Xiao Wenbing peered over from beside the cauldron and saw Lu Jun with his eyes closed, fully focused on circulating his internal energy. Ming Mei, on the other hand, sat cross-legged on the ground with a relaxed expression, clearly not the first time he had witnessed such a scene.
He suddenly recalled the hardships Lu Jun had inflicted on him when they first met. His eyes darted around; now they were fellow disciples, and this grudge was likely impossible to avenge in this lifetime. However, given this rare opportunity, a little revenge was understandable.
Xiao Wenbing's mind raced, and his gaze turned to the furnace. At this moment, all the molten steel had flowed into the furnace, and the long sword was beginning to take shape.
With a surge of supernatural energy, Xiao Wenbing scanned the soon-to-be-formed longsword into his mind.
He stretched out his hand and placed it on the furnace. Gradually, a lump of molten steel, still unformed, appeared in the air and plunged into the molten steel, quickly melting into one and becoming indistinguishable.
Xiao Wenbing's face paled. The amount of supernatural power consumed by the molten steel was truly beyond his expectations.
Not only were his supernatural abilities completely exhausted, but his spiritual energy was also completely depleted. Fortunately, his natal golden talisman provided him with a continuous source of energy; otherwise, he would have truly failed this time. He took out two small rejuvenating pills from his Heavenly Void Ring and tossed them into his mouth. This consumption was too great; he definitely needed to replenish himself properly.
The Samadhi True Fire beneath the cauldron was growing weaker and weaker. Lu Jun had thought he was about to succeed and had been holding back some of his strength when suddenly the pressure inside the cauldron increased dramatically. Caught off guard, he was almost about to lose everything. He quickly gathered his spiritual energy and exhaled a breath of Qi from his dantian. The Samadhi True Fire, which was about to disappear, suddenly became vigorous again.
However, Lu Jun was inwardly distressed, for some reason, the pressure inside the cauldron had suddenly more than doubled.
Although he had achieved the Golden Core, he had not yet reached the Nascent Soul stage, so the Samadhi True Fire could not be inexhaustible. Although he was trying his best to maintain it at the moment, it was by no means a long-term solution.
"Senior Brother, what's wrong with you?" Xiao Wenbing shouted, feigning ignorance, in front of the cauldron.
"It's alright," Lu Jun replied with difficulty. He was using all his strength to barely keep the Samadhi Fire burning, so he had no energy left to spare for anything else.
"Should we invite Master over?"
"This is a small matter, I can handle it myself, there's no need to bother him." Lu Jun is the senior disciple of the Secret Talisman Sect. If he can't even forge a flying sword, wouldn't he lose all face if word got out?
However, since he was so concerned about saving face, he inevitably became a little tired.
Volume Two, The Fairy in White, Chapter Forty-Five: Forging the Sword (Part Two)
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Suddenly, a surge of spiritual energy entered, easing Lu Jun's pressure. He turned to see Ming Mei sitting beside him, fully utilizing the Samadhi True Fire to help him refine the sword.
With a relieved smile, he said that his third junior brother had been in the Core Formation stage for several decades. Although he had not yet reached the Golden Core stage, he was already in the late Core Formation stage and was only one step away from the Golden Core stage.
Now that he has lent a helping hand, things seem much easier now.
The two brothers worked together for a long time, and their faces turned pale, a result of overusing their spiritual energy.
However, inside the furnace, the molten steel shrank smaller and smaller, and a long sword gradually took shape again.
Xiao Wenbing looked up and saw that Lu Jun's face had regained its composure.
He snorted inwardly, a wicked thought rising within him, and placed his hand on the cauldron a second time. Strange ripples reappeared in the space.
Lu Jun nodded to Mingmei, who then stopped, relieved. Their relationship was the best among all their fellow disciples. A glance exchanged, and Mingmei immediately understood Lu Jun's meaning.
In fact, even if Lu Jun hadn't said anything, Ming Mei had already sensed that things were running out of steam.
Refining weapons is truly exhausting work. However, although he was so tired that all he wanted to do was sleep, he was in a very pleasant mood.
