Chapter 177: Full of Artisan's Stiffness

The Divine Artisan's Hammer...

Li Yuan rubbed his eyes; that Jin Guang was truly too dazzling.

Even with the Art of Weapon Casting fully perfected, one could only possibly forge a Divine Weapon; for over seven hundred years, the Divine Weapon Valley has had no shortage of those who perfected the Art, yet none managed to forge a single Divine Weapon.

A living Divine Artisan.

Li Yuan did not mind the old man's coldness; a living Divine Artisan's status in the Jianghu is higher even than the Valley Lord, Lord Master Gongyang Yu, so being arrogant and looking down on others is only natural.

However, he had no intention of sticking close; he bowed slightly, stepped back to the side, picked up the forging hammer, and continued crafting the Red Dragon Fish Leather Armor.

He intended to make this leather armor Become superior-grade, which required leveraging the properties of various iron materials.

But there was no time to waste.

Clang~

Clang~~

Hearing the hammer sounds rising behind him, Wan Chuan frowned slightly, but having seen many who wished to show off before him, he did not care much.

He had traveled the world and seen too many weapon-casting geniuses; those more experienced than the youth behind him were everywhere, yet all were equally full of Artisan's Stiffness.

And to become a Divine Artisan, this would be the greatest obstacle; without even one's own creation, how could one possibly become a Divine Artisan?

"The ground of the Weapon Casting Valley shakes, the Red Dragon Fish King emerges from the water, and the temperature of the Red Fusion Cave rises..."

Wan Chuan murmured to himself.

His control over temperature was exquisitely fine; he could detect even the slightest change, let alone such a massive temperature shift in the Red Fusion Cave?

Could it be that the Sea-Splitting Black Whale Hammer is truly about to appear?

Or has the Thousand Spirit Sacrifice of the Xieshen Sect already succeeded?

"A few days ago, this old man saw Jing Jing Shuhu; he knows I came to the Red Fusion Underground Passage, and it was not a forced breach of another sect's forbidden land."

Li Yuan, immersed in hammering iron, suddenly heard a voice; he saw Wan Chuan with his back turned, speaking Longhu Longhu Dandan:

"This old man values rules above all."

Having spoken, Wan Chuan slightly rolled up his sleeves, took out the Red Flame Spirit Dragon Fire-Repelling Pearl, poured a bit of dragon blood onto it, and then, holding the pearl, walked inward.

"A rule-abiding old man."

Li Yuan watched his back, his eyes flickering; dealing with an old man like this...

A thought flashed through his mind; Li Yuan continued hammering iron. Although this old man was a Divine Artisan, it was impossible for him to reach the end of the Red Fusion Cave.

Need one know: the Divine Weapon Valley has had no Divine Artisan for seven hundred years, but seven hundred years ago, every generation had one, yet no one was seen obtaining that hammer.

However, regarding the Red Flame Spirit Dragon Fire-Repelling Pearl, he still felt quite envious.

"If I obtain this Fire-Repelling Pearl, I could break through a hundred zhang, even reaching the Fire Vein would not be impossible."

Li Yuan muttered to himself.

The temperature at the entrance of the Red Fusion Underground Passage was already comparable to an erupting volcano crater, and the deeper one went, the more scalding it became.

Beyond a hundred zhang, even those refining their organs could be burned to death; last time, he ultimately stopped there.

A mortal flesh-and-blood body could never withstand such extreme heat...

Wooo!

Inside the Red Fusion Underground Passage, the air was thin; under the high heat, one could even feel waves of haze, as if the air itself had been scorched into a blur.

The color of the tunnel walls on both sides also showed subtle changes, from deep red like agate to orange-red, then to orange...

Beyond a hundred zhang, even Wan Chuan had to stop; not a trace of red was visible ahead, the stone walls before him were entirely golden-white crystals, the heat so intense he could not endure it.

"A prime location for weapon casting; pity, who could forge iron here?"

Wan Chuan shook his head slightly; he could walk a bit further, but he dared not guarantee whether he could withstand it.

He did not want to go out naked; that would be too much of a loss of face.

"This path is a dead end."

Wan Chuan felt somewhat certain in his heart; a mortal flesh-and-blood body could not block such heat; not to mention refining organs, refining marrow, even a grand master of the Yin-Yang Realm could never reach the end.

