Chapter Forty-Seven: Return to the Mountain

Seeing that the magical artifact had already taken shape, Zhang Xiao withdrew his pill fire, knowing well how much it depleted him. Once his fire was gone, the avatar spat forth a ball of Buddhist flame, enveloping the entire Demon-Subduing Staff. The staff, forged from Mountain Crystal Stone, was already supremely hard, and after tempering with Buddhist flame, it would be even more resilient. Yet, a proverb flashed through Zhang Xiao’s mind: “Too rigid breaks easily.” He had the avatar put away the Buddhist flame and replaced it with his own Pill Fire of Extreme Yin, refining the staff in shifts—yin and yang alternating every fifteen minutes. Seven days passed before the Demon-Subduing Staff was finally complete.

Zhang Xiao weighed the staff in his hand. Though it appeared transparent, like a work of art made of glass, it was at least a thousand pounds heavy. Just its weight alone was enough to shatter most magical artifacts. Since he hadn't named it yet, he couldn't check its properties. After a moment’s thought, Zhang Xiao said, “Let’s call it the Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff.” The avatar, however, was unsatisfied with the name. “The words ‘Demon-Subduing Staff’ carry too much murderous intent. How about—” “Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff!” Zhang Xiao interrupted firmly, cutting off the avatar and settling the matter. Although the avatar and he were one, their mentalities diverged: the avatar, cultivated purely in Buddhist ways, always spoke of compassion and mercy, and would surely have chosen names like Compassion Staff or Mercy Staff.

Once Zhang Xiao had named it, the staff in his hand flashed crystal light, and a line of golden characters appeared on its shaft: Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff. Zhang Xiao glanced at its attributes and was utterly impressed by himself:

Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff: Seventh-grade magical artifact. When used by one cultivating yang attributes, it is accompanied by Buddhist flame and golden lotus. Usage requires strength of 700 and cultivation of extreme yang attribute. Thousand-pound strike, nothing withstands its blow.

Zhang Xiao hadn’t expected his first attempt at crafting a magical artifact to result in a seventh-grade one, and all through his own wild speculation. Truly remarkable. The avatar took the staff, indifferent to its name but delighted with the artifact itself, and went aside to begin refining it. Zhang Xiao didn’t mind; since he and his avatar shared the same origin, whoever refined it, both could use it.

Watching the avatar wield such a fine weapon, Zhang Xiao himself felt a twinge of longing to forge another artifact. But after a moment’s reflection, he abandoned the idea. First, time was short—the forging of the Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff had already taken ten days. Once the avatar finished refining it, Zhang Xiao would have to return to the mountain at once. Second, there was the matter of materials. Though he had two top-grade stones—one of Extreme Yin and one of Extreme Yang—he wasn’t sure how to refine them to maximize their power. If he made a mess of it, he’d regret it sorely. Best to consult his master, Ling Daoist, back at the sect. The next few days, the avatar remained in closed-door cultivation, refining the artifact. Zhang Xiao, meanwhile, enjoyed leisure, stabilizing his cultivation and drinking wine with Xia Cheng and Xia Tan. At this point, Xia Tan’s cultivation was nearly at the threshold of the Golden Core stage, and Xia Cheng had entered the Foundation Establishment stage.

With their strength greatly increased, the two could enter the inner sect at any time. But neither wished to—after all, Zhang Xiao had nothing to do with inner sect affairs, and couldn't look after them, plus the inner sect lacked the freedom of the outer. Zhang Xiao agreed with their choice.

After all, his slaughter at the teleportation array—killing more than ten people—had surely earned the resentment or anger of the inner sect disciples. Under such circumstances, Xia Tan and Xia Cheng entering the inner sect would clearly not be wise. One day, as Zhang Xiao and Xia Cheng were drinking, a sudden crash echoed from the backyard. Xia Tan startled and rose to his feet, but Zhang Xiao held him back: it was just the avatar testing the power of the newly refined Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff. As for the outcome, Zhang Xiao, sharing a mind with his avatar, knew it all.

Smiling, Zhang Xiao raised his cup to Xia Tan and Xia Cheng. “The Grand Competition of the Nine Sects is nigh. Now that all is ready, it’s time for me to return to the mountain. Take care.” He drained his cup in one gulp. The avatar turned to golden light and flew from the backyard, merging into Zhang Xiao’s brow.

Xia Cheng, knowing Zhang Xiao’s temperament, didn’t try to persuade him to stay, but laughed, “Do your best—when you return as the champion of the Nine Sects, I’ll prepare a banquet for you!” Zhang Xiao smiled, “Agreed.” Xia Tan, less optimistic, was worried. “Don’t be careless. The Nine Sects gather many experts—you never know if there’s someone stronger than you. Be cautious.” Zhang Xiao nodded solemnly, bade the two farewell, and strode into the teleportation array.

At the foot of Mount Mao, the teleportation array suddenly lit up. A figure stepped out. The disciples guarding the array saw who it was, and their faces changed dramatically: Zhang Xiao. More than ten disciples present didn’t dare to breathe, standing quietly for fear of angering the notorious man who had slaughtered inner sect members. Zhang Xiao ignored them, using Divine Footsteps to head for the Pavilion of a Thousand Mechanisms. Along the way, he noticed that what had once been a bustling mountain gate was now nearly deserted.

