Qin Tiexin stayed at Jinshixuan for eight days in the blink of an eye.
In these eight days, he did six pieces of work. Four pieces of mortal weapons were repaired - two broken knives, a cracked spear, and a concave shield. They were all sent by the nearby Orions and the nursing home for repair. The total labor cost was four hundred coins. Two and a half Law Artifact repairs - a dagger with dim spiritual patterns and a cracked edge. The small round shields were all Rogue Cultivator from the first and second levels of Qi training. The spiritual patterns were not broken. As for the half-Law Artifact and Law Artifact with broken spiritual patterns, he couldn't repair them yet. After repairing them, he collected ten spiritual crystals and the shop paid 30%, so he got seven.
In addition to the six pills that Brother Wang gave him before and the three pills that he exchanged with his own silver, he now has sixteen spiritual crystals and more than eight hundred copper coins. His money bag is heavier and he feels more at ease.
There was more work to do, and the appetite did not decrease. There were at least four bowls of brown rice for each meal. The fat shopkeeper laughed at first, but later he got used to it and ordered the cook to cook half a bowl of rice for each meal. Qin Tiexin was embarrassed to eat for nothing, so he took the initiative to take over the job of fetching water for the water tanks in the backyard. He made four trips in the morning and evening, filling the three large water tanks to the full.
His reputation gradually spread among the Rogue Cultivator circles in Qingya Town.
"Jinshixuan has a new Master Qin who is good at practicing Law Artifact."
"The price is fair, not as shady as Master Liu Hong."
"I heard that he is a mortal with no spiritual power, but a sharp eye and excellent craftsmanship."
These words are not so pleasant to some people's ears.
***
In the afternoon of this day, Qin Tiexin had just repaired a hunting bow - the bow arm was cracked. He tied it tightly with isinglass and fine hemp rope, then brushed it with tung oil and left it to dry in the yard. Just as he was about to go back to the house to rest for a while, he heard the sound of an argument coming from the front hall.
The voice sounded familiar, it was Master Liu. The other voice was younger and filled with anger.
Qin Tiexin Wipe your hands and walk to the front hall.
In the hall, Master Liu was talking to a young man in his early twenties. The young man wore an indigo silk shirt and a jade belt around his waist, with an impatient look on his face. Standing next to him were two followers, both dressed in shorts and carrying swords at their waists.
Qin Tiexin recognized this young man - Jin Shixuan's original disciple, Liu Hong. I heard that with Qi Refining First Layer cultivation, he could barely handle half Law Artifact. However, due to the high fees and mediocre skills, most of the half Law Artifact repair work in the shop had to wait for Master Chen to come back. Liu Hong took leave to go home these days and only came back today.
"Master Liu, I just want to ask," Liu Hong raised his voice, "Where does that person named Qin come from? Why should a mortal cultivate half a Law Artifact? And only accept five or ten spiritual crystals? If he does this, how will the price of our business be determined in the future?"
Master Liu frowned. "Liu Hong, you can't say that. Master Qin's craftsmanship is indeed good, and his price is reasonable. If customers are willing to come to him, that's his ability."
"Skill?" Liu Hong sneered, "Half Law Artifact is something used by monks. He is a mortal. He knows what spiritual patterns are? He knows what spiritual power circuits are? It's luck to repair one or two. If it fails, it will be our Jinshixuan's sign!"
The fat shopkeeper came out of the inner room, the smile on his face faded a little, "Liu Hong, Master Qin has repaired several items, and the guests are all satisfied. You have also seen Master Wang Xian's Qingfeng Sword, so you know how well it is repaired."
Liu Hong's face turned even darker. He had indeed seen the Qingfeng Sword. The fine cracks at the cracks were almost invisible, and the spiritual patterns flowed smoothly. He asked himself that he could not do this skill.
Just as he was standing still, a few more people came in from outside the door.
