Chapter 291: 300 Soaring into the Sky

With a wave of the hand, the Sumero shatters, the sun and moon alternate, and heaven and earth transform.

Outside the Reception Hall, there was originally the most ordinary of green hills and clear waters, with high mountains and dense forests, grass like a carpet, and especially a wide expanse of water with cool breezes blowing—it was quite a nice lake. Everyone had stayed for a few days and felt the scenery was good, though at most it was just rather common and not particularly outstanding.

However, when the outer layer of the jar-wall disguise was stripped away, revealing the true Jiugao Mountain and the true Zhuoyu Villa, everyone suddenly realized the truth.

There is a difference between the true and the false.

The jar-contained landscape was certainly beautiful, but it was like a bonsai, possessing neatness and tranquility but lacking the true spiritual nature of nature itself. Moreover, Jiugao Mountain had its own soul and its own temperament.

The soul of Jiugao Mountain was that boundless swamp that seemed to cover every valley.

The swamp was not like the surging waves of lakes and seas; it was very quiet, the water clear and shallow. In the deep parts, it was as still as a mirror, while in the shallow parts, it exposed the ground to form sandbars and mudflats. The edges of the swamp were covered in greenish-yellow reeds, which, though lush, were not vibrant green; their color was pale and their temperament cold.

Yet the swamp was also lively. On the water surface, graceful swimming birds and wading birds glided, their feathers spread out; beneath the water, green fish and small shrimp swam leisurely, their scales lively; on the sandbars, lazy turtles and crocodiles lay prone. The handsome white cranes stood on the backs of the ugly crocodiles—black and white were distinct, creating a sharp contrast that was unexpectedly harmonious.

The cold swamp nurtured vigorous vitality, and even the white mist and water ripples became gentle. This was the temperament of Zhuoyu Villa: needles hidden in silk, a sudden turn of events—it was truly a divine residence of exceptional beauty.

Wang Fei was dazed for a moment, feeling quite astonished: Tang Zhao often produced works full of strange power and imagination, with a style all his own, filled with the explosive force of youthful pride. He had thought Tang Zhao came from some wild place of cultural fusion and volatile weather; who would have expected him to come from such a gentle, secluded paradise? Then how did he burst forth with so many unique and extraordinary ideas?

It was only a moment of doubt before he had no time to consider it further.

His spirit immediately condensed toward the edge of the swamp, into a patch of white mist.

The Sword Furnace was right there!

This was not what his eyes told him, but what his heart told him.

Within the white mist, an inexplicable existence was stirring, affecting his heart and spirit, causing his mind to vibrate, trembling all the way into his soul. He had not felt this way for a long time, as if he had returned to his childhood, when his Inspiration was abundant but he lacked defenses. At that time, he was merely a youth with Innate Spiritual Inspiration and extraordinary talent; there were many existences in the world that could stimulate his mind, and the world was colorful yet full of danger to him.

Later, when he followed the steps, learned the Mysterious Technique, and became a Sword Student, such stimulation became rare. It was as if he had closed one eye; he could no longer see those terrifying things, but he also lost a bit of color.

Today, that eye had opened a crack again.

However, it was only a crack.

This vibration should have reached the very depths of his soul, but immediately after, another vibration canceled it out.

The sword behind his back suddenly began to vibrate, humming without wind. The humming sound was low, almost inaudible, as if it were harmonizing with that other sound. And as the sword hummed and trembled, his heart quickly calmed down.

What was it?

What was that stimulation? And what was that sword hum?

"Huh, your sword can protect you now?" a familiar voice said from the side.

Wang Fei turned his head, startled, and said, "When did you get here?"

It turned out that since yesterday, Yun Xiyan, whom he hadn't seen for a whole day, had arrived at his side silently.

Yun Xiyan said decisively, "I've been here the whole time, I came up the mountain with you."

And, I even brought you up the mountain.

"I just knew it, Brother Tang is such a perceptive person, how could he live in such a vulgar place? This place is truly good; the swamp is unbelievably beautiful, this is what suits him."

For a moment, Wang Fei doubted his own memory. Why didn't he remember Yun Xiyan being there the whole time? But he immediately shook his head, looked at the white mist, and said, "You said the sword is protecting me?"

Yun Xiyan explained, "This is the Inspiration shock from the birth of a sword, and also the sword seeking resonance. The stronger one's Inspiration, the more one is shaken. However, it is said that if one's Inspiration matches the sword, there will be even more wonderful feelings—not uncomfortable, but rather physically and mentally pleasant. Of course, I've never caught it, so I don't know what it feels like to resonate exactly with a sword casting."

Wang Fei nodded. In terms of background, he was even better off than Yun Xiyan, but Yun Xiyan was ultimately from a major Sword Smith power; her opportunities to see sword casting and furnace opening far exceeded Wang Fei's, so naturally, she was more knowledgeable.

"However, once you become a Sword Guest, you won't feel this kind of shock anymore. The sword will protect you more closely, and it will be quite an active protection," Yun Xiyan smiled and said. "My master and the others say that divine swords have spirits. You are already a Sword Guest; you have a sword, and the sword won't let you experience the benefits of other swords at close range. It might be a bit different for a Sword Student, but the fact that you were protected so quickly shows that you are not far from being a Sword Guest."

Actually, there were some things she didn't say. In fact, having one's spirit stimulated was also one of the shortcut methods to enlightenment in swordsmanship. If that newly born sword could resonate with Wang Fei, it might have stimulated him into becoming a Sword Guest in one go, saving him a lot of hard work.

