ALL NOVEL Chapter 35: A Good Impression
In the courtyard behind the Jin Geng Blacksmith Shop, within a spacious and bright hall, a burly man with a stubbly beard listened to the youth's report. His brows furrowed slightly as the name sounded vaguely familiar, though he couldn't recall who it corresponded to.
"Ah Qiang~" The burly man decided not to dwell on his thoughts and instructed the youth, "Bring that little guy in here, I'll ask him personally~"
Though he hadn't recalled who this Jiang Kai might be, given that the details were so specific and even a letter was presented, it seemed likely that the person had indeed studied under their teacher.
Moreover, Ah Qiang, when relaying the details, had mentioned Ling Yi wearing the uniform of the 'Green Leaf Junior Soul Master Academy', which lent a bit of credence...
A few minutes later.
"Ninth Senior Brother~" Ah Qiang escorted Ling Yi into the hall and introduced him promptly, "This is Ling Yi, the young one..."
"Little guy~"
As Ninth Senior Brother's gaze fell on Ling Yi, Ah Qiang told Ling Yi, "This is the owner and person in charge of our Jin Geng Blacksmith Shop's main store, the ninth personal disciple of the old master—"
Upon hearing this, Ling Yi, always embodying the innocence of a child, greeted politely, "Hello, Shop Owner, I’m Ling Yi~"
"Mmm~" Ninth Senior Brother's eyes lingered momentarily on the academy uniform Ling Yi wore. Seeing how polite and well-behaved Ling Yi was, the smile on his already kindly face grew even brighter, "Hello, little guy, my surname is He, just call me Uncle He~"
As Ninth Senior Brother extended his goodwill, Ling Yi naturally didn’t reject it, promptly calling out with a smile, "Uncle He!"
“Hmm~” Ninth Senior Brother responded approvingly. Being straightforward by nature, he didn't bother with any pretense or probing questions. He got straight to the point, locking eyes with Ling Yi's young face. "Little Ling Yi, I heard from Ah Qiang that you brought a letter from Jiang Kai, meant for my master…"
Ling Yi nodded, "Yes~"
Turning his gaze towards the letter still clutched in Ling Yi's hand, Ninth Senior Brother asked with a smile, "Then, Little Ling Yi, could you let me take a look at the letter first?"
"Well…" Ling Yi hesitated, a look of uncertainty spreading across his face.
"Hehe~" Ninth Senior Brother chuckled lightly, shaking his head. "Little Ling Yi, don't worry. Uncle just wants to verify what you said about Jiang Kai through the contents of the letter~"
"Otherwise, I can't just take a complete stranger straight to see my master without knowing anything, right?"
As Ninth Senior Brother finished speaking, Ling Yi showed a somewhat naive expression of understanding, followed by a few moments of hesitation. Ultimately, his demeanor turned serious, and he nodded resolutely, saying, "Then… alright——"
With those words, he slowly and decisively extended his hand, offering the letter to Ninth Senior Brother seated in front of him.
The letter was encased in a ginger-colored cardboard envelope sealed with paste. Ninth Senior Brother drew an ornate dagger from his waist, casually slicing open the envelope with the tip of the blade before taking out the letter inside to read.
As the other lowered his head to read, Ling Yi remained expressionless. Prior to this moment, Ling Yi had already used his mental energy to gradually sense and absorb the content from the ink and paper, familiarizing himself with what was written within.
The contents were scant, merely a recounting of events from over thirty years ago: entering Old Master Jin’s tutelage, unfortunately possessing limited talent, learning the craft for over a decade yet remaining only a mid-level blacksmith, failing to advance to a high-level blacksmith. Disheartened, he bid farewell to his teacher and fellow disciples to return to his rural hometown, where he often reminisced over the years.
At the end of the letter, Master Jiang specifically mentioned Ling Yi, praising not only his innate talent for becoming a Soul Master but also his exceptional prowess in blacksmithing.
Despite having only studied under him for a year, outside of being limited by his young age and not yet possessing great strength, his pure skills in forging were already on par with a mid-level blacksmith!
