Chapter 34

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Chapter 34: Devour Weapons

Chang Xiang cast a disdainful glance at Lou Yun and said, "Didn’t you say you didn’t care about its grade?"

"Well, but I still need to know. By the way, Brother Chang, how do you actually check the grade of a common weapon? There must be some method, right?"

Chang Xiang gave Lou Yun an annoyed look, not happy with how he changed his tune whenever he needed help. "Of course there is," he replied. "It’s very simple. Use your spiritual sense, just like when examining a magical weapon, to sense the strength of the energy contained within the common weapon."

"Oh, it’s that easy!"

Lou Yun practically couldn’t wait. He immediately channeled his spiritual sense into the sword. Based on the intensity of the energy his spiritual sense fed back, he suddenly laughed heartily. "Perfect! It’s a beginner two-star primary common weapon!"

Chang Xiang nodded. "Yes, beginner two-star. Exactly suitable for your magical weapon to devour!"

Lou Yun was too excited to notice the flicker of admiration and relief in Chang Xiang’s eyes. For a first attempt at crafting a common weapon, achieving beginner two-star grade was highly commendable. It confirmed Chang Xiang hadn’t misjudged him; Lou Yun truly possessed the potential to become an expert skilled weapon maker.

Lou Yun fondly examined the common weapon a while longer before reluctantly putting it down. He looked at Chang Xiang. "Brother Chang, you still haven’t told me why we had to form those seals near the end of crafting the common weapon? And just as I finished forming the seals, I felt the air around us ripple slightly. I also saw a cluster of mist—or was it a gas?—plunge into the weapon."

Although Lou Yun was the one actively crafting the common weapon, Chang Xiang, acting as his guide, had been anxiously invested the whole time. Feeling a bit weary, he simply sat down on the ground. After a moment of contemplation, he began to explain, "Between heaven and earth, numerous forms of energy exist. What you know most intimately is spiritual energy because magical weapons, condensed from it, inherently contain the energy of the world. That’s why magical weapons are prized."

"In truth, if common weapons could also assimilate heaven-and-earth energy, they could become formidable weapons too. Forming seals is fundamentally aimed at achieving this goal."

"The energies of heaven and earth encompass all things and are also governed by all things. However, except for those few who can sense the way of nature, no other living beings can freely harness and command these energies."

Lou Yun couldn’t help but interrupt at this point. "How can we not control them? During our cultivation right now, aren’t we harnessing these energies by absorbing spiritual energy?"

Chang Xiang shook his head. "That’s merely borrowing. True control? It means you command the growth of all living things, dictate the movement of the sun and moon and stars, control the birth and death of wind, rain, thunder, and lightning—making them all bend to your will. That’s what true dominance means!"

Lou Yun’s jaw dropped at these words. Controlling the growth of all things? Commanding the movement of celestial bodies? Such things were utterly impossible!

Chang Xiang continued unfazed, "So, those who have managed to sense the way of nature devised the method of forming seals. These hand gestures allow people to temporarily harness these energies. Though they are just movements, as the gestures form, they focus spiritual energy, acting like a key to unlock a seal on the world’s energy. Yet, the power wielded through sealing is extremely weak."

"It’s like a saying goes: the essence of Tao can be understood but not explained. Those who grasp how to control heaven-and-earth energy comprehend it. But they cannot directly impart their understanding of the way of nature to you. Therefore, the seal formation method is necessary. It lets you temporarily command a tiny sliver of that power."

"However, the specific forms of these seals differ based on each creator’s depth of insight into the way of heaven and earth. Naturally, their effects and power also differ. The seal I taught you earlier—while I won’t claim it’s the absolute best—is undeniably among the top-tier seals."

"Every skilled weapon maker knows sealing techniques, but none will form identical seals. The power unleashed by different seals will absolutely vary."

