Chapter 9.2 – Feng Nu and the Heavenly Flame Sword

Feng Nu cried out in alarm when Nian Bing held the Flame G.o.d’s stone in his hand. Her body trembled slightly as rays of fire suddenly shot soured out from her body. Her originally long, pink hair momentarily became a gorgeous, bright red, and even her blue eyes displayed a layer of faint red, as scorching as the fire qi that a.s.sailed her. Nian Bing didn’t have much of a choice. He rested his hand on the Morning Dew knife, easily unsheathing it with a flick of his thumb. A blue, faintly chilly light spread out and shot towards Nian Bing. The layer of ice protected him from the scorching stream of qi.

Gradually, the red light vanished, and Feng Nu returned back to her normal appearance. Her eyes flashed with a complex radiance, “Good, this is a very high grade fire stone. If it was to be inlaid in the True Sun knife, it could greatly improve the knife’s quality. Although master has already pa.s.sed away, I’m willing to try to inlay this fire stone in the True Sun knife.”

Seeing Feng Nu’s crystal clear gaze, Nian Bing’s heart indescribably palpitated, almost rus.h.i.+ng to agree. However, he forced himself to calm down even before the fire ray disappeared as he felt that something was amiss. This beautiful woman in front of him didn’t appear as simple as her appearance might let on. He hesitated a bit and said, “Miss Feng Nu, I want to know how Hua Tian senior died. Can you tell me?” The Flame G.o.d’s stone was his father’s memento. There’s no way he would just simply agree  to give it to a stranger without question. Especially if it was a charming woman that suddenly appeared and baffled him. Originally, his father had a falling out with the family clan in order to use this stone. This matter had to be handled carefully.

Feng Nu glanced at Nian Bing with a deep look. “This year I’m seventeen years old. I was born in Clear Wood Empire. My parents were simple commoners. When I was five, my hometown had a big plague which took my parents’ lives. From then on, I had no choice but to wander the streets. Five years later, when I was ten, I came to Ice Snow City and begged master to take me in as a disciple. From master’s words, I learned that I had the Innate Heavenly Fire body. At once, he took me to register at the gateway. Wholeheartedly, he exhausted himself trying to teach me everything. Five years ago, master felt that his body couldn’t keep going on. However, he wasn’t willing to yield to fate. So he heated the furnace, perfecting his skills. It was two years ago that he did the unthinkable to make a one of a kind double-edge sword. By throwing his own body in the furnace, he poured all of his soul into the double-edge sword to successfully create a once in a lifetime masterpiece: a G.o.d Sword. In the end, there was no corpse; not even his ashes remained. Still, he hadn’t died because his soul had completely merged with the sword. The sword was forged by master’s Nine Heavenly Flames along with his soul. This is why I call it the Heavenly Flame Sword. The material it was made from was the same material as the True Sun knife, which you must have heard from senior Zha Ji. It’s from the Fire Dragon’s horn.”

While she spoke, Feng Nu returned the Flame G.o.d’s stone and the True Sun knife to Nian Bing. Without a word, she went inside. Nian Bing’s heart was slightly moved. When Feng Nu described how Hua Tian used his body to refine the sword, there was a deep sadness in her eyes which could not have been feigned. As for her ident.i.ty, he couldn’t help but slightly believe her.  

A while later, Feng Nu came out, in her hands was a majestic double-edged sword. Its scabbard was the same vermillion color of the True Sun knife. At the top, there was such a vivid carving of a five-clawed, fire dragon that it almost felt as if it was alive. In the fire dragon’s mouth was an unblemished white pearl which emitted a gentle light, causing the scabbard to appear exceptionally gorgeous. The hilt of the sword had a ribbed pattern, while inlaid on the back was a white precious stone. Nian Bing was extremely familiar with this kind of precious stone;it was similar to the white jade Heavenly Flower tile.

Feng Nu looked at Nian Bing and said, “This is master’s final masterpiece: the Heavenly Flame sword. It’s a 1.1 meter double-edged sword with a blade 0.8 meters long, a thickness of 4 centimeters, a width of 20 centimeters and a handle measuring 23 centimeters.” As the sword was unsheathed, a ring lightly echoed, like a dragon’s cry resounding throughout the entire room. A blazing light emerged and tinted the air. Suddenly, a scorching aura burst out, and Feng Nu’s wrist slightly shook as the Heavenly Flame sword appeared with a curtain of blazing light.

“An excellent sword.” Nian Bing blurted out as he stared at the red aura on the edge of the blade. He sensed that the quality of this sword was no less inferior to Morning Dew.

