Chapter 47

Shen Duheng: "Soon, it should arrive tomorrow."

As he spoke, Shen Duheng unleashed a stream of Spiritual Power towards the sky.

The Spiritual Power flowed into silver runes, eventually forming a small arrow in the sky, pointing in a certain direction.

Shan Heyuan couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow! This method of finding people is so unique!"

"Yes, it's a method of finding people that combines divination with other people's Spiritual Power patterns."

Shan Heyuan shrank back. "Then I won't give my Spiritual Power patterns to others anymore."

Shen Duheng laughed, "Actually, it doesn't matter. People with this kind of ability will find you even if you don't provide the Spiritual Power patterns."

"Then what should we do?"

"Become stronger. Become even stronger."

As they spoke, the small pot over the campfire began to emit a fragrant aroma.

Shen Duheng took the small pot down and divided the food inside among Shan Heyuan.

After they had eaten, the two fell asleep under the starry sky.

The two resumed their journey the next day.

They traveled for two days, and finally Shen Duheng's Spiritual Power arrow reached a small village.

On this continent, villages are inconspicuous.

The village houses are all yellow mud houses, completely different from the magnificent houses in the city. They are low and dilapidated, as if they have been severely worn down by the wind and sand.

Shan Heyuan stared at the house, guessing that it was a local custom that led to the construction of such a simple house.

Although everyone is a cultivator and has good productivity, cultivators from different regions seem to have completely different lifestyles.

The monks here tend to practice asceticism?

They don't seem to pursue enjoyment, nor do they seem to want bigger or better houses.

Perhaps it is precisely because of this spiritual pursuit that their cultivation level is higher, and they are more valiant in battle.

Shen Duheng quickly found their destination and led Shan Heyuan to knock on the door.

The door was also dilapidated; if Shan Heyuan didn't know this was the cultivation world, he might have thought it was some small house in a remote place.

It's amazing that there are still such unscrupulous people in the cultivation world.

There was a knock on the door three times.

A gruff voice called out to them from inside, "Coming! Who is it? No drinking today."

Then the door opened, and a bald man poked his head out.

The bald man was tall and strong, almost two meters tall. He was wearing long pants and a cloth draped over his upper body, covering half of his body.

You can see from the side of the cloth that his muscles are very well-developed; his abs aren't six or eight-packed, but rather a single, prominent bulge—a type of muscular physique that's not very common.

He looked like a military general from a New Year's painting that Shan Heyuan had seen, with a handsome face that was both angular and striking.

There was something jarring about this person.

Shen Duheng and Shan Heyuan stood quietly outside the door.

The bald man looked at them as if he'd seen a ghost, his pupils dilating. "Shen, Shen, Shen Zong--"

He seemed to notice Shan Heyuan behind him halfway through his sentence, and changed his tone again. "Brother Shen?!"

The last word cracked, like a strange rooster's crow, stuck in his throat.

The bald man exclaimed in disbelief, "You're still alive?!"

Shen Duheng: "What do you think?"

The bald man muttered, "My God, you're still alive. I bet a ton of people can't sleep right now."

Shen Duheng's expression was indifferent. "I'm still alive. I've come to collect my debt."

The bald man laughed until he almost cried, "Hahaha, what are you saying? Come in, come in and sit down."

The bald man led them inside, his movements clumsy and awkward.

The house already looks quite shabby from the outside, but you can feel that shabbyness even more when you go inside.

Besides the empty house, there wasn't even a floor inside, just a wooden bed.

Shan Heyuan could clearly see a human mark on the bed board. The bald man must have been sleeping here day and night, which is why the mark was so deep.

The bald man glanced around, then finally took out a teapot and three cups from his storage Law Artifact: "Tea, tea."

Shen Duheng: "I won't drink the tea. You owe me a spirit sword. When are you going to give it to me?"

The bald man's face instantly fell. "The spirit sword, I'll definitely give it to you if you want it, but I don't have enough materials right now. Wait for me for a while, and I'll forge it for you once I've gathered enough materials."

Shen Duheng: "How long is 'a period of time'?"

"Thirty, thirty, no, twenty, ten..." The bald man's expression grew even more bitter. "You haven't given it to me in ten years. The spirit sword you want isn't some ordinary item. How could I possibly conjure it up for you?"

"If it takes ten years, why would I bother coming all this way to ask you for it? I could just go and get a spirit sword."

"Sigh, you'll have to give me three to five years. I'm sure I can give you the spirit sword after that."

"No, I'll give you three months."

"Three months!" Upon hearing this, the bald man jumped up from the ground, his face filled with disbelief. "Three months is like asking you to kill me! How could I possibly create a decent spirit sword for you in three months? It would take at least a year. If it's really not working out, you might as well just kill me."

Shen Duheng didn't speak, but stared at his back with a chilling glint in his eyes.

Shan Heyuan, standing to the side, could feel the intense killing intent emanating from that aura.

Seeing Shen Duheng's reaction, the bald man immediately covered his back with his hand. "No way? We've been friends for so many years, you really want to make a move on me?"

Shen Duheng said calmly, "Did you not even think about repaying the debt you owed me after you heard I was dead?"

"How could that be? Am I the kind of person who doesn't keep their word?" The bald man's eyes darted around, his words completely at odds with his expression. "Besides, I don't believe you're dead. What kind of person are you? How could you die so easily?"

Shen Duheng: "One year, I need to see that spirit sword within a year, otherwise..."

Revenge

I'll start by talking to you.

"Fine, one year it is then." The bald man sighed, muttering to himself in front of them, "One spirit sword every year, what's the difference between this and seeking revenge against me?"

Shen Duheng: "Don't even think about running away. You know I can find you."

Chapter 47

The bald man's name is Yang Ji.

The moment he heard his name, Shan Heyuan gave him a subtle look.

Raising chickens?

Yang Ji immediately sensed his subtle gaze and said with displeasure, "What kind of expression is that?"

Shan Heyuan smiled, "Fellow Daoist, your name is easy to remember."

Yang Ji touched his bald head. "Two words, what's so hard to remember?"

Then he turned to Shen Duheng and asked, "Senior Shen, is this your newly accepted disciple?"

Shen Duheng: "Friend."

Yang Ji instantly gave him a "you actually have friends" look, looked at Shen Duheng, then at Shan Heyuan, and then his expression became ambiguous, and he chuckled twice.

With such a large bald head and such an eye-catching expression, Shan Heyuan really didn't know how to comment.

Shan Heyuan covered his face with his hand; this wasn't the time for Yang Ji to be threatened and howl in distress.

The reason they stayed here instead of leaving was because Yang Ji said that forging the spirit sword required a certain type of ore.

Yang Ji was not strong enough to obtain that kind of ore, so Shen Duheng had to take matters into his own hands.

The three introduced themselves briefly and then got down to business.

Yang Ji: "The Heaven-Resembling Stone used to forge the spirit sword is inside the Sand Terrace Mine Area, probably in a mine shaft below the fiftieth level. Everything else inside is manageable, but there's a type of monkey called the Gang Heaven Monkey, every single one of them has Core Formation cultivation, and they're the most troublesome."

Shen Duheng nodded to indicate that he understood, and then asked, "Is there a kind of spiritual fire in this mine?"

Yang Ji: "Yes, there's a kind of yang fire called Pu Dan Fire, but everyone talks about it, and no one has actually seen it."

Shan Heyuan knew a little about spirit fire.

Spiritual fire is divided into yin fire and yang fire, and different types of fire have different uses in alchemy.