<h4>Chapter 524: Where Did Second Leader Go?</h4>


    It was called a sword hut, but the area that it upied was quite expansive. At the peak of the mountain, there was ake, and beside theke was a wide clearing. Standing in the center of that clearing was a massive bronze furnace, and next to it was a small hut.


    Dark gold mes were zing inside the bronze furnace, and suspended above the mes was a cleaver gleaming with golden light! A young disciple stood before the furnace and steadily fed pieces of spirit charcoal into the fire, intensifying the mes.


    This was the scene that Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai saw when they stealthily approached the sword hut. They crouched low and hid to the side, making no rash movements for the time being.


    "That must be the Famous Yipin Knife," Jiang Yuebai said through Voice Transmission.


    Stolen goods couldn''t be used openly due to the possibility of them being recognized, so they needed to be reforged.


    "It looks like the knife won''t be smelted anytime soon. Let''s see if we can snatch it away. Otherwise, we''ll notify the Imperial Supervisory Bureau," Chu Liang replied, also through Voice Transmission.


    Once they had the physical evidence, it would be much easier for the Imperial Supervisory Bureau to take action.


    A middle-aged man who looked mighty and fierce emerged from the hut. His eyebrows were sharp like swords, and his eyes were the color of bronze bells. He was brimming with abundant vitality.


    That man was likely Zhang Bailian, the sect leader of the Sword Forging Sect.


    The young disciple immediately stood up and said, "Esteemed Teacher, I''ve added the spirit charcoal as you instructed, but... isn''t it too much? We''ve never used such intense mes before. Could the furnace explode?"


    "No," Zhang Bailian replied. "When Baili Tong smelted the Profound Aetherme Essence Iron, he used the imperial family''s Samadhi True Fire. We don''t have such a powerful fire, so we have to use the Earthfire Sect''s Primordial Core Fire. This fire is gentle butcks force, so if the fire isn''t intense, we won''t be able to reforge this knife even after leaving it in the furnace for three days and nights."


    He sounded like he was quite angry about that.


    In Zhang Bailian''s mind, the only things that separated him from the top three swordsmiths of the era were external factors like his cultivation level and ess to special kinds of fire. In terms of true sword-forging skills, he believed he was second to none.


    Unfortunately, he had hit the limit of his cultivation potential. It seemed impossible for him to break through to the Heavenly Gate. Now, he only had a sliver of hope left that he would be able to reach the seventh realm.


    Nevertheless, even with the chancellor supporting him, his ess to resources was still restricted to a limited selection. He couldn''t ess the world''s divine fires at will.


    "I see," the young disciple responded with a look of enlightenment.


    "Tietou, you did very well this time," Zhang Bailian praised his disciple. "If the chancellor rewards us, the rewards will all go to you."


    Zhao Tietou, the young disciple, was overjoyed. "Thank you, Esteemed Teacher!"


    The chancellor had always been liberal with his money. Once they were done forging this legendary weapon, the chancellor would surely reward them generously.


    Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai silently observed the disciple and teacher from the side, unable to find a good opportunity to grab the knife.


    Zhang Bailian''s cultivation level was not on par with the three great swordsmiths. Still, seeing as he had managed to be the leader of his sect, he had to be at least at the pinnacle of the sixth realm.


    The Heavenly Gate was like an insurmountable chasm, blocking countless people from the next realm. While many saw that as the end of their cultivation path, it didn''t mean theirbat power couldn''t improve.


    That was why the cultivators at the pinnacle of the sixth realm had levels of power that varied greatly. For example, Zhang Juque from the Great Astral Sect was known as the strongest sixth-realm cultivator and had the power to challenge the Dao Attainment Realm. Zhang Bailian had been famous for years, but it was hard to gauge his exact strength.


    This was the heart of the Sword Forging Sect. If Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai were to make a move and get discovered, it wouldn''t take long for the members of the Sword Forging Sect to surround them. It would be difficult for them to escape then.


    Chu Liang watched the zing furnace as Zhao Tietou continued to feed spirit charcoal into it. Then a thought sparked in his mind.


