I Can Give Talents

Chapter 295 – Ruined City

Instead of using her Sword Intent as the main force all the time, she wanted it to be the support instead, using it sparingly to avoid mental exhaustion. She pictured a smoother rhythm to her fights, a dance of Qi and Intent working together, not just one overpowering the other.

Valenia chuckled. In the past seven years, the ladies had to train their willpower a lot to fight against Leyvi for the future night battle campaign, but as an unintended outcome, her Sword Intent had improved by leaps and bounds as a result.

After her body recovered from the strain, Valenia summoned her Qi barrier again and applied Qi vibration to dry her clothes and hair. The faint hum of energy buzzed around her, shaking off the damp chill as she straightened up. She then sprinted toward her months' worth of food supply in the distance to collect them.

Valenia then traveled alone again. This time, she didn't leave behind any sword marks anymore. Ghossy, Jayden, and Lan Chuan had destroyed all the desire in her to travel with other people.

Two weeks later, Valenia arrived at the city marked on the map she found. Well, to be exact, the ruin of the city. She arrived much later than expected because she got lost a few times. The travel was different from when she only had to look at the colossal tree and move toward it with her brain turned off. Now, every twist of the path demanded her focus, a puzzle she hadn't bargained for.

Rivers had shifted their beds; hills had slumped into valleys. A few landmarks indicated by the map were no longer around, making her miss where she should have changed directions. After all, the map was very, very old. Who knows how long it had been since the making of the map? Throughout the years, terrains and landscapes must have changed significantly.

However, even though she got lost a few times, the trip felt refreshing and peaceful compared to when she was with the group. Valenia felt like she was more suitable to be a lone traveler, except for the time she had to eat her own plain cooking. 

Scanning the area, she noticed that all buildings within her spiritual sense in the ruined city had already collapsed into themselves. Not one survived the passage of time, and building remnants in the lush area were completely covered by vegetation.

Seeing all the buildings around her completely destroyed, Valenia became more impressed with the stone temple from last time. It resisted the onslaught of time and remained intact somehow, even though it was created by mortals. 

However, this was just the outskirts of the city. Valenia thought that there might be an area where the buildings were still preserved somewhere within the city. So, she walked further into the city while her spiritual sense scrutinized the ruined structures along the way. After all, there might still be some ancient relics lying around somewhere.

And her guess was proven right; she found many old relics that, although they might be useless to anyone, would be interesting if put in a museum. So Valenia collected anything that she found interesting. 

"Hmm? That looks like a door," Valenia muttered. Her head tilted slightly, curiosity sparking as she squinted through the overgrowth.

Inside one of the ruined buildings, which seemed to be larger and more preserved than the others around here, was something that looked like a door embedded in the floor.

She quickly removed all the thick dust and debris resting on top of it and tried to open it. But unfortunately, the door was locked by an unfamiliar locking mechanism.

She tugged. Nothing.

Too lazy to figure it out, Valenia summoned her broadsword and just slashed the door on the floor. Her arm swung down with a casual flick, expecting an easy cut.

Clang!

Her broadsword rebounded, leaving only a scratch on the door. The sharp sound echoed, a jolt running up her arm from the impact.

"Eh? My broadsword can't cut it!" Valenia raised her eyebrow as she scrutinized the door. She leaned closer, her curiosity piqued by the stubborn surface.

"No, it wasn't just the door; the entire floor was made from the same tough material. What is this place? Is this basement a vault?" Valenia wondered.

A few moments later, a smile appeared on her face. "Heheh, since it's a vault, of course there's treasure in there. Why else would they make it so secure?" Her mood turned visibly happy, her tone more cheerful. A gleam of excitement danced in her eyes, the promise of loot lifting her spirits.

Valenia slashed her broadsword again, this time coated with Sword Intent. Sure enough, the door was cut open easily like tofu. Three more strokes, and the door collapsed inward, its severed pieces screeching as they tumbled down a staircase hidden beneath. The cacophony of clattering metal echoed up the shaft, far too loud for her liking.

