Chapter 52: Tie Wuyan

As the voice faded, before Yun Yi could react, an invisible force instantly washed over him, pinning him firmly to the spot.

A powerful cultivator of the Golden Core realm high up in the sky let out a resounding shout, then stepped across the void and landed right in front of Yun Yi.

"Yun Yi, you cannot kill him! I am an academy elder of the Weapon Refining Pavilion. Spare his life, and I promise to forge a Tier 2 spirit weapon for you for free!"

Looking at the middle-aged man before him, a trace of mockery crept up the corners of Yun Yi's lips. "Do I have a choice right now?"

A look of awkwardness flickered across the middle-aged man's face. Indeed, interrupting a life-or-death duel in front of so many disciples was hardly honorable, but the mere thought of that person left him with no other option.

He had to save him!

"I have already instructed the people inside. You can go in later and choose a spirit weapon blank yourself!"

As soon as these words fell, the middle-aged elder swept Liang Heng into the palm of his hand with a suction of his palm and soared into the sky.

"Hahahaha! Yun Yi, we'll see about this!"

Liang Heng's gaze toward Yun Yi remained filled with disdain. With his wealth, background, and connections, Yun Yi actually thought he could surpass him? What a pipe dream!

Yun Yi's expression remained calm. To him, killing Liang Heng at any given time would be as effortless as slaughtering a chicken; it was merely a pity that the fellow had managed to escape today.

Once the middle-aged man departed, Yun Yi regained his freedom.

"Brother Yi, are you alright?"

Lei Ling'er hurried to Yun Yi's side, scanning his body with nervous eyes, terrified that he might have been injured.

"Ling'er, I'm fine!"

Yun Yi let out a soft sigh and continued, "It's just a shame that I've let a tiger return to the mountains!"

"It's alright! I believe that the next time you cross paths with Liang Heng, Brother Yi will still be able to defeat him!"

Lei Ling'er tilted her head, looking up at Yun Yi with a bright smile. Her eyes seemed to hold the sun, moon, and stars, captivating Yun Yi's gaze.

"Hahahaha! Let's go, Ling'er! Let's go inside and take a look!"

With a hearty laugh, Yun Yi took Lei Ling'er's dainty hand and walked inward.

"Senior Brother! Please... please come in!"

Zhang Yuan, quick-witted and eager, scurried over to Yun Yi, extending a hand with a smiling face as he respectfully guided Yun Yi inside.

By now, the obsequiousness Zhang Yuan had shown earlier was gone, replaced entirely by awe!

Having witnessed the battle between Yun Yi and Liang Heng, he was thoroughly convinced of Yun Yi's prowess. After all, Yun Yi was currently only at the third layer of Foundation Establishment, yet he was already capable of holding his own against Liang Heng, who was at the sixth layer.

What did this signify?

It meant that Yun Yi possessed monstrous talent, far beyond anything Liang Heng could ever hope to compare with. No one in their right mind would want to provoke someone with such limitless potential.

And having worked at the reception desk of the Weapon Refining Pavilion for so many years, Zhang Yuan was naturally a shrewd man.

As they stepped into the backyard of the Weapon Refining Pavilion, the rhythmic clanging of metal grew increasingly loud.

"Brother Yi, follow me!"

Zhang Yuan bowed slightly, walking with a deferential smile toward a larger chamber.

Yun Yi and Lei Ling'er exchanged glances and followed closely behind.

Arriving at the entrance of the chamber, Yun Yi noticed that Zhang Yuan did not go in, but instead stood respectfully outside the doorway.

Once Yun Yi stood at the threshold, he finally understood why Zhang Yuan was behaving with such cautious obedience.

Inside the cavernous room stood a bare-chested, heavily muscled bald man. His left hand held a pair of iron tongs gripping a glowing, white-hot, massive sword blank, while his right hand wielded a sledgehammer larger than a human head.

The bald man's face was flushed red as he swung the heavy hammer in his right hand time and time again. Each blow crashed against the crimson metal, sending brilliant showers of sparks cascading through the air.

Even Yun Yi found himself completely transfixed by this raw, hormone-fueled spectacle.

The wait was long, but Yun Yi was utterly immersed in the scene. The aesthetic of brute strength, expressed in strike after rhythmic strike, deeply shook his soul.

