A flash of satisfaction flickered in Master Ruan's eyes.
Indeed, all men were the same.
Stubborn.
You could call him ugly.
But you could never say he was incapable.
He might not care about winning or losing, but if you said, 'I'll just let you win because you're so good,' then he would truly get serious.
Xu Xian took two strides toward the massive hammer. He gripped the handle of the Star-Forging Hammer with one hand, sank his qi into his dantian, and channeled his strength into his arms. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
Between that single breath, eddies of qi emerged around his body.
With a sudden, powerful grip and his cheeks tensing, he hoisted the Star-Forging Hammer with one hand.
Ruan Hao watched this, his deep eyes narrowing as light flickered within them.
'Good lad,' he thought. 'He knows quite a few tricks, doesn't he?'
The Power Control Technique.
In the Wendao Sect, this was a mandatory body refining art for master forgers.
This method allowed one to concentrate the human body's strength into a single point, resulting in an instantaneous burst of power far exceeding the norm.
This technique was distributed for free at the Forging Hall.
No other peaks had it.
However, it was available in the Dao Pavilion.
But...
Very few disciples in the sect ever bothered to learn it.
There were two main reasons for this.
First, they didn't forge swords; after all, a person's energy was limited.
Second, this technique was merely a low-tier mysterious grade body art. In the Wendao Sect's Dao Pavilion, it was considered the lowest of the low.
Which disciple of the Wendao Sect wasn't a dragon or phoenix among men, a rare and precious talent? In the world outside, any one of them would be groomed as a sect successor.
Upon entering the sect, everyone was given a top-tier body refining art.
Once they reached qi refining...
They all practiced earth grade or heaven grade qi refining arts.
Who would spare a glance for something like this?
Yet Xu Xian, as the Little Grand-Uncle, actually knew it. This was quite a surprise.
It was like a child raised in the city knowing how to transplant rice seedlings on their very first day in the countryside.
It was a refreshing sight.
Lifting the heavy hammer with one hand, Xu Xian strode toward the forging table. He looked at Ruan Hao and asked, "How should I strike?"
Ruan Hao snapped back to reality and said, "Take the sword embryo out of the furnace and start hammering."
Xu Xian glanced back at the spirit furnace beside him. Seeing a rough embryo as red as a maple leaf, he warned, "Don't blame me if I smash it to bits."
Ruan Hao let out a rare laugh, saying nonchalantly, "The hammer is in your hand. Just strike."
Xu Xian didn't act coy. He knew very well that Ruan Hao, at his age, wouldn't truly compete for the sake of winning or losing without a reason.
He must be testing him.
He had to put on a good performance.
He took the sword embryo with one hand and placed it on the forging table. Adjusting his grip on the hammer's handle, he raised the iron hammer—which was as large as a millstone—and slammed it down.
Boom! — A deafening sound erupted, like popcorn exploding. The forging table remained as steady as a rock, but the entire forging workshop shuddered.
Ruan Hao slightly closed his eyes...
Xu Xian's hammer fell and rose without the slightest hesitation, delivering a series of rhythmic, heavy blows.
He might not have eaten pork, but he had certainly seen pigs run.
What was the key to forging?
Strength, angle, temperature... and so on!
But what did that have to do with him? He just had to keep hitting it.
Ruan Hao sat on his rattan chair, his eyes narrowing further and further until they were just two slits.
That face, which usually carried an air of natural authority, unknowingly took on a kind and benevolent expression...
If the people of Zhujian Peak saw this...
They would likely break out in a cold sweat.
It wasn't that his smile was ugly.
It was just that Master Ruan's smiles were far too rare.
Xu Xian hammered faster and faster, the clanging growing more urgent. The sound echoed across the mountain peak, and the people on the neighboring peaks could hear it with absolute clarity.
It was like spring thunder bursting forth, rolling from a distance into a continuous, deafening roar!
The disciples of Zhujian Peak were all drawn to the sound, breaking into a flurry of noisy discussion.
