Cultivation Starting from Full Talent-Chapter 482 - 480: Qiushui Sword 4.0 Version

On the night of the full moon, atop the broken cliff.

One man and one deer, their mana boundless.

Beside a brand new blacksmithing forge, the furnace blazed furiously as the Qiushui Sword melted into a pool of fiery-red molten iron.

Big Stupid Deer swung the hammer, clanging vigorously as he forged various materials like Golden Essence, Profound Gold, and Cold Iron, which Ning Daoran had purchased at a great cost. Each strike contained a rounded harmony, and at this moment, Big Stupid Deer seemed to embody the stature of a grandmaster blacksmith!

"Hu~~~"

Ning Daoran sat cross-legged atop the cliff, beginning the ritual refinement of the essence from the entire River Water.

He had planned this for thirty full years, and now with just a thought, the qi of the entire river was drawn forth under the moonlight. Countless dense, deep blue particles rose continuously from the river, gathering together; these were the river’s essence, nurtured over many years by the White Dragon River.

"Old Lu, speed it up!"

"Ao ao~~~"

Soon after, Big Stupid Deer finished purifying the minerals through hammering and began merging them with the original molten iron of the Qiushui Sword. It solidified and then was hammered and purified again and again.

Around two hours later.

The night deepened.

Ning Daoran took a deep breath; the ritual refinement of the River Water’s essence was now complete. He held a deep blue orb in his hands, saying, "Old Lu, quench this River Water essence into it."

"Ao ao!!!"

Big Stupid Deer opened his mouth and sucked a large ball of the River Water essence into his stomach.

"Damn..."

Ning Daoran was somewhat speechless: "Don’t get food poisoning..."

"Ao ao~~"

Big Stupid Deer indicated that there was no problem.

Thus, he continued hammering away, and periodically he would "puff" out a mouthful of the River Water essence onto the fiery-hot iron, repeatedly quenching the essence into it bit by bit.

Very quickly, the mass of iron turned into a deep blue color.

"..."

Ning Daoran slightly raised his eyebrows, extremely satisfied inside. After quenching the River Water’s essence, the color of the iron resembled that of the original "Qiushui Sword 1.0" version gifted to him by Han Bing!

However, the quality was beyond comparison; the original was merely a First-tier Magical Artifact, whereas the sword before him was at least a Third-tier Top-Grade Magical Treasure, it might even possibly reach the level of a Spirit Treasure!

One man and one deer, forging the sword through the night.

Below the cliff, Little Bai, Little Blackie, Xu Zhongyao, and others did not disrupt but only watched from a distance.

"Sister Bai..."

Xu Zhongyao lightly furrowed her brows: "Master... what is he crafting?"

"The Qiushui Sword."

Little Baili said with a gentle smile: "Back when your master was just a minor figure in the Qi Refinement Realm, one of his junior sisters gifted him this magical artifact. This sword holds great significance to your master."

"I see..."

Xu Zhongyao pursed her red lips: "Master... he is truly kind..."

"That’s natural."

Little Bai said: "Your master is quite sentimental, a rare kind in the Cultivation World."

"Sister Bai."

Xu Zhongyao asked again: "I heard that master came to the White Dragon River just for the purpose of forging this sword. If the treasure sword is completed, will master leave this place?"

"That’s correct."

Little Bai said: "Your master and your Uncle Lu have always dreamed of traveling the world, experiencing the wonders of the Cultivation World. Once the treasure sword is completed, naturally he won’t stay long at the White Dragon River. Besides, he nearly wiped out the Demon Path in Wuzhou by himself, making too many enemies. Leaving now is the best choice."

"What about me...?"

Xu Zhongyao hesitated.

"No worries."

Little Bai gave a meaningful smile: "Wherever there are meetings, partings are sure to follow. Your master does care for you, and he will definitely arrange everything for you before he leaves, don’t worry."

"Yes..."

Xu Zhongyao originally wanted to say she was willing to follow her master, even as a mere maid, but she found it hard to voice out, knowing some truths deep down.

Initially, when Ning Daoran took her as a disciple, he did so only as a registered disciple, which meant he wouldn’t always keep her by his side.

Furthermore, Xu Zhongyao had seen the capabilities of Big Stupid Deer, Little Bai, Little Blackie, and others. She also knew her own limitations well, realizing that staying by Ning Daoran’s side would only be a burden with her abilities.

"Master is truly kind..."

Xu Zhongyao pursed her red lips and smiled: "Even if I separate from master later, I will still wish him blessings for his safety and happiness."

Just then, the voices of Ning Daoran and Big Stupid Deer came from the cliff.

"Old Lu, can you manage, why can’t the blade take shape successfully?"

"Ao ao ao~~~"

Big Stupid Deer indicated he also didn’t know, not his fault.

"Could it be that something went wrong somewhere?"

Ning Daoran suddenly slapped his thigh and said, "I know now, we’re missing a sacrificial item for the sword—Jiang Shangyue, it’s your turn, be my Sword Soul, this is your destiny!"

Saying so, he lifted his hand to release a burst of mana, and immediately Jiang Shangyue’s body was suspended in mid-air.

Moreover, even though Jiang Shangyue was already dead, his body was branded with a blood-red mark by Ning Daoran, and his entire spirit and soul were sealed within his body, unable to leave for the moment.

"Old Lu, do you know how to use flesh and spirit to consecrate a sword?"

"Ao ao~~"

Big Stupid Deer cried out, indicating he didn’t know.

