The Portal of Wonderland

Shi Mu moved his wrist, and placed the magic brush on the surface of the black blade.

“Brother Shi, can it be that you intend to superimpose the charm spell once again…” Zhao Ping asked in a muttering tone. He seemed to be stunned.

Shi Mu was silent. However, his hand continued to move. Surprisingly, the speed of his drawing had become multiple times faster than before. The third charm spell was superimposed successfully after a while.

However, Shi Mu didn’t stop. Instead, he started to draw the fourth time.

Meanwhile, the temperature of the black blade had started to decline. Its color had changed from fiery-red to dark-red.

Therefore, Shi Mu’s wrist didn’t move as swiftly as it had before. The degree of hardness of the blade got enhanced with his last stroke. So, it became extremely difficult to draw the charm spell.

The black blade was still on the casting platform. It had almost resumed its original state. Suddenly, the carved Fiery Inflammation Charm Spell emitted a burst of red light. Then, it slowly dissipated.

This was the fifth time that the Charm spell had been perfectly superimposed. Fortunately, the fifth attempt was completed before the hardness of the blade got restored.

However, there was something else that needed to be done.

A red line was drawn from the Fiery Inflammation Charm Spell to the hilt of the blade.

Shi Mu took-out a bottle and inclined it. He dropped a few drops of the lizard’s poison at the extreme end of the red line.

“Chi… Chi” a burst of sound was heard. Suddenly, a small and shallow hole appeared on the surface of the blade.

Shi Mu fished out a fire-attribute spirit stone from his bosom, and embedded it in the small pit. Then, he turned his wrist, and outlined a few long lines around the fire element stone.

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

The spirit stone started to exude a faint-red light. The red light flowed along the red line and got submerged into the twelve magical characters of the Fiery Inflammation Charm Spell. It appeared as if blood was flowing through someone’s vein.

‘Bang!’ a layer of bright-red flame emerged on the blade with a loud sound. But then, the flame dimmed and the charm spell regained its original shape.

Shi Mu’s face beamed with happiness.

Finally, the superimposition of the charm spell was complete. The meteoric-iron blade had finally transformed into a magic weapon.

The fire-attribute spirit stone was a source of spiritual energy. It could greatly enhance the might of the Fiery Inflammation Charm Spell. Shi Mu knew that he could barely activate the five overlaid spells with his present magic power. However, he could display a greater might with the support of an embedded spirit stone.

A magic weapon couldn’t exhibit a formidable might if it was used by a Hou Tian warrior. It was because of the inferior quality of the Real Qi possessed by Hou Tian warriors. They also lacked the strength to activate a charm spell on such a weapon. Therefore, they relied on embedded spirit stones to use a magic weapon.

However, spirit stones were extremely expensive. Only the people with special status or strong financial background could afford them. Therefore, there were only a few warriors who could use a magic weapon.

The remaining people had to wait till they had advanced to the Xian Tian realm since the quality of their Real Qi would improve at that level. Then, they could use their magic power to activate the charm spell inscribed on the magic weapon by using the Formula Magic.

Zhao Ping was astounded and alarmed. He couldn’t believe what he had just witnessed – Shi Mu had superimposed five layers of charm spell on the black blade at a stretch.

His eyes were fixed at the raging flame on the black blade. He exhaled a long breath as he finally came back to his senses. Then, he spoke in a tone that dripped of a pleasant surprise, “I had heard that Brother Shi is a prodigy in Formula Magic. But, I got to see it with my own eyes today. It was amazing.”

“Brother Zhao is flattering me,” Shi Mu turned around and replied with a smile. His eyes had returned to their normal state.

“As far as I know, many magician-practitioners are especially assigned for refining weapons in our Sect. But, only few lucky ones have been successful in superimposing a charm spell twice on a weapon. Even a lesser number of people have superimposed it thrice on a magic weapon. But, Brother Shi superimposed it five times at a stretch,” Zhao Ping’s words were tinged with admiration. He couldn’t help but look at the black blade with shinning eyes. The blade was in the process of cooling down.

Shi Mu smiled faintly. His eyesight mutation was the key to his success. He wouldn’t have achieved such an astonishing feat if it wasn’t for his unique eyesight. In fact, he was confident that he could’ve overlaid the spell a few more times if he had more time.

It was said that the power of a magic weapon was directly proportionate to the charm spell recorded on it. The Fierce Inflammation charm spell was a low-grade charm spell. So, its might was inferior to the might of a magic weapon infused with a high-ordered charm spell; even though it was superimposed five times on the blade.

The meteoric-iron blade was no longer a low-ordered magic weapon. It was far more formidable than any other low-ranked magic weapons. It was enough for a battle between Hou Tian warriors.

