Chapter 152: with translation of chapter title

Prepare to bleed!

Speed must be fast!

Zhang the Cripple went shirtless into battle, gripping two large iron tongs in both hands, tightly clamping the sword embryo while shouting at Niu Dingtian beside him.

Seeing this, Niu Dingtian drew a sharp dagger from his right hand, extended his left hand, and replied in a low voice: "Mr. Zhang, begin!"

At that moment, the furnace's heat waves surged outward, but neither could use their energy to dispel the surrounding heat.

According to Zhang the Cripple, the tempering of divine weapons demands extremely high temperature; if the balance of the surrounding temperature is disrupted, the quality of the divine weapon will greatly drop.

Therefore, during the final few critical tempering steps, both persisted in operating with ordinary flesh in the high-temperature environment; the ordeal can be imagined.

Lift!!!

Zhang the Cripple let out a loud shout, veins bulging on his arms and neck; the sword embryo weighing over fifty jin, glowing red all over, was swiftly and steadily clamped out of the furnace by him.

Bang!

After the sword embryo landed steadily on the iron anvil, Niu Dingtian swiftly slit his left wrist, a gush of bloody red blood spurting from the wound and pouring directly onto the embryo.

Sizzle~sizzle~sizzle~sizzle~

Wave after wave of sizzling sounds rang in the ears, thick white smoke rapidly roiling up from the sword embryo's surface.

And the essence in Niu Dingtian's blood, as if merging with the sword embryo, turned into a blurred trace imprinted on the blade.

Change the blade embryo! Continue!

Zhang the Cripple shouted loudly, threw the sword embryo back into the furnace, then swiftly clamped out the embryo of the dragon-slaying blade and laid it across the large iron anvil.

Bang!

Sizzle~sizzle~sizzle~sizzle~

Niu Dingtian loosened the wound on his wrist, aimed at the blade embryo, and poured another gush of fresh blood onto it.

The process ended, the blade embryo returned to the furnace; Niu Kui beside him, seeing this, quickly bellowed the bellows as previously instructed.

Afterward, they only needed to wait for the furnace's blade tempering to finish, then continue forging and shaping.

Niu Dingtian's wrist wound, thanks to having once drunk spirit spring water, was still gushing blood just moments ago, but now it has gradually slowed and begun to heal.

"Now the wind must not be weak! Keep the furnace temperature, stop after an hour." Zhang the Cripple instructed Niu Kui, then casually wiped sweat from his face and limped out of the bamboo shed.

Dingtian saw this, tore off a piece of white gauze, wrapped his wrist in a few motions, picked up a wine jar, and hurriedly followed.

Dingtian saw this, tore off a piece of white gauze, wrapped his wrist in a few motions, picked up a wine jar, and hurriedly followed.

Although the wound was fine, the before-and-after difference was too obvious; if Zhang the Cripple saw it, he'd surely ask endless questions, causing unnecessary trouble.

It is said that when Gan Jiang and Mo Ye forged swords, they had the custom of pouring the blood of close relatives; Mo Ye would also add some of his own hair and nails, and finally there is the legend that Mo Ye sacrificed himself by leaping into the sword furnace.

Mr. Zhang, can you clarify whether there is any special explanation for this?

The two sat down in the shade, Niu Dingtian poured two bowls of Immortal's Drunk, handed one over, and voiced his doubt.

Regarding the blood-pouring on the sword and blade embryos just now, Zhang the Cripple had not greeted him beforehand; only half a quarter-hour before starting did he take out a dagger.

And he merely regarded it as a normal need, or a special ritual.

You should know that whether in the Song dynasty or even earlier eras, blood is sacred, and smearing blood on bronze, iron, or porcelain is not uncommon.

After gulping down a mouthful of wine greedily, Zhang the Cripple said slowly: 'Merging blood into the sword is blood forging; the personal divine weapon begins with blood forging. The blood-forging technique produces myriad divine weapons; sacrificing the sword comes first, and the divine weapon gains spirit.'

Blood-forging technique?

Hearing this, Niu Dingtian's motion of raising his bowl also paused slightly, his doubtful gaze once again turning to Zhang the Cripple opposite.

Zhang the Cripple set his wine bowl on the ground and explained: 'This is the blood-forging method pioneered by the sword-master Ou Yezi, a way to forge legendary divine weapons; later, as divine weapons became rare, it gradually fell into obscurity.'

While speaking, Zhang the Cripple pointed at Niu Dingtian's wrist wound and said slowly: 'A person's essence, energy, and spirit are all stored in the blood; blood is the most refined part of the body and best represents oneself.'

In the eyes of a swordsmith, forging a sword or blade with blood can give it spiritual energy, akin to activating and enlightening the blade, making it sharper and more comfortable to wield.

