Chapter 231: CH. 231 | Mortal life After The Disaster

After getting what he needed from the old man, Lin Tian left, handing over 100 tael as compensation for having absorbed the old blacksmith’s knowledge and experience.

He walked out into the bustling town, where a number of outsiders had come to Yanzhe City on their own business. But Lin Tian was different.

He’d already gotten what he needed to start his blacksmith business, the most promising trade for the village.

With that business, no one in the village would ever suspect they were cultivators.

I’ll use my qi manipulation to make the tools. For now, I should focus on finding a supplier for iron ore.

He left his cart and walked among the other townspeople, his goal simple: find another blacksmith shop and ask where they got their iron ore.

There weren’t many blacksmith shops in town, you could count them on one hand. Still, Lin Tian didn’t give up, he knew this was something he had to do.

Without iron ore, the business wouldn’t get off the ground.

He opened the door to a shop and stepped inside, greeted by a woman behind the counter. She smiled when she saw that her visitor was a handsome young man with a sharp, mature gaze.

"Welcome," the woman said, "Is there something you need?"

"I wanted to ask, where do you get your iron ore from?" Lin Tian asked.

The woman looked a little startled, then recovered with a smile. "I’m sorry, that’s a trade secret. We can’t share that with outsiders."

"But you’re welcome to take a look at our swords and weapons," the woman added.

Lin Tian realized something: competition among blacksmiths was fierce given how few shops there were in town. That made them reluctant to reveal where their iron ore came from or what it cost.

Even if he asked elsewhere, he suspected he’d get the same answer. It would just be a waste of time.

Seems like I don’t have much choice but to ask Li Huan for help again.

Lin Tian looked ahead and smiled, raising a hand in farewell to the woman. He made his way out of the shop, back to his cart, and drove it toward Xiayu Village.

Along the way, he spotted the guard from the town ruler’s residence, the one who’d helped Lin Tian summon Li Huan earlier. When Lin Tian stopped in front of him, the man immediately bowed his head.

"Go to the sect and tell Li Huan to come to Xiayu Village."

"Y-Yes, Master Lin."

Lin Tian turned away and drove his cart back toward the village. Up ahead, he spotted Wei Hutong walking home, having already bought the right herbs his boss wanted.

"Need a ride, Brother Wei?"

Wei Hutong turned and smiled, his face lighting up at running into Lin Tian again, especially upon hearing him offer a ride.

"Of course, thank you so much, Brother Lin."

The thin man climbed onto the cart and sat in the back. Lin Tian chatted with him casually. Wei Hutong told him he’d managed to get the right herbs his boss wanted.

Now he no longer had to worry about the middle-aged woman scolding him.

"After you drop off those herbs, where are you headed?" Lin Tian asked.

"Not sure, maybe I’ll go help Uncle Shang."

"You don’t have steady work?" Lin Tian asked.

Wei Hutong went quiet for a moment, then nodded. He sat hugging his knees, his basket of herbs beside him, his eyes fixed straight ahead at the dirt road passing beneath the cart.

"I don’t," Wei Hutong answered, "No one wants to hire me, especially not with the kingdom in such an unstable state right now."

"I just pick up odd jobs here and there. If something comes up, I’m grateful. If not, I just have to accept it."

"What happened to your parents?" Lin Tian asked.

"They died in Gui City when the demonic cultivators attacked. I’m the only one left, and even then, only because I was rescued by people from Lingxian Hill."

Lin Tian felt a pang of sympathy. Wei Hutong’s situation was a stark reflection of just how devastating the Yuanmo Sect’s invasion had been, his whole life upended, left alone with no one, fighting hard just to get by day to day.

"What if you worked for me?" Lin Tian asked.

"What do you mean?" Wei Hutong asked.

"I’ll give you steady pay, a decent place to live, and meals every day if you’re willing to work with me," Lin Tian answered. "I’ve decided to start a blacksmith business. That’s what I’ll be starting with."

"What do you think?"

"What would I be doing?" Wei Hutong asked.

"I’ll handle the forging myself," Lin Tian answered. "You’d just need to deliver the goods to town."

"That’s all your job would be," Lin Tian added.

"Of course. That sounds like easy work for me," Wei Hutong said.

"Not quite as easy as you think, but we’ll see how it goes."

They finally reached the village. Wei Hutong got down from the cart and thanked Lin Tian. He headed straight for the herb shop to deliver the ingredients the woman wanted, while Lin Tian arrived back at his house.

Hearing the sound of a horse neighing outside, An Yue immediately opened the door and saw that Lin Tian had returned. The beautiful woman walked over to him, asking how things had gone.

"So? Have you figured out what your job will be?" An Yue asked.

"I have," Lin Tian answered, climbing down from the cart. "This village is short on blacksmiths, so I’m going to open a blacksmith shop here."

"A blacksmith? That’s a bit unusual. I think I’d like to see you forging things sometime."

"You’ll be impressed."

Before long, they both turned as Li Huan arrived, following Lin Tian’s orders. Lin Tian smiled and welcomed him, inviting him inside.

Lin Tian and Li Huan sat together at the wooden table, and An Yue came over to pour warm tea for them.

"Is there something you need from me, Master Lin?" Li Huan asked.

"Yes," Lin Tian explained. "It’s about the mines."

"The mines?"

"I want you to go meet with Elder Wu and tell her I want every mine near the sect’s territory brought under the sect’s control," Lin Tian answered.

"Buy them if we can, seize them if we have to."

"Once you’ve secured them, come back here. I’ll handle the trade of the mined minerals, and I want you to be the one overseeing it."

Li Huan nodded obediently, "A-Alright. I’ll pass it along to Elder Wu Yue."