The leader is a young man in his mid-twenties, wearing a brocade robe, carrying a long sword at his waist, and a look of arrogance in his eyebrows. He is followed by three or four followers, one of whom Qin Tiexin has seen - the one Rogue Cultivator who came to repair the dagger a few days ago, surnamed Zhao.
"Master Zhou!" Liu Hong's eyes lit up and he stepped forward to greet him, "What kind of wind brings you here?"
The young man known as Master Zhou glanced at the hall, and his eyes stopped on Qin Tiexin - Qin Tiexin's coarse cloth clothes were very conspicuous in a group of people. He said calmly, "I heard that you have a new blacksmith here who is very good at repairing things?"
The fat shopkeeper hurriedly stepped forward. "Master Zhou is talking about Master Qin, right? Master Qin, this is Master Zhou Xian of the Zhou family."
The Zhou family. Qin Tiexin I remember Master Liu mentioned that there are several small cultivators in Qingya Town Lineage. The Zhou family is one of them. There is a monk in the late stage of Qi refining in the family.
Zhou Xian looked at Qin Tiexin and twitched the corner of his mouth. "You can call any cat or dog a master, but you are the one who repaired the Qingfeng Sword? It doesn't look like it."
Qin Tiexin said nothing.
Liu Hong was adding jealousy next to him, "Master Zhou, this Master Qin is very capable. A mortal can repair half a Law Artifact, and the asking price is still low, and he has grabbed a lot of business."
Zhou Xian raised his eyebrows. "Oh? That's just right. I have a knife here. I just got it. You can taste it." He took the knife from the follower behind him and handed it over with the sheath.
The scabbard was dark red and engraved with moiré patterns. Zhou Xian did not draw the sword, but handed it to Qin Tiexin with the scabbard still attached.
Qin Tiexin took it, held the handle of the knife, and slowly pulled it out.
The moment the blade was unsheathed, a slightly warm breath spread out. The blade was more than three feet long, the blade was slightly curved, the whole body was dark red, and the blade was glowing with light gold. The blade was engraved with flame patterns near the guard, and there was a faint red light flowing in the patterns.
Everyone in the hall looked over. At first glance, this knife was not ordinary.
Qin Tiexin concentrates, [Appraisal] activates.
The internal structure of the blade unfolds in consciousness - the main material is fine iron, but mixed with a few dark red particles, which should be "fire copper". There are seven red light filaments inside, which should be smooth fire attribute spiritual patterns, but at this moment these light filaments are distorted in many places, and even completely interrupted in three places, and the energy is blocked at the breaking points, forming dark red light spots.
The entire knife is like a blood vessel that has been tied to a knot, and the spiritual energy does not flow smoothly. If it is forced to move, the spiritual pattern will collapse at best, or the energy will rush back and injure the person holding the knife.
He looked at it for about three breaths, sheathed the sword and handed it back.
"How is it?" Zhou Xian asked, with amusement in his eyes.
Qin Tiexin Tell the truth, "The knife is made of good material, mixed with fire copper. However, the spiritual pattern is defective, and it is interrupted and clogged in many places. If it is forced to move, it will easily backfire on itself. The spiritual pattern needs to be adjusted."
The hall fell silent.
Liu Hong was the first to jump up. "What nonsense are you talking about! This is the Zhou family's newly refined Fire Cloud Sword, engraved with fire attribute spiritual patterns! As a mortal, what do you know about spiritual patterns?"
Zhou Xian raised his hand to stop Liu Hong and stared at Qin Tiexin: "You said the sword's spirit pattern is defective?"
"Hmm."
"What's missing?"
"Node three, node seven, and node fifteen are interrupted in three places. There are also many distortions and energy congestion."
Zhou Xian's face darkened. There was indeed something wrong with this Fire Cloud Sword - it was made by a disciple of the Zhou family who had just learned to make weapons. The spiritual patterns were carved roughly. He had tried it himself, and when the spiritual power was injected into it, the blade became hot and the spiritual power was stagnant. When he took it out this time, he wanted to test the Qin Tiexin's eyesight, but he didn't expect that the other party dared to say it and was so accurate.
