The Gods' Decree 193 An Era's Prodigy

Taf being one who always sought his compensation didn't provide the grand elder a moment's peace as he aimed to settle.

His principle was this - Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice I'm the king's Jester.

Though she wasn't as shameless as old man Ming, this grandma was no innocent soul as she portrayed. At the moment Taf was looking at a selection of the grand elder's private collection of armaments. 

This was his reward for defeating Dar in the previous a.s.sembly battle. As expected of someone in her standing each looked emaculated and exuded an aura of their own, unlike his Warhammers.

"Do you see anything to your liking?" She asked as Taf took his time testing one by one the armaments.

Evidently he was guarding himself against being once again shortchanged by her, so he was by no means in a rush. Knowing this she allowed him his time to process though finding it quite comical.

"I'm looking but as of yet, I haven't found anything that calls out to me. Its a bit disappointing really."

Taf responded with a pondering look as he moved from one weapon to the next as though nothing piqued his interest.

He had a feeling the grand elder was being a little stingy as he was certain she had a bit more to offer. He counted and there were only twenty-five armaments within this collection.

This figure was a bit absurd, yes they were quite good but this was the grand elder someone at the peak of an entire sect.  

So once in a while, he would quickly glance over an armament and then pretended it was inferior in his eyes. Yet the grand elder did not budge by any means. It was as though before her he was laid bare as she saw through all his subtle nuances. 

"This ax has a bit of a dent, surely you included it by mistake? I would take it nevertheless if I were to get another item added to my quota"

He uttered once as a means to haggle the terms to which she replied with a smile,

"Oh, that little thing. Actually that is proof of its value. Most axes would have shattered in its place. If anything It is now priceless." 

He even showed her another grievance bringing over a saber.

"Notice that slight crack on the curved edges. This is proof that though the metals used in the smelting process were of high quality, the bonding process was rushed.

Maybe this is due to the refiner's eagerness. Within two years I'm certain it will be of no use. I'll take it and the previous worn out spear off your hands and be on my way."

"So you are a refiner as well, tell me at what stage have you trained? I myself have some meager training in this skill. Perhaps you can teach me a thing or two, after all even in my old age I am still willing to learn "

She once again uttered in the voice of a loving grandma with the same smile that Taf had come to hate.

At that moment the grand elder had called his bluff as he truly didn't have a clue of what he spoke. He just read a page once on the summary of blacksmith techniques, so he tried feigning his way into sounding profound. It might as well have been called u003cRefining for idiotsu003e after what unfolded..

At least when old man Ming sought to screw him over he had a cheeky grin but there was no telling this was what the grand elder was doing.

He truly felt outmatch by this lady and for the first time in a long while he actually felt like a child before a senior. A very small child at that.

After a while, the dejected youth finally found something which actually caught his eyes. He made his way over to a  long blade sword with its handle made of a peculiar black stone-like material, it glistened in the brightly lit room. 

Without a doubt, it was a sound weapon as judging by the alloy that made its blade the blacksmith spared no expenses.

Taf rubbed his thumb on its blade, there was however instant regret as he grimacing observing his now bloodied finger.

So sharp! Guess that wasn't the wisest thing I have done recently.

He laughed to himself as he heated his thumb in order to stop the bleeding.

I see its still a glutton for blood.

The grand elder thought as she saw what unfolded. Each weapon that Taf held brought back a different memory. 

She was not always as she appears wrinkled and old. In fact, there was once a time she was described as a jawdropping beauty blessed with immense talent, a prodigy.

At that time she was uninhibited and the darling genius of the Dark Abylis sect. She was quite hotheaded too and would crush her enemies as she grew. 

Her time as a lowly elder brought her fame throughout the Fu province and the Chu country in general as her spoils of war mounted with each victory.

In some ways, her personality had s.h.i.+fted drastically with the tide of time becoming more mellow as she aged.

As the grand elder observed Taf a wry smile grew to the side of her cheeks. How she would have loved if he had surfaced within her era.

It would have been the catalyst needed from an early stage,  showing that there are even true monsters amongst geniuses. 

At that time there was no one that she saw as an equal until she had ventured out of the Chu country to see how small she was within the broader spectrum of things. 

By then, unfortunately, it was too late and her best years were beyond her.

If only she had known such beings were possible, her thirst would have been insatiable and perhaps that obscure realm, would not be so elusive after all.  

????????

Unaware of the grand elder's thoughts Taf still observed the long blade sword. Perhaps this was a kind of medium-grade lord weapon.

If he were to aim to gain through selling this sword his profits would be sky-high, he thought.

Yet Taf felt strange with such a weapon, there was a feeling of distance when grasping it. It appears that having wielded hammers over the years he subconsciously would have nothing else as his primary weapon.

 Still, he was a bit anxious to find a suitable weapon. At the moment both himself and May were quite lacking with the weapons they had at their disposal. As they fought it became quite evident that with their rise in strength, so too should their weapons evolve.

While under the tutelage of the Draconian all that was provided were items related to the qi realm. He had refused to give them arts and weapons of Lord realm and above quality unless it was a special circ.u.mstance.

Which in their case would be the completion of tasks and mission. That meant they had to rely on themselves in obtaining the resources required for themselves.

This Taf didn't mind as he was always self-reliant. Sure at times, this might lead to him committing unscrupulous acts but he sleeps quite soundly at night. So why stop? 

He was actually in dire need for new Warhammers. It was quite noticeable to anyone who has seen his prior battle that his Warhammers were not summoned when he fought Dar.

Being as disadvantages as he was without his normal a.r.s.enal it was the opportune time for him to use his hammers. Especially when it came to fighting off the relentless attacks of the scorpions.

Taf signed as he recalled the state of his current Warhammers. Now they were filled with cracks from his battle in Starlight City, in fact, they nearly shattered in his final attack under the burden of his Heaven's Art - Gravity.

Even before those events, he deduced they had some wear and tear after being shrouded with his elemental fire continuously in the past. It made sense they wouldn't last when faced with a lord realm cultivator.

After arriving within the sect, At some point, he knew he would have to go out and replenish. Yet when he and May made an attempt visiting the sect's blacksmiths there were only weapons of qi realm quality.

In hindsight this did make a lot of sense. Their main customers were qi realm cultivator for which a weapon of such stature would be quite overbearing.

Nonetheless, it took a high-level blacksmith to made Lord grade armaments. 

"I think I might have what you seek."

Seeing the disappointment on Taf's face the grand elder showed some pity noting his weapon of choice was indeed not on display. There are not many cultivators that choose hammers as their weapon of choice, being that they were blunt objects. Most preferred items with blades, edges, and points.

Soon something was summoned to her palm, it was a Warhammer. It was charcoal black and looked quite underwhelming compared to his current hammers but it exuded an aura that set it far apart from all the other armaments displayed.

She then effortlessly tossed it to Taf who nonchalantly aimed to catch it. Which sadly he found out to be a huge mistake on his part as the weight of the hammer seemed unbearable.

Boom!

His momentum sent him clattering into the ground as he refused to let go of the hammer's handle.

"This I like, I'll take it!" He uttered enthusiastically.. 

To be continued...

Unedited Version...