Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

"Humph!"

The fight was over. Handsome Scorpion, who seemed to have found a sliver of inspiration during the battle, didn't refute. He just gave a cool snort, then turned and left. Staying here to listen to this middle-aged man's nonsense was less appealing than going back to update his own replica of the Ultimate Ten.10.0.

"Sigh! Kids these days are so hard to raise...! Don't look at me like that, you'll understand when you have kids. Now, let's talk about your performance just now. Uh... Mei Chuan, you did pretty well, fully utilizing the advantages of being from a wealthy family with many tricks up your sleeve. Your tactical arrangements were also reasonable. It's just that your ability to adapt to the situation needs improvement, but that's something that comes with experience, it's a minor issue. You'll improve with more practice. But your performance in puppetry was absolutely terrible! You're young, what's the biggest characteristic of young people? It's boundless creativity and innovation, but I didn't see any of that in you. If I had followed the swordsmanship of those samurai from the Land of Iron when I was young, would I be the eight-time World Ninja Master, the number one ninja of Sunagakure, the legendary Golden Lion? Following others' methods will ultimately lead to nowhere!"

Forgive me for being blunt, but your puppetry is far too rigid and disappointing. Although I don't know much about this stuff, you saw my nephew's iron lumps, didn't you? Before seeing those iron lumps, could you have imagined puppets could be played like this? No, right? "And you've been practicing puppetry for so many years, yet you're still just copying what your predecessors did. Times are changing, and young people must force themselves to improve and keep up with the times. Staying stagnant will only lead to being left behind. Your legs are already useless, and your biggest reliance is puppetry, so you need to work on that. First of all, since your chakra is needed to power your wheelchair, you don't need to rely on quantity like others. Otherwise, even if you learn the White Secret Technique and control ten puppets, you'll be defeated in a war of attrition. So five puppets are enough. What you need to consider is the puppets themselves. You've seen my nephew's puppets. Although you don't need to make them like Optimus Prime, you can borrow them. However, that special heavy metal isn't easy to obtain. Even if your Meichuan clan is rich, it's difficult to get it. I had a friend bring it from the other side of the map. Go back and discuss it with that old guy, Baidi, in Meichuan. Come back to me when you've decided. I'm not making a penny off you; I'm just bringing you a good deal..."

After Sasori left, Shinto began to offer his critique. As he discussed Meikawa Neiyi, he seemed to have discovered a way to make a fortune. He had no idea what kind of metal Sasori had bought; he'd only heard from Sasori's father that it was even rarer than chakra conductors. While it wasn't particularly useful, its scarcity made it expensive. Sasori's parents were high-income earners; ordinary puppet materials wouldn't have bankrupted them. However, ever since Sasori started researching the iron lump, his father, to support his son's dream, had bought up all the metal in the village, even on credit. This left them without money for groceries. Because of this, in Sunagakure, anyone with this metal could command exorbitant prices. Although he wasn't a shrewd businessman, he knew how lucrative a monopoly was, especially since it was a necessity for the Meikawa clan. Demand drives up prices! And coincidentally, he was born in the Year of the Leopard…

In short, Handsome Scorpion's dad won't need to ask him for money anymore. He always repays what he borrows, but this kid has never paid it back. Since they're brothers, he can't bring himself to ask him for it. That's why he hates borrowing money from others or lending money to others...

"...I have a feeling that Master Shinto is trying to sell something to make money off... Senior Umekawa..."

"Um...!"

Yusaku Kudo and Hakura, standing nearby, exchanged glances. "Shinto-sama's not having an easy time either; he's even started selling products online..."

"What are you saying? I was just doing someone a favor... and making a little extra money on the side. I didn't steal or rob anyone. There's nothing shameful about earning money through your own abilities!"

"Alright, alright, Mei Chuan, go back and think about your problem yourself. There's no rush. After our Ninja Madara is formed, you'll have a ton of daily tasks to complete. I estimate you won't be able to leave the village for at least a year. You have plenty of time to consider, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If my nephew comes up with any more brilliant ideas to upgrade his puppets, we might not have any left. So I think you should hurry up. Now, let's talk about your problems..."

