Douluo: Dragon King Huo Yuhao Lives Ten Thousand Years Later

Chapter 206 Quasi-Soul Forging and Quasi-Heaven Forging? (4,000 words)
The two pieces of news were more explosive than the last, and a collective gasp immediately rose from the audience.

The divine alloy formed by the fusion of nine metals is a legendary existence, but compared to this ethereal research with no end in sight, there are two other things that concern everyone more.

Zhenhua wanted to take the girl from the Spirit Pagoda as his apprentice, and confidently said that she would be the next Divine Craftsman.
This……

The audience looked at each other, and for a moment no one dared to voice their doubts.

That's the legendary craftsman Zhenhua, a pinnacle of the forging world. Who would dare to easily deny someone he has his eye on?

Among the crowd, one figure had the most complex expression.

That's Mu Chen, the president of the East China Sea Forging Masters Association!

He stared at Zhenhua, Gu Yuena, Huo Yuhao, and Xiong Jun with an incredulous expression, clutching his heart and convulsing.

What was he thinking before?
Even Senior Brother Zhenhua, the president of the Forging Masters Association, doesn't care about sectarianism and is willing to accept people from the Spirit Pagoda as his disciples. Why did he care about such things before?

He felt a pang of heartache. If he could go back in time, he would do anything to accept Tang Wulin as his disciple the moment he met him, to hell with such prejudice!
Seeing everyone's silence, Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena exchanged a smile.

With the involvement of the Blacksmiths' Guild, their chances of completing the God's Alloy are much higher.

Just as everyone fell silent, a discordant voice suddenly broke in, "Your Majesty Zhenhua, aren't you being a little too confident?"

Upon hearing that familiar voice, Chang Gongyan and Lin Yuhan frowned in unison and looked toward the entrance of the Blacksmith Association not far away. Their companion from the Star Luo Envoy, Ning Fengzhi, was standing there with a sneer on his face, followed by several blacksmiths from the Star Luo Empire.

None of the people present had ever seen these people before, and they were a little confused for a moment. But soon, someone who followed current events recognized them: "They are from the Star Luo Federation delegation!"

Zhenhua's eyes flickered slightly, and he said calmly, "So you are friends from the Star Luo Federation. May I ask what brings you here from afar?"

Ning Fengzhi stepped forward, cupped his hands slightly, but his tone carried a hint of arrogance:

"Your Excellency Zhenhua, I have long admired your name. I am Ning Fengzhi, representing the Star Luo Federation. I have come today to pay a visit to the Federation's forging community, and I did not expect to witness your grand event of accepting apprentices."

His gaze swept over Gu Yuena and Huo Yuhao, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.

“We naturally trust your judgment, but even if you are a master craftsman, it doesn’t mean your disciple will necessarily become a master craftsman, right? Even if it’s just to promote your disciple, this is going too far. She might be overwhelmed by the pressure.”

Instantly, the blacksmiths who had been hesitant about the matter all showed anger. This was on the territory of the Douluo Federation, how dare the people of the Star Luo Federation so arrogantly question the divine craftsman Zhenhua?
No matter what, it's none of your business to say anything!
Huo Yuhao looked at Ning Fengzhi and frowned secretly.

Ning Fengzhi?
Isn't this the name of Ning Rongrong's father from 20,000 years ago?

No, it seems that such a person did exist in this era.

After connecting the people of Xingluo with Ning Fengzhi, Huo Yuhao thought about it carefully and finally remembered this person.

He seemed to be a blacksmith from the Holy Spirit Cult who appeared during the attack on Zhenhua; he remembered him because his name was so conspicuous.

However, this person certainly knows how to choose a name. I wonder if the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile School will remember their ancestors after learning of his existence.

Faced with Ning Fengzhi's provocation, Zhenhua remained calm. He slowly said, "As a blacksmith, you must understand that forging is about talent and perseverance, not just empty words. Since I dare to take on a disciple, I naturally have my reasons."

"In that case, would you be so kind as to allow His Excellency Zhenhua's esteemed disciple to have a match with a junior from our Star Luo Federation, so that we may have a glimpse into his abilities?"

Zhenhua frowned slightly and said, "The Blacksmith Association is a place for everyone to exchange skills, and it's natural to have a friendly competition. However, your grand display might affect others, which is not appropriate."

Ning Fengzhi spoke slowly in a low voice, "I merely wish to confirm whether the Blacksmith Association is merely a name without substance. Today, the Blacksmith Association is establishing an exchange system. I am willing to offer three techniques as the prize for the competition. If we lose, we will hand them over to the Blacksmith Association. Conversely, you will not need to provide any compensation, and I will leave one technique as a challenge fee. As a master craftsman, President Zhenhua, I wonder if you dare to accept this challenge?"

The atmosphere around them froze instantly upon hearing this.

All the blacksmiths, along with His Majesty Zhenhua, turned completely cold.

Having said all that, we have no choice but to compete.

