Chapter 43 Forging Workshop 50% Additional Damage

"Mom, I've saved up quite a bit of money lately." Li Ziqi carefully rinsed the chopsticks with hot water. The aroma of the wood-fired chicken she ordered was already wafting from the kitchen. She couldn't help but take a deep breath. "Soon I'll be able to get you that fully automatic wheelchair from the mall."

“Why waste money like this?” Li Suhua shook her head in disapproval, gently tapping her daughter’s hand with her finger. “We live on the first floor now, and the milk tea shop is right next door. Life is much more convenient than before. This wheelchair is very easy to use.”

In fact, Li Suhua earns much more per day than her daughter, but she is used to being frugal and doesn't feel the need to replace her wheelchair, even though her daughter says the wheelchair is indeed convenient.

That's how the older generation thinks. Li Ziqi had already expected her mother to say that, so she didn't plan to persuade her further. She would just buy it directly, since items bought from the mall couldn't be returned.

Li Suhua could tell at a glance that her daughter hadn't listened to her. Just as she was about to say something more, the waiter came over with an iron pot.

A scorching hot iron pot is placed on a stove that has already been lit. When the lid is lifted, the golden broth immediately bubbles up. Small pieces of chicken roll in the bright red chili oil, and a ring of crispy cornbread sticks to the side of the pot, making it look incredibly appetizing.

"It smells so good!" Li Ziqi's attention was instantly drawn to it, and she couldn't wait to pick up a piece of chicken leg.

As soon as her teeth broke through the outer skin, the scalding hot juices splattered onto her tongue, making her hiss and gasp. But she couldn't bear to spit it out, so she just kept panting with her mouth open, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Eat slowly, no one's going to take it from you." Li Suhua quickly handed over a tissue, looking at her daughter with a mixture of heartache and amusement. Her daughter looked like a kitten that had been burned while stealing food, wiping away tears as she reached for a second piece with her chopsticks.

The topic of buying a wheelchair was thus dropped.

After the two of them finished the three-person portion of firewood chicken, Li Ziqi patted her round belly and pushed her mother for a walk in the territory to digest.

As they turned the corner, a rhythmic clanging sound caught their attention.

"Iron Tree Spirit Forging Workshop, what a strange name." Li Ziqi tilted her head and read out the odd shop name.

As a family member of an employee, she had no idea when the territory opened such a store.

Li Ziqi curiously peeked out and saw through the shop window that the store was divided into two areas: one side was piled with various mineral materials, and the other side displayed finished weapons.

There weren't many weapons on the display stand, and there were no guards behind the counter, but there was an ugly-looking plant standing next to it.

Li Ziqi glanced at the plant several times, and then her eyes were drawn to a jet-black dagger on the display stand.

Her assassin instincts immediately made her assess the weapon. The streamlined blade, the perfect curve, and the faint starlight patterns made Li Ziqi fall in love with the dagger instantly.

"This dagger is exquisite." She unconsciously moved closer to the glass, even her breathing became soft.

"Snap!" The ugly plant behind the counter suddenly shook its branches, startling Li Ziqi so much that she grabbed her mother's wheelchair and took two steps back.

The plant seemed surprised that they would retreat, and its swaying branches stopped moving.

"Is it... saying hello?" Li Suhua asked uncertainly.

After being startled by the ugly plant, Li Ziqi regained her senses and glanced at the price tag below the dagger. She immediately gasped, "This dagger is way too expensive!"

Her voice changed; she had just been planning to get her mother a new wheelchair, but she never expected that this dagger would cost about the same as a fully automatic wheelchair.

Li Ziqi immediately pushed her mother away.

"What's wrong?" Li Suhua noticed her daughter's unusual behavior.

"It's alright." Li Ziqi forced a smile, but in her mind she weighed the price again. She could afford it, but what would happen to her mother's wheelchair after she bought it?

Li Ziqi was heartbroken, wanting to buy and having the means to do so, but unable to. In the end, she could only turn a blind eye, fearing that if she hesitated even a moment longer, she would be unable to resist turning back.

Seeing the two people who had been frightened away, the iron tree spirit's branches drooped.

After arriving in the Star Territory, many tender leaves grew on its branches, but at this moment these leaves were all wilted and curled at the edges, looking listless.

It just wanted to say hello.

When Lin Nanxing pushed open the door in the afternoon, he saw that the flames inside the iron tree spirit stump were much weaker than those he had seen a few days ago.

Upon seeing its master, the iron tree spirit immediately closed the tree stump it had just unfolded, looking ashamed, just like a child who had done something wrong. Not a single weapon on the display stand was missing.

"What's wrong?" Lin Nanxing reached out and stroked its rough branches, the touch feeling like touching a piece of rusty iron. "The fire has gone down so much, is it uncomfortable?"

Seeing that its master cared about it, the iron tree spirit felt even more ashamed. It shrank back and closed its tree stump. Looking at the shop where not a single weapon had been sold, it felt even more dejected.

After figuring out what had happened, Lin Nanxing couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Da Tie, are you stupid? This is only your first day of business, it's normal that you haven't made any orders yet. They don't know you yet, they don't know how good the weapons you make are."

She gently touched the tenderest leaf with her fingertip and reassured it, "Don't worry, once everyone has seen your skills, believe me, this will be the most popular shop in the territory."

For the past four days, the Iron Tree Spirit has been working like a man possessed, forging weapons almost non-stop. Shu Yi helped test it and found that the weapons it forged were not only superior to those made by the blacksmith players, but also used 30% less material.

