Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
A few breaths later, Han Ling’er appeared in the blacksmith with an aromatic gale in her trail.
“Zhang Zhi, you are looking for me?”
Han Ling’er was as beautiful as ever, her lips were pink and her teeth were as white as snow when she smiled at Zhang Zhi, it seemed like she was in a good mood.
Zhang Zhi did not say anything, he pointed at the signage at the entrance.
Han Ling’er looked at the signage and said happily, “Refining is available?”
However, when she looked at the price listed on the signage, even though she was the daughter of a Golden Core powerhouse, she could not help but quiver in shock, “It’s so expensive!”
She knew Zhang Zhi must have his reasons to charge such a ridiculous price and since she believed she would get what she paid for, she asked, “Zhang Zhi, how good is your refinement? What’s the effect?”
Zhang Zhi thought for a moment. He did not tell Han Ling’er that his refinement could rank up an artifact, he simply said, “Why don’t you give it a try?”
Han Ling’er was a little skeptical. Even though she could fork out 10 mid-tier spirit stones, the best a refinement could do was boost the artifact’s power by 30%.
A quick count in her head later, she found out that it was not worth it for the price and 10 mid-tier spirit stones could already get her an entry-level mid-tier artifact if she was lucky enough.
However, Flying Swan Sword’s refinement was not just about boosting its power, it was necessary to restore the natural flaw of its material. At the thought of it, Han Ling’er convinced herself that any amount of money would be worth it.
After she made up her mind, she quickly searched her body.
A moment later, she looked at Zhang Zhi bashfully. She came to the blacksmith on short notice, so she only brought 8 mid-tier spirit stones with her. She blushed when she said, “Uhmm, can you give me a discount?”
Zhang Zhi had a rather delightful meeting with Han Ling’er the other day, he really wanted to give her a discount but the system’s condition was strict.
He shook his head and pointed at the signage outside. “Price is non-negotiable.”
He immediately regrets his decision after pointing at the signage.
‘Damn it. If Han Ling’er is a guy, it may sound like a joke but she’s a girl!’
Han Ling’er flushed when she heard it. In the end, she rolled her eyes white and grumbled softly, “Stupid Zhang Zhi, stingy fellow!”
Zhang Zhi had become a cultivator after leveling up, his ears were a lot better, so he was able to pick up the soft grumble from Han Ling’er.
He felt bad for her but all he could do was smile awkwardly.
Then, an idea popped in Han Ling’er’s head. She took out a piece of yellow talisman and said, “Zhang Zhi, this talisman contains the full power of a Golden Core cultivator, it’s worth around 2 mid-tier spirit stones, will you take it?”
Han Ling’er seemed to have run out of options, she even brought out her life-saving talisman for the deal.
Zhang Zhi pondered at her offer and asked the system, “Can I take the talisman as a form of payment as well?”
“Customers are allowed to trade-in items of similar value to cover the payment,” the system said in a mechanical tone.
Zhang Zhi sighed a breath of relief but he feigned a sour look as if he lost a great deal. “Okay, fine, Immortal Han, I’ll give you a special price, it’s a sign of our friendship.”
He sighed as he took the 8 mid-tier spirit stones and the talisman but deep in his heart, he was exalted.
A talisman that contained the power of a Golden Core powerhouse’s full force, no one could bully him anymore!
Han Ling’er looked grumpy as she pouted, she continued the complaints in her heart and roasted Zhang Zhi for acting like he was on the losing side.
Zhang Zhi took Flying Swan Sword from her and carefully checked it. The sword meant something to him because it was the first sword that he restored in his blacksmith, and he was also waiting for the system to analyze the sword for refinement.
Refinement, as its name suggested, was about refining the original materials of the flying sword. Throughout the process, new materials must be added to boost the performance of the sword.
The system swiftly provided a solution for the refinement.
Zhang Zhi pondered at the solution for a while, he knew Flying Swan Sword meant a lot to Han Ling’er, so he asked, “Immortal Han, I’ll be adding new materials inside to balance out the flaw caused by the earth essence, it won’t change the original structure of the flying sword. If you are okay with it, I’ll begin the refinement.”
Since the refinement would not change the structure, Han Ling’er had nothing to say but she continued to ridicule Zhang Zhi being a scrooge in her heart, she assumed the materials that he would add to the sword was something cheap and could be found in the market.
However, she believed Zhang Zhi’s skills and his ability to create something amazing, so she gave him a nod of agreement.
After getting the green light, Zhang Zhi went to the rear and put the sword into the hearth burning with Samadhi True Fire.
The blistering flames inside engulfed the blade and in the blink of an eye, the blade became blistering red.
Then, a piece of shining white metal, in the size of a thumb, appeared in Zhang Zhi’s hand from thin air. He looked at the piece of metal with a strange look before he tossed it into the hearth.
When Flying Swan Sword and the white metal were smelted to perfection, Zhang Zhi took them out with a pair of tongs and put them on the anvil.
He lifted up the hammer and started pounding the sword.
Adding a new material into the flying sword without changing its original structure required exceptional craftsmanship and since Zhang Zhi’s skills were provided by the system, he was able to easily master it.
Every single hammer strike created electrifying sparks and bright fireworks, as though it was a fireworks show. Even though Han Ling’er had seen it before, she was still deeply captivated by the scene.
