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Noon.
They had ochazuke for lunch.
The taste was peculiar—not exactly delicious, but definitely not bad either. It came with some other items, including sushi. Overall, the flavor was quite good.
After the meal, the real weapon selection began.
Previously, they were left to browse and choose whatever caught their eye, but this time, to avoid a repeat of the earlier situation, things would be a bit more rigorous.
Nagayama Taro personally guided them, explaining the origins of the weapons while helping them choose based on their needs.
Li Xiang insisted on respecting seniority, refusing to go first and suggesting they start with the senior sister. No one wanted to drag it out, so it was settled.
Senior sister used a great spear. Her requirement was a length between five and six meters, though she personally preferred something between 5.2 and 5.5 meters.
This length was almost comparable to a cavalry charge lance—absurdly long. The spearhead itself didn't have many specific requirements.
"What do you think of this one?"
Nagayama Taro gently took down a spear. The shaft was pitch black, the tassel dark with hints of red, and the spearhead was gleaming with a thin, sharp edge.
"This is one of my grandfather's works from three years ago. It's named 'Meteor.' It's 5.3 meters long. The spearhead is made from tempered steel equivalent to that of a Escavalier, and the shaft is crafted from rattan wood, even tougher than oak."
He explained slowly, "It's just a bit heavy, around thirteen kilograms."
The ever-curious Sixth Brother silently raised his hand, once again asking the question Li Xiang wanted to ask. "What is 'tempered steel'? I've only heard of tungsten steel, stainless steel..."
Lu Chengfeng clearly knew the answer but didn't interrupt, letting Nagayama Taro explain.
"Tempered equivalent steel refers to steel alloyed and tempered based on the metallic properties of Steel-type Pokémon."
Nagayama Taro handed the spear to Bai Zhi. "The properties of steel can vary greatly depending on the metals alloyed into it."
"So far, many special steels are derived from Steel-type Pokémon. After all, most Steel-type Pokémon have incredibly high physical defense. It's not uncommon to repurpose their shed exoskeletons or metallic parts into weapons."
Through Nagayama Taro's explanation, Li Xiang learned that many special steels in this world originated from Pokémon. Just like concrete coming from Conkeldurr.
Humans obtained high-strength alloys from Steelix and Aggron, and learned to create lighter steels alloyed with aluminum from Duraludon.
Others included magnets and conductive metals from Magnemite and Nosepass, stainless steel from Skarmory, artillery-grade metals from Forretress, and lathe-grade steel from Klinklang.
These were further developed into various applicable metals.
This made one wonder about the potential applications of Melmetal's liquid metal or Metagross's psychokinetic metal.
Incidentally, since higher-level Steel-type Pokémon had greater resistance to damage, "Tempered equivalent steel" generally referred to steel derived from Steel-type Pokémon above level 60.
"Lord Aegislash is very powerful, so we use its equivalent steel for swords and blades. But different weapons have different purposes, hence different steels."
Nagayama Taro explained.
Bai Zhi silently walked to an open area away from the crowd, gave the spear a light swing, then headed outside through a side door. After performing a few flourishes, she nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad. I think this one will do."
"I'm glad you're satisfied. Mom! Please take our guest to the testing grounds!"
Nagayama Taro called outside. His mother appeared gracefully and led Bai Zhi to the professional weapon testing area.
Next was Qi Sunsun. She was quite flexible, or perhaps universal, in her weapon preferences.
She immediately took a liking to a pair of gleaming silver hooks. Without even needing an introduction, she picked them up, gave them a dextrous twirl, and directly took them away to find Bai Zhi.
How nice it was to have no strict requirements.
Li Xiang glanced at her enviously. It was then Jiang Shangrong's turn.
As the most similar in personality to Duan Tianxing, third senior sister was much more rigorous in selecting her weapon.
She took over twenty minutes, trying out each one before settling on a long, imposing great sword. The visual impact when she lifted it was tremendous.
Extremely cool.
Next was Duan Yu, who used a staff. He was the hardest to please, yet also the easiest.
He was unsatisfied after browsing for a long time but finally picked a dark, unassuming rod from a corner that looked like a fire poker.
Nagayama Taro called it a "Night Staff." It was ugly during the day but would emit a faint glow at night, revealing patterns on its surface.
He then took everyone to a dimly lit room to observe.
After this demonstration, everyone agreed that the staff was indeed cool at night yet plain and low-key during the day. It suited Duan Yu's subtly expressive personality perfectly.
Lu Chengfeng chose an extremely stylish long sword, claiming it matched his appearance.
It would definitely look cool in use.
He immediately went outside to practice with it. As he swung it around, he even sang, saying he would eventually become a true martial arts movie star, but looking at his appearance, Li Xiang couldn't help but be reminded of Zou Zhao Long (Collin Chou).
Wang Dong, caught up in the moment, also picked up the twin axes he used yesterday and headed outside.
Speaking of which, it was rather remarkable that those axes hadn't broken after clashing with Honedge all morning. It was a testament to the high quality of Nagayama Workshop's products.
