"The magic weapons are on sale! Ice, fire, thunder, and various magical attributes, all for only ten gold coins. Non-attributed ones are only nine silver coins!"

"Oh, just ten gold coins, mister... Here, I'll take one!"

"Alright, are you looking for a sword, a knife, or a staff?"

The tough uncles and aunties, full of strength, kept hammering the newly forged iron tools in the furnace, after a round of crafting, turning them into weapons strong enough to defeat the most evil creatures!

In the streets and alleys of Imperial City, at a glance, they were all workshops opened by blacksmiths.

Every now and then, a rugged uncle from one of the workshops would call out to passersby.

"Hey kid, in this day and age, can your weapon kill the evil creatures? Come, come, check out the great weapons here with me..."

Or it could be another shopkeeper dressed attractively, using her proud and perky assets to lure passersby to make a purchase.

"Oh my, your weapon is outdated, come see the fine magic weapons we have here, each one a masterpiece created by our blacksmiths. All you brave warriors, feel free to choose!"

Of course, sometimes they would also encounter rogue passersby, always heading straight for the shopkeeper.

"The Magic Sword I have here is the most expensive one, yet seeing you makes me feel a special connection, so I'll sell it to you for a hundred gold coins."

"Hahaha, I could offer a thousand gold coins for the shopkeeper's words... Pff!"

Generally, the fate of such people would end up being sent flying, for blacksmiths were not only skilled in crafting weapons but also superior in combat compared to ordinary warriors!

"Tsk tsk tsk, this young man sure knows how to joke, if you want the lady, you better come and claim her by force!"

During the barren years, the human races on the continent were unified by the Demon Emperor of the Banama Empire, which was popular for forging magic weapons.

Under the immense power of the imperial army, capable of turning the entire battle into a mist of blood in an instant with powerful magic weapons, the armies of various empires surrendered without a fight!

After the victory in the war, the emperor held a meeting and bestowed the highest honor of Boundless-Level Blacksmith Knight to four of the most famous blacksmiths at the time.

The news shocked the entire empire because according to the original rules of the empire, there were generally only seven levels.

They were: Beginning Stone Level, Enveloping Level, Retrograde Level, Nine Hearts Level, Boundary-Cutting Level, Boundless Level.

It should be noted that in the times when blacksmiths were not popular, the highest level granted was usually Retrograde Level, a lowly profession.

Therefore, before the downfall of the old empires, the enthusiasm of blacksmiths for making weapons was declining day by day, even though there were mighty heroes among them, they often perished in battles due to the lack of suitable weapons.

"Ha ha, this young man is quite the joker, if you want the lady, you better come and claim her by force!"

After the emperor announced a new law, the blacksmiths across the country cheered and celebrated.

Less than a month after the emperor's announcement, the profession of blacksmiths was on par with that of knights, and in some ways, even excelled them!

Finally, in the first year of the empire's establishment, blacksmiths became the most noble and sought-after profession.

But what we are about to tell is not the bitter story of the rise of empire blacksmiths, but the story of a particular individual…

At the start of the second year since the new law was proclaimed in the empire, in a small inconspicuous town on the west coast tens of thousands of miles away from Imperial City, there was a very old tavern, and the story began in that tavern - on the second floor.

Bang! Bang! Bang...!

With a crash, at the moment a fellow who looked like a fifty-year-old uncle was still in the middle of a dreamy sleep state, the door was kicked open with brute force.

"Hey, Master Ling Jianghai, look at yourself now, what a sight you are!"

"Oh my goodness, Lana... Are you trying to scare me? What's up with the sudden outburst so early in the morning?"

His pleasant dream in the early morning was immediately ruined by the big sister sweeping the floor. She angrily drove Jianghai off the bed with a broom, panting as she spoke.

"Scare you? Can I not get angry? Tell me, how many months has it been since you last paid the rent!!"

"Uh... let me think about it?"

The best way to deal with an angry woman is to avoid her!

So, he quickly dodged and hid behind a pile of refining equipment, letting her search around for his whereabouts.

And at moments like this, the most important thing in dealing with women is to appear as the most perfect image in their minds.

"I mean, back when the Demon Emperor pacified the world and rewarded those who contributed, he personally invited you eight to receive rewards. Why didn't you go?"

"Tsk, I don't care about those rewards. I am a man with lofty ideals and ambitions!"

Ah, life is already so difficult, yet Jianghai still has to deal with this rent-demanding woman...

Yes, the girl with orange braided hair and faint freckles on her face is his landlady, Lana, who was once his apprentice traveling companion.

As for why she came back to find Jianghai, hehehe... All of this is just Jianghai's own imagination.

"Ha, are you daydreaming again? Let me tell you, if you don't pay the rent, I'll pawn your belongings!"

With that, she slammed the door and left in a huff.

At this moment, Jianghai, who was hiding on the balcony, cautiously peeked out from behind the furnace.

Sigh!

