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Chapter 36 - Ol’ Wang Blows His Top
Setting aside his status as Wen Changjing’s son, as the leading figure of the Wen Family’s younger generation, Wen Jueyuan’s pride wasn’t unfounded.
At nine, he entered Pinecloud Sword Manor to begin his cultivation, becoming the man of the hour, a child prodigy. At thirteen, he’d smoothly joined Blueriver Sword Manor as an outer sect disciple. After just four years, he’d been chosen to enter the inner sect, and he was ranked near the top.
Today, his cultivation had already reached the peak of the Blood Circulation Realm, the Refining Bone stage. This level of accomplishment in the Martial Dao was enough to make even some of Guangling City’s major powers sigh over their own inferiority!
How could someone like him possibly take a live-in son-in-law like Su Yi seriously?
He disdained to pay a spoiled hoodlum like Huang Qianjun any heed, much less Su Yi.
“Birds of a feather? What an apt description!” Wen Shaobei and the other Wen Family youths burst into laughter. With Wen Jueyuan to back them up, they weren’t the least bit afraid of Huang Qianjun despite this being the Huang Family’s smithy.
“Wen Jueyuan, who do you think you’re insulting?” Huang Qianjun glared viciously.
“What, did I say something wrong?” Wen Jueyuan looked at him coldly. “Who in Guangling City doesn’t know that you’re nothing but a delinquent silkpants? Who doesn’t know that Su Yi is nothing but the live-in son-in-law everyone makes fun of?”
“You….” Huang Qianjun’s eyes went bloodshot.
But Wen Jueyuan merely laughed. “The curtain opens on the next ‘Dragon’s Gate Banquet” in just two weeks. I plan to participate. Young Master Huang, if you’re really so capable, why not join in the fun and show me what you’ve got?”
As soon as he said this, the surrounding area burst into uproar.
“We’re finished! With someone like Wen Jueyuan participating, there’s no way the likes of us can stand out!”
“Don’t despair. We just have to put on a good showing. As for first place…. Only people like Wen Jueyuan are qualified to vie for it anyway.”
The youths in line to buy weapons were all chatting amongst themselves, Wen Jueyuan the focus of their conversations.
They all got the sense that this year, the Dragon’s Gate Banquet’s championship might very well fall to him!
From this, it was clear just how lofty Wen Jueyuan’s status amongst Guangling City’s younger generation was.
Listening to the crowd’s chatter filled the Wen Family youths with pride. They puffed up on their chests and held their heads up high.
Huang Qianjun’s face was ashen, and his expression shifted back and forth. However, before he could say anything, Wen Jueyuan beat him to the punch. “Don’t waste words. If you’ve got guts, let’s meet at the Dragon’s Gate Banquet!”
With that, he turned and led the Wen Family youths away, ignoring Su Yi completely; he disdained competing with a mere cripple like him. The moment he did, others would mock him for bullying the weak.
Besides, how could bullying a live-in son-in-law give him any sense of accomplishment?
Huang Qianjun watched Wen Jueyuan and his posse leave. He clenched his fist and pursed his lips, his face ashen and expression unsightly.
“It hurts, doesn’t it?” Su Yi glanced at the young silkpants.
Huang Qianjun took a deep breath and nodded. Suddenly, as if he’d only just realized something, he said dazedly, “Brother Su, you… What about you? You aren’t angry at all?”
He was confused. During their first encounter at the Immortal Gathering House, Su Yi had easily defeated all of his subordinates.
That level of power was in no way ordinary!
Furthermore, with Su Yi’s network, he could make even Huang Yunchong lower his head in submission.
So how could Su Yi just let this go?
“He’s nothing but an ant clamoring for attention,” said Su Yi lightly. “If he managed to make me angry, I’d actually think better of him. Unfortunately, he’s not worthy.”
Huang Qianjun was stunned; he obviously couldn’t understand.
Su Yi couldn’t be bothered to explain any further, either.
But there was one thing he left unsaid; when someone stood against him, no matter who they were, things wouldn’t end well for them.
This minor interlude passed quickly.
Within the swordsmith’s forge, before a blazing furnace.
Huang Qianjun had led Su Yi straight to the famed master swordsmith Wang Tianyang.
Wang Tianyang’s hair was so sparse, he was practically bald, and he was gaunt with copper-colored skin. He gripped a hammer in one hand, and was currently forging a red-hot, unfinished sword.
Sparks scattered in all directions, lighting up the room.
“Sir, my friend is here. Is there any chance you might do me a favor and forge him a sword?” Huang Qianjun stood off to the side, smiling and humbly clasping his fist.
However, Wang Tianyang ignored him completely. He simply continued hammering away at the sword he was working on. The sound of clanging metal filled the air, and some of the sparks almost landed on Huang Qianjun.
Realizing that he’d been ignored, Huang Qianjun laughed awkwardly, then turned to Su Yi and whispered, “Brother Su, Elder Wang has always been like this. Please, don’t take offense.”
“Let him finish what he’s doing first,” said Su Yi. “For now, lead me to look at the materials. I need to decide what’s going into my sword.”
Huang Qianjun hurriedly nodded.
The swordsmith’s forge naturally had no shortage of materials for crafting weapons, including a few rare and precious metals.
After seeing everything they had available, Su Yi couldn’t help but sink into silence. Even the best-regarded, expensive materials were still just ordinary materials.
“You’re not satisfied, Brother Su? This is the best smithy in Guangling City. If you can’t find anything you like, you’ll probably have to go to the Cloudriver Prefectural Capital to find something better,” explained Huang Qianjun.