Feng Nu faintly smiled as she looked at the sword’s blade. Her eyes were br.i.m.m.i.n.g with emotions. “Yes, it’s an excellent sword. Although it doesn’t have the best precious stone inlaid and doesn’t possess your Morning Dew’s ability to double as a magic staff, it has master’s soul inside. For an accomplished martial arts pract.i.tioner with a long sword, it’s undoubtedly one of the best weapons. I think, right now, we shouldn’t test and doubt each other anymore. What do you think?”

Nian Bing’s face became slightly red and said, “Miss Feng Nu, I didn’t want to doubt you. It’s because this Flame G.o.d’s stone is the only thing my father left to me. Therefore, I have no choice but to be cautious!”

Feng Nu’s eyes exuded a gentle light, and she said, “I also don’t blame you. Now, I clearly understand your reason. Besides, the joy of creating an exceptional G.o.d blade with your own hands cannot compare to achieving fame as a Blacksmith, right? Please, would you allow me to upgrade the True Sun to perfection? The carving doesn’t require much time. During that time, you can take my Heavenly Flame. When I’m finished, you can come back with the Heavenly Flame and the Flame G.o.d’s stone. I will probably need your help at the time of the inlay.”

Nian Bing shook his head and said, “No. There is no need, Feng Nu. May I call you without the formalities? I’ll just leave the True Sun knife with you. I don’t need to take your Heavenly Flame sword either. My master and senior Hua Tian were good friends. I hope that we can also become friends. I trust you.” As he spoke, he turned to take out the True Sun knife, turning back to give it to Feng Nu.

Feng Nu looked slightly distracted. With a flick of her wrist, she returned the Heavenly Flame sword to its scabbard. Then, she accepted the True Sun knife. As she grabbed the thick knife’s handle, her slim white fingers accidentally touched Nian Bing’s fingers. Their bodies simultaneously jolted. Since neither had much contact with the opposite gender, they couldn’t stop themselves from blus.h.i.+ng. Feng Nu lowered her head and stared at the True Sun knife. “Why do you believe me so quickly?”

Nian Bing smiled and said, “Because I trust my own intuition.” What intuition? His intuition was part of the reason why he trusted her. As for the real reason, it was because he realized something. When Feng Nu took out the Heavenly Flame, her body emitted a powerful dou qi that was comparable to Hua Tian’s dou qi. Seeing this kind of dou qi’s strength inside the small and narrow room, he believed he was in a disadvantageous situation. This was quite feasible, since, as a magician, he restrained a warrior from far away. Although in his case, he could quickly cast some low level magic spells. However, it was impossible for him to even narrowly escape with luck. Besides, the house was in ruin, which already hinted at a lot of things. If you wanted people to trust you, you had to trust them first.

Feng Nu smiled and seemed very happy that Nian Bing trusted her. “Thank you! We are already friends, right? The carving needs at least a month. Come back in a month with the Flame G.o.d’s stone if you wish for a new G.o.d knife made by my hands. Just tell me beforehand if you have things to do somewhere far away. After I finish carving, I can wait for you for at least a year or two since it’s unlikely that I’ll leave for anywhere in the meantime.”

Nian Bing said, “I will also stay in Ice Snow city for a certain period of time. I shall see you in a month’s time. I’ll be leaving first.”

Feng Nu watched Nian Bing. Suddenly, she said, “Eat a meal before you go. I don’t think you’ve eaten yet.”

Nian Bing stared blankly for a while. Something peculiar arose in his heart. He quickly nodded and said, “True, I still haven’t eaten yet.” Zha Ji’s death burdened his heart with inconsolable grief. Although, he was very good at controlling his emotions, he wasn’t in the mood to eat anything the whole day. Now that Feng Nu inquired about his health, he became aware of the growls coming from his empty stomach. He was quite hungry. “Then, Miss Feng Nu, I will take  your kind offer. I’ll stay for a meal. First, I must thank you.”

Feng Nu’s clear eyes s.h.i.+ned brightly. “It’s alright! How could I have forgotten that you’re the Demon Chef’s disciple? The food you make must be very tasty. It seems like this time I’ll have the opportunity to taste some fine food. Just a moment ago, why didn’t you call me by my name directly? You don’t need to add ‘Miss’ or other stupid t.i.tles.” She appeared to be high spirited. There was no trace of her previously calm demeanor. She instead acted like a little kid.

When Nian Bing followed Feng Nu into Shui Huo Metal shop’s kitchen, he had a bitter smile on his face. It was said that the cleverest housewife couldn’t cook without rice. The same goes for a good chef. Without ingredients, even cooking masters couldn’t make anything. In the small kitchen, which was only four or five square meters, excluding fresh vegetables and meat, there was only salt for seasoning. Apart from rice, there was nothing else that could be consumed.