But it's true, you can't take it that way.
"Master Qin has great eyesight." Zhou Xian sneered, "But this Fire Cloud Sword was made by my Zhou family's weapon refiner. If you say that the spiritual pattern is defective, are you questioning my Zhou family's weapon refinement level?"
The fat shopkeeper was busy trying to smooth things over. "Master Zhou, please calm down, Master Qin didn't mean that..."
"That's what I mean." Qin Tiexin interrupted him with a calm tone, "If there is something wrong with the knife, you should tell me. Otherwise, the person using the knife will be injured."
Zhou Xian smiled angrily, "Okay, okay! You said there is a problem, let's verify it. How to verify it?" He looked around the hall, "In this way, you find a mortal weapon knife and slash it with the Huoyun knife. If the Huoyun knife is not damaged, it means that you lied and slandered my Zhou family's weapon refiner. You have to work for my Zhou family for free for three years to atone for your sin."
"What if the Fire Cloud Blade is damaged?" Qin Tiexin asked.
"Damaged?" Zhou Xianxiang heard the joke, "This Fire Cloud Sword is mixed with fire copper, how can it be damaged by ordinary iron? If it is really damaged, I will pay you thirty spiritual crystals!"
Thirty spiritual crystals. The sound of breathing could be heard in the hall. This is not a small amount, barely enough to buy half a Law Artifact.
Qin Tiexin is silent.
He knew this was a trap. Zhou Xian set up a trap and waited for him to get in. Retreat? The opponent is overwhelming them. If they retreat today, there will be other troubles tomorrow. Accept the challenge? The material of the Huoyun Sword is indeed better than ordinary iron. When it comes to cutting, ordinary swords cannot hurt it at all.
But...
He raised his eyes and looked at Zhou Xian: "No need to chop."
"Oh?"
"I will use a knife." Qin Tiexin said, "If I can break this knife, I win. If not, let me do whatever you want."
Zhou Xian narrowed his eyes. "How do you want to break it?"
"The weakest point of the spiritual pattern on the blade is at node seven, and the weakest material is at the middle of the spine of the blade. I will cut it there with one strike. If it can be broken, the blade will be damaged."
Liu Hong sneered, "It's true! Master Zhou, don't listen to his bluffs!"
Zhou Xian was a little hesitant. The "node seven" and "middle section of the spine" mentioned by Qin Tiexin are exactly the most serious problems with this knife. This guy really saw it.
But so what if you can see it? No matter how bad the Fire Cloud Sword is, it is still half Law Artifact mixed with spiritual materials. It cannot break through ordinary iron at all. Unless...
"That knife you used?" Zhou Xian looked at the coarse cloth package Qin Tiexin had been carrying behind him.
"Hmm."
"Okay!" Zhou Xian gritted his teeth, "I will do as you said! One strike will determine the outcome! If you can kill the Huoyun Saber with one strike, I will pay you thirty spiritual crystals! If not, you will give me three years of free work for the Zhou family!"
"Master Zhou!" the fat shopkeeper said anxiously, "This bet is too big, why not..."
"Don't worry about it, shopkeeper." Zhou Xian waved his hand, "There must be an explanation for today's matter!"
Qin Tiexin nodded. "Okay."
The bet was made and the news spread like the wind.
Within a quarter of an hour, twenty or thirty people gathered at the door of Jinshixuan. There were residents of the town, Rogue Cultivator who were passing by, and monks who heard the news and came to see the excitement. On the second floor of the tea house across the street, the windows were all open, and many people looked down.
Master Liu pulled Qin Tiexin aside and whispered, "Master Qin, are you sure? Although I didn't take a closer look at the Fire Cloud Sword, it is mixed with fire copper and will definitely not be able to break through any iron. That knife of yours..."
"Try it." Qin Tiexin said.
