The next morning, the small, unnamed mountain peak was still shrouded in a thin mist, resembling a veil, with the distant landscape faintly visible. The air was thick with moisture, and every breath seemed to carry a sweet essence of spiritual energy.
Xiao Yue was sitting on the roof, gazing at the distant horizon between the towering mountains, eagerly awaiting the sunrise. Beside him, Di Wei remained in a cross-legged posture, sitting upright in a solemn manner, which sharply contrasted with his youthful appearance, giving off a strangely amusing vibe.
The sky gradually brightened, with a few wisps of white clouds turning into a brilliant red hue. Before long, half of the red sun appeared above the horizon, its rays piercing through the semi-transparent mist, creating a soft and hazy glow.
"Wow, this is amazing. It's my first time seeing a sunrise, and it really looks like an egg yolk. Hmm, I'm a bit hungry... Di Wei, are you hungry?" Xiao Yue inhaled deeply, enjoying the moment, and smiled, showing two small dimples. He turned to look at Di Wei and added, "Hey, aren't you watching? Sitting cross-legged like that doesn't look very childlike."
Di Wei slightly opened his eyes and cast a glance at the young man beside him. "You know, I'm currently in the body of a child? You woke me up in the middle of the night. How could you be so inconsiderate?"
"Hehe, but you don't sleep very soundly anyway," Xiao Yue teased, then suddenly reached over and ruffled the soft hair on top of Di Wei's head. "Children should look cute!"
"Jiang Chengyue! You know who I am, so why speak such absurd words? Stop it, don't touch my head anymore!" Di Wei furrowed his brow, scolding in a sharp tone.
Di Wei felt quite annoyed by the hand on his head but knew that turning away would break his dignified posture. So, he forced himself to endure it, all while glaring sharply and threatening with slightly pale words.
However, his actions only made him look even more endearing and amusing to those around him, and soon Xiao Yue was holding him in his arms, giving him a good ruffle.
As the sun continued to rise, the mist dispersed, and people began emerging from the houses on the mountainside, starting their daily work.
Cang Hai passed by Xiao Yue's house and noticed the two sitting on the roof. He waved and smiled at them. Although his glasses obscured his eyes, Xiao Yue, with his sharp eyesight, still noticed the dark circles under Cang Hai's glasses.
"What happened? Did Sister Sang Tian give you a hard time?" Xiao Yue asked.
Cang Hai awkwardly pushed up his glasses and turned his head to look elsewhere, pretending to admire the scenery. He spoke vaguely, "Not really. I just got lectured for a long time and didn't sleep well. Sang Tian, though, she's all sharp words but a soft heart. How could she bear it? Hehe... Uh, is it that obvious?" He touched the dark circles under his eyes.
Xiao Yue raised an eyebrow. "Actually, if you're worried about Sang Tian hearing, you could always talk to me privately."
"You're thinking too much, it's really nothing," Cang Hai paused, then lowered his voice. "I just got pinched a couple of times, slapped a few, no big deal."
Xiao Yue nodded, but then added, "But that Lin Sister seems like she won't give up so easily. Wonder if she'll come bothering you again."
Cang Hai clearly had the same thought, but he could only smile bitterly and shake his head. "Nothing I can do about it. She's just a young girl with a strong background... I'll just face whatever comes my way."
At that moment, the door to Du Chen's room opened, and a hunched figure emerged.
Since Xiao Yue was sitting higher up, he immediately spotted him and called out, "Big Brother, you're up early—huh, what happened to you?"
Du Chen, with his hands on his waist, struggled to straighten himself. His bloodshot eyes were framed with dark circles.
"What happened?" both Cang Hai and Xiao Yue asked, clearly surprised.
Du Chen slowly walked over, his face full of sorrow. "I was... ravaged by the fairy last night…"
Hey, that's quite an eye-catching way to phrase it, the two of them thought, both feeling speechless. "Cut the dramatic talk, just explain yourself properly."
Du Chen pouted and explained, "Last night, the fairy said she was going to teach me how to control a sword. At first, I was excited…"
"Did you learn it?" Xiao Yue asked, clearly intrigued, cutting Du Chen off.
"I learned it, but... I think I've developed a fear of heights now..." Du Chen looked defeated as he gazed into the distance, his voice heavy.
"Oh," Xiao Yue responded lightly but then became even more excited. "What does it feel like to control a sword? Is there anything to be careful about?"
"Uh..." Du Chen thought for a moment. "It feels similar to controlling a skateboard. The main thing is balancing..."
Cang Hai cleared his throat and interjected, "Xiao Yue, stop interrupting. Let him finish explaining. How exactly did the fairy ravage you?"
Upon hearing this, Du Chen immediately had a lot of complaints to air. "Sigh, at first I was quite happy about it, but after not practicing for long, I was still wobbling on the sword. The fairy said she'd give me a crash course. I really thought it was going to be a fast-track lesson, but before I could be happy for two seconds, she simulated all kinds of bad weather, like dark nights, gusty winds, thunder, and rain. I could hardly stay on the sword even when standing still because the wind kept blowing me off."
"And then what happened?" Xiao Yue asked eagerly.
Du Chen, now completely caught up in his story, continued with increasing enthusiasm, "And every time I fell off, she would just toss me back onto the sword. She'd wait until I hit the ground before lifting me back up into the air. She called it 'helping me deepen the impression.' I was thrown around all night like that. Though it wasn't my real body in the dream, it still hurt. When I woke up, my whole body was sore, and I could barely straighten my waist."
