The student market was loud, hot, and smelled of burning coal and crushed herbs.
Jin led Luna through the crowded dirt streets. Older students yelled from behind wooden stalls, advertising their cheap potions and rough leather armor. Jin ignored them all. He was not looking for cheap scraps. He had the capital to afford real equipment.
He stopped in front of a large, sturdy building near the edge of the market district. The walls were made of thick stone, completely blackened by years of heavy soot. A massive wooden sign hung over the wide doorway, depicting a simple, deep carving of a crossed hammer and anvil.
The heat radiating from the open doorway was intense.
Jin stepped inside. Luna followed closely behind him, wiping sweat from her forehead almost immediately.
The interior of the shop was massive. It did not look like a quick, temporary stall. It was a fully functional, heavy-duty forge. The front room was a showroom. The walls were lined from floor to ceiling with heavy wooden racks.
The racks were filled with live, lethal steel.
Longswords, heavy battle axes, curved sabers, and thick iron maces hung in perfectly organized rows. In the center of the room, several complete sets of battle armor were displayed on wooden mannequins. Some were thick, layered leather. Others were heavy, interlocking iron plates.
Underneath the smell of hot oil and polished metal, a deep, rhythmic sound vibrated through the stone floor.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
It was the sound of a massive hammer striking glowing steel. It came from the open archway leading down into the basement forge. The sheer physical force of the strikes meant whoever was working the anvil was at least at the Core Formation Realm.
A girl walked out from behind a long wooden counter.
She wore a simple, heat-resistant grey apron over her black academy uniform. Her face was smudged with dark soot, but her smile was bright and professional. She carried a small wooden ledger in her hands.
"Hello, dear customers," she said warmly, stopping in front of them. "I am Lily. Welcome to the Iron Anvil."
Jin looked at her. He assessed her Aether aura. She was Foundation Level 6. She was a junior student, likely working the front counter to pay for her own cultivation resources while the senior students did the heavy forging downstairs.
"What would you like to purchase today?" Lily asked smoothly. She gestured toward the massive racks on the walls. "We have top-quality weapons and highly durable battle armor. We also take custom orders if you have specific physical requirements."
She tapped her wooden ledger with a piece of charcoal.
"However, for customized orders, you must provide the raw materials yourself," Lily explained. "We charge a base fee for the labor and the forge time. If you want a sword made of Fire-Drake bone, you bring the bone. We supply the fire."
"We will look around first," Jin stated flatly. He did not immediately reach for his heavy pouch of cores. He needed to verify the quality of the inventory before committing capital.
"Of course," Lily smiled politely. "Please, take your time. I will gladly give you a tour and explain our grading system."
She walked toward the closest wall rack, holding a row of standard iron longswords.
"Our shop organizes equipment into strict tiers to ensure completely transparent pricing," Lily explained as she walked. She pointed to a small, dull bronze tag hanging from the hilt of an iron sword.
"This is the Bronze Tier," she said. "These are standard, mass-produced weapons and simple leather armor. They are forged from normal, refined iron. They are cheap, durable, and highly effective against normal beasts and low-level cultivators."
She moved to the next rack. The weapons here gleamed brighter. The metal looked incredibly dense and sharp. A small, polished silver tag hung from a heavy broadsword.
"This is the Silver Tier," Lily continued. "These weapons are forged by our senior craftsmen. They are not just iron. They are folded and infused with low-grade Aether during the cooling process. A Silver Tier blade will easily cut clean through Bronze Tier armor. It is significantly heavier and holds a razor edge much longer."
Jin nodded. The Silver Tier equipment was the equivalent of the live steel he had used in the Apex capital before his transmigration. It was high-quality, practical gear.
Lily stopped in front of a locked glass case resting on a heavy oak table in the center of the room.
Inside the case rested a single, incredibly beautiful curved saber. The metal was not grey. It was a deep, swirling dark blue. It radiated a faint, cold Aether aura even through the thick glass. A small, glittering gold tag rested next to the hilt.
"And this," Lily said, her voice dropping to a respectful whisper, "is the Gold Tier."
Luna stepped closer, her blue eyes wide as she stared at the glowing blue blade.
"Gold Tier equipment is rare," Lily explained proudly. "It is not made from iron or steel. It is forged entirely from the refined bones, scales, or teeth of Core Formation beasts. The weapons naturally retain a fraction of the beast's original elemental affinity. They are incredibly expensive, but they can easily shatter standard steel like dry glass."
Jin analyzed the blue saber. It was a masterpiece of lethal engineering. But he knew the exact math of his current financial situation. He had thirty mid-tier cores left in his pouch after buying Luna's space core.
A Gold Tier weapon would likely cost hundreds of cores. He could not afford it.
"Show me the Silver Tier heavy blades," Jin ordered. "And I need to see your Silver Tier flexible weapons. Specifically, a chain-sickle."
Lily blinked in surprise. The combination of a massive broadsword and a highly complex chain weapon was very unusual for two freshmen.
"Right this way," Lily said, quickly recovering her professional smile. She turned and led them toward the back of the massive showroom.
Jin followed her. The initial research was complete. The grading system was logical and efficient. It was time to make the purchases and secure the assets for the jungle.