Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Zhou Shu handed the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow Sabers and Autumn Anatidae Plume Sabers to Yin Wuyou. He didnât need to worry about the rest.
Then he returned to the baronâs mansion and slept soundly.
Anyway, he didnât have to worry about the banquet Yin Wuyou had mentioned.
The steward of the princessâs residence and the steward arranged by the Mi family had already handled all the chores properly.
Zhou Shu slept until late in the morning. If not for Yin Wuyou and Haitang dragging him out of bed, he would have continued sleeping.
âYouâre really not worried at all.â Yin Wuyou watched Haitang comb Zhou Shuâs hair. âThe Standard Armament Manual is going to be announced today. Arenât you worried about the ranking at all?â
âWhat is there to worry about?â Zhou Shu asked indifferently. There was no need to see the Standard Armament Manual.
In the past, no one bothered to look at it.
It was only because of the bet between Great Xia and Great Wei that more people paid attention to it.
But what did this have to do with him?
He had never taken it upon himself.
He didnât care what weapon was ranked first in the Standard Armament Manual.
It would be best if the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow Saber ranked first. If it couldnât, he would still be the superintendent of his workshop. No one could cause trouble for him because of this.
âI really donât know what to say about you!
âDo you know what it means to you if your weapon ranks first in the Standard Armament Manual?â
âWhat does it mean? A promotion? Or a wife?â Zhou Shu said indifferently.
Whatâs the point of ranking first in the Standard Armament Manual?
It only matters if my weapon ranks first in the Ranked Armament Manual!
Women are too short-sighted!
Yin Wuyouâs pretty face instantly turned incomparably red.?What does he mean? Is he hinting at me? But Iâm not ready yetâ¦
Yin Wuyouâs heart was in a mess when she heard Zhou Shu change the subject. âHaitang, thatâs enough. Stop combing.â
If not for the fact that he was afraid it would be too shocking, he would have cut his hair short.
âGrand Minister, that Heavenly Rock is thousands of miles away from Great Xia. Even if the Standard Armament Manual is announced, it will still take some time to transmit the results, right?â Zhou Shu asked casually.
He had previously learned a little about the Standard Armament Manual from Yang Hong.
This Standard Armament Manual was arranged by the mysterious Heavenly Mountain Villa, and the manual would appear directly on a giant rock called the Heavenly Rock.
This might involve the mysterious power of this world. Zhou Shu temporarily didnât understand the principles behind it.
âYou donât know?â Yin Wuyou said. âItâs normal that you donât know.
âThe Heavenly Rock is not the only thing that shows the results.
âThe Heavenly Rock you mentioned on the shores of the Endless Sea is the largest Heavenly Rock in the world. In fact, in the capital cities of the various countries, each of them has a small Heavenly Rock.
âThe Standard Armament Manual will also be released on these small Heavenly Rocks at the same time. Therefore, as long as the Standard Armament Manual is released, we will know immediately.â
Zhou Shu was suddenly enlightened.?That fellow Yang Hong isnât reliable. He said that itâs because someone copied the information on the Heavenly Rock. But it turns out that people in the imperial palace can directly check the internet!
But then again, Yang Hong wasnât even a divine constable at the time. He was just a lowly constable and didnât understand the truth of the matter. He couldnât be blamed.
âLetâs not talk about this for now. Although the Standard Armament Manual will be released today, we donât know when exactly it will be released. The guests are almost here. You should go out and welcome them.â Yin Wuyou directly pushed Zhou Shu out the door.
Who is the owner of the baronâs mansion??Zhou Shu grumbled in his heart, but he still went to the door.
Just as he reached the door, he saw a familiar figure.
âSun Gongping? When did you come back?â
Didnât Sun Gongping follow the army to the southern border?
When did he come back?
The army was victorious?
That shouldnât be the case.
Two days ago, he had received benefits from the Hundred Refinements Ring Pommel Saber and the Horse Slaying Saber.
âOld Zhou, not bad. Itâs only been a while since we last met, but you have already become a baron.â Sun Gongping smiled.
He was thinner and darker than before, and his aura had also changed a little. How should Zhou Shu put it? Right now, he looked like he had gone through hardships and exuded an unwavering determination.
If not for the fact that his smile was still a bit unruly, Zhou Shu almost wouldnât have recognized him.
âWatch my move!â Sun Gongping suddenly let out a loud roar, raised his head, and punched Zhou Shu in the chest.
Zhou Shu was stunned. He hurriedly controlled the true qi in his body. Even so, Sun Gongping still staggered back a few steps, a look of surprise on his face.
