Chapter 95: Chapter 95: Old Acquaintance
With the dawn of the next day, Shen Yuan left the outer sect and went to the marketplace between the servant districts to meet an old acquaintance of his.
"What do you want this time, boy?" Sitting behind the counter, Huang Fu saw Shen Yuan enter his shop, and a frown appeared on his face instantly.
Ever since he had bought his Axe and the metal string, Shen Yuan had been a regular of sorts in this place.
His weapons were easily damaged and destroyed, which was why Shen Yuan would have to come here to repair or replace them every now and then.
"Come on, old man. Don’t act like you are not happy to see me. After all, I am one of the few people who actually talk to you." Shen Yuan shrugged the blacksmith’s coldness easily and walked in like he owned the place and started looking around.
"He got you there." Ma Li, the blacksmith’s servant, stepped out from somewhere Shen Yuan could not see because of her short height and agreed with him.
"Hmph! Bunch of brats talking to me like they know me. I have plenty of friends, and how dare you talk to me like that?"
"Yeah, yeah." Even when Huang Fu was flaring in fury, Shen yuan ignored him and picked up one of the knives from the table at the end of the shop.
He had already gotten used to the Tsundere nature of the old man, and it was kind of annoying for him.
"Why are you looking at knives? You already have your steel wire, right? Since you use that to chop most of your prey." Hearing the smugness in blacksmith Huang Fu’s voice, Shen Yuan froze.
He did not look up from the knife but stayed as if he were for a second before easing the tension in his shoulder.
’How did he know? Could he tell how many things I have killed from the state of weapons and even guess what I had killed?’
Shen Yuan did not realise it, but he was quite close to the mark.
Ma Li on the side looked at Shen Yuan with wariness after hearing the words of her master. ’Wait? Does he mean this servant has killed people?’
But after thinking for a while, she relaxed as well. In her mind, if Huang Fu trusted someone despite knowing what they had done, there had to be a reason.
And whoever he trusted, she trusted them too.
Blacksmiths like Huang Fu who are very talented can pick up such complex details from minor dents in the weapon with ease.
Huang Fu did not explain anything further. He just said, "Come here; I have a better knife that can suit you if you can afford it."
Shen Yuan slowly turned around and showed a warm smile. "Old man. I knew you cared about me. You even have a special blade just for me."
Ma Li did not know why, but she suddenly felt an urge to punch Shen Yuan, but she held herself back.
"Hmph! Stop twisting my words, you ungrateful brat, or I will charge you double the rate." Huang Fu bended behind the table and pulled out a knife covered in red cloth.
"Test it out."
Shen Yuan walked up to the counter while saying, "I also need a proper sword for myself. Cannot make a fool of myself out there with an Axe I use to chop off wood."
Huang Fu narrowed his eyes at Shen Yuan’s words. But he stayed silent and walked around the counter before looking through the sword.
"That blade, it is a star weapon. Something you would not see on any outer servant. If you want a sword of that grade, it would be more expensive since it takes more materials." Huang Fu walked back holding a silver blade with a wooden handle.
Shen Yuan unwrapped the red cloth first, revealing the knife Huang Fu had set aside for him.
It was shorter than a standard combat blade, no longer than his forearm, with a slight curve near the tip that gave it an almost cruel elegance. The metal itself had a faint bluish sheen, like moonlight trapped beneath the surface of still water.
"Cold Marrow Steel," Huang Fu said, arms crossed as he watched Shen Yuan turn the blade over in his hands. "Folded thirty-seven times. It doesn’t rust, it doesn’t dull easily, and it holds cold like nothing else I’ve forged. Good for numbing a wound before your prey even realises they’re bleeding."
Shen Yuan ran his thumb along the flat of the blade, feeling the faint chill seep into his skin even through his robe sleeve.
The balance was near perfect—light enough for quick, precise strikes, but with enough weight in the spine to punch through cheap defensive battle arts if needed.
"I’ll take it," Shen Yuan said, setting the knife down gently on the counter. "Now show me the sword."
Huang Fu grunted and laid the second weapon across the table, drawing the cloth away with more reverence than he’d shown the knife.
The sword was long and slender, its blade a pale silver that seemed to drink in the light of the shop rather than reflect it. Faint lines ran along its length like frozen lightning, and the wooden handle beneath his palm was wrapped in dark leather worn smooth by use—or perhaps just aged well.
"Star Falling Sword", Huang Fu said. "Forged with a sliver of meteor iron in the core. Rare stuff. Most outer disciples wouldn’t be able to afford the metal alone, let alone the labour." He eyed Shen Yuan pointedly. "Which is why I’m asking sixty low-grade spirit stones for it. And that’s a friend’s price."
Shen Yuan let out a low whistle, testing the sword’s weight with a few practice swings that cut clean, silent arcs through the air. Ma Li took an instinctive step back at the sight, though Shen Yuan barely seemed to be trying.
"Sixty," Shen Yuan repeated, setting the tip of the blade against the floor and leaning on it lightly, entirely too relaxed for a man discussing his own funeral funds. "Old man, I respect you, truly I do. But sixty stones for a blade I’ll be using to keep myself alive on my first mission. If I buy this, I cannot pay for other things I want to buy from you."
"You think quality comes without a cost?"
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