Chapter 167: Learning Forging from Big Brother – Forging is also Resting

Looking at the slightly disheveled state of Yue Qiongfeng, Yu Xian felt a bit guilty and said, “Big brother, did I disturb your forging process and cause the explosion?”

“Ah, it’s a small matter. Who hasn’t had a few explosions while forging? You get used to it.”

Yue Qiongfeng waved it off with a laugh, clearly unconcerned, and looked at Yu Xian with joy. “Yu brother, since you’ve settled your affairs, you should stay and learn forging from me for at least three to five years!”

“Uh…”

Yu Xian hesitated. “I can’t stay that long. Two years—I’ll learn your forging arts for two years.”

“Two years…”

Yue Qiongfeng muttered, then nodded with a grin. “Two years isn’t short. Come in, come in.”

Yu Xian stepped inside.

Meanwhile, Su Xiaoduo stood outside the door, unsure what to do. She was no longer a receptionist at Jinlin Pavilion, and taking someone to the third floor was already a violation. If she stayed, she might attract questioning from the supervisors.

She gathered her courage and stepped forward. “S-Senior, may I come in too?”

“Hm?”

Yue Qiongfeng was surprised. “Oh, I remember you—Su Xiaoduo, right? Aren’t you a receptionist here? Why do you want to come in?”

“I… I…”

She looked embarrassed, at a loss for words.

“She’s no longer a receptionist here,” Yu Xian said. “You should go now. If anything comes up, you can find me. I’ll be staying here for two years.”

The hopeful look on Su Xiaoduo’s face dimmed. She bowed silently and left without saying a word.

“Oh, I get it now,” Yue Qiongfeng chuckled. “That girl wasn’t interested in coming into my forging room. She likes you. She wants to be near you.”

Yu Xian showed a helpless smile. “Big brother, please don’t joke. We’ve only met three times. That’s not enough to talk about feelings.”

“Hahaha.”

Yue Qiongfeng laughed loudly. “You really are a wooden block! You can’t tell?”

Yu Xian shook his head. “I truly can’t. Let’s not talk about it. My heart is clear, and I don’t have such distractions.”

“Well said.”

Yue Qiongfeng nodded approvingly. “You’re a dragon among men, destined for greatness. This is the time to strive forward, not to be distracted by love.”

“Big brother…”

Yu Xian’s brow twitched. “Just call me by my name, please.”

“That’s not affectionate! We’ve sworn brotherhood—we’re real brothers!”

Yue Qiongfeng clapped his hand righteously. “You’re my little brother!”

Yu Xian swallowed, paused for a moment, and finally nodded. “Alright… call me whatever you want.”

“Hahaha, let’s go!”

Yue Qiongfeng laughed heartily and pulled Yu Xian inside.

Inside, Yu Xian saw the black smoke from the forge and scattered debris—clear signs of a failed forging attempt. The explosion must have been caused by Yue Qiongfeng’s moment of distraction due to Yu Xian knocking.

He was right.

“It was just a moment’s mishap,” Yue Qiongfeng said. “Don’t feel bad. It was only a low-tier grade-four artifact. Not worth mentioning.”

“I interrupted and caused your failure,” Yu Xian said sincerely, bowing. “I’m sorry, big brother.”

“Ai, what nonsense is this? Don’t apologize for that!”

Yue Qiongfeng was moved by the gesture and quickly helped Yu Xian up. “That kind of talk gives me goosebumps. Let’s go, let’s talk inside!”

Yu Xian smiled shyly and followed him.

They sat down for tea and chatted. Although it had only been seven or eight months since they last saw each other, there was much to talk about—especially Yue Qiongfeng, who wanted to know everything about Yu Xian’s journey.

Yu Xian shared his story in broad strokes.

“Jiang Xiaolong, Su Mofeng, and Ge Xiyu were together?” Yue Qiongfeng was surprised. The leaders of the seven outer branches of Yunyun Sect all knew each other, even if not friends.

“They had the backbone not to join the Blood River Sect. Continue.”

Yu Xian talked about the ghost devouring Ge Xiyu alive. Yue Qiongfeng’s face darkened, but he said nothing and continued listening.

In the spirit herb pavilion, Yu Xian was initially looked down upon for asking for low-grade herbs.

But when he started listing off extremely rare high-grade herbs and materials, the attitude of the mid-Foundation cultivator manning the counter changed—first suspicious, then mocking, then serious, and finally respectful.

After listing nearly a million spirit stones worth of goods and paying for them in full, Yu Xian turned and left the stunned pavilion.

Back at the forge, he continued practicing forging for four months under Yue Qiongfeng’s guidance. His forging talent was astonishing—even Yue Qiongfeng admitted that Yu Xian was born for forging.

Still, success was rare.

After another failure, Yue Qiongfeng advised, “You’ve been tense for months. You need rest. I’ll give you five days off. Come back refreshed, and you’ll feel the difference.”

Yu Xian nodded. “Alright. I’ll take a break.”

To Yu Xian, cultivation was rest. He sat down and practiced through the night, but his cultivation showed no visible progress—he was still stuck at the peak of Foundation Establishment.

Deciding to shift gears, he took out a black pearl—containing the ghost he had captured. It could be used to craft a high-grade soul-nourishing Yin pill.

After informing Yue Qiongfeng, he went out again to shop for herbs.

Later, he spoke with Yue Qiongfeng about the yellow crystal he’d found in the ancient ruin. Yue Qiongfeng immediately recognized it as a Resentment Crystal, a rare tier-seven material.

“Just this one piece is worth two million spirit stones!”

Stunned, Yu Xian finally understood the true worth of the ghost general he had slain.

Seeing Yue Qiongfeng show no greed and instead urge him to keep it, Yu Xian felt even more respect for his brotherly mentor.

Then came the invitation.

“Yu Xian, these two years won’t be long. Let me teach you everything I know about forging. This way, my craft won’t be lost—and I can focus entirely on breaking through to the Core Formation stage.”

Yu Xian understood: this was Yue Qiongfeng’s heartfelt wish.

He nodded solemnly. “Alright.”

Yue Qiongfeng’s eyes sparkled with excitement as he pulled Yu Xian back into the forge.

“The art of forging isn’t like alchemy. It’s more complicated, more abstract—but with your talent, it won’t be hard. Let’s start with the basics: balancing the five elements…”

His voice echoed through the forging room, deep and complex…

Unknowingly, another four months passed.

During that time, Yu Xian did nothing else but train diligently under Yue Qiongfeng. Though he could now forge some tier-two artifacts, his success rate was still low.

Even so, he was on the path—and his journey in forging had only just begun.