Xue Chenjing pondered for a moment, then surprisingly agreed, "You have a point."
He turned back to the main hall of the Pure Flame Pavilion, took out some spirit stones to rent a forging tower very close to Yu Yi's, and obtained the token to enter the tower before returning.
Using the token, Xue Chenjing entered the tower. As soon as he walked in, he saw a massive forging furnace made of heavy iron standing in the center of the courtyard. The furnace was almost as tall as the surrounding high walls. Since it hadn't been lit yet, the furnace body felt cold to the touch, and there was no trace of heat in the tower.
The top of the furnace was built like a small pavilion, with openings on all four sides for adding tempering materials. The dome on top resembled a regular pavilion roof, but with an even gentler slope.
Xue Chenjing leaped onto the furnace and leaned against the highest point. From here, he could see the fluctuating flames above Yu Yi's furnace.
He lay down on the spot, hands behind his head, one foot bent and the other resting on his knee, casually wiggling his toes. "This spot is perfect."
Judging by his posture, he had essentially turned himself into a surveillance bug, intending to keep watch personally.
Compared to before, when he wouldn't have cared if the female lead ran away, his current behavior was truly gratifying to the system. However, in the system's view, his actions didn't actually provide any substantial help in progressing the courtship mission.
More importantly, this place cost 500 spirit stones a day! The host had rented a high-grade forging furnace just to lie on it and sleep. It would have been better to spend these spirit stones on the female lead, trying to win her favor.
However, Xue Chenjing wasn't solely renting the furnace to sleep on it. Although he had successively retrieved the missing civilian fire and tailbone from his body, he had been busy with the task of pursuing Yu Yi and hadn't had time to fully integrate them with himself.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, he decided to seclude himself for cultivation and properly enhance his fragile body.
Although Xue Chenjing had given Pei Jingchao and his group a warning at the Wuzhe Tower, preventing them from making any big moves in the short term as they couldn't gauge his strength, they hadn't given up on keeping tabs on him.
To his knowledge, the Flame Splendor Sect, which the Pure Flame Pavilion belonged to, didn't have a good relationship with the Lishan Sword Sect. Although the Twelve Immortal Sects appeared harmonious on the surface, united in their mission to protect righteousness in the world, they were not actually a monolithic block.
After the fall of the Ji Family, the resources of the cultivation world flowed into the hands of the three great families who were originally retainers of the Ji Family. Over time, this developed into the current structure of the Twelve Immortal Sects.
Among the twelve major immortal sects, eight had intricate connections with those three great families. The remaining four sects were later risers, and to resist the encroachment of the family forces, they had allied with each other.
The Flame Splendor Sect was one of these, so there would absolutely be no spies from Lishan or Zhaohua Palace in the Pure Flame Pavilion. Xue Chenjing, staying within the barrier of this furnace, would be much safer and more peaceful.
The blazing heat made the sky above the Pure Flame Pavilion often clear and cloudless, with occasional anomalies flashing in the sky after cultivators opened their furnaces.
In the forging tower, Yu Yi only saw the rotation of the sun and moon. Occasionally, when the flames in the furnace were too intense, she couldn't distinguish between day and night, and had long lost track of the passage of time outside.
When thirsty, she would drink some spirit spring water; when hungry, she would take a fasting pill. She had to control her sword fire at all times and had hardly closed her eyes to rest.
The sword fire in the furnace finally melted the remaining seven high-grade spirit swords. The furnace in the courtyard was burned red-hot by the blue flames. In the center of the huge fire chamber, a green bamboo sword hovered.
Lightning coiled around the green bamboo sword, surrounded by seven spirit swords of different shapes. Now, the forms of those spirit swords were gradually melting, transforming into flowing golden light and merging into the central green bamboo sword.
The green bamboo sword began to take on a metallic luster. The sword body was tempered into a material that seemed both wooden and non-wooden, with sword chimes echoing inside the furnace.
Suddenly, a line of white light shot out from the sword hilt, descending vertically along the center seam of the blade inch by inch. The golden light flowing from the surrounding spirit swords converged into this white line in the center seam, like rivers flowing into the sea.
