To prevent running out of money, Zhao Ling went to Gengxin City and invited Lou Gao and his disciples to come over.
After all, he had witnessed Tang San's methods of attracting Lou Gao and others in the original story, and understood their weaknesses.
Zhao Ling presented the Zhuge Divine Crossbow, the Barbed Needle, and the Pear Blossom Storm Needle blueprints to Lou Gao and the others. He even demonstrated the actual Pear Blossom Storm Needle he had given to Ah Yin in front of Lou Gao and his disciples.
Immediately, Lou Gao, the Divine Craftsman, couldn't sit still. He readily agreed to follow Zhao Ling to Heaven Dou Imperial City.
What made Divine Craftsman Lou Gao even more restless was that, as Zhao Ling was about to take him and his disciples to Heaven Dou Imperial City, he inexplicably pulled out a small boat.
When the small boat landed on the ground, it grew larger with the wind, eventually transforming into a large wooden ship with two sails. The ship was about twenty meters long, six meters wide, and as tall as a three-story building.
Initially, Lou Gao and his disciples couldn't understand. This guy actually pulled out a boat? Although this boat could magically change size at will, a boat was still a boat. It could only sail on water, not fly on land.
But soon, they felt their faces were severely slapped. I'll be damned... this ship could actually fly!
Yes, it flew in the air. This was something Divine Craftsman Lou Gao had never anticipated.
This made Lou Gao even more interested in the Cloud Piercing Shuttle. While flying to Heaven Dou Imperial City, he kept looking around the entire deck.
He was especially interested in the small spirit-gathering array that powered the entire ship, and those strange stones that could serve as the power source for the ship's flight.
Zhao Ling saw him tirelessly studying the entire ship and said with a smile.
"Your Excellency, I still advise you not to research this thing. In a way, this thing shouldn't even exist on the Douluo plane.
You might research it for ten, twenty, or even a lifetime, and you still might not figure it out."
Lou Gao showed no anger at Zhao Ling's words. He knew very well that what Zhao Ling said was true.
Although there were also flying vehicles like hot air balloons in Gengjin City, their flying speed couldn't compare to this Cloud Piercing Shuttle at all.
This thing could initially fly 3,000 li a day, and after upgrading, it could fly 7,000 li a day. This speed was excellent, and it could also fly automatically, far more impressive than hot air balloons or anything else.
So, Lou Gao became increasingly curious about Zhao Ling's mysterious nature, and naturally, he was more willing to follow him. Even if Zhao Ling didn't pay them, they would still follow, bringing their own gold spirit coins.
Of course, Zhao Ling was not a particularly stingy person. Since he invited others to work for him, he wouldn't shortchange them a single coin for the money they were owed.
So, under the forging of Lou Gao and his disciples, in the third year, Zhao Ling delivered nearly a thousand Zhuge Divine Crossbows and other types of hidden weapons to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan was also very generous, pricing those hidden weapons fairly so that Zhao Ling wouldn't suffer a loss.
As for whether these hidden weapons, once sold to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, would lead to a large number of casualties during a conflict between Spirit Hall and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, as in the original story, Zhao Ling felt there was no need to worry.
Regardless of his current relationship with Spirit Hall or his relationship with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, it was unlikely that a large-scale conflict would erupt between the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and Spirit Hall in the future.
Of course, with his strength, the people including the current Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and Ning Fengzhi should not go against him, right?
If they wanted to go against him, they would have already allied with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to trip him up. Ning Fengzhi wouldn't have bothered to explicitly tell him that he was willing to always stand on his side.
Since the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan was unwilling to cause trouble with him, it showed that they understood the saying, "A wise man submits to circumstances." What was wrong with him doing business with them?
As long as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan didn't give the hidden weapons they sold to them to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and the Clear Sky Sect, it was fine...
Zhao Ling flew back to the entrance, which was guarded by two massive stone lions, and pushed the door open directly.
In the vast courtyard, Ah Yin, Xiao Rou, Liu Erlong, and Xiao Wu were gathered around a table playing mahjong, while Tang Wutong stood pitifully observing.
She was very dissatisfied. She was already sixteen or seventeen years old, which by the standards of ordinary women on the Douluo Continent, meant she was already a big girl. Yet, her mother still wouldn't let her touch this thing called mahjong.
She always said that indulging in hobbies leads to a loss of ambition, but when she played mahjong herself, she didn't even blink. Double standards, as always.
Just then, the red main door suddenly opened. Tang Wutong saw Zhao Ling enter and immediately lunged forward, wanting to throw herself into his arms.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Wu and Xiao Rou, who were playing mahjong, simultaneously flashed and appeared in front of Tang Wutong, stopping her.
"Little Qi, you are currently..."
Xiao Wu was about to tell Tang Wutong that she was still young and not suitable for thinking about romantic matters.
But after she and Xiao Rou's beautiful eyes collectively surveyed Tang Wutong, they flashed back to the mahjong table.
Tang Wutong was about to complain about her mother's double standards, but seeing her and her grandmother suddenly disappear from in front of her, seemingly no longer stopping her, she was utterly bewildered.
"Mom, Grandma, why aren't you stopping Little Qi anymore? Didn't you always stop Little Qi before, saying I was still young and not suitable for falling in love?"
Xiao Wu didn't even look up. She grabbed a tile from the pile, then picked up a 'one bamboo' and discarded it, explaining.
"You're sixteen or seventeen now, not young anymore. Since you've always wanted to do that with husband, Mom won't stop you. However, Mom hopes you won't regret it later.
After all, husband's physique is too insane. Even if the four of us team up, we're often left beaten and defeated. If you're not afraid, I have no objections."
Xiao Rou also nodded, agreeing: "Grandma has no objections either. Anyway, you've decided for yourself, so don't regret it later. With husband's increasingly insane physique, even if you join us, you probably won't escape the fate of being left beaten and defeated."
Tang Wutong was silent for a moment, then directly threw herself into Zhao Ling's arms. However, she noticed that Zhao Ling didn't wrap his arms around her slender waist the way he hugged her mother and grandmother.
She pouted in dissatisfaction. Her affection for him had instantly skyrocketed when she first saw him, and she had longed to embrace Zhao Ling. Even in her dreams, over 80% were related to Zhao Ling.
Now, this scoundrel wasn't hugging her tightly. She immediately reached out, grabbed Zhao Ling's hands, and wrapped them around her back, saying discontentedly.
"Brother Ling, now Mom and Grandma aren't stopping me anymore. Now, Little Qi is asking you to hug her tightly. If you dare not to hug her tightly enough, do you believe Little Qi will immediately go find someone else?!"