Battle Through The Heavens : I Am The Thunder Emperor

Chapter 129: The Old Soldier and the Guild of Craftsmen

The lively inn's lobby was bustling with a variety of people. There were mercenaries celebrating after completing a mission, portly merchants discussing business deals, weary travelers resting from their journey, and the inn's staff attending to guests. Amidst this crowd, an old man sitting alone at a table caught Mo Yu's attention.

The old man, with a head full of white hair, was drinking by himself. Although he seemed quite old, the hands holding his cup were robust, like those of a seasoned blacksmith. Mo Yu's eyes remained fixed on the old man because he sensed something familiar in him—a feeling only a fellow craftsman would recognize.

The old man was a blacksmith, a highly skilled one at that!

On the Dou Qi Continent, the art of blacksmithing had declined, and there was no established organization like the Alchemist Association to categorize blacksmiths or give them honorary titles. There wasn't even a distinctive robe or emblem to signify a blacksmith's respected status. As a result, even the few blacksmiths left on the continent could walk among crowds unnoticed, which was a sad reality. However, Mo Yu, being an exceptional blacksmith himself, could recognize the subtle signs.

In the old man, Mo Yu sensed something extraordinary—a unique aura that only comes from years of immersion in the craft. But what surprised Mo Yu even more was that he could faintly detect a trace of weapon lightning (器雷, "Qì Léi") on the old man.

On the Dou Qi Continent, people were familiar with dan lightning (丹雷, "Dān Léi"), but weapon lightning was less known. Dan lightning was a challenge that high-level alchemists faced when crafting powerful pills. Starting from the seventh tier, pills began to develop a form of sentience. These kinds of pills were so potent that they could be considered divine creations, and to prevent their formation, the heavens would strike them with lightning, known as dan lightning.

The higher the pill's level and sentience, the more powerful the dan lightning. Similarly, when a divine weapon was forged, it would also disrupt the natural order, summoning a lightning tribulation known as weapon lightning. Alchemists capable of summoning dan lightning were undoubtedly among the best on the continent, and blacksmiths who could summon weapon lightning were just as rare and esteemed.

Finding such a high-level blacksmith in the remote empire of Mulan was nothing short of astonishing to Mo Yu. While Mo Yu was observing the old man, the elder seemed to sense the gaze and paused, then turned to look at Mo Yu. Their eyes met, and Mo Yu noticed a fleeting look of surprise in the old man's murky eyes, followed by an indescribable expression.

"Excuse me, sir, how may we serve you?" a waiter approached, eyeing the beautiful women accompanying Mo Yu with a look of admiration, while respectfully addressing Mo Yu.

"Please bring us your best dishes and prepare four rooms for us to rest," Mo Yu replied calmly.

The waiter nodded respectfully and relayed Mo Yu's orders to the serving staff at the counter. He then began leading Mo Yu and his companions towards the dining area to find seats. However, it was midday, and the inn was bustling with activity. Every table was occupied, leaving no empty seats available.

Noticing the situation, the waiter looked embarrassed. Although the inn was usually busy, this was the first time he'd encountered a situation where there were no available seats, especially as a new hire of just half a month.

As the waiter hesitated, an elderly voice spoke up from nearby, calm and composed, "Old as I am, I'm just one person. If you don't mind, why not share a table with me?"

Following the voice, the group's attention turned to the old man who had spoken. Relieved, the waiter quickly turned to Mo Yu and asked tentatively, "Sir, would that be alright with you? If not, you could wait a bit longer for a table to free up…"

Before the waiter could finish, Mo Yu waved him off, "That won't be necessary. Since the gentleman has offered, we'll gladly join him. Just bring the food to this table."

With that, Mo Yu sat down beside the old man. The elder was, of course, the same man who had caught Mo Yu's attention earlier. Since he didn't sense any malice from the old man, Mo Yu was interested in getting to know him.

Qing Lin, ever the obedient servant, quietly took her place next to Mo Yu. Xue Mei and Lin Fei exchanged glances, neither of them opposed to sharing the table, so they both sat down across from Mo Yu and Qing Lin.

