Qingshui Town, Blacksmith Shop

"It's getting late, I need to hurry to the town's blacksmith shop..."

Su Mu returned to his room, put on his straw hat and straw cloak, gritted his teeth to endure the itching all over his body, and quickly left Dongbian Village, heading towards Qingshui Town.

Qingshui Town, the center of the surrounding ten-mile radius, was ten miles away from the village. The official road outside the town connected to Qingyun County City. Because of this, there were many merchants coming and going in the town, making it quite prosperous.

On the east side of the town, there was a main street called Scholar Street. Legend had it that a scholar once emerged from here and later became a high-ranking official in the Great Yan Dynasty.

Shop number thirteen on Scholar Street was the Li Family Blacksmith Shop. The blacksmiths in the shop had good craftsmanship and their reputation spread for ten miles around. Business was booming every day, and this was also where Su Mu learned his craft.

Su Mu hurried along, but the rain still caused him to lose some time. Seeing the tall figure standing at the entrance of the shop, holding a poplar wood ruler, he couldn't help but feel a little intimidated.

Zhou Shan was a formal blacksmith in the shop and also the master of several apprentices, including Su Mu. However, Su Mu was not yet qualified to learn blacksmithing skills and only helped with chores in the shop.

"You're a quarter of an hour late, hold out your hand."

Su Mu extended his hand, and the next moment, the ruler whistled through the air and struck Su Mu's palm.

The poison in his body acted up on this rainy day, and coupled with the pain from the ruler, Su Mu felt a dull ache in his heart. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Zhou Shan noticed this and frowned, holding the raised ruler in mid-air.

"Considering it's your first offense, I'll only hit you this once. Remember to come to the shop earlier next time."

"Yes, Master Zhou."

Su Mu replied and hurried into the shop, only to let out a long sigh of relief. This rainy weather was too torturous. He then took off his straw hat and straw cloak, and together with the other two apprentices in the shop, he cleaned the shop and did chores like moving coal and iron ore.

Among the apprentices, Su Mu was the youngest. The other two apprentices were around fourteen or fifteen years old, and one of them had been at the shop for over two years.

"Su Mu, why are you late today?"

A round-faced, chubby young boy, Li Xiaohu, asked curiously. Li Xiaohu was the young master of the Li Family Blacksmith Shop and the son of the shop owner, Li Tie.

"I just woke up a bit late today."

"Oh."

Li Xiaohu replied, smiling, and reached into his clothes to take out two steamed buns wrapped in oil paper. "Here, this is your share. They're still warm."

"Thank you, Brother Li."

Su Mu thanked him gratefully and accepted. The apprentice Sun Li, standing nearby, snorted when he saw this.

It was noon.

A bare-chested, burly black man beckoned to the three of them. This man was Li Xiaohu's father and the owner of the Li Family Blacksmith Shop, Li Tie.

"The busy farming season is almost here, and the shop's orders have increased significantly. The three of you will follow the masters in the shop to assist them from this afternoon onwards."

"Xiaohu, you come with me."

"Oh." Li Xiaohu was a little reluctant.

"As for the two of you, continue to follow Master Zhou. Just do whatever he tells you to do."

Upon hearing this, Su Mu couldn't help but get excited. "Thank you, Uncle Li. I will definitely study blacksmithing diligently."

"Thank you, Uncle Li."

Sun Li also thanked him, but after Li Tie left, Sun Li's expression turned grim. A hint of dissatisfaction flashed in his eyes as he looked at Su Mu.

He had been an apprentice at the blacksmith shop for over two years before getting the chance to assist. This kid had only been here for three months, so why?

Apprentices at the blacksmith shop received no wages, only food.

But in this chaotic world, having one's meals secured was already a good thing. Therefore, many poor families would try their best to send their children to various shops as apprentices.

In fact, it wasn't just about meals. Whether it was carpentry, cooking, tailoring, or forging, starting as an apprentice, as long as one could endure for a few years, they would have the opportunity to learn a skill to support themselves. It was normal to spend five or ten years on it.