Su Yi neither confirmed nor denied it. “Go get my materials ready. I need thirty catties of Bluelight Cold Iron, a catty of Blazing Red Copper Powder, five catties of Purified Profound Ice Water…..”
He requested more than ten ingredients in total. Some were valuable, while others were ordinary.
Huang Qianjun wrote them down, then ordered some of the smithy’s servants to prepare them. Meanwhile, he led Su Yi back to Wang Tianyang’s forge.
Wang Tianyang had finished the sword he was working on, and he was currently reclining in a wicker chair. A servant stood beside him, pouring him water and tea.
“Sir….”
But just as Huang Qianjun started to speak, Wang Tianyang cut him off. “I already forged a sword today, and I’ve exhausted most of my energy. Come back in three days.”
As he spoke, he raised his teacup to his lips and sipped leisurely.
Huang Qianjun’s expression flickered back and forth. He’d invited Su Yi here personally, only to get refused, and in his own family’s territory! How was he supposed to face Su Yi now?
He took a deep breath, then said, “Sir, my father said that anything Brother Su needs is to be completed posthaste. You—”
He tried to argue, only for Wang Tianyang to interrupt him once more. “Then have your father forge him a sword,” he said irritably. “I certainly have no time to spare serving your ‘Brother Su’.”
Su Yi was standing right there in plain sight, but Wang Tianyang wasn’t the least bit polite, nor was he the least bit concerned when Huang Qianjun brought up Huang Yunchong. This level of arrogance was extraordinary.
It was then that a group of servants arrived, lugging a gigantic box. “Young Master, we’ve finished preparing the materials you requested.”
When he saw this, Wang Tianyang immediately lost his temper. He roared, “Who told you to bring those in here? I’ve spent the past two weeks doing nothing but forging swords. I planned to have myself a nice rest, then find a brothel and burn off steam, only for you dim-wits to show up and cause trouble. You put that stuff right back where it came from!”
He was so mad, he rose from his wicker chair and flung his teacup to the ground.
Ah, so he’s in a rush to find a brothel…. Huang Qianjun instantly understood. For someone as hearty and vigorous as Wang Tianyang, being pent up for two weeks was indeed hard to bear.
Suddenly, a bold idea occurred to him. Why not introduce Elder Wang to that ‘Nong’ character Brother Su taught me? It might help take the edge off his immediate need?
“Wait.” When he saw the servants prepare to return the materials, Su Yi spoke up. “I wasn’t planning to have someone else forge my sword anyway.”
When they heard this, both Huang Qianjun and Wang Tianyang were stunned.
“Might you lend me your forge?” Su Yi glanced at the nearby furnace.
“Of course he can,” said Huang Qianjun immediately. “But…. Brother Su, are you planning to forge your sword yourself?”
Su Yi nodded. “That’s right.”
As a sword cultivator, the swords that suited him best were those he made himself. Only then could he fully realize his Sword Dao.
“Oh? Kid, are you just here to cause trouble?” Wang Tianyang laughed coldly, his gaze disdainful.
A boy whose breath still reeked of his mothers milk planned to forge a sword right in front of him? This provocation was far too much!
“Sir, please don’t misunderstand! How could my Brother Su want to do something like that? He’s just….” Huang Qianjun trailed off, uncertain of how to explain.
He really hadn’t known that Su Yi planned to forge his own weapon.
Wang Tianyang was like a riled-up rooster; Su Yi’s declaration had triggered his competitive spirit.
“No need to explain,” he shouted. “He’s already at my doorstep. How could I possibly ignore such provocation? If I let this go and word got out, won’t the martial artists of Guangling City think I'm afraid of him?”
As he spoke, he pointed to the furnace and fixed his gaze on Su Yi. “Use the furnace as you please,” he said haughtily. “Is there anything else you need? I’ll satisfy your every request, so if you’ve got skill, make sure you show me everything you’ve got!”
Su Yi pondered for a moment, then said, “The fire isn’t vigorous enough. How about you man the bellows?”
This request caught Wang Tianyang completely off guard. Despite himself, he was dazed. When he came back to his senses, he pointed at himself in disbelief. “You… You want to make me….. Man the bellows for you?”
The atmosphere instantly grew tense. The nearby servants gasped; it was clear that Old Man Wang Tianyang was angry.
Huang Qianjun was frantic, but just as he was about to try and smooth things over, he saw Su Yi nod, as if his request were perfectly natural. “You’re the best swordsmith in Guangling City, so naturally, you have the best control over the furnace's temperatures. If you man the bellows, it’s unlikely anything will go wrong while I forge my sword.”
Huang Qianjun’s mind went blank. A grandmaster swordsmith! Yet Brother Su wants him to… man the bellows? ….the hell?
When he looked at Wang Tianyang, he saw the smith’s chest heaving violently, his coppery skin flushed red. It was clear that he’d blown his top.
“Sir, please don’t be angry!” Huang Qianjun hurriedly tried to soothe him.
Wang Tianyang gnashed his teeth and swept his arm. “Out of the way! This old man’s been forging swords for forty years. What winds and rain haven’t I seen before? A little provocation is not enough to stop me!”
It’s just manning the bellows, right? Fine, I’ll do it!” His gaze then landed on the servants.
“Go on,” he ordered. “Have the other swordsmiths set aside their work and come on over. Let’s see what this troublemaker can do!”
This is bad! Huang Qianjun cried out inwardly. He plans to make this blow up!
But when he looked at Su Yi, he saw that his expression was as calm as ever. He couldn’t help but recall what happened yesterday at the Apricot Clinic. Scenes of Su Yi displaying his attainments in medicine replayed through his mind.