However, the remaining eight nationsâ challengers all seemed to have the same strength and were not afraid of each other. In order to snatch forging formulas that they could successfully forge, they competed intensely.
All of this had nothing to do with Great Xia.
They stood aside to watch the show.
âOld Shi, do you see this? This is the benefit of strength.â Zhou Shu clicked his tongue in wonder. âIf Great Xia had the strength to look down on the ten nations, would we still need to come here to challenge the trial? Who would dare to disobey Great Xiaâs orders?â The Great Qin general sneered.
Our Great Qin is the most powerful among the ten nations.
Great Xia?
Itâs the last of the bunch, yet heâs talking big. âIf we can win the rights to host the Ten Nations Martial Arts Tournament, Great Xiaâs strength will increase rapidly over the next ten years,â Shi Songtao muttered.
Zhou Shu smiled but didnât say anything. He tossed the secret forging formula to Shi Songtao.
âSee if you can forge it.â
If Shi Songtao could forge it, he wouldnât do it.
It was only the second checkpoint. It was not time for him to take action yet.
Zhou Shu had seen all nine forging formulas. They werenât difficult to forge.
Obviously, Great Qin didnât make a big move right from the beginning.
What they were doing now was similar to how Zhou Shu had taught apprentices to forge weapons in the past. They had dismantled the process!
Thatâs right. They were dissecting the problem into countless smaller problems and throwing them to the challengers.
As long as they solved all these minor problems, then Great Qin would naturally be able to solve the final problem by itself.
Shi Songtao looked at it for a while, then raised his head. âI can forge it!â
While they spoke, the other nationsâ fight also came to an end.
Every nation had obtained a forging formula.
âEveryone, thereâs no need to be so courteous. If you lack any forging materials, you can come and look for me.â
Shi Songtao was just about to begin forging when he heard what Zhou Shu said. He staggered and almost fell to the ground.
What is the meaning of this?
You just robbed them of their forging materials, and now youâre returning them?
In that case, why did we rob them in the first place?
At this moment, he heard Zhou Shu continue.
âThe price is favorable. If you want to buy anything, you have to be quick. Silver, banknotes, or anything of value is fine. If you really donât have anything, you can mortgage your weapons.â
Everyone: ââ¦â
The Great Qin general: ââ¦â
So, you came here to do business?
The Great Qin general was a little depressed. He was the one who said that the teams of the various nations could exchange forging materials.
A trade was also considered an exchangeâ¦
The challengers from the various nations looked at each other. Spending money to buy back their things?
This was intolerableâ¦
Yet it seemed to be tolerableâ¦
Money was just a worldly possession. The most important thing was to succeed.
If they could obtain the hosting rights of the Ten Nations Martial Arts Tournament, it was something that couldnât be exchanged with money.
Yin Wuyou became a bit anxious and whispered in Zhou Shuâs ear, âZhou Shu, if you need money, I can give you some.â
Wasnât it a good thing that the challengers from the other nations didnât have enough materials?
If they were all eliminated, wouldnât Great Xia be able to directly obtain the rights to hold the next Ten Nations Martial Arts Tournament?
If he sold them the forging materials now, wouldnât he be creating opponents for himself?
Zhou Shu shook his head. Things were not that simple.
Great Qin wouldnât allow the challengers from the other nations to be eliminated so quickly.
They were still hoping that these people would help them solve their problems.
Zhou Shu was certain that Great Qin definitely had a backup plan. They wouldnât allow the challengers from the various nations to be eliminated simply because they didnât have enough forging materials.
Since that was the case, Zhou Shu might as well sell the materials to them and earn some money. âIf we sell the materials to them, what if we donât have enough?â Yin Wuyou said anxiously.
âWe can just rob them again,â Zhou Shu said casually. âIsnât it tiring to have to carry all the forging materials to the next checkpoints ourselves?
âDonât worry. I know what to do.â
Yin Wuyou still wanted to say something, but Zhou Shu interrupted her because there were already people from other countries coming over with banknotes!