    He quietly told Jiang Yuebai through Voice Transmission, "I have an idea."


    ...


    "That Baili Tong obtained arge piece of Profound Aetherme Essence Iron but failed to grasp its true essence. What a waste," Zhang Bailian said, staring into the furnace. "He did not realize that the material contained sulfur, indicating that the iron waspromised. This meant that to forge an exceptional sword, he needed to add other top-grade materials to filter out the sulfur. [1]


    "So, he ended up forging the Profound Aetherme Iron Sword, made purely with the Profound Aetherme Essence Iron. That sword made it onto the Catalog of the Mortal World''s Ten Thousand Treasures, but it was practically a failure.


    "As for this cleaver that he just casually made—it surpasses the sword in quality simply because there wasn''t enough Profound Aetherme Essence Iron left after making the sword, so he added in some other materials. It was purely by chance that he ended up with a great result."


    "Baili Tong''s skills are far inferior to yours, Esteemed Teacher," Zhao Tietou chimed in. "As for those so-called swordsmiths of the imperial city, they''re just frauds—fooling the world and robbing renown from those who deserve it."


    Every swordsmith had their preferred materials and techniques. Zhang Bailian''s knowledge of this particr iron did not necessarily make him better than Baili Tong; it just meant he was more familiar with this material. Zhao Tietou probably understood this, but he also knew that just belittling thepetition would be enough to make his teacher feel better.


    As expected, Zhang Bailian vowed, "One day, I will forge a legendary sword that makes it into the top one hundred of the catalog. I''ll let those who say I''m inferior see what a true swordsmith is!"


    "That''s right! We''ll smack their faces swollen with the facts!" Zhao Tietou echoed.


    While Zhao Tietou was busy praising his master, he suddenly noticed Zhang Bailian''s flow of qi fluctuate.


    At the next moment, a ck-robed figure leaped out from the side and formed a hand seal in midair.


    "<i>Raaaaar!</i>"


    Apanying the roar of a beast, a winged tiger with multicolored stripes and a soaring flood dragon appeared overhead. The two creatures descended from the sky, pouncing toward the master and disciple!


    "Who dares to cause trouble in my Sword Hut?!" Zhang Bailian bellowed.


    He raised his hand, and...


    <i>Boom!</i>


    Zhang Bailian did not use any fancy divine skills. With just one palm strike, he smashed the tiger and flood dragon to pieces, their bodies dissolving into light and shadow.


    "It''s an illusion," Zhang Bailian realized. He turned back, and his gaze hardened. "What are you doing?!"


    It turned out that while the master and disciple had been distracted by the illusion, a second ck-robed figure had emerged and tossed a shower of golden sparks into the furnace!


    "Retreat!" Chu Liang shouted.


    The things he had thrown into the furnace were Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seeds.


    ...


    The Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seed, which had been refined in the Phoenix Sheep Hidden Realm, was the spark of the Phoenix-Spirit Fire—the fire second only to the Samadhi True Fire. It had once been Chu Liang''s primary choice of fire for alchemy.


    Later, he obtained the cultivation legacy of the Inferno Dragon and could summon the Divine Dragon Fire, which was no less powerful than the Phoenix-Spirit Fire. It was much more convenient for him to use the Divine Dragon Fire, so he seldom used those consumable Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seeds.


    When he was watching the fire in the furnace earlier, he recalled the Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seeds. Since it was pointless for him to keep them, he decided to just throw them all into the furnace. Then he fiercely injected a wave of foundational qi into the fire.


    The amount of foundational qi he injected wasn''t necessarily enough to ignite all the Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seeds. Nheless, there was plenty of spirit charcoal and the other fire burning fiercely in the furnace.


    As soon as the many Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seeds were thrown in, they ignited.


    Each Phoenix-Spirit Fire Seed could turn into a huge Phoenix-Spirit Divine Fire. Consequently, with so many of them piled up in the furnace and igniting simultaneously, the result was... a massive explosion.


    <i>BOOOOOOM!!!</i>


    Sensing something was wrong, Zhang Bailian quickly grabbed his disciple, intending to flee. However, they could not outrun the explosion.


