Chapter Ninety: A Box

“You think you can make a weapon with only those few auxiliary materials?” Mr. Bai’s tone was thick with doubt.

Zhang He smiled. “Of course I can’t make one myself. I was just wondering whether you have any basic materials here, Mr. Bai.”

Mr. Bai glanced at Zhang He again, and a smile tugged at his lips. “How did you know I’d have basic materials?”

Zhang He smiled. “With Master Qi’s personal recommendation, I had every reason to believe you would.”

Mr. Bai could not help laughing. “That alone probably isn’t enough, is it? Qi Shiqi is neither the abbot of Shaolin nor the盟主 of the martial world. Why should his name carry so much weight?”

Zhang He smiled as well. “Of course it is not only because of Master Qi. You, Mr. Bai, are a grandmaster-level forging master. Since you said at the outset that synthesis would not be suitable, that means you are skilled in forging. And if you are skilled in forging, then you should at least understand how to make things by hand.”

After a brief pause, Mr. Bai’s face broke into an open smile. “Good. You really do know your craft. Since you are someone who recognizes quality, I’ll make one for you.”

“Many thanks.” Zhang He cupped his fists.

Before long, Mr. Bai had rummaged through a heap of furnaces and tools and produced several clumps of dark, rough sample metals. Even Zhong Shuman could not suppress her curiosity and leaned closer to look.

Crimson Iron of Golden Radiance, basic crafting material, quality: high-middle; rank: 2.

Jade of Maple Fields, basic crafting material, quality: middle-middle; rank: 4.

Emerald Green Wood, basic crafting material, quality: low-high; rank: 6.

All basic crafting materials were divided into three broad quality tiers: upper, middle, and lower. Within them were nine finer gradations. Judged by appearance, the best was naturally upper-upper quality and the worst lower-lower. Zhong Shuman understood that much, but the ranks puzzled her, because the rank labels were all shown in Chinese numerals, which differed from the Arabic numbers used on equipment.

Zhang He explained, “The rank is of course different from that of ready-made equipment. For basic materials, the rank means how many times the first few upgrades have succeeded. The success rate is one hundred percent.”

Zhong Shuman frowned. “The first one has the highest quality but the fewest successful refinements. The last one has the lowest quality but the most successful refinements. How are you supposed to choose between them?”

Mr. Bai also explained, “The first is iron, the second is jade, and the third is wood. Which one has the higher quality need not be explained by me, surely?”

Zhong Shuman looked at Zhang He. “Which one should we choose?”

Zhang He studied the three materials. “The third one is best.”

Zhong Shuman was astonished. “Why not choose the iron? Are you planning to forge a weapon out of wood?”

This time, before Zhang He could answer, Mr. Bai gave a cold laugh. “Miss Zhong, you don’t understand. I’ve said from the start that Brother Wu here is someone who knows what he’s looking at.”

Zhong Shuman said, “Oh?”

Zhang He considered his words. “Although wood is of lower quality than iron, it has the advantage of a higher rank. It’s like this: if my attack is a little lower than yours and your attack is a little higher than mine, you strike me twice, but I strike you six times in return. So I can confidently say that among these three materials, the low-high grade wood is actually the most valuable.”

Zhong Shuman suddenly understood. “I see.”

By now, the look in Mr. Bai’s eyes held no more amusement or suspicion. There was only admiration and appreciation, the admiration of one great expert for another.

“I didn’t expect you to be so knowledgeable about forging, even though your level isn’t high,” Mr. Bai said, his attitude toward Zhang He now entirely changed. “To be honest, if you had chosen the Crimson Iron of Golden Radiance, then no matter how much you trained afterward, your martial ability would have been severely limited. But since you chose the Emerald Green Wood, that proves you are not an ordinary player. At the very least, your secondary profession should be that of a smith. Then I’ll say it again: since you recognize quality so well, I’ll give you ten percent off this basic material. Fixed price, ninety taels of gold.”

Zhong Shuman nodded. “Ninety taels of silver would be reasonable.”

“Hold on.” Mr. Bai shot her a look. “I said gold, not silver. Ninety taels of gold.”

“What?” Zhong Shuman was dumbfounded on the spot. “You... you want to sell that lousy wood for ninety taels of gold? That’s even more expensive than precious-grade equipment above level fifty.”

Mr. Bai said disdainfully, “I’m not selling material.”

Zhong Shuman sneered. “Then are you selling loneliness?”

Mr. Bai sneered back. “I’m selling craftsmanship and planning. You wouldn’t understand.”

Zhong Shuman was about to argue, but Zhang He stopped her with a smile. “Forget it. Ninety it is. That price is already very fair. We have a deal.”

“You...” Zhong Shuman knew that the young man did have some savings, but not enough to squander them like this. This was utterly unlike his usual sharp-eyed style in buying and selling.

Mr. Bai was also somewhat surprised by Zhang He’s decisiveness, but he was certain Zhang He was not the sort of gullible fool who could be taken in so easily.

And as expected, Zhang He’s next sentence made Mr. Bai feel something was off. “The weapon I want to make is different. It is not a mainstream weapon, and it will be very difficult to make.”

Mr. Bai could not help asking, “Then what sort of weapon do you want to make?”

Zhang He said slowly, “A chest.”

