Fellow Daoist! That scoundrel has written a new book again.

Zhu Wuyao added some feed to the radish, and carried a bundle of firewood to warm up his house, as it had been getting colder lately.

She squatted in front of the firewood, diligently kneading a fireball.

A few days ago, after successfully drawing qi into her body, Zhang Zhihan gave her several basic techniques, such as the Fire Drawing Technique, the Swift Movement Technique, and the Five Elements Body Tempering Technique... She has been practicing them with great enthusiasm these past few days.

Shen Anzhi borrowed some money from Zhang Zhihan before he returned to the mountain to pay for the room, which added three taels of silver to her savings.

As for Ye Xiaozhou, she said she didn't say anything and then ran away, which made Zhang Zhihan so angry that he vowed to never let this scoundrel live under the same sky.

Her life returned to normal, and everything was getting better.

Aside from cultivation.

After several days of unremitting efforts, she finally reached the first level of Qi Refining. However, the spiritual energy in her body was stubborn and refused to break through the barrier no matter what she did.

At this moment, Zhu Wuyao squatted next to the firewood, trying to tame the spiritual energy within his body.

Just as she snapped her fingers so hard that her fingertips were almost blistered, a tiny flame finally appeared at her fingertips.

It swayed gently, seemingly very unstable, yet it maintained its position for such a long time for the first time.

Zhu Wuyao was moved to tears. Was it a spark? No! It wasn't.

This is a flame of hope, a guiding light, and proof of her tireless efforts day and night!

Just as Zhu Wuyao was using every syllable to praise the flame, the flame seemed to sense her excitement and began to sway, growing larger and larger in front of her dumbfounded expression...

"boom!"

"Cough...cough cough cough..."

"Miss Zhu, Miss Zhu! Are you still alive?"

Zhu Wuyao, who was lying prone on the ground in a standard fire-avoidance posture, raised her head. She stood up nonchalantly, patted her dress, and explained:

"It's nothing, there was just a dust explosion."

"Dust explosion? What does that mean?"

"The contact between the flames and the dust rising from the firewood produced a series of inexplicable but very complex reactions that ultimately led to the explosion."

While making excuses, Zhu Wuyao glanced into the house and thankfully, the damage wasn't too serious.

Although this fireball looks impressive, it's actually quite weak!

Otherwise, even selling all their possessions wouldn't be enough to compensate Gu Lang for his house.

"By the way, Brother Shen, I need to find a blacksmith to forge a sharp sword for myself. Would you like to come with me?"

At the Longevity Inn, next to the signed document, there was a dark stone.

According to Zhang Zhihan's judgment, this is icy black iron, an excellent material for refining weapons.

The innkeeper gave Zhu Wuyao this piece of refining material, which he had obtained from who-knows-where, as a fortune-telling fee.

Yesterday, she visited Ji Daoting, a holdout resident of Beixuan City, to inquire which blacksmith shop in the city had a master craftsman from the cultivation world, and now she plans to go and take a look.

"I won't go with you. I have to patrol Beixuan City today." Shen Anzhi declined Zhu Wuyao's invitation to travel together.

Since the incident at the Longevity Inn came to an end some time ago, Shen Anzhi has felt quite guilty, feeling that he failed to detect the risks in time, which led to this tragedy.

Therefore, he has been wandering around the streets for the past few days.

Shen Anzhi could be seen appearing in every street and alley of Beixuan City.

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In a small alley in Beixuan City.

Zhu Wuyao wandered around for a long time before finally finding the place. She looked at the inconspicuous little shop deep in the alley and felt a little nervous.

Although she brought all her money, she was still worried that she wouldn't have enough.

"Dong dong dong!"

After knocking on the door, Zhu Wu heard a response from inside and entered the blacksmith shop.

Inside, a muscular, sweaty man was forging iron. With each strike, sparks flew and dazzling light flashed. Various knives, forks, axes, and halberds hung on the wall.

Zhu Wuyao stood quietly and obediently to the side, patiently waiting.

