That’s where Qi came to the rescue. With his Qi gathering realm level and the lack of external influence of Qi techniques, he couldn’t mess up.
With a grin, he infused the metal with a soft golden liquid that flowed in unpredictable patterns.
Simultaneously, a chaotic void ripple emerged from his fingers. Space cracked around the forming blade, mist escaping his bluing lips.
But his focus and sparkling eyes never wavered as he branded the magical and Qi enchantments.
Under his precise control, edges glinted with an otherworldly sharpness. The somber crystalline frame reflected his sweaty face as he engraved star patterns on its surface—the same tattooed on the prince’s forehead.
With a snap of his fingers, wind blades carved one of the wooden blocks on the table, shaping it into an exquisite hilt with complex circular flourishes before it flew into his hand.
And after an hour of hard work, he slotted it under the menacing dragon head he had carved as the guard with a chuckle. ’Perfect and stylish!’
Cancelling his mana with a thought, he turned and showed the eighty-centimeter one-handed cultivator sword to the slack-jawed prince.
"Take it. The hilt is smooth, but I would have preferred to have quality leather to wrap it."
The prince coughed to hide his embarrassment and gripped the somber sword, feeling the elements swirl in his palm as if he could wield them directly. His heart drummed in his ears. This was revolutionary, a sensation no one had ever experienced back in his time.
"You focused on energy conductivity? How many affinities do you have?" The question had gnawed at him for the past hour, especially after seeing the two supreme ones. He needed an answer.
"I have them all." Adam shrugged, sending his and Xie Lian’s minds reeling. "I wasn’t born with them, though. Just got lucky enough to find a ritual, gather the materials by almost dying against powerful bastards, and almost dying again when I performed it. Oh, and the sky tried to kill me for months after I did. Shitty lightning."
He clicked his tongue before his smile broadened. "Anyway, shouldn’t you assess the sword?"
The prince shook his head. "What’s there to assess? It’s a marvel blending two types of energies and five elements. Even I can’t replicate it..." His voice turned into a sad whisper. "To think someone like you would appear. I wish we could have lived in the same era."
He handed the sword back, touched by the star symbols, and added the golden parchment as a soft wind swirled around him. "It’ll be a pity to let it disappear with me."
Then he clapped his hands. "Congratulations on completing my trial. Time’s short, so listen well. Invaders appeared one day with hundreds of thousands of soldiers. Each day, their violent armies conquered a little more land until my father decided the situation couldn’t continue. Long story short, he fought against their leaders, but they both ended up lethally wounded."
Adam palled. Who was that leader who matched a tier nine cultivator? But it wasn’t time for questions. The prince’s voice was already weakening, and his body flickered.
"We couldn’t let him recover, so we made a decision we all regret: to sacrifice ourselves to imprison their leader in the blessed land. However, this bastard cursed us all... The effects persisted even after he died from his wounds and our consciousness remained separated from our souls, forever waiting for someone to free us in this sealed space. I... I can’t hold on anymore. My father will tell you the rest."
With those last words, the prince vanished like a mirage, a soft smile tugging at his lips and the echo of his last words lingering. "Thank you."
A deafening silence followed as Adam crumpled the parchment. Though happy the prince found freedom, the parting words were too alarming. He had to learn more about the palace sacrifice and the leader’s despicable powers through the emperor. But not yet.
He turned to the pale Xie Lian and patted her trembling shoulder as he helped her sit. "Take your time to recover. I’ll rip the parchment if Misha doesn’t join us in ten minutes."
Before he could remove his hand, Xie Lian gripped it as if seeking comfort before her voice cracked. "A-Are you sure about continuing? Vile forces are at play, the kind we have no hope of triumphing over."
Adam surprised her with a nod. "We have no chance, but think about it. The five sects will hunt me to the edge of the realm. I have nowhere to return." His eyes narrowed, and his jaw clenched. "I betted too heavily on the blessed land to pull back."
He sat next to her and placed the blade on his legs. "But those are my and Misha’s problems. I can still get you out before everything spirals out of control."
His gaze lingered on Xie Lian’s conflicted frown. Understanding she’d need time to answer and unwilling to influence her decision, he called for his unread notification and studied his new blade. ’At least I got to keep it.’
[Tier-eight unnamed weapon detected. Soul binding available. Proceed? Yes/No]
A wry smile played on his lips as he pressed yes. "Tier eight... The archmages would kill to get it." He shook his head. "It’s a treasure even the cultivators would covet."
[Tier-eight Chronoscar soul bound.]
Rank: T8 Mythical/Sun-grade Weapon
Forged using extreme mana mastery and imbued with Qi in the sacred domain of the void emperor, this aberration was a step away from reaching the void grade. Unfortunately, Adam’s energy purity and mastery over time and space fell short.
Endless Forge: Through its temperance by boundless metal Qi and mana, the weapon is unbreakable, sharpens itself with each strike, and can morph into any bladed weapon at will. Attacks ignore a portion of enemy defenses.
Absolute Zero: Crafted in the heart of an ice storm and the frost of space, each swing leaves behind glacial trails that linger and explode into jagged spears of ice.
Eclipsing Shade: Forged from pure shadows, the blade leaves behind three afterimages that attack independently.
Hollow Sovereignty: Infused with the void, the weapon can erase and nullify energy-based assaults. Strikes leave behind rifts in space that distort reality for a brief moment, disorienting foes.
Chrono Tyrant: Bathed in the flow of time, the weapon accelerates the wielder’s perception and reflexes, making them move in seemingly unpredictable patterns. A successful strike locks the target in a temporal stasis, freezing them for a moment.