Chang Gongyan looked at his colleague Ning Fengzhi with a bewildered expression. Because of Ning Fengzhi's actions, he and Lin Yuhan had also been noticed by the people around them as envoys of the delegation. They had no choice but to walk to Ning Fengzhi's side and accept the angry stares from the crowd.

"What are you doing? Why are you provoking the Blacksmiths' Guild?"

“Verification. Since Zhenhua is so certain that his disciple can become a master craftsman, there must be a reason. Don’t you want to know why?”

Ning Fengzhi transmitted his voice, saying, "With your disciple's level, you can test that girl's abilities. As for their hostility... don't forget that we are not part of the Douluo Federation just because of the recent courtesies they've shown us. On the contrary, we are their enemies!"

This is also why the Star Luo Federation had no choice but to cooperate with their Holy Spirit Cult. Faced with the threat from the Douluo Federation, the Star Luo Federation's leadership... had no other options.

The common people below can surrender, and the Douluo Federation may be lenient in dealing with them, but would the Star Luo high-ranking officials dare to surrender?

They surrendered, and only death awaited them.

Chang Gongyan still didn't quite understand, "But even if we knew her strength, what would be the point? Just to see the difference in strength between us?"

"..."

Ning Fengzhi did not answer.

Can he say that he wants to recruit one more talent for the Holy Church?

Although their Holy Spirit Cult has blacksmiths, they don't have divine craftsmen!
As long as the Douluo Federation has divine craftsmen and continues to produce Heavenly Forged Metal, they will always be at a disadvantage in fields such as Battle Armor. This is also the reason why they planned to attack Zhenhua in the past.

Now that Zhenhua claims his disciple has the potential to be a master craftsman, we naturally need to verify that claim.

If the other party truly possesses the qualities to become a master craftsman, then some planning is necessary to find a way to get them into the Holy Church. If all else fails, such talent must be destroyed.

The Douluo Federation is already strong enough; it must be weakened!

Anyway, he's just a kid, much easier to deal with than Zhenhua, a four-word battle armor master and divine craftsman.

Unable to get an answer from Ning Fengzhi, Chang Gongyan frowned. But it was too late to say anything now, as the only junior blacksmith present was his disciple, Lin Yuhan.

He took a deep breath, looked at Zhenhua, and said in a deep voice, "Since Lord Ning Fengzhi insists on the competition, then my disciple Lin Yuhan will learn from the forging skills of Your Excellency Zhenhua's disciple."

Upon hearing this, Lin Yuhan stepped forward with a solemn expression. Although young, as the most outstanding blacksmith of the younger generation in the Star Luo Federation, she had absolute confidence in her abilities.

Although the prosperity and strength of the Douluo Federation surprised her greatly, it was not enough to make her lose confidence in forging. Even if the other party was a disciple of a divine craftsman, she believed that she had the strength to fight back.

"Miss Gu Yuena, please enlighten me."

Seeing this, Gu Yuena stepped forward before Zhenhua could say anything, calmly sizing up Lin Yuhan. "Then please give me your guidance." The other party had made such a bold statement, slapping her teacher in the face. As a disciple, she naturally had to stand up for her.

Zhenhua raised an eyebrow, a sense of relief rising in his heart, and said directly to the staff:
"Prepare a forging table."

"Yes!"

Preparing the necessary tools for forging at the Forging Association was naturally simple, but to the surprise of Lin Yuhan and the association's forging masters, Zhenhua had only prepared one forging table for some reason.

"What does this mean?"

Chang Gongyan frowned.

"You will all understand in a moment." Zhenhua did not explain, but only said, "Now, choose the metal you want to forge, and use the completion rate of the spirit forging as the evaluation standard."

As soon as the referee, Zhenhua, spoke up, Lin Yuhan stopped thinking and immediately got into the zone, saying, "Okay, I choose Blue Pregnant Bronze."

Gu Yuena: "I choose Star Silver."

Hearing that she directly chose the Spirit Alloy, Lin Yuhan frowned, but wasn't too worried.

The blue-impregnated copper she chose is also quite difficult to forge, and the result will depend on the final forged product.

Zhenhua instructed his men to prepare the rare metals needed for Blue Pregnant Copper and Star Silver, and then said:
"let's start."

Lin Yuhan nodded slightly, her gaze instantly becoming focused and sharp. Under her concentration, her blue eyes shone like two dazzling sapphires.

She spread her arms to her sides, and two beams of light suddenly appeared. Two spirit-forged blue maces were firmly held in her hands, and four spirit rings, two yellow and two purple, quietly emerged.

Without much preparation, Lin Yuhan quickly began forging the metal.

Each hammer blow would linger on the blue-coated copper for several seconds, and her spirit-forged blue-coated copper hammer would not bounce off. When the blue-coated copper hammer struck the metal, it would make a crisp "crack" sound, and then wisps of electricity could be seen falling from the blue-coated copper hammer and flowing into the blue-coated copper.

Her movements were clean and efficient, each hammer blow carrying a precise rhythm, the metal ringing crisply under her hands. As a forging prodigy of the younger generation in the Star Luo Federation, her skills were indeed impeccable. Even Mu Chen had to admit that this fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl was indeed a forging genius, far superior to his daughter.

