Paper Crane, Spirit Blacksmith Shop

"Also, Spirit Hall has already chosen a new Saintess, Hu Liena. The Holy Son has yet to be decided. Gu Chen, with your talent, you could compete for the position."

"In three days, we'll take you to register at Spirit Academy. You happened to arrive during Spirit Academy's enrollment period this time. Once you get there, the academy head will explain the rules to you."

After Demon Subduing Douluo finished speaking, Thousand Jun Douluo immediately added, "Saintess Hu Liena belongs to Bibi Dong's faction. Pope Qian Xunji sees her as a thorn in his side. Once you arrive at Spirit Academy, be careful when dealing with her."

Gu Chen nodded and slightly lowered his head alongside Gu Yuena. "Thank you for the reminder. I'll be careful."

Seeing how humble and polite Gu Chen was, the two Title Douluo smiled in satisfaction. "Spend these three days relaxing in Spirit City and familiarizing yourselves with the place. Keep this Elder Token safe. Anyone affiliated with Spirit Hall who sees it will treat it as though they have seen the master of a branch hall." As he spoke, Thousand Jun Douluo tossed a gold-inlaid token to Gu Chen.

The two of them had no idea that Zu'an Gu Chen's reputation was no mere boast...

After Gu Chen caught the token, the two Title Douluo left the inn.

"We've completed the first step of joining Spirit Hall. What should we do next?" Gu Yuena had always been a girl with firm ideas of her own, but at some point, her reliance on Gu Chen had grown ever deeper.

Gu Chen smiled faintly and slowly uttered eight words: "Eliminate dissidents, win over hearts."

This eight-word principle would be the main thing they did over the coming years!

"Get changed. Let's take a look around Spirit City." Gu Chen glanced at Gu Yuena, who was wearing cute little bear pajamas, and spoke softly.

Gu Yuena nodded and entered the bathroom.

"System, I want one draw."

"Ding!"

"100 System Points have been deducted from the host. Remaining points: 400."

"Congratulations, host, you have received: Better luck next time!"

"..." Gu Chen's face darkened.

"Again!" Gu Chen said. This time, he only intended to test his luck. He would save the remaining 300 points for a ten-pull.

"Ding!"

"100 System Points have been deducted from the host. Remaining points: 300."

"Congratulations, host, you have received: Low-level Enslavement Talisman ×1."

"Hmm?" Gu Chen raised a brow. "Display the low-level Enslavement Talisman."

"Ding!"

Low-level Enslavement Talisman

Uses remaining: 1

Usage method: Write the enslaved target's name and date and time of birth on the talisman paper, then ignite this talisman.

Usage requirements: The enslaved target's loyalty to the host must exceed 60%, and the target's cultivation must be below Title Douluo. Furthermore, the target must not be Tang San, Xiao Wu, Tang Hao, Qian Daoliu, Qian Xunji, Ah Yin, or Gu Yuena.

"Right, this is a low-level Enslavement Talisman. Does that mean there are intermediate and advanced Enslavement Talismans too? Can I view their attributes?" Gu Chen did not possess higher-level Enslavement Talismans, but he still wanted to know their attributes.

"Ding!"

Intermediate Enslavement Talisman

Uses remaining: 1

Usage method: Write the enslaved target's name and date and time of birth on the talisman paper, then ignite this talisman.

Usage requirements: The enslaved target's loyalty to the host must exceed 50%, and the target's cultivation must be below God-tier. Furthermore, the target must not be Tang San, Xiao Wu, Tang Hao, Qian Daoliu, Qian Xunji, Ah Yin, or Gu Yuena.

Advanced Enslavement Talisman

Uses remaining: 1

Usage method: Write the enslaved target's name and date and time of birth on the talisman paper, then ignite this talisman.

Usage requirements: The target's cultivation must be below God-tier, and the target must not be Tang San, Xiao Wu, Tang Hao, Qian Daoliu, Qian Xunji, Ah Yin, or Gu Yuena.

God-tier Enslavement Talisman

Uses remaining: 1

Usage method: Write the enslaved target's name and date and time of birth on the talisman paper, then ignite this talisman.

Usage requirements: The target must not be Tang San, Xiao Wu, Tang Hao, Qian Daoliu, Qian Xunji, Ah Yin, or Gu Yuena.

There really were higher-level Enslavement Talismans?

Gu Chen froze for a moment, then asked curiously, "What is this loyalty for? When I view other people's Character Panels, there isn't an option for it."

"Ding!"

"When the host views the Character Panels of Tang San, Xiao Wu, Tang Hao, Qian Daoliu, Qian Xunji, Ah Yin, Gu Yuena, or the host himself, loyalty cannot be displayed. In five years, aside from your own mission panel, you've only looked at Gu Yuena's. You really are a wife-doting maniac!"

"Stupid system, don't spout nonsense! Who's a wife-doting maniac?!" Gu Chen snapped in embarrassment.

The system fell silent.

"Let's go." At that moment, Gu Yuena emerged from the bathroom. Her cute little bear pajamas had already been stored in her storage Soul Tool.

