In the afternoon, he went to the Waste Equipment Pavilion.
In the forging room, Old Wu was quenching a long sword. The sword's blade was red, and when it was immersed in the water, it made a long "chi--" sound and white steam evaporated.
Qin Tiexin waited until the quenching was completed before speaking, "Uncle Wu."
Old Wu took out the sword and looked at the pattern on the sword body against the light. "Breakthrough?"
"Hmm."
"With the sixth level of body tempering completed, it's time for Divine Sense to grow." Old Wu put the sword on the shelf, "Try to refine it."
Qin Tiexin walked to his usual ground stove and lit a fire. After the fire was lit, he took an ordinary wrought iron ingot and placed it on the anvil.
Pick up the forging hammer.
Divine Sense unfolds and penetrates into the inside of the iron ingot. The structure of the iron ingot is clearly presented "before your eyes".
The metal lattice is like a dense grid, and the impurity particles are small black dots between the grids. He "saw" the resonance node, three minutes to the left of the center of the iron ingot.
Lift the hammer and drop it.
Instead of hitting it randomly, you aim at that node. The moment the hammer head touches the iron ingot, the force spreads along the node, causing the entire iron ingot to resonate.
"Dang--"
The aftertaste was long and lasted for three breaths before it gradually subsided.
When the hammer is hammered down, fine ripples appear on the surface of the iron ingot. The impurity particles are shaken off from the crystal lattice and float to the surface.
Old Wu glanced at it. "It's a bit interesting."
Qin Tiexin Keep hammering.
With the enhanced assistance of Divine Sense, each hammer landed accurately on the resonance node. After five hammers, 70% of the impurities in this iron ingot were removed, and the surface was as smooth as a mirror.
He put down the hammer and looked at Old Wu.
Old Wu came over, picked up the iron ingot, looked at it, and threw it back on the anvil. "Did you see the impurity distribution clearly?"
"See clearly."
"What about spiritual flow?"
Qin Tiexin was stunned.
"Materials have spirituality." Old Wu said, "Even the most ordinary iron has a weak spirituality. Use Divine Sense to 'see' and see how the spirituality flows in the material."
Qin Tiexin picked up an iron ingot again, and Divine Sense penetrated it.
This time he not only looked at the structure, but also felt the faint "sense of flow". It's hard to describe, it's the arrangement of the crystal lattice. Upon closer inspection, there seems to be a directionality. It doesn't seem to be fixed, but like water flowing in a very thin pipe. It's slow, but it does exist.
He tried to guide.
When the hammer fell, it not only caused resonance, but also used a very weak spiritual power to push in the direction of spiritual flow.
"Dang--"
The aftertaste has changed. It is no longer a simple trembling, but has a certain rhythm, like a heartbeat.
The luster on the surface of the iron ingot has also changed. From matte to slightly moist.
Old Wu nodded. "Getting started."
In the next few days, Qin Tiexin consolidated the results of body tempering during the day, practiced "Mountain Shaking Step" and "Zhongyue Sword Technique", and at night practiced the spiritual pattern nesting technique in the forging room using the "Guizhen Spiritual Gold" metal ingot.
First, he carved the "strong" spirit pattern. His fingers crossed the metal surface, leaving luminous lines. It went smoothly, after all, he had practiced this spirit pattern countless times.
Next, carve the "Light Body" spirit pattern and try to nest it. The two spirit patterns must meet at a point, which must be independent and have energy exchange. Qin Tiexin took a deep breath and lowered his finger.
The "Sturdiness" spiritual pattern extends from the upper left corner, and the "Light Body" spiritual pattern extends from the lower right corner. Following the direction of Qin Tiexin, the two patterns slowly approach and meet at the center of the metal piece.
At the moment of intersection, a problem arises.
Energy conflict.
The energy of the "Sturdy" spirit pattern is thick and steady, while the energy of the "Light Body" spirit pattern is light and agile. The two energies with opposite properties collide at the intersection, like two streams of water opposing each other.
The metal ingot trembled.
