Task

Watching his two well-behaved sons run back to their room, Tang Ziran had yet to make a move when a drop of liquid suddenly fell onto his shoulder.

Tang Ziran turned and saw his wife standing behind him, her eyes misty with tears.

"Linlin and Yangyang are still so young. Why are you doing this?"

"If we tighten our belts a little, along with the savings we've accumulated over the years, we should be able to scrape together enough money to buy Soul Spirits for the two children."

Lang Yue's voice was choked with sobs as she spoke. Over all these years, she had never gone against her husband's decisions, but this time...

Tang Ziran sighed softly. "Although Linlin and Yangyang both possess Soul Power, and Linlin even has Twin Martial Souls, one of them is Blue Silver Grass! We don't know the quality of Yangyang's Martial Soul either, and his Innate Soul Power is only level three. No one knows whether they can truly become Soul Masters."

"With the talents those two children have, becoming Soul Masters will be far too difficult."

"Forging is a craft. Although Linlin and Yangyang are young, both children have strong personalities."

"Forging is not merely about forging metal. It is also a form of tempering for them."

"If they can truly persevere, not only will it provide them with another path, it will also give them a means of making a living once they grow up."

"At the same time, it can temper their resilience. So this will bring them nothing but benefits."

"You know our situation too. I'm just afraid that one day, we..."

"Of course, if Linlin and Yangyang can earn Mang Tian's approval, that would be even better."

"His Professional Rank is even higher than mine was back then."

Early the next morning, after saying goodbye to their mother and Na'er, Tang Wuyang happily headed to school with Tang Wulin.

After a night of Meditation, Tang Wuyang could clearly feel that he had become increasingly familiar with his Qilin Martial Soul. His body even seemed faintly able to sense all kinds of tiny elemental particles floating through the air.

This change also gave Tang Wuyang a guess, though it was only a guess.

The Soul Master class did not spend every day teaching knowledge about Soul Masters. One day was devoted to Soul Master knowledge, while the next was for cultural studies.

Since they had learned about Soul Masters yesterday, today was the turn of cultural studies.

Although Tang Wuyang did not eagerly raise his hand to answer questions like Tang Wulin during class, he still listened attentively and took careful notes.

"Mom, why did you come to pick us up today? Where's Na'er?" Tang Wuyang asked.

After school, the moment they stepped out of the school gates, Lang Yue appeared before them.

A trace of heartache showed in Lang Yue's eyes. She hurried over and scooped up both sons, one in each arm.

"Ah, Mom, put me down! The other students can see us." Tang Wuyang struggled.

"Exactly, Mom, put me down! Wuyang and I are already big boys. It's so embarrassing if our classmates see us!" Tang Wulin also struggled in Lang Yue's arms.

Lang Yue laughed. "No matter how old you are, you'll still be my sons. Mom came to take you to Uncle Mang Tian's place."

"Linlin, Yangyang, are you really going to learn Forging?"

Tang Wulin nodded firmly. "Yes! Dad said that a man should stand on his own two feet."

Tang Wuyang echoed in agreement, "That's right. We're going to earn money ourselves to buy Soul Spirits."

Lang Yue set her two sons down and crouched in front of them. "Linlin, Yangyang, don't force yourselves if you can't keep going. If it really doesn't work out, Mom will find a job too and help you save money."

"No. We want to save it ourselves." Tang Wulin looked resolutely at Lang Yue.

Tang Wuyang agreed from the side. "That's right. We promised Dad that we'd save up ourselves to buy Soul Spirits!"

With reddened eyes, Lang Yue forced back her tears and kissed both sons on the cheek. "All right, then let's go."

Aolai City was not large to begin with, so there was no need to take any transportation.

After Lang Yue led the two children for over twenty minutes, a small storefront appeared before the three of them.

The storefront looked somewhat shabby, and the sign above it bore the words Mang Tian's Workshop.

Before they even reached the entrance, the scent of metal rushed toward them.

Lang Yue pressed the doorbell, and before long, the door opened.

A tall, dark-skinned middle-aged man walked out. He had a short beard covering his face and looked somewhat fierce.

"You're here, sister-in-law."

The middle-aged man's voice was low and powerful. When it reached their ears, both brothers felt a faint buzzing.

"Uncle Mang Tian."

Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin politely bowed together to this uncle they had met a few times before.

"Mm."

Mang Tian nodded expressionlessly, then said to Lang Yue, "You should head back first, sister-in-law. Come pick them up in two hours."

