Martial Cultivator

The old man spoke with some regret, "It's a matter of the material. If we had top-quality sword forging materials, this flying sword wouldn't be any less than a Hundred Year sword."

Chen Chao laughed it off.

The old man turned to look at Chen Chao and said with a cheerful smile, "Thanks to you, we have such a fine flying sword. I see you have the potential to become an excellent swordsmith. How about it? Stay on Sword Qi Mountain?"

Chen Chao paused and did not speak for a while.

The old man sighed with regret, "I reckon you wouldn't want to become a swordsmith. After all, a pure martial artist like you probably has little interest in becoming one."

Chen Chao replied, "Actually, it's not entirely impossible. But I don't think I'll be staying on Sword Qi Mountain for long."

The old man said, "If you're interested, you can come here and learn how to forge swords with me before you leave the mountain, I don't have any taboos. It doesn't matter whether you acknowledge me as your master or not."

Chen Chao cupped his hands, agreeing to the arrangement.

The old man said, "However, you can't take this flying sword with you."

Chen Chao laughed it off.

The two exchanged a glance and the old man said with a smile, "Kid, this old man finds you to my liking. When you come to Sword Qi Mountain in the future, remember to save me some face."

Chen Chao smiled bitterly, "According to Senior, does that mean this junior definitely be causing trouble for Sword Qi Mountain the next time I come?"

The old man smiled without replying.

Chen Chao said solemnly, "Sword Qi Mountain has been kind to this junior. I wouldn't dare forget it."

The old man waved his hand, saying no more.

Chen Chao bowed and left, quickly arriving at the thatched cottage. That grand martial uncle of Sword Qi Mountain glanced at Chen Chao and mocked, "Do you have any confidence?"

Chen Chao nodded with a smile and said, "There's been no reply yet, but how can I not be confident? The matter is settled."

The old man said quietly, "The Thousand Year Glacial Stone is so precious. Will that Emperor of yours really take it out just like that?"

Chen Chao raised an eyebrow, "You don't believe it, senior?"

The old man raised his own eyebrow, "Is it really like that?"

Chen Chao did not speak.

The old man smiled silently, got up, and walked into the thatched cottage, then beckoned to Chen Chao.

Chen Chao stood up in confusion.

When he reached the cottage, he saw the sword forge inside.

Chen Chao had already seen the sword forge of the old man surnamed Chou by the cliff, but this old man's sword forge before him was different from what he had seen earlier.

This was an extremely unique sword forge; it did not even look like a sword forge but rather an ordinary small furnace.

Chen Chao looked at the small furnace and asked curiously, "Is this a sword forge, senior?"

The old man nodded, sat down to the side, and muttered to himself, "That Emperor of yours definitely understands one thing: governing the world is like cooking a small fish."

"Forging a saber is also a delicate task, and this small furnace is just right for it."

As he spoke, the old man threw a brilliant demon bead into the furnace, watching as the flames gradually rose. He smiled and said, "Using a demon bead as fuel, once the fire is lit, it cannot be extinguished until the sword is forged. Do you know how many demon beads this will consume?"

Chen Chao silently took out a bag of demon beads and said softly, "If there's one thing this junior has plenty of, it's demon pearls."

Seeing the bag of demon beads Chen Chao produced, the old man smiled and said, "It seems you really are close to the Emperor, you have quite a few good things on you."

Chen Chao did not explain in detail. There was no need to publicize his past and the experiences he had gone through along the way.

The old man carefully selected from the bag of demon beads. Finally, he sat down beside the furnace and squinted, saying, "Since we have time, why not listen to a story?"

Chen Chao nodded, "This junior was just hoping to learn more about the origin of this broken saber."

The old man replied crossly, "Are you intentionally trying to make Sword Qi Mountain look foolish?"

Chen Chao shook his head, saying softly, "I'll naturally keep my lips tightly sealed."

The old man thought for a moment and sighed, "Speaking of which, it seems you do have the right to hear this. Fine, here in this hut, this old man will tell you the story. But once you leave, this old man won't admit to anything."

Chen Chao smiled, "Please speak, senior."

The old man furrowed his brows. For a moment, he did not know where to start. After pondering for a long time, he finally said, "The person's identity is now almost impossible to determine. Which sect he came from, who his master was - none of it is clear. But one thing is certain: that person was also a martial artist."

Many years ago, that martial artist came up the mountain to forge a saber, forcing Sword Qi Mountain to bow its head. Many years later, a young martial artist came to reforge the broken saber. The saber was the same, though the person was different. Yet, the one making Sword Qi Mountain bow its head was still a martial artist.

Perhaps this is destiny, or maybe it was karma. Either way, it was all predestined.

Just as Chen Chao was about to speak, the old man said softly, "Don't be in a hurry to ask. What you want to ask, this old man might not know. What I want to say, you might not have thought of either. This old man will speak of some idle matters; you listen, and take it for what it is."

Chen Chao nodded and kept silent.

However, the old man's next sentence shocked Chen Chao greatly.

"The reason why the Myriad Willow Convention had a name-change was because that person didn't like the original name."

Chen Chao frowned. Back then, when he first discussed the Myriad Willow Convention with Xie Nandu, Chen Chao was still somewhat interested in the matter. He wanted to know who had caused the Myriad Willow Convention, originally named Myriad Flow Dao Convention, to change its name to its current one. At that time, Chen Chao had wondered if it might be a prominent figure from a certain sect in the foreign lands, perhaps someone like the previous generation's Temple Master. However, the old man's statement had caught Chen Chao completely off guard. He lowered his head to look at the broken saber at his waist. Was its previous owner truly that remarkable?

A gathering as grand as this meeting of young cultivators would naturally not change its name just because of a single sentence from him. Moreover, his identity was that of a mere martial artist. To accomplish such a thing, either his fist was extraordinarily great, or he had truly achieved some immortal feat for the human race.

The old man slowly said, "That matter is even more secretive than his visit to Sword Qi Mountain. Who knows how many people joined forces to conceal it. I only know it's that person because Sword Qi Mountain once forged a sword for him. If it weren't for this, you wouldn't know this secret now."

Chen Chao sighed helplessly, "It looks like the former owner of this saber was very remarkable."

The old man smiled but did not say anything.

Chen Chao asked, "Then what is the name of this saber?"

Just as a flying sword has its name, this saber naturally had a name as well, but it had not been engraved on the blade, so Chen Chao did not know the name.

"Back then, Sword Qi Mountain considered this matter a great disgrace, so they didn't name it. As for what the owner himself thought, we don't know either. However, during this reforging, we can engrave a name on the blade for you. Do you have any ideas?"

The old man looked at Chen Chao.

Chen Chao thought for a moment and said softly, "Understanding the depth of the high walls, and distinguishing between clouds and mud."

Chen Chao smiled, "Let's call it 'Cloud Mud'."

The old man rolled his eyes and said bluntly, "How regrettable."