He was more inclined to believe this place was a dead end deliberately left by the founder of the Divine Weapon Valley to mislead and confuse later generations.

"Where is the true path leading to the Sea-Splitting Black Whale Hammer? Or is it truly only possible by diverting the Cold Pool water to extinguish the underground fire?"

Wan Chuan murmured to himself.

Over a thousand years, those pursuing the Sea-Splitting Black Whale Hammer were not limited to the Divine Weapon Valley alone; it's just that no one has truly seen that hammer yet.

After pausing for a moment, he turned and returned; the temperature was too high, and he could not stay for long.

Clang~

Clang Clang~~

Inside the Red Fusion Cave, Li Yuan was still hammering iron; his peripheral vision swept over the black-robed old man slowly walking out, and his envy grew even stronger.

It was the first time he had seen someone enter and exit the Red Fusion Underground Passage so calmly, not even a single hair on his head missing.

If he had the Fire-Repelling Pearl, he would be even more calm than him; pity...

Li Yuan shook his head in his heart; a Divine Artisan's connections were far more terrifying than his own Wu Gong, especially since Wan Chuan had been famous for many years.

His belongings were such that even the Divine Weapon Valley dared not scheme against them, let alone him.

If only I could borrow it...

Li Yuan thought of Brother Qiao Tianhe; since Wan Chuan had not left, Brother Qiao Tianhe obviously had not left either, and his relationship with the latter was quite good.

"Hoo!"

Wan Chuan exhaled a long breath, his body surrounded by rolling waves of Qi, forcing the fire poison out:

"This fire poison is too fierce; if one gets tainted by it, one will likely be troubled by it for the rest of one's life..."

Putting away the Fire-Repelling Pearl, Wan Chuan glanced at Li Yuan; the latter set down the forging hammer and clasped his fists in a bow to see him off.

This kid...

Convinced that the kid was not deliberately forging iron to attract his attention, Wan Chuan's impression of him improved considerably.

Thinking it over, although this kid was full of craftsmanship, having such heavy craftsmanship could also be considered a kind of talent.

"Truly superior iron has its own spirituality and breath."

"Ah?"

Li Yuan looked up.

"Weapons have spirit, iron has spirit, earthly treasures and heavenly materials all have spirit; perceiving their breath, capturing this spirituality, and mobilizing it is the supreme way of forging weapons."

Wan Chuan spoke.

Although he did not think much of this kid, entering and leaving another's forbidden ground naturally required an explanation; this was his rule.

Otherwise, with his status, if he truly wanted to enter and leave the Red Fusion underground passage, where would he need Jing Jing Shuhu's permission?

"Mobilizing spirituality?"

Li Yuan felt a slight stir in his heart; he thought what Wan Chuan said must refer to the characteristics between different types of iron?

"Are you talking about alloys, elder?"

"Alloys? Alloys are the basic skill of weapon forging, merely brutally hammering iron into a lump."

Wan Chuan walked toward the forging platform with his hands behind his back:

"Tiger's weapon forging technique is very solid, but that is only hard work; you are right to learn from him, but you cannot only learn from him..."

Li Yuan watched the approaching Jin Guang; although he tried not to care, he still couldn't help but glance over.

"All things have spirit; the essence of weapon forging is not hammering iron, but hammering spirit."

Wan Chuan reached out; Li Yuan only felt his wrist tighten as the forging hammer was seized in his hand:

"Watch!"

Buzz!

As the hammer rose and fell, Wan Chuan's speed was not fast, nor was his strength great, yet Li Yuan felt that piece of Blazing Fire Refined Iron seemed about to explode.

Amidst sparks flying in all directions, he felt that iron ingot was like a honeycomb riddled with holes, with all impurities spraying out through the holes...

This single hammer strike was worth the Zhi Gong of his hundred or even several hundred strikes!

"This hammer?!"

Li Yuan was startled; compared to Old Lei, this was a qualitative gap!

"Weapon forging is hard work that anyone can do; forging spirit is a clever craft that only geniuses can perform."

Wan Chuan turned and left with his hands behind his back:

"Remember this hammer strike; it is enough for you to benefit from for a lifetime!"

This hammer strike...

