Chapter 321

Before dawn, Master Lu and his disciples were already busy.

Crafting important magical artifacts still requires the alignment of heaven's timing and earth's advantage, and of course, a ritual offering.

Not only must they offer to the ancestral masters of the blacksmith trade and Lord Taishang Laojun, but also to Captain Guan Shengdi Jun.

Offering to Laojun inside a Buddhist temple was somewhat inappropriate.

So the ritual site was moved outside the temple.

On a vacant stretch of land behind Fuhu Mountain, they had set up an altar table, along with spirit tablets for Lord Taishang Laojun and Captain Guan Shengdi Jun.

At the very front stood a newly built furnace, along with bellows, hammers, and anvils.

All these items had been bound with red cloth.

Master Lu himself had changed into new attire: black coarse cloth, a massive leather apron, a white cloth wrapped around his head, and a red rope tied tightly around his waist.

At his waist hung a wooden plaque.

It looked ancient, carved with the four characters: "Da Guang Iron Smelting."

Li Yan and Sha Sha Li Fei were outsiders, so they stood at a distance to observe the ceremony.

"What is 'Da Guang Iron Smelting'?" Li Yan whispered.

Sha Sha Li Fei smiled and replied: "Funny enough, I just asked about it."

"During the Song Dynasty, iron smelting flourished greatly; 'Da Guang Iron Smelting' was the imperial iron bureau, gathering many renowned masters of the time, and they even assisted Shen Kuo in compiling the 'Dream Pool Essays.'"

"Master Lu's ancestors were master casters of the 'Da Guang Iron Smelting' bureau; this plaque is a magical artifact and has become the sacred token of his lineage."

"I see."

Li Yan nodded slightly, surprised by Master Lu's lineage.

Far away, the ritual ceremony officially began.

Master Lu and his disciples lit incense and candles, placed offerings, and bowed three times and kowtowed nine times before the spirit tablets of Lord Taishang Laojun and Captain Guan Shengdi Jun.

Then the old man rose, gripped the "Da Guang Iron Smelting" token, chanted incantations while forming hand seals, opened the wine on the altar, and sprinkled it in all directions.

His disciples quickly stepped forward.

They used scissors to cut away the red cloth from all tools, then one disciple brought a large rooster, bit its comb, spat its blood onto every tool.

Whoosh!

Black, glass-like coal was poured into the furnace; the disciples moved swiftly, and soon the fire blazed bright red.

Sha Sha Li Fei murmured: "Master Lu really went all out—these are white coal from Zezhou Prefecture, top quality, smokeless and fiercely hot."

He added in a low voice: "I also heard that high-grade coal crystals have been found near Jinzhou; the court has sent teams to mine them in bulk, and every day Commandants' offices send shipments to the capital."

"Most likely to the Divine Mechanism Camp in the capital."

Li Yan wasn't surprised; he nodded: "This material concerns the empire's destiny—the Emperor won't trust anyone else with it. He'll probably use new gunpowder to control the regions."

As they spoke, two disciples stripped off their upper garments, revealing sinewy muscles, letting the drizzling rain roll off their skin.

Both pulled out yellow talismans, stepped in the Nine Steps of the Big Dipper, and chanted: "Master Snow Mountain, open your gate; Master Snow Mountain, send down snow… I invoke Lord Taishang Laojun, swiftly as the law commands!"

Snow Mountain Method?

Li Yan was puzzled—why use magical techniques during a ritual?

But soon he understood why.

As soon as the Snow Mountain Method was activated, cold mist rose around the two disciples.

They casually wore straw hats, approached the furnace, one pulling out the searing iron pot, the other scooping molten iron with an iron ladle.

On the open ground behind, a six-meter-high double-tiered floral pavilion had been erected, densely hung with fresh willow branches tied with firecrackers and fireworks.

"Hey!"

With a roar, the disciple hurled the molten iron upward.