She once wondered why Zhang Zhi’s smithing was so captivating, hence she visited the scripture library to find answers.
The books told her that everything that a human does is actually a kind of cultivation and if one was able to polish the skills to the extreme, one would be able to realize the truth and create a whole new path for it.
The books even told her a legend about a great scholar who studied until he was 80 years old. It was he who achieved the realization and ascended into an immortal.
Han Ling’er believed the reason why Zhang Zhi’s smithing was so captivating was that his smithing skills had reached a certain extreme, it might have achieved realization in some way. Maybe one day, Zhang Zhi might be able to ascend like the legendary scholar.
While she was recalling the content of the books that she read, she suddenly realized Zhang Zhi had reached Intermediate Qi Refining.
During their first meeting, Zhang Zhi was just a mortal.
The realization shocked her and it further convinced her that smithing was also a kind of cultivation.
As the old saying went: thousands of different paths eventually lead to the same goal.
Han Ling’er paid close attention to Zhang Zhi’s smithing, maybe it would help her realize her own path in cultivation.
Zhang Zhi concentrated on refining the flying sword. He had been smithing for a few days now, the contour lines of his muscles started to take shape and with the reflection of the hearth fire on him, he looked extremely manly.
The more Han Ling’er looked at him, the redder her face got. She quickly looked away, she failed to understand why her heart was racing when she looked at him.
Could it be that she had started to realize her own path in cultivation through Zhang Zhi’s smithing?
At the thought of it, Han Ling’er mustered her courage and glued her beautiful eyes at Zhang Zhi and his smithing. There were a few times that she wanted to look away because of the embarrassment but she clenched her fist and encouraged herself to look more. It would be a waste if she let this chance slip.
Zhang Zhi was at the final stage of refinement. He tended to keep his mind empty during smithing, so he did not notice Han Ling’er’s blistering gaze at him.
He perfectly fused the white metal into Flying Swan Sword. The refinement also removed the impurities of Flying Swan Sword while maintaining its original weight and shape. It was what Zhang Zhi promised Han Ling’er.
He put the sword into the hearth again and then quenched it in the pool. The little flying sword started to shine and emanated a fierce and sharp aura, so strong that it felt like it could pierce the sky.
Han Ling’er was shocked by the aura. She looked at her sword like she was looking at a fierce beast, she was frozen for a moment and she even instinctively held her breath.
“Refinement complete.” Zhang Zhi swung the sword around before he returned to the counter and handed it to Han Ling’er.
Han Ling’er regained her senses when Flying Swan Sword was handed to her. A familiar yet strange feeling appeared in her heart when she had a closer look at the sword.
She carefully sized up the flying sword that had accompanied her for many years, she wanted to find out what caused the unusual feeling.
It was then her cherry lips opened up in shock, she found out that her low-tier flying sword had ascended into a mid-tier artifact!
Mid-tier artifacts and low-tier artifacts were separated by a deep and impassable line because different tiers meant an entirely different power level.
Even if the refinement could boost the artifact’s power, it was nearly impossible to raise the rank of an artifact.
The outcome had surpassed Han Ling’ers understanding. She inspected the sword nervously and tossed her image of a lady aside, she even used her spiritual power to check what caused the flying sword to rank up.
Zhang Zhi had shocked Han Ling’er a few times now, she thought she was immune to the surprise but when she finally found out what he added into the flying sword, she was petrified, her soul almost escaped her body.
The realization shook her, causing Flying Swan Sword to slip off her hand and fell on the ground with a clunk. It vibrated and buzzed, similar to how her heart was shaking.
Zhang Zhi smiled without saying anything. It was just a rank up, such a level of shock was not necessary.
He bent over and picked the sword up. “Immortal Han, your sword.”
Han Ling’er regained her senses and noticed her inappropriate reaction. She blushed.
She instinctively ignored Flying Swan Sword and stared into Zhang Zhi’s eyes. “Zhang Zhi, tell me, did you just add Sky Crystal in the sword?!”
When Zhang Zhi got the Sky Crystal from the system, he was also shocked because the system described it as the stardust extracted from the universe itself. It was baptized by heaven and was condensed into crystal form, therefore it held the aura of the heavens.
A thumb-size Sky Crystal was worth an entire city.
Zhang Zhi hesitated for a moment before he said honestly, “Yeah, it’s Sky Crystal.”
Han Ling’er was completely blown away. She was calling Zhang Zhi a scrooge earlier and he would never add something good into the sword.
Now, not only did Zhang Zhi add something extremely valuable inside, its quality was probably the best in the world and it definitely cost more than 10 mid-tier spirit stones!
An hour ago, Han Ling’er complained that the price was too expensive; now, she viewed it as a bargain, Zhang Zhi might even lose his profit because of this.
More importantly, Zhang Zhi used a Sky Crystal to refine a low-tier artifact, which was a reckless waste of a precious crystal.
“Zhang Zhi, people might beat you up because of this, do you know that?” Han Ling’er might love her Flying Swan Sword but even she felt it was a waste to use the Sky Crystal like that.
Zhang Zhi was amused by Han Ling’er’s strong reaction. He took out the talisman that she gave him earlier and said, “A fight? I, Zhang Zhi, will never run from one!”