Li Yuan felt as if he himself had been struck by a hammer; after muttering a few words in his heart, he suddenly took control of both the Chen Shan Zhong Hammer and the Mixed Gold Great Xi Yi Hammer.

Whoosh!

In an instant, he felt that hammer strike in his heart become incredibly clear and distinct.

It seemed it wasn't that difficult after all?

"This disciple is not as good as Han Han Chuijun."

Wan Chuan turned and left, but just as he stepped out of the Red Fusion Cave, his eyelid suddenly twitched, hearing the familiar 'buzz' sound.

What is this?

His eyelid snapped up, and he turned around abruptly.

He saw sparks flying in all directions on the forging platform, like fire trees and silver flowers; that iron ingot trembled and buzzed incessantly.

"You?!"

Wan Chuan's heart shook; he stepped over to the forging platform in one stride and grabbed the scalding iron ingot in his hand,

and the moment it touched his hand, his expression changed.

This iron ingot, apart from lacking his own level of proficiency, was almost indistinguishable from the ones he had forged before.

"How did you do it?"

Wan Chuan put down the iron ingot and had already regained his composure.

To be able to replicate it after just one look; is this kid's craftsmanship really that strong?

"Replying to Elder Wan, I learn things quite quickly."

After striking one hammer, Li Yuan also felt quite refreshed; his weapon forging talent was hard to say, but his hammering technique talent was extremely good.

Although this hammer strike looked mysterious, once seen through, learning it was not difficult; it was nothing more than a transformation of force and hammer technique.

"Indeed quite fast..."

Wan Chuan tugged at the corner of his mouth, feeling slightly embarrassed; he had just said it would benefit him for a lifetime, and now he turned around and learned it?

"Elder overpraises."

Li Yuan had rich experience dealing with old men; seeing the change in his expression, he knew this hammer strike had caught the old man's eye.

However...

"Learned well, learned well."

Wan Chuan nodded; although that hammer strike was entirely his own work, being able to learn it so quickly was extremely rare.

"This old man will teach you another hammer..."

"Two hammers..."

"Three hammers..."

Bang!

Wan Chuan set down his forging hammer, expressionless: "Your talent for the hammer is not bad; it seems this old man underestimated you."

"Senior, you flatter me."

Li Yuan's face was full of gratitude; these thirteen hammer strikes, he felt, would be enough for him to learn for a year or more.

In just this short while, he felt his attainment in the hammer art had grown higher.

"Senior, you…"

"Greed leads to indigestion; these thirteen hammer strikes are more than enough… cough, enough for this old man to enter and leave the Crimson Fusion tunnel once!"

Wan Chuan's face darkened slightly, and he swept his sleeve and left.

Stepping out of the Crimson Fusion Cave, the skin around his eyes twitched a few times; if he stayed any longer, he suspected he would have completed the entire set of Astonishing Dragon Hammer Art.

"This kid's talent for the hammer far surpasses his talent for weapon-crafting…"

Wan Chuan pinched his beard, brows tightly furrowed.

This kid's craftsman spirit is indeed very strong, lacking spirituality, but such strong craftsman spirit, perhaps that's not bad either?

"Learning eight-tenths of Jing Jing Shuhu's skill is nothing much—at best a few supreme-grade famous weapons; but if he could learn eight-tenths of this old man's…"

He suddenly felt in his heart that Jing Jing Shuhu's proposal was not impossible to consider, though he might not necessarily become a Divine Craftsman.

But if he were to be a Dao-protector for Brother Qiao Tianhe…

After thinking for a while, Wan Chuan turned back around.

Inside the Crimson Fusion Cave, Li Yuan was practicing the thirteen-style iron-forging hammer art; seeing him leave and return once more, he could not help but feel a bit surprised:

o￠o

"Senior Wan, what is this?"

Could this old man have taken a fancy to this Daoist master's talent?

"Mm…"

Wan Chuan replied with a stern face: "This old man lives in the innermost small house at the end of South Willow Alley."

Having said that, he turned and left.

"Ah?"

Before Li Yuan could come back to his senses, Wan Chuan had already turned and left.

Does this mean he wants me to go find him and learn?

Not right!

Li Yuan came to his senses and caught a whiff of something out of the ordinary.

"Is the Xieshen Sect about to make a move?"

