Magic Chef of Ice and Fire

Here is another chapter for the evening. I would appreciate it greatly if everyone could remember to bookmark and vote.

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Cha Ji walked up to Hua Tian and took the frosty Treasure Blade, handing it to Nian Bing, "Then, I won't thank you. However, could you give us a sheath?"

Hua Tian laid a lingering gaze upon the Treasure Blade, then turned around to fetch something from his house. Moments later, he came back with an aged and rusty sheath, throwing it to Nian Bing. "This sheath was crafted from frigid metal. After my special modifications, it fits the Cold Knife. When sheathed, the blade does not touch the sides. It can also conceal the inherent cold aura of the knife. I reckon, I've given away quite a treasure this time."

Nian Bing slid the Cold Knife into the sheath, and sure enough, the aqua-blue glow disappeared along with the chill. The only thing gleaming was the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone at the hilt, exuding a faint blue light. With the blade in his hand, Nian Bing respectfully bowed deeply to Hua Tian, "Thank you, elder, for gifting me this blade. It's now different from its original form because of the gemstone inserted. Could you kindly name it for me, elder?"

A hazy light shone within Hua Tian's eyes, "Autumn Water White Dew, freezing the heavens and earth. Let's call it the Morning Dew Knife."

Cha Ji exclaimed: "Morning Dew, what an excellent name!"

Nian Bing held the Morning Dew tightly, whispering in his heart, Mother, would you blame me for setting the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone you gifted me into this knife? I still remember your sigh filled with reluctance when I had to leave. This blade, with the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone forming its soul, shall be named the Ice-Snow Goddess's Sigh. Ice-Snow Goddess's Sigh — the Morning Dew Knife. An unparalleled divine knife has thus been born.

Looking at Cha Ji, Hua Tian said: "I'm tired. It's time for you to leave. The previous Knife Flash must have attracted the attention of martial artists. Be careful on your way home. A kitchen knife, good heavens! It was just a kitchen knife. Damn!" Cursing his dissatisfaction, Hua Tian staggered back into his little dark room.

Cha Ji grabbed Nian Bing's hand, saying: "Little Broken Knife was right. We need to leave quickly, hoping that no one noticed us. You're quite lucky, kid." He tore a strip of cloth from the hem of his clothes to bind around the hilt, hiding the radiance of the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone. He tucked the knife into Nian Bing's arms, and hurriedly left with him.

Most of the residents of Bing Xue City had been asleep by now, due to which the streets were somewhat deserted. As they walked along, Nian Bing whispered to Cha Ji: "Master, is Predecessor Hua Tian a martial artist?"

Cha Ji gave a faint smile, saying: "You could say that, or you could also say not. Although he cultivates Fighting Qi, he doesn't know any martial arts. With his degree of Jiu Li Douqi, he should have surpassed the Great Swordsmaster among martial artists, and might have even entered the Martial Warrior Master realm. However, he doesn't know any martial arts techniques, his Jiu Li Douqi is purely cultivated for crafting. As you just saw, as a top-tier Fire Attribute Douqi, what could be better for crafting weapons?"

"Master, can Douqi be used for cooking? Douqi can also have various attributes, can't it?" Nian Bing asked, voicing his doubts.

Cha Ji shook his head, saying, "No, Douqi is too domineering. It tends to focus on explosiveness, while magic can be manipulated at will. Don't ask too many questions now, let's move on. We should head back to the inn and discuss more tomorrow. We will return to Peach Blossom Forest first thing in the morning. Before we leave, you must not draw the Morning Dew Knife from its sheath. If it attracts attention, we may not be able to protect this treasure."

By the time they returned to the inn, it was already late at night. Cha Ji, having walked all day, was exhausted. After sending Nian Bing back to his room, he went to rest in the room next door.

Although Nian Bing was also tired, his youthful curiosity was stirred by his new treasure, and he found himself unable to sleep. He took the Morning Dew Knife from his robe and repeatedly played with it. If it weren't for Cha Ji's reminder, he would certainly have unsheathed the knife and admired the azure glow again. The soft snoring from the room next door indicated that Cha Ji had fallen asleep. Nian Bing stuck out his tongue and said to himself, "Luckily, we have separate rooms. Otherwise, I wouldn't get a wink of sleep tonight. Master's snoring is really powerful!"

