The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS
Chapter 220 - 32 Sword Heart

Chapter 220: Chapter 32 Sword Heart

"Ding—"

"Clang—"

The sounds of hammering were incessant. The heavy blows struck with a depth and possessed a strange, distant quality, like the tolling of a great bell, that even pierced through Qing Yu’s closed-off hearing and resonated directly in his mind.

’This level of skill, it’s not an overstatement to say that it borders on the Dao. No wonder the Shadow King went to such lengths to secure Master Gongye’s well-being.’

Moving forward, the Protective Gang Qi around Qing Yu that isolated him from the high temperature of the environment vibrated ceaselessly under the sounds of the hammering. Left with no choice, Qing Yu withdrew his Protective Gang Qi, using his own physical form to withstand the surrounding heat.

Fortunately, having gained insights from the Golden Wheel Dharma King, Qing Yu encountered no obstacles in his Cultivation of the ’Dragon-Elephant Wisdom’. With ample provisions to aid him, he had already cultivated to the Sixth Level—now he had the capability to resist the high temperatures.

Had he still possessed the same physique as before he cultivated the ’Dragon-Elephant Wisdom’, with his True Qi being affected in such conditions, he would not have lasted long in this environment.

With the Gang Qi and True Qi protections lifted, Qing Yu could feel even more directly the marvelous nature of the hammering sounds.

He felt as if he were a piece of stubborn iron, smelted by fierce flames and repeatedly struck by a heavy hammer, removing impurities within and forging a body of fine steel.

The wondrous sounds of hammering, in harmony with the surrounding environment, vibrated through Qing Yu’s physique, tempering his body as if it were a weapon in the making.

His body continuously exuded sweat tinged with a grayish-black color, which, under the influence of the high temperatures, quickly dried up, leaving trails of black marks on his skin.

Like this, Qing Yu pressed on, and as the distance shrank, the sounds of hammering grew louder, the effects of tempering his body became even more significant.

Just this journey of tempering had saved Qing Yu several months of effort.

’Not good!’

Qing Yu suddenly felt his facial muscles quiver; it was the peculiar hammering sounds that were causing his disguise to revert to its original state.

The situation in Daqian was tense at the moment. Although Emperor Daqian was currently too preoccupied to deal with the Azure Dragon Association—a group that had thwarted his plans—the Zhenwu Sect, which he had previously offended, had intensified their search efforts.

Ever since Qingxu made his breakthrough to the Divine Origin Realm and emerged, the people of the Zhenwu Sect had been searching for the Azure Dragon Association like mad dogs, scrambling to the site of any related news. It seemed that Qingxu wouldn’t rest until they captured Gong Ziyu.

Under such circumstances, Qing Yu didn’t dare wander around wearing the bronze mask. Hence, for this trip to Sky Melting Mountain, he had assumed the guise of an ordinary young man’s face.

Now, the Disguise Technique was about to fail, and he would revert back to his true appearance.

After a moment’s hesitation, Qing Yu pulled out a bronze mask from his chest and covered his face with it. Approaching Master Gongye Baiduan with such a visage might be somewhat disrespectful, but Qing Yu was here to forge a sword, not to curry favor with Master Gongye. A minor disrespect wouldn’t cause a Sword Casting Master to intentionally craft a subpar sword for Qing Yu.

Thus, it was better to be safe. After all, Master Gongye had many years of friendship with the Shadow King—if Qing Yu’s true identity were to be revealed, that would be problematic.

After adjusting the mask, Qing Yu took a few more steps and finally laid eyes on the former Sword God Lake Sword Casting Master—Master Gongye Baiduan.

Master Gongye Baiduan had the form of a big man that belied his age; one couldn’t tell he was almost two hundred years old. To maintain such a youthful vigor at nearly two centuries old, Master Gongye Baiduan had to be at least at the True Pill Realm.

At this moment, he was stripped to the waist, standing on a platform above the Molten Lava Lake in the mountains, wielding a massive black hammer, incessantly striking at the Sword Embryo on the iron felt.

Qing Yu’s arrival did not draw his slightest attention, as he kept hammering the Sword Embryo in his own way.

Qing Yu wasn’t angered by Gongye Baiduan’s disregard. Those who are engrossed in certain paths always possess extremely focused attention! So, waiting was just what he had to do.

Of course, a large part of this was also due to the disparity in strength. As the weaker party, it is very normal to act humbly in the presence of a warrior, isn’t it?

’Besides, with the wonderful sound of hammering helping my Body Refinement, why wouldn’t I be pleased!’ Qing Yu mused.

Thinking so, Qing Yu silently circulated the mental method of Dragon-Elephant Wisdom, tempering his body. Although he wasn’t able to move much and lost a good deal of the technique’s effects, with the help of the hammering sounds, this was still an acceptable compromise.

Master Gongye did not make Qing Yu wait too long. Less than thirty minutes had passed when Gongye Baiduan suddenly stopped, lifted the Sword Embryo in his hands before his eyes for examination. His left hand, with no protection whatsoever, grabbed the red-hot Sword Embryo, heated by the furnace pulled from the Lava Lake. This casual movement caused Qing Yu’s eyes to twitch uncontrollably.

Such physical strength could indeed be termed as freakish.

After a close inspection for a moment, Gongye Baiduan shook his head in disappointment and casually tossed the Sword Embryo back into the Lava Lake.

"You, train with the sword?" the deep and robust voice, with a hint of awkwardness from being unused to speaking, asked the only foreigner present.

"Yes," replied Qing Yu with a nod. Being a Sword Casting Master, understanding swordsmanship was basic, so it was no surprise he could see that Qing Yu had trained in swordsmanship.

"What a pity, all Sword Intent, but no Sword Heart. You are just an ordinary Swordsman."

Qing Yu didn’t know how to respond to this comment. A Swordsman without a Sword Heart wasn’t a qualified Swordsman. Perhaps a Sword Casting Master wouldn’t want his swords to be used by someone unqualified.

Sword Heart, as lofty as it sounds, is merely a mindset, an essential mindset for a Swordsman.

It implies living by the sword, dying by the sword, entrusting one’s life to the sword, being sincere to the sword, to be sincere at heart - that is the Sword Heart.

However, Qing Yu had no intention of entrusting his life to a mere weapon. To him, the sword was a tool that carried his Will, an extension of his Will, but not a repository for his life.

A sword to be used when it can be, and discarded when it cannot. This was Qing Yu’s attitude towards the sword.

It was for this reason that Qing Yu’s understanding of the Outer Heaven Flying Immortal had remained at an introductory stage, failing to progress further.

Because Outer Heaven Flying Immortal is an immensely perfect, self-confident sword form. It wasn’t like a movie that King Liu had once acted in, where upon executing the move, the sky would fill with the Swordsman’s figure, countless Sword Qi covering the heavens, leaving nowhere to escape.

In reality, Outer Heaven Flying Immortal was a strike from high above, as swift as terrifying thunder and lightning, from complexity to simplicity, containing countless variations, utterly unstoppable. It was a lethal strike that, if it failed to kill the enemy, would leave the Swordsman in a perilous situation after the sword momentum was exhausted.

This was a sword form exclusive to Ye Gucheng. Whereas Ye Gucheng could entrust his life to the sword in his hand, Qing Yu could not.

Thus, if Qing Yu could not walk out of the shadow of Ye Gucheng, his Outer Heaven Flying Immortal would never truly reach its peak.

To get back to the point, although Gongye Baiduan was somewhat disappointed that Qing Yu was not a qualified Swordsman, he had no intention of breaking the agreement he had with the Shadow King.

"State your requirements for the sword. Bring your own materials."

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