Yu Yi sat next to the furnace, her hands forming seals, urging on the sword fire within. At the same time, a vertical white line appeared between her eyebrows.
The sword intent around her body resonated with the green bamboo sword in the furnace, and the vertical mark between her eyebrows seemed to burn with flame.
The sword fire enveloping the blade underwent a subtle change due to this white line. The blue sword light seemed to be purified, its color gradually lightening. The overflowing sharp aura was instantly drawn back, returning to the center seam of the blade, its edge sheathed.
For sword cultivators, the sword realm begins with cultivating sword energy, then building a sword foundation. When sword energy condenses into a sharp edge, it's known as the unsheathed realm. Yu Yi had previously been stuck at the unsheathed sword realm, which is why her sword would be enveloped in blue flames and lightning when drawn.
The next realm up is concealing the edge within the sword. When drawing the sword, one can either release sword fire or hide the sharp edge, returning to a state of primordial simplicity.
It's like how some great sword masters can make a seemingly ordinary strike, without any visible lightning or flowing light, yet cause the winds and clouds to change, splitting mountains and seas. This kind of edge-concealing sword technique allows for more precise control of one's sword energy and is not easily seen through by opponents.
Of course, Yu Yi had just entered this sword realm and was far from being able to split mountains and seas with a single strike.
The newly transformed green bamboo sword hung in the furnace. Its body still had a plain wooden color, but the blade also had a metallic sheen, concealing its sharp edge within its rustic appearance. The white vertical line in the center seam was particularly eye-catching.
The crane sword spirit emerged from the cracked old sword, spread its wings and flew up, plunging into the suspended long sword. The old sword scattered into dust, its flowing light adorning the crane's tail feathers as it disappeared into the new sword.
It seemed the sword spirit quite liked its new home.
Yu Yi opened her eyes, about to withdraw the sword fire and open the furnace to summon the sword, when she saw the long sword in the furnace suddenly begin to tremble. The sword spirit emerged from the top of the long sword and spread its wings, perching on the sword hilt.
The white line in the center seam of the blade suddenly flared brightly, spewing out flames so intense they were white. The white flames instantly licked up the sword spirit's feathers, enveloping its entire body.
Yu Yi was shocked and hurriedly formed a sword seal to try to suppress the sword fire, but it was already too late. Half of the crane's body had dissolved in the fire. It raised its head and let out a long cry, its wings wrapped in burning sword fire as it flew out of the furnace.
By the time it swooped down in front of Yu Yi, the sword spirit's form had completely dissolved in the flames. She raised her hand to catch it, but only a fiery red feather fell from the flames.
The feather landed on her forehead, and Yu Yi felt a pain between her eyebrows. Her consciousness blurred for a moment.
A cold wind brushed against her face, suddenly sweeping in from the heat wave. The chill raised goosebumps on Yu Yi's skin, and she abruptly opened her eyes, surprised to find that she had somehow left the forging tower.
She was now sitting on the back of the crane, soaring through the sky. The immortal crane spread its wings, carrying her through a thin layer of clouds towards a towering green mountain in the distance.
Yu Yi looked around, then down at the crane beneath her, calling out, "Senior Crane? Where are we going? Wasn't I tempering my sword in the furnace?"
But when her gaze fell on the crane's long neck, she immediately recognized that it wasn't Senior Crane, and exclaimed excitedly, "It's the sword spirit! Sword spirit, you're alright? That's wonderful, I thought I had made a mistake while tempering and you had disappeared."
The crane sword spirit turned its head back and cried out to her, suddenly folding its wings and diving towards the mist-shrouded mountains below.
Yu Yi was buffeted by the fierce wind, unable to keep her eyes open, her sleeves fluttering loudly in the gale. The crane plunged into the mountain mists, emerging moments later from the other side of the clouds.
The scene before her suddenly opened up, revealing a cliff. On the cliff stood a slender figure, poised against the wind, a long sword slung across their back. The figure raised their head to look at her.
