Larvitar seemed to understand the words "Star Sand" and "Void Stone." The small head that had been lying flat suddenly lifted. Its crimson eyes blinked, and its little ears perked up slightly, as if it had developed a peculiar interest in those names.
Lin Xia also felt a hint of difficulty but far more excitement.
Now that the problem was clear, the direction was clear as well.
Lin Xia immediately followed up,
"Teacher, it seems our next key step is to find rare metals that contain spatial attributes. Even powders or associated ores will do!"
"Only by solving the issue of materials, the 'container' can the arrays we engrave truly unleash their power!"
After hearing this, Lou Gao moved with his usual fiery decisiveness, rushing toward the secret storage room behind the forging workshop. He rummaged through boxes and cabinets, and moments later returned, carefully holding an ebony box the size of his palm, covered in dust.
He opened the box.
Inside was a thin layer of fine sand that shimmered with a deep, blue glow, as if it contained scattered starlight—Star Sand powder, exceedingly rare and precious.
"Come, Xiao Xia! This time, we'll take it slow and steady!"
A sharp gleam burst from Lou Gao's eyes.
"We'll use this Star Sand powder as the primary material, supplemented with mithril and fine gold capable of carrying Soul Power. I'll personally shape it, fuse it, and forge the carrier!"
This time, Lou Gao's movements were even more focused and steady. He no longer rushed for results, instead pushing the Thousand-Layer Vibrating Metal Hand to its absolute limit.
The Molding Pen transformed into a carving needle that guided Soul Power, while the jet-black forging hammer used high-frequency micro-vibrations to guide the fusion of Star Sand powder with molten mithril and fine gold.
Every strike embodied a profound understanding of material properties, striving to make this base that carried spatial power flawless in every regard.
Holding his breath, Lin Xia watched intently as the originally ordinary mithril–fine gold ingot gradually changed shape under Lou Gao's godlike craftsmanship. It seemed as though a river of stars flowed within, emitting a restrained yet profound spatial fluctuation.
After the carrier was formed, Lou Gao took a deep breath and picked up the finest Soul Power engraving needle.
This time, he was no longer merely pursuing replication. With a deeper understanding of array structures, he condensed his mental strength and Soul Power to the utmost, meticulously re-engraving the storage array's patterns onto the faintly glowing metal plate.
With every stroke, Soul Power resonated with the Star Sand powder. A soft glow flowed through the lines, as if they had come alive.
Time passed in extreme concentration.
When the final stroke was completed, the entire forging room seemed to fall silent for an instant.
That palm-sized metal plate was no longer a cold, lifeless object. It radiated a gentle and stable silver-blue halo, its complex patterns pulsing faintly like breathing, while a clear spatial fluctuation spread outward.
"It's done! This time… it feels completely different!"
Lou Gao's voice carried uncontrollable excitement and a trace of nervousness.
Lin Xia's heart was racing as well.
"Teacher, try it quickly!"
Lou Gao picked up a piece of ordinary refined iron ore and cautiously brought it close to the center of the metal plate. With a thought, he injected Soul Power. A flash of light and the ore vanished!
There was no instability, no chaotic fluctuation. The array's glow remained steady and calm.
Lou Gao closed his eyes and focused on sensing it. This time, he clearly "saw" a stable, tiny yet truly existent storage space, with the ore lying quietly inside.
With another thought, light flickered, and the ore instantly reappeared in his hand!
"It worked! It really worked! Hahahahaha!!"
Lou Gao could no longer restrain himself. He burst into thunderous laughter, tossed the ore aside, and jumped in place like a child. The immense joy nearly tore through the roof of the forging room.
He slapped Lin Xia hard on the shoulder, tears glimmering in his eyes.
"Xiao Xia! We succeeded! A true Soul Tool— forged by our own hands!"
Lin Xia also smiled sincerely, his excitement impossible to put into words.
This was not merely the replication of a storage Soul Tool—it was the realization, by their own hands, of Soul Tool creation from nothing.
However, after the joy of success, the following days quickly slid into a certain degree of monotony and bottleneck.
Lou Gao became completely obsessed.