Qin Tiexin tried to adjust it with Divine Sense, but it was too late. The intersection point overheated and made a "sizzling" sound, followed by a soft "pop" sound - the two spiritual patterns collapsed at the same time, leaving a charred black spot on the metal sheet.
failed.
He didn't stop, changed to another piece of metal, and continued.
The second time, the third time, the fourth time... it failed seven times in a row. Sometimes it was an energy conflict, sometimes it was an unreasonable design of the intersection, and sometimes it was an imbalance of spiritual power input.
On the eighth time, Old Wu walked over and took a look.
"Here." He drew an imaginary line in the air with his finger, "Move the intersection half a minute forward."
Qin Tiexin Follow it.
This time it was better, the spirit pattern survived the intersection, but after running for three breaths, it started to flicker again and eventually went out.
"Energy deposition." Old Wu said, "Downstream of the intersection, open micro-grooves for guidance."
In the next attempt, Qin Tiexin carved an almost invisible fine line behind the intersection as an energy channel.
This time, the spirit pattern lit up for five breaths.
There is progress.
He continued to practice.
I practiced until late at night every day until Divine Sense was exhausted. I used one piece after another of Guizhen Lingjin, but the success rate was slowly climbing: from being unable to hold one breath, to three breaths, five breaths, ten breaths... until I could run stably for half a stick of incense.
On the seventh night, Qin Tiexin felt that the heat was almost done.
He walked up to Old Wu: "I want to refine the piece Law Artifact."
Old Wu was sharpening a carving knife without raising his head. "What are you practicing?"
"Arm shield, double spirit pattern."
Old Wu stopped and glanced at him. "Materials."
"Copper with a pure heart, copper with a windy heart."
Old Wu was silent for a moment, put down the carving knife. "Tomorrow morning, I will help you seal the house."
Early the next morning, the doors and windows of the stone room were sealed with special wooden boards by Old Wu, leaving only the ventilation holes. The ground stove was lit and the fire was blazing.
Qin Tiexin Place the refined red heart copper ingot and a small piece of wind copper on the workbench. The red heart copper is dark red, and the wind copper is blue-gray with fine texture.
He smelted first, first smelting 50 pounds of blue-grained steel as the main material.
Then put the red-heart copper ingot into the crucible and send it into the furnace fire. When the copper ingot melts, add the air-copper fragments. The air-copper has a low melting point and melts quickly, merging with the red-heart copper liquid.
Qin Tiexin Use long tongs to take out the crucible, pour the molten copper into the molten blue-grained steel, determine the ratio of about 25%, and then quickly stir and fuse until the entire molten metal is completely mixed evenly, then pour it into the mold. The mold is in the shape of an arm shield he made in advance - a small round shield, one foot and two inches in diameter, with a curved surface and a belt groove lined inside.
After cooling and shaping, he took out the still warm embryo and placed it on the anvil.
Pick up the forging hammer.
Divine Sense unfolded and penetrated into the interior of the embryo. The red copper and wind copper had initially merged with the blue-grained steel, but it was not even enough. He found the resonance node and dropped the weight.
"Dang--"
The resonance forging method is carried out. Each hammer causes the embryo body to resonate, several metals are further fused during the vibration, and impurities are shaken out of the surface.
The sound of hammering was rhythmic and echoed in the closed forging room. Old Wu was sitting in the corner with his eyes closed and concentrating, but his ears were moving slightly, listening to the sound of hammering.
After one hundred hammerings, the embryo body is basically formed.
Qin Tiexin reheat the embryonic body and perform fine forging. This time it is not just about removing impurities, but also adjusting the thickness distribution - thick in the middle, thin at the edges, and the curved surface should be uniform.
Another hundred hammers.
The embryo body was completely formed, with a smooth surface and a dark red metallic luster. He polished the edges with sandstone and trimmed the shape.
The most critical step has come.
Engraved with spiritual patterns.
The arm shield lies flat on the workbench.
Qin Tiexin Take a deep breath, close your eyes for three breaths, then open them with calm eyes.
Finger Spiritual Qi seeped out from the fingertips, and fell down at the exact location.
The first is the "solid" spiritual pattern.