.....-_-||

Kudo Yusaku and Yekura were speechless. They said they weren't doing it to make money off Umekawa-senpai, and even though they said they still had time, they urged him to hurry up.

Pah! Shameless... -_-

417. Go play with meat, you can make a name for yourself there.

I didn't expect that!

At that moment, the tall and majestic image of Lord Shinto collapsed in their hearts!

They all grew up listening to stories about Shinto. Although they didn't have any contact with this legendary figure when they were young, it didn't stop them from admiring and respecting him!

However, after meeting this man, they discovered that this legendary man was completely different from the tall and majestic figure they had imagined. The unkempt, seemingly unreliable middle-aged man in front of them was indeed the legendary Golden Lion.

The difference is just too big...!

"Don't interrupt, don't interrupt. These kids are so hard to please, they have no manners at all. Now let's talk about you two. First, little sister Yecang, you can't even distinguish between Fire Release and Scorch Release, which means you just awakened your skills not long ago. You're not quite used to switching between Fire Release and Scorch Release yet. You'll have to rely on yourself for that. After all, the last Scorch Release user was decades ago, practically your grandfather's generation. I haven't seen one, so I can't help you. But I've been in the ninja world for so many years, I've killed at least eight thousand, if not ten thousand. I can't teach you Fire Release and Scorch Release, but I can give you some advice. Your problem was that you didn't know how to coordinate with your two companions. As..." A ninja skilled in human ninjutsu but with a close-combat mentality is no good. You kept thinking about attacking my nephew's iron golem at close range to damage it, but as you saw before, your half-baked Fire Release and Scorch Release techniques couldn't harm my nephew's iron golem at all. Stubbornly persisting was ineffective. So at that moment, you shouldn't have been thinking about how to deal damage, but rather how you could help your two companions. A fight isn't a one-man show; you're a team. But just now, I really didn't see you as part of a team. Your role as a great mage was clearly not being demonstrated; instead, you seemed like an outsider, completely out of place with them..."

Masato, seeing the two kids' expressions, knew exactly what they were thinking. Before his mental image completely crumbled and a foundation remained, he quickly helped them rebuild it. Actually, he didn't know what he was saying, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that he was a successful person, and successful people's words always made sense. Those who didn't understand were simply not successful yet; once successful, they would understand...

"Yes! I understand, teacher!"

Although Yekura's clothing was quite daring, she was a rather rigid girl. While she didn't quite understand what the new teacher was trying to say, the teacher's words sounded very sophisticated. She figured her incomprehension stemmed from her own lack of understanding, just like her teacher had told them in school: if you don't understand something, try elevating your head with your pillow before bed and think about it; maybe you'll gradually understand...

"Yes, I admire children who are humble, eager to learn, and open to others' opinions the most."

"Then next up is you, Kudo. Your problem is serious. As the only one in the team capable of flanking and opening up the backline, your job is to coordinate with the two opponents while looking for opportunities to flank and cut off their backline. But you keep going head-to-head with the frontline. What are you doing? You think you can crush a pure tanky Iron Golem with your mortal eyes? There's a method to flanking. Is charging in like that flanking? That's just head-on fighting! Whether it's being a person or doing things, you need to be realistic and think outside the box. If you had circled around behind my nephew and cut off the connection between him and his Iron Golem, wouldn't that have been better? Remember, the Puppeteer's weakness is always himself. And your offensive methods are too one-dimensional. Although your intention to draw fire for your teammates is good..." "Yes, but if you're not strong enough, you'll only disrupt your teammates' rhythm. We already have mages and puppeteers in our class, we just need a naturally gifted tank. You have exceptional talent; you've managed to train your taijutsu to this level without using any expensive training equipment or nutrition. That definitely shows you're suited to be a taijutsu tank. Don't frown so easily. I told you to train taijutsu, not that I wouldn't let you learn ninjutsu. You need to learn ninjutsu, but everyone has limited energy; you can't excel in everything. Like me, even though I awakened Magnet Release, I haven't used it much since I officially took off at twelve. My swordsmanship is so amazing, why would I bother with Magnet Release? You're the same. With such great physical attributes, go for a tank build! You'll make a name for yourself!"

