Wenren È's goal with this trip had been to forge a new sword for Yin Hanjiang, an immortal weapon if possible, or at least a near-immortal weapon.
After trading for the meteorite with his token and a promise to help Baili Qingmiao in the future, he took Yin Hanjiang to the Thousand Mile Ice Plains.
It should now be named the Thousand Mile Fire Plains. The field of boundless white from eleven years ago had been transformed into a sea of magma. Even at Yin Hanjiang or Wenren È's level, they didn't get too close to the surface, just surveying the landscape from high above.
"The wandering immortal of the Violet Spirit Pavilion had been cultivating using the flames underneath the ice for centuries, yet was never able to find the Snow Flame. Yet when Baili Qingmiao collapsed in the Ice Plains, it instantly appeared in her hands. In order to find that immortal's true body, this Venerable broke through the ice layer, and now without the ice suppressing it, the underground fires have transformed the Ice Plains's environment," Wenren È said.
Even though Yin Hanjiang normally paid attention to nothing besides Wenren È, he couldn't help but ask, "Why did the spiritual realm change according to Baili Qingmiao's wishes? And the things she imagined actually materialized."
Yin Hanjiang took out the Shattered Mountain Meteorite. He still had difficulty believing that this treasure in his hands was real.
"What if it suddenly turns into mist and vanishes?" Yin Hanjiang asked.
Wenren È saw curiosity sparkling in his eyes and couldn't help but smile slightly. "In the beginning, heaven and earth were primordial chaos and everything in existence was formless energy. A primordial god awakened in the chaos, and used his power to separate heaven and earth, becoming one with the cosmos and giving rise to all things. This was the one origin from which everything in existence developed."
Yin Hanjiang had reached Void Boundary stage over a century of cultivation and his ability of comprehension was actually quite high. He thought it over and asked, "Is the Venerable's meaning that the spiritual realm was neither a palace nor a cavern, but a gathering of primordial chaos like the cosmos before the separation of heaven and earth? What we saw today was a smaller-scale version of the shaping of the cosmos?"
"Perhaps." Wenren È was unsure of his conjecture himself, and could only give Yin Hanjiang an indecisive answer.
"Then how come everything became dark when she opened her eyes and bright when she closed them? It's almost like the legend of the Torch Dragon who brings day when its eyes are open and night when they close. Except it's reversed." Yin Hanjiang rubbed the meteoric iron, still looking at it with disbelief.
He had remained composed in front of Qiu Congxue and Baili Qingmiao, as cold and emotionless as always, but alone in front of Wenren È, he had finally learned to show a bit of curiosity.
"This Venerable does have an idea about that." Wenren È hadn't noticed the indulgent smile that had appeared on his lips. "The book stated that Baili Qingmiao was a primordial goddess in her previous life, and managed plagues, disasters, and war. Everywhere her sight landed, disasters would befall mortal beings, so she wouldn't have often looked at peaceful surroundings. If the spiritual realm was a collection of primordial energy that had been attracted to Baili Qingmiao, it would naturally reflect her fate."
Dark and hellish when awake, and only a paradise in her dreams.
The Abusive Romance novel was the same. It was just as one reviewer said—the author had given the female lead a primordial divine nature, the talent and luck to overturn fate, and impeccable looks and character. They had crafted an exceptional protagonist, then let Hè Wenzhao stomp all over her.
Baili Qingmiao could probably only have what she wanted in her dreams.
"In any case, the Shattered Mountain Meteorite is undoubtedly real, and the Seven-Colored Lotus Heart will also certainly be able to heal Hè Wenzhao. Who knows if Baili Qingmiao will have the chance to use it, though?" Wenren È said.
Even though Qiu Congxue was now a wandering immortal, she could still return to Xuanyuan Sect after stealing a few of Shangqing Sect's secret techniques. With Qiu Congxue's intellect, she wouldn't have any impact on Shangqing Sect even if she stayed, let alone become a mole for the Xuanyuan Sect. Wenren È had no ambitions to unify the entire cultivation world either, so logically he should've brought Qiu Congxue back.
The reason he'd let her return to Shangqing Sect was that he was curious what kind of changes she would wrought if she stayed by the protagonist's side.
Wenren È was also quite amused by the way Qiu Congxue went about things. What other cultivator would say something like "Obviously a magic elixir ought to be used on me, who would save a piece of garbage like you?" to Hè Wenzhao?
After Baili Qingmiao had fainted, Qiu Congxue was so concerned she wanted to retrieve her soul immediately, which meant she really was attached to her disciple, even wanting her to become the heir to her ghost cultivation techniques. With such a "considerate" master by the protagonist's side, Wenren È was really looking forward to seeing how the story would diverge.
For now, though, he had a more important thing than the story to focus on, namely, forging Yin Hanjiang's sword.