He was like a child who had discovered a new toy or rather, a craftsman god who had opened Pandora's box.
Lou Gao immediately rummaged through everything, pulling out all the Soul Tools the Blacksmith Association had hidden away—whether intact or broken.
There were short-range communication devices, faintly glowing light spheres, protective talismans that could generate weak shields, and even fragments of several offensive Soul Tools.
"Replicate them! Replicate every single one!"
Lou Gao declared boldly, his eyes blazing with the flames of exploration.
And thus, the tedious replication project began.
Relying on his divine craftsmanship and an ever-deepening understanding of Soul Tool patterns, Lou Gao combined the Association's stockpile of various rare metals—Star Sand powder, mithril, fine gold, cold iron, violet lightning iron, fire crystal powder… and began a frenzy of creation.
One Soul Tool after another, each with different functions, was born in Lou Gao's hands: communication devices, illumination spheres, protective talismans… He even barely managed to repair a damaged offensive array, allowing it to fire a faint beam of Soul Power.
The forging room soon became filled with Lou Gao's "masterpieces." Lights flickered everywhere, energy fluctuations intertwined, making the place resemble a miniature Soul Tool exhibition hall.
Every time a replication succeeded, Lou Gao would excitedly drag Lin Xia over to demonstrate it, the immense sense of accomplishment leaving him flushed with excitement.
At first, Lin Xia was also thrilled by every success. But gradually, he began to notice the problem.
This was completely a case of "knowing the result, but not the reason."
They were merely copying by imitation, perfectly reproducing the shapes of known arrays. Yet the operating laws behind those arrays, the principles of energy conversion, and the effects produced by different pattern combinations remained as elusive as flowers seen through mist.
When Lou Gao finally felt satisfied after replicating every type of Soul Tool he could find and after nearly exhausting all the compatible rare materials in the Association's inventory, the forging room was piled high with gleaming finished products. However, as Lin Xia looked at these "copies," a sense of helplessness rose in his heart.
A Soul Tool mecha?
That required entirely new, complex, original Soul Tool arrays with multiple systems working in coordination!
And right now, they had not even touched the most basic threshold of "original creation."
The mecha's power, transmission, defense, and weapon systems… every single subsystem required original design. It was simply a towering peak with no visible summit.
Lou Gao looked at the now-empty materials box beside him, then at the mountain of replicated products on the floor. The addictive fervor in his heart was finally dampened somewhat, and an expression of lingering regret and faint bewilderment toward the unknown appeared on his face.
Rubbing his hands together, Lou Gao's gaze swept over the equally contemplative Lin Xia, before finally landing on Larvitar beside them. The little creature was utterly bored, using its small claws to paw at the last piece of fine gold ore.
The little fellow had indeed been stifled lately, protesting all day with constant "Larvitar, Larvitar" sounds.
On Lou Gao's bearded old face, a rare, slightly embarrassed smile appeared—tinged with the awkwardness of having contradicted himself.
He cleared his throat, walked over to Lin Xia, and spoke in as "gentle" a tone as he could manage:
"Ahem… well, Xiao Xia, you see… we've made quite a few Soul Tools now, but this… this Soul Tool mecha's key issue is still that we don't know how to draw new designs."
He pointed at the empty materials box.
"Even the cleverest cook can't make a meal without ingredients. With no materials left, trying to research new things is… well, a bit hard to pull off."
Lou Gao paused, his gaze drifting slightly as if recalling his former emphatic warnings. His old face flushed faintly, but he still steeled himself and continued.
"Um… this teacher remembers that around Gengxin City, there are still several rich mining sites that have been surveyed but not yet excavated. Maybe inside… there really are the special mineral deposits we need?"
"For example… raw Void Stone? Or other associated ores that contain special Soul Power? Staying in the city all the time isn't really a solution…"
Lou Gao carefully observed Lin Xia's expression, lowering his voice further, carrying a hint of coaxing and reluctant compromise.
"How about… your teacher takes you along, and we go prospecting again? We can treat it as taking this little fellow out for some fresh air. Look at it—it's completely wilted"
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