"Don't worry, Young Marquis. I, Old Huo, am proficient in all eighteen weapons. I will definitely forge you a suitable spear."
Huo Bingzi was a square-faced man who wore straw sandals and had received kindness from the Prince of Southern Pacification in his early years.
Therefore, upon learning of Zhong Zhenyue's visit, she readily agreed before he could even speak.
"Uncle Huo, I don't want the spear."
Zhong Zhenyue cupped his hands in greeting and said earnestly, "I need a hammer."
Brother Li, who turned the tide in the Southern Border, has made a great contribution, but the court has not yet made any statement, which has made Zhong Zhenyue feel resentful.
It wasn't until his father took him to the imperial court once that he understood.
The officials and nobles, all of them, were all just people with two mouths and one tongue. They managed to downplay the major events of the war in the Southern Border, ultimately turning it into "His Majesty's virtue is as great as Heaven's."
The emperor had no need to reward himself, and in the end, the matter was dropped.
Brother Li may have already arrived in the Imperial Capital.
Zhong Zhenyue hoped that he could win first place at the Hidden Dragon Assembly, stand dazzlingly in front of all the high-ranking officials, and make them open their eyes and realize that he could not be ignored.
Huo Bingzi was taken aback. "A hammer?? What do you need this thing for?"
"For a friend of mine."
"What kind of Hidden Dragon prodigy uses a hammer...?"
It seemed as if he had suddenly remembered that there was a person whose nickname was now called the Divine Hammer Little Overlord.
"Have you thought this through? I can only help you once. You'll have to figure out how to get your own weapon."
"I've made up my mind."
Zhong Zhenyue nodded without hesitation.
At this moment, the inner courtyard of the Sword Furnace opened, and the flames poured out like flowing lava.
Huo Bingzi was startled, then immediately turned around and bowed towards the firelight.
"Master, you... have you emerged from seclusion?"
"Uncle Huo's mentor?"
Zhong Zhenyue followed the gaze and saw an old figure standing at the end of his field of vision. The old figure was missing two fingers on his left hand and his face was as dry as orange peel.
Du Wufeng, one of the four master craftsmen of the Sword Furnace.
Since forging that Heavenly Human Divine Sword, whether he gained some insight or encountered a bottleneck, he has shut down the furnace and closed the hammer, remaining in seclusion until now.
He himself was a peak expert in the Dharma Body, only a step away from the Seventh Realm.
"You could be...?"
"Heh, what are you thinking? A masterpiece isn't something that can be achieved so easily..."
Du Wufeng shook his head and looked at Zhong Zhenyue: "Who is this little kid? He's got a good physique, a real talent for the battlefield. Is he here to become an apprentice and learn blacksmithing?"
Huo Bingzi explained, "He is Prince Zhong's only son. With the Hidden Dragon Assembly approaching, he asked me to forge a hammer weapon for his friend."
"A hammer soldier? Tsk tsk... Do kids still use these these days?"
A glint of light flashed in Du Wufeng's cloudy old eyes.
Blacksmiths are skilled in both craftsmanship and martial arts, and hammers are the choice of many craftsmen.
Unfortunately, blacksmithing is different from beating people. It takes seven or eight years to become an apprentice, and by the time you're on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, you've long passed the age limit.
"Some seniors, my brother Li, nicknamed 'Divine Hammer Little Overlord,' is currently ranked fourth among the Hidden Dragon, and is also... in the Southern Border..."
Zhong Zhenyue hadn't finished speaking.
An apprentice ran in and said respectfully, "Grandmaster, His Highness has come to visit and is waiting for you at the Sword Furnace."
"Then let's go."
Du Wufeng shifted his attention and walked out of the courtyard with his hands behind his back.
It seems the crown prince interests him more.
Zhong Zhenyue's heart sank.
Could it be that Jiang Yu...
Should we hire a master craftsman to forge this Mystic Weapon?
