Boom!!!
A heavy punch slammed into the anvil, letting out a deafening hum.
In this lonely, snowy night, the echo of the strike lasted a long time, making the Sword Furnace — usually bustling during the day — feel particularly eerie.
That was right…
Just half a day ago, this place had been a scene of bustling activity.
But now, the roar of the hammers had long since fallen silent, and the rising flames were all extinguished, leaving only a few dying sparks to linger on, much like this Ling Peak that was gradually nearing its end.
“What on earth does that Nan Xi think he’s doing?!”
Elder Luoyi spoke viciously, wishing he could tear Nan Xi into ten thousand pieces.
His plans were completely ruined!
Originally, he only wanted to use the hands of the artisan Elders of the Sword Furnace to shake Nan Xi’s position, perhaps even force him to step down… all while ensuring their own interests remained untouched.
But who could have guessed that Nan Xi would suddenly flip the entire table and forbid the artisan Elders from continuing to forge swords?
And they couldn’t even voice a single word of complaint about it!
“Calm down, Elder Luoyi!” a voice shouted lowly from behind him.
“How can I stay calm!”
This was cutting off their source of income! It felt worse than killing him!
Elder Luoyi turned around and shouted his accusation at the man behind him.
“Nan Xi directly cut off all our income from sword forging. Have you thought about that, Elder Ashan? Where are you going to get the money to cover those shady deficits of yours?”
“…”
Elder Ashan remained silent. His massive frame was hunched over a small stool, looking like a mountain of flesh that stood out prominently in the shadows.
But unlike the frantic Elder Luoyi, Elder Ashan was exceptionally calm.
His gaze was fixed on the anvil in front of him.
A Spirit Sword lay sleeping quietly upon it. It was so sharp that a single swing could shatter stone — of course, it could also be evaluated by another system.
[Earth-grade Peak]
“That guy even said today, ‘What use do we have for you!'” Elder Luoyi continued his frantic accusation, desperately venting his dissatisfaction. “Damn it, even the sword casting techniques of Tianxuan Peak are better than ours.”
“‘What use do we have for you…’ ‘What use do we have for you…'”
Elder Ashan pondered the phrase repeatedly. 1 second later, his eyes suddenly sharpened.
“I see!”
“Huh?”
“Elder Luoyi, you’re thinking of him too simply after all.”
Elder Ashan sneered. His mountain-like back slowly straightened, letting out a series of crisp, cracking sounds. “What Nan Xi wants to use is actually a provocation tactic…”
…
Achoo—
Nan Xi sneezed and shrunk back into the shadows of a corner once more.
‘Did I catch a cold after being out in the snow for too long? That shouldn’t be possible. With my cultivation at the Golden Core Stage, how could a little snow affect my body? How strange.’
Nan Xi wiped his nose and poked his head out to observe the distant Sword Furnace.
The snow was still falling. However, unlike during the day when the snowflakes melted instantly, the Sword Furnace was now covered in a thick layer of snow.
From a distance, it looked like a sleeping giant beast.
Good, it seemed that group of blacksmiths had finally listened to him and stopped working to reflect.
After returning, he had been worried that those guys would sneak back to work overtime, so he specifically lurked here to see if anyone returned to the Sword Furnace.
Nan Xi was going to ruthlessly fix this unhealthy culture of working overtime!
But…
Nan Xi closed his eyes and carefully sensed the flow of Spiritual Power in the air.
This was just to be safe. If a blacksmith were to secretly forge a sword, no matter how much they tried to reduce heat loss, they couldn’t hide the leak of sharp Spiritual Power the moment a Spirit Sword was completed.
Not to mention, the process of sword forging required the assistance of fire-attribute Spiritual Power.
The Spiritual Power belonging to Tianquan Peak flowed through the air, light and delicate, as gentle and intoxicating as moonlight.
This was only halfway up the mountain; if he went toward the peak, it would likely be even more concentrated.
Other than that, Nan Xi didn’t feel any other Spiritual Power…
Hmm?
His brow suddenly furrowed.
A slight sense of abnormality flashed through his mind. It was so faint, like a fragile fish trapped in a moonlit sea of Spiritual Power. If not for Nan Xi’s extraordinary perception, it would have been almost impossible to capture.
Nan Xi’s brow tightened as he slowly opened his eyes.
“What… is that?” Nan Xi murmured softly.
To his surprise, the moment Nan Xi’s vision focused, he found himself staring right into a pair of emerald-green eyes.
!?
Nan Xi’s eyes froze, and he instinctively backed away. But his feet were already covered by the snow, and he stumbled, falling onto his back in the snow.
“Oh! I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Peak Master, are you hurt?!”
The owner of the emerald-green eyes panicked instantly and hurriedly reached out both arms.
“I’m fine…”
Nan Xi frowned, sizing up this uninvited guest.
It was a young girl. She looked to be about 15 or 16 years old, her body completely enveloped in a large, tattered gray snow robe — the garment was so ill-fitting that it was only after she reached out her arms for a while that Nan Xi noticed the slender hands poking out from the sleeves.
She looked as if she were about to help him up. She was actually quite cute.
Nan Xi stood up and patted the snow off his rear.
Once he stood, the girl suddenly seemed even more petite; standing next to Nan Xi, she barely reached his chest.
“Peak Master, are you really okay?”
The girl leaned in closer, looking at him with concern. Looking at her closely, she was quite pretty.
Although her small face was flushed red from the cold, with a bit of dressing up, she could certainly be considered a beauty in the making.
But what left a deeper impression on Nan Xi were those eyes.
Even though it was the middle of winter, the moment he saw those eyes, Nan Xi suddenly thought of young lotus tips in the summer, dragonflies skimming the water, and the sound of clear springs.
“Um, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I didn’t expect to run into the Peak Master here. Seeing you spaced out, I just got curious and…”
Seeing that Nan Xi was a bit dazed, the girl became anxious again, fearing she had scared him witless just now.
“It’s fine,” Nan Xi said, waving a hand. “By the way, you know who I am?”
“Of course! I saw you from a distance at the Sword Casting Square that day!” The girl nodded her head vigorously.
The Sword Casting Square? Then she must be a Disciple of Tianquan Peak.
Nan Xi gave a helpless smile.
He had intended to just show his face in front of the Elders and leave, not wanting to have too much involvement with the Disciples.
He didn’t expect to be remembered after just one appearance.
“It’s so late. Why are you still here?” Nan Xi lowered his head and asked softly.
In such cold weather, even the birds and beasts would hide in their nests and refuse to come out.
For a frail young girl to appear in the snow was unusual no matter how one thought about it.
“I… I came out to…”
The girl’s voice suddenly softened, and her eyes darted away, seemingly reluctant to tell Nan Xi the truth.
Her voice was so tiny that even with Nan Xi’s hearing, he could barely make it out.
“Out to what?”
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