She was now wearing a snow-white knee-length dress. The white dress, paired with her soft silver hair, amethyst-like eyes, and cherry lips, gave her a uniquely beautiful appearance.

"Wait a moment." As Gu Chen spoke, he took out a parchment scroll, dipped a brush in ink, and began drawing and writing across the parchment.

Gu Yuena watched curiously from his side, but she could only tell that it was something similar to a Paper Crane.

Half an hour later, Gu Chen finally let out a long breath and carefully stored the parchment scroll in the System Backpack.

"Let's go." Gu Chen smiled, and the two left the inn together to stroll through Spirit City.

Spirit City truly deserved its place as one of the three great cities. It was exceptionally prosperous, and it even had streets like the food streets from Gu Chen's previous life, where an entire street was packed with food stalls.

Gu Yuena seemed to have revealed her inner foodie. Her hands never stopped along the way. To Gu Chen's surprise, Spirit City's food street even had foods from his previous life, such as candied hawthorn skewers and malt candy.

"Mmm..." After finishing the malt candy in her hand, Gu Yuena fixed her gaze on the candied hawthorn skewer in Gu Chen's hand.

Gu Chen smiled indulgently and handed the candied hawthorn skewer to Gu Yuena, who immediately began eating it.

"Hey, wait, this one seems to be the one I already ate..." Gu Chen suddenly realized something...

After the food street came Spirit City's shopping district. The kilometer-long commercial street successfully added several hundred sets of clothes to Gu Yuena's storage ring...

"Stop for a moment." Gu Chen spotted a blacksmith shop at a nearby corner. The sign above it seemed to bear the words "Spirit Blacksmith Shop."

"What is it?" Gu Yuena's words were unclear as she chewed on her candied hawthorn skewer.

"I'm going into this blacksmith shop. Wait for me at the entrance," Gu Chen said.

Gu Yuena nodded and obediently waited at the door.

Gu Chen entered the blacksmith shop, where the atmosphere was bustling and fiery. He walked to an iron table that resembled a reception desk.

"Weapons start at ten Gold Soul Coins. Pay and reserve ten days in advance, then collect your order ten days later. With a Spirit Blacksmith Shop VIP card, you get a 20% discount and can collect your order within three days." A blacksmith in the distance saw Gu Chen enter and called out these terms.

Gu Chen smiled. "I brought my own design. I'd like to commission you to forge some items. Price is no issue, but I need to collect them within one day."

As he spoke, Gu Chen brushed his right hand across his waist, when in fact he retrieved a large bag of Gold Soul Coins from the System Backpack. He placed it on the iron table with a heavy clang.

Seeing Gu Chen retrieve an item from thin air, the blacksmith already knew he was no ordinary person. After all, those with storage Soul Tools were generally nobles or officials.

But upon hearing the Gold Soul Coins strike the iron table, the blacksmith was stunned. From the sound alone, there had to be at least a thousand Gold Soul Coins!

"I'm the person in charge of Spirit Blacksmith Shop. Please tell me what you need." The blacksmith set down his forging hammer, and his tone immediately changed.

Gu Chen took out the parchment scroll from earlier, spread it flat across the iron table, and said to the shop manager, "I'm willing to pay 2,000 Gold Soul Coins to commission five hundred Paper Cranes like this, forged from black iron. At the same time, I want to commission steel wire with a diameter of 0.01 millimeters, five thousand meters in length, also forged from black iron. I'm willing to pay 1,500 Gold Soul Coins for that. And I need to collect them within one day. I'm willing to pay an additional 500 Gold Soul Coins as compensation."

The shop manager's expression changed drastically. This was a deal worth 4,000 Gold Soul Coins! Even in all of Spirit City, such orders were rare.

After carefully assessing the blacksmith shop's capabilities, the manager nodded. "Our Spirit Blacksmith Shop is the largest blacksmith shop in Spirit City. We have ten branches throughout the city and a total of one thousand blacksmiths. We will do our utmost to forge the items you require and deliver them within one day."

Gu Chen softly hummed in acknowledgment, handed the parchment scroll and a bag of Gold Soul Coins to the manager, and said, "This is a deposit of 2,000 Gold Soul Coins. Once my requested items are complete, I'll pay the remaining 2,000 Gold Soul Coins."

After confirming the number of Gold Soul Coins, the manager handed over a card forged from black iron. "This is our Spirit Blacksmith Shop VIP card. It gives you a 20% discount. When you come to collect your order tomorrow, you'll only need to pay another 1,300 Gold Soul Coins."

"That works." Gu Chen nodded and accepted the VIP card.

As for what the items he was having forged were for, there was no need to ask. The Paper Cranes were naturally an essential requirement for using the secret art, Paper Crane, after he inherited Yuan Ge's legacy. The black iron wire, meanwhile, was necessary for controlling puppets and using the secret art, Cross Flash.

I just saw a baffling one-star review that said, "I see all the reviews here are four and five stars, so I feel kind of embarrassed. I'll give you five stars too, just in installments."

What the hell? Where did this lunatic come from? Where's the psychiatric ward? Did one of your hospital's patients escape?

(The rating dropped again. Could the readers of this book please leave a five-star review in the reader community? This newbie thanks you!)