Supreme Martial Venerable: Starting with the White Ape Cloak Hammer skill point allocation

Daqi, Jiangzhou Mianlong Prefecture, Gaoshan County.

Zhou Yuan opened his eyes.

The movement of getting up pulled at his sore muscles, making him wince in pain.

As dawn broke, the sounds of clanging and hammering filled the air. The mingled smells of cooking, metal, food, sweat, and foot odor assaulted Zhou Yuan's nostrils.

"It's been a month and three days, and I still can't get used to it... How am I supposed to live like this?"

The people on the communal bed had already gotten up, rolled up their bedding, and started washing, chopping wood, fetching water, starting a fire, and cooking.

This process had long since become Zhou Yuan's muscle memory; he did it with practiced ease, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

When will this kind of life ever end?

He started from scratch in his past life, worked hard for twenty years to accumulate hundreds of millions in wealth, and finally invited the most beautiful girl in his class back then to his thousand-square-meter mansion for a wine tasting at his 20th-year college reunion.

A few minutes later, he went to the balcony to smoke, feeling dejected. The alcohol was getting to him, and he even wanted to try to see if he could fly.

His mansion was on the 28th floor, so the outcome was predictable.

When he opened his eyes again, he had gone from being the billionaire Zhou Yuan to Zhou Yuan, a registered artisan in the Great Qi Dynasty.

One is the "Yuan" in "abyss," and the other is the "Yuan" in "source."

As a self-made millionaire, Zhou Yuan was highly adaptable and quickly accepted the reality of his time travel.

Although he lost his fortune of hundreds of millions, at least he gained a young body.

Based on his experience from his previous life, getting promoted, making money, and getting married would be a piece of cake for him.

But reality soon dealt him a heavy blow.

The skills I acquired in my previous life are completely useless in this ancient era, where productivity is equivalent to that of the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Wealth, power, and knowledge are all in the hands of a few, making it extremely difficult for ordinary people to rise above their circumstances.

The methods that time travelers take for granted, such as sugar, salt, and gunpowder, would turn him into a corpse the next day if he touched them in the morning.

The mere household registration of a craftsman was like a mountain, pressing him down into the mud, making it impossible for him to rise again.

Originally, he was a registered craftsman, a blacksmith.

According to the system of the Great Qi Dynasty, artisans were required to perform three months of corvée labor each year, providing their own food, tools, and charcoal to forge ironware for the government. Only during the remaining time could they make a living by doing blacksmithing business.

They only had nine months of their own time in a year, and the money they earned had to be used to pay for corvée labor. At the end of the year, let alone saving money, just surviving was a blessing.

Later generations may think that working 996 overtime is inhumane, but compared to forced labor, the overtime life of cattle and horses in the previous life was simply paradise.

The original owner spent his own money to buy charcoal and worked around the clock to manufacture ironware for the government during the busy farming season. If he failed to complete the task, he would be whipped.

The original owner died due to malnutrition and strenuous labor, and was whipped five times for breaking two sickles, which gave Zhou Yuan the opportunity to take his place.

In the month or so since he became Zhou Yuan, he had been observing silently, and the more he observed, the more desperate he became.

The Great Qi has been established for nearly a thousand years. Now, the world is in constant turmoil, and the consumption of weapons and equipment is enormous. Originally, registered blacksmiths only needed to perform three months of corvée labor a year. Now, the government can conscript them at any time, and the time they have to perform corvée labor a year may even reach as long as six or seven months.

Over the years, countless blacksmiths have died from overwork, starvation, or being beaten to death.

"Fortunately, I was only serving my corvée labor locally. If I had been forced to serve with the army, I would not only have had to leave my hometown, but the mortality rate would have been much higher."

As Zhou Yuan thought about it, he busied himself with his hands and feet quickly.

The original owner's father was unfortunately forced into military service and died in the chaos of war. Moreover, because he was a craftsman, he died and that was it; he received no pension and no tax exemption for soldiers who died in battle.

After her father died, the burden of corvée labor fell on the original owner's shoulders. Every two years, her mother would also die of illness and starvation, leaving the original owner all alone...

"Craftsmen have no human rights. We must find a way to renounce their status, otherwise we will be worked to death sooner or later."

Forging iron for more than ten hours a day would be unbearable even for a strong adult, let alone a malnourished sixteen-year-old boy.

"Removal from citizenship..."

According to the laws of the Great Qi Dynasty, artisans are required to serve in the military for generations and are not allowed to change professions at will. They are strictly prohibited from changing their household registration or escaping their household registration without permission, and will be severely punished if discovered.

There were two ways to be removed from the artisan register: one was to make significant military or political achievements, in which case the government would grant them special exemption from the artisan register; the other was to spend money to ask the local village head or officials to help them.

Where can an ordinary blacksmith make a name for himself?

Spending money on it is out of the question; several hundred taels of silver is something an ordinary blacksmith couldn't save up in a lifetime.

Therefore, getting rid of citizenship is extremely difficult.

However, it is not entirely impossible. There is another way to renounce one's citizenship: by learning martial arts.

Craftsmen were ineligible for the civil service examinations, with one exception: those who excelled in martial arts could be granted special permission to participate in the martial arts examinations. Once they passed, they would acquire the status of "cadre," naturally shedding their craftsman status, no longer needing to serve in the military, and also being exempt from some taxes.

"Snapped!"

Suddenly, the sound of a whip striking flesh came from afar.

Zhou Yuan jerked in response and reflexively looked up.

A foreman dressed in dark police uniform kicked a blacksmith to the ground and lashed the blacksmith with his leather whip.

