Legendary Armament Canon Chapter 4

With a sharp crack, the standard long saber held by Zhou Shu snapped in two.

A piece of the saber fell, embedding itself a few inches into the ground.

Zhou Shu paid no mind to the saber's demise, his entire concentration fixed on the information that suddenly materialized in his mind.

[Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique!]

Having inherited the memories of his predecessor, Zhou Shu was already aware that formidable martial arts existed in this world.

However, his immediate concern was survival; why would he entertain thoughts of unattainable skills then?

He had never fathomed that he would acquire a cultivation technique under such circumstances!

Zhou Shu's entire being became captivated, the unpleasantness of having just taken a life fading into the background.

He had once believed that becoming a Forging Master would alter his destiny. Now, he realized the perilous nature of possessing such a skill without the means to defend oneself. What good was a special land if it brought only imprisonment?

That standard long saber, though not a ranked weapon, had already attracted avarice. What more if it had been a ranked item?

Forging Apprentices with influential backing might be unconcerned, but Zhou Shu was vulnerable. He lacked protection in Great Xia.

The recent events served as stark proof.

Merely producing a sharp standard long saber had led to immediate confrontation over the secret forging formula.

Had the saber's exceptional sharpness not been so pronounced, the outcome might have been less favorable.

Its ability to cleave through iron as easily as mud, and even to slice through the hammer, had caught the lanky man off guard, leading to his demise. Otherwise, Zhou Shu likely wouldn't have been a match for him.

A shiver of apprehension still coursed through Zhou Shu as he recalled the encounter. The sensation of his life dangling by a thread was something he desperately wished to avoid repeating.

[You have earned two years of cultivation as a reward for the sharp standard long saber you forged effectively completing a kill!]

Another voice resonated within his mind.

Concurrently, his dantian seemed to ignite, unleashing an unbidden surge of power that swiftly permeated his entire body.

Zhou Shu felt as though a restriction within him had been shattered. An inexhaustible torrent of energy flowed from his dantian, infusing his body with vibrant vitality. His senses, too, sharpened considerably.

Zhou Shu's eyes sparkled. He took a step forward, his arm swinging with newfound vigor. The broken saber in his grasp effortlessly sliced through the anvil before him.

This anvil, under which he spent most of his forging time, was uncommonly thick and heavy. It had undergone a thousand tempering processes, rendering it as resilient as legendary armaments.

With a whoosh, Zhou Shu's saber cleaved the robust anvil as if it were soft clay, bisecting it into pieces the size of an infant's head.

The falling iron sent dust billowing into the air.

Almost simultaneously, Zhou Shu detected the hurried sounds of footsteps approaching from beyond the yard walls.

Tonight, the lanky man was not the only one driven by greed; he had simply been the swiftest to act and the first to perish.

The death of the lanky man, combined with Zhou Shu's decisive strike, had sent the other lurking figures scattering.

A lingering sense of dread still gripped Zhou Shu.

Zhou Shu glanced at the corpse on the ground but felt no undue alarm. Retribution was inevitable; those who inflicted death often met their own. This individual had attacked first, and his counterattack was merely self-defense.

Moreover, how could he refuse assistance to Superintendent Xiao Zongshui, who had just taken his saber?

Zhou Shu mused, setting aside extraneous concerns.

He had forged two sharp standard long sabers.

One had broken during his encounter with the lanky man, while the other had been confiscated by Superintendent Xiao Zongshui.

Since he hadn't personally ended a life this time, it was logical to assume Xiao Zongshui had!

A sense of burgeoning mastery over the Legendary Armament Canon washed over Zhou Shu, his eyes gleaming.

By merely forging two sharp standard long sabers, he had obtained the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique and two years of cultivation. What if he were to forge two hundred...

The mere thought sent a thrill of excitement through him.

The first level of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique purportedly granted the strength of a dragon and an elephant, though exaggerated, his current might was equivalent to lifting hundreds of catties.

Without this enhanced strength, his previous strike would not have carried the same force. After all, regardless of a weapon's sharpness, its true power was dictated by the wielder.

Any concerns about Forging Apprentices posing a lethal threat were now dismissed, thanks to the formidable might of a dragon and an elephant coursing through him.

However, Forging Apprentices occupied only the most basic tier within the Forging Division; the vast majority were merely ordinary individuals.

A multitude of people possessed strength superior to theirs, and the initial stage of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique was far from adequate.

This realm, as hinted by fragmented legends within his predecessor's memories, was one steeped in elite martial arts. Reaching the pinnacle of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Technique might still not guarantee invincibility, let alone being merely at the first level.

?Zhou Shu reasoned.?

The weaponry produced by the Forging Division was destined for the three military branches of Great Xia. These forces typically engaged in numerous battles, inevitably using the weapons they wielded to vanquish enemies.

While it was an improbable expectation for all three military forces to employ the exact weapons he forged, the rewards would be immeasurable if even hundreds or thousands of soldiers killed foes using the arms he crafted.

Zhou Shu's bygone life's habits guided his assessment of the situation's advantages and disadvantages.

He analyzed the situation's pros and cons in his mind.

He harbored a certainty that he could achieve the status of a Forging Master with the Legendary Armament Canon, even with it currently containing the blueprint for a single weapon. Nevertheless, observing the current circumstances, a hasty ascent to Forging Master didn't appear to be the wisest course of action.

Primarily, it was peculiar for a mere Forging Apprentice to rapidly advance to the rank of Forging Master without the guidance of a mentor.

The sharp standard long saber had already drawn covetous eyes simply from its public display. Who could fathom the reactions if secret forging formulas for ranked weapons were to surface!

Zhou Shu had no desire to face capture and interrogation.

Furthermore, his previous haste to become a Forging Master stemmed from a fear of succumbing to overwork. That particular concern was now entirely alleviated.

Having attained mastery over the first level of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique, setting aside all other considerations, his current strength meant that forging three to five weapons daily would be as effortless as playing a game.

Such a scenario was utterly inconceivable.

Fulfilling the minimal requirements set for Forging Apprentices was now child's play for the current Forging Apprentice Zhou Shu.

Zhou Shu deliberated.

Simultaneously, within an opulent residence not far from Zhou Shu's workshop…

In the mansion's courtyard, Xiao Zongshui flicked his wrist, causing the bloodstains on the long saber to vanish as it was wiped clean, its blade gleaming once more.

A black canine, nearly as tall as a human, crumpled to the ground before him, its head and body severed.

Xiao Zongshui had evidently tested the saber upon a living creature!

He flicked his finger against the saber, eliciting a clear, melodious ring.

A satisfied nod followed. ?Xiao Zongshui pondered.?

With a flourish of his sleeves, Xiao Zongshui pushed open the door and strode towards the residential area of the Forging Apprentices, appearing to have reached a definitive conclusion.