Who are you calling a stable boy?!

For example—

"I'm truly ashamed to have troubled you to come all this way, Lord Optimus Prime..."

The short, elderly man on the soft mop was facing Zheng Jing and was about to bow in respect.

"Oh no! No, no!"

With one finger pointing at the old man's shoulder, Zheng Jing shook him forcefully with his other hand.

"Old village chief, it's just a trip, no big deal. I never said I'd deliver to your door. Get up, get up!"

This old man is none other than Tetsuji Kawara Tetsujin, the current village chief of the Knife Craftsman Village.

The so-called Swordsmith Village, as its name suggests, is a village inhabited by craftsmen who forge Nichirin Blades specifically for the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen.

As one of the lifelines of the Demon Slayer Corps, the exact location of the village is a top secret. Even a Pillar-level swordsman who wants to go to the village must first submit an application to Kagaya Ubuyashiki and make a report before he can go.

"This... Lord Optimus Prime is truly kind-hearted, I admire him."

The old man lifted his masked face, sighed, and sat up straight again.

"As you probably know, each of the Pillar-level lords is assigned a dedicated craftsman. This craftsman is not only responsible for the initial forging, but also for subsequent maintenance, improvements, and other tasks."

"If it's your case, then Li should be in charge, and he should be the one to deliver it to you after it's finished forging, but..."

"problem occurs?"

Zheng Jing asked.

He came to this swordsmith village because after the Battle of Yu Guo, before he could say goodbye to Uzui Tengen who had brought his three wives, Kuroko brought him a message from Ubuyashiki Kagaya, telling him that his personal Nichirin Blade had been forged, but he would have to trouble him to make a trip to the swordsmith village in person.

Now it seems things aren't so simple?

"......well."

The village chief sighed.

"Let the child apologize to you himself."

-

"Lord Optimus Prime! I am truly ashamed to face you!"

Outside the workshop, Chang Yanli, who was kneeling on the ground, shouted loudly at Zheng Jing, who was walking towards him.

"What? You're too ashamed to see me? Don't all you swordsmiths wear masks all the time? Hey, get up, get up! What's going on?"

After helping him up a couple of times, seeing that Chang Yanli didn't move, Zheng Jingyi raised his eyebrows, grabbed Chang Yanli by the back of his collar, and lifted him up.

Chang Yanli was the craftsman sent by the swordsmith village to hear his forging requirements. According to the rules of the Demon Slayer Corps, he was Zheng Jing's personal craftsman.

"Even if it wasn't built properly, there's no need to kneel back and forth like that."

"But, but I, I..."

"Stand up straight!"

He slapped the burly man on the back, and the ripples rolled silently, making Chang Yanli, who was about to continue kneeling, stand up straight.

"What exactly happened?"

"...Please, please come with me. Um, could you please let me move a little first?"

He then pointed out the key point in Chang Yanli's waist, enabling him to regain control of his legs. Zheng Jing followed Chang Yanli into the workshop.

As soon as the curtain was lifted, a wave of heat rushed out and hit Zheng Jing's face.

However, this did not stop Zheng Jing from staring intently at the treasure with shining eyes.

In the center of the workshop, there was an iron frame taller than a person, and on the frame lay a stick as thick as Chang Yanli's forearm.

"Wow!"

Ignoring Chang Yanli, who was about to say something, Zheng Jing rushed over, circled the stick left and right, blinking his eyes that seemed to be shining.

"Isn't it all over now? I was worried something was wrong when I saw you and the old village chief acting like that!"

"This this--"

Chang Yanli buried his head.

"Lord Optimus Prime, you don't know this, this—this is a failed project!"

"Oh? How so? It looks really nice to me."

"Do you remember the request you made back then?"

"How could I forget? There are three things: it has to be hard enough, heavy enough, and preferably a long weapon. Although I can wield a variety of weapons, I still prefer a long weapon, hehe, it's easier to use!"

"After I noted down your requirements, I returned to carry them out. After much thought, the most suitable thing for your three requirements is probably a stick."

"Hmm? Not bad, this is pretty good! Sticks are great, and I, Old Zheng, am quite adept at using them!"

"But... but when I was forging this stick, I only thought about making it harder and heavier, and as a result..."

"Just what?"

"...and in this stick, all the remaining gorilla-red iron in the village was used."

With his head bowed lower and lower, Chang Yanli lamented, "As a result, not only has this stick become an unusable decoration, but for at least the next three months, the village probably won't be able to forge any new knives..."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Jing turned to look at Chang Yanli and scratched his cheek.

hiss......

He didn't know much about how much scarlet iron the swordsmith village could produce in a year, but how could he forge it to use up the entire village's stockpile on such a weapon?

However, thinking about it carefully, if someone can even create a flexible sword like the one made by Mitsuri Kanroji, then it's not surprising that Chang Yanli, who was once praised as a genius by the old village chief of the swordsmith village, could make such a stick...