Chang Xiang suddenly patted his forehead. "I’ve digressed! Where were we? Ah yes, we were discussing how common weapons lack the inherent energy of heaven and earth, making them inferior to magical weapons. So, we use seals to harness a sliver of that cosmic power and infuse it into the common weapon. This process is what I meant by ‘awakening the spirit’. It essentially grants the common weapon a nascent form of sentience, akin to a magical weapon!"

Hearing this, Lou Yun closed his eyes. He mentally replayed the changes and sensations he experienced during his seal formation earlier.

It was true. The airflow within the cave walls had subtly shifted. Lou Yun’s exceptional senses allowed him to perceive it; most others likely wouldn’t have noticed. And that faint wisp of mist he’d glimpsed plunging into the weapon upon completing the seals? That had been the tangible manifestation of heaven-and-earth energy itself.

For a fleeting instant, something darted swiftly across Lou Yun’s mind—like a thought, or perhaps merely a feeling. But when he tried to grasp it, it vanished without a trace, leaving him clueless about its nature or origin.

Chang Xiang, seeing Lou Yun lost in thought, seized the chance to rest. When Lou Yun opened his eyes again, a dawning sharpness evident in them, Chang Xiang knew he’d gained some insight.

Lou Yun suddenly recalled another question. "But common weapons do contain spiritual crystals! And spiritual crystals are packed with spiritual energy!"

"Infusion is one thing; awakening the spirit is another. They are entirely different concepts," Chang Xiang dismissed flatly.

Chang Xiang waved a hand to pre-empt any further questions Lou Yun might have been ready to ask. "Alright, that’s enough for today," he stated firmly. "Later on, I will teach you all nine sets of seals!"

Lou Yun was dumbstruck. "N-Nine sets?" he sputtered after a long pause. "What do you mean?"

Chang Xiang just shrugged. "Different grades of common weapons require different seals for awakening. What I just taught you was the first set. Suitable for all beginner common weapons you craft. There are eight more sets. Each set consists of nine hand gestures, so just eighty-one hand poses in total."

"Just eighty-one?" Lou Yun groaned audibly. "Don’t tell me that when I try to craft an Emperor-grade common weapon someday, I’d have to perform all eighty-one gestures in sequence!"

Chang Xiang didn’t answer immediately. He seemed lost in thought for a few moments before letting out a cryptic, soft chuckle. "Hah. Crafting an Emperor-grade common weapon? Achieving that requires far, far more than merely executing eighty-one hand gestures!"

Lou Yun was stunned again. He opened his mouth to press further, only to discover Chang Xiang had already vanished into his spiritual space. Helpless, he had to give up. For now, crafting Emperor-grade common weapons was an utterly unreachable goal anyway, so he dismissed Chang Xiang’s obviously unfinished remark.

For the rest of that day, Lou Yun continued admiring his newly crafted common weapon. Briefly, he considered naming it, but then reconsidered. He would be devouring it the next day; naming it felt pointless.

The next morning, Lou Yun deliberately took the common weapon to Xu Yangteng’s shop. He wanted to show off his handiwork and perhaps hear his feedback. But when he arrived, the shop was firmly locked up. Xu Yangteng had indeed left Lingjiang City, just as he’d mentioned, heading out to gather materials in preparation for the skilled weapon maker conference.

On his way back, passing through the Lou Family market district, Lou Yun felt a sudden urge to send the common weapon to one of the family shops for consignment sale. But then he remembered he only had a few days left in Lingjiang City. Using the time to raise his magical weapon level was far more critical—he absolutely didn’t have time to craft another common weapon now.

Wanting to ensure his magical weapon would successfully rank up to beginner two-star in one attempt, Lou Yun deliberately took two full days to rest. He focused solely on absorbing spiritual energy, specifically channeling all of it into the magical weapon housed within his dantian, rather than distributing it through his body.

The evening of the fourth day, Lou Yun returned to the mountain cave. He took out the common weapon he’d crafted, ready to begin his cultivation.

Naturally, Chang Xiang reappeared too. Since the "Devour Weapons" technique originated from him, he felt responsible to guide Lou Yun and prevent any disastrous outcomes.

