Casting immortality in the furnace

Chapter 66 Division Commander's Reward

Fan Zhou was not interested in any of these things.

He was now only concerned with the jade box given to him by Elder Chen Qing, and couldn't wait to see what the spiritual fire inside looked like.

However, the jade box seemed to be sealed, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't open it, which made him sweat with anxiety.

Lou Zhenqing deliberately looked at him anxiously and slowly started talking about other things.

"A-Zhou, now that you've become my disciple, I must tell you about the lineage of our school."

Upon hearing his master speak, Fan Zhou immediately stopped what he was doing and focused on listening to the lecture.

"Your master is the peak master of Qixia Peak in the Sword Furnace. He is a disciple of Yuanxiang Zhenren, a famous weapon-refining master in the Yue Kingdom."

Fan Zhou's expression shifted, and he asked in surprise, "A master of weapon crafting? Isn't that a master of sword forging?"

Lou Zhenqing glared at him, "You absolutely mustn't say that in front of our grandmaster, or I won't be able to protect you."

Fan Zhou was startled and immediately fell silent.

Lou Zhenqing looked somewhat embarrassed, and then continued:

"My grandmaster was interested in all kinds of objects since his youth, but he was not obsessed with sword forging. So after he became famous, he was never able to forge a famous sword, which he deeply regretted."

Fan Zhou nodded: "With such extensive knowledge and talent, it's only a matter of time before our grandmaster forges a famous sword."

"That's right!"

Lou Zhenqing was very pleased with Fan Zhou's cleverness. He took out a jade pendant from his storage bag and used his true energy to carve a few words on it.

"This is a token from one of my disciples. It's not particularly magical, but it can calm the mind and keep you from getting involved in worldly affairs. Please keep it safe."

Fan Zhou respectfully accepted the jade pendant and found that one side was engraved with the character "柒" (qi), while the other side was engraved with the characters "范舟" (fan Zhou). The strokes were sharp and the edge was faintly visible.

"Besides you, I have six other disciples. You will meet them in the future," Lou Zhenqing said.

Fan Zhou looked up at him and asked softly:

"Master, what is the monthly allowance for registered disciples?"

"You little rascal!" Lou Zhenqing chuckled and pointed at him with his finger.

"Now that you've become my disciple, I will naturally be in charge of paying your monthly allowance. As for how much it will be..."

Lou Zhenqing smiled and said, "Then it depends on your talent and skills."

Fan Zhou understood.

My master is my boss. I work for him, and he pays me wages.

Lou Zhenqing picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said:

"I was supposed to take you to pay respects to the ancestral master, but I have some business to attend to right now and will be staying in the market for a while. I'll take you to Tonglu Mountain later."

"I will follow Master's arrangements."

Fan Zhou had no objections, and seeing that Lou Zhenqing had nothing more to say, he hurriedly presented the jade box in his hand.

"Master, how do I open this jade box?"

Lou Zhenqing laughed heartily, flicked his finger and unleashed a sword aura that broke the seal on the jade box.

The jade box opened automatically, revealing a ball of red flame with a white interior, its bright light illuminating the hall and emitting a delicate fragrance of pine and cypress.

"【Pine and Cypress Fire】This is a relatively common type of spiritual fire at the embryonic stage. It is made by burning spiritual pine and cypress as fuel for three consecutive years to create a flame. Its fire is long-lasting and intense, capable of melting gold and iron, and is often used for refining artifacts."

Lou Zhenqing explained to Fan Zhou:

"The pine and cypress firewood given by Elder Chenqing is bright and clean, with a clear aroma and no smoky color. It can be considered a top-grade product."

Fan Zhou looked at the flames in the box and was immediately delighted. He quickly asked:

"Master, how do we use this flame?"

"You haven't yet broken through to the Qi Refining stage, so you can't store these spiritual items inside your body. You can only use talismans to store them."

Lou Zhenqing took out a steel-ribbed fan, used his true energy to write the character "fire" on the fan surface, and waved it towards the pine and cypress fire. The spiritual fire flew into the fan and disappeared.

He tossed the fan to Fan Zhou, saying, "I have sealed the spirit fire within. From now on, you only need to inject your inner energy to ignite the flame."

"Thank you, Master!"

Fan Zhou happily fiddled with the fan. If this weren't the reception hall, he would definitely have become an arsonist.

