Yu Su and Lu Yan appeared at the entrance of Iron Casting Village and were unsurprisingly stopped.
However, because both of them were neatly dressed and clearly not ordinary people, the guards were relatively polite and asked about their purpose.
"I am Yu Su, the witch doctor of Yu Village, here to meet the village chief and witch doctor of Salt Village," Yu Su said.
Witch doctor?
The guard was slightly surprised. If an ordinary person came and claimed to be a witch doctor, he wouldn't believe it. However, this young man before him was truly different, exuding an extraordinary calmness and demeanor.
"You're a witch doctor? Can you prove it?" the guard asked.
Yu Su smiled slightly, extended his hand with a seed in his palm. The seed, initially lying quietly, suddenly sprouted and grew two tender green leaves after a moment.
"I am recognized as a witch doctor by the Deer God Mountain's Mountain God. This should confirm my identity," Yu Su said.
The guard was astonished, unable to find words. He stared at the seed that had sprouted, his eyes wide. "Please wait for a moment. I'll go inform the village chief and the witch doctor."
Gods above, he had never seen any witch doctor make a seed sprout instantly!
Did he offend this young witch doctor just now? Would he be cursed?
While the guard was in a fluster, Yu Su, with a smile, put away the seed. To avoid startling people, he only stimulated the growth of two tender leaves. But judging by the guard's reaction, it seemed he still frightened him. Yu Su decided to be more careful next time.
After about a few minutes, several people came out of the village.
The leader was a tall and robust middle-aged man with a few graying hairs on his temples. His gaze was sharp, likely the village chief of Iron Casting Village.
Another person, wearing coarse clothes and holding a wooden staff with a serious expression, should be the witch doctor of Iron Casting Village.
They walked up to Yu Su and Lu Yan, their eyes sizing them up, finally focusing on Yu Su.
"You are the witch doctor of Yu Village?" the old witch doctor spoke.
Yu Su nodded, "I am Yu Su, the witch doctor of Yu Village. This is my guard, Lu Yan."
The old witch doctor stared at Yu Su and asked, "I heard you can make seeds grow?"
Yu Su took out the seed, "Are you talking about this?"
The old witch doctor fixed his gaze on the seed, showing a surprised expression. Yu Su eased up from his previously relaxed demeanor, "I can make seeds grow. This should prove my considerable magical abilities. I am Yu Su, the witch doctor of Yu Village. This is my guard, Lu Yan."
The old witch doctor seemed convinced, "Apologies for the earlier rudeness. I am Tie Cang, the witch doctor of Iron Casting Village. This is our village chief, Tie Ying."
Yu Su nodded slightly, "Thank you for your understanding. We have traveled from the east bank of the river, and our visit to Iron Casting Village is to meet both of you and also to purchase some ironware."
Hearing that Yu Su came to buy ironware, Tie Cang and Tie Ying could understand. Although they found it strange that Yu Su only brought one guard, they were still polite and welcomed them into the village.
They reached the chief's house.
While Yu Su seemed to be casually looking around, he was actually assessing Iron Casting Village since they entered. Iron Casting Village truly lived up to its reputation, being a large village that could rival Salt Village. Not only was it larger in scale, with a prosperous population, but the structures and overall atmosphere also appeared much more imposing than Yu Village.
There were burning furnaces along the way, indicating that almost every household here was involved in ironworking.
"Chief Tie Ying, does every household in your village engage in ironworking?" Yu Su asked casually.
Tie Ying proudly said, "Of course. Blessed by the Craftsman God, we are naturally skilled and robust. Almost every man in Iron Casting Village can work with iron, even the children wield hammers."
Yu Su smiled, "It's truly admirable."
Tie Ying laughed heartily. Due to Yu Su's display of skill, he did not underestimate him despite his young age. His words were polite, "How many iron pots do you want to buy?"
Yu Su said, "Oh, about a hundred for now."
A hundred? So many? Tie Cang and Tie Ying were somewhat surprised. Even in Salt Village, it would be challenging to purchase so many iron pots at once.
Tie Cang asked suddenly, "What do you need so many iron pots for?"
Yu Su smiled faintly, "To boil salt."
Boil salt?!
Tie Ying and Tie Cang thought they had misheard. After confirming that Yu Su indeed intended to use iron pots to boil salt, they were genuinely surprised.
"You have a salt field?" Tie Ying asked incredulously.Yu Su nodded, "Are you interested? The salt from our Yu Village is not only better than Salt Village's, but our prices are also fair. We won't take advantage."
Tie Ying and Tie Cang weren't fools; by now, they somewhat grasped Yu Su's true intentions.
Iron Casting Village had an unpleasant dispute with Salt Village over salt prices. To ensure sufficient salt reserves before winter, Tie Ying reluctantly accepted Salt Village's prices and bought a batch of salt. However, this matter left him resentful, and the frustration lingered.