Though he hadn’t actually performed the devouring process himself yet, Lou Yun had spent the last two days meticulously reviewing every part of the "Devour Weapons" text stored in his mind.

Lou Yun sat cross-legged. His left hand gripped the common weapon he’d made. Closing his eyes, he started channeling spiritual energy, causing his Dream Emperor Sword to manifest slowly, solidifying above his upturned right palm. The next step was letting it begin consuming the common weapon.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, Lou Yun raised his right hand. The spiritual energy within his body surged violently. A pillar of brilliant white light erupted from the Dream Emperor Sword, intensifying to blinding levels.

When the light reached its zenith, Lou Yun let out a forceful shout. With explosive power, he slammed his right hand holding the dream sword down upon his left hand clutching the common weapon.

The Dream Emperor Sword instinctively engulfed the common weapon entirely, like a cocoon of radiant light wrapping around it.

What exactly is devouring a weapon?

It’s a concept entirely different from merely swallowing something. Crucially, magical weapons are not solid entities; they lack true physical substance. Common weapons, however, are fully tangible objects. For something intangible to consume something tangible—to absorb and completely fuse that solid matter into its own essence—that intricate ordeal is what defines the act of "devouring a weapon."

Lou Yun relentlessly pushed his spiritual energy into the Dream Emperor Sword. Almost his entire reserve poured forth like a frantic, unleashed beast, flooding down the length of the common weapon and surging wildly across its surface.

Countless strands of spiritual energy seemed to become enraged living beings, exerting maximum pressure to violently compress the common weapon from all sides.

Gradually, the spiritual energy coalesced around the common weapon, forming a violently spinning vortex. As this maelstrom accelerated, the clear outline of the common weapon began to blur. Soon, it vanished completely from visual perception entirely. Now, only by utilizing his powerful spiritual sense could Lou Yun detect that the common weapon still resided within the luminous embrace of the Dream Emperor Sword. The spinning vortex of spiritual energy had wholly enveloped it.

The rotation of this spiritual energy stream was terrifyingly fast—exceeding the limits of human sight. This immense speed created the powerful illusion that the common weapon had somehow ceased existing within the grasp of the Dream Emperor Sword.

The true nature of the Devour Weapons technique became clear to Lou Yun now: it utilized the immense friction or crushing pressure generated by this hyper-fast-rotating spiritual energy. This force slowly wore away and decomposed the common weapon.

But this destruction wasn’t a simple shattering into fragments or shards. It aimed for the complete disintegration of the entire common weapon—dismantling its tangible reality until it dissolved into a formless essence, which could then be wholly assimilated by the magical weapon. It was the total consumption of one weapon by the other. That’s precisely why it was called "Devour Weapons"!

Lou Yun’s sole task now was to supply an unbroken stream of his spiritual energy into the Dream Emperor Sword. This constant influx fed the vortex, sustaining—even accelerating—its dizzying rotation, amplifying its powerful force to continue tearing down and assimilating the common weapon.

Through his spiritual sense, Lou Yun could perceive the physical volume of the common weapon steadily diminishing. Yet, the rate of this devouring was agonizingly slow. An entire night and most of the following day passed, and the process remained unfinished. Exhaustion now gnawed at him; the massive, continuous drain on his spiritual energy had pushed his reserves to near depletion. He teetered on the brink of emptiness!

He knew this instinctively: if his spiritual energy dried up completely at this critical point, the Devour Weapons process would be violently interrupted. He didn’t know the specific consequence of the Dream Emperor Sword absorbing only half the common weapon, but he was certain—absolutely certain—it would be disastrous!

Lou Yun poured every ounce of his consciousness, every shred of focus, entirely into the unfolding fusion within the Dream Emperor Sword. No spare mental capacity remained for anything—anything—else. He couldn’t even form a thought, couldn’t muster the minuscule mental space needed to call out to Chang Xiang, even though he sensed the mentor watching silently nearby.

A solitary bead of cold sweat appeared on Lou Yun’s forehead.