Chapter 888: Stones from Other Hills May Serve to Polish Jade

Chapter 888: Stones from Other Hills May Serve to Polish Jade

Zhao Changhe happily pocketed the freeloaded materials, then examined them more carefully in hand.

He could faintly sense that while similar effects existed in the Heaven Book World, the rules by which they operated were not entirely identical—this stemmed from differences in the world’s fundamental essence. For a more intuitive comparison, visiting a magic world might make it clearer: a magic fireball and a Daoist fireball both ended in burning, but the methods of conjuring them followed different rules.

Things from the Heaven Book World were defined and born by the Heavenly Dao, so they were largely ineffective against him. Only by stepping outside this world’s rules could they work.

To reforge Longque, he didn’t need to completely transform all its materials—just add a few core components.

Zhao Changhe’s eyes gleamed green as he swept his gaze over the counter, silently analyzing which items might suit Longque.

But before he could decide, Ye Wuming spoke first: “These materials are all quite ordinary. Let’s go inside and take a look.”

She was genuinely afraid Zhao Changhe would pick out another gift for someone else, wasting her money. She didn’t have that many spirit stones to spare, after all…

The shopkeeper smiled. “Esteemed couple, please follow me.”

Ye Wuming couldn’t hold back and snapped, “Who told you we’re a couple?”

The shopkeeper faltered. Just now, the man had led the young girl in, all affectionate, and this woman was willing to pay for him. If they weren’t a family of three, then were the man and the young girl the couple, and this woman the mother-in-law?

Fortunately, the shopkeeper didn’t dare voice that thought aloud. He could only nod meekly and lead the three into the inner hall.

Zhao Changhe wasn’t about to explain for Ye Wuming… In fact, appearing before outsiders on equal footing with Ye Wuming was already a feeling that made him sigh deeply, let alone being called a couple. His focus, however, remained on the goods displayed in the inner hall, and he frowned slightly.

The items inside were indeed better than those outside, and some were suitable for Longque, but—how to put it—relative to the level needed to cleave the Heavenly Dao, they were clearly inadequate. If he casually slapped some ordinary-grade material onto Longque, the blade would rebel.

That said, anything truly matching Longque’s caliber wouldn’t be casually sold in a shop. If any random store carried such a level, it would mean the world’s strength was several tiers higher—and that would hardly be a good thing.

Zhao Changhe observed calmly, then said offhandedly, “Not bad stuff… Any better ones?”

The shopkeeper replied, “If you have specific needs, you can list them. We have some channels and can help procure them.”

Zhao Changhe asked, “Are there any special auctions or the like?”

The shopkeeper chuckled. “Naturally, there are. In fact, such auctions in this city are usually hosted by our shop… but there’s none scheduled soon. If you’re interested, you can leave a contact method, and we’ll notify you when one occurs.”

You host them… Zhao Changhe glanced at Ye Wuming, realizing her choice of landing point was deliberate. Since this shop had backing and was representative, the city was likely no ordinary small town—it must be a high-end map where the world’s elite gathered.

Since this was already a high-level map, he could roughly gauge the world’s strength. From what he could sense, this world was about on par with the Heaven Book World, perhaps slightly weaker by a third.

That blind old fox still had his old habits—never saying everything, leaving him to observe and judge. What a temper. Did he think Zhao Changhe was still a rookie to be scrutinized?

Better watch out, or I might just topple you.

Zhao Changhe broke off a small corner of the Blood-Drinking Stone he’d just acquired and clenched it in his hand. When he opened his palm, the material, which was neither modern nor stone, had transformed into a small piece of white jade: “Keep this jade. When the time comes, call me, and I’ll respond.”

In truth, Zhao Changhe was just casually planting a possibility. More likely, by the time the auction happened, he’d already be back in the Heaven Book Realm, and communication across realms would be impossible. But this trick of his made the shopkeeper’s expression shift.

Initially, he’d only sensed that this family of three had an extraordinary bearing, not ordinary folk, and wanted to leave a good impression. But turning stone to gold and iron to jade—this level of altering an object’s composition was something few in the world could achieve. What kind of dragon crossing the river was this?