Now, hearing that Yu Su had salt, Tie Ying immediately understood why Yu Su had approached them directly.
"It depends on how good your salt is," Tie Ying said shrewdly.
Yu Su smiled, "If you're unsure, you can observe for a while. Our trade caravan won't only visit Iron Casting Village, but all the villages on this wilderness. By then, you can inquire."
In other words, Yu Su wasn't insisting on selling to Iron Casting Village; there were plenty of other villages in need of salt.
In the end, everyone suffered from Salt Village's oppressive salt prices. With good-quality salt at a fair price, Yu Su wasn't worried about finding buyers.
Tie Ying hesitated, "..."
Unexpectedly, this young witch doctor not only possessed formidable magical abilities but also wasn't easily deceived.
Tie Cang squinted, "Salt Village probably won't allow you to sell this salt."
Yu Su confidently smiled, "That's our concern. If you are interested in trading with us, just keep an eye on our caravan's movements."
Tie Ying and Tie Cang exchanged glances. They didn't immediately agree to Yu Su's proposal, not because they were afraid to offend Salt Village, but because they weren't sure if Yu Village's caravan could reach Iron Casting Village.
As far as they knew, Yu Village was just a small village.
On the other hand, Salt Village was the dominant force in this wilderness.
In the end, Yu Su only discussed the issue of iron pots and custom-made ironware with them.
Setting aside the price of the iron pots for now, Yu Su requested that Iron Casting Village provide the custom-made ironware for free.
"Do you want it for free?" Tie Ying stared, about to slam the table.
Yu Su said calmly, "Don't worry; take a look at my drawings first."
Yu Su took out a parchment and placed it on the table. Tie Ying, initially angry, turned astonished as he looked at the drawing. Eventually, he stood up in excitement.
Tie Cang, puzzled by Tie Ying's intense reaction, looked at the situation.
Meanwhile, Yu Su had already sat back, calmly observing them. It seemed he anticipated Tie Ying's response. His guard, like him, remained composed, showing no signs of anxiety or curiosity about being in Iron Casting Village.
Tie Cang contemplated. These two didn't seem like people from a small village like Yu Village.
Tie Ying tightly held the parchment, his tone chilling, "Who drew these plans?"
Yu Su responded, "I did."
"You?" Tie Ying looked at Yu Su skeptically. Considering Yu Su's young age and lack of knowledge in iron casting, he found it impossible for him to understand these things. He shook his head, "Kid, don't say anything just for the sake of face. These drawings couldn't have been made by you."
"How can the village chief believe you then?" Tie Cang said astutely.
Tie Ying, with a shrewd tone, suggested, "Unless you draw something different in front of us."
Yu Su smiled, "That's not difficult. However, if I draw another one, the price won't be the same, and the iron pots must be provided to us for free."
Tie Ying was taken aback. Free iron pots too? This young witch doctor was bold!
Yu Su continued, "As someone who has seen the drawings, you should know the changes they can bring to Iron Casting Village. In comparison, this batch of ironware is relatively insignificant."
Tie Ying gritted his teeth, feeling that this young witch doctor wasn't easy to deal with.
Holding the parchment, Tie Ying, with a somewhat cold tone, said, "Aren't you afraid that I'll keep this parchment for myself or prevent you from leaving Iron Casting Village?"
Yu Su replied confidently, "You can try."
Having said that, Lu Yan, standing beside Yu Su, stood up. Flames formed a sword in his palm, and with a fierce gaze, he stared at Tie Ying.
Tie Ying and others, frightened, retreated. Even the guards rushing in at the door dared not approach, staring at Lu Yan as if he were a terrifying monster. Their legs even felt weak.
After scaring them enough, Yu Su finally said to Lu Yan, "Put it away; don't frighten people."
Lu Yan dissipated the flame-formed sword, even though creating it had consumed nearly half of his spiritual power.
Tie Ying and the others, still trembling, dared not approach. In the end, Tie Cang, an elderly and experienced witch doctor, stepped forward and bowed respectfully to Yu Su and Lu Yan.
"Please don't blame us, esteemed guests. The chief was just joking earlier. We will provide the batch of ironware to you for free," Tie Cang said. Although his tone seemed steady, his heart was in turmoil.
In all his experiences, he had never seen someone summon a sword made of flames. Such an ability, even the great witches in Feng City didn't possess!
Who were these two? Were they really from Yu Village?
Yu Su didn't really intend to fight with Iron Casting Village. He just wanted to show these people that they weren't easy targets. If anyone wanted to harm them, they needed to consider their own capabilities.
"Free is not necessary. We won't take your things for nothing. As I said, two drawings for this batch of ironware; that's the deal," Yu Su concluded.