Jing Wei leaned back after finishing his previous tale, his expression turning thoughtful as he swirled the remaining liquor in his mug. The firelight from the forge braziers reflected in his eyes, giving him a distant look as if he were peering through years of mory rather than the lively hall around them.
"You have heard the beginning" he said slowly, his tone settling into sothing steadier. "But there is more. Much more."
Lin Mu nodded, resting his arm on the heavy wooden table as he listened.
"After I t my master," Jing Wei continued, "my life changed completely. The world opened up in a way I had never imagined."
He gestured lightly with his mug.
"He did not stay in one place. A dwarf like him would never be content with a single world. We traveled. Constantly!"
"To gather materials?" Lin Mu asked.
"Yes," Jing Wei replied. "Materials, ores, rare tals, ancient remnants, even broken weapons that carried unique properties. Nothing was beneath his interest if it held potential."
He chuckled softly.
"At first, I struggled to keep up. The environnts alone were enough to kill an unprepared cultivator. So worlds were filled with corrosive mists. Others had crushing pressure. So were barren voids with drifting fragnts like this one."
Lin Mu listened intently.
"And you survived all that?" he asked.
Jing Wei nodded.
"I had no choice," he said. "Survival beca part of my learning. My master did not shield from danger. He guided , but he expected to endure."
His gaze sharpened slightly.
"And I learned quickly," he added. "Faster than I ever had before."
Lin Mu smiled faintly.
"That sounds like you," he said.
Jing Wei laughed.
"I suppose it does," he admitted. "But the difference was the scale. Everything in the immortal realm demanded more. More precision. More endurance. More understanding."
He set his mug down.
"My forging improved alongside my cultivation," he said. "The two could not be separated anymore. If my understanding of energy was lacking, my work would fail. If my control was weak, the materials would reject ."
Lin Mu nodded in agreent.
"That is true," he said. "At higher levels, everything is connected."
Jing Wei leaned forward slightly.
"We visited dozens of worlds," he continued. "Each one taught sothing new. So had tals that could only be shaped under extre pressure. So required specific elental conditions. Others demanded precise timing during refinent."
His voice carried a quiet sense of admiration.
"My master knew them all," he said. "Not perfectly, but enough to guide through each challenge."
Lin Mu could see the respect clearly.
"You must have gained a lot from him," he said.
"I did," Jing Wei replied. "More than I can fully describe."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"Ti passed quickly," he said. "Years blended together. Then decades."
Lin Mu raised a brow slightly.
"How long?" he asked.
"Nearly forty years since I ascended, Jing Wei answered.
Lin Mu's eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"That is not long for an immortal," he said.
"No," Jing Wei agreed. "But it felt long enough given everything that happened."
He leaned back again.
"At a certain point, my master said we had gathered enough," he said. "Enough materials, enough knowledge, enough experience."
"And then?" Lin Mu asked.
"He said it was ti to return ho," Jing Wei replied.
Lin Mu's gaze sharpened.
"You did not know where that was?" he asked.
Jing Wei shook his head.
"No," he said. "He never told ."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"He simply said we would go back," he added.
Lin Mu let out a soft breath.
"How long did it take?" he asked.
"Nearly a decade," Jing Wei replied.
Lin Mu blinked.
"That long?" he said. "And I'm guessing you were already close to the Eastern Immortal Court's territory if not within it."
"We were still far from it so we used teleportation arrays," Jing Wei explained. "World after world. Each jump took us closer. Each location more hidden than
the last.
His tone grew quieter.
"I only understood where we were when we arrived here," he said.
Lin Mu's eyes flickered.
"The Runweld Barren World," he said.
Jing Wei nodded.
"Yes," he replied. "This shattered place... this hidden realm... this is their ho."
He gestured vaguely around them.
"Mantleheim," he added.
Lin Mu glanced around briefly before returning his attention to Jing Wei.
"What happened when you arrived?" he asked.
Jing Wei let out a slow breath.
"That was the hardest part," he said.
Lin Mu raised a brow.
"Harder than everything before?" he asked.
"In a different way," Jing Wei replied.
He straightened slightly.
"The dwarves do not trust easily," he said. "Especially not humans."
Lin Mu nodded, already aware of that.
"There is history," Jing Wei continued. "Events that created deep resentnt. Betrayals. Exploitation. Things that are still rembered."
Lin Mu remained silent.
"I had to prove myself," Jing Wei said. "Over and over again."
"How?" Lin Mu asked.
"Through my craft," Jing Wei replied. "Through my conduct. Through my
patience."
His tone carried a quiet firmness.
"I was tested," he said. "Given tasks that pushed beyond my limits. Materials
that were difficult to handle. Techniques that required absolute precision."
Lin Mu listened closely.
"And you passed," he said.
Jing Wei gave a small nod.
"Eventually," he said. "It was not quick. It was not easy!"
He smiled faintly.
"But I earned their recognition."
Lin Mu felt a sense of respect grow within him.
"That is not sothing many can achieve," he said.
"It is rare," Jing Wei admitted. "Human apprentices among dwarves... it happens
once in a thousand years. Sotis even more."
Lin Mu nodded.
"I can see why," he said.
Jing Wei leaned back again.
"I have been here since then," he said. "Learning. Forging. Improving"
His expression grew thoughtful.
"I am still considered an apprentice," he added.
Lin Mu tilted his head.
"Because of your cultivation?" he asked.
"Yes," Jing Wei replied. "Skill alone is not enough. Strength matters too. Without
it I cannot learn high tier skills."
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