Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Bronze Mechanical Ostrich

“Junk?” Yu Bao’s expression froze for a moment, then he burst into exaggerated laughter. “Sir, you must be joking! How could this shop have garbage? These items were just excavated from the ruins of the former Roman Dynasty…”

Bing cut him off, coldly. “Old Cao is truly foolish, selling ancient relics from the Roman Dynasty to you as junk.”

Yu Bao stared at Bing in disbelief. Was this fellow not a Soul General? Yu Bao was certain he had never seen this young master and his two Soul Generals before.

Could he read minds?

From any angle, Bing was an unmistakable Soul General, but with such high intelligence, his rank must be extraordinary. Soul Generals always possessed strange abilities, and Yu Bao had heard more than once how terrifying the high-ranked ones could be—their powerful and mysterious abilities could toy with humans, or make life worse than death.

Bing’s blank, featureless face now seemed eerie and dangerous in Yu Bao’s eyes.

He forced a smile. “Ah, so we’re acquainted! If you know Old Cao, then we're all friends here. This pile, our shop acquired from Old Cao for five fourth-rank Soul Cores. Young master, just give whatever you see fit, enough for a meal.”

Bing asked Tang Tian for ten Soul Cores, tossed them casually to Yu Bao, and turned to walk towards the pile of junk. When Bing entered, he’d overheard the conversation of two clerks across the street.

Yu Bao’s eyes lit up. With a swift motion—Swallow Dips Three Times in Water—not a single Soul Core was missed.

“Wow, that’s impressive!” Tang Tian exclaimed, admiring Yu Bao’s skill with hidden weapons.

Yu Bao bowed respectfully. “Thank you for your generosity!” He was secretly delighted. He’d played a trick: this pile of junk he’d acquired from Old Cao for only one Soul Core, and now he’d received ten—a tenfold profit. He was more than satisfied. Moreover, as soon as the Soul Cores touched his hand, he could tell that the wood-type Soul Core was produced by the Green Sandalwood Arm Ape, quite rare.

The Green Sandalwood Arm Ape produces nothing but Soul Cores, and this star soul beast is tough and powerful, extremely difficult to handle. The weak cannot deal with it, while the strong would rather hunt fifth-rank Soul Cores, so no one bothers with it.

The Soul Core of the Green Sandalwood Arm Ape is top material for crafting fourth-rank fist technique Soul General Cards, far more valuable than ordinary fourth-rank Soul Cores.

He’d truly profited!

Tang Tian’s attention shifted to Bing, who was tinkering with the pile of junk. Tang Tian moved closer for a better look and realized that this really was a heap of scrap metal—each piece was oddly shaped, like mechanical parts. Judging by their color, they appeared to be bronze. No wonder even Yu Bao lacked confidence in calling them antiques: though old, the bronze pieces had no rust, and looked no more than a dozen years old.

“Uncle Bing, is there anything good in here?” Tang Tian couldn’t help but ask.

“You’ll see soon enough.” Bing didn’t look up, hands moving quickly. Tang Tian could tell he was assembling something.

It seemed Bing would need some time, and Tang Tian couldn’t understand what he was doing, so he wandered about the shop. Yu Bao, realizing this young master wasn’t easily fooled, decided to be straightforward and honestly explained the origins.

Suddenly, the Crane Body within Tang Tian stirred. On the opposite shelf, there was a faint ripple.

Tang Tian, surprised, walked to the shelf and found the source.

A small bronze crane, about the size of a baby’s palm, sat quietly atop the cabinet. Tang Tian picked it up, blew away the dust, and the bronze crane shone like new. It was crafted from countless fine bronze feathers, exquisitely made. Atop the crane’s head was a tiny hole, presumably for threading a string—perhaps an ornament, Tang Tian guessed.

“This bronze crane was acquired a few years back—not worth much. I don’t know which artisan made it, but it’s quite pretty. If you like it, I’ll give it to you, young master!” Yu Bao said generously. He hadn’t paid a cent for it, knew the young master couldn’t be fooled but was generous and unconcerned with small money. The bronze crane looked new, probably freshly made, and only served as decoration.

Sure enough, Tang Tian tossed ten Soul Cores to Yu Bao. “I’ll take this.”

Yu Bao beamed, nothing excited him more than a generous patron. “Thank you for your generosity!”

Tang Tian played with the bronze crane, suspecting it might be connected to the Crane Sect, otherwise it wouldn’t resonate with his Crane Body. Once in hand, the ripple was clearer, but there was no other reaction. He placed it into his water bottle martial cabinet.

“Is there anywhere here that sells Soul General Cards?” Tang Tian asked offhandedly.

Yu Bao hurried to answer, “Are you looking for a particular rank, young master? For good deals, Lin’s Card Shop is reliable—complete selection, reasonable prices. They mostly carry Silver Cards. If you want high-ranked Gold Cards, Baoka Pavilion is the place, specializing in rare Soul General Cards, though the prices aren’t for ordinary folks. Of course, for you, young master, that’s no concern.”

