Douluo, my clone Groudon

Chapter 188 Demonstration of Soul Forging
"Time's up, stop!"

Duan Xuan's deep voice, carrying the soul power of a Soul Saint, penetrated through the thirty-six soul-guided soundproof shields.

The glass skylight of the Blacksmith Association dome was refracting the setting sun into a seven-colored waterfall of light, but it was replaced by silver light the moment the soul guide shield rose. Thirty-six water-wave-shaped light curtains rose from the edge of the arena, releasing the contestants who were in absolute silence.

Tang Wulin loosened his grip on the forging hammer, and on the surface of the silver ingot on the forging table, seven dragon-shaped cloud patterns were flowing in the twilight.

As his fingertips brushed across the metal surface, he could faintly hear a clear, melodious dragon's roar resonating with his heartbeat, which reminded him of the Crimson Dragon's Heaven-Shaking Demonstration performed by the senior Zhuoshi yesterday.

"Please place your finished products into the spirituality testing device one by one."

As the robotic arm pushed the detector to the center of the ring, Gula noticed that the emerald fluorescence remaining on his left hand was fading.

On his forging table, the surface of the slush silver was interwoven with crimson and emerald green patterns, like a rainforest bathed in the glow of the sunset.

As he picked up the metal and walked toward the testing area, gasps rose and fell from the audience—all the other thirty-five contestants' pieces of Thousand Refined Silver had a silvery-white base, but his and Tang Wulin's pieces shone with a different kind of brilliance.

"Twin martial souls? When did you achieve that?"

On the judges' platform, Zhenhua tapped the sandalwood with his index finger resting on the armrest. The divine craftsman's astonishing perception allowed him to see that as the boy walked, the fiery red soul power seeping from between the fingers of his left hand was merging with the illusory vines wrapped around his right wrist. The two completely different energies constructed an exquisite soul power circuit within the sunken silver.

In fact, once the forging process is complete, a quick look at your own work and that of others will give you a general idea of ​​your performance.

However, in Gula's case, he was only one step away from spirit forging. It could be said that anyone could complete spirit forging with a single hammer blow, and the current dark silver was still in the spirit forging stage.

"Hey kid, showing off your skills."

Zhenhua chuckled and scolded, but in his heart he liked Gula very much. Talent could cover up the arrogance of a young man hiding his talents. Among everyone present, only he understood the talent and confidence required for this arrogance.

The master craftsman stood up and watched as the contestants placed the metal into the detector. One by one, spiritual data and images of the metal appeared on the big screen, gradually giving the rankings.

Of course, the final result depends not only on the metal's spirituality, but also on data such as the activity of that spirituality, which requires evaluation by a professional blacksmith.

Gula followed the team and presented the final piece of Thousand-Refined Silver to the judging panel. Thousand-Refining is the foundation of forging, and Silver is a widely used metal.

This round tests the blacksmith's basic skills, which was quite difficult for Gula in the past. However, after more than half a year of practice, he has made up for his shortcomings and become a qualified blacksmith.

Duan Xuan's soul-guided megaphone emitted a piercing buzz as the president of the Tianhai Forging Association stared intently at the holographic projection.

Under the spirit-testing instrument, Gula's slush silver showed an emerald halo, and the crimson patterns inside resembled a lava riverbed. When the mechanical arm flipped the slush silver, the patterns on the metal surface seemed to grow into tiny crystal clusters.

"Thousand-times refined silver, spiritual value 989..." Before the electronic voice finished broadcasting, Duan Xuan had already stood up, leaning on the judging panel: "Gula student, would you be willing to join the Tianhai Forging Association? Our association can cover all your metal consumption before you become a Saint Craftsman."

Duan Xuan couldn't help but invite him, saying that each Saint Craftsman prospective is the first training sequence of major forces, and Tianhai City, as the number one city in the east, has very few Saint Craftsman prospectives.

The roar from the audience nearly lifted the ceiling. Gula, however, simply took the silver from the tray, his crimson eyes flickering slightly: "Thank you for your consideration, Chairman, but I have no interest."

Duan Xuan wanted to persist, but Zhen Hua appeared beside him at some point, placing his rough hand on Duan Xuan's shoulder.

"Don't force it." Duan Xuan looked suspicious, wondering if Zhenhua had taken a liking to Gula. Little did he know that Zhenhua was saving him. Leng Yaozhu was giving Zhenhua face, but she wouldn't give him any.

Zhenhua offered a brief suggestion and then turned to Gula, saying, "Spirit forging requires a simultaneous qualitative change in both soul power and spiritual power. You did a great job."

Secretly, Zhenhua transmitted his voice to Gula: "Stay after the match."

Gula nodded slightly, accepted the Thousand Refined Silver, and stepped back.

The testing process continued. When Tang Wulin's dragon-patterned silver was inserted into the instrument, an eerie silence suddenly fell over the audience.

On the projection screen, the pillar of light representing spiritual values ​​transformed into a dragon shape after breaking through 900, and the clear dragon roar echoed through the soundproof enclosure.

Zhenhua nodded slightly, his eyes full of approval.

"That's quite rare."

He stroked the dragon pattern on the edge of the silver, guessing that this was the reason why Zhuoshi accepted disciples, as spirituality and blood energy were perfectly integrated in the metal.

If Gula's forging is a perfect fusion of two martial soul abilities, possessing both excellent heat resistance and hardness, as well as an affinity for natural elements, it elevates the essence of metal.

Tang Wulin's forging perfectly combines blood and energy with the spirituality of metal, thus sublimating the properties of metal, but it is an activation and sublimation from the outside in.

"The blood and energy of a true dragon permeate the metal..."

No one heard the master craftsman's mutterings as he recalled Tang Wulin's forging techniques, seeing familiar shadows in them.

Zhenhua's hand landed on Tang Wulin's shoulder, a gesture that caused several master craftsmen in the VIP seats to stand up simultaneously. "Child, from whom did you learn your forging skills?"

Tang Wulin's fingers tightened around the hem of his clothes. "It's Teacher Mang Tian."

Zhenhua was not surprised by Tang Wulin's answer, and understood in his heart, "Hmph, it's not enough to just take her away, you also have your disciple come to show off in front of me."

As Zhenhua turned to face the roaring crowd, the soul-guided spotlights on the dome shone precisely on his silver-gray robe, the metal badge refracting starlight under the intense light. The boiling roar abruptly subsided with his gesture of raising his hand, and tens of thousands of gazes converged on the central forging platform as if drawn by a magnet.

"The second round's challenge: Thousand-Refined Blue Copper." His voice carried a strange metallic quality in the soul-guided megaphone. "Before that—" the forging hammer spun a silver arc in his palm, "I will demonstrate soul forging."

Dozens of soul power halos suddenly lit up in the front row of the audience seats. The master craftsmen released their spiritual power in unison, not wanting to miss any detail.

The calloused hands trembled slightly as they pressed against the armrests of the chairs. One white-haired elder even knocked over a teacup, the dark brown tea stains seeping into his blue robe without him noticing. For them, spirit forging was merely a daily task; only soul forging was the ladder to refining their forging skills.

The piece of silver that Zhenhua took out from his spatial ring was half a person tall, with energy patterns flowing like water ripples on its silver-gray metal surface.

When the forging hammer first touched the metal surface, the entire venue suddenly fell into an eerie silence—not a physical silence, but a resonant vibration of all the metal objects, with the suspended soul-guiding lamp chains playing delicate musical notes.

(End of this chapter)