Soulgvelin lay on the ground, using his tail to cover himself with fallen dry leaves, shrinking his body by two-thirds and concealing his dragon's power perfectly, then quietly waiting.
This was the route that the foolish multi-clawed earth pythons passed by daily to hunt. Soulgvelin firmly believed that he could become the king of this forest based on his intelligence, not the power of the dragon race. He was a progressive new dragon with knowledge, culture, ideals, and morals, not a tyrant who maintained rule solely through claws and dragon breath.
Who said dragons didn't understand ambush? Who said dragons couldn't use stratagems? Soulgvelin was pleased that he had overturned these old-fashioned ideas in the minds of conservative individuals.
Solgweirun knows that the habit of dragons liking gold coins not only does not bring them happiness, but instead brings a series of troubles. This simple truth can be understood by wise dragons even with just a little thought: with immense wealth and the title of dragon slayer, anyone with some strength would want to cash in on the dragons. Robbing dragons is not only not illegal, but it also brings both fame and wealth.
So, Solgweirun does not bother to save any gold coins. In the forest, as long as he is full and satisfied, what use does he have for gold coins?
"No money, no entry!" Two guards brandished their long spears, displaying their authority in front of Solgweirun. The wise dragon kept reminding himself that this was a test of his intelligence, he must persevere, for he was different from others!
However, even with his intelligence, acquiring two silver coins in such a short time was quite challenging for him. "I, I forgot to bring them, how about this, you let me in first, and I'll go home to get them." Once in the city, he could easily steal two silver coins from someone's house.
Solgweirun was indeed clever!
"Hmph!" The guards smirked and raised their spears, "Get out! Trying to bluff your way through, thinking we are easy to deceive?"
"This..." Solgweirun's proud intelligence hit a wall. The people waiting in line to enter the city also looked at the king of the forest with a distrustful gaze. With Solgweirun's intelligence, he could naturally see that in the eyes of these people, he had become a con artist trying to deceive his way through.
"I'm not..." he hurriedly tried to explain, but the guards did not want to listen anymore and thrust their spears, "Get lost, trickster!" Solgweirun, who had hatched from a dragon egg 1200 years ago, has never experienced such embarrassment as he did today.
"Leave it be, I'll give him the two silver coins," a voice came, followed by a hand placing the coins in the tax box. "Ding, ding," before hearing the delightful roar of his beloved, this could be considered the most pleasing sound Solgweirun had ever heard in his life.
It's him! Solgweirun was stunned; it was the person who had been tracking him all this time. "Come in," Gezheng said with a smile, then turned and walked away.
Solgweirun's eyes lit up - a great opportunity! He quickly followed, "Sir, sir..." Gezheng didn't look back, just waved his hand, "It's just two silver coins, don't worry about it, just remember to bring money when you leave next time."
"No, sir, I've never owed anything to anyone in my life, so I must repay you." Gezheng stopped in his tracks and said indifferently, "Well then, I'll tell you my address. Once you go back and get the money, you can return it to me."
"This... I have no home. To be honest, I am penniless. But sir, I am hardworking and loyal, I can work for you, and then I can repay you when I earn money," said Solgweirun, thinking he was being clever. Gezheng smiled and pointed to a restaurant by the road, "You can work there, earn money, and then repay me."
Gezheng walked further, and Solgweirun still couldn't come up with a good excuse. However, he now knew Gezheng's address, which could be considered a successful first step towards a happy future.
Gezheng returned to his residence and was greeted by a servant in a strange tone, "Oh, you're back, we thought you didn't dare to come back." Gezheng casually waved his hand, "Where's the baron? Take me to see him." The servant sneered, "The grand duke is here, the master is chatting with him. If you have something to do, go see them yourself." Gezheng took a few steps, then suddenly turned back, "I've fixed the dual moon blade, do you want to come and see?"