"What a spineless coward, laughing like this over a mere Nascent Soul level spiritual fire."

Lou Zhenqing couldn't help but roll her eyes at his silly grin.

Fan Zhou didn't dare to refute, and could only signal with his eyes:

"Then you should give me something even better."

Lou Zhenqing understood his meaning, stroked his beard with a troubled expression, and hesitated before saying:

"I originally wanted to give you a good sword, but seeing how useless you are now, I'm afraid I can't accept it."

"I can bear it, I can bear it!"

Upon hearing that a fine sword was to be given as a gift, Fan Zhou quickly tucked his fan behind his back, knelt before his master, and begged:

"Since Master has bestowed such a fine sword upon his disciple, the disciple is naturally honored!"

Lou Zhenqing laughed and scolded, "You little rascal, you can't even walk straight when you hear about treasure!"

Qin Zhiyuan laughed heartily, "I saw it coming long ago; he'll be the kind of person who won't do anything without a profit."

Shen Yusheng also shook her head with a smile.

Fan Zhou ignored their teasing and shamelessly said:

"Master, shouldn't we sword practitioners cherish our precious swords?"

"Well, you're not wrong."

Lou Zhenqing's expression turned serious, and he stopped joking.

He stood up, took out a long sword with a jade hilt and a green bamboo sheath, and gently stroked the blade with his hand, his expression nostalgic, as if he were looking at an old friend.

"This sword is called 'Calamus'. It was made when I was young. It is two feet and seven inches long and is made of blazing cyan gold as the main material. It contains a yang energy that can cleanse evil and kill poison. It is a sword that protects life."

Lou Zhenqing handed the bamboo-scabbarded longsword in his hand to Fan Zhou, his expression filled with anticipation.

"Looking back now, I realize this sword was just a clumsy work, but it holds a special place in my heart. I now bestow it upon you, hoping it will protect you as you journey further on your path of cultivation."

Fan Zhou, with a solemn expression, took the longsword from his master's hands and said earnestly:

"This disciple will certainly wield the sword, overcome all obstacles, and bravely climb to the peak of immortality."

"Very good, very good. I am very satisfied that you have this intention."

Lou Zhenqing reached out and helped Fan Zhou up, saying with satisfaction:

"I hope that one day in the future, you and I can sit down and discuss swordsmanship."

Fan Zhou nodded vigorously.

Qin Zhiyuan stood up at this moment, took out a jade slip and handed it to him.

"A-Zhou, this is a sword manual left by Junior Brother Huang Yi. He said he would pass it on to you after you mastered the sword aura. I thought it would take several years, but I didn't expect it to be so fast."

Fan Zhou was about to ask about the sword manual when Qin Zhiyuan spoke up first.

He took the sword manual, opened it slightly, and exclaimed in surprise:

"It's the Nine Absolute Swords!"

Huang Yi had mentioned this sword technique to him, saying it was an advanced version of the "Nine Styles Sword," only more than ten times more difficult.

"As my cultivation level increases, the Yin-Yang Four Phases Sword technique will soon become insufficient, so this sword technique has come at just the right time."

Fan Zhou accepted the sword manual, preparing to return and study it.

Unexpectedly, Shen Yusheng also got up at this moment, took out a yellowed book and handed it to him.

"These are my old notes on smelting metals. They record some ratios of metals and gold. You can take a look when you have time; they will be helpful for your future sword-making."

Fan Zhou was genuinely surprised. Shen Yusheng was a Hundred Refinement Master, a Foundation Establishment stage expert. His experience notes were incredibly valuable, yet he would give them to him.

"Senior Brother Shen, how can I accept this?"

Shen Yusheng glared at her. "What, you don't like what I have?"

Fan Zhou quickly shook his head, "How could I dare? That's too much."

He turned to look at Lou Zhenqing, to see what his master would say.

Shen Yusheng snorted, "Why are you looking at him? I told you to keep it, so keep it!"

"Alright, just accept it without worry," Lou Zhenqing added.

Fan Zhou tucked the book into his chest and bowed to Shen Yusheng, saying:

"Thank you for your guidance, senior brother."

"What cultivation or not cultivation?"

Shen Yusheng smiled, turned around and walked out of the hall.

Lou Zhenqing and Qin Zhiyuan also walked away.

Fan Zhou followed behind them, looking up at the bright sun in the sky, feeling that it was exceptionally radiant.