Even though Jian Li was 17 years old in her previous life, she felt as if being in a child's body surrounded by siblings made her feel like her mental age matched the age of her body. She was their baby sister and they constantly doted on her. She was treated as a child and as such, it became very easy for her to think like one as well. Their family lived in a luxurious manor in Qingye Village, a prosperous village with cobbled streets and market squares. The village was close to the capital of the province and the Jian family manor was located right on the edge of the village boundary. The manor itself was grand, made of stone with intricate carvings along the roof and windows. It had a large courtyard with an ancient willow tree at its centre. There was enough land around the manor to grow rice and vegetables and there was a small river on the edge of the property. The large manor was home to the Jian Family: her grandmother, father, several uncles, aunts, and numerous servants lived around there together with her siblings and cousins. Their family had lived in the village for a couple of generations at this point and her father was the current patriarch. He had always been a hard worker and he used that to his advantage. As a result, they were quite wealthy, and there were many people who sought out their help when crafting weapons and armor. From what she heard from her siblings, their father was quite renowned across the province for his fine craftsmanship and eccentric style. He was not averse to adding any over the top and fancy design. From what Jian Li understood about him, his whole life revolved around weapon forging. Anything that could be done to make the weapon look better, he would do it. From simple engravings to delicately carved designs and inlaid gems, his weapons were known far and wide for their beauty as well as their lethality. He was also known for his stubbornness and his sharp tongue. He once yelled at a noble from the capital for requesting for all of his short swords to be made into longer two-handed swords. "I put my time and energy into making these weapons that you say you find so useless and you have the gall to ask me to ruin them?!", he had once yelled at a noble. The noble could not do much about it either. Jian Li recalled feeling sad for the noble who didn't expect to get scolded by just asking a simple question. --- "Jian Li, I believe it is time for you to learn our Art of weaponsmithing. It has been a family tradition for many generations and I believe you will find it fascinating. You will learn more about it when you are older but for now, I want to introduce you to the process involved in it. Come with me.", her father said out of the blue. Jian Li was laying down in the sun by the willow tree, reading a story about an immortal getting chased by the god of frogs and was slightly disgruntled by the fact that she had to stop reading when the book was starting to get good. Her father had a habit of interrupting her reading, so she gradually got used to it and followed silently behind him. Her father took her by the hand and lead her to the family forge. It was blazing hot and filled with loud sounds of weaponsmiths working. She had never been let inside such a place before and was fascinated by it. Jian Li watched as her father retrieved a brand new sword from a stand beside the forge and handed it to her. It was heavy for someone as young as her. "Now I want you to concentrate. What does this sword feel like?", her father asked. She paused for a moment and then started describing the sword. "It feels heavy and the hilt is nicely designed. There are pretty patterns on it that I like. It's really long, longer than me! The blade looks super sharp too.", Jian Li said, stroking the blade. "You are a very perceptive child. That's it. You know, weapons have feelings too. I know one definitely liked you.", her father said, letting off a light smile. He grabbed the sword out of her hands but started laughing. "And I'm glad you like the patterns along the hilt. I made those myself and had to redo them many times before they were satisfactory." "Do the patterns do anything special?", Jian Li asked, knowing how much her father loved to decorate from Jian Chen. Her father stopped laughing and looked her straight in the eye. He still maintained a slight smile. The sword in his hands suddenly started to glow with a bright golden aura and he handed it back to her. Jian Li took it back at looked at it with awe. She had heard about many magical things in this world, but this was her first time seeing something magical like this since her rebirth. "Try swinging it a few times.", he said. She did as he said and even before she started swinging, she found that the sword was much lighter than before. It was like a golden feather. She swung it a few more times and then gave it reluctantly back to her father. "Well? What do you think?", her father said with a proud smile. Jian Li smiled and nodded in approval. "I think I like it." Her father smiled. "Good. Then it's yours.", he replied. He first looked at the sword then at Jian Li. "Are you ready to learn how to make these?", she nodded her head vigorously. "Yes!" Jian Li had never seen her father as proud and happy with her as he was at that moment. "Good. Then we should begin. We'll do it together."

Her father lead her over to an anvil and sat her down on a stool beside it. She watched in silence as he grabbed a chunk of the raw iron from a nearby barrel. "Okay. Watch closely.", he whispered as Jian Li stood and watched with bated breath. Her father gradually stopped smiling and started to focus as his hands started to slightly glow yellow. Jian Li stared in awe as the glow from his hands seemed to slowly seep into the iron and began to glow a faint yellow as well. He brought the glowing iron over to her and held it out. She held her own hands out to touch it and closed her eyes.