Masato turned around and carefully examined the boy who shared the same name as Conan's father. After a while, he said, "The name is the same, but I wonder if his intelligence is up to par. Conan's father is a great writer, the kind who never writes filler..."

He recognized the boy immediately; he definitely hadn't appeared in the original work, or was just a minor character. However, he wasn't lying; the boy's bone structure and muscle density were indeed much stronger than the other kids in the village. His long Achilles tendons indicated strong leg power, and his large hands meant big fists. If someone like that practiced basketball… ugh! If he practiced physical techniques, while he wouldn't reach the level of someone with the One Piece world buff, given the Eight Gates technique, he might not be able to open all eight gates like Might Guy, but opening seven would be no problem. At least his talent was much better than the future low-budget version of "Leonardo." That low-budget "Leonardo" was ridiculous; he only managed to open six gates after the flashback arc ended. He started off incredibly strong but became weak like a dog later, clearing minion waves with only six gates open during the Fourth Shinobi World War…

However, he also found it strange. There was no reason why Chiyo and Ebizo wouldn't have noticed such a genius in the original story. Moreover, this boy wasn't like Might Guy or his father, whose ninjutsu talent was practically zero. In the talent-scarce Sunagakure, anyone with talent would definitely stand out. With this boy's talent, he should have been a well-known ninja in the original story, right? He shouldn't be so unknown. Even Pakura only awakened the Scorch Release, and her talent was only about equal to this kid's. It was hard to say who would achieve more in the future. But Pakura even had her own flashback arc, while this boy didn't. That was just too much. Did that "Cobra" Kabuto Yakushi have some kind of preference for ninjas with bloodline limits? Or was this kid just too low-key, so low-key that Kishimoto had forgotten that Sunagakure even had such talent...?

But thinking about it, it seems possible. During the Fourth Shinobi World War, even the "Cobra" Kabuto Yakushi didn't summon Might Guy's father and White Fang, probably because they didn't have bloodline limits and were therefore looked down upon...

418. You're saying Fengying is too stingy.

The next day, Mato's team assembled. Mato, along with three spirited young men, stormed into the mission room. Normally, ninja academy graduates are assigned D-rank daily missions, which are things like cleaning, laundry, and cooking. However, no matter how talented you are, unless you're a newly promoted Chunin, you have to complete a certain number of D-rank missions before you can take on the next level, C-rank missions. This is a strict rule of the village. Mato, who debuted as a Chunin and skipped D-rank daily missions, was only able to do so because of special circumstances during a special era. Sunagawa is much more rigid than Shamon. If it were Sunagawa, he would definitely follow the rules and wouldn't let him skip the Genin and be promoted to Chunin directly.

Normally, a genin would complete three or four D-rank daily tasks every day. After about six months, they could take on C-rank missions and leave the village to explore the world. However, due to the recent massive layoffs in the village, there are now fewer ninjas and more missions, especially the low-paying D-rank missions, which are now overflowing. This generation of genin students is suffering. Pakura and Kudo Yusaku graduated more than two months ago. Based on the number of daily tasks they completed, they should have been able to take on C-rank missions and leave the village according to the old rules. Umekawa Nai-i, as a "veteran genin," had already accumulated enough experience. However, due to the layoffs, this year's genin students have to complete several times more daily tasks than before. If they continue with three or four D-rank missions a day, Pakura and Kudo Yusaku will have to do it for at least another six months. Umekawa Nai-i, who was already capable of taking on high-rank missions, is now stuck in a wheelchair, struggling to keep up with their daily tasks because of his two teammates. In Shinto's words, this is to cultivate teamwork and enhance their chemistry...

.......

"Samato-sama!"

"Samato-sama..."

