Chapter 25 Chapter 25 [VIP]
That night, after saying goodbye to Master Wen, Ling Suye set off for Shangjing City as soon as the sky turned pale.
In addition to the luggage he packed, there were also two thin jade mirrors that Gu Xuanyou had made for him overnight, in case of emergency.
"I have made some slight changes to the talismans on these two thin mirrors. They should be clearer now. Master, have a safe journey." Gu Xuanyou escorted him all the way to the outskirts of Loulan City.
Ling Suye was riding on his horse and turned around to look at Gu Xuanyou who was standing not far away.
"Take care of yourself."
After a brief glance, he kicked the horse's belly, and the tall, dark brown horse immediately galloped wildly, kicking up clouds of dust. Soon, it turned a sand slope and disappeared from Gu Xuanyou's sight.
Gu Xuanyou felt as if his feet had taken root and he couldn't move at all.
"Haven't we known for a long time that we would be separated one day?" Gu Xuanyou told himself, "In fact, wasn't I actually hoping for separation from the beginning?"
But the fine yellow sand still narrowed his eyes, and a string of tears overflowed.
Gu Xuanyou closed his eyes and let the tears slide down his cheeks. Only when the sound of horse hooves completely disappeared did he force himself to walk into the city.
The further you go in, the more lively Loulan City becomes.
Fighting, brawling, snatching, robbery, collecting protection fees... are everywhere.
In the past, Ling Suye and Gu Xuanyou were together. Ling Suye looked thin and noble, as if he came from a noble family. Gu Xuanyou always held a sword in his arms, pretending to be a "thug", and he could actually scare away many people.
But today he had no intention of pretending, and he simply carried his sword behind his back.
Some ignorant scoundrels came forward and said with a chuckle, "Hey, why are you crying, beautiful lady? Do you want me to comfort you? Haha——"
The thug who spoke had not yet gotten three steps closer to Gu Xuanyou when he heard a sword being unsheathed with a "clang".
The gangster only felt a white flash in front of his eyes, as if something was passing by his eyeball as fast as lightning.
He was immediately frightened and broke out in a cold sweat.
But his feet were still rooted to the spot - it turns out that when people are extremely frightened, they cannot react at all.
When he came to his senses, he felt an itch on his cheek. He raised his hand and touched it, and found that it was short hair.
The gangster was still wondering what these hairs that were not even half the length of a fingernail were, and then he remembered the sword light. He touched his eyelashes and found that his already short eyelashes were completely gone!
"High, high, high, high, high, master!" the gangster screamed in fear.
The crowd of onlookers thought they could see a delicate flower being bullied, but unexpectedly, the delicate flower was actually a domineering flower!
"I think that sword has the strength of the upper level of Xuan level." Someone said.
"The fourth level of Heaven and Earth, Xuan Huang, isn't that a classification system for monsters?"
The man replied, "I can tell you're new to Loulan. There are probably more demons hiding in Loulan than humans. Here, we don't distinguish between humans and demons; we only look at strength. A top-grade Xuan-level warrior is already a top-ranked martial artist, and this person is so young... It's impossible for him to be unknown outside."
Gu Xuanyou never heard a word of outsiders' comments.
He felt like a walking corpse as he returned to the inn, and subconsciously went to the window to grind ink and study the craftsman's method of drawing talismans.
It was not until he spread out the paper that he realized that the familiar figure was no longer in his peripheral vision.
Gu Xuanyou just woke up from his dream at this moment. The sword he had been holding in his left hand fell to the ground with a clang, and his hands fell weakly on the table.
The sun had just risen at this moment, and the early morning wind blew with a chill.
Gu Xuanyou sat like this for the whole day.
As night fell and midnight arrived, he entered the ancient city of Loulan.
Seeing him like this, Master Wen said, "They say the Shi family is deeply affectionate and pure-hearted. I didn't think so before, but nothing embodies that more clearly than these eight words in your case. Since you can treat your lifesaver so wholeheartedly, I'm relieved to teach you the secret techniques I've painstakingly researched over the past century."
Gu Xuanyou was still immersed in the sadness of parting and did not hear clearly what his master said.
A golden spark flashed before his eyes. Gu Xuanyou turned around just in time to see the molten iron in Master Wen's hand suddenly change direction and come straight towards Gu Xuanyou's face!
Gu Xuanyou reacted quickly and immediately went on the defensive.
But he found that he couldn't move at all.
I could only watch the sparks hit the upper door!
"Child, don't resist. The ancient city of Loulan is a huge demon domain, and I am one of them. This blacksmith shop is my territory. You have no power to resist here." A voice like a bell rang in his ears.
But it was impossible for Gu Xuanyou to completely give up resistance. The more he tried to resist, the heavier his body felt, as if a mountain was pressing on his shoulders.
The sparks from the ironwork rushed into Gu Xuanyou's skin in an instant!
The imagined pain did not come, but instead there was the cool feeling of snowflakes falling on the skin, and then many memories of making objects appeared in my mind.
From the selection of materials, the control of the fire temperature, to where each hammer should be struck, all have exquisite and accurate answers.
It was as if he had already mastered these skills and was able to use them with ease.