In short, it was extremely rare for someone like Su Mu to start learning a craft within three months of arriving at the shop.

But only Su Mu knew that his ability to start learning within three months was likely related to those people, as his apprenticeship at the shop was arranged by them.

Even though he knew it was arranged by others, Su Mu accepted it willingly. He had to plan for his future. If he could become a formal blacksmith, he would receive a considerable monthly income.

The masters in the shop received two taels of silver per month, and if there were many orders, there would be some extra monetary rewards.

In the past three months, Su Mu had thought about it. There were only two ways to escape the fate of being a controlled death warrior.

One was through the imperial examinations. By becoming a court official through the examinations, he could eventually use the power of the court to change his destiny.

The status of scholars was very high in this world. This could be seen from the fact that the street where the blacksmith shop was located was directly renamed Scholar Street. It was said that after becoming a court official, one would also be blessed with the mysterious Dynastic Fortune.

Ordinary people found it difficult to harm court officials who possessed Dynastic Fortune.

However, this path was somewhat unrealistic for Su Mu at present. Books were quite precious in this world, and he, a poor boy, could not afford to read them. Moreover, he did not have much time to study.

In his previous life, he was an engineer. He had memorized some poems but had never studied the Four Books and Five Classics. Moreover, this world was not any of the dynasties in his previous life's history books, and the imperial examinations might not necessarily test poetry.

How could he, a half-baked scholar, compete with the scions of wealthy families who had been tutored by famous teachers since childhood, or with scholars who had studied diligently for over a decade?

Furthermore, if he wanted to take the imperial examinations, it would inevitably alert those people, and they would likely not allow him to participate in the examinations, or even directly attack him.

If the imperial examinations were not an option, then the only remaining path was to strengthen himself through martial arts.

As mentioned above, this world was not any historical dynasty from his previous life. True martial arts existed in this world. It was said that powerful Ranked Martial Artists could even break through an army alone and shatter mountains and rocks.

This path held the most hope for Su Mu. His attribute panel could also be of great use. As long as he improved his comprehension step by step and grew stronger step by step.

One day, he, Su Mu, would have the chance to escape his identity as a death warrior and resolve the poison within his body.

He didn't want to be forced into rebellion one day with a knife to his throat.

"But no matter which path I take, money will be indispensable. Even the cleverest housewife can't cook without rice; a single coin can stump a hero!"

Su Mu thought very clearly, so right now he needed to make money, as much as possible.

The apprentice's lunch at the shop was two sweet potatoes. After quickly eating, Su Mu and Sun Li went to the blacksmithing room in the backyard.

Clang, clang, clang!

The deafening sound of metal striking metal was incessant. The moment he stepped inside, Su Mu felt as if he had entered a giant furnace, the temperature instantly rising by more than ten degrees.

"Master Zhou."

The two respectfully approached a forging station and greeted Zhou Shan.

Zhou Shan was sweating profusely in front of the forging table, his arm muscles bulging. He swung an iron hammer down heavily. Clang! The sound made both of them involuntarily step back.

"You're here at the right time. Let's start with you, Sun Li. Use that hammer over there. You hit wherever I hit."

"Whether forging swords or farm tools, they all need to go through processes like forging, filing, quenching, and polishing. The most important among these is forging."

"Steel for forging swords needs to be hammered at least tens of thousands of times, folded and hammered dozens of times to remove impurities and achieve sufficient strength. Otherwise, it's a substandard product."

"Harder, hit it harder!" Zhou Shan shouted as he swung his hammer.

"Yes!"

Sun Li responded and swung the hammer with all his might.

During the forging process, Zhou Shan watched Sun Li's every move. He noticed that Sun Li's eyes would occasionally dart elsewhere while forging. This kid always gave him a feeling of being somewhat unreliable.

After a while, Zhou Shan grunted, "Switch."