The shopkeeper’s mind raced, and his tone grew more cautious: “May I ask your name?”

Zhao Changhe’s eyes twinkled. “The Recluse of Nightfall.”

Ye Wuming: “?”

Ling Ruoyu tilted her head.

The shopkeeper, unaware of the trio’s inner thoughts, flattered, “A fine name. ‘Sneaking into the night with the wind, moistening all things silently.’”

Zhao Changhe grinned. “Flattery, flattery. It’s an average name. My wife’s is much better…”

“Stop.” Ye Wuming said flatly, “Get to your business.”

The shopkeeper cleared his throat. “What kind of material are you looking for?”

Zhao Changhe said, “I want the purest indestructibility, for forging a blade.”

The shopkeeper understood that for people of their level, the simpler the requirement sounded, the rarer the material—it was a return to the essence of simplicity. It meant that ‘indestructibility’ was no longer a mere adjective but a reality.

He thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled. “If that’s the case, I have a suggestion.”

Zhao Changhe nodded. “Please, go ahead.”

“Less than three hundred li east of the city lies the dojo of the Heavenly Sword Venerable. He possesses a piece of Void-Breaking Star Iron that might meet your needs. As for how you negotiate with him or whether you obtain it, that’s none of my concern.”

Zhao Changhe smiled faintly. “Do you have a grudge against this Venerable?”

“To be frank, my family does have some friction with the Heavenly Sword Venerable, so I’m happy to cause him trouble.” The shopkeeper smiled. “But I can swear by my soul that the information is true… What you do with it is your decision.”

Zhao Changhe nodded. “Alright, I’ll discuss it with my wife.”

Ye Wuming: “?”

Zhao Changhe pulled her and Ling Ruoyu aside, lowering his voice. “There’s something else I want to discuss with you, not this.”

Ye Wuming fumed, “I don’t care what it is. Are you never going to stop taking advantage?”

“What advantage is a verbal one? Besides, aren’t you the child’s mother?”

Ling Ruoyu: “…”

Ye Wuming pressed her forehead. “What do you want to discuss?”

Zhao Changhe said, “I suddenly wondered—there might be beings in other worlds similar to the Heavenly Dao. Why haven’t you considered inviting outside help? Or could the Heavenly Dao bring in other friends to gang up on us?”

Ye Wuming shook her head. “The Heaven Book, which can spawn an entire world of living beings, is a treasure among treasures. Who wouldn’t want it for themselves? Why would he willingly bring in an outsider to compete? He’s not crazy. Similarly, we can’t recklessly invite a wolf into the house—we might drive off the original Heavenly Dao only to end up with a worse one.”

Zhao Changhe pondered for a moment. “That makes sense… So this should stay an internal matter, not be escalated further?”

“Yes. The consequences are unpredictable, and we dare not gamble with an entire world’s lives.” Ye Wuming countered, “So, do you want to check out the Heavenly Sword Dojo?”

“For Longque’s sake, I definitely have to.”

Longque quivered with delight.

Ling Ruoyu shot it a sidelong glance and ground her teeth.

Zhao Changhe asked further, “But we need to know ourselves and our enemy before going. Since you’re familiar with this place, do you know the Heavenly Sword Venerable’s level?”

Ye Wuming shook her head. “I’ve never fought him, but I’ve observed his battles with others. He’s slightly weaker than you, but not by much.”

“You never fought them yourself to experience combat in another world?”

“I rarely make a move in other realms, mainly to avoid exposing myself as a world’s Heavenly Dao and triggering rejection from this world’s Dao…” Ye Wuming glanced at him. “Besides, I understand just by watching—I don’t need combat experience like some rookies.”

Zhao Changhe: “…”

Ling Ruoyu raised her hand. “Can I fight?”

Seeing the girl’s eagerness, Ye Wuming immediately put on a kind face. “Both of you can fight. No problem.”

Zhao Changhe said, “No rush. Let me learn more first.”

With that, he casually stopped a passerby. “Excuse me, sir. We wish to visit the Heavenly Sword Venerable. Do you know if there are any taboos? Would going directly be presumptuous?”

