When Ren Qing arrived at the blacksmith shop, its doors were tightly shut, and Liu Hu's earth-shaking snores came from inside.
He had no choice but to find a nearby teahouse to pass the time.
Before Ren Qing could wait for Liu Hu to wake up, a burst of commotion rose outside the teahouse. The bustling crowd seemed to be discussing something.
Ren Qing walked to the window and looked toward the end of the street.
He saw quite a few constables escorting five Fire Workers toward the Yamen. They appeared to have come from outside the city.
Could they be the Fire Workers from Hexing Street?
He remembered that nine people had been dispatched to deal with the plague. Five of them had actually survived.
Ren Qing listened to the people's reactions. They were all worried that the plague would spread into Sanxiang City, so they avoided those Fire Workers as though they were poisonous snakes and savage beasts.
He felt that things were not so simple. The plague outside the city most likely involved the Forbidden Zone. Fortunately, the Forbidden Guards were there to bear the risks.
On the surface, Sanxiang City remained prosperous. Even people disappearing and dying every day did not seem to affect it.
After all, the city had a population of over a hundred thousand. Most ordinary people lived rather uneventful lives.
Near dusk, Ren Qing finally entered the blacksmith shop. Fortunately, his trip had not been in vain.
After only a few days apart, the exposed skin on Liu Hu's chest and abdomen was covered in burn marks, while his eyes were red and swollen from staying up late.
Liu Hu yawned. "Wu'ai. Once I get busy, day and night turn upside down."
"You're really pushing yourself too hard."
"The forging process cannot be interrupted. Otherwise, it could affect the quality of the blades and swords. There's no room for carelessness."
Ren Qing noticed the Great Miao Saber hanging on the wall.
"Wait there."
Liu Hu took down the Great Miao Saber and presented it to Ren Qing with both hands. "The Great Miao Saber has been forged, but it is an unusual and strange blade, after all. It won't be easy to wield."
When Ren Qing took it, his arm sank slightly under its weight, and he could not help examining the Great Miao Saber.
The blade was nearly four chi long. Its wooden scabbard was wrapped with brass ornamentation, carrying a rough, rugged beauty.
"It's all right, isn't it? I put quite a bit of blood and sweat into forging it."
Ren Qing praised it with delight on his face. "As expected of a renowned blacksmith in Sanxiang City. Your skill in forging blades and swords has reached perfection."
Liu Hu introduced it proudly. "To forge such a long and narrow blade as one piece, you need to hammer it into shape patiently. Otherwise, cracks could form along the nearly four-chi edge and leave hidden dangers behind."
Ren Qing said sincerely, "Thank you."
Even without drawing it from its sheath, the weight in his hands alone showed that it was absolutely made from genuine materials.
Seeing Ren Qing stroke the scabbard as though he could not put it down, Liu Hu could not help adding, "I was worried that the Great Miao Saber would be too heavy, but I didn't expect you to be this strong."
"More or less."
For Ren Qing, wielding it one-handed might have some effect on his movements, but the Great Miao Saber could be used with both hands.
That way, its weight became an advantage instead.
Ren Qing eagerly drew the Great Miao Saber. Dazzling cold light flashed through the blacksmith shop.
The blade was like a mirror, reflecting people clearly, and the edge bore wave-like tempering patterns.
"Why hasn't it been sharpened?"
Liu Hu said with a smile, "Since it's your blade, sharpen it yourself. That'll help you understand the Great Miao Saber better."
"All right."
Liu Hu briefly taught him the techniques for sharpening a blade, then gave Ren Qing a palm-sized whetstone.
With Ren Qing's eyesight, sharpening the blade would not be a problem. He could even do it far more precisely than Liu Hu, since he could observe every minute detail.
"No matter what blade or sword it is, seven parts depend on forging, while the remaining three parts depend on maintenance."
