In the world of martial arts, grind your skill level to become a saint.

The next day.

As the first light of dawn appeared on the horizon, Su Hao, who hadn't slept all night, walked out of the house, somewhat exhausted, and began to wash up and cook.

What happened last night left him feeling wary and on guard, since so many people were loitering around his neighborhood and anything could happen.

After quickly cooking a bowl of mixed grain porridge, Su Hao ate it hastily and then headed out to his shop on Blackwater Street to continue his daily work.

Leaving the courtyard, Su Hao walked through the dimly lit Rat Alley. There were also some early risers in the alley, walking in twos and threes, hurrying along and talking in hushed tones.

Su Hao roughly understood what they were talking about; it was about the parade last night.

Looking at the scattered torches and pieces of clothing that looked like torn clothes, Su Hao frowned slightly and quickened his pace.

Just as he was about to leave Rat Alley, Su Hao heard the cries of a woman and a child again.

Su Hao turned his head and looked into an alley on the right side of the alley. Several yamen runners dressed in official uniforms with knives at their waists were standing in front of a broken courtyard gate. One of them was holding a notebook and seemed to be writing something down.

On the ground in front of the courtyard gate lay a naked male corpse, next to which was a woman who was barely clothed and covered in wounds, and next to the woman was a skinny little girl.

Upon noticing the officer's gaze upon him, Su Hao quickly lowered his head and left, not daring to look any further.

Leaving Rat Alley, Su Hao walked along the somewhat bumpy road, his mood growing heavier.

Although he didn't know what had happened at the house, he saw traces of torches and a tattered white flag on the ground in the alley.

I couldn't help but wonder if it was related to the marches last night.

As Su Hao arrived at Blackwater Street, his gaze involuntarily drifted toward the shop as he passed Sun's Blacksmith Shop.

Today, Sun's blacksmith shop was closed, and the usual clatter of hammering was nowhere to be heard.

Su Hao didn't stop and continued walking inside. He soon arrived at the front of his shop, only to find an old man with a sallow face standing there, looking anxious.

Upon seeing Su Hao arrive, the old man hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Hao, you've finally come!"

Su Hao was slightly taken aback, wondering why the other party had come to see him so early. After responding, he asked, "Uncle Fu, you're here so early today. Is there something wrong with yesterday's wood-chopping knife?"

Uncle Fu waved his hands repeatedly, his face bitter. "No... well, it's really unlucky. Yesterday, I went into the mountains to chop wood and ran into a black bear. Luckily, I ran fast and survived, but I lost my wood-chopping knife. I didn't bring back any firewood, so my old boss scolded me. That's why I came to find you this morning."

"Black Bear?"

Su Hao looked at Uncle Fu, who still seemed shaken. Uncle Fu had some scratches and bruises on his body, obviously left over from his escape.

This Uncle Fu, whose real name was Zhao Fu, was a woodcutter who made a living by chopping wood for some wealthy families in Yanshan City. He often went into the mountains to chop wood, so it was not surprising that he encountered a black bear.

You must understand that this world is not the previous one. Just the Dayan Mountain behind Yanshan City is home to many poisonous insects and ferocious beasts.

Su Hao also heard that there were even monsters called strange beasts in the deeper parts, which were extremely dangerous.

"However, I don't have the right equipment for you here. You'll have to wait until tomorrow to get it."

Pulling himself back to reality, Su Hao opened the door and walked into the blacksmith's shop, pointing to several blank machetes that had been forged earlier on the shelf.

"That's alright! As long as the knife works, it's fine. If I can't deliver the firewood to the employer's house today, I'll be starving next month!"

Zhao Fu shook his head and sighed, "These days are tough! If it weren't for the need to make a living, I wouldn't have gone into the mountains today even if you beat me to death. I heard that many people have starved to death in some villages outside the city. I guess that black bear yesterday was attracted by the corpses on the mountain. There are also refugees wandering around looting things. I heard that there has been an epidemic in Qinghe County next door. Sigh, these days..."

"Pandemic..."

Upon hearing this, Su Hao also felt a sense of urgency.

Since he transmigrated here, he has never left the city, so he mostly learns about the situation outside the city from other people.

Now, according to Uncle Fu, the situation outside the city seems to be more severe than imagined.

Fortunately, it hasn't affected the city yet.

While chatting casually with Zhao Fu, Su Hao got the furnace fire burning brightly. He threw one of the knife blanks into the furnace, turned on the air to heat it, and prepared to carry out the final processing steps.

"Ah Hao, there's something else I'd like to discuss with you..."

Looking at the red-hot knife blank in the furnace, Zhao Fu rubbed his hands and asked somewhat embarrassedly.

"Uncle Fu, please speak freely. If it's about wages, you can pay me later once you've calmed down."

Su Hao took out the knife blank and placed it on the table to adjust the angle.

Uncle Fu was a regular customer of the shop, and from what he had said before, Su Hao could roughly guess what he was going to say.

"Thank you so much!"

Zhao Fu's face lit up with joy, and he thanked him repeatedly.

He spent all his savings yesterday on a new knife, and if Su Hao hadn't offered him a knife on credit, he really wouldn't have been able to make a living.

"Old employer, you're too kind."

Su Hao smiled, then said nothing more, picked up the iron hammer and began to forge.

Old Zhao Fu often comes to buy knives. In the past, he always paid on delivery and never defaulted on his debts. He has a good reputation. This time, buying knives on credit was an unexpected situation, and he didn't mind.

Because the blade blank had been forged in advance, Su Hao finished forging it in a short time. After a series of processes including quenching, sharpening, and polishing, a brand-new woodcutter's knife was completed.

He handed the wood-chopping knife to Zhao Fu, who took it and thanked him a few more times. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he stopped in his tracks.

"Ah Hao, did you know that something happened at Old Sun's shop yesterday?"

Zhao Fu glanced outside the door and, finding no one else, turned to Su Hao and asked in a low voice.

"Hmm? I just happened to be passing by last night after work." Su Hao nodded. "What did Uncle Fu want to say?"

Seeing that Zhao Fu seemed to have something to say, Su Hao asked.

"I heard from some of the woodcutters I met yesterday that Old Sun is dead... by the Fierce Tiger Gang!" Zhao Fu sighed, a hint of worry in his eyes. "These people have been coming to your shop a lot lately, so you have to be careful. Give them whatever they want, and whatever you do, don't offend them..."

"Dead?"

Su Hao frowned slightly, not expecting Chen Biao and his men to be so ruthless, actually beating someone to death.

Although it's unclear what grudge existed between Old Sun and Chen Biao that led the latter to use such force, these people were clearly not simple.

They dared to kill in the street, unafraid of being investigated by the authorities, because they must have already made arrangements with the people in charge.

"I understand, thank you for letting me know, Uncle Fu."

Su Hao nodded and thanked him.

At the same time, I felt increasingly depressed.

After chatting for a few more minutes, Uncle Fu bid farewell to Su Hao and left the shop.

Su Hao watched the other person leave, glanced at the glowing red furnace, composed himself, and continued his daily blacksmithing work.

In the following days, perhaps because Old Sun had been beaten to death, Su Hao had a significant increase in the number of customers coming to his shop to forge iron.

Su Hao naturally wouldn't refuse business coming to his door, and he became quite busy.

Around noon, Su Hao, who was still forging a sickle, paused in his work. With a thought, a semi-transparent panel appeared before his eyes.

Name: Su Hao

[Qualifications]: 1

[Martial Arts]: None

[Skill]: Forging Lv3 (1/2000)