Chapter 33: The Tayal Blade (2)

"Actually, the Tayyar Blade can be improved further. In the future, I'll study the Sword Forging Chapter and craft you a true artifact," Ye Lang said, eyeing the Tayyar Blade in Tiger Girl’s hand, still seeming somewhat dissatisfied.

If anyone else had heard this, they would have been overwhelmed with the urge to strangle him. This Tayyar Blade had consumed countless rare materials—it was a treasure many dreamed of, forged by the best craftsmen, so costly that even royalty might shy away from its price. Even among the royals, possessing such a weapon was not guaranteed.

Yet he had crafted such a weapon for “his slave girl.” Truly, he lived up to his reputation as a prodigal son.

That aside, what drove people even crazier was his apparent disdain for the weapon’s quality. Such words would drive anyone to madness.

As for the so-called Sword Forging Chapter, it was not a product of the Martial Treasury but a technology of this world, recorded in Ban’s Alchemy Notes. It involved using alchemy to forge or refine weapons. Naturally, the Martial Treasury contained related texts as well, and Ye Lang blended those with his own knowledge, merging them into an entirely new skill.

However, this would take time. At present, he lacked the ability. Perhaps in a few years he would succeed, or perhaps it would take longer.

"It’s already excellent. I already love it," Tiger Girl said, gently stroking the Tayyar Blade, completely satisfied.

...

Stab, thrust, chop, slash...

Tiger Girl gripped the Tayyar Blade, practicing various movements in the courtyard. The unfamiliar weapon whirled in her hands with ferocious might, sending waves of energy radiating in all directions.

...

"Turning Lance!"

Tiger Girl spun, swinging the Tayyar Blade in a beautiful arc, stabbing fiercely behind her. The long blade, enveloped in powerful battle energy, cut through the air.

Clap, clap...

Applause rang out. Tiger Girl looked up to see Ye Lang standing right in front of her. She had been so absorbed in practice she hadn’t noticed him come out.

"Young master, you’re awake? I’ll attend to you at once..." Tiger Girl hurriedly sheathed the Tayyar Blade, her habits making her a little flustered.

"No need. I’ve already washed my face and had breakfast. Keep practicing. Your Turning Lance technique is becoming more and more refined. Even without a spearhead, it could kill a man," Ye Lang said with a smile.

In truth, Tiger Girl had already prepared everything. All Ye Lang had to do was pick up his chopsticks to eat and his towel to wash his face. If that wasn’t enough, he might as well be put out of his misery.

"Thank you, young master," Tiger Girl replied out of habit. Yet in her heart, there was a question that had always gone unanswered—

She wondered why the young master always said that even without a spearhead, the technique could kill. It was simple: just add a little battle energy, and even without mastery, it could still be fatal.

Afterward, Ye Lang pulled out a pile of reference books and continued his study of alchemy. He was becoming ever more fascinated, discovering all sorts of interesting things.

Alchemy was not limited to combat; it could be applied in many fields. For instance, he was currently focused on the Sword Forging Chapter. By using transmutation arrays from alchemy, he could forge a weapon without the need for a furnace. With enough mastery, the results could even surpass those of ordinary forging.

Moreover, the process was much faster than traditional smithing. The only drawback was the need for advanced alchemical skills and enormous amounts of energy—energy which any one person could wield only in limited supply.

By the same principle, if one could forge weapons, one could forge other objects as well.

This was but one example; there were many other fascinating applications. Especially after Ye Lang combined the Martial Treasury’s knowledge with alchemy, the results were like a chemical reaction—yielding unexpected and marvelous outcomes.

Foremost among these were the Mystical Arrays and Elixir Crafting!

Mystical Arrays were a small branch of the mysterious Qimen Dunjia arts, which themselves could consume a lifetime of study. The whole corpus of Qimen Dunjia was even more vast and profound.

Modern scholars have explained that Qimen Dunjia is a classic of the Chinese people, the foremost secret among the three great mystical arts—Qimen, Liu Ren, and Taiyi. It represents the highest level of divination in the Book of Changes, known as the Emperor’s Art and the science of seizing the creative power of nature. It is also a scientific masterpiece on the movements of celestial bodies, humanity, and the earth itself. The earth’s magnetic field is concealed within Qimen Dunjia, allowing it to reveal the most subtle and accurate natural laws governing the changes in the universe.

Many are familiar with the nine-word incantation, which is actually the Qimen Nine-Character Formula, not a Buddhist chant. One could spend years delving into just that alone—there is simply too much contained within.

For this reason, Ye Lang’s study of Qimen Dunjia had only scratched the surface, yet even this had proved endlessly beneficial.

As for Elixir Crafting, it was truly the stuff of legend and bore remarkable similarities to many aspects of alchemy. Gunpowder, for example, was a product of elixir techniques, as was the legendary elixir of immortality.

What might result from the fusion of these two arts could only be awaited with anticipation.

For now, Ye Lang’s goal was to integrate all the knowledge recorded in the Martial Treasury into this world. This would require a great deal of time and endless experimentation.

Of course, he did not dismiss this world’s own knowledge. On the contrary, to fuse foreign knowledge successfully, he diligently sought to understand this world’s lore more deeply. Only through complete understanding could he merge the two.

His background afforded him the luxury of time, energy, and wealth, allowing him to experiment without care. Coupled with his original training in alchemy, he could pursue his research without anyone’s awareness.

Unless he revealed himself, no one could guess the extent of his alchemical abilities or his true talents.

Time slipped by quietly. The two of them carried on—one absorbed in books, utterly silent, the other brandishing a long-handled weapon, her movements like thunder and storm.

Tiger Girl’s speed grew ever faster, until her figure became almost impossible to discern, the courtyard filled with afterimages of the Tayyar Blade and the force of her energy.

Despite the abundance of blade shadows, her techniques remained simple. The complexity was merely an effect of her speed; she swung the Tayyar Blade so swiftly it left trailing afterimages.

These afterimages were one criterion for judging a martial artist’s strength. Achieving this meant stepping into the Human Rank of mastery—albeit only the entry level, categorized as the fifth degree of Human Rank.

—from "Peerless King in Another World"