It seems this new sword and Wang Fei's sword were not compatible at all.

Wang Fei was very pleasantly surprised, both for himself and for Tang Zhao, and asked, "So, the sword at Zhuoyu Villa has been cast?"

Yun Xiyan looked at the blurry white mist and said, "It should be. Zhuoyu Villa has produced a Sword Smith."

Compared to Wang Fei's surprise, Yun Xiyan was only faintly gratified. Sword Smiths were truly not rare to her; there was more than one in her family, and besides, it was only Tang Zhao's elder, not Tang Zhao himself, so it wasn't worth getting too excited about. She was only gratified for him, seeing that Tang Zhao had racked his brains to plan, used all his strength to coordinate, sought help from all sides, and exhausted all his favors, finally not wasting his energy and safely casting this sword.

The white mist was so deep that one could not yet know what was inside, only that the shock reaching the heart signaled that the sword was about to emerge. The guests on the boat were in various states. Some, without the protection of a sword, could not help but be dazed and lose their focus. Those who were unaffected and maintained clarity fell into two categories: one, like Yun Xiyan, had sword protection and was naturally at ease, chatting and laughing; the other was like some Martial Artists who had no Inspiration at all and had no chance to feel the malice of the world.

"Oh, it seems it has been cast," the Young Inspector glanced at her companion. "Yunzhou has produced a Sword Smith, this is a good thing. In a while, no matter what, we will go up and declare that he has been accepted by the Chihuo Inspectorate as a member of the Northern Sword Smith Guild."

Her companion, a young male inspector slightly younger than her, nodded. This was exactly why they had come. In fact, among the Four Great Overseers, the Northern Chihuo Inspectorate was truly quite declining, to the point of losing its authority. Otherwise, they wouldn't have taken the initiative to come to the door. In the southeast, anyone with the opportunity to cast a sword would have long ago respectfully sent offerings to the Qingmu Inspectorate or Chihuo Inspectorate, asking them to come and give them a name; even the inspectors on duty would have to be served a little. How could it be like them, actively delivering the opportunity to their faces?

However, since it was delivered, there was no Sword Smith who wouldn't agree—what's wrong with joining an organization? It didn't cost any money. There were benefits, too; didn't the Imperial Court's signboard still have a few taels of silver in value?

The Young Inspector asked, "By the way, has the direction of this sword been measured?"

The male inspector held a ring in his hand. The ring was transparent, with countless markings engraved on the outside, and inside, a small transparent Bead was spinning incessantly. He said, "Not yet. This is a novice sword casting; the mastery of Sword Intent won't be too strong, and there are too many distracting thoughts, so it should be chaotic and hard to predict... Ah?"

The Young Inspector was about to agree when her eyes suddenly went still, seeing the Bead stop.

"Not bad," she exclaimed.

One must know that for a Sword Smith, the most basic thing is just to cast a sword completely. As for the direction of the finished product and the Sword Intent, they are all left to fate and are already contained within the Sword Seed. But more brilliant Sword Smiths are able to influence the Sword Intent.

Yes, not creating Sword Intent, nor choosing Sword Intent, but influencing Sword Intent.

Sword Intent is the essential thing of a sword, almost only related to the Sword Seed, and at most, a bit of the Sword Guest's will is mixed in during enlightenment; it will not be distorted by other factors.

However, a Sword Seed does not only contain one kind of Sword Intent. On the contrary, most Sword Seeds are chaotic and obscure, having multiple directions of Sword Intent, only with primary and secondary differences. Simply using steady materials to cast it into a sword would result in a sword with an unclear direction, wide adaptability, difficult progress, and a low ceiling. In the past, when the number of Sword Guests was small and those with Inspiration were even fewer, casting swords this way could increase the number of Sword Guests and increase immediate combat power, so there was still a market for it. But now, the Mysterious Technique is becoming more and more popular, and those with Spirit Talent are springing up like bamboo shoots after rain. Quantity is no longer the problem; being able to produce a Sword Guest with greater prospects and a higher ceiling at one time is the best.

Current sword casting theory generally believes that a capable Sword Smith should use material matching, Sword Casting Art, and other methods during the casting process to make the Sword Intent purer and the direction clearer, so that when the most suitable Sword Guest is found, they can soar into the sky.

However, such means require considerable skill, knowledge, experience, and even luck. For a Sword Smith casting a sword for the first time, one shouldn't demand more. Therefore, seeing the direction of the sword stop so easily, the Young Inspector was still a little surprised.

"So the direction is..."

"Fire direction."

"Is it biased toward fire..."

"Not biased," the male inspector confirmed again and again, then said in disbelief, "Pure fire direction."

The Young Inspector was stunned and said, "What a coincidence..."

As she was speaking, she saw the clouds and mist in front of her gradually disperse, revealing a high furnace tower that looked like a torch.

"The Sword Furnace, the Sword Furnace has appeared."

"It's still on fire; it seems the sword casting hasn't succeeded yet."

"Ha, that means there's still a chance..."

Amidst the whispers of the various onlookers, the hearts of Yun Xiyan and the others grew increasingly anxious.

It was clear that success was imminent, yet the closer it got, the more agonizing the wait became.

He who travels one hundred miles may consider ninety to be only half the journey; these were the final few steps. Whether it would succeed or not depended on...

Suddenly, a beam of light shot up into the sky, blasting open the lid of the Sword Furnace. It was as if it had broken through the dark clouds to behold the sun!