Serpent sword

After some time, Gan Tian Chi began to feel an urge to drink wine. He reached his hand down to grab the earthen jar, only to have his fingers reach thin air.

[Where did I put that?]

"Xue'er, have you seen…'' He looked over towards the girl, who was watching him with a drunken expression. Her cheeks were slightly flushed with a reddish tint. The jar was on a tree stump, which also served as a table and a stool for her.

"What?" She asked about his unfinished question.

"Never mind." He sighed, as he came over and took the jar. When he peered into it, there was not even a single drop left for him to smell.

[Should I get another jar?] He pondered for a while before he decided against it.

Those jars stored in the cellar was all he had left. They were the only one of their kind, he had made them a long time ago, and those ingredients were rarer than rare, he was only able to make that batch. He himself was very hesitant in consuming it, for he knew that once it was gone, he would never be able to taste it again.

It seemed that he would have to continue his work, without the encouragement of good wine.

Gan Tian Chi was depressed.

He picked up his hammer and continued to hit that piece of metal. Xue'er's eyes once again followed his every movement with a strange sharpness to it.

Gan Tian Chi soon noticed that there wasn't even a hint of her being intoxicated, besides the reddish tinge that showed on her cheeks, on that skin which was usually as pale as paper. It was strange, after all, even he would feel the effects of the wine, if he drank a lot of it and she drank at least a third of the jar.

Thinking till here, he got even more unsatisfied as she had wasted perfectly good wine, one of the few things in the world that actually had an effect on him.

He didn't have much time to dwell on the lost liquor, as he soon reached a critical point in making the sword.

It would soon take its shape.

Under Xue'er's watchful eyes and Gan Tian Chi's skilled craftsmanship, the lump of metal was soon taking shape.

It began taking shape of a long, slithering serpent, with the sharpest part, its tongue at the tip of the sword and the strongest part, the scales on its body which was the entire body of the sword it made for a horrifying weapon.

Taking one look at the sword, Xue'er knew precisely what it was. She knew that the sword would create a wound that mirrored the ones she saw on that family that they came across in the forest. It would be as if a blazing snake had slithered across their bodies, leaving a trail behind.

Just what is he planning to do with such a weapon?

"What is the name of it?" Xue'er asks as the sword is being plunged into the water to cool it down.

"The Serpent sword." He answered without a care.

It seemed that within his eyes, he did not care the slightest for this sword, that could have caused countless factions to fight over. It could have been considered a heavenly weapon, with the unique forging technique implemented by one of the best weaponsmiths to have ever lived.

When he pulled the sword from the water, he set it on a rack to be left overnight, before pulling Xue'er into the cottage with him.

Within the cottage, Gan Tian Chi boiled a pot of tea, while Xue'er sat at the table waiting for him.

The tea was something that he plucked along their journey to the cottage. At that time, Xue'er was also filling her bag with many rare medicinal herbs.

Two cups were on the table, as Gan Tian Chi poured a cup for himself and the girl next to him. The tea was hot enough, that there was a steam in the air, bringing with it a delicate soothing scent that permeated the room.

"What are you planning with that sword?" Xue'er asked, taking a sip of the tea. There was a light scent of chamomile, one with top quality. It was relaxing and calming to the nerves and the mind.

"What do you know of the sword?" Her question was answered with another question.

"The pattern of the sword reminds me of the fatal wounds on the bodies we found in the forest yesterday. If I'm not wrong, you made that sword so that you could recreate those wounds." Xue'er said analytically.

"You're not wrong. Sects are so strange, they always teach things passed down from generation to generation, each having a unique skill that is easily pinpointed. You know, this is precisely what makes them so easily framed."

"True." Xue'er shrugged. She agreed with him, what is so good about unique skills and techniques that are known all over the world.

He pondered before saying, "Let's go to the town in three days."

"Which town?" She asked.

One had to know, there were so many towns and villages that were near or within this border forest. There were some that were small, that only about ten families or so lived in it, then there were those border cities, that served as a station of the army, with thousands of families living there, it was just like any other city, with a wall. The only difference is the lack of resources.

"The largest town that borders between Eastern Jin and Northern Wei." He answered.

That town was quite far away, being at least a hundred miles away. An average person would perhaps take a week traveling that distance, as for them, they could do it in less time.

Xue'er nodded obediently and finished the tea in small sips, by now, the chamomile tea had gotten cool and it was now refreshing once the tea touched her lips.

Gan Tian Chi, on the other hand, took a giant gulp "Use this time to explore the forest." He said as he gently pats her head.

[Just what I was planning.]