After leaving Juntianfu City, we didn't walk far before we saw farmland and trees outside. The sound of birds singing in the lush green gradually drowned out the hustle and bustle of the city.
Unlike the busy waterways in Chunhui Prefecture, the scale of the farmland outside Juntian Prefecture was also quite spectacular, even though Ji Yuan could only see it vaguely.
The name Yuanzi River always reminded Ji Yuan of the garden shop in Chunhui Mansion and the unforgettable taste of Qianrichun. He would take out the wine bottle and take a sip from time to time. As he walked, he arrived at the bank of Yuanzi River.
This is a clear stream. In the distance there are some houses built by the river. The settlement is not large, with only about twenty households, making it difficult for Ji Yuan to tell whether this is a village or something else.
After walking slowly at a normal speed for about a quarter of an hour, we approached the residential areas and could clearly hear the sound of forging in the blacksmith shop.
There was only one blacksmith shop by the Yuanzi River near the city. Ji Yuan didn't need to ask for directions and just followed the sound to find it.
“Ding ding ding…” “Dang…Dang…Dang…”
The forging sounds were quite dense, and it sounded like there was definitely more than one blacksmith. A quick look at the size of the blacksmith shop revealed that there were four forging rooms alone. The metal and charcoal fire created an even hotter feeling during these dog days of summer.
Ji Yuan finally came to his senses and realized that the houses around here were actually the homes of these craftsmen.
While thinking about some trivial matters and what he should say later, he saw a muscular master chef lying shirtless on a recliner and fanning himself in the outermost room which was filled with farm tools and knives. Ji Yuan walked quickly forward and tried to ask him.
"Master craftsman, can you forge swords?"
The master chef fanned himself and looked up at Ji Yuan, a gentleman in a long blue robe. His gaze then stayed on the stick-like object on his back for a moment.
"If your sword is broken, our Yan's shop can help you repair it. It is guaranteed to be good for use after repair and will not be worse than the original one. If you want to forge a new sword, that is not possible. We cannot do it."
"Oh~~ What if I make a scabbard?"
The craftsman sat up from the recliner and put the fan aside.
"That's fine. We can make wooden or leather sheaths. As long as you are good at it, we can also make iron sheaths. If you can afford it, we can make copper or silver sheaths. Which one do you want, sir?"
"Just a wooden scabbard. No elaborate carving required. Just plain and durable."
The craftsman stood up.
"Okay, I'll take you to another place to measure the width, length, and weight of the sword, and then choose the wood."
Ji Yuan nodded and followed, and together with the craftsman, he came to another room with front and back open. Through the open front and back doors, he could see the busy blacksmithing scene in the back.
There were two shirtless masters sitting in the room drinking water and taking a rest. Although they looked to be over 60 years old, they had quite a lot of muscles on their bodies.
"Sir, please take off your sword and let me see it."
Ji Yuan glanced at the two old craftsmen, untied the long sword wrapped in cloth and placed it on the table inside the house, then removed the green cloth, revealing the full appearance of the Qingteng Sword.
Although the blade of the Green Ivy Sword is no longer rusty at this moment, it is still not translucent. The overall restrained feeling is only revealed in the blade, and the hilt is even more peculiar. Not only does it have no guard, but it is actually like a green vine, and yet it is perfectly entwined and integrated with the sword.
The craftsman couldn't help but stretch out his hand to touch the vine on the hilt. Before his fingers touched it, he felt a tingling and numb sensation, which made him feel strange and afraid to touch the sword.
Suppressing the ridiculous panic in his heart, the craftsman reached out and touched the hilt of the sword. Fortunately, nothing happened, but the touch of the hilt was like tender green vine, flexible and cool.
The two masters who were originally resting nearby stood up and came over to look at the sword with curiosity.
"Sir...what's the name of your sword?"
Ji Yuan gave a seemingly casual smile and spoke in a calm voice.
"This sword does have some history. It was forged in the Yan family shop about eighty years ago..."
Having said this, Ji Yuan paused for a moment, his smile becoming unfathomable. In order to allow the many craftsmen in front and behind to hear him, he spoke again with a hint of special power in his voice.
"Sword name, Qingying!"
For a moment, the noisy sounds of blacksmithing in the Yan family shop stopped.
