Chapter 108

"You don't trust me?"

Han Song furrowed his brows and said in a deep voice.

"Please forgive me, Elder Han."

Chen Mu cupped his hands. "Once the weapons have melted, I will withdraw."

"You..."

"Calm your anger, Elder Han." Guan Xingce hurriedly persuaded, "Young Hero Nie is just being cautious. Our villa only provides forging services; if you melt the weapons first, won't that settle it?"

"I'm sorry for the trouble, Elder Han." Chen Mu cupped his hands.

"Hmph!"

Han Hao let out a cold snort and stopped looking at Chen Mu.

The next instant, he waved his hand abruptly, and an invisible force swept up the twin swords on the forging table, tossing them into the roaring geothermal furnace.

Whoosh-boom!

The furnace fire suddenly turned violent, engulfing the two spiritual swords and their scabbards, melting them down rapidly.

Chen Mu watched without blinking for a single moment.

Once the two swords had completely melted into molten iron, he cupped his hands to Han Hao in a salute. "I'll leave the rest to you, Elder Han."

After speaking, he turned and left.

Guan Xingce followed closely behind.

"What a pity."

Once Chen Mu and Guan Xingce had left, Han Hao sighed softly, looked at the molten iron flowing into the sword mold, and shook his head slightly.

The next moment, he picked up his specialized hammer. Once the molten iron had been shaped into a sword blank, he used tongs to clamp it out, transferred it to the forging table, and raised his hammer to forge.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Inside the sweltering sword-casting room, rhythmic sounds began to ring out.

Every time Han Hao’s hammer fell, it felt as if he were striking an invisible node.

This process was extremely slow and mentally exhausting; the veins on Han Hao's forehead bulged, and sweat poured down like rain.

Two full days passed, and the sword blank was ninety percent reshaped.

At this point, Han Hao took the Kuntian Stone, tossed it into the furnace fire, and kept it there for three quarters of an hour until it melted into liquid.

He then transferred the liquid and poured it over the sword blank.

"Sizzle—!"

The two energies collided, erupting in waves, and the sword blank began to radiate light.

Seeing this, Han Hao held his breath and raised his hammer again.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Inside the sword-casting room, crisp sounds rang out once more.

With his arms bare, Han Hao hammered, tempered, and awakened the spirit... every step was refined to perfection, not daring to make the slightest mistake.

Finally, at dawn on the third day, a long sword with a streamlined design, dark red patterns and deep blue flowing light hidden on the blade, and a single star-point slowly rotating at its core, was completely formed.

The moment the final tempering process was completed, the sword body suddenly hummed spontaneously, releasing a wave that caused the many ordinary iron blanks piled up in the room to vibrate with a buzzing sound.

"This is..."

Han Hao’s eyes widened abruptly, looking at the now-cooled long sword in disbelief.

He carefully sensed the blade; it was tough yet restrained, sharp yet profound.

"A mid-grade spiritual sword? It actually reached the peak of the mid-grade level?"

Han Hao looked at the long sword, his hands trembling slightly with excitement.

His original estimate was that perfectly preserving the raw material's characteristics and successfully fusing the Kuntian Stone to reach the peak of low-grade was the limit; he never expected such an incredible qualitative change!

"It seems the material of those two swords was extraordinary. Re-smelting them, supplemented by the geothermal fire and my own craftsmanship, has actually produced such a miracle!"

Han Hao was ecstatic. He picked up the long sword and stroked the blade repeatedly, as if looking at the most precious treasure.

"Hahaha! Heaven blesses me to have achieved such a divine weapon!"

Outside the sword-casting room.

"It's done."

Hearing the movement, Guan Xingce cupped his hands to Chen Mu. "Young Hero Nie, Elder Han has finished the forging. Let's go in and take a look."

"Good." Chen Mu nodded and followed Guan Xingce into the forging room.

After waiting for three days, he had finally waited long enough.

The two entered the forging room.

"Haha, you've come just in time. Take a look at my new work."

