Chapter 95

In this slum, most of the people living here are ordinary folks trying to make a living in the county town. If they were spirit farmers, even tenant farmers without their own spirit fields, their status in this world would far surpass that of ordinary people.

The area where these ordinary people lived was a mess, with houses built haphazardly and without any order. However, Yang Junshan was able to navigate through the maze-like alleys as if he were familiar with them, until he came to a door made of rotten wood.

On these two wooden doors, there was a hastily drawn picture. On the left door, there was a long section of lotus root, and on the right door, there was a goat stretching its neck to try to eat the lotus root. Unfortunately, the picture was split by the door seam, making it look like a child's prank. Yang Junshan smiled when he saw the picture and said, "This is the right place, it must be!"

Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock!

Yang Junshan clenched his fist and knocked on the wooden door in a rhythm of three knocks at a time, three times in a row, almost making the doors fly back. Dust fell from the door.

Yang Junshan didn't care and clenched his fist again, knocking nine more times. The door latch creaked as if it were about to break, but still, no one answered.

Yang Junshan was slightly surprised and thought to himself, "Could it be that the rhythm of knocking is not this?"

"Who is it, who is it? It's the middle of the afternoon, can't a person get some sleep?" A disgruntled voice grumbled from behind the door, "If you keep this up, you'll break my door. Should I replace the doors or change the rhythm of knocking? Hmm, I need to think about this!"

One of the wooden doors was pulled back, and a head with messy hair suddenly appeared from the gap, looking like a hanged ghost.

"Hey, it's just a kid. Who are you, how did you get here, and how did you know the secret knock?"

Yang Junshan looked at the person in front of him without any surprise, despite the messy hair that covered most of his face. Yang Junshan could still recognize him as the person he was looking for, though he looked much younger and more energetic than in his previous life.

Yang Junshan didn't answer his questions and simply walked into the house, saying, "All visitors are guests. If you can find me here, you must have a way. Why ask so many questions?"

The young man with messy hair involuntarily let Yang Junshan pass, watching him walk in before realizing he had been fooled by a kid. He quickly said, "Hey, hey, at least tell me who introduced you. Everyone who comes here is a regular, and no one would find me without an introduction."

Yang Junshan walked in and looked around. The small courtyard was filled with all sorts of clutter, but despite the mess, Yang Junshan could see that most of the items were categorized and neatly arranged.

The young man with messy hair saw that Yang Junshan ignored him and walked into the house, so he hurriedly followed, saying, "So, why are you here to see me?"

Yang Junshan smiled and said, "What do you do here?"

The young man blurted out, "I'm a weapon forger!"

Yang Junshan nodded and said, "I'm here to have a weapon forged. I plan to forge a low-grade magical weapon."

With that, Yang Junshan pushed open the door and walked in. A strange smell immediately hit his nose, making him sneeze twice. He quickly opened the windows on both sides of the door to let in fresh air and replace the stale air inside.

The floor, tables, window sills, chairs, and any other place that could hold items were filled with various tools, pigments, wood, bones, fur, metal, soil, paper, and wooden buckets containing unknown liquids. In the center was a large iron furnace that seemed to have not been used for a long time, covered with a thin layer of rust.

A narrow path in the shape of a "人" (person) was left on the ground, leading from the front door to a small wooden bed and a chair with a table full of tools.

The small wooden bed against the wall was half-filled with various books, leaving only a foot-wide space with a blanket that had just been unfolded, where the young man had been lying and sleeping.

After looking around the room, Yang Junshan realized that the young man with messy hair had not followed him in. He turned to see him standing at the door, his expression uncertain.

"Hey, why don't you come in? This is your house!"

The young man stepped into his room, brushing his messy hair back, revealing a face that hadn't been washed in days, but his eyes looked even more spirited. He said with a serious expression, "Do you really want me to forge a weapon for you?"

Yang Junshan was surprised and said, "Yes, what's the problem?"

The young man didn't answer Yang Junshan's question but asked, "Who introduced you, or are you sent by someone else?"

As he spoke, the young man's eyes stared intently at Yang Junshan, his aura fluctuating as if ready to fight at any moment.

Yang Junshan laughed and said, "Brother, you're a low-rank martial cultivator, why are you so wary of me, a mere ordinary cultivator? You said you're a weapon forger, and I want to ask someone to help me forge a magical weapon. Is there a problem with that?"

The young man, hearing Yang Junshan's words, realized he had overreacted and calmed down, but still asked, "Do you know Ouyang Sen, Ouyang Miao, Ouyang Xin, Ouyang Ben, Ouyang Peilin, Ouyang Yulin, or Ouyang Zhenlin?"

Yang Junshan suddenly understood, "The Ouyang family? You suspect I'm sent by the Ouyang family?"

