Zombie Bodyguard-Chapter 1439 - 1346: Becoming Steward Out of Nowhere

"Purple Lightning and Blue Frost?" Tang Banqing’s face showed a proud expression, as if only at this moment could one see her elegance as a Swordsmith: "Hehe... what I want to forge is a sword that surpasses Purple Lightning and Blue Frost."

"You haven’t answered me yet, can you use the transforming stone to forge a sword?" Although Tang Banqing’s ambition was admirable, this was what Lin Tian cared about. If the transforming stone couldn’t be used for sword forging, it would be like gold coins in the desert, useless and just a burden instead.

Tang Banqing did not answer him but pressed a few times on the Sword Furnace, and the "clack clack clack..." sound echoed from underground again, accompanied by the vibration of the ground. However, this time everyone was prepared and not startled.

After the sound faded, the temperature of the Sword Furnace slowly decreased. Through the observation port, one could see the fire inside the furnace diminishing, and the temperature in the underground space also notably dropped.

Tang Banqing pressed somewhere on the base again, and a "whoosh whoosh" sound came from the corner of the underground space, like the sound of a fan spinning rapidly. The airflow in the space suddenly accelerated, and a burst of coolness surged through, making Yun Xiaotian breathe a sigh of relief.

"Old Tang, there are really a lot of mechanisms here, but I’m curious, what drives these mechanisms?" Lin Tian asked curiously.

The modern anti-theft system also counts as a kind of mechanism, naturally powered by electricity, but the Nine-story Pagoda didn’t seem to be wired for electricity, so the mechanisms in the underground space were naturally not driven by electricity.

Tang Banqing laughed and said, "Have you forgotten the canyon outside? The turbulent water flow at the bottom of the valley is the best driving force. Water power is the most common way to drive mechanisms; in ancient times without electricity, water power was often used."

As they were talking, the temperature of the Sword Furnace slowly decreased. Tang Banqing opened the furnace door again, and the temperature decreased even faster. The transforming stone, losing its energy support, slowly returned to a spherical shape, a sight that amazed them once more. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Half an hour later, the temperature inside the Sword Furnace had dropped to a range that one could enter. Tang Banqing took a large pair of iron tongs from the corner and removed the transforming stone.

When Tang Banqing took out the stone, she found that the transforming stone did not emit high temperatures, marveled, and said, "What kind of material is this, to cool down so quickly?"

"Old Tang, according to records from the Wizard era in England, the transforming stone changes its form by absorbing energy. I think it hasn’t cooled down, but rather the heat energy on its surface has been absorbed inside. It’s just that the energy isn’t enough to support its transformation, which causes the surface temperature to drop," Lin Tian explained.

Actually, this was his speculation, because there wasn’t much information about the transforming stone that the Sword Spirit mentioned, apart from it absorbing energy to change form; everything else was unknown.

"I see." Tang Banqing nodded thoughtfully, signaling to Ghost to put the transforming stone back, and then turned to Lin Tian, saying, "You asked me earlier about whether the transforming stone can be used to forge a sword; I can’t answer that question now. Tomorrow, no, this afternoon, I have to go handle some things, and before I leave, I need to entrust you with something."

Seeing Tang Banqing become serious, Lin Tian thought it was something important and solemnly said, "Old Tang, please go ahead."

Tang Banqing reached into her pocket, took out something, and handed it to Lin Tian. Lin Tian curiously took it, glancing over it to find it to be a purple-black wooden token.

The wooden token was three fingers wide, purple-black, with fine wood grain, and very shiny on the surface, the result of prolonged hand contact and friction, showing it was indeed an old object. Moreover, with his keen sense of smell, Lin Tian caught a faint fragrance emanating from the wooden token.

"Red sandalwood!" Two voices exclaimed simultaneously, one from Lin Tian, and the other from Yun Xiaotian.

"Brother Lin, this is old red sandalwood, and it looks quite aged," Yun Xiaotian added.

Ghost was a bit puzzled and asked, "Brother Tian, everyone knows red sandalwood is precious, but you don’t need to be so astonished, do you? It’s just a small wooden token, not a red sandalwood piece of furniture."

Lin Tian chuckled, aware that Yun Xiaotian had already understood the value of the token, while Ghost hadn’t. Born into a wealthy family, Yun Xiaotian had numerous opportunities to encounter such precious items, naturally recognizing them, whereas Ghost, a former mercenary, was somewhat rough around the edges, and his lack of knowledge was understandable.

"Red sandalwood is both rare and precious. Old red sandalwood is even rarer. Let me put it this way: the value of this wooden token alone is more than what an ordinary person can earn in half a lifetime," Lin Tian simply explained, having learned a lot about such valuables from Elder Zhou, allowing him to make rough estimates of their worth.

"Then how did Brother Tian deduce its age?" Ghost asked again.

"Newly processed red sandalwood is lighter in color, but with time, red sandalwood oxidizes, and the color slowly deepens due to increasing oxidation. Generally, the color change goes from orange-red to red, to purple-red, then to a deeper hue like this token, turning into purple-black."

"Since wood oxidation is a lengthy process, for red sandalwood to become purple-black requires an extensive period. Of course, given the sophisticated forgery techniques now, color alone can’t definitively determine age. Specifically, this wooden token, besides the purple-black color, also has a brilliant surface; the more red sandalwood is handled, the shinier it becomes."

"Most importantly, this belongs to Qingshuang Pavilion. I think Qingshuang Pavilion has no reason to produce fakes, which is why I said this token is aged, perhaps even several hundred years old. With its antique value and the material itself, it’s priceless," Lin Tian patiently explained.

"I see," Ghost realized.

Yet Lin Tian was a bit perplexed and asked, "Old Tang, aren’t you worried I might run off with such a valuable old item?"

Tang Banqing smiled nonchalantly and said, "Take a look at the back of the token."

Intrigued by her words, Lin Tian turned the token over, seeing three engraved words: Qinglan Garden. The script appeared archaic and the strokes seamlessly executed, with just the right depth, suggesting that the engraver was also a skilled swordsman. Naturally, Qingshuang Pavilion wasn’t short of swordsmanship experts.

"This is...?" Lin Tian and the others were further confused, unsure of the use of the wooden token engraved with ’Qinglan Garden’.

"This is the token of Qinglan Garden. Holding it makes you the highest steward of Qinglan Garden," Tang Banqing straightforwardly stated.

"Uh, isn’t Shen Danxi the highest steward?" Lin Tian was somewhat puzzled, unclear why the highest steward would only manage a simple courtyard rather than the Garden Pavilion, nor why Tang Banqing, a Swordsmith, would run Qinglan Garden as a steward.

Seemingly noticing all of Lin Tian’s confusion, Tang Banqing chose not to explain but instead said, "I will be away from Qinglan Garden for a while, as long as ten days or as short as three or four days. During my absence, you’ll temporarily serve as the steward of Qinglan Garden."