Chapter 909

Kong Jianshi finally came to his senses.

He stared blankly at Old Master Lu, after a long while gave a helpless wry smile: "I really am not suited for doing these things. It's worlds apart from what I thought. What's even more frightening is that I always believed what I thought was never wrong. Fortunately, I didn't blame others, I just didn't understand."

"So I'm telling you, you've truly lived this age in vain." Old Master Lu shook his head and swayed.

He had never seen such a foolish expert.

I also don't know how he back then managed to understand the heart method and the score.

He looks smart in appearance, who would have thought he could be this stupid.

"I'll go see the lord right now!" Kong Jianshi said in a deep voice.

Old Master Lu nodded, hesitated a moment, then said: "You should still think it over carefully, see if anything's missing. Some things I can't say, but I think you can sense it. Don't do this kind of thing in the future; it really isn't suitable for you."

"Now I truly understand." Kong Jianshi nodded seriously.

"Alright, go ahead, I'll stroll around a bit."

"Okay."

In the Zhongjun Camp, Chen Wuji was studying that bow.

The bow is named "Startling Swan," and the seal script is engraved on the bow body.

He stared at the materials of the bow and arrows for a long time but couldn't figure out what they were made of.

But he could confirm it was indeed a good bow.

Moreover, it's a hard bow, harder than the one he currently uses.

The odd thing is, although it's clearly a hard bow, pulling it isn't difficult; it doesn't take as much effort as his usual bow.

"Shi Yi Shu, take a look at this bow—can you make sense of it?"

Chen Li took the bow, examined it briefly, but didn't directly comment on the bow; instead, with some worry he said: "Family Head, you should be paying more attention to Master Kong right now—this matter seems more serious."

Chen Wuji waved his hand calmly: "No need, no need—I still trust Old Kong completely. Shi Yi Shu, don't doubt that one slim possibility; we've already discussed this thoroughly—there's nothing else."

"My cheap master probably poured all his few remaining thoughts into me in the second half of his life. But I can understand—after all, it's his lifeblood; how could he give it up easily?"

Chen Li shook his head with a light laugh: "Since you say that, why not make an exception for Old Master Zhang?"

"Shi Yi Shu, that's a bit like talking big while sitting comfortably. If I make an exception, you say things are already like this—what then? An uncontrollable force—what use would it be to me? Would I just be their backer, letting them influence the Rivers and Lakes?" Chen Wuji asked.

Chen Li spread his hands, snorted, and gave a light laugh.

This matter, indeed, feels somewhat helpless.

As for Old Master Zhang, bluntly, he's playing an open scheme, betting on feelings.

"Hurry up and look at this bow—I can't tell what material it's made of," Chen Wuji said.

Chen Li picked up the bow again, weighed it carefully, his expression growing bewildered: "This bow… this…"

"Shi Yi Shu, with your experience you still can't recognize it?" Chen Wuji asked.

Chen Li paused, then said: "Family Head, you seem to misunderstand me—what insight could I have? I've farmed in the village my whole life, I don't even know what the outside world is like; only these past two years, following you on campaigns, have I gained a bit of insight."

Chen Wuji rolled his eyes, not really wanting to engage.

These lame words—he's heard enough of them.

"No insight? You're still putting on an act here with me?" Chen Wuji chuckled: "Fine, I'll assume Shi Yi Shu has no insight—then tell me who the two grand masters of our clan are? You ought to know something about that."

Chen Li turned his gaze back to the bow: "Family Head, this… I really don't know. But I do understand that success comes from secrecy, always keeping a backup—this is crucial. You can rest assured, the clan's loyalty will never be problematic, with so many eyes watching, nothing will go wrong."

Chen Wuji was speechless: "With so many eyes watching, yet you're the only one hiding things from me?"

"Knowing only a handful of people—if too many knew about this sort of thing, it would lose its meaning." Chen Li explained.

"Alright, forget it—asking over and over just yields the same line. Don't bother, go study this bow!" Chen Wuji gave up, accustomed to it; such matters have been too much for him so far.

Since he transmigrated, he's been solving the mysteries of the Chen clan.

It's been over two years, and he still hasn't uncovered everything.

That's how it is.

"This bow looks somewhat like it's forged from dark iron," Chen Li said uncertainly.

Chen Wuji's eyes widened: "What is dark iron?"

He really had thought this was just an ordinary ancient world, with mundane power.

By now, that notion has almost been ground to dust.

"There are many kinds of dark iron, but the most common are various extraterrestrial meteoric iron," Chen Li said.

"People of the Rivers and Lakes and martial artists especially favor this meteoric iron; some specialize in searching for it all under heaven to forge weapons."

"However, weapons forged from this dark iron aren't all good—some are good, some bad—and you can't generalize from a part."

"But a few kinds of dark iron, I recall, can truly forge divine weapons; even if only a tiny portion is added to ordinary iron and repeatedly forged, they can produce weapons that cut iron like mud."

Chen Wuji drew a soft hiss: "This explanation… why does it sound so familiar?"

In his previous life, he seemed to have seen something similar in some novel.

"You might have heard of it somewhere; this isn't really a secret," Chen Li said.

Chen Wuji glanced sideways; he can't stand hearing those two words "secret" now.

"Which kinds of dark iron can forge divine weapons?" Chen Wuji asked.

This made his heart stir fiercely.

The deterrent power of divine weapons on the battlefield—he knows it well.

"Hey, wait…" Chen Wuji sprang up, picked up the ancestral tetanus‑resistant blade placed on the side of the table, and said: "Shi Yi Shu, this sword of ours should be forged from dark iron, right?"

Chen Li nodded: "Yes, the dark iron used to forge these blades is called Black Pit Cold Gold."

"Does this name have any particular meaning?"

"Actually, there's no special meaning," Chen Li explained. "The name comes entirely from where the dark iron was found—it was a deep pool, and because this piece of dark iron is extremely cold, it got that name."

Chen Wuji: ……

He suddenly could understand how those very awesome divine irons in the novel came to be.