Li Yuan's heart tightened slightly; though this old man was holding things back, these words clearly carried a meaning of "if you run into trouble, come find me for shelter."

This showed that Wan Chuan, or rather the Seven Star Palace, was fundamentally not optimistic about the Divine Weapon Valley…

"Hah!"

His thoughts scattered for a while, then Li Yuan let out a long breath; the worst case was just escaping through the tunnel with Old Lei.

"The Rending Sea Dark Whale Hammer!"

Li Yuan rubbed his brow; without giving it a try, he truly could not bear to let it go.

Swallowing a Viscera-Protecting Pill, Li Yuan gathered his spirits and continued forging the Crimson Fusion Fish-Scale Armor; thanks to the thirteen-style iron-forging hammer technique Wan Chuan had taught him, his progress surged.

……

Over the next few days, Li Yuan was practically sleepless; aside from his usual bone-structure alteration, he even set aside martial arts training.

He threw himself wholeheartedly into forging the Crimson Dragon Fish-Scale Armor.

Over those days, Niu Jun came by, and quite a few Dharma Protectors from within the valley also came; some passed by the Crimson Fusion Cave, some attempted to brave the Crimson Fusion tunnel.

Li Yuan acted as if no one were there, wholeheartedly hammering the Crimson Dragon Fish-Scale Armor.

【Crimson Dragon Fish-Scale Armor (Fifth-Tier)】

【Forged through hammer-tempering of soldier-armor… the Weapon Master harbors high hopes, spiritual strangeness gradually arising…】

【Wielding Requirement: Weapon Master's bloodline】

【Wielding Effect: Fifth-Tier (pale yellow): Resistance to water and fire

Fourth-Tier Effect (pale cyan): Water-attribute mastery

Third-Tier Effect (deep blue): Resistance to blades and arms, Horizontal-Training Talent】

Finally!

Amidst swirling water vapor, Li Yuan was nearly spent; the profuse sweating had left him somewhat dehydrated.

"Old Lei couldn't possibly forge One superior-grade famous-tier inner armor this quickly either, could he?"

Putting away the fish-scale armor, the utterly exhausted Li Yuan felt joy in his heart, yet truly could not hold on any longer; forcing himself to stay awake, he returned to the mountain cave,

and collapsed onto the bed, falling into a heavy sleep.

……

……

Crack!

In the night, lightning serpents rolled across the sky, rain pouring like a curtain.

Outside Fucheng, by the banks of the Pingjiang Grand Canal, the sounds of clashing blades and arms rang out.

Hiss!

Fang Fang Yunxiu slew her foe with a single sword, her face covered in blood; she suddenly looked up as lightning tore across the night sky.

"Kill!"

"Kill them!"

"Kill!"

By the Grand Canal, Gao Gang coughed blood and staggered back, while Lei Lei Jingchuan gripped his hammer and roared:

"Wan Ya, you old bastard — you dare collude with the Xieshen Sect? Every last member of Sanyanwu will die!"

"Then you'll be the first to go!"

Above the Dahe, the river surged, the crash of clashing Qi deafening, as an old man wielding a ten-foot glaive held off three opponents single-handed:

"Jing Jing Shuhu, Duanmu Sheng, Long Yin — look behind you!"

"Hm?!"

As the blast of air shattered outward, Jing Jing Shuhu whipped his head around, only to see black-clad, masked figures pouring out of the dense forest on both banks,

charging at the Divine Armament Valley disciples on either shore:

"Divine Armament Valley has defied heaven — they deserve to be wiped out!"

"Beasts!"

Long Yin's eyes bulged in fury, his spear swift as thunder: "You deserve to die!"

"Su Su Wanxiong!"

The ten-foot glaive swept across, driving the three back, and Wan Ya let out a long, ringing howl — answered by matching howls from the dense forest.

"Su Su Wanxiong? So you've finally shown yourself."

Suddenly, a cold laugh rang out across the night sky, and at once came the explosive whine of an arrow tearing through the air.

"Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong?!"

Inside the dense forest, Su Su Wanxiong's face changed drastically; he dodged that soul-chasing arrow, only to see Fucheng's gates thrown wide as a great force of Divine Guards surged forth to attack.

Upon the city wall, Lord Master Gongyang Yu stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze cold and fierce:

"Kill!"