211: Chapter 210 Neighbor’s Arrival 211: Chapter 210 Neighbor’s Arrival Hou Niao chuckled ruefully, “Turns out to be an obstinate rock, my eyesight really is…”
An old merchant who ran a shop in Shan City generally dared not to deceive a disciple of Quanzhen, as it could lead to serious trouble.
Therefore, he needed to be clearer.
“The sword is destiny, and destiny does not necessarily lead to results.
If you insist, Daoist, I must remind you that if you come back to return this in the future, the shop will only take it at half price.”
Old Pang brought out the meteorite, which was not too heavy, about the size of a basin, and very irregular.
Hou Niao took out Lonely Sword, secretly channeled his Qi Gang, held the hilt in his right hand and pushed the blade with his left, grinding it back and forth on the meteorite several times.
He had already made a clear decision in his heart.
“It shall be this one.
Hopefully, I won’t have to come back here to return it.”
He was sure that this was what Lonely Sword wanted, although he wasn’t clear on the exact attribute of the rock; since it was their first collaboration, he was willing to let the sword lead.
To a sword cultivator, this was a major gamble, concerning whether the person wields the sword or the sword wields the person.
Sword cultivators have their own cultivation paths, which depend on their Daoist heritage, aptitude, preferences, and so on.
They cannot simply follow the directions that their swords prefer; of course, the best scenario is for the person and the sword to reach a consensus and share the same goal, but there are always exceptions.
Hou Niao trusted his own feelings more.
He had been in constant companionship with Lonely Sword for three years.
If the sword had a spirit, it should be able to sense his direction—an issue of tacit understanding.
Other sword cultivators would pay attention to this when selecting a sword with Sword Consciousness for cultivation and would consciously choose.
For example, those with a Fire Attribute tendency would definitely choose a Fire Attribute sword, and those leaning towards the Water Element would select a Water Element sword, to minimize the deviation in cultivation.
His way of nurturing Sword Consciousness was a bit rash, but he couldn’t accept the sword that first developed Sword Consciousness to be anything other than Lonely Sword, which had been inseparable from him in life and death.
If he chose another so-called compatible sword because of some reasons, he would consider it a betrayal of Lonely Sword.
This was the respect for a partner in life and death.
It was exactly this respect that made the nurturing of Sword Consciousness go so smoothly.
Only if he maintained such respect could a real Sword Spirit emerge in the future.
Therefore, in the cultivation world, nothing is absolute.
Every risk you take will have its rewards; similarly, every time you choose an easier path, you might miss something.
Hou Niao made too many choices and once again became penniless.
Suddenly, he seemed to understand Yu Zhengxing a bit, didn’t he?
Among the various items in Wanshi Square, meteorites were rather affordable, but the problem was his limited funds; he whimsically wondered if Lonely Sword made that choice because it knew its master was destitute?
Returning to the outer courtyard of Sword Mansion, he began to retreat from the world and focus solely on his cultivation.
It was only when he listed out his cultivation tasks that he realized that as his realm elevated, he had to cover more and more aspects.
Preparing for the Upper Realm Tongxuan was his first priority.
Refining the sword was related to his future combat direction and the foundation of all battles.
Mu Zi, now that he had started, he aimed for a good result before Tongxuan, at least with his Eye Recognition, to give him an edge over his peers.
He also had to practice the Hesitation Skill, Burning Elixir Skill, Breeze Dao Body, and Spring Hibernation daily; for a sword cultivator not focused on Quanzhen secret techniques but preferring Anhe techniques, it seemed incredible to outsiders, but it was the best choice for him.
This indeed contained some of Chong Ling Daoist’s good intentions.
The secret techniques he found for him were very suitable.
Additionally, he had a small intention: would it make him seem less conspicuous when he returned to the Daoist Sect?
You see, I also know a few Daoist techniques…
But now it seemed like Anhe Daoist Sect was like a clay Bodhisattva crossing a river—everything was a mess, as if Chong Ling Daoist’s initial intent for him to lay low had entirely disappeared.
Last of all, of course, there were the unshakeable Soul Realm battles.
When all these aspects came together, he found that he still seemed short on time.
Every day at the witching hour before dawn was the time Hou Niao dedicated to refining his sword.
Cultivation theory held that crossing this time would benefit the self-awareness of the sword, and grinding at night allowed for more peace and focus.
The sword flared when attacking, calm when retreating—this was a balance between motion and stillness.
Hou Niao placed the meteorite on a long table, leaned forward in a bowing stance, truly just like sharpening a kitchen knife, sticking out his butt and pushing with his shoulders, using the body of the sword to grind on the coarse meteorite surface, yet without that harsh grating sound that set one’s teeth on edge.
Upon closer inspection, the body of the sword and the meteorite weren’t actually in direct contact.
There was an incredibly thin gap between them filled with the cultivator’s Qi Gang; the sword, Qi Gang, and meteorite were moving relative to each other, with Qi Gang acting as a lubricant and a buffer.
When this type of grinding reached a certain intensity, the Qi Gang moved back and forth intensely, creating a fusion layer on both the surface of the sword and the meteorite, resulting in an imperceptible minute material exchange.
With persistence, changes in the material structure of the sword would occur over time.
Such alterations would be based on the attribute of the Sword Grinding Stone, yielding various results.
The sword might become exceptionally hard, unparalleled in sharpness, possess different Five Elements Attributes, or any other characteristic—all depending on the nature of the Sword Grinding Stone.
What Hou Niao was doing now was exactly this process, his only regret being that he didn’t clearly know what attribute his sword would acquire.
Change was not instantaneous; it required perseverance to see effects over a long period, during which he would remain unaware.
Well, as long as Lonely Sword is happy.
The External Refinement method took about half an hour each day, which was the most efficient duration, as any longer would affect the sword’s absorption of new materials.
And in the cultivation world, a cultivator’s development is always all-encompassing.
One shouldn’t focus exclusively on a single aspect; otherwise, spending all your time on it, you could at most become a sharpener of scissors and choppers.
Although there was no sound, a light shone through.
That was the light emitted by the Qi Gang as the sword moved rapidly back and forth with the meteorite, also generating a considerable amount of heat, dramatically increasing the temperature at the contact surface and thereby accelerating the meteorite’s dissolution process.
In a sword cultivator’s life of Sword Refining, Inner Refining Methods will be their primary approach, but this doesn’t mean that External Refinement Methods are useless.
For unique objects like meteorites, whose attributes cultivators are not clear about, they need to use the cumbersome method of External Refinement.
Three nights later, as Hou Niao was engrossed in his grinding, a familiar voice came from atop the courtyard wall,
“Well, well, you managed to get the most famous Sword Grinding Stone from Jin City.
Should I say you have good taste, or should I say you’re foolish?”