Starting from the center of the arm shield, it spirals outward. The blade cuts across the copper surface, leaving luminous lines. Qin Tiexin and Divine Sense monitor the entire process and control the depth, arc, and width of the notch. Each stroke must be even and there must be no breakpoints.
After half a stick of incense, the "solid" spiritual pattern was completed. The entire pattern was integrated and the spiritual light flowed smoothly.
The second step requires engraving the "anti-shock" spiritual pattern.
The arm shield itself needs to be strong, but it will be more effective if it can rebound part of the impact it bears.
The "anti-shock" spirit pattern is engraved on the edge in a ring shape. This spirit pattern is more complex than the "solid" spirit pattern, with multiple turning points.
Qin Tiexin concentrates on it. The finger movement speed slows down, and every stroke is extremely stable. Divine Sense is divided into two parts, one monitors the fingertips, and the other monitors the "strong" spiritual patterns that have been engraved to avoid interference.
In one stick of incense, the main veins of the "counter-shock" spirit patterns were completed.
Now, the two spirit patterns are independent of each other, but they need to meet at three points to form a nest.
The first intersection point is on the upper left side of the arm shield.
Qin Tiexin Hold your breath. Move your fingers slowly, and the extension line of the "solid" spirit pattern and the branch line of the "anti-shock" spirit pattern slowly approach.
intersection.
Energy begins to interact.
He used Divine Sense for fine control: dividing the energy of the "solid" spiritual pattern into a small stream and directing it into the "counter-shock" spiritual pattern; at the same time, he allowed the energy of the "anti-shock" spiritual pattern to reversely flow into the "solid" spiritual pattern, forming a cycle.
Very smooth.
The second junction is on the lower right side and is equally smooth.
The third intersection point is at the bottom and is the key node. It is the most difficult to deal with the convergence of the two main energies here.
The fingers move slower.
The tip of the knife touches the copper surface lightly, leaving a very fine line. This line must connect two spiritual lines at the same time and balance the energy.
Qin Tiexin Sweat broke out on his forehead.
He felt that energy began to accumulate at the intersection, like a gyration in front of a dam. He immediately adjusted it - behind the intersection, a micro-groove, almost invisible to the naked eye, was carved as a drainage channel.
The feeling of stasis is relieved.
Continue.
The last stroke fell, and the two spiritual patterns were completely connected.
The surface of the arm shield is full of aura!
On the dark red copper surface, the "solid" spirit pattern glows with an earthy yellow light, and the "anti-shock" spirit pattern glows with a light cyan light. The two colors of light merge at three intersections, forming a stable composite circuit, and then slowly become introverted and sink into the copper surface.
Done, it only took an hour and a half.
Qin Tiexin took a long breath. His arms were shaking a little, which was a sign of Divine Sense's excessive consumption.
Old Wu came over and picked up the arm shield.
He first looked at the appearance: the curved surface was even, the edges were smooth, and the belt groove was in the right position. Then he injected a bit of spiritual power.
A layer of copper-colored brilliance appeared on the surface of the arm shield, which was thick and solid. Old Wu used the fingers of the other hand to flick the edge of the arm shield.
"Buzz--"
There was a low cry. 70% of the force of snapping the fingers was absorbed, and the remaining 30% bounced back, causing Old Wu's fingers to feel slightly numb.
"The anti-shock effect is good." Old Wu said.
He checked the spiritual lines again. He traced the lines with his nails and felt the flow of spiritual power. It was smooth and stable, with no feeling of sluggishness.
"It's close to mid-grade, and it's worth at least 20 Spirit Stone." Old Wu handed the arm shield back to Qin Tiexin, "It's the first time to refine the double spirit pattern Law Artifact. If it can be like this, it's okay."
Qin Tiexin took the arm shield.
The shield was not heavy, about sixty-five pounds. He put it on his left arm and tied the belt tightly. He waved his arm and it fit well. After injecting spiritual power, the shield surface shimmered, giving it a solid sense of protection.
"Thank you, Master Wu." he said.
Old Wu waved his hand and began to unpack the wooden boards on the window. The sun shone in and the forging room became bright.