As soon as the four stepped into the mission room, they attracted the attention of some of the ninja squads who had come to receive their missions. Some of the Jonin leading the squads also looked at the students behind their leader. The commotion a few days ago had been quite a spectacle, and even the peripheral members had heard about it. These Jonin, who were under the management of the Jonin squads, naturally knew that their leader, who had never worked before, was just as miserable as they were, having to come out and lead kids in public. They also wanted to see which lucky family would become their leader's students.

At first glance, the slightly older boy in the wheelchair, with the clan emblem on his clothes, already revealed his identity. Wasn't this the future successor of the Meichuan clan, the "culprit" who had caused the old patriarch of the Meichuan clan to be so furious when he met their greatest enemy?

Back then, because of this brat, the old patriarch of Meichuan almost had to sign a life-or-death contract with their boss on the arena. In the end, Fengying stopped him, otherwise they would have almost become sworn enemies. However, they were not too surprised that their boss took this brat as a student. Those who knew the inside story back then almost always believed that it was their boss's first three fires when he took office, and this brat was just unlucky enough to be burned by the first fire.

While it might seem unfair to commoners that the heir of this clan was being protected, it wasn't a major issue. Every family with the means would do the same. However, because of that incident, the heir of the Meichuan clan had been in decline for many years, remaining a low-ranking ninja even at fifteen or sixteen. This was indirectly caused by their eldest brother. So, when they saw this wheelchair-bound boy, they were only slightly surprised that the old Meichuan clan patriarch was willing to let his most favored grandson become a student of their enemy. There wasn't much of a surprise. Perhaps the eldest brother chose him to make up for the mistakes of the past, which was quite normal.

However, when they saw the other two boys, their curious eyes darted back and forth between Yekura and Kudo Yusaku. They knew that the Kazekage had asked their leader to come out and show his face because someone had awakened the Scorching Release technique that hadn't appeared in their village for many years. However, they really didn't know who had awakened the Scorching Release technique. Judging from their age, these two kids were probably just recent graduates and not from any big family. They really didn't know who had awakened the Scorching Release technique.

"Ah, you guys go about your business. Inoue, give me a few easy D-rank missions, maybe four or five. It's my first day on the job, so don't make it too tiring. Something like cleaning septic tanks will do..."

Bang....!

After casually waving to the Jonin, Shinto turned to the Sand Ninja sitting at the table with a pile of mission scrolls next to him.

No sooner had he finished speaking than a series of thuds came from the surrounding area.

The surrounding rookie ninjas scrambled to their feet, looking at the three behind Masato with a mixture of envy and pity, before turning their gaze to their Masato-sama with admiration. Masato-sama was truly extraordinary; cleaning a septic tank wasn't even that tiring...

"Lord Shinto, instead of staying home to teach your nephew, what brings you here? Come to think of it, I haven't seen you since we returned from the battlefield..."

The duty officer named Inoue was a Jonin who had fought in World War II and served under Shinto for a time. Unfortunately, he was knocked unconscious by Shinto's close proximity when Shinto unleashed his Conqueror's Haki. When he awoke, he had lost an arm. As for who took his arm, even Saori's father couldn't figure it out. Anyway, so many people were attacked back then—over three thousand were killed. It was a miracle anyone survived; who would bother investigating the killer? What if the investigation led to one of their own...?

Inoue knew that Shinto was a very easy-going person who didn't have the airs of a strong person and was easier to get along with than those powerful people. So when he heard the summons, he took out a mission scroll with a "D" written on it from the pile of mission scrolls next door and flipped through it while making a joke.

Cleaning the septic tank was out of the question. If he were to let these three students clean the septic tank, what would happen to him if these three brats took over in a few years? Besides, one of them was the next successor of the Meichuan clan. He didn't want to come home from get off work to find his head hanging over his head.

Although he retired from the Jonin class early after losing an arm, he still often heard gossip in the mission room, and his friends would also chat with him about it from time to time. The biggest news in the past few days was that their Jonin class leader, Shinto, was going to make a public appearance to teach students. It is said that the village's high-ranking officials almost had a full-blown fight at the Kazekage Tower in order to send their family's children to the class!

After all, everyone knows that becoming the top student is almost like being guaranteed a place in the top position, and becoming the family head doesn't necessarily guarantee a promotion. Who wouldn't want such an opportunity? And there are only two spots available, so it's no wonder people are fighting tooth and nail for them.

