The fake prince was exposed at the beginning, and I took office as emperor on the spot

Chapter 261 Soulmate (×) Cheap Master (√) (Two-in-One)

Gu Fangchen did indeed have some knowledge of both weapon crafting and alchemy, but she only reached the second rank in both.

Among all the achievements in "Mirror in the Dust", the achievements related to these main side quests are only collection-related, such as collecting 72 kinds of pills and pill recipes that appear in the game. As for weapon crafting, you only need to level up to the maximum level and craft a high-grade magic weapon.

However, players actually have a fixed route, and there is only one blueprint for the magical artifact that can be obtained. In the end, they can only follow the instructions to forge a magical artifact called "Reincarnation Bead".

It is thanks to this magical artifact that, in the original "Return to Truth" ending, players were able to return from the cycle of reincarnation and reunite with one of the female protagonists, Sunaga, at the end of the underworld.

Only by completing this ending can the ultimate achievement of weapon crafting be unlocked.

In terms of actual skill, Gu Fangchen is only at the second rank in the art of weapon crafting, which is incomparable to his true expertise in the art of array formation.

After all, in the game, array formations are truly popular and far more useful than weapon crafting or alchemy.

Moreover, it's the specialized branch of swordsmithing...

What he said to the matriarch was pure boasting; if he actually forged a high-quality sword, he would immediately be exposed.

Therefore, Gu Fangchen deliberately chose to forge only one fourth-grade "Azure Moon Sword".

Firstly, his current identity and background are that of a wandering traveler who came to take a look after hearing that a "Tao Seed" had descended. He didn't have any good materials on him, so naturally he couldn't make any high-level swords.

Furthermore, as a swordsmith, he should have some pride. It's normal for him to hold back a little when Shi Qingguang points his sword at him right away.

A fourth-grade sword, within Gu Fangchen's area of ​​expertise, naturally gave her a feeling of effortless mastery, indirectly demonstrating her strength.

It might even make the matriarch overestimate it a little.

As expected, Shi Qingguang stared at the sword in his hand, becoming more and more engrossed, his initial excitement turning into a deep affection for it.

In her view, the method and approach to forging this sword were exactly the same as her own!

Moreover, some of the bottlenecks that had been bothering her recently were perfectly addressed by this sword, and she found solutions for them one by one!

—This was certainly not a coincidence, but rather something Gu Fangchen did on purpose.

When he walked in, he saw broken swords scattered all over the ground, just as rumored, and knew that the matriarch must be facing a problem.

When he came in, he scanned the broken swords with his divine sense and quickly understood all the problems.

Therefore, this was also taken into consideration when choosing the type of sword.

Although the grade of this "Azure Moon Sword" is not high, its forging technique is just right to cover most of the problems encountered by these broken swords, and perfectly solve them.

It is unknown whether this was the result of thousands of years of refinement and modification by the Sword Pavilion, or whether the founder herself came to this understanding and passed it down to future generations.

In short, Gu Fangchen is now using it to curry favor with others.

Shi Qingguang had no idea that he came from the future and had taken things from her own disciples and grand-disciples, then turned them back on her.

At this moment, looking at the sword in her hand, she felt as if she were hearing the sound of flowing water in the mountains. Turning her head to look at Gu Fangchen, her eyes shone brightly, like Bo Ya looking at Zi Qi.

As a swordsmith, she can tell at a glance whether her techniques are systematic and whether she is forging swords according to a well-defined approach.

And Gu Fangchen had just witnessed the entire process right under her nose.

His movements were very practiced, indicating that he did this quite often.

His sword-making technique seemed to be inherited from hers. If Shi Qingguang hadn't never met Gu Fangchen before, she would have thought that this guy was her master whom she had never met.

Although Shi Qingguang didn't have a master at all...

But Gu Fangchen has clearly gone much further on this path than her.

Shi Qingshuang's slender fingers gently stroked the sword in his hand, feeling an indescribable shock in his heart. How could there be such a coincidence in this world?
Those who share the same ideals and beliefs will naturally follow the same path; there must first be a spiritual resonance between them.

Shi Qingguang turned the sword and saw his reflection on the smooth blade, as well as the amazement in his own eyes.

This sword seems to reflect another version of myself.

Can the swordsmith be a kindred spirit to himself?

Gu Fangchen looked at Shi Qingguang's expression, chuckled inwardly, knowing she had it all figured out, and said:

"What does Grandma think?"

Shi Qingguang snapped out of his daze and turned his head to meet Gu Fangchen's smiling face. With her handsome features, she looked like a frivolous person. Looking further down, he saw a fan with the words "People have their own principles" written on it.

The words were nice, but the handwriting on them was crooked and ugly.

