Modern Patriarch

Chapter 95: The Liquid Canvas

Enlighten me, Yao Shen requested.

If I am not mistaken, this is a legacy script. While I cannot deduce the exact specifics of the technique without cycling it myself, it is very well possible that it might rival my own, considering it seems a century or two ahead of my time, Vondar revealed, his statement coming as a definite shock to Yao Shen.

A legacy script? The unfamiliar term rolled off his tongue, the question in his tone obvious.

It is truly surprising, Vondar acknowledged. I did not know that humans were capable of producing a forgemaster capable of passing down a legacy script.

What makes it so impressive? Yao Shen asked.

Perhaps it will be simpler for you to understand if I explained in cultivator terms, Vondar replied after giving the matter some thought. As a Soul Emperor, you have your own methods and techniques that you developed on your own, yes?

Yao Shen nodded.

Ideally, you would have some disciples or family of your own, to whom you will pass down your techniques that have been refined over a lifetime the culmination of your lifes work. Human Cultivators are not known for their charitability. So, why?

There were many different answers to that question, but Yao Shen knew that Vondar was not interested in answers like love and kinship.

No one who steps upon the path of ascension is content with the idea of their own demise. We are well aware of the threat of death, yes. It accompanies us on every step of our journey, whether it comes at the hand of heavenly tribulation or another fellow cultivator. It is not the idea of the end that terrifies us, for the life of a cultivator is fraught with danger at every step, Yao Shen said before shaking his head in clear denial. No, what we fear beyond all else is to be forgotten, our contribution to the realm of cultivation lost to the ever flowing sands of time. Inheritances, clans and even sects are all means to stave away that profound loneliness- to leave the mortal plane in the hope that one day our unfinished techniques will reach completion in the hands of another, our clans and sects that had been a mere fledgling in the face of giants would transcend their peak and become hegemonic institutions.

Indeed, Vondar agreed. What makes you think that us forge masters are any different?

That question gave Yao Shen pause, enough for over a minute to pass by them in complete silence.

It should be impossible from what I know of forging. Cultivators cannot pass down their skill at mastering a technique, or the experience they have accumulated with the technique across centuries- only the technique itself. As both you and Tianjian Shuan have taught me, the technique is not as important as ones skill whilst using it. How to strike, when to strike and what temperatures to heat a metal ingot to changes from alloy to alloy. The number of impurities and gas pockets trapped within the metal also adds an entirely new layer of variables, which makes each forging attempt unique in a manner of speaking.

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Close, Vondar replied with a hint of pride in his tone. Implausible. Not impossible. Cultivation techniques have a different, often equally limited set of variables. Namely, talent the purity of ones spiritual roots can be key in determining a cultivators future, a shackle or a cage depending upon the heavens will. Few are determined enough to break through those shackles, but you yourself are testament to its possibility.

Youre implying that..

Few forge masters are talented enough to create their own techniques. At the Soul Emperor level, the techniques alone are complex enough. Even fewer choose to spend their entire lives honing that forging technique to its pinnacle, polishing its intended speciality until it cannot be refined any more at their cultivation level. Finally, you step into the realm of prodigies- The Legacy Script. To take the essence of your forging seeks to achieve and translate it into a cultivation technique, that anyone at the appropriate cultivation level can master. To call it a mere treasure would be a disservice.

For once, Yao Shen was too stunned to respond to Vondars explanation.

Unfortunately, this technique is unsuitable for forging lumenite. Doing so would be disastrous, even, Vondars tone was stern, as he issued a very blunt warning.

That was enough to snap Yao Shen out of his reverie.

Why cant I, or for that matter, Tianjian Shuan, cultivate this technique then? He asked.

To his continued surprise, Vondar chuckled in response.

This human forge master is rather amusing. The answer is deceptively simple if a decently talented blacksmith looked at the technique, yet frighteningly hard if you are an experienced forge master that has dedicated his life to the craft. One could even call it profoundly simple.

What is it? Yao Shen couldnt help but ask, as he gave in to the building anticipation.

It is not one cultivation technique, but seven instead. Once you discover that, it requires a little bit of ingenuity to read between the lines. However, a precious technique like this regardless of how it was acquired, I doubt that the previous owners were willing to share its contents with many others.

Can I learn it? He asked.

It is a tiered cultivation technique. With your current understanding of the forge, the first and second layers will be within your reach. Though naturally, you cannot master the second without mastering the first, so it will require you to strain your cultivation base to the limits if you hope to attain its wisdom.

This first layer what is its purpose? Yao Shen barely managed to contain his growing eagerness as he asked the question.

An appropriate question, Vondar said. You humans have a penchant for naming things, so I suppose I will honor this colleague of mine by adopting this tradition. A fitting name for the first layer would be.,

The Liquid Canvas.