Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Not much had changed in Nuoding City, except that the number of spirit masters had grown yet again. Returning from the blacksmith shop, Tang San, who had been forging iron, spoke to Zhou Qing, who was still pondering how to combine his Crane Control Dragon Capture technique with his first spirit skill, Wing Chun.
"Quite a few spirit masters came to the forge today. They placed orders for a lot of iron swords and steel blades," Tang San said.
"Funny, isn't it? Armor and polearms are restricted weapons, but swords and knives aren't? " Zhou Qing remarked.
Tang San didn't seem surprised. "The longer the weapon, the greater the threat. Most swords and knives are under a meter long—hardly a major threat. Otherwise, kitchen knives and scissors would be considered contraband too."
In his previous life, Tang San had seen many martial sect disciples roam the martial world armed with swords, sabers, whips, or chains. But no one would dare carry spears or halberds or wear armor—those were strictly forbidden by the imperial court, lest one be suspected of rebellion.
Zhou Qing could imagine that the spirit master world in this life wasn't all that different from the martial world of Tang San's past. Because of martial spirits, spirit masters had stronger and more well-rounded abilities than ordinary martial artists, elevating their social standing considerably.
"Speaking of which," Tang San added, "I heard the boss mention a place called Gengxin City, the so-called 'City of Blacksmiths.' Rumor has it that they can forge armor and restricted-grade weapons there. A lot of the Star Luo Empire's military gear comes from that city."
Hearing about Gengxin City, Zhou Qing thought of Lou Gao, the legendary craftsman. Unfortunately, Gengxin City lay deep within the Star Luo Empire. Even though Nuoding City was on the border between the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empires, it was still a long way from Gengxin.
And even if they made it there, meeting Lou Gao wouldn't be easy... Though they weren't without qualifications. Their blueprints for the core formations of soul devices alone were priceless.
But without sufficient strength, showing those soul device formation blueprints would be as good as giving them away for free.
In the original story, Lou Gao initially planned to cheat Tang San—who by then was already a Spirit Emperor and the founder of the Tang Sect—by learning how to make the Godly Zhuge Crossbow. Though Lou Gao eventually didn't go through with it, Zhou Qing figured that was likely because he was more captivated by the even more sophisticated designs of the Peacock Plume, Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle, and Buddha Fury Tang Lotus. His passion for craftsmanship outweighed his greed.
Zhou Qing didn't want to see the worst in people, but on the extraordinary Douluo Continent, one had to consider every angle.
"We can head to Gengxin City once we reach the Spirit Ancestor level and beyond," Zhou Qing said thoughtfully. "As the Blacksmith Capital, I bet it has tons of rare ores."
"Agreed," Tang San nodded, already imagining ways to test out more soul device core formations and integrate them with hidden weapons—perhaps even surpass the Tang Sect's original designs to create deadlier weapons.
But right now, there was something else to talk about.
"Qing-ge, did you hear? There's a rumor going around that Lord Xiao of Nuoding and Dallies of Falling Star City are planning to jointly host a spirit master competition. Supposedly, the winner will be granted noble status."
"Sounds like a pipe dream," Zhou Qing scoffed.
It wasn't impossible for Lord Xiao and Dallies to set aside their differences. After all, the two were birds of a feather—getting cozy in private to strengthen ties was no surprise.
But as for being granted noble status? Zhou Qing didn't buy it for a second.
Even disciples from major clans and sects only enjoyed unofficial high status. To be officially recognized as nobility in the Heaven Dou or Star Luo Empires—to be awarded an actual noble title—you had to rank highly in the All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament.
Why?
Because whether it was Heaven Dou or Star Luo, there were already far too many nobles. What they lacked wasn't people of status, but truly exceptional talents.
Two small cities hosting a competition where the winner gets a noble title? Not a chance. Zero probability.
But as the saying goes—even the most ridiculous lies will find believers, and not just a few.
Especially for commoner spirit masters, the mere chance to climb the social ladder was enough for them to risk everything.
[Hiss——]
Zhou Qing couldn't help but suck in a breath.
On this Douluo Continent, there was technically a path for commoner spirit masters to join the ranks of the privileged, but the odds were slim to none.
Even the children of clans and sects were technically commoners before receiving an official noble title from Heaven Dou or Star Luo.
On paper, the path to upward mobility was fair. But in reality, the countless commoner spirit masters had to compete against those with family legacies and sect resources.
And in this world, where the foundation of spirit power cultivation was weak, whether someone became strong largely depended on the quality of their martial spirit.
For commoners, their only hope was a rare mutation.
But without a powerful martial spirit, how could they possibly compete against those from sects and clans, who not only had excellent spirits but also abundant resources, connections, and training methods?
Or rather—how could they compete against the scions of the nobility?
They didn't stand a chance.
The upward path within the Heaven Dou Empire looked fair, but for most commoner spirit masters, that door was already closed.
Most commoners hadn't realized this cruel reality yet.
After all, the clan and sect disciples weren't born nobles themselves. But once they grew up, obtaining noble status was a hundred, a thousand times easier for them than for a commoner spirit master.
It wasn't just a martial spirit advantage—their families and sects had already divided up the "cake" of power and resources within the Heaven Dou Empire long ago.
[In the original story, among the Shrek Seven Devils, only Ma Hongjun and Oscar were truly from humble origins. And their success? Mostly thanks to Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, Ning Rongrong, and Tang San himself. Without Heaven Dou expanding or falling into chaos, the power and resources of the empire had long been divided.]
"Qing-ge, what's wrong? " Tang San noticed Zhou Qing falling silent, lost in thought.
"Nothing, just realizing how small and powerless we really are," Zhou Qing sighed.
"Want to talk about it? "
"Sure."
After thinking for a moment, Zhou Qing decided to trust Tang San completely. He explained his theory about how the power structure of the Heaven Dou Empire worked—how the big players had already carved up the empire's resources long ago.
"What?!"
Tang San's eyes widened. He never imagined Zhou Qing could explain the workings of politics and power so clearly, using such simple words.
And when he compared it to the corrupt officials, local gentry, and wealthy families of his previous life, it actually made perfect sense.
Once a kingdom's interests were fully divided, breaking into that circle became nearly impossible—truly a fight against overwhelming odds.
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/Xentronix