For a moment, Yu Yi thought she had returned to the bamboo grove secret realm, stumbling into the painting that hung in the center of her master's studio.
The woman in the painting also wore snow-white robes, her hair tied up high, holding a sword as she stood on the edge of a cliff. The mountain wind tugged at her clothes, but she remained motionless, as if she had been standing on the cliff edge for hundreds or thousands of years.
What Yu Yi saw before her was identical to the painting by the Qingxuan Daoist Priest. It was the only portrait among her master's many self-portraits that depicted someone else.
However, the painting hadn't clearly delineated the facial features, but now Yu Yi could see them clearly.
Her eyes met those of the woman, and her heart skipped a beat. It was an extremely beautiful face, not lacking in heroic spirit. Her eyebrows were thin and long, as if cut precisely. Her phoenix eyes tilted upwards, glancing with a spirited light. Her jade-like face was smooth and lustrous, with a sword mark shaped like a lotus between her eyebrows.
Yu Yi was momentarily stunned by the sight, until the crane carrying her landed on the cliff and shook its body to remind her. She hurriedly jumped off the sword spirit's back.
The crane immediately strode happily towards the woman in white, resting its long neck on her and cooing affectionately, its cries filled with endless longing.
The woman in white, however, ignored the crane's affection and turned to look at Yu Yi with a gaze that held a hint of scrutiny.
"This is the sword realm inherited from Great Green Mountain. I am a trace of consciousness left behind by Ming Zhaojun, the master of Green Mountain, waiting here to pass on her sword techniques. Since you were chosen by the crane spirit to be brought here, it means we are destined to meet. Are you willing to learn swordsmanship from me?"
Yu Yi had not yet recovered from these sudden changes, but she understood the importance of seizing the opportunity. She nodded without hesitation, "I am willing."
"Good," Ming Zhaojun nodded in satisfaction and immediately moved to draw her sword.
Yu Yi quickly asked, "Senior, has my master... the Qingxuan Daoist Priest also been here before?"
Ming Zhaojun, however, ignored her question just as she had ignored the crane spirit. She drew her sword and took a stance, saying, "This sword technique is called 'Chasing Spring.' It is a sword of the heart, consisting of nine forms. Heart swords are difficult to learn, and very few can truly master all nine forms. How far you can progress depends entirely on your own aptitude."
The Chasing Spring sword technique? So her master had indeed been here before.
Yu Yi had seen the first four forms of Chasing Spring in the sword manual left behind by Qingxuan Daoist Priest, and she had practiced them. When she received the manual, the ink was still fresh, suggesting that her master had drawn it when he was nearing the end of his life and couldn't find a successor to teach in person.
Yu Yi had practiced following the sword manual many times, but every time she reached the middle, the sword energy would reverse, and her mind would become unsettled, preventing her from even mastering the first form.
Ming Zhaojun shook her head upon hearing this, "Chasing Spring is a sword of the heart. This technique cannot be learned without personal instruction. Following a sword manual alone will not suffice."
"Senior, since you were my master's master, that makes you my grand-master. I, disciple Yu Yi, pay my respects to grand-master." Yu Yi bent her knee in a salute, but was once again ignored by Ming Zhaojun.
Yu Yi tried asking a few more questions, only to discover that Ming Zhaojun would only respond to inquiries related to sword techniques, ignoring all unrelated questions.
It seemed that, just as she had said at the beginning, this trace of consciousness was waiting here solely to pass on Ming Zhaojun's sword techniques.
Yu Yi began learning the first form of Chasing Spring, "Breaking Heart's Enslavement," under Ming Zhaojun's guidance. Having practiced the sword moves countless times in the Bamboo Grove Secret Realm, she had no trouble keeping up with Ming Zhaojun's movements at first.
But gradually, as they reached the middle of the practice, a myriad of distracting thoughts began to flood her mind, and her sword energy started to stagnate.
