1942 Malfunction

The Flash Cleave Axe hovered over him as if looking at him.

Head Elder Dajian raised his brows while Head Elder Heng had a look of understanding on his face.

'Is the Flash Cleave Axe picking him? Does it sense his potential?' Head Elder Heng wondered. 

He knew that Peak Grade Immortal weapons with spirits could do this. In fact, they often had a better sense of potential and power than many other cultivators. This was something innate within them and was directly linked to their existence as a weapon to be used by others.

It was an ability granted by the heavens so that they could find a suitable owner. As that was their very purpose of existence in the first place.

The Flash Cleave Axe hovered in silence for ten seconds, during which no one spoke. They were far too interested in knowing what would happen and were waiting for a response from the weapon. After all, it wasn't every day that they got to see a Peak Grade Immortal Weapon select a master.

"You…" Finally the Axe spoke, raising Lin Mu's interest.

"You are picking me?" Lin Mu questioned, feeling a mix of confusion and interest.

He was interested, as having a peak grade immortal weapon would be good. But he was also confused, as he didn't think he was the right fit for the weapon.

'I might have used axes when I learned the Myriad Armament Blade Scripture and also when I used the Earthen Armament Aspect's Great Axe form, but I've never specifically used axes as a focus. Not to mention, I do not have the affinity to the Light Dao either.' Lin Mu wasn't naïve enough to misjudge his own capabilities.

Even if he would like to have a Peak Grade Weapon, he knew it wasn't good to bite more than one could chew. 

'There would also be the cost for this. Even if the Flash Cleave Axe picks me, I can't just take it away without paying the Serene Glass Valley an appropriate price.' Lin Mu wouldn't just steal a weapon from people who had been cordial and honorable with him since the start.

As such, he also started to think about what would be the appropriate price to pay for it. 

'Maybe a million High Grade immortal stones? No even that might not be enough, it already has a weapon spirit after all…' Lin Mu wondered.

But soon his train of thought came to an abrupt halt.

"You… Show me my master." The Flash Cleave Axe spoke.

"Huh?" Lin Mu uttered in bafflement.

"What?" The juniors couldn't understand.

"Show master?" The two Head Elders were also perplexed.

"Show me my master. Where are you hiding my master!?" The Flash Cleave Axe demanded.

By now, Lin Mu had no idea what the Axe was uttering. He even wondered if the weapon spirit was malfunctioning somehow.

"Is its intelligence not fully developed?" Lin Mu muttered in confusion.

"SHOW ME MY MASTER!" The Flash Cleave Axe shouted. 

~HUMM~

And in the next second, it started to gather energy. Its blade glowed in a white light, raising alarm in Lin Mu's mind.

~SHING~

Then without a warning, the Axe attacked Lin Mu!

"What in the—" The two head elders moved to intervene, but they were slower than the peak grade immortal weapon which was barely a meter away from Lin Mu.

~CLANG~ 

A hand that was covered in a stone gauntlet grasped the Axe head, stopping it in its tracks. Red hot lava could be seen flowing in the joints of the gauntlet, while the heat from it spread in the hall.

Lin Mu gazed at the Flash Cleave Axe with apprehension in his eyes.

The juniors watching it all were shocked, while Shuijing Mingzhu who was beside Lin Mu felt afraid. The way the Axe had moved, she would have been caught in the path of its attack too. Lin Mu knew this too, and couldn't dodge or he would risk her getting hit.

As such, Lin Mu decided to block it directly.

'It was good that I learned the Longgui Bulwark Armor earlier… The power of the Axe is very strong.' Lin Mu felt the impact. 

He had withstood it with the heavy defenses of the Longgui Bulwark Armor. 

~WENG~

But the Flash Cleave Axe tried to move again, wanting to escape from Lin Mu's grasp.

"STOP!" Head Elder Heng and Dajian shouted.

The acts of the Flash Cleave Axe were a personal insult to them both. After all, they had been the ones who had made it and allowed the juniors to be in its presence. The actions of the Axe would be their responsibility.

