Chapter 543 Tempering a Sword

Shen Lian did not move on with riding in the clouds, instead, he brought both mother and daughter up the mountain by foot. The wilderness in the mountain was filled with snow and the northern wind howled. Under normal circumstances, it should be freezing for the mother-daughter duo. However, being close to Shen Lian, they felt as warm as spring.

The uneasiness within her heart subsided following the warmth. Shen Lian suddenly asked, "Is there a name to this mountain?"

"Yes, it is called Chong Hou. The king of the mountain here is Chong Hou Tiger. He was conferred with that title by the son of the White Emperor, Yunyang, and made this mountain his feoffment." Ah Lian became a little braver as she answered Shen Lian.

Shen Lian pointed towards Xiao Hei and said, "Chong is a good surname. How about I call you Chong Heihu from now on?"

Xiao Hei replied, "Sounds good, sounds good." It was speaking the common tongue of the Xia Kingdom. Ah Lian did not quite understand but looking at Xiao Hei's expression, she too felt he was being funny.

It was said that the king of the mountain was a tiger demon. Xiao Hei, on the other hand, seemed easier to get along, at least it would not eat human.

Xiao Hei could not be bothered if he had embarrassed itself, as long as he could make his master happy.

Shen Lian traveled for quite a while in the Eastern Barbarians and knew many of the folklore and legends. He then picked a few and told it to both Ah Lian and her daughter, which made the journey less wearisome.

By the time Shen Lian finished his third story, they reached a cave area. The cave was dry and wide. It was the source of the demonic Qi emerging from the mountains.

Shen Lian reached the entrance, and a gust of demonic wind blew. For a moment, the surrounding was dark. Finally, a demon king with the head of a tiger and the body of a human emerged, behind him, a massive army of ghost followed. The previous tribe leader of Wuzhong was among them. He gesticulated towards Shen Lian and said many things to the demonic king.

Shen Lian was unfazed as he looked at them.

The demon king opened his mouth and said, "I am Chong Hou, the King of this mountain. My title is conferred by the son of the White Emperor. All areas within three thousand miles from here would be my feoffment. You, young cultivator, want to look for trouble with me? That would mean you are also opposing the union of the Eastern Barbarians.

The demon king, Chong Hou, was a fierce tiger within the mountains that cultivated into a demon. He cultivated for a thousand years and had shapeshifted for three hundred years. Within this three thousand mile of area, he acted like a tyrant. At that time, Yunyang was gathering warlords from the Eastern Barbarians. Coincidentally Chong Hou Tiger had some reputation and mana, coupled with the fact that he was a demon, he was then simply conferred by Yunyang

Originally, he wandered all over different mountain peaks. Ever since he accepted the conferment, he settled on this mountain peak. Due to the evil arts he cultivated, he needed to consume humans. He turned the Wuzhong tribe leader into his own Changgui, so the tribe leader could steadily supply fresh ingredients to him.

Before that, there was a simple-minded cultivator of Qi which was hardly his opponent. He was devoured within two or three moves. But this cultivator before him, even though he seemed young, he was hard to read. Chong Hou could only use the name of the son of the White Emperor in hopes that he could scare the other.

Shen Lian opened his mouth and replied, "There is a good saying in the human world, ' for visiting.

He kicked the black Qilin with both feet and left.

Shen Lian smiled, "Those whose courses are different cannot lay plans for one another," he thought. He then took another look at the spiked mace that was embedded within the wall of the mountain and turned towards Xiao Hei and the mother. He said, "I would like to temper a weapon here."

Xiao Hei asked, "What kind of weapon does master want to temper?"

Shen Lian stared at Xiao Hei and leisurely spat out, "The Treasure Sword."

Xiao Hei was stunned and muttered to itself, "This name sounds a little tacky." But his reaction was quick as it said, "This name is really good. It appeals to all. Master is truly formidable."

Shen Lian smiled and said, "Of course, this will not be the true name. But I am serious about tempering a treasure sword. I have other uses for it."狐假虎威 – Literally translated as 'a fox masquerading as a tiger' to fit the context of the text. This Chinese idiom means assuming the dignity or authority of somebody else as one's own.