The waiter smiled, "Please wait a moment, your meal will be served shortly."

After the waiter left, the old man picked up a fresh cup, poured several drinks, and offered them to Mo Yu and his companions with a smile, "This is Qingmei wine, a specialty of Xi Huang City. I assume you're not from around here, so why not give it a try?"

Hearing the old man's comment about them being outsiders, none of them were surprised. After all, their attire was noticeably different from the local style.

Accepting the cup from the old man, Mo Yu nodded politely, though he felt a twinge of suspicion—why was the old man being so friendly? And why would a high-level blacksmith be in such a remote place like Mulan?

"Thank you for the drink," Mo Yu said as he downed the wine, keeping his doubts to himself.

The old man chuckled after taking a sip of his own wine, "Boy, you're traveling with three beautiful women. You've got quite the luck with the ladies. When I was your age, I wasn't nearly as flashy."

Hearing the old man's words, Qing Lin, Xue Mei, and Lin Fei blushed slightly, each showing their embarrassment in different ways.

"Haha, you've misunderstood, sir. Qing Lin is my servant, while Xue Mei and Lin Fei are just my friends. My name is Mo Yu. May I ask how I should address you?" Mo Yu quickly clarified his relationship with the women and introduced himself, then turned to the old man with a curious gaze.

This elderly man, who seemed to have a fondness for alcohol, clearly had an interesting background, but Mo Yu had no recollection of hearing about him in the original story. A high-level blacksmith was a rare find, after all.

Mo Yu understood that the Dou Qi Continent was vast, and naturally, it would conceal some mysterious masters. The art of crafting was not as prominent as alchemy, so high-level blacksmiths were not as famous and remained shrouded in mystery.

"Mo Yu…" the old man murmured softly, repeating the young man's name. After taking another sip of his drink, he smiled and said, "It's been a long time since anyone called me by my name. You can just call me Old Soldier."

"Old Soldier?" Mo Yu repeated the name quietly in his mind. The person in front of him was someone he'd never heard of before, and considering that he was a blacksmith of at least the seventh tier, his strength was likely formidable—probably on par with a Dou Zong (Dou Sect) expert. Moreover, the influence of a high-tier blacksmith was typically not inferior to that of an alchemist of the same level. This meant that the seemingly ordinary old man known as Old Soldier might actually be a hidden powerhouse.

"Mo Yu, you're a blacksmith, aren't you?" As Mo Yu was contemplating the old man's identity, the elder's voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.

Mo Yu was momentarily taken aback but then nodded and replied, "Old Soldier, you have a sharp eye. Indeed, I am a blacksmith."

Mo Yu wasn't surprised that the old man could discern his identity as a blacksmith. After all, considering the elder's status as a high-tier blacksmith, it was natural for him to pick up on certain cues. Blacksmiths, like alchemists, often had an innate ability to recognize one another.

"Haha, on the Dou Qi Continent, alchemists are highly esteemed, while we blacksmiths are often overlooked and few in number—practically as rare as phoenix feathers. Only in a place like the Mulan Empire do you find blacksmiths being somewhat more common, though still scarce. I didn't expect that just coming here for a drink would lead me to meet a young blacksmith like you," the old man said, sipping his wine with a hint of nostalgia in his voice.

"Oh, so Old Soldier is a blacksmith from the Mulan Empire?" Mo Yu responded, feigning mild surprise, though he had already deduced as much.

"I am indeed a blacksmith, but I'm not from the Mulan Empire. I'm merely passing through on my travels. As for my origins, you might learn about them in the future, but for now, it's better that you know as little as possible," Old Soldier replied, a trace of melancholy flashing in his eyes as if recalling something painful.

Seeing the elder's expression, Mo Yu suspected there was a hidden story behind it, but he wisely chose not to pry further.

"What level of blacksmith are you?" the old man asked casually.