"You think you can steal Master Li's martial arts? You're dreaming! I'll beat you to death today!"

The blacksmith clutched his head and wailed, his body soon covered in wounds.

All the blacksmiths in the courtyard who were performing corvée labor remained silent, trembling with fear.

Zhou Yuan also kept his head down, expressionless.

Such is the state of the world; even he, like a clay bodhisattva crossing a river, could barely save himself.

"alright."

Just as the blacksmith was about to be beaten to death by the overseer, a voice suddenly came from inside the workshop.

"Killing him won't do you any good; it'll just mean one less person to do the work."

The voice said.

"Master Li is right."

The fat foreman fawned over the workers' shed, then turned and glared at the battered blacksmith, his face turning cold and ferocious.

"If Master Li hadn't spoken up, I would have beaten you to death today, you delusional bastard!"

He cursed and said, "Get up and get to work! You're going to forge five sickles today. If you're short even one, you'll regret it!"

The blacksmith, who had been beaten, gritted his teeth and got up. He kowtowed to the shed to express his gratitude, then staggered to the side and started working again without even having time to bandage himself.

The courtyard was very large, with dozens of interconnected sheds, where stoves burned day and night, and smoke lingered all day long.

All the other blacksmiths shared the communal workshop and furnace, except for one man.

This is the "Master Li" mentioned by the foreman.

Master Li's real name is Li Lin, and he is the only forging master in Gaoshan County.

He was not there to perform corvée labor, but rather at the invitation of the commander of the Gaoshan County Garrison, to forge a sword for that commander.

The commander's sword broke during a recent bandit suppression operation.

Master Li Lin enjoyed the treatment that all blacksmiths dreamed of: he had his own workshop, the government provided materials and charcoal, there were even people to help with the fire, and plenty of food and drink.

Zhou Yuan even witnessed the foreman sending a woman into Master Li's room at night and taking her out again in the morning.

Blacksmiths and forges are two completely different professions.

Like martial arts, weapon forging techniques are secret arts, and ordinary people have no way to learn them.

"Eat! Eat! All you ever do is eat! What time is it?!"

The overseer cracked his whip and cursed loudly at the blacksmiths who were squatting there with their rice bowls in their hands.

The foreman, Gao Dazhuang, was a constable in the government and was said to be the brother-in-law of the county magistrate. He was in charge of these dozens of blacksmiths who were performing corvée labor.

He was ruthless and greedy, and beating and scolding blacksmiths and extorting money were commonplace for him.

He even embezzled most of the materials provided by the government, forcing blacksmiths to pay for their own iron replenishment, otherwise they would be whipped if they failed to complete their tasks.

"The iron bolts on the city gate must be repaired today; we can't delay any longer."

"Twenty horseshoes, nail them on before sunset, or you'll be in big trouble!"

"How long have you been working with those hoes? Do you think you'll stop working unless I urge you?"

"..."

Gao Dazhuang, spitting as he spoke, muttered curses as he explained the task.

The group of blacksmiths fell silent, trembling with fear, and meekly agreed.

"You, forge five sickles today."

He pointed at Zhou Yuan.

"Hey Gao, didn't you play three rounds yesterday? How come you played two more today?"

Zhou Yuan was startled and blurted out the answer instinctively.

In his previous life, his understanding of blacksmithing was limited to watching a few forging competitions. In this life, the original owner of this body was not a very skilled blacksmith either. He could only forge the most ordinary farm tools, and the things he made were very rough and unsightly.

He was already putting in all his strength to wield three sickles a day; wielding five was something only a skilled craftsman could do.

"If you keep arguing, we'll play six rounds! I see you're still not tired enough, and you still have the energy to talk back to me?"

Gao Dazhuang glanced at Zhou Yuan, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes.

Zhou Yuan was startled and lowered his head, no longer speaking. He wondered to himself, did the original owner of this body have a grudge against this tall and strong man?

He had previously thought it was just his imagination, but now it seemed that Gao Dazhuang was indeed deliberately targeting him.

That beating was no accident.

Gao Dazhuang was in charge of assigning tasks to these blacksmiths who were performing corvée labor, which was tantamount to holding the power of life and death.

If he doesn't figure out why Gao Dazhuang is targeting him, he'll have a hard time getting through the rest of the time.

Today we'll forge five sickles, tomorrow six hoes, and the day after tomorrow seven iron pots...

If he fails to complete the task, he will be severely beaten. His small frame can't withstand any more beatings.

"It would be too humiliating to die at the hands of this fat, big-eared overseer."

Zhou Yuan sighed inwardly, "If I were a weapon forger, Gao Dazhuang would never dare to target me like this—"

Zhou Yuan subconsciously glanced at Li Lin's workshop. Li Lin was not only a weapon forger, but also rumored to be a martial artist. If he could become his disciple—

Zhou Yuan shook his head with a wry smile. It wasn't that no blacksmith had tried; in just the past month, he had seen several blacksmiths running to Li Lin to curry favor, some even kneeling outside Li Lin's door all night.

But so far, none of them have been able to successfully become an apprentice.

"Why would someone teach you something that can defy fate?"

"If I can't learn martial arts, am I destined to be a craftsman at the mercy of others for the rest of my life?"

Zhou Yuan looked up at the two red suns rising in the sky, and sadness welled up inside him.

suddenly.

He was stunned.

The rays of the red sun flashed before his eyes, transforming into a semi-transparent virtual panel.

Name: Zhou Yuan

[Free Points: 5]

[Realm: None]

[Technique: None]

[Skill: Inferior Blacksmithing Technique (6/10)]

……