After a brief moment of shock, Gu Xuanyou gradually realized what was going on.
——Inheritance.
A legacy passed down at the cost of life.
The master actually wanted to pass on all his skills to him in such a tragic way!
Gu Xuanyou no longer wanted to resist at this moment. He simply wanted to turn back time and make everything right.
Seeing him like this, Master Wen smiled broadly and consoled him: "It's useless, kid. Once the inheritance begins, there's no going back. Just accept it obediently."
Gu Xuanyou struggled even more fiercely than before, forcing himself to speak: "Master, Master, please don't. I want to learn from you. You don't have to do this—"
His voice was shrill, as if this could persuade the master to change his mind.
"Alas, I should have dissipated long ago. The reason I begged Miss Yun to solidify my soul and prolong my life was because there was no one in the craftsman lineage to inherit it. Fortunately, we have that kid from the Ling family and you. I'll teach him the art of 'crafting oneself' and pass on the art of 'crafting tools' to you. My wish is fulfilled, and living or dying makes little difference." Master Craftsman Wen said, "What's more, that kid went alone to the Star Forging Division, Wen Lingxia's old lair—he's been operating there for hundreds of years. I'm really worried he won't make it."
Master Wen's figure gradually faded as time went by, but his voice remained clear and loud.
"It would be great if you could help him in the future."
"By the way, besides this, I have two more things I'd like to ask for your help with," said Master Wen.
Gu Xuanyou said with a choked voice: "Master, if you command, I will definitely do it."
"First, go to the Ling family in Mobei on my behalf. Regardless of whether Ling Ping is alive or dead, give him a message. Just say, 'I've accomplished what you entrusted me to do. Don't worry about me.' Second, in the long years ahead of you, find a suitable candidate, whether a blood relative or someone with a pure heart, to pass on the art of craftsmanship. This is a powerful craft passed down by our ancestors. Don't let it be lost."
"Yes, Master."
Master Wen's expression was filled with nostalgia and kindness. He then murmured in the softest voice, something Gu Xuanyou couldn't quite hear: "Ah, I wanted to pass on my skills to that kid back then, but his father wouldn't let me, saying he'd be the most powerful demon hunter in the world. Being a craftsman would be putting the cart before the horse and biting off more than he could chew. I never expected that three years later, this kid would personally bring me a descendant of the Shi family. What a fate, what a fate."
As soon as Gu Xuanyou noticed that the pressure on his shoulders had disappeared and he could move again, he immediately ran to his master.
Only then did he see that his master's body below the waist had completely dissipated, leaving only his upper body floating in the air.
Gu Xuanyou knew that everything was a foregone conclusion. He knelt beside his master and nodded his forehead to the ground: "Master, I will obey your instructions and deliver a message to the head of the Ling family and find a successor."
"Get up, Master believes in you," said Master Wen. "Actually, it's wrong for me to place all the burdens on you. But I'm trapped here, struggling to make ends meet, enduring loneliness every day, without any news from the outside world. I really can't take it anymore. Plus... plus, you might face off against Wen Lingxia in the future. Without some real skills, I'm afraid you'll suffer."
As he spoke, Master Wen's neck and jaw slowly disappeared. In the end, he could only try his best to bend his weather-beaten eyes and give Gu Xuanyou a smiling look.
At the moment when Master Wen completely disappeared, the space of the blacksmith shop also began to fall apart. Gu Xuanyou just stood up and felt his feet shake. In the blink of an eye, he was back to the inn.
He subconsciously wanted to help Ling Suye again.
His hands were empty.
Gu Xuanyou's eyes were slightly red as he looked at his hands in the darkness and slowly retracted them.
·
Ling Suye had no idea what was happening in Loulan. After a day and a night of travel, he had already reached the border of Chuzhou and was about to enter the Mobei territory.
In theory, the fastest route to reach Shangjing City is through the border between Chuzhou and Mobei.
But thinking about how he was unable to pay homage to his family last time, Ling Suye immediately turned his horse around and headed towards the Ling family in Mobei.
"As long as I hurry, the round trip will only take two days at most." Ling Suye calculated the time. "In those two days, I can catch up by taking the water route."
As a native of the Mobei grasslands, Ling Suye can't swim at all.
Therefore he seldom travels by boat.
But this time, in order to pay homage, Ling Suye planned to take a boat after leaving Mobei. This would be three days faster than riding a horse, which could offset the two days of delay in returning home.
The tall brown horse seemed to sense its owner's eagerness to return home, and it ran even more happily.
Ling Suye patted the horse's head affectionately, and when it stopped to rest, he fed it pitted dates and said, "You've worked hard, too. When we get to the Ling family, you should have a good rest for a whole day, and then we'll continue on our journey."
The horse neighed happily and started running again.
The rising sun broke through the clouds, painting the sky a brilliant orange-red.
On the ridge of the grassland, a young man with long hair was riding a horse, facing the cool morning breeze, with the huge sun at his side, and was rushing towards his home.
At the same time, Gu Xuanyou packed his bags and rode a horse towards the Ling family in Mobei.
He first wanted to convey his master's words to Ling Ping, the head of the Ling family.
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