Mo Yu was momentarily caught off guard by the question. To his knowledge, blacksmiths on the Dou Qi Continent were not classified as alchemists were. Due to the rarity of blacksmiths, there were no standardized criteria for categorizing the weapons they forged, so there was no established ranking system for blacksmiths either. The classification system that Mo Yu had adopted for himself—mirroring the nine tiers of alchemists—was something he had devised on his own, based on his understanding of the continent.

So when the old man asked him what level of blacksmith he was, Mo Yu was a bit perplexed.

At the table, Xue Mei and Lin Fei exchanged puzzled glances. As alchemists, they were naturally proud of their status. On the Dou Qi Continent, a family would take great pride if one of their members became an alchemist. To them, the art of crafting weapons was something they had heard of but regarded as a lesser skill, unworthy of serious attention. The idea that blacksmiths might have a tiered system like alchemists struck them as somewhat laughable.

Although their pride as alchemists made them indifferent to blacksmithing, their respect for Mo Yu was unquestionable. Therefore, they refrained from making any mocking remarks.

"Sorry, Old Soldier, but I don't know what level of blacksmith I am," Mo Yu admitted, shaking his head.

The old man looked slightly surprised and asked, "Did your teacher never take you to get your level assessed?"

Mo Yu shook his head again, feeling increasingly puzzled. From the elder's words, it seemed there might actually be some kind of organization for blacksmiths.

"May I ask, Old Soldier, is there a guild for blacksmiths on the Dou Qi Continent, similar to the Alchemist Association?" Mo Yu inquired directly.

At this, both Xue Mei and Lin Fei perked up with curiosity. The idea of a blacksmith guild was entirely new to them. Why had they never heard of such a thing?

"Haha, it seems your teacher must have been quite careless, not even telling you about that," the old man chuckled as he motioned for the waiter to bring another pot of wine.

"My teacher only taught me the basics and then left to travel the continent, so I don't know much about the blacksmithing community," Mo Yu explained.

The old man nodded, not doubting Mo Yu's explanation. Blacksmiths were so rare that even the recipes for crafting were almost impossible to come by. If you could still buy alchemy recipes with money, crafting recipes were nearly impossible to purchase, even if you had the wealth. This scarcity led many blacksmiths to travel extensively across the continent, searching for ancient, lost recipes or to trade with other blacksmiths.

"I see. Then I suppose you don't know about the 'Craftsmen's Guild' either," the old man said slowly.

"Craftsmen's Guild?" Mo Yu raised an eyebrow. If his guess was correct, this must be the organization for blacksmiths on the Dou Qi Continent. The name even reminded him of the Alchemist Association in Zhongzhou. Could it have been created by some of the top blacksmiths on the continent?

As far as Mo Yu knew, the Alchemist Association was an organization formed by alchemists on the Dou Qi Continent. It was based in the Holy Pill City and had existed for a long time. The ranking system for alchemists on the continent was also established by them.

"The Craftsmen's Guild was founded fifty years ago by some of the continent's top blacksmiths. It took them ten years to create a complete ranking system for blacksmiths, modeled after that of alchemists. However, because there are so few blacksmiths, the Craftsmen's Guild keeps a low profile and doesn't have branches in every major city of every empire like the Alchemist Association. To my knowledge, in this northwest region, only a few empires, including the Mulan Empire and one to the south, have branches of the guild. That's only because these countries have a slightly higher number of blacksmiths," the old man explained, taking another drink.

Mo Yu nodded, his eyes showing a hint of surprise. He had never expected that the Dou Qi Continent would have an organization for blacksmiths—this was truly unexpected. He wondered if there was also an organization for poison masters, considering the Cloud Empire had so many of them. If the poison masters ever united and established their own ranking system, it wouldn't be too difficult.

Shaking his head, Mo Yu refocused his thoughts on the Craftsmen's Guild. If this organization truly existed, he was quite interested in joining. He had quite a few valuable crafting recipes in his possession, and their worth could only be fully realized among fellow craftsmen. If he could gain some influence within the guild, that would be even better...

(End of Chapter)

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