"No wonder this shrewish woman is still not married at twenty-nine, she's so fierce..."

"She looks cute when she smiles though."

Well, it's time to prepare some food now and then go to Lana's place to get some wine...

(Jianghai's perspective)

Feeling a tinge of melancholy, I looked around at the messy room.

"I should tidy up first. I heard that Senior Brother's two apprentices are coming, I should accommodate them."

Let me introduce myself now, my name is Jianghai, the captain of the Imperial Sky Dragon Forging Team, or the former captain.

I'm fifty-two now, no longer concerned with affairs on the continent.

During the Chaos of the Blood Emperor, although I didn't become the frontline main combat power like Senior Brother, I at least supported dealing with the noble bloodline vampires.

As instructed by Senior Brother, there will be guests tomorrow night. Looks like I need to prepare well!

"Why... would Master pass it on to you?!"

Senior Sister, like the wind, turned away without looking back, leaving Junior Brother behind.

"Sister...?" Juxi felt puzzled, "Wait, Sister!"

He wanted to step forward and find out, but was brushed off by Senior Sister changing the subject.

"Alright, let's not talk about today's affairs anymore!"

After muttering a few words awkwardly, Senior Sister ran off on her own, leaving Juxi standing alone, gazing at her retreating figure with confusion.

"What... are you talking about?"

And so, he was left puzzled at the staircase one floor away from the dormitory, murmuring to himself as he watched his Senior Sister disappear into the distance.

*Ka-ka-ka!*

I suddenly shivered, as if waking up from a deep sleep.

"It's so cold...!”

Qingshui Mountain stands tall and peaks into the clouds, so it's normal for it to be a bit cold.

However... for some reason, the wind today seems stronger than usual!

Tonight, Juxi couldn't sleep all night, pondering over what Senior Sister said and why she suddenly erupted in anger, despite her usual gentleness.

All these thoughts turned into a fog, troubling Juxi's mind.

The next morning...

A crisp sound of the morning bell broke the night's quiet, and suddenly the dormitory building became lively!

Hey! Ha!

Senior brothers and sisters had already entered the sparring field one after another, lining up in pairs to begin the first exam of the month!

However, there were two special individuals besides them...

Knock, knock, knock!

"Junior brother, it's time to wake up!"

In the early morning when even the roosters hadn't crowed yet, Sister Zhao Yu Nai was already knocking on the door of Junior Brother Ye Juxi.

But he was still in bed, tightly wrapped in his blanket, refusing to get up.

Even retorting to Sister Yu Nai: "But I haven't woken up yet... Besides, it takes a lot of courage to get up in this cold weather on Qingshui Mountain!"

His weak response made Sister Yu Nai's anger rise to the top of her head.

"Hey, get this straight, both Yukari and I are girls!" Sister Yu Nai snapped, banging on Juxi's door while mocking him, "Both of us can wake up this early, why can't you as a man?"

"Pah, the master is partial to you girls, even granting you the luxury of a heater!"

Finally pushed to his limit by the teasing, Juxi erupted and started arguing with Sister Yu Nai.

"How can you, enjoying yourselves all day, possibly understand how cold it is to even go outside naked on such a freezing day?"

This time, Sister Yu Nai was truly mad and shouted, "If you don't get up now, the master will scold us again. How many times do I have to tell you?"

With an angry face, Yu Nai pushed open the door and forcefully dragged Juxi out of his warm bed.

With only a huge pair of pants on, Juxi startled Sister Yu Nai.

"Ah, pervert!"

Slam! (Changing clothes obediently)

"Hey, are you done yet? Why so slow?"

"Coming! Coming!"

How could he forget; today, the master and others were going to send him down the mountain?

"After going down the mountain, make sure to write to the master regularly and let us know how you're doing. Take this... you can use pigeons to send your letters!"

Saying so, Ling Yizi handed over a pigeon from the cage, letting it fly onto my shoulder.

"Goo goo...!"

The bird seemed as if it had gained its freedom, excitedly cooing on my shoulder!

"It's getting late, if you don't leave now you might not make it to the West Coast by nightfall, so..."

Coincidentally, Ling Yizi had prepared a spirit-infused booster for Yu Nai earlier, and also handed me a hunting gun.

"Take care, your lunch is in the boat's compartment, make sure to eat it hot!"

The master then began his long lecture, which Juxi and Yukari found a bit hard to bear.

"Don't worry," Juxi solemnly promised while holding Yukari's hand, "I will take good care of Senior Sister throughout this journey, so..."

"Yukari, please take care of Juxi on the way, he's a bit crazy!"

Ling Yizi entrusted Juxi to Yukari with a hint of trust, asking her to take care of Juxi.

Although not understanding why, Ling Yizi had a very relieved look on his face, immediately pumping confidence into Juxi.

"…Master, you... sigh!"

To think that he would have to be taken care of by a mere woman, how could he still hold his head high on the mainland in the future?