Moreover, the sword inherently possesses a ferocious nature; feeding it fresh blood nurtures the blade's killing intent and ferocity, so in battle it can cause the opponent to feel fear even before fighting.

Spiritual energy?

Niu Dingtian heard this, blinked slightly, thinking that killing intent and ferocity could arise—after all, a blade that sees much blood, a person who kills much, naturally can condense such qualities; even later ages have such sayings.

But whether a blade can truly grow a spirit is uncertain; if the blood-forging method could give a blade spiritual energy, what could be more suitable than his own blood?

Invulnerable to all poisons, wounds heal instantly; thus, after the baptism of spirit spring water, his blood is nothing but essence and vitality.

And essence gives rise to the five grains above and the constellations below; it is the source of all things. If, after forging the blade, we were to pour two taels of blood upon it each day...

Thinking of these possibilities, Niu Dingtian's heart immediately became unsettled.

He lifted his gaze to Zhang the Cripple, Niu Dingtian pondered a moment, then asked with a hesitant look: 'Mr. Zhang, as a swordsmithing family, your ancestors must have seen countless legendary divine weapons; could it truly be that blades can give birth to spiritual energy?'

I recall that in the 'Liezi: Tang Wen' it is recorded that, when the heavenly king's three swords emerged from the furnace, the Chengying sword would part the dragon and cause geese to fall and forget to return, enabling invisibility at the sight of light.

Legend says that at night the blade flickers with a faint cold light, but when dawn arrives and the sun rises, the Chengying sword vanishes without a trace, able to kill invisibly while leaving no trace.

If the legend is true, could this phenomenon be due to the sword giving birth to a spirit?

Regarding the famed names of the ten ancient legendary swords, he has heard of them in both past and present lives, and knows that some are real while others are ancient legends.

Among the few swords with historical records that truly exist, the Chengying sword is undoubtedly the most mysterious.

Upon hearing Niu Dingtian mention the Chengying sword, Zhang the Cripple became somewhat excited, his eyes shining without hesitation as he said: 'Naturally it can give birth to spiritual energy! Not only spiritual energy, but if fate is sufficient, it is even more likely to give birth to a sword spirit!'

'Sword spirit?' Niu Dingtian's face twitched slightly.

'It is exactly a sword spirit!' Zhang the Cripple said with ringing conviction, his whole person becoming spirited: 'In our swordsmiths' eyes, even an ordinary precious sword could nurture a spirit, let alone a legendary sword like the ten great famous swords.'

What you just said about Gan Jiang and Mo Ye feeding the sword with close kin's blood is merely one way of nurturing a blade's spirit; another is like you, using the sword owner's fresh blood to feed and nourish the blade.

Close relatives, sharing bloodline with the swordsmith, have a higher chance of mutual sensing and resonance, thus giving birth to a sword spirit.

Likewise, after a divine sword forged by the blood-forging method appears, because its owner wears and nurtures it daily, using it to slay enemies and staying constantly together, over time there will be a greater chance of resonance, thus producing a sword spirit.

Having heard

【62】

His gaze drifted slowly, fixing on the nearby sword furnace as he let out a soft sigh: 'It's a shame that, from my ancestor Zhang Ya Jiu to me over the past few centuries, and even tracing back a thousand years through our ancestral lineage, we have never succeeded in forging a sword that emanates spiritual energy.'

That kind of peerless divine weapon seems to have been cut off since the pre‑Qin period onward, and thereafter no one could forge it again.

"Why can that Mr. Zhang still believe so firmly?" Niu Dingtian asked, puzzled, and then immediately added another bowl of wine for him.

At the same time, he couldn't help but ponder to himself; later generations have a saying that after the pre-Qin era, spiritual energy depleted and there were no more Qi practitioners, which might also be related to those factors.

Just as from Heavenly Dragon to Shooting the Condor, to Divine Condor, to Laughing in the Wind, martial practitioners' strength grew weaker and weaker, until finally they could only practice the Fledgling Eagle Takes Flight and the era's summons, as if this world were constantly declining.

Zhang the Lame said slowly: "My sword-forging skill is passed down from the Zhang ancestors above, and above that it is a single line transmitted from the ancestral master's sect, traceable back to the pre-Qin era; some of those secret transmissions have naturally been passed down intact."

"Actually, it's not just you; even when I first heard my father talk about it, I found it hard to believe. But as more and more swords and blades passed through my hands later on, this feeling of certainty grew stronger and stronger."

"And this is precisely the feeling a qualified swordsmith must have after over a thousand years! Any swordsmithing family with a long inheritance will firmly believe in it!"

Having said that, Zhang the Lame stopped, taking sip after sip of his wine.

