Being one step faster means staying ahead at every subsequent step.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan had already gathered sufficient talent. The next step was to invest resources to ensure they mastered Thousand Refinement with Spirit as quickly as possible.
Ning Yuan, weighing the gains and losses in his heart, cupped his hands towards Chen Xin and also left the other's quiet meditation room.
He gathered the blacksmiths from the Seven Treasures faction.
"How goes the persuasion of your Spirit Souls?"
A key step in Spirit Infusion required the cooperation of the Spirit Soul. If one could not control their own Spirit Soul, then no amount of preparation would be of any use. Ning Yuan remembered the crucial point Su Ming had told him earlier.
"Almost there, Steward Ning. When can we learn the Spirit Infusion Technique?"
"Right, you showed us Spirit Metal; it's truly a groundbreaking creation. The Association has been reformed to promote blacksmithing techniques, so why haven't we received instruction yet?"
"..."
Ning Yuan looked at the group, who were already beginning to voice complaints, and couldn't help but frown.
"Quiet!"
His expression was stern as he admonished them, "The Association has clear regulations: those who meet the previous standard of a Master-level blacksmith can directly submit an application to the Association to learn the Spirit Infusion Technique, and subsequently, the study of Thousand Refinement with Spirit."
He had to correct the views of the people before him.
Whether they came from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan or were originally from the Iron Smithing Association and had now been recruited by the clan, they all seemed to possess a restless mindset.
Not only were they restless, but most of them hadn't even found their proper place.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan didn't represent any inherent superiority; it wasn't a higher class. The clan and the Blacksmiths Association were cooperative partners, not in a superior-subordinate relationship.
Ning Yuan felt it necessary to correct their perspective.
"But the Association President clearly said that the technique for Thousand Refinement with Spirit is no different from Thousand Refinement of ordinary metal! In theory, if you can perform Thousand Refinement on ordinary metal, you can attempt the forging of Thousand Refinement with Spirit!"
Hearing this statement from a disciple in front of him, Ning Yuan narrowed his eyes.
He recognized this disciple; he was an elite from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan named Ning Tianya. His Martial Spirit was the Explosive Gold Bear, a strength-type Beast Martial Spirit with a certain affinity for metal, which was why the clan had selected him to come to the Blacksmiths Association to learn forging.
Ning Tianya had a congenital spirit power of seven levels and was sixteen years old this year. Two months ago, he had just obtained a Spirit Soul, fused his third spirit ring, and was now at the Spirit Elder level.
"Have you achieved Thousand Refinement?"
Ning Yuan's question left Ning Tianya speechless.
He had only mastered Hundred Refinement.
Mastering Hundred Refinement in a year did indeed show considerable talent in forging.
"But since Thousand Refinement with Spirit is on the same level as Thousand Refinement, wouldn't it be better if I started learning from Hundred Refinement and directly studied Thousand Refinement with Spirit?"
Ning Yuan sneered.
"I suppose there are others among you who think the same way?"
He scanned the circle and found that many actually dared to nod directly.
"Let me tell you, anyone who starts learning Thousand Refinement with Spirit, each daily practice session will cause damage to your Spirit Soul and inflict strain on your mental spirit. Recovering from that damage daily before attempting again will inevitably affect your spirit power cultivation. Staying at the same level would be considered a good outcome; you might even see your realm regress. Do you still want to practice it directly?" Ning Yuan shouted.
Ning Yuan's tone caused the group of disciples before him to instinctively recoil in shock.
Practicing Thousand Refinement with Spirit affects cultivation?
Ning Tianya's face changed slightly.
This was unacceptable to him.
"Even after mastering Thousand Refinement of ordinary metal, it takes at least a year or more to learn Thousand Refinement with Spirit. If you try to learn it directly, taking five or six years to achieve results would be considered having good talent. Consider this carefully yourselves."
Ning Yuan wasn't just trying to scare these kids.
This was the real information he had gotten from Su Ming.
Duan Jin had spent the previous year practicing Thousand Refinement with Spirit. Thanks to one-on-one guidance from Zhu Jiuyang, he managed to master it within a year. But the others weren't disciples of Zhu Jiuyang or Su Ming.
At most, the Association would make the technique public, but the subsequent practice would be up to their own comprehension.
How many practice attempts would that require?
Each attempt meant damage to the Spirit Soul, as it required the Spirit Soul to separate a part of its spirituality and integrate it into the forging. Failure meant a loss for the Spirit Soul.
Losing once or twice was manageable, but after many losses, you'd have to coax the frightened Spirit Soul to ensure its full cooperation in subsequent forging attempts.
Every single link in this chain could render their previous efforts wasted.
This was why Ning Yuan's first question was about the disciples' communication with their Spirit Souls.
Before Ning Yuan, the disciples of the Seven Treasures faction one by one lost their steam.
Wait, no one had told them before that practicing this forging technique would affect spirit power cultivation.
"Thousand Refinement of ordinary metal is meant to accumulate experience for you. Once you master Thousand Refinement for all ordinary metals and can fuse two types of ordinary metal to create a Thousand Refined alloy, then you can try to cultivate Thousand Refinement with Spirit."
Ning Yuan's tone softened as he began to reassure the disciples.
Seeing that the disciples were somewhat hesitant, he knew that after wielding the stick, he had to offer a candy. He said to them, "The learning process for Thousand Refinement with Spirit does affect spirit power cultivation. However, once you master this technique, every subsequent successful Thousand Refinement with Spirit will provide a gain for the Spirit Soul. The Spirit Master will also benefit from this, receiving a boost to their spirit power cultivation."
"Really?" Ning Tianya asked in surprise.
"This is true. It was personally acknowledged by Su Ming, the founder of the blacksmithing system. The Spirit Soul imparts a part of its spirituality into the metal. As the metal develops, a portion of that spirituality eventually returns to the Spirit Soul. This feedback is greater than the initial contribution."
Ning Tianya's expression shifted again.
He had now lost the arrogance he had moments before.
He now understood one thing clearly: learning forging was a gamble.
Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
"Ning Yuan handles affairs with such steadiness."
Ning Fengzhi made this evaluation after receiving news of the recent changes in Gengxin City.
"Fengzhi, you people are just too cautious. If you ask me, with the capabilities of our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, swallowing the entire Blacksmiths Association wouldn't be a problem," Gu Rong said.
Hearing this, Ning Fengzhi could only shake his head helplessly.
"Uncle Bone, reputation and image are the very foundations upon which our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan is built."
The clan could engage in shady dealings behind the scenes, but they must never be put on public display.
Simply put, the leaders of this clan were a group of support-type Spirit Masters, not assault-type Spirit Masters like the Clear Sky Clan, who, moreove,r inherited the world's number one tool, Martial Spirit, the Clear Sky Hammer.
The ethos of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan must be one of tolerance and generosity; it must convince others with reason and generate wealth through harmony.
Once that ethos becomes twisted, the entire clan will not be far from destruction.
These thoughts flashed through Ning Fengzhi's mind helplessly, but he could not voice this explanation to Gu Rong.
This was a principle only the direct lineage needed to understand.
It was also a principle that the direct lineage must understand.
"Being one step faster means staying ahead at every step. We used one year to secure a part of the procurement business with the Blacksmiths Association, acquire the talents, and prepare to learn the techniques directly. Cultivating Master Blacksmiths will also be the fastest. Additionally—"
Ning Fengzhi paused here, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Additionally, we were the first to learn about the hidden effects of Su Ming's Spirit Souls. Even a difference of just one year could create a generational gap."
(End of Chapter)