"My Nima, treating a dead horse as if it’s alive – that’s just how Long Kui consecrated the sword for her brother when watching ’The Legend of Sword and Fairy 3’!"

Ning Daoran waved his hand and directly tossed Jiang Shangyue’s corpse into the furnace, immediately igniting a blaze.

"..."

Seeing this, Little Bai twitched at the corner of her mouth and said, "Indeed, your master is a pretty nice person..."

Xu Zhongyao was also speechless.

...

"Boom~~~"

Atop the cliff, light burst forth from within the furnace.

The physical body of Jiang Shangyue swiftly perished inside the furnace, her Blood Essence merged into the sword, and a complete Divine Soul emerged, appearing just as she had in life.

"Why... why do you treat me this way?"

Tears covered her face: "Master, I am your disciple Jiang Shangyue... Why treat me with such cruelty?"

"Enough talk."

Ning Daoran, with arms crossed, floated in the breeze: "Becoming the Sword Soul of your master is your deserved blessing. Hurry up and enter, don’t make me do it myself. Don’t worry, once inside, your Divine Soul’s memories will be erased, and you’ll feel better."

Looking at the fiery-red sword blade, Jiang Shangyue thought, could this really be comfortable?

Still, teary-eyed, she stepped into the blade, turning into a wisp of Sword Soul.

Inside the furnace, the bladed edge which had been difficult to form finally took shape!

"Old Lu, it’s the final moment now!"

"Ow, ow~~~"

Big Stupid Deer, with relentless iron hands, pulled the sword strip from the furnace, then continued to ding and clang hitting it, continuously shaping the new sword, of course, the design was already set, identical to version 1.0 of the Qiushui Sword.

On the cliff, a man and a deer passionately forged the sword.

Ning Daoran was responsible for cheering and boosting Big Stupid Deer’s spirits.

Big Stupid Deer, bare-chested, swung the hammer repeatedly, sweating like raindrops, but filled with intense passion!

Meanwhile inside the sword...

Jiang Shangyue’s Divine Soul, hammered repeatedly, emitted cries of agony. This process was extremely painful for her, each of Big Stupid Deer’s hammers quenching away the hostility and hatred in Jiang Shangyue’s Divine Soul, continuously forging her strong qualities, but the process was inevitably painful, so much so that her voice never ceased atop the cliff.

"Ah... Ah... Ah..."

"It hurts, please no... Ah..."

"Ahem... Em-ah..."

"Ah oh... Em-hum..."

...

When dawn was near.

On the anvil, Big Stupid Deer was still sweating profusely.

Jiang Shangyue’s voice grew weaker and weaker, Big Stupid Deer swung the hammer less frequently, and nearly completed shaping the sword, only the final quenching remained.

"Almost done!"

Beside, Ning Daoran, arms crossed, his eyes brimming with excitement.

"Aow aow~~"

Big Stupid Deer let out a loud cry, indicating the quality looked not too shabby, this night wasn’t spent in vain.

"The last quenching, starting now!"

Ning Daoran raised his hand and produced a stream of Water Training, which was drawn from the Jade Spirit Spring. Using this water for quenching...

Perhaps it could boost the chances of achieving a top-grade?

With relentless iron hands again, Big Stupid Deer seized the fully shaped fiery-red long sword and threw it into the water.

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle~~~"

Steam rose, the last quenching completed, and the treasure was finally born!

"Swish—"

A wisp of blood-red light burst forth from the [Qiushui Sword 4.0], piercing into the sky, causing thunderous sounds to rumble through the heavens – an extremely rare celestial phenomenon for such a treasure’s birth!

"It’s done!"

Ning Daoran was exceedingly thrilled, grasping the Qiushui Sword in his hand, his heart filled with joy.

Fourth-Order Lower Grade Spirit Treasure!

Although it’s only a lower grade, Ning Daoran was very satisfied. Magic Swords like this are truly rare – even Ten-thousand-year-old Golden Silk Bamboo could only produce a Magical Treasure, yet Ning Daoran managed to obtain a lower-grade Spirit Treasure with a wisp of River Essence and a Sword Soul, what more could he desire?

Moreover, a lower-grade Spirit Treasure as a Magic Sword is really not too shabby.

Even a Nascent Soul Mid Stage Cultivator like Lin Tiannan, one of the strongest in his field, only possessed a lower-grade Magical Treasure Golden Phoenix Sword. Yet Ning Daoran’s Qiushui Sword’s Spiritual Energy fluctuations were no weaker than the Golden Phoenix Sword, so who needs a bicycle – this Qiushui Sword could take him all the way to the Divinity Transformation Stage!

...

Subsequently, Ning Daoran decided to seclude himself for several days to integrate the Qiushui Sword before leaving.

Several days later, integration complete.

The Qiushui Sword became one of Ning Daoran’s Life-bound Items, which he couldn’t put down.

This sword’s design was extremely elegant, identical to the one sent by the Young Junior Sister initially; it probably came from a somewhat famous Craftsman who was very research-oriented in design, hence its beautiful appearance, engraved with patterns of osmanthus on the sword body, offering a sense of antiquity.

And moreover, this was a Sword Soul-possessed Spiritual Treasure!

"Swish!"

Accompanied by a thought, the Qiushui Sword burst forth from the middle of his brow, hovering in front, Ning Daoran raised his hand to grip the hilt and said, "So, Fairy Muyue, what now?"

"Master, just call me Little Yue, Little Yue feels very comfortable now!"

The voice from within the sword was already utterly submissive.