He had no self-control when it came to his words, showing absolutely no dignity befitting a powerful person, calling her "Grandma," "Grandma"...

The girl's face fell instantly.

How could her kindred spirit be such a guy?
Shi Qingguang was born like a phoenix, never perching on anything but the parasol tree, never drinking anything but the sweetest spring. He also needed to be sincere in forging swords, striving for perfection in every single detail.

In other words, he is an extreme perfectionist.

From the moment I began cultivating Taoism, I resolved to become the best in the world, and I was sincere and devoted to it.

What I hate most in my life are people who are undisciplined, frivolous, lazy, and lack ambition.

Therefore, she was determined to make a name for herself as soon as she emerged from seclusion.

In this gathering place of sword cultivators in the southwest, she erected a plaque that read "Number One Under Heaven" as a fighting arena, attracting all the sword cultivators to come and challenge her.

But to my surprise, they turned out to be nothing but a bunch of people who were all seeking fame and fortune, all show and no substance!
In the past three months, not a single swordsman who came to challenge her could withstand a single move from her!
Later on, no one even dared to come over anymore, yet they would spout nonsense like, "We're the seniors, how can we bully a junior? Let her play with the younger generation," and so on...

Shi Qingguang was therefore extremely frustrated.

When she met Gu Fangchen, she spoke unkindly, and that was because of this.

Unexpectedly, by a twist of fate, Gu Fangchen, who was not a sword cultivator, became the only person in the past three months to withstand a single move from her.

This is enough to prove Gu Fangchen's strength.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have let anyone in so easily to use her sword furnace to forge swords.

I never expected this guy would give me such a surprise...

But, shouldn't my kindred spirits and fellow Daoists be somewhat like me? At least in terms of personality, they should be more serious.

He's acting like a spoiled brat who only knows how to eat, drink, and have fun...

The girl felt depressed and aggrieved.

She angrily handed the sword in her hand to Gu Fangchen and said:

“Very good, excellent. Your sword has solved the problems I’ve encountered over the past three months. I am no match for you.”

Gu Fangchen: "?"

He was praising her, so why did he act so angry...?

Gu Fangchen blinked. Even though he was a master at navigating the world of romance, he still couldn't quite figure out what his matriarch was thinking.

But he could see that the matriarch was indeed a sincere person; even though she was angry, she wouldn't take it out on others.

She'll just keep sulking to herself.

He thought for a while and said:

"Actually, I can only perform so perfectly with swords of this grade. If it's a higher grade, I'm not up to the task."

Hearing him say that, Shi Qingguang felt that he was just trying to comfort her, and said with a straight face:

"Do you think I'm too young to handle setbacks? That's not why I'm angry."

"What's that for?"

Shi Qingguang turned his head:
"Anyway, it has nothing to do with you."

That has a lot to do with me!

Gu Fangchen blinked, walked around it, and the matriarch remained motionless with a stern face. He said:
"I'm telling the truth, otherwise why would I need to ask someone for advice, my dear..." Shi Qingguang frowned slightly, then said angrily:

"Don't call me 'Grandma'! I'm only fourteen!"

hiss……

A fourteen-year-old "enlightened one" is only a first-rank cultivator!

Gu Fangchen's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

I know "the world of the furnace" is an exaggeration, but it can't be that exaggerated, can it?
But after thinking about it, it seems that there are no prerequisites for becoming a first-rank official. In fact, all you need to do is obtain the "Tao Seed" and gain recognition.

If someone is born with the "seed of the Dao," then they are born with the highest rank.

It doesn't seem that exaggerated.

Gu Fangchen naturally flattered him and readily complied:

"Then what should I call you?"

Upon being asked this question, Shi Qingguang fell into deep thought, and then countered with a question:
"I asked you what your name is before, and you still haven't answered me."

"My name is Gu Fangchen, and I am just an unknown rogue cultivator."

Upon hearing this, Shi Qingguang blinked and asked again:
"How old are you?"

Gu Fangchen was somewhat puzzled as to why the matriarch was asking this, but it wasn't a particularly strange question, so she answered truthfully:
"Nineteen, I guess."

Since what we now call a past life might just be a dream, his actual age should be calculated based on this physical body.

She is naturally nineteen years old.

"Oh, that makes sense..."

Shi Qingguang lowered his head and thought for a moment, then raised his head, his eyes burning, as if he had come up with a good idea.

Gu Fangchen's brow twitched, and a sense of foreboding suddenly flashed through her mind.

Shi Qingguang said crisply:

"Then you can be my master!"

Gu Fangchen: "...Huh?"

He opened his eyes wide, never expecting that his great-grandmother was such a remarkable person when she was young.

