In Su Ming's understanding, the Body Sect during the Soul Land III period was in decline, with only a few members remaining—namely, Mu Ye and his disciple, along with Hu Jie, who had left the sect to join the Tang Sect. Beyond that, there were no others; even spirit masters with body-type martial souls no longer joined the Body Sect.
This included the Limit Douluo with the Brain Martial Soul from the Spirit Transmission Pagoda. In Su Ming's knowledge, this individual had never been part of the Body Sect!
Now that the situation in Soul Land III had changed from what he knew, Su Ming first considered that this alteration was caused by his own actions.
Was it his counterpart from Soul Land I?
Or perhaps his counterpart from Soul Land II?
Most likely, it was the one from Soul Land II.
If his Soul Land I self wanted to influence Soul Land III, he would first have to affect Soul Land II. Yet, during the Soul Land II period, he had not detected any influence from Soul Land I.
In front of Elder Han, Su Ming temporarily set aside other thoughts. He first followed the old man from the rooftop of the Heaven Dou City Spirit Transmission Pagoda, flying directly to the rooftop of the Blacksmith Association.
There, a somewhat thin and wiry old man, looking to be in his fifties, was already waiting.
"Sect Leader."
Elder Han actually addressed him as Sect Leader.
Su Ming naturally understood that this was the current leader of the Body Sect, Mu Ye—a man obsessed with mechas who had not broken through to the ninety-fifth rank.
However, his failure to break through did not mean he was weak.
A Four-Word Battle Armor Master was equivalent to a Limit Douluo, though under normal circumstances, only a Limit Douluo could obtain Four-Word Battle Armor and withstand its amplification.
At least, from what Su Ming could recall, the only ones who had fused with Four-Word Battle Armor without being Limit Douluo were Mu Ye and Zhen Hua.
Mu Ye said, "Elder Martial Uncle, is this little fellow the one you mentioned with talent in blacksmithing?"
Mu Ye was already looking Su Ming up and down.
"Greetings, Senior." Su Ming spoke respectfully.
Although Mu Ye's spirit power rank was lower than his teacher's, his actual combat strength was greater.
Zhang Tianyang also cupped his hands in respect.
He did not dare slight the leader of the Body Sect.
Su Ming's perception was indeed sharp; much of the history during the Soul Land III period had changed.
Unlike in the original timeline, Mu Ye was not an obscure figure but had genuinely faced off against some top experts.
Even though his obsession with mechas had delayed his cultivation, preventing him from breaking through to the ninety-fifth rank, he was still a top-tier powerhouse on the continent. With his Four-Word Battle Armor and ultra-configured red-level mecha, he had integrated these two systems with his Body Sect training, unleashing combat power that approached the level of a Quasi-God.
Mu Ye waved his hand, indifferent to the respect shown by the master and disciple.
His gaze occasionally swept over Su Ming.
Elder Han noticed this but said nothing.
Under Mu Ye's lead, the group arrived at the top floor of the Blacksmith Association.
"Zhen Hua, the kid from the Spirit Transmission Pagoda, is here."
Inside the office, Zhen Hua was focused on the screen before him, carefully observing every detail of the blacksmiths' forging process, analyzing and summarizing their techniques while offering critiques and corrections.
Hearing Mu Ye's words, he looked up, slightly surprised when his eyes passed over Su Ming.
His age was indeed young.
If he truly had mastered Thousand Refinement, his talent in blacksmithing would be remarkable.
"Follow me. Let me see your forging skill."
Unless his talent in blacksmithing was utterly absurd, Zhen Hua would refuse him.
It wasn't that his standards for taking disciples were high, but rather, the relationship with the Spirit Transmission Pagoda was such.
There were inevitably complex chains of interest between any major organizations. As the top secondary profession association, with the only Divine Blacksmith, the Blacksmith Association had to remain more neutral than even Shrek Academy to avoid dissatisfaction from other major powers.
The status of the top association and the prestige of blacksmiths were, in essence, granted by the spirit master world. Any perceived bias would affect the standing of blacksmiths.
Thus, regardless of personal grievances, the Blacksmith Association necessarily had to cooperate with all major forces—especially the Divine Blacksmith. Even if he disliked someone, he still had to do his best to forge a set of Four-Word Battle Armor for them.
The relationship between the Spirit Transmission Pagoda and the Blacksmith Association was particularly strained. While not openly hostile, cooperation between them was minimal.
Su Ming's affiliation with the Spirit Transmission Pagoda naturally raised the bar for him to become a disciple.
Zhang Tianyang had already explained this to Su Ming before coming, but Su Ming was unconcerned.
If you're not good enough, practice more.
Strength could crush all doubts.
Arriving at the forging room attached to Zhen Hua's office, Su Ming was amazed.
Many rare metals he had never tried forging were displayed here, making his eyes gleam with desire.
"Choose any metal and do your best to refine it."
Su Ming nodded.
His gaze swept over the various metals before finally settling on an exceptionally precious rare metal.
Star Soul Iron.
This was an extremely rare metal, typically originating from meteorite iron. Only meteorites rich in stellar energy that fell onto the Douluo Continent could give birth to this special metal. A single meteorite capable of producing Star Soul Iron could yield at most two tons of ore, which, after purification, would produce no more than two hundred kilograms of Star Soul Iron.
Its conditions of formation were harsh, and its effects were powerful. Star Soul Iron possessed stellar attributes, capable of converting Heaven and Earth Vital Energy into stellar energy, amplifying spiritual power, and resonating with various elements.
Watching Su Ming head toward the Star Soul Iron, Zhen Hua's mouth twitched slightly.
His supply of Star Soul Iron was limited; each piece taken was one less.
"Have you forged Star Soul Iron before?"
"No," Su Ming said. "But I'd like to try."
Try?
Using Star Soul Iron to try?
Kid, do you know what's happening right now?
I'm interviewing you.
Su Ming moved the Star Soul Iron from the shelf to the forging platform. The piece weighed ten pounds and was about the size of his head.
He didn't observe Zhen Hua's expression but focused entirely on using his spiritual power to sense the structure of the Star Soul Iron.
Although he had not taken a master within the Spirit Transmission Pagoda, he had exchanged a vast amount of forging materials from the database, including experiences in forging various rare metals. He had studied the section on Star Soul Iron.
Seeing that Su Ming had entered his focused state, Zhen Hua did not disturb him and quietly observed.
After briefly resonating with it spiritually, Su Ming fired up the forge. Zhen Hua's forging platform was extremely efficient; in just over ten seconds, the Star Soul Iron began to soften.
A glimmer of light flashed over Su Ming's hands, and a pair of forging hammers appeared.
Zhen Hua glanced at the hammers, his eyes lighting up.
The material of these hammers was Thousand Refined Grade One Heavy Silver, and they had likely undergone a blood sacrifice, giving them unique properties.
Thousand Refined Grade One, blood sacrificed… Could this kid have forged them himself?
Zhen Hua looked at Su Ming thoughtfully.
Not yet nine years old, Thousand Refined Grade One…
Su Ming was fully focused, his spiritual power capturing every change in the Star Soul Iron. At a certain moment, he struck without the slightest hesitation—a definitive hammer blow.
Dong!
The strike was clean and sharp.
Its sound was melodious, echoing continuously without cease.
Zhen Hua was astonished.
For a moment, he couldn't discern the properties of these forging hammers.
Su Ming had only swung once, without a second strike, yet his force seemed to linger, continuously exerting impact on the metal, causing it to emit sound.
(End of Chapter)