Although this time the forging of the Heaven Reliant Sword and the Dragon Slaying Saber used the blood-refining technique, he held no expectation whatsoever; he merely gave the black iron and fine gold the respect they deserved.

"Mr. Zhang, do you think the Heaven Reliant Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber can give rise to spiritual energy?" Niu Dingtian suddenly asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Zhang the Lame couldn't help but stare, thinking: "None of our ancestors could ever make such a thing; can I?"

Thinking of this, Zhang the Lame couldn't help but shake his head with a wry smile.

Seeing this, Niu Dingtian chuckled lightly: "Mr. Zhang, have you ever considered that the blood-refining method is common, but sentient swords and blades are rare—could it be that the blood quality is insufficient?"

"The blood quality is insufficient?" Zhang the Lame suddenly lifted his head to look at Niu Dingtian; after a moment of silence, he couldn't help but furrow his brow and begin to ponder.

Niu Dingtian gave a slight nod and said slowly: "There are records stating that from the pre-Qin era onward, the spiritual energy between heaven and earth has been continually decreasing; since spiritual energy diminishes, the quality of the blood nurtured by it naturally also becomes lower and lower."

"In that case, how could it possibly be worthy of eliciting a resonant response, allowing swords and blades to become sentient?"

"On the martial path there is a realm called the innate; once a person reaches it, they are most in tune with heaven and earth, so the blood of an innate practitioner is probably the purest in this world."

"If we forge swords and nurture spirits with this, do you think it's possible…"

Saying this, Niu Dingtian couldn't help but lean forward slightly, his gaze blazing as he stared at Zhang the Lame.

If the blood theory holds, then he must be the person closest to a divine artifact.

As long as we can nurture the spirits of the Heaven Reliant Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber and forge them into true divine weapons, not only those two bowls of blood, but even if he were given a bowl of blood every day, he would spare no effort.

Hearing this, the light in Zhang the Lame's eyes gradually faded; he shook his head and said: "Even so, where could we find such blood? As you said, innate experts who are in tune with heaven and earth are already godlike figures—how could they possibly be willing…"

Saying this, seeing Niu Dingtian smile without speaking, Zhang the Lame suddenly paused, as if something had occurred to him, his face turning extremely doubtful: "Young man, you mean you…"

Niu Dingtian smiled, gave no direct answer, looked toward the distant sword furnace and said: "In any case, it is far purer than ordinary blood; Mr. Zhang, you might boldly give it a try—so long as I'm not asked to leap into the sword furnace, I will do my best to provide however much fresh blood you need."

"Perhaps… it would succeed then?"

Having said that, Niu Dingtian turned his head to look at Zhang the Lame, waiting for his decision.

Actually, mentioning innate blood was just an excuse for himself to bleed.

Throughout history there have been no shortage of innate experts—like Huang Shang, who created the Nine Yin Classic; like the founder of the Nine Yang Divine Skill; like his master, Dugu Qiubai; and like Wang Chongyang of the Quanzhen Sect, and so on.

If their blood were useful, divine weapons that can communicate with spirits would already fill the skies of this world.

But just because they can't doesn't mean he can't; his own blood, Niu someone's, is exceptionally noble and pure, comparable to divine blood—if there is even a sliver of possibility, it's worth trying.

"Mr. Zhang! Time's up!"

At that moment, a loud shout came from afar—Niu Kui's voice; after releasing the bellows' handle, he hurriedly trotted over here.

While the two were talking, an hour had quietly passed.

"Pour it yourself." Niu Dingtian handed the wine jar to Niu Kui.

After taking it, he mused and said: "When you finish the wine, go back and tell the deputy sect leader that the opening ceremony proceeds as usual; I will return on time myself."

It was already June, and the two had spent a full three months in the bamboo grove.

However, the blade and sword embryos have only just taken shape; whether they can be completed by the eighth day of the eighth month remains unknown.

Good fortune is imminent; the silent court for half a year seems about to come looking for trouble, so we must let Niu Kui go back to prepare properly.

"Yes, Sect Leader!" Niu Kui replied after downing the wine, clasping his fists.

Niu Dingtian nodded slightly, then turned to face Zhang the Lame: "Master Zhang, what do you think…"

"Of course we'll do it!" Zhang the Lame's eyes shone firm and clear, his voice ringing as he replied.

Just as Niu Dingtian thought: as long as there is a sliver of possibility, it's worth trying; no swordsmith can resist the allure of a divine weapon emerging from the furnace.

Having made up their minds, the two lost interest in drinking.

After Niu Kui left the green bamboo grove, under Zhang the Lame's guidance, Niu Dingtian also began the long road of bloodletting. (End of chapter)