Why do you say it's just for show?

As Zheng Jing spoke, he reached out and touched the stick.

The staff was forged entirely from gold and iron, with three metal rings, each about half the size of a human head, embedded at each end, clearly added to increase its weight.

"This club weighs 180 pounds; it's fine for building strength, but in a life-or-death struggle—"

Before Chang Yanli could finish speaking, Zheng Jing grabbed the 180-pound stick with his five fingers, lifted it casually as if he were picking up a pair of chopsticks from a table, and held the stick, which Chang Yanli had described as merely decorative, in his palm.

In an instant, a burst of crimson gold color erupted from the shaft of the staff!

The next moment, Zheng Jing not only lifted him up, but also started spinning him around!

In an instant, a gust of wind enveloped most of the workshop, startling Chang Yanli so much that his eyes widened, and froze the old village chief and his two young followers who had rushed in after hearing the commotion.

"Ha ha!"

With a twist of his arms, he stopped the stick, moving freely between stillness and movement. Standing in the dispersing hot air, Zheng Jing grinned and laughed, tilting his head back.

"My precious baby! My precious baby!"

Chapter 44: I'm a kind-hearted person, I can't stand seeing these things.

Hearing his high praise for the stick, the old village chief and his group finally came to their senses.

"Village...Village chief..."

Chang Yanli trembled all over, and his speech became incoherent again.

Half of me was scared, and the other half was genuinely excited.

"..."

The old village chief did not respond.

He looked at Zheng Jing, who was still happily examining the weapon in his hand.

Since he became a craftsman—no, since the Demon Slayer Corps suggested it—the heaviest weapon ever wielded in the village was the weapon of the current Stone Pillar, Gyomei Himejima.

Those were a meteor hammer and a hand axe connected by an iron chain.

Even so, that whole set only weighs about 100 pounds...

The tools for building strength and the weapons used in actual combat should not be confused.

"...Aren't you going to thank Lord Optimus Prime yet?"

The old village chief raised his hand and patted Chang Yanli's body.

"what--"

"Xiao Li! Your skills are truly amazing!"

Meeting Zheng Jing's sparkling eyes, Chang Yanli paused for a moment before speaking, "No, it is Lord Optimus Prime whose divine power is unparalleled."

"Hey, don't be modest!"

Zheng Jing was genuinely praising Chang Yanli.

Based on his previous experience browsing the exchange, this stick was already very close to being of blue quality.

-

Crimson Iron Rod (Green)

Quality: Premium

Weight: 90KG

特性

【Blazing Sun】: When killing undead or dark creatures, it can cause considerable additional damage and greatly suppress the regeneration ability of the target.

[Overwhelming Crushing Strike]: Upon hitting a target, there is a chance to trigger this effect based on the user's Strength attribute value. Once triggered, it deals an additional powerful shockwave damage to the target. When the target is an undead or dark creature, this shockwave damage ignores its biological resistance below the Transcendent rank.

-

"Ok?"

Zheng Jing suddenly frowned.

Seeing the change in Zheng Jing's expression, the old village chief and the others couldn't help but feel nervous, thinking that Zheng Jing had done something wrong with the stick that had finally found its owner.

However, before they could ask, Zheng Jing's brows relaxed again.

"That bastard's pretty quick. Could it be that there's something on me... oh."

As if suddenly remembering something, Zheng Jing suddenly raised his hand and gave his buttocks a light pat.

"ah!"

Immediately afterward, the old village chief and the others heard a girl's faint cry.

"Old village chief, could you please evacuate everyone in the village and find a safe place to hide for a while?"

With the stick slung over his shoulder, Zheng Jing walked straight out of the workshop.

"Don't worry, I'll be done before I can see the moon."

-

The sun sets in the west.

When the sun finally sinks completely below the horizon and night falls, only then do man-eating demons dare to bare their fangs at humanity.

"Hey, are you sure this is the right way?"

Hearing the question from behind, Gyutaro did not respond, but silently continued forward along the mountain path.

"hiss--"

A sharp whistling sound came from behind his head. Gyutaro ducked and narrowly avoided a knife aimed at the back of his neck.

"I don't have time to play these games with you."

Turning around, with his twin scythes in hand, Gyutaro stared at the arrogant new Upper Moon before him and said in a deep voice, "Don't waste my time!"

"Huh? Shouldn't I be the one saying that?"

Carrying a long sword, Kaigaku wore a mocking smile.

"You need to be careful about your attitude towards your superiors. Who knows when you might not even be Upper Moon Six anymore!"

"..."

Gyutaro was too lazy to argue with the guy in front of him.

This guy named Kaigaku was brought in by Kokushibo, one of the Upper Moons, a few days ago. He was originally a swordsman in the Demon Slayer Corps and was quite skilled. After Gyokko died, he also lost his sister. Since Kaigaku was allowed to join the Upper Moons, he naturally took Gyokko's place and became Upper Moon Five.