They've only just met, and he's already asking to become his apprentice!

Gu Fangchen felt ashamed.

Although Ning Songjun did not actually accept him as a disciple, he impersonated a true disciple in order to enter the forbidden area and was also a disciple of the Sword Pavilion.

In fact, he can be considered one of the disciples and grand-disciples under the tutelage of the founding matriarch.

If the matriarch were to become his disciple, wouldn't the generational order be messed up?

What should my uncle call him then? Grandmaster?
Gu Fangchen quickly half-squatted down, pressed down on the shoulders of the little grandmaster, and said:

"Grandma, this is no joke..."

Shi Qingguang's eyebrows stood up:

"I've already told you not to call me 'Grandma'!"

"Okay, okay, then what should I call you?"

The young woman puffed out her chest, feeling a sense of relief and satisfaction, as if she had accomplished a major life event.
“I call you Master, so naturally you should call me Disciple.”

This guy is far too frivolous. She's definitely not suitable to be her confidant or fellow Daoist—it would be too embarrassing. But she seems alright as a master.

As the ancients said, there is a sequence in the pursuit of knowledge... a disciple need not be inferior to his teacher...

In any case, a bad master doesn't prevent a disciple from being excellent.

“If you become my master in sword-making, I will become your disciple.”

"In this way, you and I, master and disciple, can naturally learn from each other and offer guidance on the art of sword forging."

Shi Qingguang raised his head, speaking eloquently, and met Gu Fangchen's gaze:
"You do not want it?"

"I want to...I want to so much."

Gu Fangchen is currently playing the role of a passerby who mistakenly entered the Sword Pavilion because of her eagerness to seek the Dao, so it's impossible for her to answer that she doesn't want to.

He rubbed his forehead and couldn't help but say:

"But this is too hasty..."

Shi Qingguang leaped lightly and sat on the sword-forging furnace, dangling her two snow-white, delicate little feet, her eyes wide open:
"What's so hasty about this? Do you feel that the apprenticeship ceremony is missing? I'll make it up to you later."

"Your sword-making skills are better than mine, so isn't it perfectly normal for me to become your apprentice?"

Gu Fangchen neither confirmed nor denied this statement, but it could be considered the first step in getting closer to the matriarch.

He walked over and said:

"I mean, we've only known each other for less than a day, how can you know if I'm a good or bad person? What if I'm a bad person?"

Shi Qingguang paused, lowered his head and stared at him for a moment, then snorted and said:
"impossible."

“Your Dharma form comes from incense offerings and is formed by the vows of sentient beings. Whatever you look like in the eyes of sentient beings is what your Dharma form will look like.”

"If you are an extremely wicked demon king, your appearance should be that of a blue-faced, fanged monster, and full of evil thoughts."

“But your appearance is compassionate and dignified, which must be the right path.”

Gu Fangchen raised an eyebrow, then smiled:
"That's indeed the truth."

It seems that even though the matriarch is young, she is not stupid.

However, they are still only clever to a limited extent... Faith is something that can be obtained through deception and manipulation.

The "miracles" created by Gu Fangchen were mostly for the purpose of creating public opinion, and then using the original beliefs of the Three Kingdoms to perform a substitution.

To say that he is on the right path is indeed completely wrong.

However, if the matriarch is willing to believe it, then let her believe it...

In her later life, she was still hunting him down, but now she wanted to become his disciple. Gu Fangchen thought to herself, "You asked for this yourself."

He shrugged and joked:
"My disciple has keen insight, but I, your master, don't know my disciple well enough. Why don't we have a chat?"

Seeing that he did not resist, Shi Qingguang secretly breathed a sigh of relief and felt at ease.

The reason she wanted to become an apprentice was to keep Gu Fangchen by her side and "reform" her properly.

Otherwise, once you become famous, this kindred spirit will go out and everyone will see how similar his "Dao" is to yours. In that case, it will be you who will be dragged down by your reputation!
Others might think that I am such a frivolous person, which is absolutely unacceptable!

Shi Qingguang snorted, stood up from the sword furnace, facing the wind, her green skirt fluttering, and looked up, saying:
"I have been practicing swordsmanship since childhood. I was born with the Dao of the Sword and I will become the number one swordsman in the world."

"and then?"

"Then--"

Through the distant sunlight, Shi Qingguang seemed to see that magnificent imperial city. His gaze was icy cold as he said in a chilling voice:

"I'm going to kill Li Kan."

Upon hearing this, Gu Fangchen's pupils constricted instantly. Looking at her, a chill ran through her, and she thought to herself:

"So it turns out that she was the one who killed 'Military Genius' Li Kan..."

(End of this chapter)