In the heart of the old town, the blacksmith's workshop stood tall, its creaky wooden door opening to reveal a dimly lit room filled with the smell of smoke and the sound of metal clanging against metal.
The forge burned brightly, casting a warm glow on the tools hanging on the dirty walls. Shelves lined with carefully crafted swords, shields, and armor glinted in the firelight, each piece bearing the blacksmith's unique mark.
Worn and battered anvils stood silent witnesses to the creation of countless tools and weapons.
In front of this workshop stood a small figure with long black hair and dark azure eyes. Traces of anticipation flickered within them as he channeled Qi into his eyes, causing them to glow a deep gray.
He focused on the blacksmith, a short, burly man with brown hair, a scruffy beard, and massive arms adorned with burn marks. He wore no shirt, only leather trousers, showcasing his robust physique.
The blacksmith stood hammering iron on the anvil, his movements sure and confident. As Zhihui watched, he attempted to peer deeper into the blacksmith's soul. However, he couldn't discern anything.
Entering Sage Mode, Zhihui achieved a heightened state of focus and control over his Qi. While he channeled Qi into his eyes, the sounds of metal clashing, the thick smoke, and the heat sensation disappeared as he honed in on the blacksmith's figure.
Slowly, he began to see something barely noticeable—wisps of Qi. They seemed different from the Qi he was used to, gathering in the center of the blacksmith's chest to form a small humanoid figure. He realized that this must be the blacksmith's soul.
As he probed further, Zhihui sensed his Qi becoming unsettled, with only a small amount remaining. He knew that this was as far as he could go for now.
Closing his eyes, he envisioned the figure of the blacksmith's soul and channeled his Qi. A gray mist emerged from his body, meandering around him slowly.
He felt himself becoming lighter, undergoing a gradual change until it suddenly stopped. He realized that thirty seconds had already passed.
Emerging from Sage Mode, Zhihui felt mentally exhausted and his thoughts sluggish. Unable to control his Qi any longer, the gray mist around him vanished.
'This is a lot harder than I thought,' he mused. 'Without Sage Mode, I can't even see the wisps of his soul.'
Zhihui knew that he needed to be able to see the wisps of Qi without using Sage Mode. After all, he couldn't continue to rely solely on this skill.
The ability to disguise himself as others and seamlessly blend into groups of people would be extremely useful in the future, and being able to glean information from people just by looking at them was amazing by itself.
He thought back to his master's words: "Seeing beyond the surface..."
Looking around the outer area of the blacksmith's workshop, Zhihui found a stall that seemed to have been abandoned. He sat down and rested his back on the old wood, shading himself from the sun.
After adjusting himself into a lotus stance, he turned his attention back to the blacksmith's workshop.
He had decided to watch the blacksmith as he worked, believing that if he wanted to see further into the blacksmith's being, he needed to understand him.
And to do that, he would first learn more about him.
Hours passed, and the moon rose as the sun went into slumber. The sound of metal clashing against metal reverberated through the air as the blacksmith continued hammering without rest.
But he was not the only unyielding one. Zhihui sat in the same spot without moving, his eyes glued to the blacksmith's figure.
"Patience, patience. Don't think with your emotions; use your emotions to think."
Thinking about this, he took deep breaths and wore an indifferent expression.
With his meridians opened, he could go days on end without eating or sleeping. All he needed was a few hours of meditation to feel revitalized. 'Funny, back on earth, I wouldn't even dare to even think of missing sleep'.
Only sparing some time to fetch water from the well.
Later that night, the blacksmith finally stopped working and closed up the workshop. Zhihui went into meditation, and when he came out of it, the sun had risen again, shining in all its grandeur.
The blacksmith once again opened his workshop and resumed his endless hammering, while Zhihui remained rooted in the ground in a lotus position, his gaze fixed on the blacksmith.
"Become empty... Sever the tether that binds your spirit to the material world and become a vessel of nothingness... Easier said than done."
"And what exactly does that even mean? Master only passed the applications, no information on how the martial art actually works.. though I have a vague feeling that its the qualities of my Qi.
Master and I both have grey colored Qi but all the other Cultivators I've seen have primary colors..and it's not the only thing that's strange..
*Sigh* "No use thinking about it for now"
"Alright, ordinary-looking blacksmith, let's see who you truly are."
Time went by and soon three months had passed...
....
A scruffy bearded burly man with burn marks covering his huge arms draped in caorse leathers engaged in a conversation with a figure whose face was smeared with coal.
"Roland! It's been too long. How's the forge treating you?" The miner asked with a bit of joy in his tone.
"The forge is still roaring, and the anvil is still singing." Roland responded proudly before asking, "What about you, still digging up gold?"
"You know me, haha," the miner chuckled slowly as he continued in a skeptical tone.
"Hey, I heard a rumor in the village. They said you've got a brother now. When did that happen?"
"A brother? No, not me. There must be some mix-up. I'm an only child. Who's been spreading tales?"
"Huh, strange. How's business? Need any quality ore for that mighty forge of yours?" The miner asked with a trace of confusion in his tone.
"Always, my friend." Roland replied, his mind fully occupied by thoughts of his hammer and anvil.
After concluding business, Roland made his way back to his workshop, drawing curious stares along the way. Unperturbed, he kept walking with a steady gait.
As he neared his destination, he noticed groups of villagers huddled together, engaged in hushed conversations. Some gasped softly upon seeing him, but that wasn't what piqued his curiosity.
*CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG*
From the depths of his workshop, the rhythmic clang of a hammer on metal echoed.