The iron struck the pavilion, instantly scattering thousands of glittering iron sparks, illuminating the darkness.

At the same time, the fireworks and firecrackers on the pavilion ignited.

Crackling and popping echoed across the land.

So this was iron flower striking!

Li Yan crossed his arms, smiling as he admired the dazzling spectacle.

"Iron flower striking" was originally a ritual for blessing, warding off disaster, and expelling evil spirits; it was also an ancient ceremony of the five crafts—gold, silver, copper, iron, and tin.

Such a lively scene drew not only the guards of the Jinzhou Merchants' Guild, but even the young monks of Yuquan Temple came out to watch.

When the ceremony ended, the sky had just begun to lighten.

The "whetstone rain" still drizzled steadily.

Master Lu led his disciples in a simple vegetarian meal, washed their hands with willow-branch water, and tied red cloth around their heads.

Next, they would complete the final step of the artifacts—each required a spirit-opening ritual, which would last until deep night.

The first to be forged were six flying daggers.

These were Li Yan's specially designed Soul-Cutting Flying Daggers.

His Dust-Cutting Blade had also been reviewed by Master Lu; the craftsmanship was so exquisite, even Master Lu admitted he couldn't improve it—adding anything would be excess.

The original sleeve dagger could be sensed by powerful cultivators, and with the Soul-Grabbing Chain now used less frequently, it was outdated.

Liu Gang's secret method allowed the Soul-Grabbing Chain to control the Soul-Cutting Flying Daggers, so Li Yan had asked Master Lu to forge six of them.

The framework of the Soul-Cutting Flying Daggers was complete, hollowed at the center, forged from meteoric iron.

This meteoric iron was no ordinary material—collected after falling from the heavens, refined into ingots, then forged a hundred times into steel, and stored in the Huashan Treasure Vault to absorb the primordial Geng Metal energy of Mount Xiyue.

Even just sitting there, it shimmered with cold light.

The hollow core was carved from Earth Dragon bone and inlaid with white copper from Dianzhou, forming intricate runes shaped like the Suanni beast.

But the two materials had not yet been fused.

Master Lu suddenly turned and said: "Boy, I have two methods—choose one."

Li Yan immediately bowed. "I humbly ask for your guidance, Master."

Master Lu said gravely: "I have two methods: one is the Treasure Light Suanni, which can conceal itself within mist and smoke and is highly controllable; the other is the Blood Suanni, which requires your blood to refine it—ferocious and brutal, each strike must draw blood, or it will turn on its master."

Li Yan smiled: "No matter how good the artifact, it's still wielded by a person. Something that turns on its master—what use is it?"

"Even if it's bloody, if bloodshed works, this world wouldn't be so full of trouble. Use the Treasure Light Suanni method."

"Well said!"

Master Lu stroked his beard and smiled: "At your young age, you already have such insight—you'll surely achieve great things, and won't waste my craft."

With that, he turned sharply, his expression turning solemn.

"Bring the Zhuodao Spring water—for quenching!"

At his command, a disciple immediately brought a pitcher of icy spring water.

Master Lu gripped the "Da Guang Iron Smelting" token, stepped through the Nine Steps of the Big Dipper, formed hand seals, and activated the superior artisan technique: "Bronze Decree." His entire body was enveloped in gang qi, his muscles and bones swelling with power.

This method, like the Snow Mountain Method, rendered him immune to molten iron's heat, and made his body as hard as iron, with boundless strength.

He clamped the six dagger blanks into the furnace, swung his hammer, sending sparks flying, quenching them repeatedly in the water.

Sha Sha Li Fei's eyes gleamed with excitement; he whispered: "Zhuodao Spring is yang, used to forge and sharpen blades; the cold spring of Bawang Well is yin, used for white copper runes."

"Listen to the sound—when you hear the blade's dragon cry during the ninth strike, that means you've borrowed today's fortune."

Indeed, on the third strike, as the hammer fell, the blade trembled, and a clear, resonant sound rang out—like a dragon's roar.