The young man sneered, "You do know the Ouyang family. You can leave now. I don't want to make things difficult for you. Let's just call it a day!"

Yang Junshan sighed, "Alright, it seems there's some misunderstanding. I'll introduce myself. I'm from the Yang family in Qing Shi Town, now known as Yang Junshan from Meng Yu County. I know the Ouyang family, as they are one of the two major families in Yu Prefecture. But to say I have any connection with the Ouyang family, you're flattering me."

The young man was silent for a moment and then said, "Since you're not from the Ouyang family, you should know that I've never forged a magical weapon."

Yang Junshan was surprised, "What? You've never forged a magical weapon? How is that possible? But you just said you're a weapon forger, and that furnace in your room is clearly a forging furnace."

The young man's face turned red, and he roared, "I tell everyone who comes here that I'm a weapon forger, but no one believes me. You, a kid, are the only one who believed me, making me doubt myself!"

The young man paced around the room, pointing at various items, "And you, a mere ordinary cultivator, are just a young member of a minor noble family. How do you know about a forging furnace? The biggest problem is that you found me here, but you don't know that I usually just draw symbols and patterns, refine some materials. I tell everyone who comes here that I can forge weapons, but no one believes me, ..."

"So, you don't believe it yourself," Yang Junshan interrupted, "So when I said I wanted you to forge a weapon, you started doubting yourself?"

"Shut up!" The young man kicked various items around, making a mess, and scratched his head, "I do know how to forge weapons, but, but..."

"But you've never actually done it!"

"Exactly!" The young man glared at Yang Junshan, "Do you still dare to ask me to forge a weapon?"

Yang Junshan spread his hands, "I want to forge a weapon, but I don't have the means. Can you help me find a way? From what you said, your background isn't simple, and you have a close relationship with the Ouyang family. The Ouyang family is large and influential, and they must have a dedicated weapon forger. Why don't you..."

"Forget it!" The young man suddenly grinned, "I am from the Ouyang family, but why should I help you? Unless you can make me help you. Since you don't have the means, why not let me help you?"

Yang Junshan was reluctant, "But you've never forged a weapon?"

The young man, seeing that things might go wrong, quickly said, "It's true I've never forged a weapon, but you know I'm from the Ouyang family, and I have a complete lineage of weapon forging. I know every step and process of forging a weapon, and I've practiced it in my mind countless times. There's no mistake!"

Yang Junshan, seeing the young man point to his head, almost swearing, thought for a moment and said, "To be honest, I haven't prepared all the materials for my magical weapon yet. I need to consult a weapon forger to see what kind of weapon I can forge with my main material and what auxiliary materials I need."

The young man's eyes lit up, "Tell me, what materials have you prepared? I can help you figure it out!"

Yang Junshan said, "My main material is a piece of field yellow mud. I also have some auxiliary materials like soft soil powder and crack powder."

The young man smiled, "It's clear you know something about weapon forging. If I don't show you some real skills, you won't believe me. Field yellow mud is a good material for a low-grade magical weapon. It comes from the fragments of a medium-grade magical material, field yellow stone. If you want to forge a weapon, a seal or a stamp would be the best. By the way, what kind of cultivation method do you practice? Field yellow mud is a pure earth attribute material, and if it doesn't match your cultivation, you'll need to add other attribute materials to change it."

Yang Junshan said seriously, "I practice a pure earth attribute cultivation method."

The young man smiled, "It seems you have high standards. Forging a single-attribute magical weapon is more challenging, as the choice of materials is limited. But to not waste the quality of your field yellow mud, you can't use too few materials, which will make it harder to find the right materials. I'll think about it and design a few plans for you, listing the materials needed. You can choose from them."

Indeed, as a member of a major family, although Yang Junshan didn't know why he was hiding in a slum as a pattern drawer, his knowledge of weapon forging was very complete. In just an hour, he designed three plans for Yang Junshan: one seal and two stamps.

From Yang Junshan's half-knowledge of weapon forging in his previous life, these three plans were all practical and feasible, worthy of being one of the "Three Heroes" of the Heaven-Shaking Sect.

Among these three plans, the seal-shaped magical weapon required the most materials and was the best in quality, with the field yellow mud just enough. Additionally, it needed ten other earth attribute materials, making it the top-quality low-grade magical weapon. The other two stamp-shaped magical weapons were slightly inferior in power and quality but required fewer materials, one needing eight auxiliary materials and the other seven.

Each of the three magical weapons had its own advantages, making it hard for Yang Junshan to choose. The young man urged, "Kid, don't say I didn't warn you. The seal-shaped magical weapon has the potential to be upgraded in the future. If you get field yellow stone, it can be upgraded to a medium-grade magical weapon. The other two can't do that!"

Yang Junshan looked at him sideways, "There are two materials I don't know where to get. If I can't get them, I can't forge the weapon."

The young man was surprised, "