Xiao Yue nodded, seemingly uninterested, and immediately asked, "So, what posture do you need to use for sword control? Can you show us?"
"Oh, the posture?" Du Chen thought for a moment and said, "It's pretty much like skateboarding, with one foot in front of the other, standing sideways." He then proceeded to demonstrate the stance for Xiao Yue.
"Huh? Do you have to stand sideways? Doesn't that get tiring?" Xiao Yue asked, perplexed.
"Can't help it. The sword is too narrow, so I have to stand like that to maintain balance," Du Chen explained.
Cang Hai facepalmed. "I remember that spiritual swords are magical artifacts, right? They can change size at will. Why didn't you just make the sword bigger?"
Du Chen's eyes went wide as if waking from a dream. He suddenly shouted, "Ah! Why didn't I think of that?!"
Xiao Yue looked at him sympathetically. "Big Brother, you might want to reflect on whether you've offended the fairy. It seems like she's been giving you a hard time on purpose."
Du Chen looked confused. "How could that be? I've always spoken kindly to her..."
Xiao Yue glanced up and noticed some people walking up the mountain path. He slowly climbed down from the roof and, with a little effort, helped Di Wei down. Ignoring Du Chen, who was still pondering and rubbing his head, Xiao Yue walked toward the house with Cang Hai.
This house, located at the intersection of the mountain road, was the first one they'd come across on the way up. It had a relatively spacious interior, and the five members of the team used it as a communal dining and gathering area.
Cang Hai called out through the team channel, "The breakfast is here, ladies, time to wake up." Soon, two groggy responses came back.
Du Chen followed them inside and, seeing the larger woman walking up the path with a food box, said, "By the way, when did they get here?"
Cang Hai replied, "They arrived the first night. The person who brought them said every inner disciple is assigned a few outer disciples to help with tasks like planting spiritual rice and herbs, cooking, and handling miscellaneous duties. Since these guys are from Li Family Village and are familiar with us, they were assigned to our team as a form of care."
Du Chen muttered, "I don't mind the bigger woman, but those two kids, they should be taking care of themselves, not helping us out."
Cang Hai replied, "Aren't there also a few others around ten years old?" Seeing the larger woman approach with the food box, he stopped the conversation and went inside with the others to have breakfast.
As the discussion turned back to sword control, Du Chen decided to forge a spiritual sword. He had acquired a sword blueprint called "Cheng Ying Sword" in the market previously. Although the materials weren't fully sufficient, Du Chen had an idea and thought about melting down the double-edged sword he'd been using earlier to make the new sword.
There was a refining room on the unnamed mountaintop. After breakfast, Du Chen greeted the others and opened the barrier protecting the room. He lit the ground fire furnace and, following the instructions on the blueprint, began the process of crafting his sword step by step.
What set the world of magical beasts apart from other games was its unique advantage: there was no failure rate in crafting items. With the system's assistance, Du Chen, despite making several mistakes along the way, managed to successfully forge his first spiritual sword after spending most of the day on it. However, due to his lack of experience and excessive use of materials, the sword ended up being enormous, resembling a half door rather than a proper weapon.
The sword was not only large but incredibly heavy. Du Chen soon realized that he couldn't even lift it. No matter how much strength he put into it, he could barely move the blade a short distance. Now, with the sword crafted but unusable, Du Chen was at a loss.
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He cut his finger, letting a drop of blood fall onto the massive sword. Then, using the spiritual power technique that Yu Shu had taught him, he attempted to create a resonance with the sword. In an instant, intricate spiritual runes began to appear on the black blade. Du Chen reached out again, and this time, the sword was as light as a feather, easily lifted by his hand.
Holding the enormous sword in one hand, Du Chen swung it through the air a few times. The blade made a loud whooshing sound as it sliced through the air, and he couldn't help but feel a deep sense of satisfaction. Like a child with a new toy, Du Chen eagerly decided to show off his creation to his companions.
After deactivating the barrier, Du Chen stepped outside, noticing a few people standing not far from the path.
He hoisted the great sword onto his back and walked over slowly, asking through the team channel, "Why is that Lin junior here again?"
Cang Hai, rubbing his temples, was too tired to respond. Xiao Yue, who was standing at the back, turned around and whispered, "Looks like she's not giving up, trying to give something to Cang Hai again."
Just then, Lin Hanfang's voice rang out sweetly, "Cang Shixiong, this Bingxiao Sword is a mid-grade treasure and has water attributes, perfect for you. Do you like it?"
Cang Hai sighed deeply. "Lin Shimei, thank you for your kindness, but I really don't need it."
Lin Hanfang, however, was straightforward. "Oh, then do as you wish. I never take back what I give. I'll come back tomorrow." As she spoke, she glanced smugly at the woman standing beside her, Sang Tian.
Cang Hai tried to explain further. "I really don't need it. I've told you that yesterday—"
But Lin Hanfang turned her face and interrupted him sharply, "Whether you accept it or not is your business. Whether I give it or not is mine. You don't have a say in this." With that, she turned on her heel and walked away.
Du Chen, watching her retreating figure, gave a thumbs-up. "This sister is really straightforward," he said, only to earn two sets of fiery glares in response.