9 The Parting Sun Blade

Ming Yue found the shop that owner Su talking about but instead seeing a normal shop, she saw a open forge that looked like tornado went through it. Weapons and pieces of equipment littered the floor, some were exquisite while others weren't worth mentioning. In the middle of all this was an old man, he was fixated on his newest creation. It was a broadsword with ornate handle, it looked quite excellent but he had a disappointed look.

"Peh! Another failure", he said as he tossed the blade onto the floor.

Afterwards, he was about start forging again until he noticed a girl at the front. It was Ming Yue. She saw that the old man was busy and decided to wait a bit.

"What do you want?" he said as he reached for his hammer.

Ming Yue was a bit surprised by his straightforwardness but she liked it.

"Could you have a look at this sword?" she asked.

Suddenly, she unsheathed the blade and passed it to him. The old man was shocked that the staff she had was a sword and he became curious, inspecting the blade in his hands. He noticed the name "Parting Sun" etched on it and was shocked. To think that young girl had such a legendary blade was inconceivable yet here she was.

From his knowledge, the Parting Sun Blade was made a a grand master and used by his son to kill corrupt officials. However there was an extra part to it. If Parting Sun were to be used with Splitting Moon, the user would be powerful enough to cut open the sun, the moon, and the stars in one move. This was a legend among blacksmiths because it was believed that before his death, the grand master that made these blades had cut a mountain apart while testing them on a whim.

He gave it back to her saying, "The blade has no issue and even if it did, I would not have the skill nor the materials to fix it."

Ming Yue was disappointed and she turned around.

Suddenly, the blacksmith said," Although I cannot do much, I am still able to make slight adjustments to the hilt and such."

Ming Yue stopped and went back to the blacksmith, she requested two things. She wanted him to redo the sword hilt as well as the scabbard. Although she had been using the blade for a fair amount of time, there were some imbalances that she could never get used to. The scabbard was not completely finished by its creator and while it could hold the blade, drawing it took some effort. In a battle, taking too long to draw your weapon will definitely end in loss and she did not want that. Thus she wanted the scabbard to perfectly fit the sword. As for the hilt, while it was a good fit, it had taken a fair amount of damage and needed a replacement.

This was within the old man's ability and he agreed telling her to come back in 4 days.

She felt uncomfortable having to leave without the sword but she could not stay there for 4 days. Thus, Ming Yue left but she did get the old man's name. It was Tie Xuan but she could just call him,"Tie Di", a nickname of his as he was a blacksmith.

After leaving, she decided to go back to the brothel. Night was beginning to fall and there wasn't really anything that she wanted to see.

When she came back, the brothel had opened up for business and women could be see flirting and flaunting their assets. She went in and walked to her room. There she undressed and went to bathe herself.

After she finished, Ming Yue went to her bed and decided to read the Shadow Blade Arts, although she now had the Falling Blade Manual as well, she wanted to focus on one thing at a time and had bought the manual to read for the future.

She was contemplating on how to incorporate the techniques of the Shadow Blade Arts to her style of swordsmanship. Her sword wasn't a dagger or a short blade so it was not suited for silent assassinations. However, the book had emphasized speed which was definitely a large factor to her sword skills. Of all the moves, only Descent of Twilight and Eclipse were compatible. What these moves required was only speed, they were killing moves that were to be used if the initial assassination was to fail.

To Ming Yue, Descent of the Twilight wasn't to hard understand but Eclipse was on a different level. This move required concentration and contained several mysteries that she could not comprehend.

As she continued to ponder about Eclipse, she sensed something and immediately put her book down. She looked up an noticed a man sitting with a cup of tea. He had a relaxed expression on his face as he took a sip.

Ming Yue tried to reach for her sword only to realize that it was still with Tie Di. However, she still had a dagger and pointed it at the mysterious man.

He smiled and said," You don't have to be worried, I have only come to thank you for saving my nephew. He was the one that ran from the Jade Snake."

Ming Yue didn't drop her guard but she replied,"I was only passing by, there is no need to thank me."

The man was a bit surprised by her response but liked the fact that she had some back bone.

"Even so, you saved him from certain death and for that, I will grant you one request", he said.

Ming Yue wasn't sure what to ask for and thought for a bit. She did not really need anything at the moment, then she noticed that the man had a sword by his side and got an idea.

"I want to spar with you", she said, "However, my sword is being altered right now and I can only ask that we fight in 4 days."

The man was curious about her odd request but thought nothing of it, after all it was only a spar, she probably wanted to compare sword skills. He agreed and talked where they could fight. It would take place outside of the city, in a clearing near the east side.

Before he left, he gave her his name, Fei Yun, but she can call him Elder Fei, although he was in his forties. He also gave Ming Yue token with the Fei etched on it and told her that if she needed help, she could come to them.

Afterwards, Ming Yue wasn't in the mood to continue her studies and went to bed. For the next several days, she focused on strengthening herself and rarely went out. The only times she did was only to play with Rou'er. On the day of the fight, she went out to retrieve her sword.

When she arrived to Tie Di's forge, the old man was waiting for her with a smile on his face. It seemed like the alterations were a success. He gave her the sword and let her inspect it.

It was still the same length and dimensions however it weighed a bit lighter. Tie Di and fixed the handle and the scabbard as well as carving some detailed work on it. From afar, it still looked like a staff or a walking stick, however, there were metal inlays that were shaped into a phoenix that wrapped around the scabbard while the hilt was redone with a metal cord wrapping for a better grip. It looked much more beautiful and when she drew the blade, it came out smoothly and without difficulty.

She liked the the new changes to it and was happy. With her sword on hand, she left and arrived to the meeting place waiting for Elder Fei.