“From out of town?” The passerby laughed. “You know the rules. Charging straight into Heavenly Sword Mountain would be seen as a challenge. The Venerable has a Hero Pavilion in the city, where you can take on a series of challenges. If you clear the pavilion, you’ll be welcomed as an honored guest. Everyone in the city knows that.”

Zhao Changhe smiled and cupped his hands. “Thank you.”

Ling Ruoyu looked at Zhao Changhe with admiration, her eyes sparkling. Ye Wuming curled her lips in disdain. She knew Zhao Changhe too well—reckless on the surface but steady underneath. Not pretending to be some ‘Kingly Way’ was already him being casual… Oh, that was because when he gave his name, he used the chance to say ‘Nightfall’…

It was also a lesson in the ways of the world for Ling Ruoyu.

The family of three, each with their own thoughts, arrived at the so-called Hero Pavilion. A guard stood at the entrance, and upon seeing them, asked solemnly, “Who might you be?”

Zhao Changhe cupped his hands and smiled. “I’ve heard that to meet the Heavenly Sword Venerable, one must first challenge the Hero Pavilion. That’s why we’re here. Are there any rules for the challenge?”

The guard said, "Only single combat is allowed. Companions may enter together, but no substitutions."

"Can we use magical artifacts?"

"Yes, and we defenders also have ours."

"Very well."

"Which of you is the challenger?"

Zhao Changhe and Ye Wuming, in perfect sync, pushed Ling Ruoyu forward: "She is."

Ling Ruoyu: "???"

Why don't you just tell me to go slay the Heavenly Dao myself?

Zhao Changhe took out the Dragon Sparrow and hung it on Ling Ruoyu's back, smiling amiably: "You have two transformations. If you can't win, use the Dragon Sparrow; if that still fails, use the Star River. Go on, girl, this is your trial."

Only then did Ling Ruoyu recall that her father had once planned to let her roam the ancient sword trials against gods and demons, and later said he had other ideas... Could it be that even then, Zhao Changhe had thought of visiting the other world, and the so-called need to verify his ideas depended on how his talk with his ex-wife went?

Ling Ruoyu suddenly felt that her mother's every reaction had been within her father's predictions... In terms of grand strategy, her mother had always been the world's ceiling, but in the realm of male-female dynamics, it seemed someone was being crushed...

The girl's mind churned with thoughts of her parents' relationship as she stepped into the pavilion.

Only upon entering did she realize that from the outside it looked like a simple building, but inside it was filled with various formations and prohibitions, clearly designed to absorb energy and prevent internal battles from destroying the structure.

A middle-aged female Daoist sat cross-legged in the center, refining pills.

Zhao Changhe followed behind Ling Ruoyu, stroking his chin as he studied the furnace and earth fire. He mused that compared to the cultivation world, alchemy in the Heavenly Book world was also greatly downplayed; medicines were mainly used for healing, with a few for strengthening the foundation or improving constitution. Though called pills, they were essentially pharmacology, quite different from the myriad wondrous uses of alchemy in cultivation.

Just as he was thinking this, the middle-aged Daoist opened her eyes and looked at Ling Ruoyu.

Ling Ruoyu stepped forward, cupping her hands: "Junior Ling Ruoyu, I ask for your guidance, senior."

The Daoist studied Ling Ruoyu for a moment, frowning: "Strange bone age, strange soul, strange sword intent... Are you a demon possessing a human body?"

Ling Ruoyu: "..."

If you put it that way, it's not entirely wrong—the Dragon Sparrow was once called a demon blade... But according to this woman, there really are "demons" in this world? I'm from the countryside and have never seen any.

"Never mind, whatever you are." The Daoist flicked her finger, and a pill flew out from the furnace: "Break this technique of mine, and you may ascend to the next level."

"Swoosh!" The pill shot straight at Ling Ruoyu, then exploded into smoke as it drew near.

Ling Ruoyu retreated, holding her breath, and her longsword suddenly burst into a cluster of sword blossoms.

Layers of sword shadows blocked the smoke, while a strand of sword qi separated and struck toward the Daoist's side.