The tip of Ming Zhaojun's sword tapped Yu Yi's with a crisp "ding," and the energy vortex on her sword entwined around Yu Yi's blade, guiding her sword's momentum. At the same time, Ming Zhaojun spoke in her ear, "Continue. Do not avoid what your heart dwells on. This first form requires you to face what enslaves your heart, so that you can break through and establish anew."
As the sword moves progressed, cold sweat began to form on Yu Yi's forehead. The things she had suppressed deep in her heart seemed to surge forth like a broken dam.
She was alone, transported to this strange world. It wasn't that she wasn't afraid or lonely. She had been living a good life, loved by her parents, cared for by her sister. She had been the most ordinary and happiest girl in the world, but a bolt from the blue had severed all her familial and friendly ties, bringing her to this unfamiliar world to be a so-called protagonist.
She was scared, anxious, and incredibly lonely. Every moment, she longed for everything from her past, yet she dared not indulge in those memories.
By the end of the practice, Yu Yi felt as if her heart was about to be torn apart by these surging emotions. Her hands were shaking, unable to hold the sword steady, causing the green bamboo sword to slip from her grasp. She even felt a bit afraid to touch the sword again.
Only then did Ming Zhaojun let her off, saying, "You may rest now. We'll continue tomorrow."
She turned and walked to the edge of the cliff, standing there facing the wind, gazing into some unknown point in the void.
Yu Yi crouched down, covering her face as she silently wept. The sword spirit hopped over, gently nuzzling her cheek to comfort her, before following Ming Zhaojun to stand with her at the cliff's edge.
After crying for a while, venting all the emotions in her heart, Yu Yi felt physically and mentally exhausted. She walked over to a large rock nearby and sat down, leaning against it.
As she glanced to the side, she realized that there were actually dwellings in this Green Mountain. Halfway up the mountain was a house, with a flat area in front of it where more than a dozen disciples were practicing swordsmanship. Among them were both old and young, men and women, some in linen clothes and cotton skirts, others in fine silks and brocades.
The person instructing them below was identical to Ming Zhaojun on the cliff, both dressed in plain white, with long hair tightly bound by a jade crown.
"Is that the real Ming Zhaojun?" Yu Yi wondered, rubbing her sore eyes from crying. She turned her head to find the rock covered in inscriptions, much like the "I was here" messages often seen at tourist spots.
The handwriting on the rock varied, clearly written by different people. Judging from the names and dates left behind, they spanned over a thousand years.
In earlier times, the Nine Swords of Chasing Spring must have been quite famous, as those who came to inherit this sword realm and obtain this opportunity seemed very excited. However, as time passed and the sword technique gradually fell into obscurity, fewer people knew about it.
Most of the messages, though, were laments about the difficulty of learning this sword technique.
Yu Yi found traces of her master on the rock, his complaints about the difficulty uniquely dramatic. He had left a message for each sword form he learned, describing how arduous it was, likening it to the difficulty of ascending to heaven. His complaints continued up to the fourth form of Chasing Spring, where he wrote: "Cannot progress any further. This humble one has lost heart."
Her master hadn't left his name, but he had carved a self-portrait on the rock. The carving depicted him as young and handsome, with such detail that even individual strands of hair were meticulously etched, showing great care in its creation. His handsome face stood out prominently on the rock.
For he was the only one who had left a self-portrait.
Yu Yi concentrated a thread of sword energy at her fingertip and carved her name beneath Qingxuan Daoist Priest's self-portrait. After a moment's thought, she also added a stick figure with the words "Paying respects to Master."
She looked at her handiwork one last time and burst into a chuckle.
The first form of Chasing Spring had churned up nearly all the negative emotions she had suppressed in her heart. Every day, she had to face everything she had lost, yet she hadn't gained anything in return for losing so much.
Yu Yi thought of Xue Chenjing and felt like crying again. She even harbored some resentment towards him; if not for him, she might not have come to this place.
The heart sword illuminated the darkness in her heart, leaving nowhere to hide, revealing every detail and making it impossible for her to put on a brave face any longer.
In the initial period of learning the sword, Yu Yi cried almost every day. But after venting, her state of mind became incredibly clear, and her sword skills improved daily.
