Chapter 99: The Blacksmith Guild!
Because of Mo Lan's mercenary status and personality, Jiang Lin instinctively assumed she had been injured and had a magical beast limb grafted onto her.
To him, that was the only explanation that made sense—after all, the meridians of an Azure Scale Dragon Arm wouldn't align with a human body. From a purely strength-seeking perspective, that arm would actually become a weakness, capping Mo Lan's potential at the Dou Ling level.
Of course, that was Jiang Lin's view as a cultivation genius. But others didn't see it the same way—especially not the Mo Clan.
To Jiang Lin, Mo Lan's "prosthetic" was excellent. If he could obtain the underlying technique, it would save him a lot of trial and error when crafting stronger artificial limbs in the future. And what comes after prosthetics? Mecha. Every boy dreams of piloting one. If he got the chance to build one by hand, he wasn't going to pass it up.
"…Thank you." Misunderstood as she was, Mo Lan gave a soft reply and didn't bother to explain further.
Jiang Lin didn't mind either. He nodded simply and shifted the conversation to talk with Mu Yun about Jia Ma Holy City.
The next morning, the group resumed their journey, flying straight toward the capital.
Along the way, they spotted distant mist-shrouded mountains—the domain of the Misty Cloud Sect, the strongest faction in the Jia Ma Empire, as Mu Yun had mentioned.
Not long after passing its gates, they arrived at the outskirts of Jia Ma Holy City. After resting for the night, they walked toward the city the following morning.
Rising from the plains stood an immense city wall, over twenty meters tall and weathered by time. Inside the walls was a city of towering stone buildings in a gothic-fantasy style, their sheer presence pressing psychologically on every newcomer.
At the heart of the city stood a palace complex like a mountain—white walls, golden tiles, exuding imperial majesty.
Amid the bustling crowd, Mu Yun paid the entrance fee to the gate guards. The group, dressed in mercenary attire, drew curious glances as they walked along the wide, clean stone roads.
"The capital really is more refined," Jiang Lin muttered to himself, observing the clean and orderly citizens, many of whom wore leather armor.
"Master Jiang Lin, we'll escort you to the Blacksmith Guild," Mu Yun said, leading the way deeper into the city. They occasionally passed other mercenary groups but exchanged no words—just brief nods and steps aside.
"Hmm? Beastfolk?" Jiang Lin suddenly turned to look toward a fruit stand, where the small shopkeeper had a pair of upright wolf ears.
Mu Yun followed his gaze and explained, "That's a wolfman from the eastern hills. There are also serpentfolk from the Tagor Desert. The empire has many beastkin. We avoid saying the wrong thing—they can be sensitive."
"How much for these?" Jiang Lin walked up to the stall and picked up a red apple-like fruit with a smile.
The wolfman, Amo, blinked in surprise. His sharp senses picked up the boy's extraordinary aura, handsome features, and strong build. But he quickly recovered and replied in a slightly awkward accent, "Sasha fruit. Not expensive. If the young man is thirsty, take one—my treat."
Bam!
A fist landed on Amo's head. A tall, graceful wolf-eared girl emerged from the stall and scolded him fiercely, "Is this how you run a business?!"
Amo clutched his head, laughing wryly. "Sis, I'm still learning... Hey, young man, I'll cut you a deal: one for three coins, or three for ten!"
As Jiang Lin stared blankly, Amo started counting on his fingers to show off his math skills. (Gold coins weren't worth much in the Dou Po world.)
His sister, Axiao, slapped him aside again and looked at Jiang Lin with sparkling eyes. "Handsome human, three for ten coins. Interested?"
Smiling, Jiang Lin glanced at her briefly and dropped nine coins onto the counter. He picked up three fruits. "Sorry, I'll just take the three-for-three deal."
"You guys want any?" he asked Mu Yun's group after taking a bite and finding the fruit quite sweet. They all shook their heads.
"Alright, let's go." Jiang Lin continued walking. He just hadn't had anything sweet in a while and needed something to balance the bitterness of life.
But more importantly—his Qi sense had a range of only about three meters, and he couldn't scan the wolf siblings from afar. By pretending to buy fruit, he'd confirmed that their Qi was different from humans'. Their meridians also had subtle differences.
No wonder Purple Cloud Wings and Ying Jiang were so compatible. Every being has its own Qi. Only when Qi flows can it become spirited. If a technique doesn't allow proper Qi flow, it leads to cultivation problems or deviation.
Even the same Dou Technique may show slight variations between users. Most people can use it normally, but to reach the level of "spirit," one must master it personally.
That level is more commonly known as integration—true mastery.
Following behind Mu Yun's group, Jiang Lin's understanding of Qi sense deepened. His grasp of Dou Techniques grew more profound.
Many of his techniques always produced unexpected effects. The truth was, he'd already—without realizing—reached the level of "spirit." His techniques were so customized, they were practically self-created.
He used to rely solely on talent. Now, he also had understanding.
Knowledge and practice had finally unified within Jiang Lin.
"Master Jiang Lin, we've arrived. This is the Blacksmith Guild."
(END CHAPTER)
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