"Ha, come to think of it, I've been in this business for decades, and this is my first time in the mission room. Your environment is not bad, but the lack of air conditioning is a real drawback. You know, Feng Ying is too stingy. He stays in the office with the air conditioning on all day, but he doesn't think about the hard work of us low-level employees. He won't even install an air conditioner for us. After get off work, go to the logistics department and report it to them. Just mention my name..."

419. One must recognize reality.

"Haha...! I'll go right after get off work... Master Masato, these are the four tasks, don't tire the kids out too much on the first day.....-_-||"

Inoue chuckled and handed over the tasks he had selected, chuckling awkwardly. He dared not accept such a suggestion lightly; if the Anbu heard him, his boss would be fine, but he would be invited to the Anbu for a chat...

"Thank you so much, I'll come chat with you again another day..."

After taking the mission scroll from Inoue, Masato turned and left with the three kids.

"Teacher, you've never been to the mission room before? But the school textbooks say that you completed an S-rank mission right after graduation, didn't they?"

As the four of them left the mission room, Kudo Yusaku asked curiously, "After graduating as a ninja, the first thing you have to do is complete a certain number of D-rank missions with the Jonin in charge. This is common knowledge that every graduating student knows. But just now, their teacher said that he had never been to the mission room. If he hadn't been to the mission room, then where did this legendary S-rank mission come from?"

Yekura and Meichuan Neiyi also looked over. Although they had learned about this teacher's deeds in their textbooks, the records were not very detailed. They only recorded in a very one-sided way what major things the Golden Lion had done at what time. They did not know many of the details. Even Meichuan Neiyi, the heir of a wealthy family, did not know that their teacher had never been to the mission room.

"What's so strange about that? I've never been to the mission room, and frankly... I've never even done a mission below S-rank. When I was young, the village had only just been established, and many regulations were still in their infancy. It was also during the sensitive period when the battle between the Senju and Hashirama was about to erupt. Every village was preparing for war, including our Sunagakure. At that time, I was busy practicing swordsmanship, so I didn't take the graduation exam. Later, as the atmosphere of war intensified, my swordsmanship became quite proficient, so the Second Hokage directly summoned me to the Kazekage Tower and promoted me to Chunin, sending me with the current Third Hokage to the Land of Fire to carry out the only SSS-rank mission in the ninja world. Later, because I completed the mission perfectly and made an indelible contribution to the development of the village, the Second Hokage promoted me to Jonin. Then the Second Hokage passed away, and now the Third Hokage just sends me to the Kazekage Tower for any missions. That's how it's been. Looking back now, it's true that I missed out on a lot of fun by not experiencing these trivial missions all those years."

Shinto stroked his chin, reminiscing. What he realized was astonishing: his file was among the best in the ninja world. He had no A, B, C, or D-rank missions; they were all S-rank. He wondered if that old bastard Ebizo had written an SSS-rank for his first mission...

"...Sukko-ichi! No wonder the teacher hasn't been to the mission room! I wish I could be like the teacher!"

After hearing Masato's little story, Kudo Yusaku said with envy, "Which kid doesn't dream of making a name for themselves after graduation, becoming a great figure, the darling of the world, the only male protagonist in the ninja world? And Masato's little story is exactly the same as what they dream of. He completes several awesome S-rank missions as soon as he graduates, becomes the top dog, and reaches the pinnacle of life."

Although Yekura is a girl, her personality of always saying that girls are not as good as boys made her unable to help but fantasize after hearing this. However, being a more composed person, she did not show it like the big boy Kudo Yusaku.

"Stop daydreaming. Didn't the teacher say that it was a special era? And with our current strength, even if you were given an S-rank mission, you couldn't complete it. The mortality rate for every S-rank mission is as high as 95%, and you're almost always facing figures like the Hokage and Tsuchikage. If you don't have the teacher's strength, don't even think about it. Just focus on doing missions properly, and you'll have more opportunities in the future..."