However, Mingmei's smile didn't last long. He suddenly stretched out his hand and stammered, "Big...Senior Brother, fire...fire...fire."
Lu Jun had just finished working when he suddenly heard Mingmei's exclamation. He then realized that the pressure inside the cauldron had suddenly increased, and his Samadhi True Fire was teetering on the brink of extinction.
"Oh no!" Lu Jun exclaimed in alarm. His face was pale and bluish, looking ashen like that of a dead man.
"Oh my god, what on earth is going on? Is this some kind of living hell?" Lu Jun wailed, struggling to stay upright.
Mingmei gritted his teeth, sat down again, mustered his remaining strength, and sent the last bit of spiritual energy in his body into the cauldron as if it were free.
Lu Jun smiled bitterly, never expecting that forging an ordinary flying sword would lead to so many unexpected changes. Although he wanted to put in more effort, his spiritual energy was already exhausted, and he was powerless to do so.
Gathering his last bit of spiritual power, Lu Jun flicked his finger, and a wisp of spiritual talisman appeared out of thin air and disappeared instantly.
Xiao Wenbing's eyes lit up; this was a distress signal.
Almost instantly, a familiar figure appeared behind Lu Jun.
"Second Senior Brother?" Xiao Wenbing exclaimed in surprise. So Lu Jun had ultimately sought help from Zhang Jie.
Zhang Jie nodded slightly to him, and upon seeing the situation, immediately sat down next to Lu Jun, unleashing a torrent of Samadhi Fire.
This time, Xiao Wenbing didn't try any tricks. After a long while, the longsword finally solidified in the cauldron for the third time, and for the first time.
Not daring to delay, Xiao Wenbing bit his finger, squeezed out a drop of blood, and dripped it onto the skin.
"Hiss..." A wisp of smoke rose from the sword and quickly disappeared.
He channeled his inner energy into his hand, wielding the sword in his palm. Although its temperature was enough to completely incinerate an ordinary person's entire palm, it could not harm the large hand brimming with spiritual power.
This is a gleaming sword, still glowing red from the lingering heat.
Xiao Wenbing nodded in satisfaction and said to them, "Thank you all, fellow senior brothers."
Of the three disciples, only Zhang Jie was pale and slightly out of breath. The other two had already collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat, as if they had just been pulled out of the water, turning into a lump of mud, too exhausted to move.
"Did it succeed?" Lu Jun asked with difficulty. As for Mingmei, he had already closed his eyes, stuck out his tongue and was panting, no longer caring about anything else.
"Yes, thank you very much, Senior Brother." Xiao Wenbing bowed to him and said.
Seeing the two of them in this state, the last bit of resentment in Xiao Wenbing's heart completely dissipated, and this bow was now truly heartfelt.
"It's good that you succeeded, it's good that you succeeded," Lu Jun said, still feeling lingering fear.
"Senior Brother, what are you refining?" Zhang Jie asked curiously.
He knew that Lu Jun's skill was above his own, and even with Ming Mei's help, he still had to expend almost all of his spiritual power to successfully refine it. This thing—well, it must be extraordinary.
Xiao Wenbing took out his sword and handed it to Zhang Jie, saying, "Second Senior Brother, take a look."
Zhang Jie was taken aback and said, "Refining a sword? Senior Brother, what's going on?" He looked incredulous. How could refining a sword be so tiring?
Lu Jun coughed. He was completely baffled by this turn of events and had no idea how to explain it. However, as the senior disciple, he couldn't appear to be ignorant.
He racked his brains for a moment, then coughed heavily and said, "Perhaps the raw materials that came this time contained some trace amounts of rare minerals, which is why this happened." As for which rare minerals they were, he refused to say.
Zhang Jie nodded thoughtfully, took the sword from Xiao Wenbing's hand, examined it carefully for a while, and frowned, saying, "Is there no difference?"
"Let me take a look." An old voice came from behind them.
Xiao Wenbing and the others were filled with awe. Even Mingmei, who was so exhausted that he collapsed on the ground, managed to get up and said, "Master."