He and Huo Bingzi exchanged a glance, then cupped their hands and said:
"Uncle Huo, I'm quite curious about the weapon-forging techniques at the Sword Furnace. Could you take me there?"
"Nature."
Huo Bingzi seemed to know what he was thinking.
At the same time.
At the entrance of the Sword Furnace, several figures walked into a sea of flames and steel.
At the very front was a young man about to become a young adult, wearing Pure Yang Long Robe that was not easily burned by fire. His eyes were clear and bright, and his face was handsome yet well-defined, making him look more and more like a righteous and upright gentleman.
Little Li arrived at the Sword Furnace, he felt like he was coming home.
Even though his demeanor seemed more like that of a Confucian scholar, making him out of place in this place.
He wasn't the only one who felt out of place.
Ying Bing, who lives aloof from the world, is a completely different person from the one here.
Jiang Chulong cautiously looked around. When she was at the Heavenly Mountain Sword Villa, she spent most of her time in the Sword Mound. This was her first time visiting the Sword Furnace.
"Are you really going to participate in the Weapon Forging Conference?"
Xie Xuan still couldn't believe it.
He thought it was normal for Li Mo to be skilled with a hammer, but being a craftsman wasn't something you could just do by being good at hammering.
Li Mo is seventeen years old now.
If we factor in the time spent honing martial arts skills, how much time is left to refine technical skills?
Most of the apprentices at the Sword Furnace were in their mid-twenties, or even thirties.
"Of course, I feel more at ease with weapons I forge myself."
Li Mo looked at the furnishings and nodded.
Xie Xuan added, "You can participate in the Weapon Forging Conference. Firstly, it will test your physical strength, and secondly, you need to bring two assistants during the forging process."
"There's such a rule?"
"That's right, one assistant is responsible for quenching, and another is responsible for picking up materials; otherwise, they cannot participate in the competition."
"I have some."
Li Mo breathed a sigh of relief.
"Who?"
Xie Xuan was puzzled.
Li Mo pointed to Ying Bing and Jiang Chulong.
Ying Bing: "..."
Jiang Chulong: "!"
Xie Xuan: "???"
Xiao Xie, the second-ranked Hidden Dragon, stared wide-eyed, his eyes saying:
Are you fucking kidding me?
Li Mo said, "Quenching requires extremely high control over the heat, right?"
"That's right." Xie Xuan felt there was no problem.
"Today, the Ice Block helped me finish that plate of stir-fried shredded potatoes with vinegar..."
Are you sure it's shredded potatoes?
"Ahem... What it is isn't important, what's important is the control of the heat! That's more than enough to be a quenching assistant!"
"?"
Li Mo made a checkmark (√) gesture to indicate that this was reasonable.
"And what about selecting the materials? You're letting this little girl do it? What can she do?" Xie Xuan asked, pointing to the timid Princess Little Jiang.
Li Mo's eyes were full of trust. "She's best at picking up trash!"
"Yes, I love picking up trash the most." Princess Little Jiang nodded seriously; Big Brother Li was right.
"???"
Xie Xuan was speechless with frustration.
Is this correct? Is this reasonable?
Little Li doesn't care whether it's reasonable or not.
Sorting Assistant!
"Fine, then come with me to hand over the Black Iron Token."
Xie Xuan shook his head.
He'll find a few suitable high-end weapons for Li Mo and the others to use later.
With that thought in mind, he stepped into the main hall of the Sword Furnace and found it very quiet.
That shouldn't be the case.
There are never this few people here on ordinary days, let alone with the Weapon Forging Conference approaching.
"Brother Li...?"
Zhong Zhenyue was selecting the design of the hammer-wielding soldiers when Li Mo suddenly appeared before him.
"Old Zhong, long time no see! Are you here to find a craftsman to forge weapons?"
Li Mo could tell that the middle-aged man next to Zhong Zhenyue had a furnace-like aura in his breath.
He was clearly a highly skilled craftsman.
"That's right, Brother Li, could it be that you are also...?"
"No, I'm here to participate in the competition."
"Um??"