“Where can I buy a fourth-rank Mind Technique Soul General Card?” Tang Tian inquired.

“Fourth-rank…” Yu Bao was taken aback. Anyone entering Three Souls City would have at least fourth-rank strength—who would buy fourth-rank cards? And families like his, how could they lack Soul General Cards? But remembering the eccentric tastes of other wealthy patrons he’d met, Yu Bao decided there was nothing strange about it.

“You want a fourth-rank Soul General Card!” Yu Bao appeared to be thinking hard for Tang Tian. “I recall there’s a shop in the east of the city called Sai Lei Card Shop. They specialize in collecting all sorts of unusual cards—even Golden Cards for basic martial skills.”

“Golden Cards for basic martial skills!” Tang Tian was stunned. He’d never heard of such a thing.

Yu Bao wore an understanding look. “There are always people with unique tastes in this world.”

He discreetly flattered Tang Tian, assuming this young master shared such preferences. Otherwise, why buy fourth-rank Soul General Cards, and even come to Three Souls City for them? If it were anyone else, Yu Bao would have cursed them for being brainless.

“All done,” Bing’s voice suddenly came from behind.

Tang Tian and Yu Bao turned quickly. Yu Bao stared blankly at the bronze ostrich before Bing, while Tang Tian rushed over, exclaiming, “Uncle Bing, what’s this?”

The bronze ostrich was slightly taller than Tang Tian, its form remarkably similar to an ostrich, entirely cast from bronze parts. Its legs were thick and sturdy, giving an impression of immense weight. On its back was a saddle-like area for riding.

“Bronze Mechanical Ostrich—land mount. Standard issue for recruits in the Southern Cross Legion,” Bing said lightly.

Tang Tian instantly mounted it.

“Insert a Starstone here.” Bing lifted the bird’s neck, revealing a recess perfectly sized for a Starstone. Without hesitation, Tang Tian inserted one.

With a clatter, the bronze mechanical ostrich’s droopy eyelids snapped open, and its bronze eyes slowly rotated.

“Leave your Martial Soul imprint here,” Bing pointed to the back of the ostrich’s head.

Tang Tian did as instructed, and a faint connection formed, linking him to the ostrich. He willed it—and with a rumble, the bronze mechanical ostrich began to run around the courtyard. Though it appeared cumbersome, it moved swiftly. At first, the balance was off and the ground shook, but as Tang Tian got the hang of it, the stride became nimble.

“The bronze mechanical ostrich isn’t particularly fast—about the average speed of a fifth-rank lightness skill. Its advantage is that it consumes no true power or stamina, making it ideal for long-distance travel. Back then, recruits in the Southern Cross Legion were known as the Ostrich Battalion.”

Bing’s encyclopedic knowledge left Yu Bao in awe.

Yu Bao had run his shop for years, meeting all sorts of people. Many were impressive, but none had ever assembled a complete mechanical ostrich from a pile of junk. The Southern Cross Legion’s bronze mechanical ostrich was legendary, and Yu Bao had heard of them, but never imagined anyone could restore one, a relic of myth.

He became even more convinced of Tang Tian’s extraordinary background.

Such scholarly Soul Generals could only hail from families of ancient lineage. And the Southern Cross Legion—one of the three great legions before the Scorpion Dynasty! That history was so distant, few young people today even knew of it.

Yu Bao could picture the sensation when this bronze mechanical ostrich appeared on Three Souls City’s streets.

His mind was agile; he immediately thought of a brilliant selling point, even conjured up ad slogans.

“A bronze mechanical ostrich walking out of the junk heap—a masterpiece unparalleled from the era of the three great legions!”

“If you have keen eyes, you can sift gold from dust!”

“Try your luck—Yu’s Unidentified Items Specialty Shop, where fortune and vision meet!”

Yu’s Unidentified Items Specialty Shop—what a perfect name!

With the bronze mechanical ostrich as advertisement, he could specialize in selling junk. As long as prices weren’t high, people would come to try their luck. Now he could openly deal in ‘junk’!

Marvelous—how did he come up with such a brilliant idea!

Yu Bao seemed to see a golden avenue ahead.

Tang Tian raced swiftly, the bronze mechanical ostrich controlled by his Martial Soul was easy to operate, running like the wind.

A group passed by the shop, and one young woman caught sight of the interior, stopping dead in her tracks. Moments later, as if waking from a dream, she cried out, “Bronze mechanical ostrich!”

The others halted at her cry, all peering into the shop.

“It really is a bronze mechanical ostrich!”

“Wow! An ancient mount of the Southern Cross Legion!”

“So cool!”

The young men and women were visibly excited, eyes shining, and without a word, they rushed into the shop.

Yu Bao’s expression changed slightly.

Damn it, why did they have to come now?