The old Taoist priest took the sword and casually swung it twice, creating a dazzling display of light. A hint of surprise appeared on his face: "Jun'er, how much material did you use? Although this sword doesn't have any special functions, its texture is extremely tough, almost comparable to a flying sword mixed with steel."
Lu Jun pointed to the molten pool in surprise and said, "Master, after the refined steel melted into water, there was only half a pool left, which is no more than usual."
The old Taoist priest stroked his beard, pondered for a long time, and finally said, "I understand now. There was a small amount of steel ore in that batch of raw materials. Jun'er, you didn't notice it for a moment, which is why it took the combined efforts of the three of us to succeed."
Lu Jun suddenly realized and quickly thanked his mentor for his guidance. However, he was still very confused. The raw materials he had brought were not raw minerals of soil and stone, but steel that had been purified.
When did the mortal world acquire such great abilities that it could even melt and refine the steel mother?
However, since the old Taoist priest Xianyun had already reached a conclusion, he dared not utter these words aloud.
Volume Two: The Fairy in White, Chapter Forty-Six: Sword Technique
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"Master, I now have the sword. Please teach me a set of sword techniques."
Xiao Wenbing caught a glimpse of Lu Jun's hesitation and, fearing that he might reveal something unexpected that would arouse the old Taoist's suspicion, quickly stepped forward to change the subject.
"Wenbing, you haven't even fully mastered the secret talisman techniques of our sect, so why are you thinking of learning swordsmanship now?"
“Master, Junior Brother has just entered the sect, and it’s inevitable that he’s particularly fond of flying swords. Why don’t you let me teach him the basic sword techniques?” Zhang Jie said, seeing Xiao Wenbing’s disappointed expression.
"Introductory swordsmanship?" The old Taoist priest Xianyun was slightly taken aback, then smiled and said, "Alright, it's fine to play around with it, but don't get too addicted to it."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Wenbing was immediately overjoyed. He thanked his master and senior brothers and focused intently on the scene.
With a flick of his wrist, Zhang Jie produced a large, black sword. Holding it in his hand, he said, "Junior Brother, this sword technique is an introductory skill that has been passed down for over fifty years. Look carefully."
Xiao Wenbing nodded repeatedly, watching intently.
Zhang Jie got into position and began to dance, moving faster and faster until his whole body was shrouded in a dark shadow, and he could no longer be seen.
The black light flickered, creating a stern and imposing atmosphere.
After Zhang Jie finished his sword dance, Lu Jun and Ming Mei clapped and cheered loudly.
"Junior brother, did you see it clearly?"
Xiao Wenbing's expression was quite strange. He swallowed hard and asked bitterly, "Second Senior Brother, are you sure this is a profound sword technique that has been circulating for decades?"
“Indeed, I have been studying this for decades, so there is no mistake. As long as you practice diligently, once you unleash a set of sword techniques, even dozens of strong men will not be able to get close to you,” Zhang Jie said confidently.
Xiao Wenbing's expression grew increasingly grim. He stepped forward and said, "Master, Senior Brother, please correct me."
After saying that, he got into a fighting stance and began to dance, one move at a time.
The swordsmanship he used was exactly the same as that used by Zhang Jie. Even if there were one or two minor differences, it was clear that it was definitely the same swordsmanship.
After a moment, he sheathed his sword and stood up, saying, "Second Senior Brother, have I learned it correctly?"
"Not bad, Junior Brother truly deserves to be called a genius. He has memorized everything after only seeing it once. Impressive!" Zhang Jie praised.
"Junior Brother's talent is truly unparalleled. He can even use the Divine Sense Technique with ease after only comprehending it once," Mingmei chimed in from the side.
Xiao Wenbing remained expressionless, ignoring their praise.
He resumed his stance and began to demonstrate each move, but this time he slowed down, at a pace almost the same as that of elderly people practicing Tai Chi in the park.
"Second Senior Brother, what's this move called?"
"The Immortal Points the Way".