With a bonded weapon, a cultivator could access the weapon's wisdom, and their understanding of the Dao would grow deeper. Wenren È hoped that after Yin Hanjiang got his new sword, he could let go of his obsessions and make actual plans toward his future. That way, if Wenren È truly died someday as he had in the book, Yin Hanjiang would be able to act rationally, and wouldn't become what he had.
The Chiming blade had its own awareness and sensed that Wenren È was going to refine it. It tried to escape as it was drawn from its sheath, but it was trapped by a cloud of blood mist.
"Venerable!" Yin Hanjiang cried, not thinking that Wenren È would sever one of his own arms. The blood mist that made up that arm snatched the meteoric iron from Yin Hanjiang, and began forcing it to combine with the Chiming blade.
"In order to craft a legendary weapon from these fires, human blood and souls must be sacrificed," Wenren È said calmly. "Demonic cultivators would usually kidnap a Nascent Soul or above cultivator for their crafts, sealing the soul inside the weapon in order to make an artifact of unparalleled power."
Righteous cultivators would of course not sacrifice their fellows in order to make weapons, but would capture spiritual beasts.
Spiritual beasts were naturally endowed with spiritual power from the heavens, such as qilin and other beasts of myth. Righteous cultivators would take their inner cores, from which they could refine near-immortal weapons.
Although there were still some near-death cultivators who would offer themselves to be forged into weapons, in order to gain a new lease on life.
Wenren È wouldn't be using any of those methods. Whether a Nascent Soul or a beast core, in the end it was all just spiritual energy, refined into very dense and pure essence through cultivation. Unlike other cultivators, Wenren È's body and soul were one, and he no longer had a Nascent Soul either. His whole body was filled with very highly refined and pure spiritual essence. A single arm of a Mahayana cultivator was more than sufficient to make up for the entirety of a Body Unity cultivator's power.
Yin Hanjiang wanted to stop Wenren È, but he was held back with a ribbon of blood. He could break through without much trouble, but since it was formed from Wenren È's other arm, he would just be hurting his Venerable more if he struggled.
He could only watch as crimson light engulfed the Chiming blade and the Shattered Mountain Meteorite and dove down into the flames. Wenren È began reciting an incantation, and the mist that had been his arm began to rapidly absorb the power of the flames.
A deep rumble began underneath the plain of fire as the lava boiled madly, shooting sparks high into the air.
The heavens now sensed the creation of a weapon from power stolen from the natural order, and clouds gathered over the sky, heralding a heavenly tribulation.
A burst of lava of frightening temperature spewed into the sky like a geyser, until it met the clouds above and clashed with the first bolt of lightning, repelling it.
Within the flash, a pure black sword could be seen, slowly coming into shape. Wenren È ordered Yin Hanjiang, "Retrieve your sword!"
Yin Hanjiang forced back his anguish and charged into the flash. He couldn't let the Venerable's lifeblood be wasted.
Meeting the second bolt of lightning, he grabbed hold of the sword, and a current of warm energy flowed from it to his hand. Within the blade, he could sense a will to protect him.
The intent to kill and the wish to protect combining into one, both in harmony without any conflict—this was Wenren È's path!
When a legendary weapon was forged, it must withstand nine bolts of heavenly lightning, each stronger than the others. The first two were silvery-white, but the third one was violet. In order to subdue the weapon, Yin Hanjiang had to take advantage of when it was weakened by the lightning to make it submit to him while enduring the strikes himself.
In the silver-violet flash of the third bolt, Yin Hanjiang's silhouette could faintly be seen, sitting cross-legged in the air as the sword hung before him, letting out a high-pitched hum of resistance.
There was nothing else Wenren È could do at this point. He remained at a short distance from the lightning, observing Yin Hanjiang.
Yin Hanjiang would certainly be able to refine the weapon. Wenren È had unwavering faith in him.
In the light, a barrier slowly formed around Yin Hanjiang and the sword, protecting both of them. It withstood the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh bolts without trembling.
Each of the nine bolts of heavenly lightning was twice the strength of the previous one. The first one was not hard to endure, but once it came to the eighth or ninth, the power involved was already enough to destroy the Thousand Mile Ice Plains.
With the eighth bolt of lightning, a crack ran through the barrier around Yin Hanjiang. The lava of the Ice Plains churned, and the temperature even high up in the air rose to a hellish degree. If a chunk of ordinary iron was tossed up, it would've melted in midair, to vanish into the sea of flame below without a trace.
In order to destroy this new immortal weapon, thunderclouds gathered from a hundred li around, now glowing violet, gathering power for the ninth strike.
There was no way Yin Hanjiang's barrier would be able to withstand this one. If he could not subdue the sword before then, they both would be reduced to ash by the bolt of violet light.
Yin Hanjiang did all he could to communicate with the sword, asking it to become his. He conveyed his good intent to it, his intent to protect his Venerable, but the sword disregarded him. It only wanted to charge out of the barrier, and escape the control of heaven.