Liu Hu took out a porcelain bottle filled with Blade Oil. Applying it daily could prevent the weapon from rusting and extend its lifespan.
He began explaining the key points.
Ren Qing sat cross-legged on the ground and listened patiently, casually picking up the Great Miao Saber.
He dampened the whetstone with a little water, then ran the blade across it. The friction of metal produced a piercing screech.
"You..."
Liu Hu flew into a rage. He had just said that one could not be careless with weapons, yet Ren Qing was sharpening it so casually. He really had no respect for him at all.
Wait!!!
Liu Hu's expression became strange. He noticed that Ren Qing's sharpening movements were incredibly steady, without even the slightest variation.
Moreover, though the Great Miao Saber's blade was four chi long, the sharpening sound from beginning to end remained exactly the same. It was simply unbelievable.
Liu Hu did not even dare disturb him. He quietly waited for Ren Qing to finish sharpening the Great Miao Saber, and admiration inevitably appeared on his face.
He said with a sigh of relief, "Ren Qing, with your talent, if you used it for..."
"Let me try out the Great Miao Saber first."
Ren Qing's hands itched. He gripped the blade with both hands and swung it. His movements were awkward at first, but as he used Double Pupils, they grew increasingly skilled.
Though the Great Miao Saber was four chi long, and though he was inside the cramped blacksmith shop, with all sorts of furniture and clutter piled around him—
Ren Qing still displayed the Great Miao Saber's incomparably ferocious offensive power to the fullest.
Clang!!!
The saber returned to its sheath.
He looked at Liu Hu and asked, "Brother Liu, what were you about to say?"
"Uh."
Liu Hu's mouth twitched, and a bead of cold sweat slid down his forehead.
He said with an awkward smile, "Nothing. The Great Miao Saber won't be wasted in your hands. I only hope that it'll still be whole and unharmed several years from now."
"It's getting late. I'm planning to return to the Yamen. If you need anything, Brother Liu, you can send word to the Fire Refining Hall on Tan Street."
"Then I'll keep catching up on sleep. This deal was truly a losing business."
The Great Miao Saber was actually more suitable for mounted combat. It could be tied to a horse's back and drawn at any moment.
If Ren Qing wore it at his waist, it would easily drag on the ground, while carrying it on his back would make it difficult to draw. So he simply tied it to his back with a slipknot, allowing him to loosen it and take out the entire saber whenever necessary.
He headed straight for the Yamen. Passersby kept glancing at him because of the Great Miao Saber's appearance, and it even drew cries of surprise from children.
Some people from the martial world wore slightly disdainful expressions.
With such a long blade, he would definitely end up hurting himself when he swung it.
After returning to the Fire Refining Hall, Ren Qing wrapped the Great Miao Saber in strips of cloth. That way, even if he carried it around, others would only think it was a slender stick.
Xiao Wu touched the Great Miao Saber enviously. He could indeed barely swing it, but his arms would soon become sore and weak.
"Qing Ge'er, did you know that those Fire Workers from Hexing Street returned today?"
"I saw them myself."
The Fire Workers of Tan Street and those of Hexing Street lived in the same Fire Refining Hall, so it was inevitable that Xiao Wu would be somewhat worried.
"Right, what happened to those five men?"
"They say the plague outside the city is severe. After they returned, they were locked up in Sibu Hall. They should be released after some time."
Li Mian passed by and added, "It was clearly four people."
Ren Qing frowned, just about to refute him, when he suddenly realized that the Fire Workers in his memory were becoming blurry. Their figures gradually changed from five people to four.
One of them seemed to have been erased out of thin air.
Li Mian added, "Ask Li Heng. He saw those four Fire Workers enter the Yamen too."
Li Heng was sweeping dust off the steps. Hearing this, he nodded. "It was four people, that's right."
Ren Qing relaxed his furrowed brow and carefully went over his memories several times. There really had only been four Fire Workers.
He must have remembered wrong just now...
Before you continue