Forging Immortality: The Undying Blacksmith

Chapter 13: Black Gold

That night, Captain Li delivered over a hundred pounds of iron ingots to Li Qing’s tent.

The Feng Country exercised draconian control over resources like salt and iron. The entire transaction was conducted in absolute secrecy, attracting no attention.

Once inside, Captain Li scanned the tent, ensuring they were alone before lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “Er Niu, have you ever heard of Black Gold?”

*Black Gold?*

Li Qing put on a vacant expression and shook his head. He’d never heard of such a thing, not in his past life nor this one.

As if on cue, Captain Li produced a fist-sized, black metal nugget from within his robes.

“This is Black Gold,” he explained. “The iron mine we guard occasionally produces this stuff alongside the regular ore. It’s incredibly rare.”

Li Qing stared at the metal clutched in the captain’s hand. He recalled the female Thousand-Man Commander who had sought out Master Gu to forge the Green Rainbow Sword. She had mentioned a special kind of ore.

This had to be it. He hadn’t realized Captain Li was so resourceful, managing to get his hands on something this valuable.

Still, Li Qing maintained his facade of ignorance. “What’s this Black Gold used for, Captain?”

“This is a matter of utmost importance. You must not speak of it to a third soul!” Li Gui’s expression turned deadly serious, and his voice dropped even lower. “Black Gold is far harder than any iron. A weapon forged with it is so sharp that ordinary iron armor is useless against it.”

He leaned in closer. “I need you to smelt this into the cutting edge of the Mountain-Cleaving Axe. Can you do it?”

“But… Captain Li, I’ve never worked with this kind of metal before,” Li Qing said, shaking his head with practiced uncertainty. “I don’t know if I can.”

“Master Gu forged weapons with Black Gold before,” Li Gui pressed, his brow furrowing. “You’re his apprentice. It shouldn’t be a problem. Just get it done!”

Li Qing swallowed hard, playing the part of a man under pressure. “I can try, Captain. But I can’t guarantee I’ll succeed.”

“Just do your best. I’m not an unreasonable man,” Li Gui’s stern face finally broke into a smile. He handed the Black Gold to Li Qing, his gaze full of reluctance. It was clear he’d paid a steep price for this nugget, going to great lengths to conceal its discovery.

Most of the Black Gold unearthed this time had gone straight into the pockets of Thousand-Man Commander Qian Hong. For a mere captain to secure even a single piece was a remarkable feat.

“Remember,” Li Gui warned one last time, “not a word of this to anyone. Otherwise, both our heads will roll.” With a final, cautious glance around, he slipped out of the tent.

Li Qing stared at the pile of iron on the floor and the heavy, dark metal in his hand, his mind racing.

*Is this Black Gold really that powerful?* He narrowed his eyes, recalling the system prompts that appeared after a successful forging. The weapons he made from common iron were all designated as Mortal Grade. Did that mean higher grades existed?

*If this metal is as miraculous as he claims, a weapon forged entirely from it would surely transcend the Mortal Grade category…*

He ran a thumb over the pitch-black nugget. Its surface was smooth and cool, like jade. Even after holding it for a long time, it refused to absorb the heat from his palm, remaining stubbornly cold.

It was truly a strange, unheard-of metal.

But Li Qing wasn’t about to start forging now. At night, the clang of a hammer would carry for miles. He carefully hid the Black Gold and, after confirming no one else was coming, entered the Extreme Night World.

The air was as frigid as ever, but Li Qing’s body, tempered by his training, now possessed a natural resistance to the cold.

This time, he didn’t intend to practice the Fierce Tiger True Intent Diagram. Instead, he unrolled the bamboo scroll detailing the Turtle Breath Technique.

*An internal martial art. The Yan family’s collection is truly impressive,* he thought, a cynical smile touching his lips. *But the progress is glacial. Ten years might not even be enough to reach Minor Achievement. No wonder they were willing to part with it.*

The martial arts of the Jianghu were split into two main paths. The first was external cultivation, like his Gu Xuan Hammer Technique. The second was internal cultivation, like this Turtle Breath Technique.

It was hard to say which was superior; both were devastating when mastered.

External arts yielded fast results, which was why most martial artists practiced them. The drawback was that as they aged, their Qi and blood would wane, and their strength would wither. This was the brutal truth behind the saying “fists fear the young and strong.” A youth in his prime, overflowing with vitality, could overwhelm a seasoned master with sheer brute force.

Internal arts were different. As a practitioner aged, their internal force didn’t weaken—it deepened, growing more profound with each passing year. The catch was that it took decades to see any tangible results, and the manuals were exceedingly rare. Consequently, internal experts were far scarcer than their external counterparts.

“Few people would ever try to practice both at once,” Li Qing mused. “It’s a monumental waste of time, a path that almost guarantees mediocrity in both.”

*Giving me all these manuals at once… The Yan family isn’t being generous. They’re setting a trap.*

Li Qing sighed and began to carefully read the scroll.

The Turtle Breath Technique was divided into three levels: Minor Achievement, Great Achievement, and Perfection. These three stages corresponded directly to the three major realms of the martial world: Outer Force expert, Inner Force expert, and Transformation Force Grandmaster.

However, as an internal art, even reaching Minor Achievement in the Turtle Breath Technique wouldn’t be enough to contend with an Outer Force expert. Outer Force was about raw, explosive power. A fledgling internal art provided a boost, but it couldn’t close the gap.

Only upon reaching Great Achievement would that disparity begin to vanish.

And if one could cultivate an internal art to Perfection—the realm of a Transformation Force Grandmaster—they could even dominate fighters of the same level.

This was precisely why Li Qing was so intrigued. He didn’t lack time. Even with the worst aptitude imaginable, he could practice this art for a century or two before revealing his strength. By then, his internal force would have grown to a level that “peerless” could no longer describe.

Soon, Li Qing was completely engrossed. His eyes shone with a hungry light as he greedily committed every detail of the internal art to memory.

After nearly four hours, he had memorized the entire technique.

But just as he was about to attempt his first practice session, a chaotic shout erupted from outside the courtyard.

“Yan San, get the hell out of here! If you dare lay a hand on my granddaughter again, I’ll kill you!”

It was Old Man An’s furious voice, its tone leaving no doubt as to what was happening.

Li Qing sighed internally, with no intention of getting involved.

His modern sensibilities found the behavior of Yan San and his family utterly repulsive. If he became powerful enough in the future, he wouldn’t hesitate to eradicate them.

But not now. Now was not the time.