When not practicing, she would explore the cliff, looking for traces left behind by her predecessors on the rocks. Some people had left behind their cultivation insights, while others analyzed when this sword realm might have been formed based on the information left by previous visitors and the behavior of the people in the house below the mountain.
According to one person's analysis, this sword realm was established ten years before Ming Zhaojun's death, and the scene in the house halfway up the mountain depicted the last ten years of Great Green Mountain.
"The 103rd year of the Sacred Yuan Era," Yu Yi murmured, touching the era name. This era name was established at the beginning of the Immortal Alliance and was different from the era names used in the mortal world's dynasties.
She calculated briefly and realized it was over 1,300 years ago.
Yu Yi looked back at the figure standing at the edge of the cliff. This trace of consciousness had been guarding this sword realm for over 1,300 years.
As she explored deeper into the inner part of the cliff, she discovered a warning stone tablet with the words "Do Not Enter" clearly engraved on it. Looking past the tablet, Yu Yi could only see a few piled rocks and oddly shaped pine trees.
Judging from the abrasion marks on the rocks and pine tree trunks, it was obvious that someone frequently moved around there.
She walked a bit closer and, in the fading daylight, saw different handwritings on the warning tablet, cautioning later visitors never to step into that side of the cliff.
The tablet said that on every night of the new moon, someone from below the mountain would come here to harm themselves with a heart sword. What they cut off was extremely demonic in nature and could taint one's heart.
Yu Yi glanced at the sky through the branches and leaves, thinking, "Tonight seems to be the night of the new moon."
She consciously retreated a distance, moving away from that strange area, but driven by curiosity, she couldn't help but keep glancing in that direction.
Around midnight, she actually heard some faint sounds coming from the other side of the cliff. Yu Yi held her breath and concentrated, focusing her spiritual energy on her hearing. She could hear clearer footsteps, followed by the fluttering sound of robes being blown by the wind.
As a sword was drawn from its sheath, she heard someone crying, a very familiar cry, pleading: "Don't kill me, brother, please don't kill me..."
Yu Yi's eyes widened in the darkness, and she unconsciously took a few steps towards the sound, stopping abruptly when she saw the warning on the stone tablet.
Looking past the stone tablet, Yu Yi saw a figure sitting under a pine tree. He had his back to her, with a sword light piercing through his chest. Something was forcibly separated from his body under the slanting blade.
That thing looked like an extremely distorted human shadow. Seeing that its pleas were futile, it immediately revealed its true form, lunging at him with claws outstretched, screaming: "You can't kill all of me! We were born as chaos embryos, with both divine and demonic natures at birth. You can never kill me."
The person under the pine tree turned sideways, driving the long sword fiercely into the heart of the separated shadow. The shadow gripped the blade at its chest with both hands, its head tilting back, its wide eyes staring directly at her.
In the sword light, Yu Yi clearly saw the profile of the person holding the sword.
Xue Chenjing. No, not quite, it should be Xue Mingyuan.
...
In the weapon tower of the Pure Flame Pavilion, Xue Chenjing suddenly awoke, sitting up and looking towards the weapon tower where Yu Yi was. Under the brilliant sunlight, waves of heat rolled above her tower, the sword fire for tempering weapons creating a gorgeous flowing light on the barrier above. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
The system asked puzzled: "What's wrong?"
Xue Chenjing raised his hand to touch his brow, then rubbed his chest as he lowered it, "I think I dreamed about her."
The system said joyfully: "Really? I've heard that you only dream of someone when they're thinking of you. Master, the female lead must have been thinking of you, that's why you dreamed of her!"
Xue Chenjing's mouth twitched, "Really?"
"Really!" The system asked again, "What did you dream about?"
Xue Chenjing closed his eyes to recall for a moment, then said irritably: "I dreamed she stabbed me with a sword." In the dream, he saw her face, and then felt a sharp pain in his chest.
The system: "..."
After a long silence, the system consoled: "Master, it's just a dream, don't take it seriously."