"Hahaha… good omen!"

Master Lu laughed heartily, set aside the forged dagger blank, and took up another.

The timing of the dragon cry varied—sometimes it came on the second strike, sometimes only on the last.

Li Yan didn't understand the principle, but he could smell the growing sharpness in the blades. "Cold spring water!"

Master Lu barked again; the disciples immediately changed the water.

Earth Dragon bone was tough, but still bone—it couldn't be forged in fire, yet Master Lu had another method: he switched to a smaller hammer and whetstone, formed hand seals, and adjusted the blade continuously in the drizzling rain.

Finally, all the Earth Dragon bone cores were perfectly embedded into the daggers, seamless, as if naturally grown together.

After this, Master Lu mixed the two springs, sharpened the blades on a whetstone, and every so often formed a hand seal, whispered an incantation:

"By decree, this sacred blade illuminates yin and yang; the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Sha transform into divine weapons. First strike: sever demons and specters. Second strike: slay monsters and spirits… I invoke Lord Taishang Laojun's decree—divine weapon, swiftly as the law commands!"

This was the spirit-opening ritual.

As soon as it ended, the daggers trembled with a faint hum, as if alive.

"Fine blades!"

Master Lu picked one up, glanced at it: "This method is exquisite—it seems to carry the craftsmanship of the Jianmen from Mount Tai."

!.

He waved his hand casually: "Catch!"

Shhh!

The dagger sliced through the rain, whistling toward him.

Master Lu was no slouch in martial arts—he used subtle force. Though it seemed swift, Li Yan merely flipped his wrist and caught it effortlessly, holding it in his palm to inspect.

The blade was exquisitely crafted, brimming with lethal aura—he liked it more with every glance, and couldn't resist forming a hand seal as he gripped it.

Whoosh!

The Soul-Grabbing Chain plunged entirely into the dagger.

Among those present, some with acute hearing seemed to sense something, glancing at Li Yan with suspicion.

Li Yan paid them no mind, flicked his wrist—the dagger shot out, circling him, yet bound by the Soul-Grabbing Chain, it never strayed beyond three meters, darting up and down with uncanny agility.

"Flying sword?"

Sha Sha Li Fei's eyes widened in shock.

"Hahaha… just a minor trick, nothing like a flying sword!"

Li Yan laughed freely, waved his hand lightly, and the flying dagger swiftly returned, embedding itself into a leather sheath he had prepared at his waist.

He spoke humbly, yet felt a quiet pride within.

This Soul-Severing Dagger could dart through three meters with ease; infused with the power of the Soul-Grabbing Chain, it could pierce and pin an enemy's spirit directly.

Though inferior to the legendary flying swords, it was no trivial weapon.

Master Lu paid no heed, instead focusing entirely on his forging, spending a full hour until all the flying daggers were completed.

And the flying daggers were still the easiest of the artifacts.

He took a simple sip of water, then withdrew a fire pistol with a solemn expression—it was a flintlock pistol, also crafted for Li Yan.

Like the flying daggers, it was only left with final assembly and spirit activation.

Of course, the artifact was already formed; the grip used earth-dragon bone and black sandalwood spirit wood, both too delicate for the furnace, so he switched methods, bringing forth the Eight Trigrams Treasure Mirror and directing its light onto the pistol.

Li Yan had never seen such a technique before, and it appeared exhausting—even Master Lu's forehead glistened with sweat…

…………

While they labored, joy erupted across all of Ezhou.

In Near Wuchang City, within the Guohuo Mingwang Hall of Baotong Chan Temple, numerous monks chanted sutras, the wooden fish drummed steadily, and incense curled thickly.

Among the Buddhist sects, Lord Captain Guan was the Guohuo Mingwang Buddha, but in Daoist temples and certain shrines, he was known as the Holy Emperor Captain Guan.

