Gengxin City (Part 1)

The externally attached soul bone he had acquired by chance had diverted Mo Lin's attention to some extent, but he had not forgotten what he had come here to do.

Mo Lin used Double Full Hands again and began searching through his memories.

Countless fragments of memory flashed through his mind. After searching for half an hour, Mo Lin finally found the memory he wanted.

In that memory, his parents were surrounded. A masked man holding a massive hammer stood at the very front of all the pursuers. Mo Lin would have recognized that hammer even if he had been reduced to ashes—it was the Clear Sky Hammer.

But that information was not important, because Mo Lin had already guessed as much long ago. What concerned him more were the martial souls of the other pursuers.

It had to be said that the Clear Sky Sect had handled this matter quite well. Mo Lin searched for a long time within the range of his vision, but aside from the leader, not a single pursuer possessed a martial soul from any major clan. They were likely all freelance soul masters hired as mercenaries. The Clear Sky Sect had probably secretly dealt with those mercenaries afterward as well. If Mo Lin tried to find those participants now, then apart from the leader, he might not even be able to locate their ashes.

He had finally obtained Double Full Hands and had thought he could uncover clues from that year within his own memories, but the situation left Mo Lin somewhat disappointed. Still, he was unwilling to give up just like that.

"No, I must have missed something. The Clear Sky Sect couldn't possibly have sent only one of their own soul masters to lead so many mercenaries. There must have been other Clear Sky Sect members hidden among them. Wait, that's a Needle-tailed Swift!"

Mo Lin had finally found a crucial clue. At the edge of the visible range in his memory, one soul master's body was obscured by shadow, and his martial soul was not very clear either. But those scythe-like wings and pointed tail were far too distinctive. It could only have been the Needle-tailed Swift martial soul of the Agility Clan, which had once served the Clear Sky Sect.

A smile appeared on Mo Lin's face.

"The Agility Clan, huh? I'll have to find a chance to visit them."

Having accomplished all his goals, Mo Lin naturally left the Aken Mountains. But there was still a long time before the holiday ended. Aside from his usual annual visit to the elders and villagers of Holy Soul Village, Mo Lin also planned to make a trip to Gengxin City, the Metal Capital.

The rare metals he had swindled from the Elders' Hall and the alloys Bibi Dong had given him were nearly used up. Mo Lin's future goals were not limited to forging soul tools for himself.

As a major city of the Star Luo Empire, Gengxin City lay in the southwest of the empire, closer to the interior. Mo Lin traveled by carriage for five days before arriving.

The first thing Mo Lin did upon reaching the city was visit the local Spirit Hall. After showing his token to the guards, he was respectfully ushered inside.

Within the main hall, a wrinkled-faced man with a hooked nose, small eyes, and a large mouth approached Mo Lin with a beaming smile.

"My lord, this lowly one is Myers, the person in charge of Gengxin City's Spirit Hall. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"First, prepare a room for me to rest in and get some food ready. Then deliver this to Lou Gao, the president of the Blacksmith Association. You can handle that, can't you?"

Mo Lin took a small package out of his storage bracelet.

Myers first summoned a soldier and gave him a few instructions, then looked curiously at the package.

"My lord, this item is...?"

Mo Lin cast Myers a cold glance.

"You're not young anymore. How can you not understand such basic principles?"

Cold sweat immediately streamed down Myers's back.

"My lord, forgive me. This lowly one spoke out of turn."

"After delivering it to him, tell him that if he is interested in this item, he can come to the Spirit Hall to find me. Also, don't act too arrogantly. I don't want to become enemies with the Blacksmith Association." After saying that, Mo Lin followed the soldier to his room.

That afternoon, while Mo Lin was cultivating his soul power in his room, a soldier's voice came from outside the door.

"My lord, President Lou Gao has arrived."

Mo Lin followed the soldier to the main hall, where a short, plump old man about one meter sixty tall was pacing back and forth while clutching something in his hands.

"Myers, why hasn't the person you mentioned arrived yet? He hasn't already left, has he?"

Myers normally looked down on blacksmiths. If Lou Gao usually spoke to him like this, he would have mocked him long ago. But because Mo Lin had instructed him not to provoke a conflict with the Blacksmith Association, he endured it.

"President Lou Gao, please don't worry. I've already sent someone to invite that lord."

"President Lou Gao, it is a pleasure to meet you."

Mo Lin entered the main hall and greeted him first.

Lou Gao turned toward Mo Lin and frowned.

"You are?"

"My name is Mo Lin. Wasn't President Lou Gao's visit precisely to find me?"

Mo Lin maintained a polite and refined demeanor.

Lou Gao looked Mo Lin over. He was just a child.

"Do you know the person who forged this item?"

Mo Lin smiled warmly.

"You jest. The Black Dipper Armor in your hands was forged by me."

The item Mo Lin had used to lure Lou Gao over was the Black Dipper Armor. In terms of defensive power, it could be considered among the finest armors in this world, even comparable to certain soul bones. It could also fold and contract; once contracted, it looked like a bracelet or anklet, making it both discreet and convenient to carry.

Once Lou Gao understood the Black Dipper Armor's properties, he was deeply captivated by it. In his eyes, compared to this Black Dipper Armor, everything he had forged before was practically garbage. He had rushed all the way to the Spirit Hall, wanting to learn the origin of such a divine creation.

But as Lou Gao looked at the Mo Lin before him, who appeared to be around ten years old, his eyes were filled with disbelief.

"Stop joking. How old are you? You forged it? Don't make me laugh."

Mo Lin still maintained the same posture as before.

"That is not correct. Age does not represent strength. Aren't there people who spend their entire lives striving, yet still fail to reach the heights achieved by geniuses?"

"You mean that I, the president of the Blacksmith Association, am merely a mediocrity who cannot compare to a genius like you?" Lou Gao was clearly displeased.

Mo Lin turned slightly to the side and gestured toward the entrance, inviting him to leave.

"Since President Lou doesn't believe me, you can simply return the Black Dipper Armor to me, and I'll walk out that door. We'll pretend none of this ever happened. What do you think?"

"Was this thing really forged by you?" Seeing Mo Lin so confident and composed, Lou Gao had begun to believe that the Black Dipper Armor truly was Mo Lin's creation.

"I already answered that question earlier. You can take some time to think it over. Once you've made your decision, you can come find me. I do plan to leave tomorrow, though, so you'd better hurry."

After saying that, Mo Lin walked out.

Lou Gao looked at Mo Lin as he left, then at the Black Dipper Armor in his hands. He stood there thinking for a while before making his decision.

"Myers, where is that Mo Lin's room?"