Three Years

Tang San began the arduous journey of supporting himself.

The first problem was finding food.

Tang Hao's earnings from smithing were actually more than enough to put food on the table and clothes on their backs, but he spent the money on wine every time, leaving Tang San to find his own food.

Drawing on his wilderness survival skills and experience from his previous life, Tang San wove sturdy nets and fish traps from vines and set them in a small river not far from home. When he collected them the next morning, he often found several large fish.

When the catch was plentiful, he had enough to feed himself and trade with the other villagers for coarse salt and rice.

Besides catching fish, Tang San also began setting traps for rabbits.

He bent some old wire he had dug out of the Blacksmith's Shop into several snares and tied them to bushes and along paths rabbits often traveled.

As it turned out, rabbits reproduced at an astonishing rate, and the Douluo Continent was a relatively primitive world with wild rabbits everywhere. Tang San often caught a whole bunch at once.

Tang San took the fish and rabbits he couldn't finish to the market and traded them for money. Little by little, he built up a small stash of savings.

And so, while other children played and horsed around, Tang San had to run about fending for himself.

As the days passed, Tang San's physical condition slowly improved, and a little color returned to his cheeks.

Once he had solved the problem of food and clothing, Tang San began exercising every day, drawing on his training experience from his previous life.

Tang San knew full well how important physical fitness was. Rock climbing placed extremely high demands on a person's strength, endurance, flexibility, and coordination.

In his previous life, conquering those treacherous rock faces had taken far more than courage. It had also taken grueling training, day after day.

Though he had now been reborn in a child's body, those memories of training remained etched deep in his mind.

Besides running to build his stamina, Tang San strengthened himself through monotonous exercises like push-ups, squats, and pull-ups.

In addition, whenever Tang Hao was forging, Tang San carefully observed his movements and the way he applied force.

Tang San knew perfectly well that Tang Hao was using the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer, and he also knew that learning the hammer technique could train the body.

Although Tang San couldn't swing the great hammer, he could use a small one to build strength in his arms, calves, shoulders, and back.

Of course, given Tang Hao's strength, he had long since noticed Tang San secretly learning the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer.

But perhaps because he felt guilty, Tang Hao turned a blind eye. If Tang San wanted to learn, he could learn.

He even deliberately slowed his hammer swings when Tang San was watching so the boy could see more clearly.

Through imitation and understanding accumulated day after day, Tang San gradually learned the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer, even though Tang Hao had never taught him personally.

Three years passed like a white colt flashing past a crack in the wall.

Tang San had grown from a frail toddler who looked as though a gust of wind could knock him over into a sturdy six-year-old boy.

People on the Douluo Continent generally developed faster. Over the past three years, Tang San had paid close attention to his nutrition, and with Tang Hao's genuinely good genes on top of that, he had shot up to 1.3 meters. His hammer-wielding arms were thick and powerful, his body corded with muscle, and his shoulders broad and strong.

The villagers all said Tang San was so sensible it made their hearts ache. At such a young age, he could already keep his little household in perfect order.

One day, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Tang San got out of bed, washed up, and followed the path to the river.

Tang San deftly collected the fish traps he had sunk in the river the day before, a dozen or so in all.

He gathered and counted the catch: six or seven large fish, each as long as a lower leg, were thrashing and flapping in the traps.

The corners of Tang San's mouth lifted slightly. He picked the largest fish from the traps, one weighing over four jin, and put the others into the wooden buckets he had brought along. He filled the buckets with fresh water, carried them on a shoulder pole, and followed the raised paths between the fields toward the village chief Old Jack's house.

Old Jack lived at the east end of the village. When Tang San reached the courtyard gate, he saw Old Jack sitting on the doorstep.

"Grandpa Jack!" Tang San called out as he approached.

Old Jack raised his head, and when he saw Tang San, the wrinkles on his face eased a little. "Oh, Xiao San, you're here!"

Tang San held out the biggest fish. "Grandpa Jack, I had a good catch today, so I picked the biggest one for you!"

Old Jack looked down at the large fish, which weighed over four jin, then looked up at Tang San's sun-darkened face. He was a little touched.

Rather than take the fish, Old Jack waved him off, his tone firm. "No need, Xiao San. I haven't finished the one you gave me yesterday. Take this one to the market and sell it! You can get two Copper Soul Coins for it. Save the money for school after you awaken your Martial Soul."

Although commoners had little hope of awakening Innate Soul Power and becoming Soul Masters, Old Jack had always been certain that Tang San would awaken Innate Soul Power.

"Grandpa Jack!"

"Be good and listen!" Old Jack pretended to put on a stern face, though the corners of his eyes were full of affection. "Grandpa Jack may be old, but I haven't reached the point where I can't feed myself. Child, you don't need to keep worrying about this old man..."

Tang San knew Old Jack's temperament. He smiled helplessly and had no choice but to put the big fish back in the wooden bucket.

"That's more like it." Old Jack nodded in satisfaction. Then, as though he had remembered something, his tone turned serious. "By the way, Xiao San, Grandpa has something to tell you."

Tang San paused, slightly taken aback, and looked up at Old Jack.

Old Jack stood up. "A Lord Soul Master from Spirit Hall will come to our village tomorrow to help the children who are old enough awaken their Martial Souls. You're already six, so make sure you prepare yourself."

"All right, Grandpa Jack!" Something stirred in Tang San's heart, and he nodded obediently.

After bidding Old Jack farewell, Tang San carried the buckets on his shoulder pole and followed the country path to the market.

The so-called market had no proper shops. It was simply a trading spot that villagers from several villages within ten li had settled on by custom. Along both sides of a junction between country roads, nearby villagers came every day with their own produce to trade with one another.

It was called a market, but it was more like a small open-air bazaar.

By the time Tang San arrived, several stalls had already been set up.

"Oh, Xiao San's here!" Auntie Wang, who sold vegetables, was the first to spot Tang San and greeted him warmly.

"Hello, Auntie Wang." Tang San smiled and nodded.

"Caught fish again today?" Old Zhao, a hunter, came over and peered into the wooden bucket, clicking his tongue in admiration. "Well, would you look at that! Those are all big ones! You really have a knack for it, kid. You're a lot better than your drunkard father."

Tang San smiled without agreeing or disagreeing. He fished the two largest fish out of the bucket and laid them on several large leaves he had prepared beforehand.

Tang San didn't call out to advertise his wares. He simply squatted quietly by the roadside and waited.

Tang San had long been a familiar face in this little circle.

Villagers from all the surrounding villages knew this sensible child, and they all supported Tang San's business. His fish were fresh and fairly priced, so he often sold out in less than half a shichen.

Sure enough, before long, all six large fish had been sold, one after another.

Tang San tucked the six Copper Soul Coins he had earned that day into the little cloth pouch sewn at his waist, patted it, and picked up the empty buckets to head back.

By the time he returned from the market, the sun was already high in the sky.

Tang San went straight back to the Blacksmith's Shop. It looked completely different from the way it had three years ago: a fence enclosed a courtyard in front, with vegetables growing on the right and chickens on the left, giving the place a lived-in feel.

Tang San kept six or seven hens. He had asked Old Jack to help hatch them, then raised the chicks himself, all so he could eat eggs every day and have chicken soup once in a while.

He walked to the chicken coop, opened its door, and reached into a nest. He felt out three eggs and carefully put them away.

After watering the vegetable patch, he returned to the shop and began forging with the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer, making farming tools for the villagers.