The meteoric iron blade regained its normal temperature after a quarter-of-an-hour.

The twelve scarlet charm characters could be clearly seen on its surface. The pattern of the spell on the blade looked like blood, and it seemed to be flowing through the lines. Therefore, the blade was emitting a hint of menacing coldness.

The trace of a satisfactory look flashed across Shi Mu’s eyes. He grasped the blade’s hilt, and placed it flat before his body.

“It’s a high-quality magic weapon… that’s rarely seen. The instantaneous explosive force of the five layers of Fiery Inflammation Charm Spell has been added to the bewildering weight of the blade. Brother Shi possesses an inexplicably formidable blade now,” Zhao Ping shot an envious look towards the black blade as he spoke.

The value of the black blade had been greatly increased since it had been transformed into a magic weapon.

However, Zhao Ping was a candid person. He didn’t harbor any negative thoughts even though he was a little envious.

“Brother Shi, do you want to try it out?”

“Yes! ”

Shi Mu raised his eyebrows as an idea came to his mind. So, he replied with a nod.

This blade was his most satisfactory weapon so far. Moreover, he wanted to test the might of the charm spell that he had overlaid.

“Haha… Brother Shi, come with me. We have a practice field nearby. That place is especially made for our customers to try out their weapons,” Zhao Ping chuckled. Then, he led Shi Mu out of the forging room, and into a broad and open area outside.

Several wooden figurines were arranged in the open area. These figurines were wrapped in an iron sheet. There were also a few boulders; each of them was as big as a millstone. Several scratches of varying depths were visible on these boulders. These scratches had been left by the customers who had previously tested their swords and blades.

Shi Mu looked around in an excited manner. Then, he issued a long and loud roar. He stamped his foot on the ground, and galloped to the practice field. He wielded his blade like wind as he exhibited a series of gestures and motions in the air. He had decided to try this blade out by using the Thirteen Series of Gale Force Blade Art.

The blade was quite heavy; it weighed two-hundred-and-fifty kilograms. However, Shi Mu wielded it as if it was as light as a feather. A whirlwind was set-off as he waved it in all directions.

The speed of his blade got faster with each move. Then, the blade transformed into a shadow and started to hover around his body.

Shi Mu felt that his mind was clear. He swiftly swayed his blade in all directions as he followed the pattern of the Thirteen Series of Gale Force Blade Art. Suddenly, he lifted his foot and stretched out one of his hands.

He felt a stream of warmth well-up in his heart. Then, the same feeling emerged in his mind, and started to flow through his limbs and bones.

“Ha!”

Suddenly, Shi Mu issued a loud shout, and thrust his blade forward. The blade-shadow trembled and transformed into thirteen black and misty shadows. These fierce and cold blade-shadows surged forward and rolled in all directions. Zhao Ping was startled as he saw this. He couldn’t help but move a few steps backwards.

Thirteen cuts in one breath!

Shi Mu’s heart brimmed with exhilaration. His Gale-Force Blade Art had made a terrific breakthrough. It had reached the consummate stage. He had finally achieved thirteen cuts in one breath.

He had managed to do it once with the help of the Body-Lifting Charm. But, now he had reached the consummate stage by himself.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The thirteen shadows rushed out of his blade, and hit a huge blue boulder. The boulder crumbled into several fragments with a muffled sound, and got scattered.

‘Whistle’ a whistling sound was heard.

One of the pieces of that boulder had flown towards Shi Mu’s face.

A sparkling light streaked across Shi Mu’s eyes. His magic power surged-up inside his body, and poured itself into the black blade.

Suddenly, the Fiery Inflammation Charm Spell on the surface of the blade lit-up. It exuded a layer of red light, and shrouded the entire blade.

Shi Mu let out a low shout and wielded his blade. Suddenly, the black blade changed into a red shadow. Then, it pounded heavily on the huge rock, and split it into pieces.

A loud sound was heard.

The millstone-sized rock exploded into pieces. Its broken fragments got scattered.

Shi Mu jumped back a few steps to avoid the scattering debris. Then, he held his blade and stood still.

“Good! Brother Shi, this blade art is exquisite. The might of the Fiery Inflammation Spell is truly amazing. But… I guess Brother Shi hasn’t used his entire strength,” Zhao Ping applauded him with a smile on his face. He then walked up to him.

Shi Mu nodded. It was natural that he wouldn’t use his entire strength to test the magic blade. He had only triggered a single layer of the five overlaid spells.

“Right. It’s indeed an amazing blade.”

Suddenly, a hoarse voice was heard from outside the practice field.