"This is not a matter of trying!" Master Liu said anxiously, "If you lose, you will have worked for three years in vain! In a place like the Zhou family, it is easy to get in but hard to get out!"
Qin Tiexin didn't say anything, but just took off the coarse cloth package from behind.
The cloth was peeled off layer by layer, revealing the pitch black blade of Edgeless.
Master Liu is a good judge of goods. When he saw the shape and color of this knife, his eyes widened. "What material is this knife... made of?"
"I don't know." Qin Tiexin said truthfully. I still don't know what material the piece of black iron is made of, but it doesn't feel like a spiritual material. Edgeless doesn't have a spiritual circuit in it, so it's still a mortal weapon.
Master Liu stretched out his hand to touch it, but when his fingertips were only an inch away from the blade, he paused - he felt a chill, not the cold kind with low temperature, but something heavier and sharper.
"This knife... is not simple." Master Liu murmured, "But are you sure you can break the Fire Cloud Sword? Even if the material is special and has no spiritual patterns, it is still an ordinary weapon..."
"I'll try." Qin Tiexin It's still the same sentence.
Master Liu sighed, knowing that he could not be persuaded.
Outside, Zhou Xian had someone clear an open space. The Fire Cloud Knife was inserted into the ground, and the blade was slightly tilted, revealing the middle of the knife's spine - exactly where Qin Tiexin mentioned.
The people watching were talking a lot.
"Then Master Qin really dares to respond? The Fire Cloud Sword is mixed with spiritual materials!"
"I heard that he has poison in his eyes, maybe he can break it."
"What's the use of eye poison? You have to have something hard in your hand!"
"His knife looks very dark. I don't know where it came from..."
Zhou Xian stood aside, folding his arms, with a sneer on his face. Liu Hong leaned next to him and whispered, "Cousin, we are sure to win. No matter how bad the Fire Cloud Sword is, it is only half a Law Artifact. What reputation can his broken sword have?"
Zhou Xian hummed, but felt a little uneasy for no reason. Qin Tiexin was so calm, so calm that it didn't look like he was pretending.
Just as I was thinking about it, Qin Tiexin came out.
He was holding Edgeless in his hand and his steps were steady.
The crowd automatically parted ways. Qin Tiexin walked to the Huoyun knife, stood still, looked at the position of the knife, and then looked up at Zhou Xian: "One knife?"
"One knife." Zhou Xian said, "Just hit the spot you mentioned. If the knife is damaged, you win. If the knife is fine, you lose."
Qin Tiexin nodded. He grasped the handle of the knife and slowly raised the knife.
There was no cold light or sound. The pitch-black blade seemed to have absorbed all the light and hung silently in the air.
The onlookers fell silent.
Qin Tiexin took a deep breath, held the knife with both hands, and raised it above his head. His eyes locked on the middle of the spine of the Fire Cloud Knife. In [Appraisal]'s field of vision, there was a dark red spot there, which was the place where the spiritual patterns were interrupted and the energy was most blocked. The material structure was also the most fragile there, and the crystal lattice arrangement was chaotic.
He closed his eyes and opened them again.
Then, chop it off.
There were no fancy movements, no whistling wind. It was just a simple vertical slash, and the blade drew a black arc and fell towards the Fire Cloud Sword.
"When--!"
The loud sound of gold and iron clashing exploded, making people's eardrums hurt.
Sparks flew everywhere.
Qin Tiexin Sheath the knife and take a step back.
Everyone's eyes are focused on the Fire Cloud Sword.
The knife was still stuck in the ground and looked intact.
Liu Hong was the first to laugh out loud, "Hahaha! I just said no! Master Zhou, he lost!"
Zhou Xian breathed a sigh of relief and was about to speak--
"Click."
A small crisp sound.
A hair-like crack appeared in the middle of the spine of the Fire Cloud Sword.
The cracks spread quickly, spreading like a spider web. In the blink of an eye, the entire blade spine was covered with cracks.
"Crack--crack!"