Those who had the qualifications to join the challenge teams were also well-known figures in their own nations. Such people naturally wouldnât lack money.
However, they didnât bring much money with them this time.
A lot of people wouldnât be able to fork out much money.
Thus, they could only take out all their valuables as collateral.
Shen Yue even mortgaged his personal sword to Zhou Shu.
For a moment, the scene looked like a market, but the result was good.
Everyone was happy.
Every country had gathered all the forging materials they needed.
Zhou Shu looked at the pile of banknotes and various collateral items in front of him and smiled very happily.
âThereâs no need to stand on ceremony. Everyone has a share. Take whatever you like.â Zhou Shu laughed.
Yin Wuyou, Lu Wenshuang, Chen Ji, and Yin Chengshan looked at each other.
âWhatâs there to be polite about? Both of them are rich ladies. Donât you know?â Zhou Shu rolled his eyes at Chen Ji and Yin Chengshan. âTake them. These are yours!â
He stuffed a bunch of banknotes into their hands.
There were at least a thousand taels of silver.
Chen Ji and Yin Chengshan were overwhelmed.
The two of them were actually not poor. Of course, this also depended on who they were compared with.
Compared to Yin Wuyou and Lu Wenshuang, they wouldnât be able to rebut even if someone said they were poor.
One was the princess of Great Xia, and the other was the daughter of an aristocratic family. How could they compare to them?
Even if they were not poor, a thousand taels of silver was not a small sum to them.
This was an unexpected windfall.
Who would have thought that aside from being able to make a contribution, they would also be able to receive a fortune just from joining the challenge team?
Following the marquis was indeed a good idea.
âI wonât give you two-â Zhou Shu said to Yin Wuyou and Lu Wenshuang.
âWhy wonât you give any to us?â Yin Wuyou blinked her bright eyes. âWe also contributed.â
âYou two are so richâ¦â
Before Zhou Shu could finish speaking, Yin Wuyou had already grabbed a few banknotes and stuffed them into her arms. Her eyes narrowed into crescent moons.
âItâs our business if we are rich. We earned this ourselves, so of course we want our share.â Lu Wenshuangâs expression was also cold. She used her actions to tell Zhou Shu that she wanted her share too.
Zhou Shu said helplessly, âAlright, let Shi Songtao and the others split the rest.â
Shi Songtao had already brought a few other Forging Masters to begin forging.
After the challengers from the other nations gathered the forging materials, they also started forging
Yin Wuyou looked around and said, âZhou Shu, arenât you going to do anything?â
âShi Songtao can do it.â Zhou Shu shook his head. âThereâs no need to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut. Experts are always the last to appear.â
The Great Qin general rolled his eyes. Who is this person? Why is he so shameless?
One moment, he said the Great Xia would command the world, and no one would dare to disobey. The next moment, he claimed to be an expert. Ptui!
âThat makes sense. Do you want some water?â Yin Wuyou nodded in agreement and took out a water jug.
The Great Qin general was dumbfounded. He couldnât bear to watch any longer and turned his head to the side. Are you here to challenge the trial or to mock people without partners?
Amid the clanging sounds, the challengers from various nations forged their weapons.
In this round, the nine secret weapon forging formulas only recorded standard weapons. There was no need for star positioning at all. For these elite Forging Masters, it was naturally extremely easy. The general guarding the checkpoint examined the weapons forged by everyone and immediately chased everyone away impatiently.
If he let them stay any longer, he was afraid that he would have a heart attack.
They were both humans, but why was it that he could earn money and had beauties to accompany him while he could only watch from the side?
After passing the second checkpoint, the people from the other nations exchanged glances, then glanced at Zhou Shuâs group.
Then they spread their legs and ran toward the third checkpoint at full speed.
They had to clear the third checkpoint before Great Xia. They couldnât give Great Xia the chance to rob or extort them anymore!
Zhou Shu watched as the group of people dispersed and disappeared in the blink of an eye. He said in surprise, âWhy are they running so fast?
âThe third checkpoint isnât something that can be passed just by running. I wanted to take care of them, but they didnât give me a chance.â