Han Hao held the sword, looked at Chen Mu and Guan Xingce, and said excitedly, "How is it? Isn't it a pleasant surprise?"

"This is... mid-grade?" Chen Mu examined the long sword, surprised.

"Yes, it's mid-grade, and at the peak of mid-grade at that!"

Han Hao laughed loudly. "Haha, happy, aren't you? I was surprised too. I didn't expect it to reach the peak of mid-grade when completing the final step."

"That is due to Elder Han's superb craftsmanship!"

Chen Mu cupped his hands.

A low-grade spiritual weapon, re-smelted, actually underwent a qualitative change.

This wasn't just a simple case of two becoming one.

It required Han Hao's skill, the timing of the Kuntian Stone's integration, and finally, luck to succeed.

In short, this was indeed a pleasant surprise.

"Congratulations, Young Hero Nie! Elder Han's craftsmanship didn't let you down, did it?"

Guan Xingce’s face was also filled with smiles, but deep in his eyes, a trace of greed that was hard to hide flashed by.

A mid-grade spiritual sword!

Although the Hundred Blades Villa was famous for sword casting, in several decades, they had only forged two mid-grade spiritual swords.

Those two spiritual swords had been commissioned by experts at the late stage of the Innate Realm.

This third one...

Guan Xingce looked away nonchalantly.

"Of course not. Nie feels deep admiration for Elder Han's craftsmanship."

Chen Mu cupped his hands to Han Hao again in a salute. "Thank you, Elder Han."

"Haha, it was just a stroke of luck for me."

Han Hao laughed and handed the long sword and its corresponding scabbard to Chen Mu.

Chen Mu took it and sheathed the sword.

Afterward, he expressed his gratitude once more before taking his leave.

Guan Xingce accompanied him all the way to the villa gate.

Watching Chen Mu’s receding back, the smile on Guan Xingce’s face vanished completely.

He paced back and forth on the spot, his eyes flickering uncertainly.

"A mid-grade spiritual sword... two low-grade spiritual weapons that weren't meant to be seen... this kid must still have secrets..."

Guan Xingce muttered to himself, feeling more and more unwilling. "A mere rogue cultivator, what right does he have to possess a mid-grade spiritual sword? My Hundred Blades Villa works hard to forge swords, yet we only get a pittance in return..."

Greed grew like wild grass.

He stopped abruptly, a flash of ruthlessness in his eyes. "I absolutely cannot let him just walk away like this!"

He quickly summoned his confidant and whispered, "Prepare the horses immediately; I am going to the Iron Palm Sect myself!"

The Iron Palm Sect was known for its fierce palm techniques and expertise in body tempering; its overall strength was on par with the Hundred Blades Villa.

Inside the main hall, the Iron Palm Sect Master, Tie Xiangtong, listened to Guan Xingce’s intentions, rubbing his chin with a palm as large as a cattail fan, his eyes gleaming. "Brother Guan, are you saying that the kid has a mid-grade spiritual sword, multiple Kuntian Stones, and tens of thousands of silver taels? And that he is just a rogue cultivator with no sect?"

"Absolutely true!"

Guan Xingce lowered his voice. "That sword was forged by Elder Han of my villa personally; there can be no mistake! Brother Tie, you should know the value of a mid-grade spiritual sword. As for the kid, although he is in the Innate Realm, he is at most at the second stage of the Innate Realm. If you and I join forces, plus the elite disciples of the sect, we will surely be able to take him down! As for the treasures obtained, we split them fifty-fifty, how about it?"

Tie Xiangtong was tempted.

A mid-grade spiritual sword was enough to raise the Iron Palm Sect's overall strength by a notch! Not to mention the Kuntian Stones.

He pondered for a moment, then slapped the armrest of his chair. "Done! When do we act? And where?"

A sinister smile appeared on Guan Xingce’s face. "He hasn't been gone long; he must pass through Tiger King Ridge. That place is rarely visited by people, making it the perfect spot to act! There is no time to lose; let's gather our men immediately and go set an ambush!"

"Good!"

Two palms gripped each other heavily.