Zhong Shuman only felt that this young man was being utterly absurd. In Dynasty, no matter how obscure or unconventional a weapon might be, there was no such thing as a weapon shaped like a chest.

Mr. Bai’s expression changed at once. “What sort of chest?”

Zhang He also found Mr. Bai’s reaction strange and replied, “The kind of wooden trade chest merchant players use. The kind carried on the back, not slung from the shoulder.”

Mr. Bai seemed to relax again and asked hesitantly, “Have you ever made this kind of weapon before?”

Zhang He said, “No.”

Mr. Bai asked suspiciously, “Then why do you want to make this kind of weapon?”

Zhang He replied, “I came up with it myself.”

Mr. Bai stared at him. “You really came up with it yourself?”

Zhang He said, “Mm.”

Mr. Bai asked, “Do you know that there is no weapon like a chest in Dynasty?”

Zhang He said, “No.”

Zhong Shuman could no longer hold back. “Mr. Bai, are you doing business, or are you interrogating us?”

Mr. Bai suddenly let out a long sigh. “Do you think I’m asking too much?”

Zhong Shuman said coldly, “You are asking far too much, and doing far too little.”

Mr. Bai gave her a deep look before turning back. “Do you know what level I am now? I’ll tell you both: as of yesterday, I was already level 103, with five reincarnations.”

Only then did Zhang He and Zhong Shuman truly change countenance. A grandmaster-level forging master at level 103 with five reincarnations meant one thing: Mr. Bai was not a life-skiller at all, but a combat class player.

What kind of heaven-defying figure was this? He could be compared to Yun Zhongke, one of the famed Three Swords of Yangzhou in days gone by.

And yet, with such astonishing ability, why had he no name at all in the martial world? What reason lay behind that?

Mr. Bai seemed to have seen through their thoughts and laughed. “There’s no need to be surprised. I was one of the first batch of players to enter when Dynasty launched, and I did indeed choose a combat class. But forging equipment has always been my hobby, and I’m not nearly as formidable as you imagine. Besides, the mentor I apprenticed under when I first entered the game was a very famous non-player character.”

Zhong Shuman’s attitude improved quite a bit. “Then, Mr. Bai, what do you mean by telling us all this?”

Mr. Bai said with deep meaning, “What I mean is that my master is no longer with us, but when he was alive, he once told me that he had seen one of the most powerful weapons in Dynasty. It was a chest.”

Zhong Shuman was stunned. “Ah?”

Mr. Bai smiled again, though this time there was a touch of desolation in it. “Since my master dared to say that, he could not have been wrong. That is why I am so curious: what exactly was that weapon like? However, the thing my master described is not quite the same as what Brother Wu described. Since Brother Wu came up with this himself, if you do not mind, would you let me have a look at your design?”

“Of course.” Zhang He nodded. “Then please bring me some paper and a brush, Mr. Bai.”

Paper and a brush were soon brought over. Zhang He bent over the paper and began sketching with practiced ease. Zhong Shuman was surprised again. “I didn’t realize you were good at drawing too.”

Zhang He did not answer, fully absorbed as he moved the brush like lightning.

At first, Zhong Shuman watched with great interest, but gradually she began to feel dizzy and disoriented. It was not because Zhang He’s hand moved too fast, but because what he was drawing was like a doctor’s prescription: she had no hope of making sense of it. It was nothing but incomprehensible scribbles.

Mr. Bai was also watching intently from the side, his expression changing in step with Zhang He’s brush. At first it was admiration, then astonishment, then respect. Gradually his expression grew blank, then thoughtful, and at last he fell completely silent.

When Zhang He finally put down the brush, Zhong Shuman was utterly stunned. He had used no fewer than twenty-two sheets of paper. The drawings on them were bizarre beyond comparison, each one different from the next. Some showed many rods, some looked like planks, some resembled mechanisms with pulleys and springs, and others looked like flowerpots, windows, and all manner of shapes. No matter what these blueprints resembled, when put together they did not look like a weapon, much less a “chest.”

While Zhong Shuman was still muddled, Mr. Bai had already snatched up the papers and was examining them greedily and with utmost care, muttering to himself, “Come back in a few days, come back in a few days. I’ll study it properly, study it properly...”

As he spoke, he walked toward the inner room, as though he no longer considered the two of them worth paying attention to. Zhong Shuman did not know whether to laugh or to be angry. This man was truly obsessed with forging; he had become so entranced at the sight of a blueprint.

“Was that really the chest his master spoke of?” Zhong Shuman could not help asking.

Zhang He shook his head. “I’m not entirely sure either. I only studied it on the forum.”

“Really?” Zhong Shuman eyed him skeptically.

This time Zhang He did not answer. Zhong Shuman did not ask again either, because at that moment both of them heard hurried footsteps in the courtyard, and a voice had already called from outside. It was Fat Mantis, who had escorted them here and, not long after leaving, returned once more:

“Brother Wu, Miss Zhong, are you still here with Mr. Bai?”

Zhang He turned and saw Fat Mantis, drenched in sweat, rushing in with several disciples of Hidden Sword Manor.

“What is it?” Zhang He asked in surprise.

Fat Mantis panted for breath. “Brother Wu, the manor master asks that you both come up the mountain at once. He has urgent matters to discuss with you.”

Zhang He and Zhong Shuman exchanged a glance.

“Something’s happened?”