Master, This Poor Disciple Died Again Today

Hui drew about half of the molten metal out of the small bucket all at once. His brows furrowed, and he focused. The metal swirled in midair, obeying his urges. He shaped the rough form of a bell all at once, shaping more a simple bowl than a true bell shape. I don’t need it to sound good or look good, I just need it to resonate!

Turning his attention inside the bell, he drew out a crossbar at the top of the bell, then shaped a clapper from the crossbar. The clapper ran out of metal halfway. Hui quickly fed more metal through the crossbar and into the clapper, adding a round portion at the clapper’s bottom.

Okay. Now separate the clapper and the crossbar!

Hui circulated his qi between the clapper and crossbar, forming a small space between them so they no longer touched. His mental energy strained as he focused on every part: on the hole between the clapper and crossbar, on the bell shape, on maintaining the clapper and crossbar themselves. Hurry up and cool! Cool, dammit!

Groping in his robes, Hui found an ice talisman and slapped it on the floor, urging it to life with a tiny bit of qi. A blast of ice and cold rushed out from the talisman. The metal cooled, the clapper and crossbar fully solidifying almost instantly.

Once he no longer had to focus on the internal workings, Hui refocused his mental energy on shaping the external parts of the bell. He gently gave it a more bell-like curve and a heavier bottom lip before the metal cooled.

Hui sighed, releasing his focus at last. He held out his hand. The bell fell into it, still warm.

Now, for the spell…

Since I’ve already extracted it, I’ll insert it back into the bell. I can focus on comprehending the spell after I put it in the bell. If anything, it might even aid my final comprehension, if I can see it acting in the bell and compare it to how it functioned in the hammer.

Of course, it does mean it’s currently a one-time-usage enchantment, and not something I can turn into a talisman, which is unfortunate, but I can work on comprehending it and turn it into a talisman later. I already failed to comprehend this spell once, after all. Back then, my realm was lower, but it remains true. If I lack karma with this spell, I might be unable to comprehend it forever… but I can use it anyways, as long as I successfully transplant it into this bell.

Flipping his hand, Hui summoned the pill bottle again. He drew out the spell and guided it into the bell, reshaping it into a cylindrical shape to better fit in the bell’s smaller body. As the warmth of the furnace faded from the metal, he circulated his qi and a tiny bit of life qi into the bell, anchoring the spell into the bell’s metal. Imitating what little he’d comprehended from the heat augmentation enchantment, he drew qi passages through the bell, so that any qi that entered would circulate the bell and automatically stimulate the spell inside, even without conscious thought. That way, I don’t have to activate my bell the way I activate a talisman. As long as I’m using my qi and some qi enters it, it will passively act.

It isn’t as good as having some kind of power source to independently power the spell and allow it to sense conditions and go off completely automatically… but that’s a level of skill far beyond this small cultivator, and maybe even beyond this world!

Hmm, no, thinking about it, spells of that level must be what are used for sects’ Great Barrier Formations and the like. After all, I’m not powering Unrivaled Peak’s barrier—if I even could—and Peak Lord is doing just fine hiding behind it. I suspect those formations are tied into the geological phenomenon… things like qi veins, dragon veins, whatever you want to call them. In other words, tied into the natural qi flow of this world. However, if I studied one of them… perhaps I could understand how to create a fully-automatic enchantment with an independent power source!

Peak Lord’s voice sounded in Hui’s head. Senior, why do you put such thoughts in small cultivator’s head? My hands are already full managing the lotus plant sproutlings and looking after Master’s peak, and now you want me to comprehend Great Barrier Formation-level spells, too? Do you really think I’m that idle?

Ooh, that one got a ‘Senior.’ Pitiful Peak Lord, having to call his own clone ‘Senior!’ Rogue mocked, laughing aloud.

If you need someone to idly comprehend things, throw them at Mortal! Peak Lord continued, ignoring Rogue.

Oh, hey! Excuse me. I’m already comprehending three different concepts at once, do we need to add a fourth? Besides, where do you think there’s a Great Barrier Formation around me? In conclusion, don’t throw your fellow clones under the bus! Mortal complained.

How does the soul comprehension go? Healer asked, changing the subject.

Well, very well. I’ve already embedded a few test versions inside the spider beast. Its qi and mental energy are both in chaos after years of exposure to the rot, so it’s easy to infiltrate its body and soul. Unfortunately… I don’t think it can be used to bring back Wildman or Sixth, Mortal said.

They were taken by Elder Sister Reaper. We never had such expectations. Likely, they’ve already crossed the Yellow Springs and are forever lost to us, Healer intoned grimly.

Is that a problem? They’re parts of our soul. That seems like a problem, Peak Lord fretted.

