NOVEL WEB Chapter 103: Broken Blades
Power comes from below.
These two phrases were often on the lips of Ling Yi's civil servant friend from a past life.
In the world of Douluo Continent, where individual prowess defines one's place, these words only capture part of the reality.
Looking at the entire Douluo Continent, it’s evident that unless one has reached the rank of Titled Douluo, or even the level of Tang Chen or Qian Daoliu, no one is truly qualified to proclaim ‘might is right.’
However, within a localized setting, even a one-ring Soul Master might boldly claim as such.
The [Shuimu Principality] is small, and its big figures are not considered significant within the Lord State [Heaven Dou Empire].
Yet, the Marquis at the pinnacle of power in [Shuimu Principality] commands attention, not only for his high-level Soul Emperor strength but also for his tens of thousands of troops, a formidable force.
Such a person, when speaking with the grandees of the [Heaven Dou Empire], undoubtedly takes the position of a listener.
However, in negotiations concerning the procurement of raw materials with local strongmen, a situation like the [Blacksmith Association · Shuimu Principality Branch]—where despite increased buying quantities, prices rise rather than fall—simply does not occur.
What does the [Blacksmith Association] in [Shuimu Principality] have?
At its strongest, it boasts only several Soul Sects, lacking even a Soul King, and its total membership numbers only two or three thousand.
Of these, formal Soul Masters with soul rings number less than a hundred!
Naturally, such an organization garners little respect from raw material suppliers.
Initially, due to a lack of understanding of the situation and faced with large-scale uniform procurement, there was a phenomenon of discounted sales.
Later, as the blacksmith community in the Shuimu Principality grew vibrant, this attracted attention from those with interest in these matters.
When the time came to strike a deal, these raw material suppliers were naturally relentless.
A soul master family capable of controlling a mine would start with a powerful Soul King guarding it, making them the dominant party against the Blacksmith Association.
However, when it came to the five military divisions controlled by the five Marquises of the Shuimu Principality, these suppliers, supported merely by Soul King and Soul Emperor levels, immediately became parties to a fair trade.
As for whether the five Marquises, or the Grand Duke Mufeng by name, would seek to exploit the Blacksmith Association further, it boils down to these two sayings:
A single thread cannot form a line, a single tree does not make a forest.
Power comes from the base.
Living within the power structure of the Shuimu Principality, not even the Marquises, nor Mufeng, can whimsically treat an emerging force with thousands of members and influence spanning every corner of the Principality as mere pigs for slaughter.
After discussing with Old Master Jin, Ling Yi informed him that he would soon return to his territory in Beikou River Town. He's delegated subsequent association matters to be communicated to him via letters.
Ling Yi would stay in Muzhi City for about two days: partially to assist Old Master Jin with the administration of various Blacksmith Association affairs, and partially to await the arrival of brothers Ye Luo and Le Qing.
Over the next two days, Ling Yi accompanied Old Master Jin, meeting with liaisons who happened to be in Muzhi City to report on various issues encountered by blacksmith shops and masters across towns and villages, offering his advice, and instructing these liaisons to convey his messages to those on the ground.
Similarly, Ling Yi learned from these individuals about the current structure of the Blacksmith Association in the Shuimu Principality. This included the number of members, their blacksmithing ranks, types of martial souls, and levels of soul power.
Over the past two years, as the Shuimu Principality branch of the Blacksmith Association thrived, its members genuinely reaped the benefits. Naturally, many non-blacksmiths sought to join.
Most of these were soul warriors, with a few one-ring soul masters whose potential was nearing its limit.
In line with Ling Yi's initial open-door policy, Old Master Jin accepted everyone willing to join.
Those eager to learn forging were assigned to follow various master blacksmiths for training. Others with different interests were placed in roles such as liaison officers, procurement coordinators, or goods escorts.
The guiding principle remained: utilize resources wisely and employ people according to their talents.
Excluding the blacksmiths in the principality's five military regions, there were 689 blacksmith shops spread across the province—encompassing three major cities and various towns and markets—with over 2700 blacksmiths and apprentices.
This group included four blacksmith masters: two Soul Elders, one Soul Ancestor, and one Grandmaster.
There were 75 advanced blacksmiths, with two being Soul Ancestors, 18 Grandmasters, 23 Soul Masters, 30 Soul Warriors, and two ordinary folk.
Among the elementary blacksmiths and apprentices, even including later members, the number of one-ring soul masters didn’t exceed ten.
Though the blacksmith community was extensive, adding everyone together barely surpassed a hundred soul masters. To outsiders unaware of the specific data, it might seem there weren’t even a hundred.
Yet, even so, blacksmiths already made up the highest proportion of soul masters across all professions.
It's foreseeable that in the future Shuimu Principality, the blacksmith trade would undoubtedly become the career of choice for any soul master with limited potential and no clear future path.
Compared to the entire populace of the duchy, the offspring of these individuals have a significantly higher chance of being born with innate soul power.
Even if these blacksmiths’ children do not pursue blacksmithing in the future, given similar conditions, their likelihood of joining the Blacksmith Association is undoubtedly the highest.
This hypothesis, apart from Ling Yi himself, has yet to be noticed by anyone in the vast Shuimu Principality.
This is because, in everyone's ingrained beliefs, spirit masters are a hereditary force bound by lineage.
People instinctively think that a true powerful faction must be established by someone with strong bloodlines.
Even the Spirit Hall, which is willing to incorporate all civilian soul masters across the Douluo Continent, is led by the Angel Clan and formed with the alliance of high-quality spirit clans to become a superpower.
Behind each of those red-clad cardinals, platinum bishops, elders, and deacons, isn’t there a family force of some scale backing them?
To Ling Yi, such fixed beliefs are a wonderful misconception based on information disparity.
It remains to be seen how long this information gap will persist before some clever people catch on.
Fortunately, the Blacksmith Association is currently weak, so in its early stages, there is little to worry about being targeted by those significant players.
…
Time flies by, and two days later, under the east city gate of Mushi City, Senior Brother Zhang Tie leads several members of the Blacksmith Association to bid farewell to Ling Yi.
Zhang Tie's gaze swept over Zhang Mufeng, who was standing behind Ling Yi, without saying anything to his youngest son. Instead, he turned to Ling Yi and said, "Little Junior Brother, the materials you've asked me to collect over the past year have been quite substantial. The batches that came earlier have already been sent to your territory..."
He gestured towards the scene not far away where workers were loading goods onto carts. Zhang Tie continued, "This is what we've gathered in the past month. As before, charging you the cost of materials at three-tenths of the original price…"
Upon reaching this point, Zhang Tie shook his head, looking perplexedly at Ling Yi, who was intently watching the loading process. "Junior Brother, these items are practically scrap, mostly useless except for a few pieces that can perhaps be reforged into usable materials. At best, the majority can only be turned into some farm tools—a mere recycling of waste. What do you intend to do with all this scrap metal?"
Following Zhang Tie's words, Zhang Mufeng also glanced in the direction they were looking.
In those baskets, there was nothing else but broken, damaged weapons: shattered swords and knives, halved battle-axes and hammers, and broken sections of spears and iron rods...
With the words fading, only the sight of piled-up fractured blades remained.
(End of Chapter)