She is always very polite when facing such seemingly powerful figures; that's the awareness of a weakling.

Only when the red-hot iron was thrown into the water with a "sizzle" did the big man turn his head and look Zhu Wuyao up and down.

Who recommended you?

He didn't even need to use his divine sense to probe the girl's cultivation level to know that the newcomer was a cultivator.

If she were an ordinary neighbor, who would be like her, shrinking into the wall like a quail when she came in?

"It was recommended by senior Ji Daoting. He said your craftsmanship is superb and your prices are reasonable."

"Did you make up the last two lines yourself?"

Zhu Wuyao nodded with a smile, admitting it directly. Wasn't this just to flatter him and make him feel embarrassed to accept too much money?

She took out the piece of cold, black iron, looked at the blacksmith, and asked:

"I want to forge a sword, but I don't know how much silver it will cost?"

The blacksmith exclaimed "Yo!" and said:

"This is a good item. I reckon it can be used to forge a decent sword. Since you were introduced by Senior Ji, I'll charge you one hundred taels."

Hearing this, Zhu Wuyao felt both hopeful and heartbroken.

Reluctantly, she took out a handful of loose silver from her purse, counted it carefully, and even after adding the copper coins, it only amounted to ninety-six taels, four mace, and three coins.

Zhu Wuyao, feeling rather embarrassed, tried his best to bargain, saying, "Could you give me a discount of four taels?"

The burly man's lips twitched as he looked at the handful of coins, some in small change and some in large.

I haven't seen such poor monks in years.

A hint of pity flickered in his eyes, and he said mercifully, "Alright, leave the things here, come and pick them up the day after tomorrow."

This blacksmith shop is hidden away, and usually only a few neighbors come to make some easy, common ironwork. There's not much business, but it allows Zhu Wuyao to quickly acquire new weapons.

Zhu Wuyao, holding his now-empty money bag, left the blacksmith's shop full of anticipation.

On her way home, she saw the increasing number of beggars in Beixuan City.

I suddenly had the urge to go out and beg.

------

Nighttime, the blacksmith's shop.

"Da Niu, you have already made some progress in weapon crafting, but you must avoid being impatient."

The muscular man who had been studying with his master during the day nodded vigorously after hearing the old man's instructions.

What lay before the two of them was the piece of cold black iron that Zhu Wuyao had brought.

"Today, I will use this piece of cold black iron to teach you what the 'transformation force' in blacksmithing is."

With expectant eyes, Da Niu kindly handed over the hammer.

The icy black iron, melted by the true fire, gradually revealed its divine nature, resembling a thousand-year-old ice, stubbornly resisting the burning of its natal true fire.

The old man exclaimed, "Excellent ingredients!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he increased the intensity of the attack, forcing the chill within to recede until it could be forged.

The night was quiet, but the clanging of hammering metal came from the blacksmith's shop, keeping the neighbors awake. One of them shouted, "Will this ever end?!"

Da Niu quickly went outside and repeatedly apologized to his neighbors.

When I returned to the shop, the simple and unadorned greatsword was almost finished being forged.

“Da Niu, watch carefully! When forging a sword, you must be focused and at peace with your true self. Carefully observe my last few hammer blows. They will fully unleash the chilling power of the Earthly Cold Black Iron, making it infinitely powerful.”

Da Niu nodded seriously, watching his master's movements intently.

With each strike of the hammer, the master seemed to draw upon the power of his entire body, and the strike possessed a unique and profound rhythm.

The ancient greatsword began to swirl with wisps of dark, chilling energy.

That girl got off too easy.

Ninety-six taels of silver were exchanged for the master's personal intervention, which forged the power of this icy black iron to its limit.

Then, the master brought down the final hammer blow—

“Bang!”

"Clang—"

The tip of the sword...it broke off...

An eerie silence fell over the blacksmith shop.

On the forging table, the broken sword seemed exceptionally forgiving, uttering not a single word of reproach.