    The crimson-gold sea of fire from the explosion sted the master and disciple away, sending them crashing into ake. Half of theke evaporated instantly with a loud sizzle.


    The thunderous boom of the explosion was so loud that even the people in the distant capital of Yu could hear it clearly. Anyone looking in the direction of the explosion saw what seemed like the rise of another sun! It illuminated the sky for a brief moment before fading away.


    Having been prepared for the explosion, Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai had already moved quite a distance away, so the explosion did not hit them hard.


    Just like they had nned, Jiang Yuebai locked her divine sense onto the Famous Yipin Knife in the furnace. As chaos ensued, Jiang Yuebai and Chu Liang took the opportunity to seize the knife.


    Chu Liang had given Jiang Yuebai a rough idea about how intense the explosion would be, but it still exceeded her expectations. The massive explosion sent the Famous Yipin Knife flying into the sky like an arc of light, streaking through the air like a shooting star!


    "Let''s go," Chu Liang said.


    By the time the members of the Sword Forging Sect rushed over in confusion to see what had happened, Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai had already left calmly, going after the Famous Yipin Knife.


    ...


    Meanwhile, there was a group of people somewhere nearby, heading toward the capital of Yu.


    A middle-aged man was leading the group. He had a malicious gaze and a dark yellow-bronzeplexion, with a glossy sheen to his skin.


    The man flew in silence.


    There were four youths behind him. One of them had striking red hair and simrly glossy skin, as if cast from bronze.


    "When we arrive at the capital of Yu, you must all be cautious," the middle-aged man warned. "Don''t let those mountain habits show. This ce is different. If our identities are discovered, we will all die."


    "Got it, Second Brother," the red-haired youth replied with augh. "If the sky falls, the people of Evil Dragon Mountain will hold it up. We''ll just treat it as we truly dide here topete with those righteous immortal sects."


    The three underlings beside him chimed in.


    "<i>Heh,</i> with Second Leader leading us and Third Leader participating in the battle, we at Bronze Demon Ridge will surely crush the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten!"


    "Right! With Second Leader leading us, we will stomp on the Peni Supreme Sect, beat up the Endless Sword Sect, and head straight to the pce for the Qinghong Banquet!"


    "By then, our names will spread across the world. When people hear we''re from Bronze Demon Ridge, won''t everyone flock to the West Sea to learn from us?"


    "<i>Hahaha!</i>"


    Their lively chatter continued as they approached the capital of Yu.


    The middle-aged man gave another warning. "It''s good to have high morale, but you must be cautious. Old Third, your transcendent form is iplete, so be careful when fighting those prodigies of the righteous path. You''re not like me. I''ve already advanced to the sixth realm and possess the Invincible Bronze Demon Body. Even legendary weapons can''t wound me—"


    <i>Boom!</i>


    At that moment, there was a massive explosion in the distance, drawing all of their gazes to it. They saw a crimson sun rise from the mountaintop nearby.


    However, they didn''t notice an arc of light sh overhead like a streak of lightning. It was so fast that it was barely visible to the naked eye.


    "What just happened? Those are such powerful mes!" the red-haired youth eximed in shock.


    "Yeah, they''re terrifyingly mighty..." one of the underlings echoed.


    "That looks like the Phoenix-Spirit Divine Fire. I identally entered the outskirts of Divine Phoenix Ind in the West Sea once and saw this divine fire..." another underling said. He gasped. "Could it be that a divine phoenix has descended upon the capital of Yu?"


    The third underling patted his chest in relief. "Good thing we''re far enough from the explosion."


    "Forget about it. It''s got nothing to do with us. But the capital of Yu is indeed a ce with hidden dangers. Second Brother, you''re right—" The red-haired youth turned his head, wanting to say something to the middle-aged man. But he froze mid-sentence. "Where''s Second Brother?"


    "Yeah, where''s Second Leader?"


    The underlings turned and froze in surprise as well.


    <i>He was leading the way just a moment ago. How did Second Leader, a fully grown man, suddenly vanish from our midst?</i>


    <i>Huh?</i>


    1. See trantor’s thoughts. ?