The eastern end of Magnolia Town.
The air was thick with the pungent smell of sulfur and charcoal.
The further east one went, the fewer pedestrians there were on the stone-paved road, replaced instead by piles of discarded gears, broken Sword blades, and rusted armor fragments lining the sides of the alleys.
Aether stopped in front of a shop without a sign.
The storefront was very narrow, lacking even a proper door, with only a half-length of tattered coarse cloth hanging as a curtain.
Behind the curtain, the dull sound of rhythmic hammering mixed with the roar of bellows, vibrating the walls so much that plaster was flaking off.
“This is the place.” Aether pulled the slip of paper Makarov had given him from his pocket.
Paimon emerged from the Akasha, covering his nose as he floated in mid-air: “What a choking smell!
Traveler, are you sure that old man said it was here?
It looks like a scrap yard.” Aether ignored Paimon’s complaints, lifted the curtain, and walked inside.
A wave of heat hit him in the face.
The interior of the shop was much more spacious than it appeared from the outside.
In the center was a massive furnace, the fire burning brightly, flames licking the crucible hanging above.
Beside the furnace, a man stood with his back to the door, swinging a hammer larger than half his body, slamming it heavily onto an anvil.
Sparks flew everywhere.
The man was tall, at least two meters, shirtless, with knotted muscles all over.
His skin was roasted red by the furnace fire and covered in burn scars of various sizes.
“Mr.
Ridasu?” Aether spoke up.
His voice sounded somewhat thin amidst the hammering.
The man didn’t stop.
The hammer fell again, producing a deafening roar.
“Master Makarov sent me.” Aether raised his volume.
The hammer stopped in mid-air.
The man turned around.
He had a mess of shaggy red hair, a chin full of stiff stubble, and wore a scratched monocle over his right eye.
He looked Aether up and down, his gaze lingering for two seconds on Aether’s not-so-broad shoulders and fair arms.
“The old man sent you?” Ridasu tossed the hammer onto the ground with a dull thud.
He grabbed a dirty towel from around his neck to wipe his sweat and extended a large, calloused hand, “Give me the note.” Aether handed over the slip of paper.
Ridasu took the note, scanned it, and let out a cold laugh.
“The old man says he wants me to teach you blacksmithing.” Ridasu crumpled the note into a ball and tossed it into the furnace.
“He also said you’re an interesting freak and asked me to be patient with you.” He walked up to Aether, looking down at him with a heavy sense of pressure.
“I don’t take apprentices.
And I don’t teach useless people.” Ridasu’s voice was hoarse.
“Mages should be off studying how to cast magic.
Why come to my forge to get covered in soot?” “I need a weapon.” Aether looked Ridasu straight in the eye, not backing down an inch.
“Go buy one.” Ridasu pointed toward the door.
“There are three weapon shops in the town center.
Whatever longswords or short knives you want, you can buy them with a bit of money.
Don’t bother me.” “Those won’t do,” Aether said.
Ridasu narrowed his eyes.
“Oh?
Looking down on mass-produced scrap metal?
Then what kind of magic weapon do you want?
A staff that can amplify the fire element?
Or a magic crystal Sword that can store lightning?” “None of those.” Aether replied calmly.
“I want to forge it myself.” The weapons provided by the system’s gacha would only be blueprints and materials.
He had to master forging techniques to manifest Teyvat’s weapons in this world.
Furthermore, ordinary craftsmen simply couldn’t understand the structure and elemental conduction logic of those weapons.
He had to do it himself.
Ridasu looked at Aether and suddenly grinned.
That smile held a hint of mockery and fanaticism.
“Kid, blacksmithing isn’t a game.
With those thin arms and legs of yours, can you even swing a hammer?” “I won’t know until I try.” Ridasu turned, walked to a weapon rack in the corner, pulled out a rusted iron Sword, and threw it at Aether’s feet.
“For the old man’s sake, I’ll give you a chance.” Ridasu crossed his arms.
“What weapon do you want to forge?
Let’s hear it.
If your idea interests me, I’ll teach you.
