Chapter 5: The Blacksmithing Boy

Huo Yuhao looked at the bracelet handed to him, then glanced up and stared deeply at Zhu Lu.

However, Zhu Lu didn't notice the change in Huo Yuhao's expression. She quickly glanced at Dai Huabin nearby and pushed the bracelet closer to Huo Yuhao.

"You'd better move quickly. I might not be able to cover for you much longer."

"…"

Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and accepted the bracelet, his voice softening noticeably.

"Thank you. I'll return this to you next time we meet."

As the former God of Emotions, he was extremely sensitive to emotions. Even though his godly powers were now gone, he could still easily judge whether a six-year-old child was lying by observing their eyes and emotional state.

Her help wasn't just about the money. With the storage bracelet, he could pack his mother's belongings much faster and wouldn't need to carry a cumbersome bag as they left the Duke's Mansion.

Leaving the mansion was inevitable.

Even if he hadn't severely injured Dai Huabin, he couldn't let his mother stay here any longer. Once his Martial Soul Awakening was discovered by the Duchess, oppression was certain. Staying here would only lead to a repeat of the tragedies from his past life. Injuring Dai Huabin merely expedited his plans.

As for whether his mother would be willing to leave, he already had a plan. This time, no matter what it took—even if it meant deceiving her—he would ensure they left this place.

Only after Huo Yuhao's figure disappeared into the woods did Zhu Lu withdraw her gaze. She kicked a stone at her feet absentmindedly, but it unexpectedly bounced off a tree and hit Dai Huabin square in the head.

With a loud "thud," Dai Huabin jerked as if electrocuted, his injuries worsening as a result.

Zhu Lu was startled at first, but then she couldn't help but burst out laughing at the absurdity of the situation. Her lingering fear dissipated, replaced by a rapidly growing curiosity.

Who would have thought that her visit to the Duke's Mansion—where she had merely accompanied her mother and was coaxed into approaching this highly talented second son—would allow her to witness such a shocking scene?

The entire battle could only be described as overwhelming. A boy her age, without even a single spirit ring, had effortlessly defeated four guards. No one would believe it if she told them.

"What kind of person will he be the next time we meet?" she wondered.

…

Tianhun Empire.

Tian Dou City.

Over the course of ten thousand years, the landscape had changed significantly, but to honor the prosperity of the former Tiandou Empire, the Tianhun Empire had retained the symbolic name for its capital city.

In an unremarkable alley within the city stood a humble-looking blacksmith shop. The dilapidated sign, covered in dust, faintly displayed the words "Old Tang's Blacksmith Shop." Inside the shop were a few scattered suits of armor forged from refined iron and some well-crafted swords and knives.

A boy who appeared no more than five or six years old sat on the steps at the shop's entrance, staring blankly at the sparsely populated street in front of him. This boy was none other than Tang San, the former Enforcer of the God Realm, who had just triumphed in the political struggle of the gods, only to be betrayed by his son-in-law and dragged into a time vortex where both of them perished together.

Memories from his previous life flooded his mind. With his unparalleled wisdom and brilliant schemes, he had successfully won the power struggle against the God of Destruction. The God of Destruction, sensing an impending temporal anomaly that only Tang San could faintly detect, had sacrificed himself to protect the God Realm.

With the departure of the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life, all four senior members of the God Realm Committee, who had served longer than Tang San, were now gone.

A realm cannot remain leaderless for even a day. For the sake of the God Realm, Tang San had naturally taken on the responsibility.

Yet, just as he was about to fully assume control of the God Realm, his son-in-law, the God of Emotions, Huo Yuhao, had betrayed him at a critical moment, teaming up with the remnants of the God of Destruction's followers to launch a surprise attack on him!

Recalling this, a flicker of coldness appeared in Tang San's eyes.

"Huo Yuhao, I raised you as my successor, and you betrayed me for the sake of a mere spirit beast. Your ungratefulness is unforgivable—you've already sealed your fate!"

After merging with the memories of his current body, Tang San realized he had reincarnated back into the Douluo Continent, during the era ten thousand years before, when Huo Yuhao was still alive and active.

Whether by fate or coincidence, this body was also named Tang San. According to what his father had drunkenly muttered in his sleep, this name was given because his father had been bullied by his third-ranking brother in childhood. As a result, the father had named his son Tang San. But ever since Tang San was old enough to understand, he had suffered beatings and scoldings from his father.

His father in this life, Tang Ba, was once a member of the Clear Sky Clan. Ranked eighth among his peers, he was named Tang Ba. However, after violating the clan's rules, he became a sinner of the clan and was stripped of his spirit power before being banished.

Without his spirit power, Tang Ba could only rely on his Clear Sky Hammer martial soul to find work as a blacksmith in Tian Dou City. The neighbors referred to him as "Old Eight."

Normally, someone from the Clear Sky Clan would at least be decent at blacksmithing. While not becoming wealthy, with such skills, they should be able to make a living.

However, the problem lay with Tang Ba himself. Even though he had been banished from the Clear Sky Clan, he retained the pride typical of members of hidden, prestigious sects. In the first few years of running his blacksmith shop, he refused to take any orders for simple farming tools, only accepting requests to forge armor and weapons.

But armor and weapons were typically commissioned by the empire's military, and they had their own blacksmiths. Any overflow orders were quickly snatched up by better-connected blacksmiths, leaving none for Tang Ba, whose shop was tucked away in an obscure corner and had little reputation.

Moreover, this was now the age of soul tools. The Tianhun Empire had shifted its focus to soul tools, leaving armor and weapons less in demand. With fewer buyers, blacksmiths had to undercut one another on prices, making it difficult to earn much from forging armor or weapons.

In contrast, blacksmiths who could take on commissions to craft soul tool components could easily make a fortune. While blacksmiths couldn't craft the core arrays of soul tools, they could make the outer shells. With the empire pouring vast amounts of resources into soul tool development to keep up with the Sun Moon Empire, even a small slice of the market was enough for blacksmiths to earn a fortune.

However, as a staunch traditionalist from the Clear Sky Clan, which despised soul tools, Tang Ba refused to take any orders related to soul tools. In his drunken rages, he would even curse the Sun Moon Empire and soul tools in front of Tang San.

Just as Tang San was piecing together the memories of his six-year-old self, an angry voice echoed from inside the shop.

"Tang San! Where the hell are you? Get back here and eat!"

(End of Chapter)