Ji Yuan just looked at the strong figures in the forging room at the back, and then looked closely at the expressions of the two old men in the room.
"Uh... hehe... what a good name, what a good name. Perhaps it was coined by a master craftsman from our great-grandfather's generation."
The middle-aged craftsman smiled awkwardly and took out a ruler to measure the sword, while the two old masters sat back down, but they couldn't help but look at the sword again and again. The sound of blacksmithing in the backyard had not been heard for a long time, and Ji Yuan could hear some subtle discussions.
"Master craftsman, have you never heard of this sword's name?"
Ji Yuan asked with a smile.
"I've never heard of it, but since you said it was made in this way, maybe it's true. You see, the utensils made in our shop are strong and durable. They still look good after 80 years..."
Listening to the middle-aged craftsman gradually recovering from his embarrassment and speaking fluently, Ji Yuan felt that perhaps they had misunderstood something again. It seemed that nothing would change unless he revealed something. Perhaps a white lie would be better.
"Oh, indeed. Eighty years is too long. You have all forgotten that even though this was once Zuo Li's weapon..."
When the word Zuo Li was mentioned, Ji Yuan could clearly feel the middle-aged craftsman's hand holding the ruler trembled slightly, but Ji Yuan had not finished speaking.
"But even if you forget, it won't forget, right?"
The "it" that Ji Yuan was referring to was actually the long sword on the table, and at the same moment the words fell.
“Buzz~~~”
The sound of the long sword on the table suddenly rang out, causing a slight tinnitus.
"Click... click..."
The wooden ruler in the middle-aged craftsman's hand broke into pieces due to the sharp edge, and the craftsman was so frightened that he quickly retracted his hand.
"Everyone, I am not an enemy of the Zuo family, nor am I spying on anyone. It's just that Zuo Li has done me a favor, and I am not someone who doesn't repay a favor, so I want to know if there are any descendants of the Zuo family alive, so that I can do my best to help."
An old craftsman stood up and looked at the Qingteng sword on the table, suppressed the shock in his heart and spoke in a decisive tone.
"Since you have obtained the long sword Qingying, you must have also obtained the secret manual of Zuo Jianxian. Why are you still looking for the descendants of the Zuo family? The Zuo family has implicated our Yan family enough. Anyway, we don't know whether they are all dead or not. It's better if they are not dead and have nothing to do with us!"
"That's right. It can be seen that your martial arts skills are unfathomable. The move you just made is beyond our imagination. We dare not hide it from you. The Zuo family must be wiped out!"
The middle-aged craftsman also said the same thing.
"That's right, the Zuo family should have died long ago!" "Yes, they must have all died!"
"Anyway, it has nothing to do with our Yan's shop!" "Right..."
…
A group of blacksmiths and apprentices who had gathered together at some point were shouting outside the house. Everyone was filled with righteous indignation. It seemed that they were all members of the Yan family, and the atmosphere was quite tense.
Ji Yuan was silent for a while, and suddenly laughed out loud.
“Hahahahahahaha…”
He looked around at the people around him, and a clear and upright voice rang out.
"No wonder the Zuo family was so close to your Yan family back then. Decades have passed, and you are still protecting the Zuo family bloodline. This is admirable!"
After Ji Yuan said this seemingly incomprehensible sentence, he solemnly bowed to all the Yan family blacksmiths around him, which made many people stunned, surprised and a little uneasy.
"Don't worry, I am not a fame-seeking person, and I certainly don't want to get anything from the Zuo family..."
As he said this with a smile, Ji Yuan couldn't help but smile in his heart. He didn't expect that there would be a time when he would need to borrow the immortal cultivation contempt chain. After this change of thought, he continued to speak.
"Mortal martial arts don't mean much to me. I'm looking for the descendants of the Zuo family just to give Zuo Li an explanation that's decades late."
As these words, which aroused some speculation and suspicion, came to light, the Qingteng sword on the table floated up and revolved around Ji Yuan like a living thing. Finally, the tip of the sword pointed downwards and floated in front of Ji Yuan.
“Buzz~~~~”
The sword body not only makes a long sound, but also shines with brilliance, and the sound has ups and downs, as if the sword is telling the mood.
The others were either stunned or clutching their trouser legs. Everyone held their breath and was speechless. They had only one common thought in their minds:
"Sword! Immortal!"