Feng Kingdom, border fortress.
Yellow sand danced wildly through the sky. This was a place where opening one's mouth would get it filled with windblown grit.
Rhythmic metallic clanging rang endlessly from a camp tent of the Border Army.
Clang! Clang-clang! Clang-clang!
Inside the tent, the scorching furnace cast the young man's resolute, upright face in a deep red glow.
Bam!
As the final hammer fell, the long halberd he had forged for nearly half the afternoon was finally close to completion.
"Li Er Niu, is my long halberd finished yet?!" A rough roar rang out from beyond the tent. Anyone could tell from the voice alone that it belonged to a burly man.
Li Er Niu's real name was Li Qing. Since his family owned two cows and he had an elder brother, the men in the camp all liked to call him Er Niu.
Li Qing let out a soft breath and replied, "It only needs quenching now. Wait a moment, Centurion!"
Saying this, Li Qing used his hands to lift the heavy long halberd and slowly submerged its sharp end into the water vat.
Sizzle!
A great deal of steam rose up. Before long, bubbles burbled across the water's surface.
After a while, Li Qing removed the long halberd from the water. Its sharp tip now reflected a chilling gleam.
Successfully forged a Mortal-grade Weapon: Fine Iron Battle Halberd. Reward: five months of lifespan!
The rewards were getting smaller and smaller. It seemed there should be weapons more powerful than Mortal-grade Weapons.
Li Qing looked at the line of text only he could see, as well as the number that had been counting down all along, and silently sighed in his heart.
After giving it a brief glance, Li Qing carried the finished battle halberd out of the tent.
Pulling aside the tent flap, he saw a tall, powerfully built man standing outside, his chin and lips covered in thick black whiskers.
"Centurion Chen, why didn't you come in and wait? The wind and sand are terrible outside!" Li Qing showed an honest, simple smile and handed over the long halberd.
Chen Meng teased, "Your tent is hot as a furnace. Only a ghost would want to go in."
Saying this, Chen Meng took the heavy long halberd, feeling its weight and the lingering warmth upon it, then smiled.
"Hahaha, not bad, not bad! Before long, your craftsmanship will be ready to stand on its own! You're improving at an incredible pace!"
Chen Meng swung the long halberd twice through the air, brimming with imposing momentum.
"Centurion Chen, your martial skill is impressive!" Li Qing praised him sincerely, unable to stop envy from showing in his eyes.
Li Qing could barely lift this long halberd even with both hands, yet Chen Meng could make it roar like a tiger with only one hand. Such strength truly made him envious beyond measure.
"Quit kissing my ass. Work hard and learn all of Master Gu's craft. Master Gu is old now; in the future, you'll take over his position."
After saying that, Chen Meng carried the long halberd away from Li Qing's tent, though an unbearably smug grin spread across his face.
He nearly smiled his mouth apart!
Watching Chen Meng's departing back, Li Qing slowly returned to the tent, which was like a steamer basket, and carefully drew the flap shut to keep the wind and sand outside from blowing in.
"Whew! Seventeen years already..."
Li Qing slumped to the ground with his back against the iron rack holding weapons. He casually picked up a rag that was black as soot, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and let out a long sigh.
He had stumbled muddleheadedly into this world seventeen years ago. After transmigrating here, he had originally planned to come up with a few strange ideas, make some money, marry three to five wives, and muddle through this life in plain mediocrity.
But he had never expected that, when he was ten, he would suddenly become able to see a line of numbers.
After spending several years on it, he finally confirmed that this line of numbers represented his lifespan.
In Li Qing's earlier life, he had never thought slowly dying of old age was especially frightening—until he could clearly see his life beginning its countdown, and it had begun at the short, simple number of fifty-four.
He panicked!
Still only in his teens, he could not accept the fact that he was doomed to die young.
As he grew older, that number became smaller and smaller. He became ever more certain that it represented his lifespan. In other words, unless some major change occurred in the course of his life, he could only live into his sixties!
Fortunately, all of this could still be changed. Ever since he had been forcibly conscripted into the army and made a blacksmith last year, he had suddenly discovered that as long as he forged weapons, his lifespan would increase.
At first, casually forging an iron sword could add a year to his lifespan. Now, successfully forging a Mortal-grade Weapon could only add five months.
The line of numbers before Li Qing had now become 142!
Looking at the string of numbers, 142, Li Qing could not help letting out a satisfied, foolish laugh.
That was right. So long as he remained free of illness and disaster, he could live to nearly one hundred and sixty without doing anything at all!
What an astonishing number!
In this era, a normal person living to sixty or seventy was already quite good. Anyone who reached eighty was considered a long-lived elder!
Just as Li Qing was feeling smug over his fairly long lifespan, a disturbance suddenly broke out beyond the tent.
"Quick, quick! A doctor, find a doctor! Call the doctor over!"
The originally peaceful military camp was thrown into disorder by that urgent cry.
Hearing the commotion, Li Qing immediately sprang to his feet, hurriedly lifted the tent flap, and went outside to see what had happened.
Squinting, he saw three or four men hurrying back, each carrying a wounded soldier on his back.
Very quickly, more and more people emerged from their tents.
"What happened?"
Chen Meng, who had just received a weapon that suited his hand, rushed out from the training ground. He frowned tightly.
"Centurion Chen, bandits! We encountered bandits!" one of the soldiers carrying the wounded answered urgently.
"Bandits?" Chen Meng's expression greatly changed at those words, and anger surged into his eyes.
"Damn it, those bandits have eaten bear hearts and leopard gallbladders! They actually dared lay hands on the Wu Li Army!"
Li Qing paid no attention to their discussion. Instead, he stared fixedly at the injuries on those soldiers.
Several sharp arrowheads had nearly pierced through their bodies. Blood soaked the clothing beneath their leather armor over wide areas, a glaring and dreadful sight.
With injuries like these, saving them was basically impossible.
"Gulp!"
Li Qing could not help swallowing. His face had gone somewhat pale, and his body began trembling involuntarily.
He had been at the border fortress for nearly a year and a half. This was the first time he had seen wounded soldiers on the verge of death.
For such a long time, the border region had actually remained fairly peaceful. Though there were occasional frictions with neighboring Liang Kingdom, they had never escalated into outright war. Both sides exercised restraint.
But the place where he was was still the border fortress.
Though war had not broken out for a long time, could peace truly continue forever?
If there would be no war, then why station so many troops at the border fortress?
One had to know that bandits normally kept out of each other's way with the Border Army, like well water and river water. Today's attack had come somewhat suddenly. Who knew whether it carried some other unusual meaning beneath the surface?
Li Qing no longer had the heart to keep watching. He silently returned to his blacksmith's workshop and curled up once again beside the iron rack holding weapons, his body still unable to stop trembling.
No!
Being a blacksmith in the army might allow him to earn a great deal of lifespan, but if war broke out, this place would become the most dangerous place of all!
The lifespan he earned by forging weapons only meant how long he could live. But if someone killed him during that time, what use would a long lifespan be?!
He was only a blacksmith. Though he had a little strength, in the face of war and chaos, his ability to protect himself was practically nonexistent.
He had to leave!
He had to leave the border fortress as quickly as possible!
This was the only thought in Li Qing's heart right now.
"I really was too naive."
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