"
To ensure Ling Yi's forging talents aren't wasted and to make up for regrets from his own past, Jiang Kai humbly requested that the respected elder accept Ling Yi as a disciple to teach him the art of blacksmithing..."
In this letter, consisting of nearly a thousand words, Master Jiang's emotions were deeply sincere, though slightly disorganized.
Ling Yi felt a profound gratitude towards Master Jiang, his occasional mentor and guide in forging, for his earnest efforts.
As he waited for Ninth Senior Brother to finish reading the letter, he pondered on how to repay Master Jiang for his kindness.
This also served as a step toward building a strong foundation for his future.
"
The question arose in Ling Yi's mind: could fellow villagers be a powerful and trustworthy force worth investing in?
With a lively imagination yet a patient demeanor, he awaited while Ninth Senior Brother perused the contents, recollecting past memories:
"
'The surname Jiang—he joined the sect over thirty years ago but only attained the level of a mid-level blacksmith after more than a decade, which suggests he wasn’t inducted as a personal disciple, but merely remained an apprentice...
He left over a decade ago to return home...
'
Ninth Senior Brother, at the age of thirty-five, joined the venerable Old Master Jin, and within two years, became a junior blacksmith; five years later, he had reached mid-level, and by the tenth year, he ascended to the rank of senior blacksmith, also becoming the ninth direct disciple of the revered elder.
After considering the timeline, when he first joined the sect, that fellow Jiang Kai, Senior Brother Jiang… well, let's call him Senior Brother. He should have still been learning the craft, not yet left.
However, regrettably, Ninth Senior Brother has been clutching the letter, reading it over several times, yet even after a while, he still couldn’t recall any information about this Jiang Kai in his mind.
There's no other way. Since more than forty years ago, when Old Master Jin returned from studying in Gengxin City of the Xingluo Empire and opened the Jin Geng Blacksmith Shop in his hometown of Muzhi City, he has taught countless apprentices.
Although he has only accepted twelve direct disciples, for those like Senior Brother Jiang, whose talent was just average, they could only learn to a certain level. Eventually, they left the Jin Geng Blacksmith Shop with either intermediate or beginner blacksmithing skills, spreading out across various towns of the Suimu Principality to open their own blacksmith shops, effectively branching out.
Even though he couldn’t remember, Ninth Senior Brother didn't question the authenticity of Ling Yi’s letter.
After all, the content was quite convincing, and considering that now over half of Suimu Principality's blacksmiths could be considered students or disciples of his own master, Senior Brother Jiang Kai’s identity was generally believable.
Moreover...
His gaze once again turned to Ling Yi's school uniform, and Ninth Senior Brother’s smile grew wider:
“Xiao Ling Yi, did Senior Brother Jiang say in the letter that you learned forging from him for a year and already have the skills of an intermediate blacksmith? Is that true?”
“Hehe~” Ling Yi replied with a shy smile, his tone a blend of pride and humility, “Master Jiang praised me too much. I… I’m not strong enough, so I haven't mastered some forging techniques as well as him…”
Hearing this, Ninth Senior Brother’s eyes lit up, suddenly understanding the implications within the words.
"Not enough strength? Not yet as skilled as Master Jiang?"
"So, this little fellow is implying that if he had enough strength, his technique alone would surpass that of Senior Brother Jiang, a mid-level blacksmith?"
"Of course, that's assuming that Senior Brother Jiang is indeed a mid-level blacksmith!"
"However, even if this young one has just begun his forging journey, as long as he shows interest in learning, Ninth Senior Brother would gladly introduce him to his own master."
"One must know, although our master is one of the 'Three Grand Craftsmen' of the duchy, and holds a status comparable to many of the nobility in the capital, the chance to take on a disciple who has the potential to become a soul master is quite rare."
"In the world of the Douluo Continent, soul masters reign supreme, and those with innate soul power typically seek to cultivate as soul masters. There are indeed very few who are willing to spend time learning forging to become a blacksmith."
"Even though, in reality, these paths are not mutually exclusive."
"For instance, his master, Old Master Jin, is a senior soul sage."
"He himself is a soul master with one soul ring."
(End of Chapter)