The blade shattered and broke into more than a dozen pieces, scattered on the ground. At the fracture, dark red fire copper particles shone faintly.
The whole place was dead silent.
Liu Hong's smile froze on his face. Zhou Xian's eyes widened and he couldn't believe it.
Qin Tiexin sheathed the sword and looked at Zhou Xian: "Thirty Spiritual Crystals."
Zhou Xian's face turned red and white, and his lips moved, but he didn't say anything.
The crowd roared.
"It's broken! It's so broken!"
"One knife! Just one knife!"
"What's the origin of that black sword? Is it so powerful?"
"Master Qin is amazing!"
The fat shopkeeper and Master Liu looked at each other and saw the shock in each other's eyes. They guessed that Qin Tiexin might win, but they didn't expect that the victory would be so simple - a knife to pieces. What kind of precise vision and strength is this?
Zhou Xian stared at the fragments on the ground, then looked up at Qin Tiexin, with fear in his eyes. He finally realized that this seemingly honest and honest blacksmith might not be simple.
"Master Zhou?" Qin Tiexin reminded again.
Zhou Xian gritted his teeth, took out a small cloth bag from his arms, counted out thirty spiritual crystals, and threw them over. The spiritual crystals landed on the bluestone, making a jingling sound.
Qin Tiexin bent down, picked them up one by one, and put them away. Then he turned around and walked into the shop.
"Stop!" Zhou Xian shouted to stop him.
Qin Tiexin Look back.
"This matter is not over today." Zhou Xian said word by word, "Just wait."
Qin Tiexin looked at him for a moment and nodded. "Yes."
After saying that, he went straight into the shop.
Outside the door, the crowd gradually dispersed, but the chatter continued for a long time. Zhou Xian walked away with his followers with a livid face. Liu Hong wanted to follow, but Zhou Xian glared back and stood there angrily.
Liu Hong opened his mouth, but finally said nothing, lowered his head and went to the backyard.
Master Liu looked at his back, shook his head, and entered the shop.
In the front hall, Qin Tiexin was wiping Edgeless with a cloth. The blade was still dark, and the slash just now did not leave even a mark.
"Master Qin," the fat shopkeeper came over with a complicated expression, "For today's matter... you have offended the Zhou family."
"Yeah." Qin Tiexin responded.
"The Zhou family is quite powerful in Qingya Town, and there are monks in the family who are in the late stages of Qi refining. Zhou Xian is bound to retaliate, so be careful."
"Okay."
The fat shopkeeper wanted to say something else, but seeing that Qin Tiexin looked calm, he didn't say anything more and just patted him on the shoulder, "If you have trouble in the future, the shop will do its best to help."
"Thank you."
In the evening, Qin Tiexin ate as usual. Four bowls of brown rice, one bowl of cabbage stewed with tofu, and he ate everything.
After dinner, he went back to the east wing and closed the door.
He took out two money bags from his arms. One contained copper coins and broken silver, and the other contained spiritual crystals. There were now forty-six spiritual crystals - the previous sixteen, plus the thirty that were won today.
He poured the spiritual crystals into the palm of his hand, counted them one by one, and put them back.
Then take off Edgeless and run your fingers over the blade.
The knife was very quiet, with no tremor or "hungry" feeling. It was as if the cut just now made it temporarily satisfied.
But Qin Tiexin knows that this is only temporary. Edgeless needs spiritual materials, real spiritual materials.
Forty-six spiritual crystals are just enough to buy two pieces of red fire copper as big as a fingernail.
Still have to make money.
He put away the knife, blew out the light, lay on the bed, and continued to learn how to draw spiritual patterns in [Illusory Realm Hall]. Even if he didn't have spiritual power, he should at least be familiar with the direction of the structure.
By the time he came out, the sound of the clock was already coming from outside the window. It was already the second watch.
Qin Tiexin Closed his eyes and replayed the chop during the day in his mind. The angle of the knife falling, the control of the force, the choice of the hit point... replayed bit by bit.
Then fell into a deep sleep.