Chapter 24: A Forgemaster Who Doesn't Need Blueprints!
"And now, the second-to-last item of tonight's auction—a piece entrusted to us by a forgemaster calling himself Youlin."
After a few more items were sold, Ya Fei returned to the stage holding a sword case. She displayed it to the audience, then opened it to reveal the Ziyun Sword.
"Mid Yellow Rank Dou Weapon: Ziyun Sword. Finely crafted with exceptional technique. According to our appraisers, this weapon, when infused with Dou Qi, can easily pierce a Battle Master's Dou Qi Veil. If you wield this blade, your opponents will be nothing more than defenseless chicks waiting to be cut down. Even against Great Fighters, it retains excellent offensive power against their Dou Qi armor."
"For Battle Masters, it bypasses standard Dou Qi defenses. For Great Fighters, it ignores over 30% of their protective Dou Qi armor!" A few auction staffers—all Battle Masters—took to the stage to demonstrate the sword's power. Once the blade was infused with Dou Qi, it glowed with a faint violet hue, the edge flowing like light. With one swing, it slashed cleanly through a test subject's Dou Qi Veil and tore his clothing—though no one was harmed.
The demonstration ended, the sword was handed back to Ya Fei, and the crowd fell momentarily silent… before erupting with excitement.
A top-grade item! A Mid Yellow Rank weapon with that kind of performance was simply stunning!
They'd seen "kitchen knives" before—but never one this sharp.
Who told this Youlin forgemaster that a Dou Weapon had to guarantee armor penetration for same-tier opponents?
At first, no one paid attention to such weapons. After all, not piercing armor was part of a gentlemanly battle ethic.
Until thousands of weapons later, everyone in the Dou Qi continent had learned the hard way: always carry armor-piercing tools!
"Starting bid—ten thousand gold coins!" Ya Fei announced, her voice brimming with barely contained excitement as she watched the fevered stares of the audience.
"Eleven thousand!"
"Thirteen thousand!"
"Twenty thousand!"
The auction hall burst into chaos with frenzied bidding!
"Even some Grade 2 pills don't sell for this much!" Jiang Lin muttered, watching wide-eyed.
Weren't alchemists supposed to be more esteemed than forgemasters?
Then why was this Mid Yellow Rank sword outshining high-tier pills?
Before Mr. Yao could answer, Xiao Yan exclaimed excitedly, "That's not the same! A Grade 2 pill might help someone become a Battle Master—but this sword could slay dozens of them across its lifetime!"
Jiang Lin glanced at him, a little confused. Why does his tone sound oddly familiar?
Xun'er, meanwhile, watched Jiang Lin quietly. If Ling Ying's intel was right, then the forgemaster Youlin was Jiang Lin himself!
But wasn't he just a Low Yellow Rank forgemaster? How had he suddenly forged a Mid Yellow Rank weapon?
What shocked Xun'er wasn't his forging skill—it was his age.
At this rate, he might become a High Profound Rank forgemaster in the future!
And such forgemasters, while not quite on par with Grade 8 or 9 alchemists, still stood among the elite of the continent. After all, the storage rings used by most high-tier Dou Qi experts required at least that rank and Dou Emperor-level cultivation to craft.
So… that's how it is, Jiang Lin nodded. Xiao Yan's comment helped clear up his confusion.
Sure, people say alchemists are superior—but when it comes down to it, everyone wants the sharper blade.
Auctioneer: "Who cares about words? That sword's cutting straight through my soul!"
The commotion over the Ziyun Sword exceeded Jiang Lin's expectations, and the bids kept rising.
After thinking it through, he realized that a weapon like the Ziyun Sword was perfectly suited for Wu Tan City.
From Fighters to Great Fighters, it was usable by all—a perfect match for the city's general power level.
But wait… judging by their reaction, the way I forge Dou Weapons must differ from what they're used to? No… that makes sense. If I lived here, I could produce so many of these in just a few years, every Battle Master in the city would be packing a Mid Yellow Rank blade. Wu Tan would be full of heavily armed hunters...
No. Something feels off.
Jiang Lin began to understand that his forging approach was fundamentally different from the traditional forgemaster methods. But of course it was—he had never learned their techniques. Everything he knew came from materials science and some insights borrowed from alchemy.
While other forgemasters started with trial and error, Jiang Lin began with principles—then forged "cool and smooth." His six months of intense research had taught him more than most Low Yellow Rank forgemasters learned through years of practice.
Where others forged by feel, Jiang Lin forged by formula.
The papers covering his forge walls in Qingshan Town weren't just for show—they cataloged every material's properties. Others might fail a hundred times before success, but Jiang Lin only needed to succeed once. After that, replication was simple.
If he weren't trying to stay low-key, he could probably set up a full production line and drag Wu Tan City straight into a Dou Weapon industrial revolution.
As Jiang Lin mulled over how busted his forging method truly was, the Ziyun Sword sold for a whopping thirty thousand gold coins—shocking everyone.
"For those who didn't win the auction, don't lose heart. Master Youlin has provided ten Low Yellow Rank Dou Weapons to our house. Each one is top quality. Interested buyers can inquire with staff backstage." Ya Fei dropped another bombshell, reigniting the room.
She didn't linger on it, though, and moved on to the final item:
"The last auction item for today—a Grade 3 Pill Recipe!"
A Grade 3 pill recipe!
Still deep in thought, Jiang Lin snapped back to reality at the mention of pills.
"Want to bid?" Mr. Yao asked, raising an eyebrow. This wasn't like Jiang Lin.
"Huh? Oh—no." Jiang Lin blinked, then shook his head.
He looked up at Ya Fei holding the scroll on stage and sighed quietly to himself.
Now he understood why he was different from traditional forgemasters.
He… didn't use blueprints.
In other words—
He understood material properties so well…
he didn't need weapon blueprints.
(END CHAPTER)
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