Chapter 83 - 74: The Legend of the Sword Casting Pavilion, Possessing a Divine Artifact...

Su Chen was suddenly stunned. It felt as if his heart was being weighed down by something, a hint of oppression gradually spreading, making it difficult for him to breathe. He realized that the battle eight years later seemed to be tied to something significant. "Senior Brother, what’s wrong? Can you tell me about it?" Su Chen looked at Chang Zhichun with unprecedented seriousness. Chang Zhichun sighed, "The struggles between orthodox sects have never ceased for many years. Our Carefree Sect has been backed by the Celestial Peak Sect, hence we have remained at the top of the seven major sects. However, in recent years, other sects have greatly increased in strength, while our Carefree Sect hasn’t produced any outstanding figures. Though we still far surpass them in reputation, in reality, we’ve already been surpassed and have become a low-tier sect. The other four orthodox sects have formed a united front, demanding a battle every eight years to decide which of the seven major sects will lead, so the master is anxious to descend and seek disciples of exceptional talent." "But senior brother, can’t you represent the sect in battle? In eight years, your strength will be greater, at least a hundred times better than mine, right?" "Haha, you don’t understand." Chang Zhichun said helplessly, "Our generation of senior brothers are already nearing thirty, and if we don’t seek better cultivation techniques or skills, we may forever stagnate. So, four years later, all of us senior brothers will leave here for the Celestial Peak Sect..." Su Chen was taken aback, finally understanding Chang Zhichun’s concerns. Eight years from now, his group would be the exceptional disciples of the Carefree Sect. The senior brothers were headed to the Celestial Peak Sect for advanced cultivation, and naturally couldn’t represent the sect in battle. Thus, they had to do their utmost to train the geniuses among this batch to face the challenges from other sects! Seeing the excitement in Su Chen’s expression, Chang Zhichun knew his speech had hit home. He seized the moment to add, "The pride and honor of the sect rest on your shoulders, Su Chen. From this moment, you must prepare for the battle eight years later." Su Chen’s still somewhat youthful face carried an adult-like thoughtful expression, which amused Chang Zhichun greatly, but he held back his amusement. Finally, Su Chen seemed to understand something, his eyes shining as he looked at Chang Zhichun and said, "Senior Brother, I will try my best, rest assured." Chang Zhichun laughed and patted Su Chen’s shoulder, "Now I can be at ease. The master has always valued reputation highly, and if the position of the leader of the seven major sects is taken away, he would probably be very upset." Su Chen also laughed, though there was an expression in that laughter that Chang Zhichun could not comprehend. "Su Chen, just now when I mentioned Master Artisan Elder Ling, your expression seemed very curious." Chang Zhichun changed the topic. Su Chen nodded slightly, "Senior Brother, is the Master Artisan a profession specialized in forging weapons, and who is this Elder Ling?" Chang Zhichun stood up slowly, gently brushing off the dust from his body, pulling Su Chen along, and said with a smile, "Come on, let’s talk as we walk." Su Chen hummed in agreement, then walked with Chang Zhichun towards the direction of the dining hall. Unnoticed, it had passed lunchtime. From afar, only some disciples of the Carefree Sect were still eating in the dining hall, but Chang Zhichun led Su Chen without entering the dining hall. They walked through a secluded winding path opposite the dining hall, reaching a strange and serene place. Su Chen looked around and found the environment here to be elegant, especially with the few towering pagoda-like buildings among the green trees and red flowers, a small bridge with flowing water, the calls of birds and insects, with red flowers and green willows, it was beautiful like a fairyland on earth. The only thing puzzling was that there was not a single disciple of the Carefree Sect in such a beautiful place. "Senior Brother, what is this place?" Su Chen asked, looking up. Chang Zhichun led him across the quaint, elegant arched bridge, with a relaxed smile on his face, "This is the most important place of our Carefree Sect, you could call it ’Hundred Treasures Garden’ or ’Flowing Water Fairyland’." "Hundred Treasures Garden? Flowing Water Fairyland?" Su Chen was at a loss. "Haha, weren’t you curious about Elder Ling earlier? I’ll take you to meet him now." Chang Zhichun suddenly said, surprising Su Chen! "Go now? But I..." Su Chen hesitated. "The white-topped tower ahead is called ’Sword Casting Pavilion’, it’s Elder Ling’s exclusive territory. Once inside, no one may touch his belongings without his consent." Chang Zhichun had begun to instruct. Su Chen could only nod helplessly, but his heart was filled with a bit of anxiety. For this Elder Ling, whom even senior brother referred to respectfully, must hold a high status in the Carefree Sect. Judging by the swords he forged, his skill seemed to have reached unparalleled heights. But why hadn’t he heard of his name while in Iron Stone City? The two walked through a clean winding path to the front of the Sword Casting Pavilion. Su Chen looked up at the magnificent pagoda, at least seven stories tall, feeling a sense of awe. This Sword Casting Pavilion must be at least thirty or forty meters tall, but why does a weapon forging tower have to be so high? Chang Zhichun gave him a meaningful look and stepped into the slightly dim first floor of the Sword Casting Pavilion. Upon entering the Sword Casting Pavilion, Su Chen realized how completely different it was from outside. The light inside was very dim, the temperature was much higher than outside, and there was also the unpleasant smell of iron and rust. Many weapon forging materials were scattered messily on the ground, including Red Iron Stone, yellow copper ore, Fire Pattern Jade, Hao Ying Stone, as well as many things Su Chen had never seen. On the surrounding walls hung various styles of weapons: steel axes, longswords, and heavy hammers. At the center of these items was a huge flame-spouting furnace, next to which was a bellows. A tall, bare-chested, sweat-drenched man with fiery red curly hair was facing away from Su Chen, arduously working the over two-meter-long bellows. His strength was astonishing; with each pull and push, the bellows emitted a whooshing sound, the flame in the furnace burned fiercely, its momentum intimidating. "Elder Ling, Zhichun is here to pay his respects." Chang Zhichun stood with hands behind his back, courteous and respectful. Elder Ling? Su Chen’s heart skipped a beat. This tall and burly man was Elder Ling? When the curly-haired man turned around, Su Chen realized he had been deceived by appearances. The man’s face was cold and indifferent, his expression firm yet unable to hide the marks of time. Wrinkles carved traces of vicissitudes on his face, making his dark red skin look like gathered red fabric. His gaze was cold as he looked at Chang Zhichun, but his voice was thunderous, buzzing, "What brings you here?" "Elder Ling, this child is named Su Chen, carefully selected by the master this time. He is only eight years old, yet he already has Spirit Beast lineage and has mastered two low-level wind skills." Watching Chang Zhichun, Su Chen felt he was respectfully reporting something to the master. With a solemn face, Elder Ling looked at Su Chen, his eyes seemingly burning with flames. To Su Chen’s astonishment, his eyes were red! "Eight years old? Humph, didn’t your master recommend genius children of this age before, but what happened later?" As he spoke, he turned around and continued to work the bellows by himself? Su Chen was startled; Elder Ling seemed to have a disdainful attitude towards him, what was going on? Chang Zhichun was not angry or impatient; he laughed and said, "Elder Ling, the master values reputation as his life. You also know that he has been searching for gifted children all these years, just so that there can be victory eight years later. Now, Su Chen is his last hope, so please help the master again."