Lin Nanxing couldn't bear to see such a precious child suffer even the slightest grievance.

But the iron tree spirit, with its simple mind, could not understand human comfort. It only saw the empty shop and the frightened customers. The flames in the tree stump weakened and made a crackling sound.

"Knock knock knock—"

Just as Lin Nanxing was about to continue comforting Da Tie, a sudden knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. She turned around and saw Li Suhua pushing a wheelchair alone at the door.

"Aunt Li?" She quickly stepped forward to help push the wheelchair. "Why did you come here?"

“I’m here to buy weapons.” Li Suhua smiled gently, but her gaze was fixed precisely on the only dagger on the display stand.

Upon hearing this, the iron tree spirit trembled violently, all the leaves stood up with a rustling sound, and the entire plant stood upright.

Lin Nanxing never expected that the first person to place an order at the forging workshop would be one of his own employees.

Considering her financial situation, she adjusted the price in the system and said to Li Suhua with a smile, "Aunt Li, you are really lucky. You are the first customer to place an order with our forging workshop. We have a special opening offer of 50% off."

The iron tree spirit didn't care about the price of the weapons it made. It just happily shook its branches and leaves. Someone wanted its weapons. It even secretly put a piece of star meteorite iron breastplate into Li Suhua's pocket before she left.

Lin Nanxing caught a glimpse of it out of the corner of her eye, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, but she pretended not to see it.

When Li Suhua returned home, she saw her daughter still looking worried.

When Li Ziqi saw her return, she immediately stood up to greet her, "Mom, why are you back so soon? I haven't had time to make dinner yet."

Supermarkets now have a wide variety of ingredients, and some people prefer to cook at home.

Li Suhua didn't say anything, but simply took out the dagger she had bought from her pocket.

Li Ziqi recognized it at a glance as the dagger she had her eye on at the forge earlier that day, and exclaimed in delight, "Isn't this the dagger from the forge?"

She instinctively reached out to take it, but her fingers hovered in mid-air with some doubt. How did this dagger end up in her mother's hands?

"Here you go." Li Suhua handed the dagger forward. "Mom saw that you were practically glued to the shop window this afternoon. Since you like it, you should definitely buy it."

"But this dagger is very expensive. Where did you get so much money?" After hesitating for a long time, Li Ziqi could not resist the temptation of the weapon she wanted. She squatted down at Li Suhua's feet and took the dagger.

The cool touch on her fingertips warmed her heart.

"Silly girl," Li Suhua said with a smile, poking her daughter's forehead. "Mom works at the bubble tea shop and earns much more than you. What's a little money like this?"

She deliberately put on a stern face, "Besides, my daughter is an elite member of the guard team. How can she not have a decent weapon?"

Li Ziqi's eyes instantly reddened. She carefully placed the dagger against her chest, and the cold metal was quickly warmed by her body heat.

Seeing that her daughter accepted the gift with peace of mind, Li Suhua turned around to cook, but Li Ziqi wouldn't let her go. "Mom, please sit down. I'll cook today."

She hurriedly pressed down on her mother's wheelchair, but as she pushed and pulled, she heard a crisp sound, and a delicate breastplate rolled out of Li Suhua's pocket and onto the ground.

Li Suhua was also stunned. "That's strange, I didn't buy this."

As soon as she finished speaking, she remembered what Nanxing had said: all the weapons in the forge were made by iron tree spirits. The demonic plant had indeed approached her before she left the shop, and it was probably put in at that time.

"This is probably its way of thanking you for appreciating the weapon it made." After understanding the reason, Li Ziqi was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected that the demonic plant, despite its ferocious appearance, would have such a simple and kind mind.

The next morning, Li Ziqi put on her new weapon and escorted a group of players who were heading back to Yunpei Town. She was having bad luck today; they encountered a level 35 monster halfway there.

"Everyone be careful!"

The entire escort team was around level 40, so this monster posed no threat. As a melee player, Li Ziqi instinctively went to meet it.

The monster that used to take dozens of rounds to fight was brought down in just three moves this time.

As the blade sliced ​​through the monster's hard carapace, she could clearly feel the dagger vibrate, as if it could automatically find the enemy's weak points.

"Li Zi, you've leveled up?" Mao Qindong asked in surprise, checking the materials dropped by the monsters he had killed.

"No." Li Ziqi shook her head in confusion, somewhat incredulous. Then her gaze fell on the dagger in her hand.

Following her movements, everyone's gaze fell on her hand. A teammate with forging skills instinctively asked, "How come your dagger has a 50% damage bonus?"

These words caused an uproar among the crowd.

It's important to know that even the most skilled blacksmiths at this stage can only create weapons with a damage bonus of up to 30%.

"Where did this dagger come from?"

Li Ziqi swallowed hard. "My mother bought it from the forge in the territory."

She appeared calm on the surface, but inside she was screaming with excitement. This weapon is amazing! No wonder it's so expensive; you really do get what you pay for.

Hearing that the dagger was made in the territory's forge, the team members were eager to go back and buy the weapon, but unfortunately they still had an escort mission to complete.

"Um, we also want to go back, otherwise today's escort will be canceled?" One of the players, who was brave enough to raise his hand and speak up, was met with nods from the others.

They overheard the team's conversation. Well-made weapons are always in high demand, and now that they knew where to buy them, they didn't want to miss out.