Mortal shook his head. The man in the role of Yama has had his eye on us for a time now. Elder Sister Reaper is his subordinate, and she’s dutifully gathering every scrap of our soul, right? Rather than saying they’re forever lost to us, shouldn’t we see it more as “we’re due for a reunion?”

A reunion on the far side of the Yellow Springs, Healer said, voice dark.

That may be, but… well, I’m simply saying. We have friends in high places over there, Mortal argued.

Rogue cocked an eyebrow. Mortal’s spent so long around dead bodies that he’s lost his fear of death. Mortal, do you think you’ve become immortal? Listen to your own name!

Fear death, of course I fear death! Don’t be ridiculous. I just think there’s something after death, for us. It might be a lifetime… afterlifetime of servitude, but… at the very least, don’t you think we’ll end up as reapers? Mortal suggested.

Is that a good thing? Elder Sister doesn’t seem too happy. And one lifetime of servitude is enough, Healer returned, firmly crossing his arms.

So chatty! Are you all people’s aunts, coming into my head and settling down to gossip? Go, go! I’m busy! Sectgoer raged, mentally throwing the rest of the clones out of the chat node. He shook his head. Honestly. Sometimes I wonder that any of them get anything done. Especially that Healer. He acts all responsible, but he’s always the first to answer on chat, isn’t he?

Ignoring the angry responses to his thoughts, Sectgoer turned the bell over in his hands. Crude and simple, it could barely be recognized as a bell, but when he swung it, a quiet ting rang out. With the ting came a wave of force. Although weak, it rustled Hui’s clothes and hair, and momentarily jumble his sense of balance. Hui stumbled back, putting a hand to his ear.

Hui raised his eyebrows. By making it weaker, I’ve made it less of a direct weapon, but now it can almost be considered a mental weapon. After all, it produces sound waves now… and adding enough force to sound waves can mess with the inner ear.

Ah, how wonderful, how wonderful! I’ve created a perfect weapon for me. A subtle weapon that seems harmless, but can slowly deteriorate the enemy’s balance and stability. It isn’t suited for short battles, but in drawn-out battles, it can make a big difference. Besides, if I use it to disorient my opponent, they’ll be less likely to check my corpse in detail! When they go stagger off to puke, I can jump up and run away. Perfect, a perfect weapon!

So… what do I put it on?

Hui patted around his clothes. He considered his robes, only to find the jade bird already hanging there. He frowned. You? But I’ve lost two parts of my soul, and Master hasn’t stepped in. What use are you?

Wait, actually… I’m a clone, and I’m wearing new robes. How did this bird end up with me? And actually… don’t we all have our own bird charm? I…

A wave of mental pressure pushed against Hui’s consciousness. Hurriedly, he retreated. Don’t think about it, don’t think about it. Yes, yes, it’s very normal for us all to have a bird charm. Yes.

He shook his head. Right. That’s out. So… er, a hairpin? It’s a bit weird for a boy to wear a bell in his hair, but not unheard-of. Though... no, no. It’s too distinctive. I don’t want to become “the man with any face and a bell in his hair.” Dead giveaway.

Anything too visible is out. Hmm. Thinking about it, why don’t I attach it to my weapon? Bells dangling from ones’ sword hilt isn’t that unusual. It’s a bit weird, but it’s normal to dangle a charm from the end of one’s hilt in this world. I usually wear my sword, but now that I have one sword and six bodies, it moves around a lot. And though it’s still distinctive, by the time I draw my sword, the situation has fully deteriorated, and there’s no hope at bluffing or playing dead immediately.

So decided, Hui summoned Moonlight Cutter. He drew a bit of string from his storage and tied the bell to dangle off the bottom of Moonlight Cutter. Putting his hand on his chin, he nodded… then froze.

Eh, but I usually do long, graceful slashes with Moonlight Cutter. There isn’t much chance for it to ring, and I need it to constantly ring. Instead, a bludgeoning weapon would be much better, with the short strokes and jarring strikes with lots of reverb on the blow. A bludgeoning weapon…

His eyes traveled to the headless hammer shaft slotted into his belt. Hui grinned. Isn’t there one right here?

Humming to himself, he untied the bell from Moonlight Cutter and tied it onto the end of the blunt metal rod. I could use Song Weilai’s hammer instead, but there’s something poetic about putting the bell back on the hammer I took it from. Besides, I don’t know how to properly wield a hammer, and the heavy hammer head at the end of the shaft makes swinging it unwieldy for such a scholarly and refined man such as myself. Instead, a beating stick suits this small Hui much better. After all, I’m very familiar with being at the other end of such a stick!

Hui swished his hand and called forth the remaining metal from the bucket, hovering it in the air until it hardened into a rough ingot. He sent that ingot back into the node and tucked the beating stick into his belt.

My first time forging a weapon went better than expected. Maybe I have some talent with the forge, after all!