The older Mei Chuan Neiyi was more pragmatic, or perhaps he had passed the age of indulging in fantasies. Seeing his two friends lost in envious daydreams, Mei Chuan Neiyi kindly brought them back to reality. Once upon a time, doted on by his grandfather and father, he too had indulged in such fantasies. He too had dreamt of debuting at his peak, beating the Sand Village's Golden Lion and kicking the Leaf Village's White Fang. However, after witnessing the cruelty of the ninja world, he realized that one must face reality. Past fantasies were merely illusions. Always thinking oneself the protagonist often leads to being nothing more than a supporting character or even just a passerby...

"Hey! Mei Chuan's words make perfect sense. It's good for people to have ideals and goals, and to work hard towards them. But don't be overly ambitious. Don't always think that you can kill the Hokage as soon as you debut. You have to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. It's stupid to shout that you want a 20 million annual salary as soon as you debut. Even LeBron James wouldn't be that arrogant... Let's go, be honest and work hard as ordinary people. Quietly working hard and then amazing everyone is your only way out...!"

"boom!"

Shindou looked at Meikawa Nei with admiration, raising his eyebrows. To be honest, he now seriously doubted whether this kid was actually the offspring of his nominal father, or even the Meikawa clan. His level of thinking and maturity was clearly a level above that old guy Meikawa Hakuchi, and he didn't have the bad traits of the Meikawa clan. The probability of this double negative effect appearing in genetics was too low. How many years did it take for the Uchiha clan, the main character clan, to produce Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi? The Meikawa clan didn't have that kind of opportunity either!

Quack quack...

After giving a pep talk, Masato handed the mission to Umekawa Nei-i and then turned into a puff of smoke, leaving behind three people with a flock of crows above their heads.

He wasn't stupid enough to play house with three kids all over the village. Creating a clone to accompany them to the mission room was just to let people know that these three were under his protection. Inoue would give them some face when giving them missions. Actually, with Umekawa Nai-i leading the way, there wouldn't be any problems in the village. In the village, sometimes the Umekawa clan's word was much more effective than his own Golden Lion...

"Let's go, we have four tasks today. -_-||"

Mei Chuan Neiyi, with a black line on his forehead, said to his two friends who were somewhat energized by the "working class spirit," that he knew his teacher quite well and was wondering why this teacher, whom the family elders called unreliable, would have the leisure to accompany them in doing daily tasks...

That's more like it!

420. Handsome Scorpion: We can't go head-to-head with that bastard right now.

"Eh? Chief Meichuan, I'm so sorry for not greeting you properly. What happened to your leg...? Someone tripped you up? (⊙_⊙)?"

With his clone's memories restored, he had no time to let the kids show up in the village. After all, he was a big shot now, and he needed to maintain a certain level of prestige. Besides, he cared more about the three kids in the village than he did about Sunagawa and Ebizo, so nothing bad was likely to happen to them.

Just as he was about to have breakfast and see how much his nephew had learned from yesterday's PK with the three brats, the sudden visit of Mei Chuan Neiyi's father, the clan chief, surprised him greatly. He had just finished promoting the product yesterday and thought the old man would come in a few days. He was quite surprised by how much the old man valued his youngest son. He knew that the competition in wealthy families was fierce, and Mei Chuan Neiyi wasn't an only child. His father, the clan chief, had several sons under his command. So, generally speaking, it wouldn't be a big problem to give up on a son with a disability. Even if he had once been optimistic about him, things were already like this, and he couldn't help but give up. Hope lay in tomorrow, and he could try harder to have another genius.

And he even limped in, looking like he hadn't even fully recovered from being tripped, showing how much this old man values ​​his youngest son—almost like a biological father! However, the saying that the biggest enemy in a ninja's professional career isn't the opponent but injuries is absolutely true. Look at his knee, swollen like a head; that was a serious injury. Even if it heals, his performance won't be what it used to be. A big contract is out of the question; he'll be lucky to get a basic salary contract...