Finally, it was Li Xiang's turn.
He had already browsed most of the options that morning, but he'd been interrupted by the incident with Lu Chengfeng.
"For blades, and this is a bit of a personal preference, I think this one is excellent. It's actually my favorite among all the blades here."
Nagayama Taro took down a long sword with cloud patterns embroidered on the scabbard, making it look quite flashy.
"Evil Cloud-Severer." He said its name in a dialect, then repeated in standard Mandarin, "Normally, you can just call it Cloud-Cutter. It wasn't made by my grandfather but by my great-grandfather's disciple after three years of abstinence and dedication."
It was clear Nagayama Taro really loved this blade. He handled it with extreme care.
However, despite its peculiar name, its appearance wasn't that of a Japanese katana or tachi. Instead, it was a short-handled Chinese Anti-Cavalry sword (Zhanmado).
The blade was approximately 1 meter long, the handle about 0.33m. It was slightly longer than what Li Xiang had initially wanted, but it was still usable.
It had also been on the earlier list. He just hadn't had time to draw it and take a look.
"If you like it so much, why are you willing to give it to me?" Li Xiang didn't reach out to take it but asked instead.
Nagayama Taro shook his head. "I'll most likely inherit the Nagayama Workshop and become a blacksmith. So, no matter how much I like a blade, it would just be a display piece in my hands."
"While real sword fights are rare nowadays, someone like you will definitely have opportunities to use it. A blade that isn't used is just scrap metal. I don't want it to be hidden away."
"It's been waiting in this dusty arsenal for over twenty years. It's definitely time for it to see the world."
He really had inherited that chuunibyou tendency—his words had a certain Showa-era flair.
However, he wasn't wrong. If weapons ever became mere decorations, they would lose their reason for existence.
"Let me try it."
Li Xiang didn't immediately decide based on Nagayama Taro's "touching" speech. He took the 'Evil Cloud-Severer' and slowly drew it from its scabbard.
Shiiing—
A clear, resonant sound rang out.
A snow-white blade appeared before Li Xiang's eyes, reflecting the sunlight.
"Wow... it's quite beautiful."
He blinked. The long blade had distinct patterns on its surface, resembling scattered clouds or twisted demon heads. Without a doubt, this was pattern-welded steel.
"The blades and swords in the arsenal are mostly made from Lord Aegislash's equivalent steel. This one is no exception."
Nagayama Taro explained thoughtfully, then suddenly said, "Is the blade heavy? Your hand is shaking."
Li Xiang twitched his mouth. "How could it be! You might not believe it, but it's shaking on its own. Maybe the fit between the guard and the blade has loosened after being stored for so long?"
"It's maintained daily! A slight blade wobble is normal, but your shaking frequency is off. The handle is shaking too."
Nagayama Taro found it baffling. "Let me see?"
The blade was handed over.
"No, it's perfectly within tolerance!"
Nagayama Taro shook it. It didn't shake at all like it had in Li Xiang's hand.
"Is that so?"
Li Xiang took it back, and the Evil Cloud-Severer began shaking again.
This...
He opened his mouth, wondering if he was like those characters in wuxia novels who encountered a blade perfectly suited to them, some kind of spiritual resonance.
But that didn't make sense. He didn't feel anything.
"Ah! I know!"
Nagayama Taro looked enlightened.
Then, under Li Xiang's confused gaze, he made a strange gesture and chanted, "The sharp edge of a sword comes from grinding; the fragrance of plum blossoms comes from bitter cold!"
'CRINGE!!'
Li Xiang almost choked hearing the wuxia anime style chant. However, as soon as he said this, a silver light flashed from the shadows, and a long sword appeared before them.
The single eye on its guard and the azure blue tassel behind it were unmistakable. Without a doubt, it was that troublemaker Honedge from the morning.
"It is you! Causing trouble again!"
Nagayama Taro angrily grabbed its tassel. Li Xiang recoiled in alarm, stepping back, expecting him to be controlled.
But nothing happened.
Nagayama Taro swung its body around wildly like a plastic toy, then threw it out the window.
"Come back and cause trouble again, and I'll have Lord Aegislash punish you!"
He shouted at the fleeing Honedge.
After it left, Li Xiang realized the Evil Cloud-Severer had stopped shaking.
"What in the world..."
"I'm really sorry. That guy is used to doing whatever it wants and came back to play pranks."
Nagayama Taro apologized repeatedly.
Li Xiang waved his hand. "It's fine, it's fine. But what was that ancient poem about? A summoning chant for Honedge?"
"That? It's because of its personal... quirk."
Nagayama Taro looked somewhat embarrassed.
"It's the modern era. There are many ways to access information, and Pokémon are exposed to more too. This guy really likes ancient poetry related to swords and also loves wuxia novels..."
"Got it."
Li Xiang understood completely. Back home, he had a Greninja that never got tired of watching Léon: The Professional over three hundred times and an Incineroar obsessed with gangster films like The Godfather and Young and Dangerous.
This world really had all sorts of strange Pokémon.
He couldn't help but glance in the direction where Honedge had fled.