If you can’t give me a good reason, get lost immediately.” Aether looked at the iron Sword on the ground as the weapon categories from the Genshin system surfaced in his mind.
“Five types.” Aether held up one hand.
“Which five?” “Sword, Claymore, Polearm, Bow, and Catalyst.” Aether clearly stated these five terms.
Ridasu froze for a moment, then his brow furrowed deeply.
“I’ll give you the Sword and Claymore, but a Polearm?
A spear?
A halberd?
Or a staff?” Ridasu stared at him.
“And a Bow?
What Mage uses a bow nowadays?
Isn’t firing a magic bolt faster than shooting an arrow?
The most ridiculous one is the Catalyst—you call a Catalyst a weapon that is ‘forged’?
Aren’t Catalysts usually wood-carved staves or crystal balls?” Paimon hopped anxiously in mid-air: “Traveler, you won’t be able to explain it to him!
Teyvat’s Catalysts are precision instruments that can float beside you and automatically guide elemental power!” Aether didn’t look at Paimon, but kept his eyes on Ridasu.
“Polearms focus on the balance between piercing and sweeping, while Bows require extreme tension and elemental conductivity.
As for Catalysts—” Aether paused, “they aren’t pieces of wood to be held in the hand.
They are a combination of metal and crystal that can hover, automatically resonate with the caster’s magic, and even alter the form of that magic.” A glint of light reflected off Ridasu’s monocle.
His expression changed.
From initial disdain, it turned into the scrutiny of someone encountering the unknown.
“A hovering metallic combination?” Ridasu rubbed the stubble on his chin, muttering to himself.
“That would require extremely high-level gravity magic circle engraving, plus micro-carving techniques for magic crystals…
Kid, where did you hear such an impractical concept?” “It’s not a concept,” Aether said.
“It’s a blueprint.” “You have blueprints?” Ridasu suddenly stepped forward, his eyes widening like copper bells.
“Not yet.” Aether remained unfazed.
“But I will soon.
Before that, I need to master basic forging techniques.” Ridasu stared intensely at Aether.
He saw no trace of a joke in the young man’s eyes.
There was only an extremely pure, cold determination to achieve his goal by any means necessary.
“Madman,” Ridasu muttered.
He turned around, walked to the furnace, and picked up the massive hammer again.
“The old man was right, you really are a freak.” Ridasu spoke with his back to Aether, his voice carrying over the roar of the bellows.
“I’ll teach you.
But I set the rules.
Come here every morning to do chores, starting from ore selection, charcoal burning, and pulling the bellows.
Unless I tell you to touch a hammer, you don’t touch one.” “Fine.” Aether nodded.
“Start with the basics.” Ridasu turned his head to look at him.
“Of the five you mentioned, which will you learn first?” Aether didn’t hesitate.
“Sword.” It was the most basic weapon form and the combat style he currently needed and was most adapted to.
In Bennett’s combat memories, the slashes and thrusts of a Sword were already etched into his muscles.
He needed a Sword, a Sword that truly belonged to him.
As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of golden light suddenly crossed Aether’s vision.
A pale gold translucent panel appeared out of thin air, blocking the light from the furnace.
Paimon’s excited voice rang in his ear: “A quest has been triggered!
Traveler!” Several lines of clear text appeared on the panel: [Novice Guide Quest Triggered: Tempered into Steel] [Quest Objective: Learn basic forging techniques in the blacksmith shop and successfully forge a common-grade Sword independently.] [Quest Progress: 0/1] [Quest Rewards: Primogem ×50, Sword · Dull Blade (Blueprint), Dull Blade Exclusive Forging Materials (Rough Iron Ore ×10, Damaged Hilt ×1)] Aether’s breath hitched slightly as he looked at the rewards on the panel.
The Dull Blade.
The most basic weapon of the Teyvat continent.
In that world, this Sword couldn’t even cut a Slime; it was the lowest-tier trash in a player’s inventory.
But in this world, it was not only the key to the first materialized weapon issued by the system, but also the critical test to see if Teyvat’s weapons could withstand elemental reactions.
Yesterday’s Overloaded explosion had made him realize that ordinary objects simply couldn’t withstand the violent conflict between two elements.