âYouâve really entered the ranks!â Sun Gongping said. âI almost thought that I had left for a long time. You suddenly became a baron and a ninth-rank martial artist. I feel like Iâve missed a lot of things.â
âDonât sneak up on me next time. There will be injuries.â Zhou Shu said angrily. If he hadnât retracted his true qi in time, the Golden Bell Shield Technique would have severely injured Sun Gongping!
Sun Gongping thought that Zhou Shu was talking about him getting injured. He smiled and said, âDonât worry. I didnât use my full strength. Old Zhou, youâve improved a lot. Iâve improved a lot too. Iâm already a seventh-rank martial artist. Are you surprised?â
Zhou Shu rolled his eyes at him.?So what if youâre a seventh-rank martial artist? I can still kill him with a single slap.
But then again, Sun Gongpingâs growth was indeed impressive.
It had only been less than a month since he had left with the army, yet he had already broken through two ranks. This was his own effort.
The description of him in the genius assassination list of Great Wei was indeed correct.
From the looks of it, he had followed the army to battle, presumably to use the battles to stimulate his own potential.
âYouâre back. Where are Great General Meng and the rest?â Zhou Shu asked with concern. His sworn brother, Mi Ziwen, was also in the army. Although the possibility of an accident was not high, who could say for sure what would happen on the battlefield?
âTheyâre still at the southern border,â Sun Gongping said. âBut the southern barbarians have basically been dealt with. There arenât many tough battles left, so I came back first.â
He was not a soldier to begin with. This time, he had followed the army out to train himself. Naturally, he came back as he wished.
âOld Zhou, youâre already a ninth-rank martial artist. Why havenât you made any progress in forging?â
Although they hadnât seen each other for a while, Sun Gongping didnât feel unfamiliar with Zhou Shu. He took a step forward and wrapped his arm around Zhou Shuâs shoulders.
âIf you become a Forging Master, I wonât have to worry about my weapon. Iâll get you to forge it for me.â
After Sun Gongping entered the ranks, he had never had a ranked weapon. It wasnât that his family couldnât afford one. Rather, it was because he had built a stable foundation to allow his cultivation to increase rapidly. At this stage, he wouldnât be able to control weapons that were too good for him, and those that werenât good enough wouldnât be able to keep up with his cultivation.
Therefore, it was better to wait for his cultivation to stabilize before getting a ranked weapon.
Without the support of his family, Sun Gongping wouldnât be able to survive today. It would be strange if he could save up money to buy a weapon.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Hearing his words, Zhou Shu smiled slightly. âWhy do you mean I havenât made any progress? I am now the Great Xiaâs number one Forging Apprentice.â
âThatâs still just a Forging Apprentice,â Sun Gongping said disdainfully. âLook at those forging geniuses. Who cares to fight with you for this title? If you canât become a Forging Master, youâre just a blacksmith. Youâre worthless, understand?â
âNot necessarily,â Zhou Shu said. âShen Yue seems to care a lot about this title. Isnât he also a Forging Apprentice? He even specially came to compete with me.â
However, this fellow is really a Forging Apprentice. Heâs definitely been able to forge ranked weapons long ago. Itâs just that he hasnât truly forged them.
Heâs definitely at the Forging Master level.
Then again, itâs the same for me.
âWhat do you mean not necessarily? Old Zhou, when do you think you can become a Forging Master? I have to consider whether to wait for you or not.â
Sun Gongping continued, âLet me tell you. Iâve made quite a lot of contributions this time. When I receive the rewards, Iâll be rich. When the time comes, Iâll go and buy a ranked weapon.â
âAdvance to Forging Master?â Zhou Shu smiled. âAnytime.â
Sun Gongping laughed out loud. âOld Zhou, Iâve known you for so long, I didnât realize that youâre so funny. Do you think that Great Xiaâs number one Forging Apprentice can easily advance to Forging Master?
âI almost forgot that you havenât received a Forging Master legacy. Donât worry. Iâll introduce you to two Forging Masters later. With your aptitude, they will definitely fight to take you in as a disciple.â
Sun Gongping nagged non-stop.
Zhou Shu felt both warm and annoyed.
It felt good to have a friend go afar and return safely.
âHeh, Old Zhou, youâve been conferred the title of county baron and advanced to a ninth-rank martial artist. Iâve just returned and havenât prepared any congratulatory gifts for youâ¦â Sun Gongping continued.
âNo need. Iâm already very happy that youâre here.â Zhou Shu said. He didnât have many friends, and Sun Gongping could barely be considered one.
âThat wonât do,â Sun Gongping said. âAm I, Sun Gongping, such an uncouth person?