"Big Brother Mang Tian, I'll leave them to you."

Lang Yue turned and took two steps forward, then reluctantly looked back at her two sons. She wanted to say something, but in the end, she gritted her teeth and held it back.

"Come in."

After speaking, Mang Tian did not wait for their response and simply turned to walk inside.

Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin exchanged a glance. After answering, "Okay," they hurriedly followed Mang Tian into the workshop.

The workshop's main hall was a complete mess, with all kinds of metal components scattered everywhere.

Tang Wuyang gave the place a cursory look and could only barely recognize that quite a few of those components seemed to be parts belonging to Soul Guide Mechas.

Glancing at his older brother beside him, Tang Wuyang saw that Tang Wulin's gaze toward those metal components was also filled with uncertainty.

Mang Tian did not stop and continued walking inward on his own.

Seeing this, Tang Wuyang quickly tugged Tang Wulin, who was still observing the components beside him, signaling for him to hurry up.

The storefront looked small, but there was plenty of space inside. After passing through a corridor, Mang Tian brought Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin into a room.

There was a workbench in the room, and at Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin's current height, they could not even reach its surface.

Mang Tian walked all the way to the workbench before stopping. He turned to look at the two following behind him. "Do you know what Forging is?"

Confusion appeared in both Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin's eyes as they looked at Mang Tian. They shook their heads in unison.

Seeing their reaction, Mang Tian said nothing else. In an indifferent tone, he said, "Actually, I didn't want to take you in. You're both too young and not suited for Forging. But your father insisted on letting you give it a try."

"So let me make this clear beforehand. If you try it and find that you cannot endure it, leave this place. Don't cry and whine here. Understand?"

Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin shouted firmly at the same time, "We won't cry!"

With a cold expression, Mang Tian said, "This is your task for today."

As he spoke, he pointed to the side.

Following where Mang Tian pointed, they saw two metal platforms about half a meter tall placed side by side on the floor. Each metal platform had a round metal block on top.

Below each metal block was an inactive Soul Guidance Screen.

Mang Tian picked up two small metal hammers from the side and handed them to Tang Wulin.

Then he picked up another identical pair and handed them to Tang Wuyang.

"See those round metal blocks? Use the pair of hammers in your hands to strike them one thousand times, five hundred with each hand. Only strikes that meet the required strength will be counted by the counter below."

"The standard is roughly the force you produce by raising the hammer and bringing it down."

"Finish, and I'll explain what Forging is. Fail, and neither of you needs to come back tomorrow."

After speaking, he did not wait for either brother to react before turning and leaving the room.

The metal hammers Mang Tian had given them had cylindrical heads, each half a foot long and roughly ten centimeters in diameter.

Each weighed around ten pounds. That was clearly no light burden for two children who were only six years old, much less when they had to swing them and hammer with them.

Tang Wuyang looked at the metal platform and said to Tang Wulin, "Brother, let's begin!"

After speaking, he took his hammers to one of the machines. Tang Wulin hurried to the other machine upon seeing this.

When Tang Wuyang raised his hammer, he discovered in surprise that the pair of hammers did not seem as heavy as he had imagined. He swung the hammer in his right hand and brought it down.

Bang!

The booming sound of metal colliding startled him. The Soul Guidance Screen below seemed to activate.

The screen lit up and displayed the number one. Tang Wuyang raised his left hand and struck down, making the number on the screen jump to two.

It did not seem too difficult. Tang Wuyang began alternating between his hands, hammering with both arms.

The pair of iron hammers struck continuously, while the number on the screen below steadily increased.

By the time the number reached one hundred strikes, Tang Wuyang had begun to sweat. By three hundred, his arms had started to feel sore and swollen.

At that moment, Tang Wuyang had no spare energy left to pay attention to his brother beside him. He could only keep telling himself, Hold on. I have to hold on!

Enduring the soreness, Tang Wuyang continued swinging his twin hammers.

When he reached five hundred strikes, the soreness became pain, but he did not stop. He still gritted his teeth and persisted.

As the number continued to rise, the pain grew increasingly intense. Tang Wuyang's arms had begun to redden slightly, but his speed did not weaken in the slightest.

Tang Wuyang kept repeating to himself, I have to keep going. I have to work hard at learning Forging and save money to buy Soul Spirits, so Dad and Mom can be happy and so I can protect Na'er.

At seven hundred strikes, Tang Wuyang could no longer feel his arms, and his speed had slowed, but he still persevered.

