Chapter 35: The Legendary Divine Artifact?

Uncle Feng shook his head at the sight and said, "Don't bother picking it up. I'll have Old He forge you a new one later."

Lin Bei frowned and looked at Uncle Feng, asking, "Isn't this thing very difficult to manufacture?"

Uncle Feng chuckled, "Who told you that?"

Lin Bei twitched his mouth. Although he didn't believe this exorcism sword was a divine heirloom of the Ma family, he hadn't expected it to be mass-produced, either. Now, Uncle Feng's attitude suggested that while crafting an exorcism sword might be somewhat difficult, it certainly wasn't impossible.

Thinking of this, Lin Bei turned to look where Ma Xiaoling had been standing, and sure enough, the woman had already vanished.

Lin Bei shook his head helplessly and signaled to his bodyguards, "A few of you, come with me to take a look below!"

"Yes!"

The bodyguards responded and descended, led by Wang Jianjun, into the underground passage. Before long, one of the scouts returned.

"Boss, there's a river down there. If we want to explore further, we need to go back to the boat for diving equipment."

Lin Bei waved his hand. "Go get it! And don't forget to bring the spearguns!"

"Yes!"

After the bodyguard left to fetch the gear, Zhong Fabai, who was standing nearby, asked curiously, "There’s still something down there?"

Lin Bei nodded and pointed toward Old Yang. "According to the last words left by the ancestors of the Yang, Li, and Qian families, besides the treasure, there is a Zhong Kui sword and three corpse-suppressing coins, all used to contain the Qin corpse. One of the conditions I negotiated with them was that the treasure and the Zhong Kui sword would belong to me."

Zhong Fabai’s eyes widened at the mention of this. Zhong Kui was the patriarch of ghost-hunting; if this were truly a sword he had once wielded, it would be a worthy treasure for any sect. It was the kind of artifact every exorcist dreamed of. Zhong Fabai wanted it too, but since it already belonged to Lin Bei, he dared not ask, nor would he; as a righteous exorcist, Zhong Fabai had his own code of conduct.

Lin Bei noticed Zhong Fabai’s longing but pretended not to see it.

The allure of a holy exorcism relic to an exorcist is akin to a lecher encountering a stunning, long-legged beauty. While the temptation is strong, it is not enough to completely strip one of their reason.

Before long, the bodyguards returned with diving suits and spearguns. With Lin Bei’s instructions, the bodyguards encountered the zombie tied to the bottom of the water, but with superior weaponry, it was no match for them and was easily dispatched.

The team, led by Wang Jianjun, successfully entered the treasure vault. Instead of rushing to move the wealth, they first brought out the wooden box containing the Zhong Kui sword.

"Boss, this is what you wanted!"

Lin Bei excitedly took the box from Wang Jianjun. Having seen the monsters and ghosts of this world, he understood the true value of a Zhong Kui sword. Uncle Feng, Uncle Qiu, and the others gathered around as well. Being practitioners of the Dao, how could they not be interested in an artifact left by the legendary ghost-slaying master?

However, when Lin Bei opened the box, the three experienced Taoists—Uncle Feng, Uncle Qiu, and Zhang Shisan—all showed expressions of disappointment.

Inside the box lay a sword with a primitive design, accompanied by three corpse-suppressing coins. These were indeed rare artifacts, but they were certainly not the legendary weapon used by Zhong Kui.

Lin Bei asked, "Is there something wrong with these?"

Uncle Qiu shook his head. "There’s nothing 'wrong' with them, but they aren't the artifacts left by Zhong Kui. They are fine for dealing with ordinary demons and ghosts, and if paired with the three corpse-suppressing coins, they could even handle formidable zombies like Great Demon Gods or Silver-Armored Corpses. We misunderstood earlier; when we heard 'Zhong Kui sword,' we didn't think it through. The sword used by the legendary Master Zhong is known as the Seven-Star Sword. It is said to be a divine artifact bestowed by Taishang Laojun—how could it be this one? And the era is all wrong!"

Lin Bei had wanted to ask more when he heard the first part, but he swallowed his words upon hearing the final sentence. Uncle Qiu was right; the age alone proved this couldn't be Zhong Kui's weapon. After all, the legendary Zhong Kui was a figure from the Tang Taizong era, over a thousand years ago. The sword in front of them was clearly a product of the Ming Dynasty.

Still, for Lin Bei, it didn't matter if it wasn't actually Zhong Kui's; it was far better than the exorcism sword Ma Xiaoling had sold him. Thinking of this, he suddenly remembered something he had forgotten.

He crouched down and sifted through the white ash left behind by the Qin corpse, eventually pulling out a sword with a design much older than the one in the box.

Previously, they had been too far away, and although Uncle Feng and the others had seen a sword tied to the Qin corpse, they hadn't seen it clearly. Now, as they looked closer, their eyes lit up.

Uncle Qiu couldn't resist reaching out: "May I take a closer look at this sword?"

Lin Bei said nothing and handed it over. Uncle Qiu took it cautiously and gently drew it from its scabbard. For a moment, it sounded as if a dragon had roared. Once the blade was fully unsheathed, Lin Bei realized it wasn't a bronze sword as he had imagined; it had simply been covered in a layer of rust from being left so long.

After examining it for a while, Uncle Qiu frowned and handed the sword back to Lin Bei. "Mr. Lin, try using your breathing technique."

Lin Bei was stunned but took the sword and, as instructed, infused the solar energy from his Sun Breathing into the blade.

At that moment, the sword underwent a transformation. Not only did the rust fall away on its own, but an indescribable chill began to seep from the blade. The sword was about three feet long, double-edged, and covered in strange, intricate patterns. Below the hilt were two ancient seal characters for "Tai-e," which appeared not to be carved, but rather naturally imprinted.

Lin Bei didn't recognize the characters, but Uncle Qiu and Uncle Feng did. Whether practicing Taoism or exorcising ghosts, one had to deal with antiques, and being ignorant of ancient scripts was not an option. Recognizing the name caused both men to gasp.

Ma Xiaoling, who had wandered back at some point, couldn't help but ask, "Uncle Qiu, what is the origin of this sword?"

Uncle Qiu cast a sidelong glance at her, annoyed. "If you listened when I told you to read more books, you wouldn't be unable to recognize these characters. If you run into a difficult ancient evil in the future, you wouldn't even recognize the solution if it were placed right in front of you!"

Ma Xiaoling stuck out her tongue playfully and shrank back.

Uncle Qiu shook his head and said, "If I'm not mistaken, this is the legendary Sword of Might—the Tai-e. It was the treasure of the State of Chu during the Spring and Autumn period, forged by the masters Ou Yezi and Gan Jiang. It was used by the First Emperor of Qin as his personal sword for a long time. It seems the Qin corpse we destroyed was either the First Emperor himself or a member of the Qin royal family."