Defining the Forgemaster

Such intense Spirituality!

A perfect work!

At this moment, in Lou Gao's eyes, that piece of Star Soul Iron had become a peerless beauty. The dazzling three-foot pillar of starlight filled his entire vision.

As a Divine Blacksmith, Lou Gao's eye for such things was certainly sharp enough.

He could tell that the Star Soul Iron's Spirituality had been guided so perfectly not because of the Spirit Infusion technique. The key lay in Su Ming's forging skill.

Spirit Infusion only bestowed a foundation of Spirituality; it did not directly guide its Spirituality to such an astonishing extent.

"Your forging skill surpasses mine," Lou Gao murmured.

He admitted it with complete frankness.

If his old friend Tai Tan had come and displayed techniques beyond his abilities, he would still have stubbornly refused to admit defeat. Even if Tai Tan possessed skills he did not, the gap would not have been great, and he himself had crafts Tai Tan did not know.

But the techniques Su Ming had displayed before him had utterly defeated him in the very field he excelled at most.

The gap was too vast. There was not even room for him to make excuses.

Or rather, faced with such an enormous gap, Lou Gao had no desire to make excuses at all. All he felt was the mindset of a pilgrim.

His gaze shifted away from the fading pillar of starlight and fixed firmly on Su Ming. All kinds of emotions began to flicker in his tiny eyes.

Shock.

Confusion.

Reverence.

A desire to learn.

Every one of those thoughts showed vividly in those small eyes.

"President, don't stare at me like that. You're scaring me," Su Ming said.

Lou Gao realized his posture was inappropriate. He coughed twice and composed himself.

"Xiao Ming, did your teacher teach you all these forging techniques?"

"My teacher laid a solid foundation for me," Su Ming replied with a chuckle.

A trace of envy flashed through Lou Gao's eyes.

What kind of damned luck had Zhu Jiuyang stumbled into?

To be able to develop forging techniques of this level on his own—calling him the reincarnation of a god would not be an exaggeration, would it?

Nearby, Duan Jin and Huo Lie were still immersed in the experience of Su Ming's forging.

Duan Jin seemed to have gained some insight. Watching Su Ming patiently nurture and guide the Star Soul Iron's Spirituality step by step, as though he truly treated it as a living being, had given him much to contemplate.

Huo Lie, meanwhile, was simply overwhelmed.

His devotion to forging had never been particularly deep, but at that moment, his heart suddenly pounded as he felt the charm of forging.

"Didn't you three come to see me today because you had something to discuss?" Lou Gao asked. "Kid, you're not thinking of becoming president, are you? No problem. As long as you say the word, I'll hand the position over to you right now."

Su Ming hurriedly waved his hands.

"That won't do, that won't do."

With the Blacksmith Association about to undergo reforms, the president would be the real workhorse. He had no intention of taking the job.

"President Lou Gao, we came this time to discuss reforms to the association," Huo Lie said after coming to his senses.

Lou Gao looked utterly puzzled.

What reforms?

How did I not know about this?

"As for the Thousand Forgings with Spirit technique, I have no intention of keeping it to myself."

The moment Lou Gao heard Su Ming's words, his eyes lit up. They even seemed to grow larger in that instant.

"Really?"

"Really. But I hope to reclassify the profession of blacksmithing."

"How?"

Lou Gao looked at Su Ming curiously.

"From now on, blacksmiths will be called forgers, and the Blacksmith Association will be renamed the Forging Association. I will leave behind the inheritance of Thousand Forgings with Spirit, especially the method I use to grant metals Spirituality."

Lou Gao looked at Su Ming as though he were making a pilgrimage.

At that moment, he truly felt that Su Ming was glowing.

"Good! Good, good, good!"

His face flushed red with excitement.

"Now I have even more reason to hand the presidency over to you. I would feel ashamed to hold that position myself."

Su Ming declined. "Forget it. President Lou Gao, I trust your character. You should remain president yourself. Besides, I intend to redefine the ranks of forgers, and the title of Divine Blacksmith will also be abolished. Can you accept that?"

Lou Gao waved his hand.

"Wouldn't I know best whether I'm truly a Divine Blacksmith?"

The title had only been used to make things sound more prestigious. In truth, he was worlds apart from the realm of gods.

"However, there's one thing I need to remind you of. Even if we rename it the Blacksmith Association, we cannot dishearten the ordinary smiths who support us."

Lou Gao did not care whether he was considered a Divine Blacksmith, but he took Su Ming's proposal to redefine the ranks very seriously. His expression was exceptionally solemn.

"I can sense that the title of forger carries extraordinary significance. It has already gone beyond the scope of an ordinary profession. And if Thousand Forgings with Spirit is the key to your ranking system for forgers, then that implicitly assumes that forgers all come from Soul Masters. Soul Masters are already a noble profession, and renaming it the Blacksmith Association will earn greater recognition from society. That is a good thing. But you must remember this: the profession of smithing is our root. It was also the foundation upon which the Blacksmith Association was established. Our purpose is to promote and develop smithing, not to help some people who hammer iron escape the plight of being in a lowly profession. You may redefine the ranks of your so-called forgers, but ordinary smiths must also have a path to advancement. They, too, must be qualified to be called forgers. Otherwise, I will never agree."

If the profession of forging was built upon the identity of Soul Masters, then packaged together with the proof of Thousand Forgings with Spirit metal, the Blacksmith Association would inevitably gain recognition very quickly. By then, the status of forgers would be incomparable to that of current smiths.

However, Lou Gao insisted that ordinary smiths also needed a path to become forgers.

"Don't worry, President. I understand that as well." Su Ming said, "I already have a rough draft for the new classifications. Those who have mastered the Hundred Forgings technique will be junior forgers. Those capable of shaping Hundred Forgings metal into various components will be intermediate forgers. Those capable of performing Thousand Forgings on Ordinary Metal without Spirituality induction, then shaping the finished work, will be senior forgers. Those who have mastered Thousand Forgings with Spirit will be Forging Masters."

Even the future classifications of forgers included the ordinary Hundred Forgings level, let alone under the current circumstances.

Upon hearing Su Ming's classifications, Lou Gao could not help but nod.

There were only four ranks, yet they were extremely reasonable and clearly distinguished. They were far more logical than the current Blacksmith Association's classifications.

"At present, our forging standards only reach Thousand Forgings with Spirit. The Star Soul Iron I just forged emitted Spirituality light through its body, forming a beam three feet tall. Based on my experience, Spiritual Metal whose Spirituality light exceeds one foot is clearly on another level. I call this level Thousand Forgings First Grade. Below that, they are classified from Second Grade to Fourth Grade according to the strength of their Spirituality."

"As for the future, I also have a preliminary plan. It is the level of that metal created by the first-generation Divine Blacksmith, the one that transformed into a Soul Beast. In other words, using forging methods to achieve perfect Spirituality induction in metal, allowing the metal's Spirituality to grow to its peak during forging and undergo sublimation, without needing to rely on nature's nurturing or luck to transform into a true Lifeform."

No longer relying on nature to transform into Life.

In other words, this transformation would have to be achieved through a forger's Forging Hammer.

Lou Gao understood Su Ming's unspoken meaning, and his body trembled with excitement.

Could it really be done?

It definitely could!