The Forging Process

Both Xiao Yin and Hei Yue looked with curiosity as the ground split open. The ground did not stop shaking until the entire forge could be seen.

Large steps descended into the giant forge, Lord Qin slung the bag over his shoulder as he walked down. He went to work, setting up the forge and opening everything. Small gems on the wall lit up the hall and there was a slow hum with each one.

The small hammer that he used to open the forge was placed on a workbench.

Ming Yue followed him into the space. Hei Yue chased after her but Xiao Yin stayed outside, possibly sleepy and wanting to rest.

She was given one surprise after another by Lord Qin. All of this was new to her and to see a giant underground forge was truly shocking. It was completely different to the Jun Heng Forge. Large enough to fit a small ship in, Lord Qin's personal forge was filled with nothing but racks and racks of weapons and armor.

The center of the forge had only an anvil and a stone bed on opposite sides. Outside of the stone beds were a number of work benches, some were empty while others had unfinished works. She looked around, surveying the whole forge. Some of these weapons looked incredible, exuding an certain aura around them. Not one thing was the same as the other. Hei Yue ran around, stopping once in a while to look at the various creations.

"Many of these weapons are treasures from past blacksmiths, some are of course made by me. They stay here locked away because they have no master."

Compared to these creations, the anvil and stone beds seemed out of place, average and ordinary although the stone beds seemed very out of place. She knew that they were important but wasn't sure exactly what they would be used for.

Seeing her stare at the anvil and the stone beds, Lord Qin explained their history and purpose.

"This anvil is made of a mixture of special materials that I had personally concocted myself. The stone beds radiate heat. The one on the right is used to melt down metals while the one on the left nurtures the blade with a gentle heat. My little hammer is handed down from my master, the previous Forgelord who obtained it from his predecessor. With each wielder, the hammer changes and grows. Each and everything here is a treasure that is made specifically to help me forge."

Lord Qin carried the bag over to the stone bed on the right dumped everything on it. To her surprise, these precious metals began to melt in an instant. Following this bag of metals, he dumped the pieces of Splitting Moon into the mix. Turning red hot, the metals became a liquid, almost like lava. He took out an ingot mold and pushed the melted metals in with his bare hands. Afterwards, he grabbed Parting Sun and took it apart before tossing the blade in as well.

He took the little hammer from before and it began to glow red before transforming. What was once a ordinary hammer was now a large war hammer. The face was flat and smooth but the sides of the head had carvings of hammers striking anvils.

By this time, the ingot had begun to solidify and harden.

He pried out the ingot with his bare hands and placed it on the anvil.

"Girl! Get over here!" he called out to her.

"I want you to fill the ingot with your energy", he added.

She did as he told, slowly sending her power into the block of metal. It was the same sensation as sending her energy into Parting Sun, having it course through the red hot ingot.

Lord Qin grabbed a pair of tongs and held the ingot in place as he hammered down with the giant hammer. It would be flattened into a long piece of metal before being folded on itself.

Thus came several hours of hammering and heating the ingot. Ming Yue had lost count of how many times the ingot had been folded. She just continued to feed the blade her energy. Hei Yue had left the forge by then, bored of the forge and wanting to play outside.

Every now and then, he would ask her to stop so that he could examine it. The large hammer would transform again and become much smaller and more ornate. He would tap it every now and then. His own energy coursed through the hammer and into the unfinished blade. Each time he did so, a resounding ring would be made and a spot of red would appear.

She watched while recovering, curious about what he did and could not understand what was happening. Nonetheless, she felt excited to be a part of the forging process.

The forging lasted another two days as she continued to fed the metal bar her energy. As time passed, Lord Qin became more and more delicate with the blade, spending more time looking rather than hammering.

It was beginning to take shape.

No longer was it a rectangular bar but a long and beautiful blade quite similar to Ming Yue's Parting Sun.

At last, Lord Qin had finished the forging. With his last hammer strike, he took the blade and placed it onto the stone bed to the left of the anvil.

"Give me your hand", he asked her.

"The last thing to do now is to give it a drop of your blood, nothing more nothing less."

He handed her the hammer which had now become a simple knife. She made a small cut on her palm and squeezed out a drop of blood which landed squarely on the blade.

"The forging is now done. This is the second phase, molding", he explained, "What I have just done is create the template. As it is now, the weapon is in a similar state as Parting Sun, with no elemental power within it but incredibly sharp and durable. However, it cannot be compared to Parting Sun's quality. By feeding it your energy and blood, the internal structure of the blade will begin to change based on what you have given it. Once the molding process is finished, you will understand what a divine weapon truly feels like."

Ming Yue nodded, understanding that the reforging was almost finished.

She looked at the sword noting all of its differences with Parting Sun. It was an inch or so shorter and the thickness was several millimeters thicker. It was also slightly wider than before. Her excitement began to grow with each passing moment.

A little bit later, Lord Qin took the blade away and examined it once more.

"Hmm, how interesting", he said, turning the blade around.

"The composition is different from what I had thought. Eh, doesn't matter."

He laid the blade on one of the workbenches and asked Ming Yue some questions on the scabbard and the handle. She answered them without hesitation, asking that it would be similar to what she had before. Something that wasn't very eye-catching and easy for her to use.

In a matter of hours, he finished everything and began the final assembly. Compared to the forging, this process was quite quick. Then again, he isn't called the Forgelord for nothing.

He held up the final piece and looked at it.

"Mmmm, a masterpiece!" he announced.

He walked outside with Ming Yue and gave a casual swing at the sky. The attack was silent and incredibly quick. With it came a swift wind that shot through the sky.

"What sort of skill is this?" she thought.

To be able to cut so far was something she believed to be impossible for her, yet the Forgelord had done it.

"This is a wonderful sword!" Lord Qin exclaimed, feeling happy that his handiwork was good.

He handed it over to Ming Yue, who was still shocked by the Forgelord's strike.

"Well now, what would you like to name it?"