The Flash Cleave Axe attacking Lin Mu and endangering the juniors was the same as a loss of face for them. 

Not only had it attacked an honored guest, it had potentially also harmed multiple juniors.

Even if the Flash Cleave Axe was a Peak Grade Weapon they had been wishing to make for a long time, at this current moment, it was nothing but a threat to all of them.

After all, what use is a weapon that harms the creator?

Lin Mu knew if he let go even for a moment, the Axe could very well injure several people. Even if it was just targeting him, the power of a Peak Grade Immortal Weapon could not be underestimated.

With the cultivation bases of the juniors here, even a stray wave of Immortal Qi could knock them out or shatter their meridians. This was especially the case for those who were below the Immortal realm.

"SHOW ME MY MASTER!" The Flash Cleave Axe continued to shout while trying to escape from Lin Mu.

~DENG~

But Lin Mu only increased his restraint, using his other hand to keep the Axe in place.

"Do it now, Head Elders!" Lin Mu exclaimed.

"SEAL!" Head Elder Heng directly employed the formations of the entire peak, sealing the Flash Cleave Axe.

~RUMBLE~

The peak shook, as chains made from runes appeared out of thin air. The chains rushed at the Flash Cleave Axe which was trapped in Lin Mu's vise-like grip.

"Prism of Solitude!" Head Elder Dajian also used a technique, creating a glass prism around the Flash Cleave Axe.

This prevented the stray Immortal Qi waves from hitting the nearby juniors. 

~CLANG~CLANG~CLANG~

The rune chains wrapped around the Flash Cleave Axe, and the Prism of Solitude trapped it in its confines.

"You can let go now. Even a Peak Grade Weapon won't be able to break this for a few days." Head Elder Heng spoke, anger boiling in his eyes.

Lin Mu took his hands off the hostile weapon, letting the rune chains wrap it even tighter.

"All juniors are to leave, right away!" Head Elder Dajian ordered.

~WHOOSH~

That order wasn't even needed, as the juniors started to run away before that. 

"Daoist Mu Lin…" Shuijing Mingzhu tried to say something but saw Lin Mu shake his head. 

"Leave, it's not safe." He spoke.

"Y-yes." Shuijing Mingzhu replied and left as well.

Now with only three people left in the forge, its doors started to close.

~RUMBLE~

The castle shook, as layer after layer of barrier appeared. Soon enough, the entire place was sealed, and no one would be able to enter, nor leave it.

"Was there an error?" Lin Mu questioned first. "Perhaps an issue in its Weapon Spirit's birth?" he asked.

"It can't be." Head Elder Dajian replied. "In my fifteen thousand years of making Immortal weapons, this has never happened." 

"Hmm… Immortal weapons with spirits can be hostile, but that is if someone other than their owner uses them. The Flash Cleave Axe has just been born, and has no owner. It shouldn't be doing this at all." Head Elder Heng thought hard while trying to control his anger.

"So it is indeed strange." Lin Mu wondered what could be wrong with the weapon. "And here I was questioning why it would pick me when I don't have anything compilable with it." He presented his doubt.

"It would make sense if it was picking you dependent on potential, but that is clearly not the case." Head Elder Heng spoke.

"Whatever it may be, this Immortal weapon is not suitable for use." Head Elder Dajian spoke in a disappointed tone. "We will have to seal it and wipe its weapon spirit before rewriting all the formations…"

They knew doing that would mean that the weapon would be degenerating. It would no longer be a peak grade weapon and would weaken greatly.

Lin Mu furrowed his brows as he thought about it for a bit.

And just as the two head elders were about to proceed with the dismantlement of the Axe, Lin Mu interrupted them.

"Wait!" Lin Mu said out loud. "Perhaps we are mistaken about something." He added.

"I doubt that." Head Elder Dajian replied.

"We should try talking to the Flash Cleave Axe. There might be more to its words than we are understanding." Lin Mu suggested.