Chapter 541: Chapter 541 - The Great Destroyer Heavenly

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Zhang San shook his head. “Your Highness, I’m not afraid of danger. I’m just worried that I won’t be able to complete the mission you’ve assigned me.”

He smiled bitterly. “I know my own abilities very well. Even with the connate divine weapon you’ve given me, it’s impossible for me to injure a Great Demon with my cultivation.

“I estimate that even if I tried to assassinate a first-rank demonic beast, the chances of success are almost zero.”

“I know.” Zhou Shu said. “What if I said I was sending you to your death?”

“I’ll go!” Zhang San said firmly without hesitation.

Zhou Shu laughed and patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry. Letting you die won’t do me any good.

“I worked so hard to forge the Great Destroyer Heavenly Bow. Did I do it just to send you to your death?”

“Remember, the Great Demon I asked you to assassinate is called Yao Aotian.”

“Yao Aotian?” Zhang San looked thoughtful.

He was a reliable subordinate and didn’t ask Zhou Shu who Yao Aotian was, what he looked like, or where he was.

He needed to solve these problems himself, not with the king’s help.

But he didn’t know that the real Yao Aotian was already dead. The current Yao Aotian was Yin Chengshan in disguise.

“Your Highness, I’m on it!” Zhang San said seriously. “As long as I don’t die, I will bring back Yao Aotian’s head sooner or later!”

Zhang San’s eyes were full of determination.

He came from an ordinary background and had achieved his current achievements because of his tenacity.

Zhou Shu nodded. He didn’t tell Zhang San the truth.

If he really knew, there would be more or less some traces when he acted.

Only when he attacked without knowing would there be no flaws to hide from the demonic beasts.

“Remember, although assassinating a Great Demon is important, your life is more important. If you miss, escape immediately. Do you understand?” Zhou Shu added.

Zhang San nodded vigorously. He was extremely grateful. Although he didn’t know why the king arranged for him to do this, his last sentence was enough to show how much he valued him!

“Your Highness, I understand. Don’t worry. I won’t let you down,” Zhang San said seriously.

“That’s fine with me, but I don’t want you to fail the Great Destroyer Heavenly Bow.” Zhou Shu patted his shoulder and disappeared.

Zhang San looked at the sky. After a long time, he clenched his fists and quietly entered the forest.

First, he had to find a way to find out where the Great Demon Yao Aotian was!

As for how to investigate, as a scout, he naturally had many ways. For example, capturing a demonic beast alive first…

When Zhou Shu returned to the cave where the Lingxiao Treasure Palace was being forged, he immediately saw Zhang Chunlin sitting at the entrance of the cave, doing something.

“What are you doing?” Zhou Shu asked casually.

Zhang Chunlin looked up at him. “Waiting for you.”

“Waiting for me?”

“I think we should have a good talk.” Zhang Chunlin said seriously. “I know you don’t trust me, so you’re hiding a lot of things.”

“And I don’t know why, but I get the feeling you have something against me.

“At your age, you probably weren’t even born when I left Great Xia. Even if you were, you wouldn’t know any better. There’s probably no bad blood between us.”

Zhang Chunlin said in a deep voice, “I’ve recalled carefully. I don’t have any enemies with the surname Zhou, so the possibility of me having a grudge against your father is not high.”

“You don’t have to guess. I have no grudge against you,” Zhou Shu said calmly.

“Since there’s no grudge, I think you can trust me, at least for now,” Zhang Chunlin said. “I can help you!”

“You’re helping me now.” Zhou Shu looked at Zhang Chunlin. “As long as you do what I arrange, you’ll be helping me.”

“It’s not enough.” Zhang Chunlin shook his head. “Although I’m not sure what you’re going to do, I believe that you can’t be undercover here for as long as five years.

“According to our current progress, it will take at least five years to process all the forging materials. In the meantime, once your identity is exposed, all our efforts will be in vain.

“So, please believe me.” Zhang Chunlin’s expression was very serious. “Tell me your true purpose, and we’ll think of a way together!

“I, Zhang Chunlin, am a Grandmaster and a Grand Craftsman. I was once the grand minister of the Great Xia Forging Division! I think I still have some ability!”

Zhou Shu looked at Zhang Chunlin in surprise. His previous attitude toward Zhang Chunlin wasn’t good and was even a little nasty. The main reason was that he felt that the decline of the Great Xia Forging Division had a lot to do with Zhang Chunlin, a former grand minister of the Great Xia Forging Division.

The Forging Division turning into a sweatshop might have something to do with him.

Zhou Shu wasn’t shrewd. If he had an opinion, he would directly show it. He couldn’t be bothered to pretend.

He didn’t expect that Zhang Chunlin, who had suffered his tough treatment, would actually reflect on himself so rationally and calmly. No wonder he had once been a high-ranking official. He was indeed good at doing such things.

His impression of Zhang Chunlin changed slightly.

“It doesn’t matter if you know what I’m after or not. There won’t be the slightest change in what needs to be done,” Zhou Shu said. “If the speed of smelting forging materials can’t be increased, it won’t solve my problem.

“If you have a way to solve this problem, that will help me. Otherwise, if you have the time, you should deal with more forging materials.”

Zhou Shu’s tone softened a little, but he still didn’t say much.

This was his personality. He wasn’t deliberately targeting Zhang Chunlin. Before he succeeded, he didn’t like to say anything to others.

What if it didn’t work? Wouldn’t that be embarrassing?

“I have an idea!” Zhang Chunlin’s words made Zhou Shu retract his steps.

“You have an idea?” Zhou Shu said.

“Right!” Zhang Chunlin looked around. After confirming that there were no demonic beasts nearby, he continued, “To tell you the truth, when I was still in Great Xia, I had been thinking about how to increase the efficiency of forging.

“I’ve always felt that the real art of forging shouldn’t only be in the hands of Forging Masters. I even feel that forging shouldn’t rely too much on people in the first place!”

“Is that why you don’t treat apprentices as human beings?” Zhou Shu suddenly interrupted.

Zhang Chunlin was stunned. “When did I not treat Forging Apprentices as humans?”

Zhou Shu didn’t want to dwell on this question. “Continue.”

Zhang Chunlin frowned, but he continued, “I think the Great Xia Forging Division is too dependent on Forging Masters. That’s not good. Anyone should be able to forge. The Great Xia Forging Division should be able to operate without anyone…”

Zhou Shu finally understood. Zhang Chunlin really had some ideas, but his ideas seemed to have gone astray.

The importance of Forging Masters was not diminished. Instead, the importance of Forging Apprentices was diminished. The Great Xia Forging Division could operate normally without any Forging Apprentices…

As a result, the replacements for Forging Apprentices had greatly increased. It wasn’t a pity even if they died from exhaustion…

It had been twenty years since Zhang Chunlin left Great Xia. Before Yin Wuyou took over, there should have been other grand ministers. Perhaps it wasn’t Zhang Chunlin’s fault.

When Zhou Shu thought of this, his expression softened even more. He gestured for him to continue.

Zhang Chunlin continued, “That’s why I’ve been thinking about this when I was in the Great Xia Forging Division. Afterward, I fell into the hands of the demonic beasts and was imprisoned in the dungeon.

“In order to prevent myself from going crazy, I’ve been thinking about this problem. The heavens help those who work hard. I finally thought of a way!

“There’s no way to locate star paths for ranked weapons, but it’s completely possible to process forging materials without relying on people!”

Zhang Chunlin’s face emitted a strange glow as he said excitedly, “What makes us humans stronger than demonic beasts is that we have brains. We know how to use external objects! According to my method, it won’t take five years to process these forging materials. Five months is enough!”