The Daoist's expression shifted slightly—such strange sword qi. Is this how sword cultivators fight?

She casually deflected the sword qi, and the furnace's earth fire spread forward, surging up in a blaze.

Ling Ruoyu's face tightened; she had never encountered such a fighting style in the martial world—wasn't this cheating? She had heard that Aunt Vermilion could only release flames externally at the third level of the Secret Treasury, yet this Daoist, whose strength was about the same as Ling Ruoyu's, could wield fire so effortlessly?

She didn't know that in this Daoist's system, one could cast fireballs as early as the Qi Refining stage... The battle left no time for further thought; she swiftly stabbed her sword into the floor tiles, unleashing sword qi to sever the source of the earth fire.

At the same time, her left hand produced a small dart, which she hurled at the Daoist with a "swoosh."

Zhao Changhe stroked his chin: "Good instincts."

Ye Wuming glanced at him sidelong, wanting to say, "Of course, look whose daughter she is," but swallowed the words back—this fellow had already teased her enough today with that relationship, and she wouldn't let him climb further up the ladder.

With a "clang," the Daoist reached out and deflected the dart, which struck the furnace. Then sword light blazed up as Ling Ruoyu merged with her blade, streaking like a rainbow across the furnace, charging resolutely toward her.

Against the backdrop of scattered furnace flames, the girl was like a flying fire demon, a beautiful sight.

Just as she was about to succeed, the Daoist suddenly threw her fly whisk into the air.

Ling Ruoyu: "?"

Others used a fly whisk as a kind of whip-like weapon to entangle the sword blade, quite troublesome. What was the point of tossing it upward?

As the thought flashed through her mind, the fly whisk suddenly expanded and shot toward her waist, coiling around.

Ling Ruoyu was startled; she twisted in midair to dodge, but the fly whisk relentlessly pursued and wrapped around her, as if it could stretch infinitely.

Zhao Changhe pressed his lips together, watching in silence.

Magical artifacts... Wasn't this the very reason they came to observe—to find where they differed from the Heavenly Dao?

A mere low-level battle already revealed clues in every aspect.

"Slap!" With no way to escape the pursuing fly whisk, Ling Ruoyu suddenly kicked the central furnace.

The furnace toppled, flames erupted, and precisely incinerated the fly whisk hovering above.

Ling Ruoyu's sword was already at the Daoist's throat, her breath ragged: "You yield."

The Daoist looked at her with a strange expression: "You seem as if you've never fought before, so unfamiliar with all kinds of techniques and treasures?"

Ling Ruoyu: "..."

I've fought many battles, but none as underhanded as yours.

"Never mind." The Daoist was quite impressed: "Despite such unfamiliarity, you can still use the environment to win. Such a sword heart—I think the Venerable will like it. Go on up."

Ling Ruoyu asked: "How many more levels?"

"Not many, just nine."

Ling Ruoyu's eyes sparkled with excitement. Indeed, the battle over there meant little to her now; these bizarre trials were far more enticing.

"Such a violence addict, I wonder who she takes after." Ye Wuming looked helplessly at Ling Ruoyu's vibrant expression. The girl's face was already like a tabby cat's, her breath a bit ragged—clearly, this fight hadn't been easy. Eight more battles awaited, each obviously harder than the last, yet the girl was getting excited.

Zhao Changhe turned his head without answering. Who could she take after? That bloodthirsty Asura, of course...

"Queque, let's go." Ling Ruoyu patted the large door-plate sword on her back excitedly: "Maybe next battle I'll need your help!"

Watching his daughter scamper upward, Ye Wuming clasped her hands behind her back and followed, eyes straight ahead: "What are you thinking? Why so quiet?"

Zhao Changhe followed, looking inward as he replied casually: "I'm leveling up."

Ye Wuming: "?"

Zhao Changhe smiled faintly: "Some insights aren't just for Ruoyu... For me, they're an epiphany."

"...What did you realize?"

"At least I can think of how to use the Heavenly Book if it were placed before me again." Zhao Changhe turned to look at Ye Wuming: "Lady Book Spirit, would you consider... letting me use it?"