"Who is it? Who's that? Don't they know explosives aren't allowed in the restricted areas of Zhujian Peak?"
"Holy crap, that hammer sound! Which beast is doing that!"
"Is he hammering iron, or is the iron hammering him..."
Amidst the wave of complaints, some recognized the direction the sound was coming from—Master Ruan's forging workshop. Their eyes filled with suspicion and confusion.
"Could Master Ruan have researched some new forging method?"
"Judging by this commotion, Master Ruan has taken on a big job!"
"Should we... go take a look?"
"Forget it, I'd like to live for a few more years..."
Just as cultivation had its realms, cultivation methods, spirit plants, and weapons had their differences in strength.
Everything in existence had its hierarchy, and forgers were no different.
The titles of forgers were divided into three ranks: mortal forging, spirit forging, and immortal forging.
Mortal forging ranged from Grade 1 to Grade 9; these were the ranks of mortal forgers.
A Grade 9 mortal forger could manually forge almost anything.
Spirit forging also ranged from Grade 1 to Grade 9. These were forgers in the cultivation world, and the weapons and armor they created could be infused with spirit.
Grades 1 to 3 could forge spirit weapons.
Grades 4 to 6 could forge earth weapons.
Grades 7 to 9 could forge heaven weapons.
A Grade 9 spirit forger was a top-tier master who could forge high-tier heaven weapons. In Fanzhou, those at Grade 9 were also known as master forgers.
Above Grade 9 was immortal forging.
As the name implied, an immortal forger could craft immortal artifacts.
However.
In the vastness of Fanzhou, with its population of hundreds of millions, there was only one living immortal forger today. Even Grade 9 spirit forgers numbered only three.
Ruan Hao was one of them.
As for the other two, they were the closed-door disciples of the current immortal forger, coming from the same lineage.
Ancient Sword Mountain.
A sect famous throughout the world for its forging.
The sect had very few disciples.
But all of them were peerless forging geniuses.
However.
The people of Ancient Sword Mountain had long since lived in seclusion deep within the mountains, ignoring worldly affairs. The chaos and turmoil of the world had nothing to do with them.
They focused solely on forging and kept their gates closed; a single sword from them was hard to come by.
One could say that among the forgers still active in the world, Ruan Hao was the undisputed number one.
Furthermore.
Ruan Hao's swords were forged only for the Wendao Sect.
Xu Xian counted in his head, striking a hundred times without a single pause. The clanging was so loud that his own ears were ringing, and with every strike, the muscles on his face twitched from the impact.
Ruan Hao simply watched quietly from the side, without saying a word.
He expertly stuffed tobacco into his pipe.
Lit it.
Took a puff.
And exhaled a cloud of smoke...
Upon reaching the hundredth strike.
Xu Xian stopped his hammer.
"Phew~" He exhaled a breath of turbid air. Beads of sweat dripped from his forehead, and his arms were incredibly sore.
He wiped away the sweat and rubbed his shoulders, only to see that the sword embryo was completely unscathed.
Aside from it being a bit less red, Xu Xian hadn't even managed to knock off a single iron filing.
He furrowed his brows and muttered to himself.
'Is this thing really this hard?'
Indeed.
A loud commotion didn't necessarily mean it was effective.
Just like a fight.
The one who shouted the loudest was often the one who got beaten the hardest.
'Forging is no simple task!'
He didn't bother thinking too much about it. He looked across at Master Ruan and raised an eyebrow. "Senior, what do you say?"
Smoke drifted from Ruan Hao's nostrils as he gave a thumbs up. "Not bad! You certainly have plenty of strength."
"Haha!" Xu Xian laughed triumphantly.
Ruan Hao took another puff of his pipe. "Come here."
Xu Xian trotted over eagerly.
Ruan Hao said solemnly, "Actually, it's not impossible to give you that piece of rare immortal gold."
"Really?!" Xu Xian was overjoyed and hurriedly said, "It's a deal! You can't go back on your word!"
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