Why was it unwilling to submit to him? The sword was forged from Wenren È's own blood and soul and had inherited a portion of his Path of Slaughter. When Yin Hanjiang told it he wished to protect Wenren È, why did it not obey?
Yin Hanjiang couldn't figure it out, and meanwhile the barrier couldn't even withstand the pressure of the next bolt of lightning and shattered completely, leaving Yin Hanjiang and the disobedient sword undefended under the stormclouds.
He had no control over the sword, which wanted to charge toward the clouds and clash head-on with the heavenly lightning!
Yin Hanjiang grabbed the sword and managed to force it down. The will of the sword flooded his mind. He heard it chant endlessly: battle, battle, it wanted battle!
The fighting intent led Yin Hanjiang to remember a scene at the border town, when he was eighteen, watching from a distance as his Venerable, with all his cultivation suppressed, led his troops into the bloodbath of battle like a mortal man. Wenren È disregarded his own safety with every attack, and even if a spear pierced his shoulder, his halberd would never slow.
Yin Hanjiang naively stood before his Venerable, wanting to be his sword, wanting to protect him, but Wenren È wielded a halberd. He had said to Yin Hanjiang, "This Venerable doesn't need you to protect him."
What meaning was there in Yin Hanjiang's life, aside from protecting his Venerable?
The ninth bolt of lightning became a violet dragon, roaring and coiling around Yin Hanjiang. As Wenren È watched, he raised a hand slightly, but eventually lowered it again.
If he were to help, Yin Hanjiang would never be able to overcome his inner demons.
Wenren È had said before that he didn't mind Yin Hanjiang dying for him, but he did mind Yin Hanjiang losing his mind over him.
The Lord of Demons had witnessed death many times, and neither his death nor his subordinates' deaths mattered to him. He only wanted to die when he chose, after expending all his strength and leaving behind no regrets. He hoped Yin Hanjiang would understand that what he wanted wasn't an obedient puppet and a blindly loyal subordinate. He needed a vanguard who would charge with him into the enemy's ranks, a sharp blade who would cut down all opposition.
Yin Hanjiang, will you be able to understand?
The violet lightning had already completely engulfed Yin Hanjiang. Wenren È saw his silhouette vanish and wondered if this was as far as he could come.
Suddenly, a metallic sound rang out from within the lightning, and a sword flash slashed through it, surging toward the heavens, charging into the storm and resembling a black dragon that thrashed within the clouds. After a flurry of other sword flashes, the stormclouds dissipated.
Yin Hanjiang's clothes were tattered and he held a sword in one hand, raised toward the clouds it had cleaved in one strike. Its blade, hilt, and tassel were all pure black, blade sparkling with points of light like stars.
Wenren È heard Yin Hanjiang say in a low voice, "Your name is the Army Crushing Sword."
Alkaid shone brilliantly in the night sky overhead. The Army Crushing Sword hummed ceaselessly, and when Wenren È summoned his Seven Killing Halberd, it began shaking of its own accord.
It was out of happiness.
Happiness that a weapon which understood it completely had been born, happiness that there was finally a companion that could advance side by side with it, and surmount the heavens.
There were no shortcuts on the road of cultivation. If they had made it their resolution to rebel against heaven, then they must abandon their human bodies and become gods. On this path, no one needed a protector. They would only need to face battle, to use their own power to cut open the path to heaven!
Yin Hanjiang slowly flew back to Wenren È's side, his eyes unreadable. He didn't kneel, instead facing Wenren È directly and saying in a clear voice, "Yin Hanjiang understands."
No longer "this subordinate", just "Yin Hanjiang".
Wenren È laughed out loud in joy, and the Seven Killing Halberd touched its blade to the Army Crushing Sword, humming non-stop. Wenren È said, pleased, "This Venerable is glad to have another person in the world who can fight alongside him."
Yin Hanjiang also smiled faintly. He had finally managed to live up to his Venerable's wishes. Upon subduing the Army Crushing Sword, he had completed his own sword will.
Wenren È didn't need Yin Hanjiang to protect him. Wenren È needed someone who could stand back to back with him, wielding a weapon alongside him, as they charged down the path of defying heaven, slaying even gods and Buddhas in their way.
Wenren È released the Seven Killing Halberd and let it and the sword start fighting and chasing each other. He faced Yin Hanjiang and gripped his hand in his.
With both their hands wrapped into a fist, an unspoken oath was formed in their eyes.
They looked up at the sky together, seeing Polis and Alkaid mirror each other in brilliance, both shining with greater strength than ever before.
However, Dubhe was also radiant, nearly drowning out Polis and Alkaid's light.
"Hm?" Wenren È shared a glance with Yin Hanjiang. What had happened to Shu Yanyan that her fortunes had increased so?
Speaking of, since the Great Sect War, he had now been missing from Xuanyuan Sect for a whole year. Who knew what state it was in now?