This news quickly spread among the servants. No one believed that that inconspicuous fellow could have repaired the work of the great Master Luoxin. Maids stopped repairing clothes, kitchen staff stopped cleaning vegetables, the janitors stopped sweeping the floor, and the accountant stopped keeping the books, and all of them rushed to see how Gezheng would fail. After seeing, when boasting to others in the future, they would have their own share in exposing the "charlatan".
Delemo's wounds had almost healed, and he entertained the grand duke in the backyard. Mailes the grand duke came today to present gold coins, so Delekemont had to greet him cordially. As they were chatting, they spotted a person walking down the path in the distance, and Delekemont, being a warrior, keenly noticed that it was none other than Gezheng, who had been missing for several days. He couldn't help but smile and loudly call out, "Master Gezheng, you're back." The grand duke could already tell: it seemed like this guy had run away, but why would he come back? Did he run out of money and want to come back to swindle again? The grand duke crossed his arms, ready to watch the show.
Gezheng was still ten steps away when he drew the dual moon blade from his storage ring. The blade glimmered, flashing in the garden's sunshine. As he approached, he didn't show any intention of causing harm. Behind him, the guards jumped in front of the grand duke, "Assassin!" Delekemont chuckled, "Don't worry, that looks like my dual moon blade..." As he finished speaking, he even found it incredible himself. It was just a subconscious reaction, but as he looked closely, the blade did look like his dual moon blade!
Delekemont was incredulously locked onto Gezheng's hand as Gezheng got closer, but he showed no intention to harm. The grand duke's face revealed some discomfort, and he harshly kicked each of the guards behind him, "A bunch of useless trash, you're no good when it matters, and you're faking when there's nothing going on! Get out of the way."
Gezheng came up to the two of them, and with a twist of his wrist, he placed the dual moon blade across his body, the blade facing himself, and handed it back to Delekemont. He maintained a serious demeanor, as if conducting official business, "You see, if it's up to standard, I expect six thousand gold coins to be paid on the spot."
Delekemont took the blade and slowly waved it several times. The weight and feel hadn't changed; it seemed to indeed be his own blade. He gestured to a servant, who quickly fetched several thick iron rods that Delekemont usually used for his sword practice. Even at this point, the servants lurking in the surrounding trees and flowers were still skeptical - how could a prodigy alchemist of just level six repair the dual moon blade, a masterpiece of the great Master Luoxin?
Even though Delekemont's injuries had almost healed, the feeling he had before had returned. His actions were unmistaken, and Grand Duke Mailes felt a blurry vision in front of him as Delekemont moved among the iron rods.
"Hiss..." threads of silver-like light flowed across the ground and over the rods, as if cutting down stalks of wheat like a sickle. Sharp as lightning and fast as thunder, the rods broke without making any metallic sounds.
The faces of the guards behind the grand duke changed drastically. If someone were to assassinate the grand duke with such divine skill, not to mention an assassination, even if it were an open attack, the guards would have had no chance of stopping it.
In a blink of an eye, Delekemont was done, the rods lay broken in neat pieces with mirror-smooth ends.
"Good blade!" the grand duke couldn't help but clap his hands in admiration, and he looked at Gezheng with a different gaze. Previously, he promised to take care of him, more out of respect for the baron, and he didn't think Gezheng could repair the dual moon blade. But now that Gezheng had indeed fixed the work of Master Luoxin, his status had immediately become significantly elevated in the eyes of the grand duke. This was a treasure of Oba City; if he managed to restore the work of the master craftsman, even if the standard of a master craftsman wasn't achieved, at the very least, it would be close to the standard of an eleventh-level alchemist. There had never been a professional of over ten levels among his subordinates.
The grand duke berated himself for nearly letting this precious opportunity slip away, and in his heart, Gezheng had instantly become a rare find. The grand duke was already contemplating how to win over Gezheng, whether it be through beauty, power, or wealth...
