"Level 40."
Su Ming opened his eyes, neither overjoyed nor sorrowful.
This breakthrough was a natural progression.
Although it had only taken him a few months to go from level 39 to 40, his recent insights had been considerable.
"For the fourth Spirit Ring, I should be able to try for one around forty to fifty thousand years."
As Su Ming was savoring the lingering sensation of his breakthrough, Xu Jiawei's face was extremely grim.
He had actually revealed all the information about Spirit Alloys in front of a massive public audience.
A year ago, the Blacksmith Association had auctioned nine pieces of Spirit Metal at the Star Light Auction, and the forces present had tacitly agreed to block the news, preventing the existence of Spirit Metal from spreading as much as possible.
Not long ago, the Blacksmith Association had also announced the existence of Spirit Alloys at the Star Light Auction.
Xu Jiawei and the various forces had thought this news could be kept under wraps for a while longer, giving them time to explore and establish an advantage.
But Su Ming gave them no chance. Under the witness of these two hundred thousand people, he completed the forging of a Spirit Alloy and displayed its greatest advantage for all to see.
Without a doubt, the Spirit Master world was about to experience a forging frenzy in the coming period.
Where to go to learn forging?
The Blacksmith Association!
After the finals concluded, Su Ming found Duan Lin and instructed him to proceed with constructing the Blacksmith Association branch at the previously selected location.
In the Tianhun Empire, the branch would be built in Heaven Dou City; in the Douling Empire, it would be in Lingdou City.
Simultaneously, the Blacksmith Association would begin liaising with the ten cities that had successfully bid for the quota during the auction.
The one-year construction deadline didn't necessarily mean they had to wait a year to break ground.
If they had the funds, they could start construction now. Once the four main branches of the Blacksmith Association were stable and developed, they would assign some personnel to the branches in the ten cities and begin boosting their progress as well.
Mingde Hall.
Across thousands of miles, after several relays, Su Ming's spirit communication reached Su Can.
"Head, Mingde Hall secured four slots in the auction. We can start selecting cities now."
Su Can went to the Head's office and presented a series of suggestions to Jing Hongchen.
"Four branches?" Jing Hongchen took a deep breath, spread out a map, and began searching for suitable locations. "The Sun Moon Empire has no shortage of wealthy cities, but the Holy Spirit Cult is running rampant right now. If the four branches are too far from the Mingdu branch, it could lead to unnecessary trouble." As he spoke, he selected four locations in major cities near the Sun Moon Imperial Capital. "What about these four cities?"
Su Can glanced at them but offered no evaluation.
"I will report to His Majesty. Once we receive His Majesty's permission, we will commence construction immediately to build the four new branches."
The Sun Moon Empire was not short on money.
Jing Hongchen left in a flurry of activity and returned just as swiftly.
"Let's get started!"
He even halted many research projects within Mingde Hall, gathering the most important ninth-rank Spirit Engineers together.
"Everyone, there's a matter I need to discuss with you today."
[...]
To make a long story short, Jing Hongchen was formally going to promote the previously established decree to reform the Spirit Engineer system across the entire nation.
Currently, Spirit Engineers had to forge their own blanks before engraving the core formations.
The first half of this process could now be completely handed over to blacksmiths.
The ninth-rank Spirit Engineers had no objections to this.
Having such a specialized profession was undoubtedly a good thing. It was a pure enhancement for pure Spirit Engineers. It was just that the opportunity hadn't arisen before, as no one wanted to be delayed by the separate task of forging.
But now, forging had become a hot commodity. Many people were more than willing to be 'delayed' by forging, making it the perfect time to make the split.
"Alright, this is a major event affecting the entire Spirit Engineer world. I will report to the Hall of Worship and seek that one's permission. Then we will promote it in all Spirit Engineer academies nationwide, starting implementation from the academies."
Su Can raised a doubt: "Even after all the Blacksmith Association branches are completed, there will only be five. The number of blacksmiths is simply insufficient."
"No matter," Jing Hongchen said with a smile. "It's only the certified Blacksmith Association that has five branches."
"Can't we establish our own forging forces in every city? Making plans early is always good."
No new branches beyond the fourteen for a hundred years?
After learning of the Blacksmith Association's promise made during the quota auction, Jing Hongchen had spent the past few days pondering whether this guarantee would hinder the Association's own development.
After a few days, he had his answer.
It wouldn't.
They wouldn't build new branches, but they could cooperate or form alliances with other forging forces.
Alternatively, they could implement a certification system, downplaying the concept of the 'Association' itself while increasing the value of its certification.
These were all methods of expansion.
"Please voice any other opinions you have. We must strive to spread this reform across the entire nation within a month and begin implementation."
One month!
So urgent?
After establishing contact with the distant Mingde Hall in the Sun Moon Imperial Capital and relaying some ideas to Jing Hongchen through Su Can, Su Ming began to focus on himself.
"It's been three days since the Grand Spirit Tournament ended. The custom Thousand Refined One Peak metals for the Star Luo Royal Family and the Tianhun Royal Family are finished. The ones for Xiao Hongchen and the others are also done."
"It's time to set off for the Spirit Hunt."
Su Ming separated from the Sun Moon Imperial Royal Team. He had no intention of following the team as they made purchases throughout the three Douluo nations before returning to the Sun Moon Empire. Instead, he, along with the Eight-Arms Douluo and the hidden Du Busi, quietly headed towards the Star Dou Great Forest.
Spirit Hunt!
"Any thoughts on the fourth ring?"
Du Busi also had no specific plan for the Spirit Power Martial Soul.
Su Ming had undoubtedly carved his own path. What Spirit Rings he should configure in the future was for him to decide, as only he knew what he needed.
"The fourth ring..." A complex expression crossed Su Ming's face.
If it were before, he would certainly have been thinking about continuing to develop the characteristics of his Spirit Power Martial Soul.
Of course, that was his previous line of thought, but he couldn't quite figure out how to actually develop it.
Now it was different. He no longer solely wanted to develop the Spirit Power Martial Soul but planned for comprehensive development.
"'Invoking the Deity' undoubtedly allows me to treat the Trinity as a normal state of cultivation. So I am no longer a pure Spirit Power Martial Soul, but a Trinity of Body, Spirit Power, and Elemental Control."
The Martial Souls from the past and future had not fused over, but their characteristics had come along with the spirit power.
What Su Ming needed to consider was using these characteristics as a foundation to shape the Martial Souls themselves.
"The three points in time... the 'present' is undoubtedly the most fundamental and the most important. The 'past' and 'future' have only descended upon nodes within the River of Time; they have already become illusory nodes. They will definitely have to return to the 'present' in the future."
Su Ming remembered the scene when he last observed the River of Time.
The illusory history upstream was extending. Perhaps when that illusory history extended over, reaching the present, he could attempt to summon his past self.
The downstream had also begun to turn illusory. How exactly to fish out his future self was something Su Ming still had no clue about.
But without a doubt, the unification of the three bodies was inevitable.
"The present me must bear the Past and Future Selves!"
***
Dive deeper into the story with 50+ advance chapters, available now on Patreon!patreon.com/CNBLUE
If you're enjoying the novel, please consider leaving a review. Your support is crucial and helps the story grow immensely. Thank you!
(Chapter End)