Su Mu took the forging hammer. Zhou Shan placed the steel into the furnace to heat it until it was red-hot, then took it out again. With a stern expression, he struck it with his iron hammer.

Su Mu gritted his teeth, his efforts showing. He swung the hammer.

Clang!

Sparks flew.

"Are you not eating? Put some strength into it! Forging is the basic skill of a blacksmith," Zhou Shan reprimanded. Sun Li, standing nearby, smirked slightly.

"Yes, Master Zhou!"

Su Mu gritted his teeth and continued to swing the hammer. His eyes were fixed on every strike Zhou Shan made, and every swing of his hammer was incredibly focused.

Clang, clang, clang!

Sweat soaked through his clothes. Sweat beads the size of peas rolled into his eyes, stinging them with saltiness, but Su Mu's eyes remained fixed on the forging table.

This kid might be a good prospect... He's very focused when he works, but his body is too weak. A good blacksmith can't lack physical strength. What a shame.

Zhou Shan made his judgment about Su Mu in his heart. His two apprentices each had their strengths and weaknesses, but overall, he was more optimistic about Su Mu.

Looking at Su Mu, who was completely absorbed, Zhou Shan's gaze softened slightly. "Alright, you kid, go rest for a bit. Switch."

Upon hearing Zhou Shan's gentler tone, Sun Li clenched his fists secretly.

The day ended.

"It's a bit... exhilarating!"

Su Mu's arms were burning with pain. His palms had several blisters, and he felt as if his arms no longer belonged to him.

His body was exhausted, but his spirit was invigorated.

[Blacksmithing (Novice 1%)]

"The improvement in comprehension is truly astonishing!"

In just one day, his status panel now had a blacksmithing skill. Although it was just novice level, as long as he persisted, he would definitely improve step by step, which would then increase his lifespan and comprehension.

"I can't neglect the Five Animal Frolics either."

After dinner, Su Mu returned to the village from town. Besides being an apprentice at the town's blacksmith shop, he was also a villager of Dongbian Village. He had a small courtyard with an earth house on the westernmost side of the village.

Hiss...

Su Mu gritted his teeth and gasped for air as he began practicing the Five Animal Frolics. Tiger Play, Deer Play, Bear Play... one move after another. After a long time, having completed the set, Su Mu couldn't help but let out a soft sound of surprise.

"My arm muscles don't seem as sore?"

Su Mu was pleasantly surprised to find that the Five Animal Frolics could even slightly alleviate muscle soreness.

"As expected of the body-strengthening exercise created by the Divine Physician Hua Tuo!"

Grumble, grumble.

His disobedient stomach let out a growl.

So hungry, I really want to eat meat.

Even though he had just eaten dinner, Su Mu found himself hungry again. He rummaged through the corners of his house and found a few oddly shaped sweet potatoes.

He built a small fire and roasted a few sweet potatoes. After eating them, Su Mu let out a long sigh. Although he couldn't eat meat, he felt satisfied.

"Blacksmithing is physically demanding. My appetite will increase later, and the food at the shop won't be enough… I can take the small path back to the village and dig up some wild vegetables on the way."

The next day, Zhou Shan watched Su Mu swing the hammer, feeling a little confused. Sun Li was definitely stronger than Su Mu, but Su Mu had performed better over the past two days.

"He's probably just gritting his teeth and pushing through. He's a kid who can endure hardship."

Zhou Shan nodded slightly at Su Mu, valuing him even more. This scene, however, was also noticed by Sun Li, who was behind them.

What followed were days of swinging the hammer and practicing the Five Animal Frolics. Although monotonous, Su Mu found joy in it. After each satisfying ache, he could feel some improvement in himself, a feeling that brought him peace.

When a person is fully immersed in something, time passes quickly.

Three months later.

Clang!

Su Mu paused slightly after swinging the hammer at a forging table. Suddenly, he felt a warm current surge within him, making his eyes light up. He guessed that his blacksmithing skill had likely broken through.