Chapter 143

In the following half month, Niu Dingtian immersed himself in the sword intent on the stone wall during the day; at night, he and the divine eagle would drink and eat meat together in Dugu Qiubai's stone cave.

Meanwhile, the divine eagle's injured leg gradually recovered, once again becoming vigorous and domineering; for this, Niu Dingtian rolled up his sleeves and proposed to continue sparring, but the divine eagle lifted its head and firmly refused.

Perhaps because the injury healed, the divine eagle's drinking capacity surged in just a few days, going from drinking one jar a night to three jars.

Even when Niu Dingtian was alone in the daytime contemplating sword intent, it would still sit on the ground holding a wine jar, occasionally biting into some braised beef and gulping down some immortal's drunk, essentially becoming a complete freeloader on Niu Dingtian, this big spender.

In response, Niu Dingtian was unusually generous, always willing to comply; he supplied however much the divine eagle drank and ate, even if it were a bottomless pit that ate straight through.

Only the new manager of the Immortal Drunk Tower suffered, having just taken office not long ago, he saw daily profits plummet severely.

That day, Niu Dingtian sat cross-legged before the stone wall as usual, contemplating the mysterious sword intent in the carvings; the divine eagle patted its empty wine jar, staggered over to Niu Dingtian's side, and began calling 'gu gu gu' from its beak.

The meaning was obvious,

No wine! Go buy wine quickly!

Niu Dingtian: "……"

Seeing this big spender ignore it, the divine eagle grew anxious, stomping its claws with a thumping sound while flapping its wings, protesting urgently with 'gu gu gu' calls.

Niu Dingtian ignored the protest, glared at the divine eagle, and said irritably, 'I said no drinking during the day, only at night—look at how fat you've become! You hardly look like a bird anymore; if you keep growing like this, will you even be able to fly in the future?'

When the divine eagle's craving for alcohol hit, it couldn't bear it; anxiously it ran around Niu Dingtian, calling 'gu gu gu' nonstop.

Niu Dingtian threatened, 'Try turning again, and see if you don't believe you won't get a single drop tomorrow.'

'Gu!' the divine eagle, angry, turned its head and sat on the ground, refusing to look at Niu Dingtian.

Niu Dingtian directly laughed in anger, not expecting that pampering this fellow would make it throw a tantrum.

But seeing its sidelong glance, he felt amused again; this was clearly childish—had it become so familiar that it regarded him as its own father?

After thinking, he kindly advised, 'There's no one who eats and drinks like you—now you alone need five jars of liquor and sixty catties of meat a day. It's not that I, Niu Dingtian, can't afford it, but I'm not the one in charge at home; if we're caught sneaking out wine and food, you won't even get a bite afterward.'

Although the divine eagle turned its head without responding, its ears were listening attentively; Niu Dingtian added, 'From now on, at most one jar of liquor per day, drink sparingly—if you keep taking out ten jars at a time, you'll surely be discovered sooner or later.'

Niu Dingtian knew that the divine eagle could act this way toward him, which amounted to treating it as one of his own; after half a month of interaction, they should have developed some feelings.

But he wasn't stingy—let alone ten or eight jars, he could afford to supply a hundred jars a day.

However, seeing this fellow's body gradually plump up over half a month, Niu Dingtian genuinely worried; if it kept drinking like this, would the next step be losing hair and growing tumors?

Therefore, precautions must be taken in advance.

Although he said that, Niu Dingtian still returned to Xiangyang City in the evening.

Arriving at the Immortal Drunk Tower, the manager, already unfazed, respectfully said, 'Master, ten jars of liquor and a hundred catties of braised meat are ready, on the ox cart in the back courtyard.'

At first, Niu Dingtian carried out three or four jars, and the pedestrians on Xiangyang streets didn't find it strange; but later, when it became a fixed load of ten or eight jars, passersby began to make way, exclaiming, 'Inhuman!'

In response, Niu Dingtian, even if thick-skinned, inevitably felt a bit unnatural; he couldn't just openly show himself to ordinary folks, so he had the manager prepare an ox cart, which carried the goods ten li out of the city, after which he took the food and wine and rushed into the mountains.

However, Niu Dingtian didn't take the manager's initiative to heart, considering it merely a final feast for the divine eagle; he thus ordered, 'Since it's already prepared, leave it as is—from tomorrow on, just two jars a day will do, with more variety in the braised meat and appropriate portions.'

Upon hearing this, the manager's heart tightened; he silently cursed himself for being an old fool—what clever trick was he pulling?

But seeing that the master seemed indifferent, he felt somewhat relieved and hastily replied respectfully, 'Yes!'

