Chiyang County lay in the southern reaches of the State of Qi, a land rich in mineral veins. Its people mostly worked as blacksmiths, and the furnaces never cooled throughout the year.
From above, all of Qi's territory in this region appeared a deep, fiery red.
Thus it was named Chiyang.
The saying went: "Qi's military might comes from Chiyang, and Chiyang's strength resides in Nanyao."
Nanyao City was where the Lian clan had built their influence over many years.
It was not the county seat, yet it surpassed the county seat in importance.
When most people spoke of Chiyang County, they could only think of Nanyao City. They could never recall which city was the actual county seat.
The city lord of Nanyao was never transferred elsewhere. He had to bear the surname Lian—this showed the position the Lian clan held in Nanyao and across all of Chiyang County.
The Lian clan was not native to the State of Qi. They had migrated here only after their original homeland fell.
They opened mines in Chiyang County to extract copper, took root, and built Nanyao City from nothing.
Now it was renowned throughout the world.
The world's five recognized holy lands for weapon-forging masters all lay within Qi's borders. Among them was the Nanyao Lian clan.
The carriage raced along the broad highway. In the gaps between his Dao art practice, Jiang Chen occasionally lifted the curtain to glance at the scenery outside.
He thought of something strange to him: the official roads of Qi had no inscribed array runes. And along the way, many commoners of Qi were seen strolling through the wild fields.
He could see clearly that many of them had no cultivation at all.
In fact, he had noticed this when entering Coastal County, but at the time he had been fully focused on preparing to explore the Celestial Residence Secret Realm, so he had overlooked it.
Now that he thought of it, he asked aloud: "Why don't your Qi official roads need inscribed array runes? Your people walk freely in the wilds. Aren't the wilds dangerous?"
The driver serving Jiang Chen was from the Chongxuan family, a hereditary servant who had driven for them for generations.
In prestigious houses like the Chongxuan family, such hereditary servants were numerous and far more reliable than those hired from the common market.
He dared not neglect the Chongxuan family's honored guest, but he truly felt puzzled: "What dangers are there in the wilds?"
Jiang Chen pondered a moment, then asked again: "Are there no fierce beasts in Qi?"
The driver scratched his head: "Around here, the worst you'll find are some deer and foxes—hardly fierce beasts, right? Over in those mountains, there might be some tigers, leopards, or wolves."
Jiang Chen fell silent.
He wanted to ask where Qi's cultivators obtained their Meridian-Opening Pills. But this was a question the driver would never know the answer to.
The man did not even know what a fierce beast was.
In the State of Zhuang, the first thing almost every commoner had to remember before leaving home was "never leave the official roads."
Because the wilds were full of danger, with fierce beasts running rampant.
Even the official roads were not absolutely safe. Merchants who traveled them risked their lives with every journey.
The cultivators of Zhuang had to regularly patrol and hunt in the areas around settlements, clearing out hidden dangers.
Yet in Qi, ordinary people could stroll through the wild fields at will, playing and sightseeing wherever they pleased.
They were all ordinary people, yet born in different countries, their lives were so vastly different.
This was a life Jiang Chen envied.
He casually summoned a cloud crane, selecting interesting tidbits to record his recent experiences.
He also informed his sister that he had successfully explored the Celestial Residence Secret Realm and secured a spot in the Inner Palace realm. He urged her to work hard as well. Of course, he omitted the dangerous parts, mentioning only the wondrous aspects.
Then he chatted about Qi's delicacies, teasing An'an's appetite. A single letter was already full to the brim.
Jiang Chen thought for a moment, then picked up his brush and wrote another letter to Ye Qingyu, thanking her repeatedly for her care of Jiang An'an. He briefly mentioned his cultivation progress and discussed some questions about Dao art application.
Because he had encountered fierce beasts in many countries along the way, with only the State of Yun and the State of Qi as exceptions, he casually asked at the end where the State of Yun obtained its Meridian-Opening Pills.
After finishing both letters, the driver reminded him that Nanyao City was near.
Jiang Chen then set down his brush, watching as the cloud crane dispersed into the layered clouds.
Now that he had temporarily stopped in Qi, he no longer worried about the cloud crane getting lost. But the distance between Qi and Yun spanned ten thousand li—the round trip would take more than ten days.
...
Nanyao City stood tall and imposing. Before even approaching, one could feel its heat. The entire city radiated a scorching warmth.
The streets were bustling and loud.
The people of Nanyao were generally tall and robust, with skin that leaned red or dark.
The residents here, having lived beside furnaces for so long, all had fiery tempers. Jiang Chen occasionally saw people haggling with vendors so intensely it looked like a fight was about to break out.
"Fifty knife coins—deal or not?"
"Forget about it!"
"I saw others selling for forty knife coins!"
"Then go find them!"
"I'm finding you!"
"I'm not selling!"
...
Jiang Chen silently lowered the curtain.
The currency circulating in the State of Qi and its vassal states was primarily knife coins, supplemented by gold and silver.
The State of Zhuang used knife coins for historical reasons unrelated to Qi, and they differed from the ring coins commonly used in Dao-affiliated states.
The knife coins of Zhuang and Qi were completely different in form and detail. Of course, Qi's knife coins were far sturdier than Zhuang's.
Nanyao City was unlike any city Jiang Chen had seen since entering Qi. The entire city carried an air of slight detachment, likely inherited from that ancient homeland that had long since vanished into the river of history.
The State of Qi was vast and resource-rich, having conquered and absorbed many other nations into its territory. Thus one could see many different customs within Qi, none of which diminished the strong rule of Qi.
Riding in a Chongxuan family carriage naturally invited no petty troubles. Jiang Chen made his way unimpeded to Lian Que's residence.
This fellow lived in the central district of Nanyao City. His family estate was grand.
Upon hearing the announcement, Lian Que rushed out almost immediately.
He had likely been waiting a long time. Without exchanging pleasantries, he grabbed Jiang Chen and headed straight for the clan's sword forge.
The so-called sword forge, as the name implied, was where the Lian clan specifically forged swords—the Lian clan operated separate forging furnaces for each type of weapon.
The one Lian Que intended to use was naturally the finest. Only this furnace could represent the Lian clan's sword forge.
The fire seed in this forge was said to have been brought by the Lian ancestors when they migrated from their fallen homeland, burning continuously to this day. It had endured through the ages without being extinguished, carrying its own weight of history.
When one spoke of the Lian clan's sword forge, this was the one meant.
Outsiders were rarely permitted entry, but with Lian Que leading the way, the rules were different.
Moreover, Jiang Chen was the future owner of this sword. According to custom, he had the right to observe at the forge.
As they ventured deeper, Jiang Chen grew increasingly astonished.
He had assumed Lian Que was merely forging him a passable magical weapon, but judging by this sword forge alone, that was far from the case.
Before even reaching the forge, he first saw broken swords planted in the ground like a forest.
He could not judge the quality of these remnants, yet each one radiated a piercing sharpness.
Following Lian Que along a winding path through the sword forest, twisting and turning roughly along the pattern of some formation, the view suddenly opened up to reveal an enormous, blazing furnace.
The furnace was roughly the size of an ordinary house. Its mouth faced outward, resembling the gaping maw of some monstrous beast.
The furnace fire burned at a near-constant intensity, occasionally leaping upward.
Boom-boom! Boom-boom! Boom-boom!
What he felt was not merely the furnace fire, but the heartbeat of some ancient, primordial beast.