"Really not?"Yang Long asked in a deep voice. He wanted to forge a dragon-patterned spear identical to his martial soul. It wasn't that he needed Tang San to serve him specifically, but he wondered if he could fuse his martial soul with a real spear to enhance its quality.
As a transmigrator, he naturally knew about battle armor. Although it hadn't appeared in this era yet, he believed that by refining a real spear using his martial soul, he could strengthen it and then absorb the weapon into his body.
If Tang San knew of this idea, he would only regard it as wishful thinking.
A martial soul was a martial soul; metal was metal. Battle armor could be absorbed into the body only because the metal used had to be at least soul-forged, infused with a faint spiritual light. Moreover, it required precise soul guidance patterns that could channel soul power and connect into larger formations.
Alternatively, it could be directly nurtured by divine power to become a semi-divine artifact.
At the very least, it had to be four-word battle armor.
If one used ordinary hundred-forged or even thousand-forged metal to forge a spear without embedding sealed soul guidance patterns, it would be impossible for Yang Long to succeed.
Still, by using his martial soul alongside a real weapon, a Soul Master might deepen their understanding of their martial soul and increase their cultivation speed.
After all, this could simulate a form of cultivation practice, albeit a highly specialized one.
Tang San was currently capable of thousand-forging, but Yang Long couldn't afford the cost. The price for thousand-forged iron was already high, and forging a spear from it would be even more expensive.
Not to mention, spears were classified as contraband.
"It really won't work, guest,"Shopkeeper Li said with some helplessness."From your accent, it sounds like you're not local. You must've seen many Soul Masters and commoners. Other than the Spirit Hall, the Heaven Dou Empire, the Star Luo Empire's knights, soldiers, or those whose martial souls are spears, who else carries a spear?"
"Maybe some blacksmith shops will forge one for you if the price is right... but ours won't. I have many apprentices here—I have to be responsible for them."
Yang Long was silent for a moment before asking,"Are there any other blacksmith shops here?"
"No. Nuoding City only has mine,"Shopkeeper Li replied."I suggest you forge weapons like daggers or short knives. They're much more effective for soul hunting and self-defense. Spears are too cumbersome in the forest."
"Forget it, then." Yang Long shook his head and looked at Tang San."This one looks young, but he should be the best blacksmith here, right? What's your name? Can you privately forge a spear for me?"
"His name is Tang San. He's a student at Nuoding Academy. His forging skills are the best here—he's not an apprentice," Shopkeeper Li explained, then added a pointed warning."But guest, spears really can't be made. If you drag him into this and he's caught by the Spirit Hall or the City Lord's Mansion, the consequences won't be small."
Yang Long ignored the shopkeeper and looked directly at Tang San.
"Another one," Tang San sighed inwardly, then replied,"I don't accept private commissions. That's taboo in any industry. It's obvious you don't have much experience dealing with people. Even if you wanted me to forge it, you'd have to wait until I left and approach me in private, right? By asking so publicly, even if I could forge it, I can't anymore. If trouble comes, I'd be the first suspect."
Shopkeeper Li sighed in relief upon hearing that, and the other apprentices looked pleased as well.
The corners of Yang Long's mouth twitched. He didn't know what to say. After a moment, he said,"My martial soul is the Dragon Pattern Spear. It doesn't matter whether I hold a real spear or not, does it?"
"It matters," Tang San shook his head."Maintaining a martial soul consumes soul power. A real spear can exist permanently, and anyone can use it. That's a fundamental difference. If you lose the spear and someone else picks it up, I'd still be implicated."
"No, just forge it heavier. Make it more than a hundred catties—others won't be able to lift it. My strength is pretty high," Yang Long argued. He had taken medicinal baths since childhood and had developed considerable physical strength.
"More than a hundred catties?" Tang San shook his head."I have to say, guest, you really don't understand weight. Even if you have a thousand catties of strength, the optimal weight for a weapon you can wield over time is ten catties—maybe less. Anything over twenty is pushing it."
"Otherwise, what's the point of simply being able to lift it?""If you just want to train your strength, use dumbbells."
This was reality, not a game. Even with a thousand catties of strength, you couldn't use a thousand-catties weapon in real combat.
Even Tang San himself, in the original work, only wielded a Sea God Trident that weighed one hundred and eight catties. The terrifying might it displayed came from its enchanted weight of 108,000 catties—not its base mass.
If a person could use a weapon equal to their total strength, it would be time to wonder if they were living in someone else's dream.
"If you really want a spear weighing over a hundred catties, even with a thousand catties of strength, it wouldn't be for combat—it'd be for training. I think the heaviest practical weight for you is about fifty catties."
Tang San continued,"After all, a thousand catties of strength is a burst state, not a constant one, right?"
Yang Long was speechless. Tang San's logic was sound, and in truth, he didn't yet possess a thousand catties of strength. Without using soul power, he could lift nearly nine hundred catties, but hadn't fully reached the threshold.
If he really wielded a hundred-catty spear, it would become a liability—just as Tang San had predicted.
Weight training had its place, but if mishandled, it could leave hidden injuries that went unnoticed. That risk wasn't worth it.
Back in the clan, with Yang Wudi overseeing things, there was no problem. But here, outside, he had no one to monitor his condition. He wouldn't even know if something went wrong internally.
"Alright. I want a fifty-catty spear. Can you forge it?" Yang Long decided to listen to the protagonist's advice.
"No. Like I said, spears are contraband," Tang San shook his head.
"Even one used just for practice? You can't forge that either?" Yang Long frowned, his tone sharpening.
"That's a different matter. After all, we have to consider commoner children whose martial souls are spears," Tang San adjusted his response."However, guest, you'd need to register with the Spirit Hall first, then go to Nuoding City's Lord's Mansion to file with the City Lord. You need a dual certification—two seals on your martial soul certificate."
Yang Long was stunned."That complicated? Can commoner Soul Masters with spear-type martial souls even get those seals?"
"The Spirit Hall's stamp isn't hard to get. But the City Lord's seal? That's another story. It usually requires gifts. Most commoner children never even get to see the City Lord," Tang San sighed."But with the Spirit Hall's stamp alone, they can at least use wooden spears—enough for students in the primary Soul Master Academy. If they become Soul Masters before graduating, it shows they have talent, and the City Lord won't make things difficult for them."
Yang Long: "······"