Half an hour later,

When Niu Dingtian returned to the stone cave again and placed exactly ten jars of liquor neatly on the ground, the divine eagle's eyes lit up with excitement, and it kept calling 'gu gu gu'.

Niu Dingtian said unhappily, 'Just let you enjoy tonight; from tomorrow on, only one jar per day!'

Time passed like that, another half month went by,

One afternoon, the divine eagle led Niu Dingtian to another slope of the barren mountain where the stone cave was located.

Compared to the opposite slope, which was barren with scattered rocks and no weeds, this place had considerably more lush vegetation.

'Could it be going to the Sword Tomb?' Niu Dingtian thought as he walked.

He had actually planned to go there for a while; he definitely intended to go, but having spent the past month immersed in sword intent comprehension, he hadn't found the time—he hadn't expected the divine eagle to be the first to grow impatient.

Seeing the divine eagle acting mysterious, Niu Dingtian smiled and didn't ask, merely following along curiously; the fellow probably was just waiting for him to speak up.

'Gu gu~' the divine eagle called twice, dissatisfied.

Niu Dingtian directly ignored it, refusing to indulge it; having spent a long time with the divine eagle, he had figured out its temperament—the more eagerly you inquire, the more likely it is to seize the chance to make demands.

Thus, Niu Dingtian began to appreciate the scenery here.

As they gradually went deeper, the surroundings became fresh mountain air with increasingly lush flora, clearing the eyes of Niu Dingtian, who had seen nothing but rock piles for a month.

Since the scenery was fine, Niu Dingtian didn't show urgency; he and the divine eagle walked another ten-odd li and arrived before a sheer cliff.

The cliff rose like a huge screen, shooting up into the sky; about twenty-odd zhang above the ground on its middle section grew a block of stone three or four zhang square, like a natural platform.

Niu Dingtian's heart stirred; he lifted his gaze and saw faint characters carved on the large stone; focusing his vision, the two large characters 'Sword Tomb' came into view.

Niu Dingtian silently estimated: although the cliff was straight and smooth, a height of twenty-odd zhang was not difficult for him now, but later Yang Guo, without any aid, would certainly be unable to climb it.

As expected, when Niu Dingtian pulled aside the vines on the cliff, he saw that clumps of moss grew every few feet, dozens of them arranged straight up, quite spectacular.

Niu Dingtian reached into the lowest clump of moss and pulled out a handful of black mud; indeed it was a small hole, surely dug by Dugu Qiubai with sharp tools back then; over the years, sediment had accumulated inside, causing the moss to grow.

'He himself wouldn't need it; I suppose it was left for later people,' Niu Dingtian thought to himself.

With Dugu Qiubai's strength, reaching this height would be effortless; thus, leaving these footholds was likely meant to prepare for future destined ones.

At that moment, the divine eagle patted Niu Dingtian's shoulder and called 'gu gu' twice.

'Brother Eagle, do you want me to go up onto that stone platform?' Niu Dingtian asked.

'Gu!' the divine eagle nodded.

'Then you carry me up; this height isn't easy to climb,' Niu Dingtian said with a smile.

'Gu! Gu!' hearing this, the divine eagle's eyes flared with anger; if it weren't still relying on humans for food and drink, it would have already lunged to peck.

'Hehe~ just joking, just joking!' Niu Dingtian said embarrassedly.

He thought that if he didn't often test the boundaries, he'd never have a chance to push further; who knows, maybe one day he'd truly ride this great bird.

'Brother Eagle, I'll go ahead first!'

As soon as the words fell, Niu Dingtian leapt up, directly jumping one-third of the height; when he reached his limit, he deployed the Wall-Climbing Technique, pressing his palms against the stone wall in a series of pushes, then surged upward again, and in an instant found himself standing on the stone platform.

Seeing such bird‑stunning lightness, the Divine Eagle flapped its wings excitedly, fanned a great wind with a whoosh, and flew up as well.

After the Divine Eagle also arrived, Niu Dingtian finally began to observe the large stone platform about three to four zhang square in front of him.

On the stone were the two large characters "Sword Tomb", and beside them two lines of smaller stone inscription: "Sword Demon Du Gu Qiu Bai, invincible under heaven, buried his sword here. Alas! The heroes are bound, the long sword is useless, how sorrowful!"

The brief two lines, in every stroke, exuded arrogance, as if bearing a contemptuous pride toward the world. Yet after close inspection, Niu Dingtian found an inexplicable charm within them.

This is sword intent! Niu Dingtian sighed, but compared with the sword intent inside the stone cave it is barely discernible, far weaker. He guessed that when Du Gu Qiu Bai buried his sword here, he had only just reached the threshold.