"Ugh… why do you have to be so noisy? What if it attracts some greedy people?" Valenia complained as she went down to the basement. This was her chance to find some treasures for herself, but the door wanted to expose her. She shot a quick glance back, half-expecting unwanted company to pop up. The last thing she needed was some opportunistic scavenger drawn by the racket.

The path down quickly became dark, so Valenia channeled her Qi to her broadsword, and it began to glow, illuminating the area like a lamp. The soft light spilled ahead, casting shadows that danced along the rough walls.

Soon, Valenia reached the basement and saw a wide room with many glass display cabinets lining up the walls. In the middle of the basement were multiple luxurious-looking chests with locks. Everything in the basement seemed to be well preserved. Her breath caught for a moment, the sight of untouched riches sparkling in the glow of her blade.

The display cabinets displayed various weapons, such as swords, spears, bows and arrows, axes, and other types of polearms. These were the oldest types of common weapons cultivators used before spirit weapons—weapons integrated with arrays—became popular. The cabinets also displayed armor of various designs.

All the weapons and armors in the display cabinets were crafted with great artistic creativity, showcasing their beautiful and imposing appearance as if they were made to be ornaments. Swords with serpentine hilts, spears tipped with dragon-carved blades, polearms etched in floral motifs. Armor sets stood like sentinels, their pauldrons sculpted into roaring beasts and winged deities. The intricate patterns gleamed faintly in the light of her glowing blade, each curve telling a story of forgotten hands.

However, due to this, Valenia didn't think much of these weapons because she was someone who preferred practicality over artistry. Furthermore, something crafted from so long ago—how good could they be? Could they compete with the weapons crafted nowadays after millennia of metallurgy advancement? She didn't think so.

While dismissing the weapons in her mind, Valenia's eyes brightened when she saw a large broadsword in one of the cabinets towering above the rest like a monarch among peasants. The blade was etched with swirling constellations, its crossguard a gilded tangle of vines and snarling wolf heads. The pommel? A fist-sized crystal orb cradled in sculpted eagle claws, glowing faintly amber. It looked mighty, powerful, and majestic! Her heart skipped a beat, drawn to its commanding presence like a moth to flame. Valenia didn't care about it being an ornament anymore.

"As expected of a large broadsword. Other weapons look like toys compared to it," Valenia praised. However, if there were other people here, they would immediately know that she was biased in her judgment because all the other weapons displayed were similarly grandiose.

Valenia didn't care much about other weapons, but how could she let go of this broadsword? It was a large broadsword crafted long, long ago. A precious relic of the past! She was never a collector, but seeing how majestic a broadsword could be, a desire to have a bunch of them emerged. Her fingers itched to claim it, a sudden spark of obsession flaring up.

Suddenly, an idea came to her. "This shouldn't be the only broadsword that exists in the Mystic Realm, right? What if I find and collect all the broadswords in the Mystic Realm and, when we return, I'd make a broadsword exhibition for everyone to see! They should be interested, right? Heheh, broadswords are great and cool, of course people will come and admire them!" Valenia convinced herself. A grin spread across her face as she pictured the awe on everyone's faces.

With a cheerful mood, Valenia opened the display cabinet and took out the majestic broadsword.

"What? This broadsword is so heavy! What kind of metal did they use to make it?" she exclaimed, the broadsword almost slipping from her grip. Her arms strained under its weight, a jolt of surprise running through her. Valenia was genuinely amazed by its sheer heft. It was around five times heavier than her current tier-3 broadsword.

For mortals, a broadsword this heavy would definitely be useless. The weight would hinder them from wielding it properly. However, it was different for cultivators. Their enhanced physical strength and Qi manipulation allowed them to wield heavy weapons effortlessly, so heavier weapons wouldn't hinder them, and in cases where the user needed a powerful, crushing attack, the weight would help a lot.