Embracing the sigh of the Ice-Snow Goddess, Nian Bing slowly closed his eyes, beginning his daily meditation. In a short time, he entered a state of trance. Under the influence of his spiritual power, the Fire and Ice Elements were slowly converging towards his body. His fatigue from the day, coupled with the excitement of receiving the Morning Dew Knife, made him forget that his ice and fire magic powers were currently imbalanced. He did not exercise much control, and the magic elements naturally gathered towards his body.

As always, the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone and the Flame God Stone accelerated Nian Bing's gathering of magic elements. In no time, the magic power he had expended during the day was fully restored. However, at this moment, the fire and ice magic powers were in a delicate state. After over a year of continuous cultivation with the assistance of the two top-quality gemstones, Nian Bing's magic power had accumulated to a certain level. This accumulation would inevitably cause a qualitative transformation. If he were an ordinary mage, continued cultivation would allow his magic to break through the bottleneck and reach a higher realm. However, Nian Bing was different. His magic power consisted of two completely antagonistic attributes. Although he had reached the bottleneck at the moment, a peculiar change occurred. After the ice and fire elements filled their respective halves of his body, they began to spill over into each other's territory in an attempt to gain more space. The ice magic power moved from left to right along the meridians, while the fire magic power moved from right to left. Amidst their respective attacks, a noticeable change occurred in Nian Bing's body. The left half of his body turned entirely blue, while the right half turned entirely red. For a time, the red and blue glows fluctuated as their struggle grew more and more intense. The transition from extreme cold to extreme heat woke Nian Bing from his trance.

Regaining his consciousness, Nian Bing immediately noticed something wrong with his body. At this point, both the ice and fire magic powers had reached an unprecedentedly violent state. Neither was willing to give in to the other, and both the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone and the Flame God Stone simultaneously emitted faint glows, infusing Nian Bing's body with their inherent magic power, as if they were both trying to support their respective elements and overpower the other.

The alternating cold and heat caused an unending pain that made Nian Bing's body shudder uncontrollably. At this point, the situation was beyond his control. Even if he wanted to scream, he couldn't do so. He could only watch as his body alternated between blue and red, transforming constantly under the onslaught of the two magic powers. As the two magic powers became increasingly violent, the left half of Nian Bing's body was covered in frost, while the right half was burning hot. His clothes had started to give off a faint burnt smell.

Under the impact of these extreme cold and hot magic powers, Nian Bing gradually became disoriented. He thought of his father, his mother, and everything that had happened in the Ice God Tower."

"Mom, Dad, am I going to die? Am I going to die? No, Bing'er doesn't want to die! Dad, didn't you once say that ice and fire are not completely opposed to each other? Why am I so miserable then? You represent fire and Mom represents ice; you both could unite, so why can't my magic power do the same? Dad, Mom, can you teach Bing'er what to do now?"

The property of one's physical constitution varies depending on the circumstances of one's birth and the inheritance from one's parents. The attribute one inherently possesses determines which type of magic or Douqi one is suitable to cultivate. If a person with a fire attribute tries to cultivate ice magic or ice Douqi, it is almost impossible. Even with forceful cultivation, the results will not be satisfactory, and there will likely be little to no progress throughout one's lifetime. The reason Nian Bing could possess both types of magic power was because he was born with both his father and his mother's attributes due to their extreme states in the Ice God Tower, as stimulated by the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone and the Flame God Stone. However, this attribute was also inherently his own. Generally, if a couple had different attributes, their child would only inherit one of the two.

Nian Bing's parents, however, both had extremely potent attributes and were at two extremes. Therefore, when Nian Bing was born, he inherited both attributes. Such a dual-attributed individual is one in a million. If the attributes were not antagonistic and the person cultivated magic, becoming a two-attribute mage would inevitably make them famous across the continent. However, Nian Bing's two attributes were diametrically opposed. For more than a year, he had unwittingly cultivated both types of magic powers without any guidance, because he had always maintained a balance, and his magic power was not strong, preventing any mishaps. However, after a year of cultivation, and with the assistance of the two top-quality gemstones, his magic power had reached a bottleneck. It was only due to today's imbalance in magic power that it triggered the scenario where the ice and fire magic powers were mutually assaulting each other.