"So this sword was with you all along!"
Seeing the Sun of genesis felt like reuniting with family for Tetsu no Sosuke.
After all, it was the first sword he had forged with his own hands.
Though not a Nichirin Blade, it held immense significance. He remembered asking the Village Chief for it earlier, and the Chief had said he could have it back if the Flower Pillar was satisfied with the repaired Nichirin Blade.
But after meeting the Flower Pillar, he had completely forgotten about the Sun of genesis.
Afterward, he was busy forging new Nichirin Blades, delivering them, encountering demons, immediately facing Doma, recovering from injuries, and meeting Kagaya...
Having been through so much, if he hadn't seen the blade again today, he would have completely forgotten about it.
Kanae smiled gently. "I felt this blade was quite good, so I asked the Village Chief for it. Since you're just beginning to learn sword techniques, use this one for now."
"Alright," Sosuke replied.
Sosuke was excited. "So, what do we do next?"
Starting from scratch, everything felt new and fresh.
However, Kanae explained, "To learn sword techniques, you must start from the beginning. You currently have no foundation whatsoever, so we'll begin with the basics: gripping the sword and swinging it. I'll demonstrate and correct your mistakes. Once you can swing the blade proficiently, I'll teach you more advanced training methods."
Sosuke nodded earnestly and began his journey of cultivation.
This was far more tedious than he had imagined!
The simple act of gripping and swinging a sword might not seem complex, but it was easy to learn yet exceedingly difficult to master.
True mastery required daily, grueling practice to grasp its true essence.
Sosuke's advantage over others lay in his exceptional physical attributes.
By forging weapons, he could continuously enhance his fundamental physical qualities like strength and speed, allowing him to completely abandon conventional training methods. For him, forging blades was the ultimate form of cultivation.
However, physical prowess was merely the foundation of sword technique. To advance further, he needed to dedicate even more effort to refining his swordsmanship.
Otherwise, despite his raw strength, he could only handle ordinary Demons in combat. Against truly powerful Demons, his brute force alone would be insufficient for victory.
His victory against Doma had been purely coincidental.
Doma had been careless and misjudged the situation, assuming Sosuke was too weak to move. This allowed Sosuke to seize a crucial moment, destroy Doma's weapon, and turn the tide of battle.
But even that success had been due to Kanae's presence.
Without Kanae, even if Sosuke had seized the opportunity to destroy Doma's weapon, he would have ultimately met his end.
Therefore, what he needed to learn next was of paramount importance.
Though the training was monotonous, having Kanae by his side softened the tedium. Every movement, every word, every glance—all of it made the drudgery feel gentle.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, three days had passed.
During those three days, Sosuke spent his mornings helping the Serpent Pillar forge his katana and his afternoons learning sword techniques from Kanae. His days were remarkably fulfilling.
Today, the Serpent Pillar's katana was finally completed. The Yang Flame Attribute remained unchanged at 91 points.
Notably, the weapon's fundamental attributes—Resilience, Hardness, Wear Resistance, and Impact Resistance—had all improved significantly.
After attaching the hilt and guard, Sosuke sheathed the katana.
He let out a soft breath.
A notification chimed in his ear:
[Weapon forging successful!]
[Current weapon sharpness level: 3]
[Forgemaster: Strength +30, Constitution +30, Agility +30, Speed +30]
[Reward Obtained: Poison Refinement Method!]
The attribute boosts felt like every pore in his body had opened, a wave of invigorating energy coursing through him.
Sosuke examined his gains. "It doesn't feel as overwhelming as the first time I got a massive attribute increase. I wonder... is there a limit to this?"
He shook his head, letting the information flood his mind.
In moments, he understood the Poison Refinement Method.
"Infusing metal with poison?" Sosuke nodded slightly. "This isn't about hammering iron; it's about altering the metal's properties. Simply put, it's about creating poison iron and then forging poison blades from it. Tsk tsk, this method is far more brutal than Bloodforging, but it lacks the same mystical aura..."
This method had a clear process: refining toxins into the iron.
While still somewhat mystical, it wasn't as outlandish as Bloodforging.
At that moment, Shinobu came to mind.
'This demanding little light bulb—what she really needs is a poisoned blade, isn't it?'
With this technique, he could finally forge one for her.
But how am I supposed to handle all those mechanisms? Do I need to learn the art of mechanisms now? Will my Golden Finger even grant me that?
Lost in these musings, Sosuke returned to his room to write a letter to the Serpent Pillar.
He informed him that the weapon had been successfully forged and asked him to come collect it at his convenience.
Given the Butterfly Mansion's unique nature, Kakushi members were always stationed nearby. After entrusting the letter to one of them, Sosuke picked up the Sun of genesis and headed into the bamboo forest behind the estate.
Kanae had left on a mission the previous day, reportedly due to news of the Twelve Kizuki. The girl had rushed out in a hurry.
Sosuke naturally had no reason to follow. Though he was somewhat worried, the thought of her Nichirin Blade reassured him.
His training had now shifted from Kanae's courtyard to this bamboo forest.
'Grip the sword, swing the sword!'
Every day, he had to perform this action hundreds, even thousands of times.
'Familiarize himself with it, feel it, guide it, master it!'
This was what Sosuke needed to do now.
Swing after swing, focusing his mind, feeling the sword's trajectory, the speed at which it sliced through the air.
A subtle sensation flickered in his mind, appearing and disappearing. In his concentrated state, it seemed tantalizingly close, yet when he tried to grasp it, it vanished without a trace.
Sosuke maintained the mental state he used when forging iron—clear and bright, calm and steady, quietly going about his work.
Suddenly, a gust of wind struck!
He whirled around to see a fist hurtling through the air. He immediately retreated, his hands maintaining their grip on the sword. Before his heels could even touch the ground, a hand clamped down on his face.
Immense force pressed down, and with a thunderous crash, Sosuke was slammed to the ground.
Sosuke's heart jolted as he prepared to retaliate. But the hand pressing against his face suddenly withdrew, and his vision cleared to reveal his attacker had retreated a considerable distance.
Perhaps sensing his gaze, she scratched her head and offered an embarrassed smile. "Sorry, sorry! Seeing you working so hard, I couldn't resist testing your limits."
The speaker had long, pink hair with grass-green tips. Her unbuttoned front revealed a figure that seemed on the verge of bursting out, displaying her curves with unapologetic immodesty.
Her beautiful face radiated a cheerful smile as she scratched her head, her gaze darting around Sosuke with... well, a distinctly predatory glint.