Chapter 23: Blacksmith Guild

Sinuoli nodded. He stood up and called out to the guards outside the door. Soon, five of the Anvil Guards who were in the middle of their daily training were separated out, and together with the four guards brought by Aunt Sonia, they escorted the aunt and nephew out of the Clan residential area.

Because they also needed to use the underground magma as a heat source, the Blacksmith Guild, like the Rune Smith Guild, was located in the lower levels of the Shanbao.

Passing through winding corridors and downward-moving lifts, the group gradually went deeper. As the temperature rose and the clanging sound of forging hammers striking steel became clearer, Sinuoli knew they were nearing the Blacksmith Guild.

Before long, the view suddenly opened up, and Sinuoli saw a building even more magnificent than the Rune Smith Guild hall and his own Clan's hall.

On both sides of the main gate stood two giant statues, as before. On the left was the Father God Grungni, who presided over mining and forging, and on the right was Sidemunier, the god of ore forging and the son of Him and the Mother Goddess Valaya.

The statue of Grungni was not wearing armor; He was bare-chested in a pose of roaring at the sky, His right hand brandishing a Forging Hammer, and His left hand holding a pair of iron tongs. The statue of Sidemunier was in a crouching posture; judging by the action, he was operating the bellows for his father.

The arched gate of the guild was engraved with the blacksmith's emblem—a pair of crossed Forging Hammers and iron tongs. Ancient tradition held that this emblem was designed and engraved by Grungni Himself, containing infinite divine power.

Walking through the gate, Sinuoli discovered that the layout of the hall was quite similar to the Rune Smith Guild, both fanning out from a central magma vent.

Compared to the Rune Smith Guild, the number of Dwarfs working here was several times greater, and there were almost no idle forging tables. Sonia ignored the shouts of blacksmiths along the way trying to solicit business, and she led the group straight to a workshop with a stone-armor emblem printed on the door.

A young Apprentice soliciting business at the entrance of the workshop saw Sonia walking over and shouted into the room: "Master! Master! Someone from the Clan is here!"

"Coming, coming!" Accompanied by a clattering sound, a middle-aged Dwarf with a bare chest and an apron walked out. His face was flushed red from the furnace fire, and as he walked, he shook the water droplets off his hands, evidently having washed his face before coming out.

"It's you, Sonia, an old acquaintance. Come in and sit for a while!" As he spoke, his gaze shifted to Sinuoli, who was standing behind Aunt Sonia, and then his gaze fixed on the emblem on Sinuoli's chest.

"This must be, must be the legendary Chosen of the Goddess, right?" The Dwarf asked uncertainly. After receiving an affirmative reply, he was stunned for a moment before exclaiming:

"Grungni taught us that if you want to accomplish a great cause, you must start when you have just grown a beard," he paused, "so many people haven't even started yet, and you have already achieved such high accomplishments! Respected Chosen of the Goddess, your arrival makes my humble workshop shine! Is there anything..."

"I say, Brother Fire-Coal, if you put your talent for talking into smithing, you would have been elected Vice President of the Guild long ago!" Aunt Sonia unleashed her sharp tongue to the fullest.

She turned to Sinuoli, "This is a Master blacksmith cultivated by our Clan. Although he has some real skill, he cannot settle his heart. The Clan has lobbied for him twice in a row, but he wasn't elected Vice President of the Blacksmith Guild, and a lot of resources were wasted! The standard-issue equipment in the Clan is all produced by him. You should get to know him; if you plan to form your own troops in the future, you will definitely need to find him!"

Aunt Sonia rattled off a long string of words. Her talkativeness was not only rare among female Dwarfs, but even if one counted the male Dwarfs who were good at muttering, she could still firmly rank among the best, which was no wonder she had the nickname of "the eloquent one."

"I was so busy blathering that I almost forgot the main business! The Clan wants to form an Anvil Guard for Sinuoli, and we are still short ten sets of Meteorite Armor. Please expedite it for us!"

"Easy, easy, I will definitely cut the line for our own Clan's business. Top-quality Meteorite, you two can rest assured!" Master Fire-Coal agreed repeatedly.

Seeing this, Aunt Sonia nodded with satisfaction, "Mm, the old rules, put it on the tab and settle it at the end of the year. You hurry up and get to work, we have other things to do, so we won't disturb you anymore!" The group left the workshop with the sound of Master Fire-Coal shouting, "Apprentices, light the furnace! We have an urgent job!" echoing in their ears, and continued walking toward the deepest part of the hall.

Passing by several independent workshops of Master blacksmiths in succession, Sinuoli finally gained a deep understanding of the prosperity of the Blacksmith Guild.

Sonia stopped in front of the workshop at the very back. "Please announce us, just say that people from the Drazkrad Clan are here to see you!" she said to the receptionist sitting at the door.

Judging by the calluses on the hands and the steady pace, Sinuoli determined that this receptionist Dwarf sitting at the door should also be a formal blacksmith with a decent level of skill.

The Stone Armor Clan had ruled Eternal Peak for thousands of years, so naturally, they would not be turned away. Aunt Sonia's actions were more out of respect for the owner of the workshop. Soon, the receptionist walked out: "The Master invites you in, Lady. The guards, please stay outside!"

Sinuoli followed Sonia and strode inside. Seeing Sinuoli's black beard that only reached his chest, the receptionist initially mistook him for a guard and prepared to reach out to stop him, but when his gaze moved down to the emblem on Sinuoli's chest, even though this receptionist could be called someone who had seen countless people, he could not help but stare blankly.

Inside the door was a corridor. Many display cases were hollowed out on the walls of the corridor, displaying various weapons and equipment. Some had prices marked below them, while others were marked with the words "customized by such-and-such Clan." Through the price tags of dozens or a hundred, Sinuoli judged that these numbers did not refer to ordinary gold coins but to Oath Gold. This meant that these pieces of equipment were at least treasures of the rare grade.

Passing through the corridor was a Forging Room, where a dozen or so Dwarfs were busy. "Master Broken-Needle, the people are here!" the receptionist said to an old Dwarf sitting in the corner.

"Little Sonia, it's been a while. The last time you came was to forge a Warhammer for that... who was it? Gelimu?"

"It was Grom, Master!" Aunt Sonia reminded him with a respectful tone, "I came this time to..."

"I know, I know!" The old Dwarf interrupted her, biting into his pipe and taking a puff. "Don't think that just because I'm old, I don't hear anything outside! This time, it must be to forge equipment for the Chosen of the Goddess-Master Sinuoli behind you, right?" Hearing the old Dwarf call him, Sinuoli stepped forward and bowed.

Seeing him do this, the old Dwarf tapped his pipe and also stood up from his chair to return the bow. The light in the Forging Room shone on his face, and Sinuoli felt that his aura was somewhat similar to Krag Master, but his personality was clearly much gentler.

Master Broken-Needle seemed to have shrunk in stature due to his age. He looked up at Sinuoli and said: "The Chosen of the Ancestor Goddess, the youngest Rune Master, your name has almost worn calluses into my ears these past two days!"

Asking for votes and collections. I will add more chapters at my discretion if there is a certain amount.