âCoincidentally, I have something good. I originally wanted to give it to you as a congratulatory gift for when you advance Forging Master. I didnât expect that you would become a ninth-rank martial artist before becoming a Forging Master. Letâs use it for this occasion.â
Sun Gongping mysteriously took out a palm-sized box and handed it to Zhou Shu.
Zhou Shu declined it, but Sun Gongping firmly stuffed the box into Zhou Shuâs hands.
âArenât you going to open it?â Sun Gongping said when he saw Zhou Shu put the box away.
Seeing Sun Gongpingâs expectant expression, Zhou Shu seemed to understand something.
He smiled. âThen, let me see what the Great Divine Constable Sun gave me.â
Zhou Shu opened the box and saw a bean-sized silver-white object lying inside. The object gave off a crystalline feeling, as if there was a galaxy swirling within it.
âHeaven Refining Stone?â Zhou Shu said in surprise.
âHow is it? Arenât I a good brother?â Sun Gongping said proudly. âThis Heaven Refining Stone is something I obtained after much difficulty. I was originally planning to use it to forge a ranked weapon for myself, but now Iâm giving it to you. You can use it to practice and become a Forging Master as soon as possible.â
Zhou Shu: ââ¦â
He was very confused now.?Are you serious about this tiny piece of Heaven Refining Stone?
He recalled the Heaven Refining Stone that he had taken from the imperial preceptor of Great Wei, Xiao Shunzhi. It was the size of an adultâs fist and at least 100 times bigger than this tiny bean.
âA Heaven Refining Stone of this size is more than enough to forge a yellow-grade weapon,â Sun Gongping continued.
Zhou Shu suddenly said, âForging a yellow-grade weapon needs this much Heaven Refining Stone? How much Heaven Refining Stone does a heaven-grade weapon need?â
Zhou Shu had a bad feeling.
Back then, Yin Changhao had said that a fist-sized Heaven Refining Stone was only enough to forge a heaven-grade.
âThatâs hard to say. There are different grades of heaven-grade weapons. I estimate that it will need at most one or one-point-five kilograms of Heaven Refining Stone.â
Sun Gongping was not a forger, but his words were most likely the truth.
Damn it. Yin Changhao had said it so seriously!
The weight of the Heaven Refining Stone was what mattered. The fist-sized Heaven Refining Stone probably weighed more than five kilograms!
According to Sun Gongping, he would be able to forge at least three or four heaven-grade weapons with that amount!
Why didnât he think twice about it back then? If such a huge piece of Heaven Refining Stone could only be used to forge a heaven-grade weapon, why would Yin Changhao be willing to spend so much money to buy it?
Selling the Heaven Refining Stone for fifty thousand taels of gold made Zhou Shu feel like he had suffered a great loss.
Although Shen Yue and Xiao Shun used a heaven-grade weapon to cover the debt of ten thousand taels of gold, it didnât mean that a heaven-grade weapon was only worth ten thousand taels of gold.
Even the worst heaven-grade weapon was worth at least 10,000 taels of gold. Put up for auction, a heaven-grade weapon could even be sold for around 30,000 to 50,000 taels of gold.
A Heaven Refining Stone that weighed more than five kilograms was definitely worth more than 100,000 taels of gold. It wasnât a huge loss to sell half of it for 50,000 taels of gold, but it was still a loss.
âGreat Divine Constable Sun, thank you!â
Zhou Shu closed the box. After seeing the fist-sized Heaven Refining Stone and then looking at the bean-sized one, he really couldnât get excited.
But since it was Sun Gongpingâs kind intentions, he couldnât show too much disdain.
He was considering if there was any way to get the piece back from Yin Changhao. He could even return the money to him.
It didnât seem that easy. Yin Changhao was a first-rank martial artist after all. It didnât matter if he could defeat him or not. It wouldnât be easy to find him.
âYouâre welcome. Thereâs no need to stand on ceremony.â Sun Gongping waved his hand.
I almost forgot that youâre my nephew,?Zhou Shu thought.
Zhou Shu temporarily stopped thinking about the Heaven Refining Stone and instead looked at Sun Gongping and asked, âGreat Divine Constable Sun, you always carry the Spring Embroidered Saber around. I havenât asked you this before. Do you specialize in using the saber?â
âIâm not bragging, but Iâm good at everything,â Sun Gongping said proudly. âIâm not best at using sabers. Iâm best at using swords. Do you know what my nickname is? Master of Saber and Sword! Unfortunately, youâre only good at forging sabersâ¦â
Zhou Shuâs lips curved up slightly. âThat might not be true. Great Divine Constable Sun, Iâll give you a surprise later.â
âWhat?â
Sun Gongping wanted to ask more, but Zhou Shu had already stepped forward because the invited guests had already arrived.