5082 Destined by the Heavenly Dao

He couldn't believe it. He had only met this young Yan Immortal who had shattered nearly a hundred of his long swords a few hours ago, and now he was saying that he could one day rival his master. It was truly beyond imagination.

Seeing Jian Wushuang so confident, even the short and chubby old man felt shocked, but quickly scoffed, "This is utterly absurd, pure nonsense!"

Jian Wushuang smiled faintly, "Whether it's nonsense or not, only you know."

"Tell me the reason," the short and chubby old man stared at him intently, looking quite serious.

Jian Wushuang nodded and continued, "The reason is simple. His swordsmithing technique is not advanced, you could even say it's at a beginner's level. This shows his lack of skill."

"However, he compensates for it with diligence. In just the previous battle, he displayed nearly a hundred swords, and each one surpassed the last. If I'm not mistaken, the number of swords he has crafted must exceed ten thousand."

The young man kneeling in the clouds suddenly raised his head, looking at Jian Wushuang with disbelief, as if a hidden secret had been uncovered.

The short and fat old man shook his head and said, "Hard work can make up for one's ineptitude. This is a ridiculous saying. Since ancient times, how many cultivators have ever reached the end?"

Jian Wushuang smiled and said, "Diligence can indeed compensate for lack of skill, but that's just the initial condition. What's more important is whether his master will spare no effort in teaching him."

"Hmph!" The old man waved his sleeve, "You're just using strong words. Now, tell me who the other disciple is?"

Nan Xuan watched nervously from the side, feeling lost in the clouds. He had come to this realm with Jian Wushuang, but why hadn't he noticed anything while Jian Wushuang was talking so confidently?

Jian Wushuang said, "The youngest and most spirited disciple with the sharpest eyes is the second one."

With these words, the short and chubby old man could no longer hide his astonishment, and a terrifying surge of Yan power directly enveloped the entire sky.

"Who exactly are you? How do you know so much?"

Nan Xuan was facing a great enemy, and he also released his terrifying Yan power.

Meanwhile, Jian Wushuang remained calm, unaffected by the short and chubby old man's pressure. "I came here this time just to seek advice from Senior Divine Craftsman on a certain matter, nothing else."

"As for why I knew so much, you need to calm down first before I can explain it all."

In an instant, the opposing tension between them dissipated. The short and stout old man regained his previous composure, albeit without the contempt in his eyes. He said, "Please go on."

Jian Wushuang nodded and said, "I have been searching for the Senior Divine Craftsman for some time now. Eventually, by pure chance, I entered this realm. What's even more coincidental is that I encountered a group of the Senior's disciples at that time, nearly 50 of them."

"Due to a celestial anomaly, those disciples panicked and fled. They even casually discarded the sword blanks by the shore. However, one of the disciples fell into the water because he held onto the sword blanks with unwavering determination."

"I rescued him, and we had a brief conversation. I saw an indescribable determination in his eyes and talent far beyond his peers."

"These two disciples are my choice."

After saying the last sentence, Jian Wushuang nodded and looked at the short and stout old man.

Silence prevailed for a while, and the world remained still.

The short and stout old man's gaze was as sharp as a sword, continuously scrutinizing him. After a long while, he hoarsely spoke, "Are you one of Prince Jiu's subordinates?"

"No, I belong to no faction. I'm just a wanderer in this world," Jian Wushuang replied decisively, without hesitation.

Seemingly satisfied with his answer, the short and stout old man smiled secretly. "You're quite an interesting Junior."

"Enough talk. Follow me."

After the short and stout old man finished speaking, he turned and walked towards the depths of the clouds, and his voice echoed.

"Don't kneel there, foolish disciple. Forge another thousand swords for me and place them on Sword Mountain after you're done."

The young man heard this and replied earnestly, "Yes, Master."

Jian Wushuang shook his head with a smile and followed the short and stout old man, with Nan Xuan trailing behind.

Shortly after, the young man also caught up with them, and he respectfully said, "I'm not good with words, but I still want to thank you sincerely."

Jian Wushuang waved his hand with a smile and said, "No need to thank me. Just pester your master more in the future and learn as much as you can."

"I will," he replied with unwavering determination and fiery determination in his eyes.

After going through the last trial, Divine Craftsman Xu Tuo showed up on his own initiative, which saved Jian Wushuang a lot of trouble and also gave him a preliminary understanding of Xu Tuo.

The Sancun Mountain Heavenly Region was much larger and more abundant in spiritual energy than many other Heavenly Regions, making it extremely suitable for cultivation.

However, Jian Wushuang speculated that there were likely not more than a hundred cultivators residing in the entire Sancun Mountain Heavenly Region, and it could even be fewer.

Despite the scarcity of cultivators, the sky was filled with countless pavilions and buildings, and navigating among them allowed one to easily appreciate their intricacies.

The short and stout old man walked with his hands behind his back, proceeding neither quickly nor slowly.

Jian Wushuang followed closely behind him and did not speak.

After nearly half an hour of weaving through the clouds, they finally arrived at a magnificent and vast Dao Arena.

The Dao Arena was square-shaped, with its edges spanning a hundred thousand miles, constructed from pitch-black rocks and enveloped in a peculiar aura.

If one were to judge the Dao Arena alone, it might not have been overly impressive. However, what astonished Jian Wushuang was the enormous cauldrons placed in the Dao Arena.

There were a total of ten colossal cauldrons, each one reaching the pinnacle of size, resembling towering mountains resting upon the Dao Arena.

Within these cauldrons, a boiling, black-red magma churned and roared, with endless sparks flying out, creating an extremely shocking spectacle.

Simultaneously, the power manifestations in the sky transformed into ten raging vortexes, all pouring into the massive cauldrons, causing an earth-shattering commotion.

It was easy to imagine that once the magma within these cauldrons spilled over, it would result in an unimaginable catastrophe.

This place was the treasure Dao Arena created by the Divine Craftsman Xu Tuo!

The short and stout old man halted his steps and looked at Jian Wushuang, saying, "You are the only outsiders besides my disciples who have come here."

"It is an honor," Jian Wushuang nodded.

The short and stout old man was very pleased and nodded in response, "Respectful juniors, you possess a fraction of the demeanor I had in my younger days."

Next, under his guidance, Jian Wushuang and Nan Xuan entered this grand and expansive treasure Dao Arena.

Layers of dark blue power fluctuations resembled a vast barrier, protecting this part of the Dao Arena.

As they took a step into it, an indescribable pressure instantly washed over them.

Caught off guard, even Nan Xuan, who was a Grand Yan Immortal, couldn't help but grunt.

The pressure here far exceeded that of any Heavenly Region, and it was even several times more intense than the void. It was likely that any Yan Immortal who dared to step foot here would suffer irreparable damage in an instant.