He stopped a disciple to ask why, and learned that most were cultivating in the back mountains. Relieved, Zhang Xiao thought, “That startled me—I thought I was late.”

“Senior brother, it’s been a year since we last met, and your cultivation has grown even deeper.” As Zhang Xiao arrived at the Pavilion of a Thousand Mechanisms, he saw the young Taoist Qing Song sweeping outside.

Zhang Xiao laughed, “What, even the cleaning falls to you now?” Qing Song tossed the broom aside and smiled, “Almost all the disciples are cultivating in the back mountain, so menial chores fall to me. But senior brother, you’ve been away a year—you missed a great opportunity.”

“A great opportunity?” Zhang Xiao was puzzled.

“Yes, the headmaster opened a training ground in the back mountain where the spiritual energy is almost visible to the naked eye. One day’s cultivation there is worth ten days elsewhere. Such opportunities are rare, and after the competition, that place will be sealed.”

Zhang Xiao nodded and smiled, unconcerned. His journey had brought him immense progress: his strength had soared, he’d found Lan Fang, and the thorn in his heart had finally been removed. That was the greatest improvement.

“Senior brother, what realm are you in now? Take off the Heaven Concealing Ring and let me see.” Zhang Xiao wore the secret treasure given by the headmaster Kong Xuan, the Heaven Concealing Ring, so Qing Song couldn’t discern his cultivation and worried that Zhang Xiao’s year away had left him behind. Zhang Xiao, knowing Qing Song’s nature and trusting him, had nothing to hide. Removing the ring, the aura of the Golden Core stage surged from his body. Qing Song patted his chest in relief, “Good, good—at least you’re not overtaken by that fool Wang Yanbo.” Hearing Wang Yanbo mentioned, Zhang Xiao’s interest was piqued. “He reached the Golden Core stage too?” Qing Song nodded, but before he could speak, a voice rang out from within the Pavilion: “You brat! You come back and don’t greet me first, standing at the door to show off your grandeur?”

When Zhang Xiao had removed the Heaven Concealing Ring, Ling Daoist had sensed the sudden appearance of a Golden Core cultivator’s presence at the door. Sweeping his divine sense, he saw it was Zhang Xiao.

Hearing his master’s voice, Zhang Xiao and Qing Song stuck out their tongues and hurried inside. Ling Daoist sat on a meditation cushion. Upon seeing Zhang Xiao, he said, “Hmph, you brat! Gone for nearly a year, causing trouble before you left—it fell to me to clean up after you!”

Zhang Xiao quickly bowed, “It was my mistake, Master. Sorry for troubling you.” Though Zhang Xiao’s slaughter of inner sect disciples had served as a token of allegiance to the headmaster Kong Xuan, without Ling Daoist’s intervention, the headmaster might still have punished him.

Ling Daoist’s gaze was sharp, examining Zhang Xiao closely. Zhang Xiao left the Heaven Concealing Ring off, letting his master inspect him; after all, he had nothing to hide. Ling Daoist studied Zhang Xiao’s brow and smiled with satisfaction. “Not bad. You managed to forge an avatar using a supreme treasure.” But at a closer look, his expression changed and he shook his head, sighing, “A waste, such a waste.” Zhang Xiao was puzzled.

Ling Daoist continued, “Let me see the Demon-Subduing Staff you crafted.” Zhang Xiao realized his master was referring to the staff as a waste and felt a bit indignant—it was a seventh-grade artifact, how could it be a waste? He summoned the Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff from his body. The dark crystal staff landed in Ling Daoist’s hand; though his arm appeared thin and frail, he wielded the staff as if it were a toy.

“You used Mountain Crystal Stone for this artifact, but your technique was too raw. You didn’t master the stone’s properties. Otherwise, this staff could have reached ninth-grade. Such a waste.” Ling Daoist handed Zhang Xiao a book of ancient lore. “This ‘Wonders of the World’ is yours. Read it carefully—it details the properties of Mountain Crystal Stone.”

Zhang Xiao opened the book and saw it catalogued many rare treasures of the world, each with precise descriptions of their traits and the techniques required for refining them. After a few pages, he found Mountain Crystal Stone: “Mountain Crystal Stone: Heart of the mountains. One piece born from a hundred thousand peaks. Grows an inch every century. When refining, use fierce fire—every day of forging increases its weight by ten pounds. Weapons made from it are unstoppable.”

Only then did Zhang Xiao realize all his previous assumptions were wrong. If he’d had the avatar use Buddhist flame for fierce forging, it would have been ideal. Instead, he’d tried to combine yin and yang, thinking to harmonize them, but now he was ashamed of his ignorance.

But the artifact was done, and even Ling Daoist couldn’t reforge it. Fortunately, he hadn’t rushed to refine the Extreme Yin Stone and Sun Stone, or his regret would have been even deeper. Ling Daoist handed back the Crystal Demon-Subduing Staff, and Zhang Xiao quickly said, “Master, I have two more questions I wish to ask for your guidance.”