Time seemed to stretch out endlessly.

"Hiss!"

With the quenching of the spiritual sword completed, a newly forged weapon radiating powerful spiritual might materialized before everyone's eyes.

Both Yun Yi and Zhang Yuan snapped out of their trance.

"Master Tie! This is Yun Yi. Elder Bai said he had already spoken with you!"

Facing Tie Yang, Zhang Yuan dared not show the slightest bit of insolence. He cupped his fists respectfully, keeping his head bowed as he spoke.

The bald giant lowered the spiritual sword in his hand, turned his head to look at Yun Yi, and wore a stern expression that lacked even a trace of a smile.

At this moment, even Yun Yi felt a touch of tension.

Under Yun Yi's gaze, Tie Yang strode heavily toward him and stared fixedly down at him.

Facing the bald giant's intense scrutiny, Yun Yi did not flinch in the slightest. Their eyes locked, and he held his ground completely.

Silence descended upon the entire area.

Yun Yi could feel that Lei Ling'er's hand was already slick with nervous sweat.

One breath...

Two breaths...

"Hahahaha!"

Seeing that Yun Yi showed no fear whatsoever, Tie Yang suddenly burst into laughter. He reached out a thick, calloused, rugged hand, clapped Yun Yi heavily on the shoulder, and boomed, "Not bad, not bad! As expected of someone with the guts to go toe-to-toe with that piece of trash Liang Heng! What's your name?"

Feeling the immense force transmitted through his shoulder, Yun Yi actually felt a hint of pressure on his physical body, which came as quite a shock.

Ever since he had entered the initial stages of Body Refining, very few people had been able to pressure him physically. Clearly, Tie Yang before him was also a practitioner of body refinement.

"Senior, this junior is Yun Yi, here to forge a sword!"

"Hahahaha! Forging a sword is nothing, your sword is on me!"

Tie Yang looked at Yun Yi now with eyes full of undisguised admiration.

"I've had my eyes on that bastard Liang Heng for a long time. If it weren't for having a powerful father, what is he? Just a worthless grandson!"

"If it were up to me, I would have smashed him right into his mother's stomach with a single hammer!"

Hearing Tie Yang's unrefined cursing, Yun Yi suddenly felt that this was what true, unrestrained boldness looked like!

After allowing Tie Yang to vent his complaints for half an hour, Yun Yi finally spoke up cautiously: "Senior, should I state my requirements for the sword?"

Hearing Yun Yi bring it up, Tie Yang slapped his own head and laughed heartily.

"Hahahaha! I almost forgot about the little brother's business!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Tie Yang gathered his vital energy into his dantian, gazed into the distance, took a deep breath, and bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Wuyan!"

The earth-shattering roar left Yun Yi temporarily stunned, his ears ringing with deafness for quite a while before he finally recovered.

"This..."

Yun Yi was left somewhat dumbfounded.

Just as Tie Yang's voice died away, a response came echoing from afar: "Coming, Old Yang!"

Before the voice had even faded, and before Yun Yi could react, a figure plummeted downward from the sky.

"Brother Yi, look!"

Following the direction of Lei Ling'er's pointed finger, Yun Yi saw a figure crashing down.

"Thud!"

The heavy impact made the earth tremble three times over.

When the dust settled, Yun Yi looked up and was instantly bewildered.

Not only Yun Yi was stunned, but Lei Ling'er was as well.

A young woman had appeared before them.

She possessed wheaten skin and a cascade of flowing long hair. Her attire was rather revealing, exposing two powerful, wheat-toned legs to the air.

What amazed Yun Yi even more was that—

The young woman was actually holding a hammer larger than her own body and resting it effortlessly across her shoulder!

Yun Yi's eyes widened in sheer disbelief.

"Old Yang, you called me for... oh?"

Tie Wuyan glanced briefly at Tie Yang, but her gaze was suddenly drawn to the young man standing beside him. Upon noticing Yun Yi's physique, however, a look of contempt surfaced in her eyes.

"You're the one who beat up Liang Heng?"

Tie Wuyan looked at Yun Yi with an expression of disbelief, her eyes filled with scorn as she took in his slender frame.