However, when people's eyes turned to Gu Yuena, everyone held their breath, their faces showing disbelief.

Instead of making a move, she gently raised her right hand, took out a piece of metal, palm facing up, and five black spirit rings quietly rose up.

The next second, the metal floated up on its own, and then various colored elements emerged from all around, beginning to temper the metal.

Wind, thunder, light, darkness... all sorts of elements flow around the metal like a galaxy. Every collision sparks a dazzling burst of energy, and the metal gradually sheds its impurities under the tempering of the elements, radiating a brilliant spiritual brilliance!
Upon witnessing this scene, Chang Gongyan, Ning Fengzhi, Mu Chen, and the others realized that Zhen Hua had not lied; this woman truly possessed the talent of a master craftswoman.

"Forging with the power of heaven and earth, this... is Heaven Forging! It's just that without the power of laws, it won't attract lightning tribulation."

Chang Gongyan stared wide-eyed at the forging scene, his expression somewhat dazed.

Is this spirit forging using the Heavenly Forging Method? How could there possibly be such a forging genius in the world?
Although the power of heaven and earth she drew upon was far less than that of true heaven forging, it was still incredibly difficult to make an ordinary rare metal withstand such power. Just how far had her affinity and control over the elements reached that she could accomplish such a thing?
Is she the daughter of the elements?

After the initial shock, everyone observed carefully for a while and discovered that Gu Yuena's skills were even superior to Lin Yuhan's. Despite being younger than Lin Yuhan, she had improved her skills to such an extent while researching this new forging method, which was beyond everyone's expectations.

"It seems the outcome is already decided."

Ning Fengzhi spoke with his head down, trying his best to hide the excitement in his eyes.

Very good, it seems the position of Saintess has been secured.

Whether it's her cultivation level or her forging skills, Gu Yuena's talent is worthy of the Holy Church's "recruitment".

“Yes.” Chang Gongyan looked at Gu Yuena with a complicated expression. “The Federation is truly producing a constant stream of geniuses.”

I thought Huo Yuhao was already amazing enough, but I never expected there to be someone like Gu Yuena...

Even disregarding her forging skills, Gu Yuena is an exceptionally talented Soul Master. In comparison, Lin Yuhan, with her four-ring cultivation, is far inferior.

As Lin Yuhan was fully focused on completing the Spirit Forging Blue Infant Copper, the Star Silver in Gu Yuena's hand had already blossomed with dazzling starlight, its metal surface shimmering with star-like brilliance.

"This..." Lin Yuhan stared at the work in Gu Yuena's hand, her eyes filled with shock. She had never seen such a perfect spirit forging work before. The star silver seemed to have come to life, trembling slightly in Gu Yuena's hand, with a rich life force flowing through it, wanting to nourish Gu Yuena but not absorbing it.

Creation Spirit Forging!

This is the highest level of spirit forging, but Gu Yuena seems to have taken it a step further!
Lin Yuhan had seen her teacher's spirit forging works, but none were as miraculous as Gu Yuena's. That piece of spirit forged metal seemed to have subtly surpassed that level.

Many master craftsmen saw more than Lin Yuhan did.

"Above Spirit Forging is Soul Forging. This is our definition as blacksmiths. But forging itself is the process of making metal grow. A tall building rises from the ground. Hundred Forging, Thousand Forging, and Spirit Forging are all baptized with the power of heaven and earth, and the level of metal will naturally rise step by step."

"Although the disciple of the guild master only completed spirit forging, its level has been continuously improving because it has been baptized by the power of heaven and earth. Although it has not undergone a qualitative change because it has not been endowed with intelligence, it is still beyond what spirit forging metal can describe."

"Her forging method has surpassed the limits of traditional spirit forging. She has made the metal develop a quality comparable to soul forging during the spirit forging stage. It's just that because it lacks intelligence, it can only be described as quasi-soul forging."

At this point, Mu Chen swallowed hard. "And if she continues to use this forging method during the Soul Forging stage..."

Quasi-heavenly forging?
Many blacksmiths were intrigued.

At that time, the quality of the soul-forged metal that Gu Yuena completed was probably enough to make a quasi-four-word battle armor. The soul master could then nurture it into a four-word battle armor.

What would require many master craftsmen to accomplish, she could do alone.

Using the Heavenly Forging method to complete the preceding steps, progressing to Soul Forging, and finally reaching the Heavenly Forging level is not only easy, but also not as difficult as one might imagine.

She might even go further than Chairman Zhenhua!
This is an unparalleled genius who walked from the finish line back to the starting line!
At this point, the crowd, who had no objections to begin with, completely accepted the matter, and some people even looked at Gu Yuena with a more serious expression.

This is a future master craftsman!
Chang Gongyan sighed inwardly.

Before arriving in Douluo Continent, Chang Gongyan had full confidence in his disciple Lin Yuhan, but now it seems that the Star Luo Federation has been left far behind in the field of forging.

Now and in the future...

"We lost."

(End of this chapter)