Nearly every shrine to the Holy Emperor Captain Guan in Ezhou held rituals; even some gangs hired Daoists to perform ceremonies and offer incense one by one to Lord Captain Guan.

This was the grandeur of a supreme worldly deity.

Not just in Ezhou—now, across all of Shenzhou, every shrine to the Holy Emperor Captain Guan holds sacrificial ceremonies.

Outside the Guanling Tomb at Dangyang, drums and gongs thundered.

In the Three Cities of Near Wuchang, it was called the "Whetstone Rain"; here, it was known as the "Single Saber Gathering."

From mid-slope to the mountain's base beyond Guanling, tents of all sizes had been erected—some hosted operas, others performances, with all manner of Some Jianghu artists gathered, and countless petty merchants.

Locals from Dangyang, even those from Jingzhou and Xiangyang, traveled thousands of li to attend this grand event.

Captain Guan Zhou Peide smiled broadly, presiding with several local gentry.

Under the gaze of all, he recited the sacrificial text; below the stage, from the Prefect down to the County Magistrate, and all scholars and gentry from the region, had gathered.

When the text ended, firecrackers exploded in a deafening roar.

The entire Captain Guan family entered the Guanling Tomb together to offer incense and pay homage—now they were the true center of attention, even the officials followed behind.

Watching the temple fair proceed smoothly, Captain Guan Zhou Peide sighed inwardly, and on the Holy Emperor Captain Guan's behalf, he prayed for Li Yan's blessing.

Perhaps the blessing took effect, for outside Yuquan Temple, the artifact forging proceeded with exceptional ease.

Soon, Li Yan received his fire pistol, playing with it eagerly in his hands.

The flintlock pistol was about a foot long—not as refined as the firearms of his past life, yet more ornate.

Its grip was black sandalwood, inlaid with a white-jade-like earth-dragon bone handle; the brass bolt bore engraved Eight Trigrams talismans for exorcism, and a dragon-shaped ornament formed at the front of the grip.

It looked nothing short of a work of art.

"Little Brother Yan, here you go."

Sha Sha Li Fei produced a leather belt, adorned with twelve yellow magazine clips, each about the size of a child's fist, along with a leather pistol holster.

"I've filled them all with gunpowder; the bullets are iron pellets, sealed with oil paper to resist rain and dampness—when you use them, just tear off the oil paper and insert them from the rear…"

After Sha Sha Li Fei's explanation, Li Yan quickly understood how to operate it.

In essence, it worked on the same principle as the Franchi cannon.

He slung the bullet holster on one side, attached the flintlock pistol on the other, added six Soul-Severing Daggers at his waist, the Dust-Severing Saber at his belt, and two fire caltrops from Sha Sha Li Fei—Li Yan was now armed to the teeth.

With this gear, his combat power surged dramatically.

He grinned broadly, waiting patiently for more forging.

Meanwhile, inside the Guohuo Mingwang Buddha Hall of Baotong Chan Temple, the ritual honoring the Holy Emperor Captain Guan had ended.

Master Master Tongxuan slowly opened his eyes. "Master Chengjue, begin."

At his command, Master Chengjue immediately led the Enforcement Hall monks to the altar, covered the twelve small statues of the Holy Emperor Captain Guan with red cloth, then carefully lifted them and filed out in procession.

Outside, many had already gathered.

Even the Near Wuchang Garrison had dispatched three hundred men to escort them, a hundred of whom carried fire pistols on their backs.

The group mounted horses at once and rode to the Near Wuchang City dock.

The dock was now packed with people; many civilians stood on tiptoe, some holding umbrellas, others ignoring the weather entirely.

On the Yangtze River beyond the dock, twelve dragon boats waited.

"The Holy Emperor Captain Guan is coming!"

At the cry, the crowd lit their three sticks of incense—some bowed respectfully, others knelt directly in the mud and prostrated themselves.

Crackling!

Firecrackers and gongs erupted together.

The entire dock erupted into chaos…

Second update at midnight

(End of Chapter)