NOVEL WEB Chapter 78: Lofty Aspirations
This time, the name Ling Yi is no longer just a forgotten lucky boy but is now recognized as the fourth blacksmith master of the Shuimu Principality!
With this achievement, Grand Duke Mufeng personally met this soon-to-be fourteen-year-old lad and granted him the title of baron, designating his hometown, Beikou River Town along with over twenty surrounding villages, as his fief.
A leap to the sky!
From a mere commoner to a baron who commands dozens of miles of land, Ling Yi has become an inspiring model for all the commoners in the Shuimu Principality!
Although there are still higher ranks like viscounts and counts, and figures who control the entire principality such as Grand Duke Mufeng and several marquises, it nonetheless represents a monumental leap in class, a true achievement that brings glory to one's ancestors.
To give an inappropriate example, if the Ling Yi family establishes an ancestral hall in the future, Ling Yi's tablet would undoubtedly be placed in the centered spot of the topmost row!
At this moment, it dawned on everyone that it is not only soul masters who can achieve nobility upon reaching the rank of Soul Lord; blacksmiths can also receive fiefdoms by advancing to the master level.
Suddenly, across the entire Shuimu Principality, the profession of blacksmithing has garnered respect and attention from commoners and small Soul Master families alike due to Ling Yi’s story.
Those with low innate soul power, poor-quality martial souls, and limited future prospects as soul masters, even those at the level of a one-ring soul master, are now contemplating whether they should switch professions to learn the forging craft.
The more skills you have, the more pathways you have to increase income.
"Making money isn't shameful!"
"..."
In the year 2605 of the Douluo calendar, February 15th.
Shanhai Village, Ling family.
Ling Yi stood before the desk in his room, holding a handmade brush, sketching and drawing on the snow-white paper.
Golden sunlight filtered through the window, enveloping him and dispelling the lingering chill of February. He felt relaxed and at ease, both physically and mentally.
Ordinarily, he should have been attending various gatherings of the small and medium nobility—whether from established families that have existed for over a century, or emerging soul master families of the past few decades—who took great interest in this young blacksmith. He ought to have seized the opportunity to expand his otherwise blank social network among the nobility.
If he wasn't mingling with the nobility from the soul master world, he should have been exchanging blacksmithing insights with his fellow apprentices under Elder Jin, or with blacksmiths like Master Fu Shan and Master Li Qiang, to further strengthen their relationships.
Yet, Ling Yi had chosen to forgo all social engagements a few days prior, entrusting Elder Jin to represent him in dealings with both the new and old noble soul masters. He had returned to his newly acquired domain, his hometown of Shanhai Village, to quietly conduct his daily routines and training.
At most, he had merely added an extra hour of calligraphy practice to his daily regimen.
This wasn't Ling Yi trying to fit into noble circles after being conferred the title of baron; rather, he sought to adjust his own mindset.
Ling Yi, who had once learned calligraphy from a fellow Chinese major in his previous life, deeply appreciated the calming effect of writing.
No matter how much Ling Yi reminded himself that what he had now was insignificant in the grand scheme of the Douluo Continent, and his strength was meager, an array of emotions still stirred within him.
These emotions bore names—self-satisfaction, pride, laziness, fear...
Often, when people are just starting out with nothing, they harbor grand ambitions for the future, filled with unending passion and motivation.
But after achieving certain accomplishments through their efforts and seizing opportunities, gaining wealth and status they once desired, they begin to fear losing it all, and their original drive and courage start to fade.
If this were a typical otherworldly slice-of-life journey, Ling Yi would undoubtedly choose to settle down, develop the economy and livelihoods within his territory honestly, maintain a dignified friendship with nobles above, and care for his populace as if they were his own children.
He would motivate his subjects to create value, laying bricks for the baron's wonderful life.
After struggling for over a decade, couldn’t the baron enjoy the fruits of his labor?
But!
This is the Douluo Continent, where ordinary people and the weak live in dire straits!
There's no telling when a rogue dark soul artist or soul beast might pass through, wreaking havoc on the dozens of miles of land.
At that point, what could Baron Ling Yi do?
Beg for mercy on his knees? Offer treasures and beauties in exchange for a chance to escape? Or perhaps just resign himself to death?
After finally making it to another world, must he live a life of helplessness?
Would his entire being, both body and thought, be beyond his control—to laugh when told, cry when demanded?
The necessities of life like rice and oil, salt and vinegar, tea, all like whips driving his body into toil, with the pervasive flow of information manipulating the joys and sorrows of his soul...
Wanted to hide, but didn't know where.
But now it's different, having arrived in this realm with extraordinary powers, why not take a gamble?
Ling Yi doesn't care what others think; he only knows that he must fight, must strive!
He must step by step ascend to a realm where both soul and body are equally free.
Indeed, what does a mere baron matter in the grand scheme of things? What use is an expanse of several dozen miles of territory? A teenage blacksmith?
Ultimately, on the continent of Douluo, stripped of all embellishments, Ling Yi, at this moment, is just a newly minted Seventeenth Level One-Ring Soul Master.
Such a modest achievement should not lead to complacency or basking in temporary glory.
At fourteen, achieving Seventeen Levels as a One-Ring Soul Master.
Even though he just celebrated his fourteenth birthday, reaching Eighteen Levels before fifteen isn't out of reach. Yet, considering Oscar from the original protagonist team, whose slow progress was due to the type of martial soul and tendency to slack off, still managed to reach Level Thirty and become a Soul Elder by fourteen, Ling Yi immediately felt no reason for smugness or arrogance.
At this age, with this strength and such limited accomplishments, how can one afford to rest? Sleep barely comes easy!
After spending time with his family and understanding the specifics of the town and its twenty-five subordinate villages to make plans and arrangements, it was time to return to the 'battlefield' of Wood Plant City. His master should have about gathered the details on blacksmiths within the duchy by now.
Ling Yi thought this as he put down the final stroke on the snowy white page.
His eyes were clear, staring at the black words on the white paper lying on the table:
'Know that youthful aspirations soar high; once promised to be the best in the world—!!!'
(End of Chapter)
