After getting up, Zhao Ling ate breakfast and then went to the separate courtyard where Lou Gao and his disciples forged hidden weapons.
When Zhao Ling bought this old Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan residence, he had the masons separate the area where he and his wives lived from the courtyard used for forging hidden weapons during renovation.
He even specially opened a large gate for the separate courtyard, allowing for both living and working without interference.
Of course, dividing the originally large old residence into two parts, living and working, inevitably reduced the comfort of living space.
So, Zhao Ling also acquired the house next door. The family living there initially swore they wouldn't sell it for anything, and even less so if coerced.
However, when Zhao Ling offered 500,000 gold spirit coins, the family smiled wider than if they had won the lottery, readily handing over the property deed to Zhao Ling.
Thus, the area where Zhao Ling and his group lived, though not as large as before, was still not small, covering a total area of about 2,000 square meters.
The separate courtyard used for forging hidden weapons was even larger, as it needed to accommodate Lou Gao and his disciples for living, working, and forging hidden weapons, though its decorations weren't as luxurious.
Upon arriving at the courtyard, Lou Gao was seen approaching him quickly, holding something, and said, beaming.
"Brother Zhao, you've returned just in time! We've finally made the Peacock Plume you mentioned. Thanks to the extremely precise blueprints you provided, otherwise, this thing would have been really hard to make.
It's a pity, though, that the raw materials for that hidden weapon called the Pear Blossom Storm Needle are too difficult to acquire, and the conditions are very strict. Even with all our connections, we couldn't find enough materials."
With that, Lou Gao handed the Peacock Plume to Zhao Ling, his eyes filled with anticipation. And when his disciples heard of Zhao Ling's arrival, they too flocked over.
Zhao Ling took the Peacock Plume, examined it carefully for a while, then nodded and replied.
"Yes, that's right, this is the Peacock Plume. Don't let its small size deceive you; its power is remarkable. It can easily penetrate the defenses of Spirit Saint experts, and if a Titled Douluo expert isn't careful, they might also suffer serious injuries."
After receiving Zhao Ling's affirmation, Lou Gao's face was filled with joy. He rubbed his hands and timidly asked him.
"Brother Zhao, considering we've completed a top-tier hidden weapon for you, could you let me and my disciples observe the large ship called the Cloud Piercing Shuttle? We'd like to..."
Lou Gao's disciples also stared at Zhao Ling with gleaming eyes, their eager expressions making Zhao Ling feel a little unnerved.
"Uh..." Zhao Ling was quite speechless. Why were Lou Gao and his disciples always thinking about the Cloud Piercing Shuttle? He had already told them that the Cloud Piercing Shuttle was too difficult to manufacture.
But these guys simply wouldn't listen to him; they were only thinking about how to replicate the Cloud Piercing Shuttle.
Feeling helpless under their expectant gazes, Zhao Ling could only take out the Cloud Piercing Shuttle from his storage space and declare.
"One hour, at most one hour. After one hour, you are not allowed to ask to see the Cloud Piercing Shuttle again. This Cloud Piercing Shuttle isn't for viewing pleasure."
As the Cloud Piercing Shuttle landed, it grew larger and larger, quickly transforming into a large ship about twenty meters long, six meters wide, and as tall as a three-story building.
Lou Gao quickly had his disciples bring a long ladder, and they scrambled to climb onto the Cloud Piercing Shuttle, carefully observing it from all directions.
They didn't even dare to walk heavily or touch any device on the Cloud Piercing Shuttle, as if fearing they might accidentally damage it.
Zhao Ling found this quite amusing. His Cloud Piercing Shuttle was, after all, a profound-grade upper-tier magical artifact; how could it be so easily damaged?
Zhao Ling wasn't bragging, but even Tang Hao at his current stage, with his Clear Sky Hammer, couldn't break the Cloud Piercing Shuttle's defense with a barrage of fierce blows. It was even debatable if he could smash it after becoming a Titled Douluo.
Zhao Ling shook his head and went aside to fiddle with the Peacock Plume. He hadn't expected Lou Gao and his disciples to produce the Peacock Plume so early.
This item was one of the few hidden weapons in the original story said to be capable of threatening Titled Douluos, but for Zhao Ling, it wasn't much.
In fact, even if he stood still and let someone use the Peacock Plume on him, it wouldn't be able to break his defense.
However, this item was very dangerous, and Zhao Ling couldn't let it fall into random hands, much less sell it to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
It's always said that it's better to be safe than sorry. Currently, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan seemed to have an excellent relationship with him, even resolutely refusing to ally with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, one of the Upper Three Sects, to scheme against him.
But who could guarantee that there wouldn't come a day when they would have disagreements with him? If such a dangerous item were sold to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, even if it couldn't threaten him, it would threaten the people he cared about.
Therefore, this item could only be given to his wives. After all, he had the backing of his improved Lady Killer Lv. 4 effect; any woman who shared his bed would develop unwavering love for him.
Thus, he didn't have to worry about betrayal. Zhao Ling was just a bit conflicted about which of his wives to give this item to.
Currently, Yin'er and Xiao Rou had already broken through to the Spirit Saint realm and above, truly entering maturity. Even when facing Titled Douluo experts, their identities as spirit beasts wouldn't be exposed.
So, the Pear Blossom Storm Needle he had given to Yin'er had now been transferred to Xiao Wu, as she hadn't yet grown to the Spirit Saint level and still had the possibility of her identity being exposed.
As for Tang Wutong, she was inherently human, so there was no need to worry about her identity being revealed by Titled Douluo experts and being hunted.
However, Tang Wutong also had her unique qualities. Her talent in the first part of the original work was considered heaven-defying, and she possessed divine bloodline. So, Zhao Ling thought about it and decided to give her the Peacock Plume.
Having made up his mind, Zhao Ling put the Peacock Plume into his storage space. Then, he tallied the total number of hidden weapons manufactured over three months, finding several hundred.
Most, of course, were mechanism-based hidden weapons like sleeve arrows, Barbed Needles, and Zhuge Divine Crossbows. After counting, Zhao Ling put these hidden weapons into his storage space and quietly waited for the hour to pass.
When an hour had passed, Zhao Ling told Lou Gao and his disciples to get off the Cloud Piercing Shuttle.
He and his disciples reluctantly disembarked from the Cloud Piercing Shuttle, looking back longingly as Zhao Ling put it away, their expressions even more exaggerated than a cat smelling catnip.
If not for Zhao Ling's terrifying strength, they wouldn't dare act rashly. Otherwise, they would definitely try to snatch the Cloud Piercing Shuttle from him by any means necessary.
Sigh, there's no helping it. This Cloud Piercing Shuttle is just too tempting. If they could create an item like the Cloud Piercing Shuttle, it could greatly change the way people live on the Douluo Continent. How enviable...