"Ahem, I slipped and fell while walking at night the other day, but it's nothing serious. Lord Masato, I'm here because of my son. He told me that you have a special metal that can be used to make puppets. He's been thinking about it ever since his duel with Sasori. I wonder if you could spare some for me, Lord Masato? Don't worry about the price, Lord Masato, it will definitely satisfy you..."

Mei Chuan's father seemed unwilling to discuss his foot injury, forcibly changing the subject with a laugh. After all, it wasn't a glorious thing for the head of the Mei Chuan clan to kneel on durians in front of his own father.

He had several sons, and more than one of them was outstanding. However, like most parents, he doted on his youngest son, who did not disappoint him. From a young age, his son displayed exceptional talent, gaining recognition not only from his clan but also from his father. Therefore, he always placed high hopes on his youngest son. Even when his son lost a leg and his future seemed ruined, he continued to care for him without wavering. When his son wanted to switch to puppetry, he did everything he could to find him more puppetry knowledge, hoping to help him recover. Seeing his son drifting further and further away from the position of leader because of his missing legs, he even risked being hit by durians to join the competition for the spot in the True Fighting Student competition for his son's future. Although his father later made him kneel on durians, he felt it was all worth it because his son's future was secure.

Last night, after his youngest son came home, he told him about the steel golem Scorpion and how he couldn't stop thinking about it. However, he didn't say anything to his son. But no one knows a son better than his father. He had never seen his youngest son so eager for something. So that night, he made up his mind to risk kneeling on durians again the next day to make a deal with the Gong Lie clan and give his son a surprise when he came home.

"?? My son?... Clan Chief Meichuan, you mean Neiyi, right? Ugh, you people always like to nitpick over words, it's really unpleasant to listen to. Buying those metals is no problem, Neiyi is my disciple now, and I'm not like your father. I don't hold grudges. These metals aren't very expensive, but they're extremely rare. Scorpion has already used up a lot, and there's not much left. So, selling too many won't work, you know Scorpion is on the path of reform and innovation. If he doesn't have the materials for mending later, he won't be able to manage. Neiyi only needs five puppets; his body can't handle too much. Five puppets... wait, let me calculate... At Neiyi's current level, five puppets weighing twenty jin is just right. If he adapts later or his strength increases and he wants to gain weight, then we can buy more. But the price will be calculated by the jin... Alright! Nephew, bring twenty jin of your metal to Clan Chief Meichuan! ヾ(^Д^*)/"

Before Zhen Dou could finish speaking, the Mei Chuan clan chief clapped his hands, and two of the Mei Chuan clan's underlings carried in a large box with difficulty.

Upon seeing the large box, without saying a word, he immediately shouted at the handsome scorpion in the toy house. Regardless of what was inside the box, the sheer volume of gold dust alone would be enough to make a profit. Moreover, the Meichuan clan was a prominent family in the village and would not stoop so low as to trade with them using the cheapest gold dust.

“(▼he▼me)....I’ll kill this bastard one day.”

In the toy house, the handsome scorpion was replaying yesterday's battle in his mind. Reviewing the past helps one learn anew. It had become an instinct for him to review the previous battle after each fight in order to find his own shortcomings and correct them. He had already found his own shortcomings several times and was about to reach the end.

The sound from outside interrupted his thoughts. He had completely forgotten the shortcomings he had identified earlier, and all his time that morning had been wasted. Handsome Scorpion was furious, but his past experience told him that he couldn't take down this bastard right now. Going head-on would only cost him his face, and the funding for the Iron Giant research would also be at risk. So he forced himself to suppress his raging anger and carried the twenty-odd pounds of iron out of the room.

"These metals are exceptionally hard and require very high temperatures to melt. During the manufacturing process, try to minimize the impact on critical areas..."

Handsome Scorpion, expressionless, carried the iron lump to Chief Meichuan. Regardless of whether Chief Meichuan could understand him, he began to rattle off various precautions for making puppets with this heavy metal, along with all sorts of technical terms that Zhendou couldn't understand.

"Scorpion is getting more and more powerful. Thank you so much."

Whether the Meichuan clan chief truly understood or not, he smiled and nodded at the handsome scorpion after taking the lump of iron.