After a moment of contemplation, Niu Dingtian turned his gaze to a stone mound piled from slabs on the platform; the mound faced away from the valley, its silhouette broad, simple to the extreme yet bearing an oddly grand aura.

"Caw caw caw!" the Divine Eagle tapped Niu Dingtian's shoulder, pushed him to the stone mound, then extended a claw, grabbed a stone from the Sword Tomb and set it aside.

"Brother Eagle, you want me to open the stone mound?" Niu Dingtian asked.

The purpose of the Divine Eagle bringing him here was clear to Niu Dingtian, yet he thought a guest should follow the host, right? There's no reason to dig a mound without asking.

"Caw~" the Divine Eagle nodded.

Niu Dingtian no longer hesitated, stepped forward and moved the stones aside piece by piece; the Divine Eagle, seeing this, came to help, its claws clacking nonstop. In no time the stones atop the mound were cleared, revealing three long swords placed side by side inside.

Between the first and second swords lay a long slab of stone; the three swords and the slab were arranged together on a large blue stone.

"Caw caw caw?" the Divine Eagle sounded puzzled, its eyes clearly asking: Why aren't you surprised?

"I expected it," Niu Dingtian laughed, explaining, "Senior Du Gu was a sword master; in life he loved his sword above all. This place is called Sword Tomb, so naturally it buries precious swords."

Speaking, Niu Dingtian lifted the first sword on his right; on the stone beneath the blade were two lines of small characters: "Fierce and mighty, nothing can resist, before the age of twenty‑four used it to contend with the heroes of the northern river."

After a careful look, Niu Dingtian saw the treasured sword was about four chi long, its tip threatening, and its blade emitted faint pulses of blue light.

"This must be the Azure Edge Sword Du Gu used when he first set out," Niu Dingtian muttered, "a rare divine weapon indeed, but who should I give it to? One, two, three… hiss— seems a bit insufficient to divide."

As he pondered, Niu Dingtian seemed troubled, then as if a thought struck him he slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "How could I have forgotten Jueqing Valley? Inside there are two peerless swords! That completes the set!"

Thus, inadvertently, the Gentleman's Sword and the Lady's Sword from Jueqing Valley also entered Niu Dingtian's mind.

Niu Dingtian did not know the exact sharpness of those two treasures; he only knew they lacked a point or edge, yet possessed magnetism that drew them together, and such plain appearance being secretly treasured in Jueqing Valley meant they could not be far from perfection.

"Caw caw caw?" the Divine Eagle called doubtfully, as if it had heard the man mention who he would give the swords to.

"It's nothing, it's nothing, I just thought of a good idea; someday I'll take Brother Eagle to see it," Niu Dingtian said with a smile, clearly in good spirits.

After returning the Azure Edge Sword to its place, Niu Dingtian picked up the long stone slab and saw two small lines etched on the blue stone beneath: "Ziwei Soft Sword, used before the age of thirty, mistakenly injured a righteous man—details unknown, discarded into a deep valley."

"Mistakenly injured a righteous man?" Niu Dingtian examined the Ziwei Soft Sword in his hand, eyes full of fondness, and whispered, "This soft sword would suit Sister‑in‑law Jin'er."

In truth, Niu Dingtian was still curious about this Ziwei Soft Sword; who was the unnamed righteous man it injured? And what kind of saint could Du Gu Qiu Bai deem a righteous man?

Putting the slab back down, Niu Dingtian looked at the third sword inside, which was the Mysterious Iron Heavy Sword.

The heavy sword's blade was entirely jet‑black, both edges blunt, and its tip a round hemisphere, with neither edge nor point opened.

When Niu Dingtian grasped it, he felt an immediate heaviness, and two small lines appeared on the blue stone beneath the Mysterious Iron Heavy Sword: "Heavy sword without edge, great skill unrefined, before the age of forty it was used to dominate the world."

"Heavy sword without edge, great skill unrefined?" Niu Dingtian lowered his head, pondering.

The way of the heavy sword naturally requires no sharp edge, nor any ornamental shape; its power lies in the blade's vast aura and the wielder's technique!

True sword skill is not in the edge but in cultivation; once cultivation is sufficient, the heavy sword's output, though seemingly clumsy, advances unimpeded!

After a good while, Niu Dingtian seemed to have a revelation; when he came back to himself, he summoned inner strength, grasped the heavy sword, and with a sudden, rapid swing in the air, an awful sound of rending the void erupted all around:

Buzz—buzz—buzz!!!

This weight must be close to a hundred jin!

Staring at the Mysterious Iron Heavy Sword in his hand, Niu Dingtian, unsure what he was thinking, suddenly turned to the Divine Eagle and said, "Brother Eagle, shall we… melt it?" (End of chapter)