The fact was clear; the servants who had come to see Gezheng embarrass himself were amazed at what had happened before their eyes. They became embarrassed themselves and sneaked away with blushed faces, ashamed to look at Gezheng.
Delekemont sensed the discomfort of his people and felt something was amiss. "Kari!" he called, beckoning his attendant, who had been the one to purchase materials for Gezheng.
"Agh..." Kari, who had been trying to slink away quietly, was suddenly called back by his master, and though he passed by Gezheng, he walked past with his sleeve hiding his face.
"What's going on here?" Delekemont's tone was clearly displeased. "Th-this..." Kari mumbled incoherently. Gezheng smiled and said to Kari, "I'm not just freeloading now, but I did snatch the coins from your master's pocket."
Kari gave a sheepish smile to Gezheng and bowed to his master, waiting for his punishment. Delekemont was furious, "You dare show disrespect to Master Gezheng! Have I taught you this way usually? Take him away and give him fifty lashes!" Kari was so frightened that he clutched at his master's leg, begging with tears and snot, "Master, spare me, please, for the sake of all the years I've served you, please give me another chance..."
Although Delekemont usually had a soft spot for Kari, in the eyes of the aristocracy, a servant is a servant. Firstly, daring to defy authority was an unforgivable offense; secondly, the person he had offended was Gezheng. Not only had Gezheng saved Delekemont's life, but more importantly, he was an alchemy grandmaster who could fix a work of the master craftsman. As a prince with political acumen, Delekemont was well aware of Gezheng's value.
No need to mention anything else; just look at the upcoming Royal Challenge of the Austa Empire. Without the dual moon blade, he could at most enter the top sixteen. But if Gezheng could repair it for him, then Delekemont would have the power to win!
Dekemonte smiled, "I will definitely fulfill the Duke's wishes." As he spoke, he drew his sub-dagger from the hilt of his sword.
"Ah!" Dekemonte and the Duke exclaimed together. Dekemonte remembered that his sub-dagger was not so exquisite, the 'Twin Moon Blade', 'Magic Moon' was just a gimmick. The 'sub-dagger, Magic Moon' was just unexpected, attacking when the opponent was unprepared, in itself, it was a second-rate magic that left much to be desired.
But the 'Magic Moon' in front of them was different from before, the blade was flowing with abundant fire elements, and as soon as it was pulled out, a wave of heat hit them.
The Duke was also amazed by this 'Magic Moon'. He had seen good magical weapons before, but on such a small dagger, to contain such abundant magical power, it was the first time he had seen it. The Duke couldn't help but praise, "The Magic Moon, indeed lives up to its reputation!" Dekemonte wanted to explain to him that it was Gezheng's masterpiece, but he saw Gezheng persistently signaling to him. He held back the words he was about to say, and in his heart, he reassessed Gezheng's value: understanding restraint, reserving strength, this alchemist would certainly exceed his previous expectations in the future!
This further strengthened Dekemonte's determination to cultivate a good relationship with Gezheng from now on.
Dekemonte's attention returned to the sub-dagger Magic Moon, and he exerted force, "whoosh," four ping pong-sized fireballs jumped out from the blade, rotating and dancing around the sub-dagger. The Duke recognized it, "Level five magic, Magic Fire Wheel! Haha, today is indeed a fruitful trip!"
Gezheng walked up, took the sub-dagger Magic Moon from Dekemonte's hand, "Twelve uses of the level five magic, Magic Fire Wheel, also, look..." he picked up a half-length iron stick from the ground with his toe, and with a wave of his hand, the iron stick broke into two with a 'ding'.
Dekemonte was greatly surprised. At this moment, he happened to be facing away from the Duke, so he could openly express his amazement to Gezheng through his eyes, and Gezheng smiled and nodded.
A surge of joy rose in Dekemonte's heart: with this Twin Moon Blade, in the upcoming Royal Challenge, he would not only have the strength to reach the top, but he would already be able to confidently secure the championship!