When Laxus’s lightning collided with his flames, the surrounding turf and trees were instantly turned to ash.
If he used an ordinary iron Sword to conduct infused fire elements, the blade would likely Melt the moment it struck an enemy.
He needed Teyvat’s materials.
Even the most basic ones.
“What are you dazing off for?” Ridasu’s gruff voice interrupted Aether’s thoughts.
The blacksmith pointed to a mountain of black ore piled in the corner.
“Go, move those Black Iron Ores to the water trough and wash them clean.
Then categorize them by size.
If you’re not done by noon today, don’t expect to eat.” Aether withdrew his gaze, and the panel faded from his vision.
He walked to the ore pile, bent down, and picked up a piece of Black Iron Ore weighing dozens of pounds.
It felt extremely heavy.
The rough surface rubbed against the skin of his palms.
Although Bennett’s physical stamina had allowed him to finish twenty laps, the muscle soreness was now starting to kick back.
With every exertion, his arms trembled slightly.
“Traveler, are you okay?” Paimon flew around him worriedly.
“I’m fine,” Aether said softly.
He took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing rhythm, and moved the ore to the water trough.
One piece, two pieces, three pieces.
Sweat soon soaked his clothes again, flowing from his forehead into his eyes; the stinging sensation forced him to blink frequently.
Ridasu stood by the furnace, hammering while observing Aether out of the corner of his eye.
He had expected this soft-skinned kid to complain of exhaustion after moving a few pieces, or simply give up.
But he found that although Aether’s movements were getting slower, his rhythm remained exceptionally steady.
No complaints, no pauses, just like a precision machine that had been wound up.
“Interesting,” Ridasu thought to himself.
Two hours later.
The last piece of Black Iron Ore was washed clean and neatly stacked by the water trough.
Aether straightened up, shook his aching arms, and walked over to Ridasu.
“Washing is done.
The categorization is finished too.” Ridasu stopped his hammer and went over to inspect.
The ore had been divided into three piles by size and purity, perfectly organized.
He turned to look at Aether, a hint of genuine recognition appearing in his eyes.
“Good stamina.
And meticulous work.” Ridasu walked to the anvil, picked up a slightly smaller iron hammer, and tossed it to Aether.
Aether reached out and caught it.
The handle had the oily feel of long-term use, and the weight was still significant.
“Watch closely.” Ridasu used tongs to pull a red-hot iron billet from the furnace and placed it on the anvil.
“Blacksmithing isn’t about brute force.
It’s using your waist, your back, and every inch of muscle in your body to feel the breath of the iron.” Ridasu raised his large hammer and slammed it down.
“Clang!” Sparks flew.
“This is the first strike, shaping.” “Clang!” “Second strike, removing impurities.” Ridasu’s movements were fluid, and every strike landed with absolute precision.
The glowing iron billet rapidly changed shape under his hammer.
“Your turn.” Ridasu stepped back, yielding the position.
Aether walked to the anvil and gripped the hammer handle with both hands.
In his mind, the memories of Bennett swinging a Sword surged again.
Although it wasn’t blacksmithing, the core logic of power exertion was the same.
Lowering his center of gravity, twisting his waist, the power transferred from his legs to his spine, and finally flowed through his arms into the hammer.
Aether raised the hammer.
The moment he was about to strike, he suddenly felt the residual fire element in his palm unconsciously spreading down the hammer handle.
The surface of the hammer took on a faint, dark-red glow that didn’t belong to the furnace fire.
Ridasu’s monocle flashed, and his pupils constricted instantly.
“Wait—” “Clang!” The hammer slammed heavily onto the glowing iron billet.
An incredibly dull, yet strangely resonant boom erupted within the workshop.
No sparks flew from the surface of the iron billet.
Instead, that ordinary black iron billet, under this single strike, weirdly absorbed all the heat, and fine golden patterns like flowing lava appeared on its surface.
The air temperature suddenly dropped by half a degree.
Ridasu stared fixedly at the iron billet on the anvil, his Adam’s apple bobbing violently.
“You kid…” Ridasu’s voice trembled slightly, “What…
did you just do?”