Hearing the hammering beside him, Tang Wuyang knew that his brother was persevering too. He could not give up either.

His school uniform was soaked through with sweat and stuck to his body, while sweat continually dripped from his face.

Just then, Tang Wuyang suddenly felt a numb sensation at his tailbone, and his entire body trembled as though struck by electricity.

The next moment, Tang Wuyang discovered in surprise that the pain had actually eased somewhat. Even the hammer in his hand, which had felt incredibly heavy moments ago, became a little lighter again.

Bang, bang, bang...

The hammering sped up. The changes in his body made Tang Wuyang feel as though the final three hundred strikes were not quite so burdensome after all.

"One thousand!"

The number finally reached Mang Tian's requirement. Only then did Tang Wuyang set down his hammers and gasp for breath.

He could clearly feel piercing pain coming from the palms of his hands, still gripping the metal hammers at his sides. His arms were so sore that they felt as though they did not belong to him.

Yet at the same time, there was also a sense of relief. The numbness at his tailbone continued, bringing with it a strange sensation.

What Tang Wuyang did not see was the faint golden pattern continuously wandering around his tailbone.

It took a full five or six minutes before Tang Wuyang felt a little better.

Turning to look beside him, he saw that the screen displayed a number just over nine hundred. His older brother was still raising his hammer and striking without pause.

If Tang Wuyang could see through his brother's body, he would have discovered faint phantom images of silvery-gray scales emerging on Tang Wulin's limbs, though only on his limbs.

Watching Tang Wulin focus on completing his hammering, Tang Wuyang decided to find Mang Tian first.

"Uncle Mang Tian, I'm done."

After wandering around for quite some time, Tang Wuyang finally found Mang Tian in a room, seated in a chair and fiddling with components.

Mang Tian froze for a moment and looked at the watch on his wrist. Only half an hour had passed.

"You finished hammering?" Mang Tian's gaze toward Tang Wuyang was full of surprise.

"Mm." Tang Wuyang nodded.

Seeing that Tang Wuyang was drenched in sweat, Mang Tian did not question him further. He stood and brought Tang Wuyang back to the previous room.

Tang Wulin was still going at it inside the room. Mang Tian walked directly to the empty machine, where a large one thousand filled the screen before him.

Just as Mang Tian was still in shock, a voice suddenly sounded beside him. "Uncle Mang Tian, I-I'm done too."

Tang Wulin was still panting heavily. Mang Tian was shocked once again; he could hardly believe it.

The two iron hammers naturally did not weigh much to him, but they were certainly not hollow. Each one truly weighed ten pounds.

Even for a normal adult man, swinging them a thousand times like this would probably leave his arms so weak and sore that he could not lift them.

Moreover, it would be difficult to finish in such a short time, much less for two children who were only six years old.

The test Mang Tian had given them had actually been nothing more than a tactful refusal.

He had a good relationship with Tang Ziran and could not directly turn him down. Yet he was unwilling to teach two six-year-old children who, in his eyes, had no chance of learning Forging well. But everything before his eyes...

"Hammer some more for me. Until I tell you to stop, you are not allowed to stop." Mang Tian looked seriously at the two of them.

Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin obediently picked up their hammers again. After resting for a while, Tang Wuyang felt that the soreness in his arms had eased slightly.

Tang Wulin, however, had it worse. He had only just finished and had not even had time to rest before he had to continue.

But so that he could stay with his younger brother, Tang Wulin ignored the agonized protests from his arms and palms. Though the frequency of his hammering gradually declined, he still gritted his teeth and persisted.

Bang, bang, bang, bang...

Hammer after hammer fell. There was no technique involved and no borrowing of force, only simple, direct strikes against the metal block.

With Mang Tian's Forging experience, he could determine after only a few glances that the two children had enough strength to wield the hammers in their hands and complete the hammering.

The term naturally gifted with strength held different standards when applied to people of different ages.

But for two children only six years old to swing a pair of iron hammers like that and complete one thousand strikes, they absolutely deserved that description.

Still, Mang Tian did not tell them to stop. He merely stood nearby and silently watched them continue hammering.

Because the two children's movements were so direct and forceful, without any technique for shedding or redirecting force, the recoil from every strike was undoubtedly borne entirely by their arms.

Fifty strikes, one hundred strikes, one hundred and twenty strikes...

As the number of strikes increased, sweat gushed out again. Their arms burned fiercely, and the soreness was even worse than before.

Perhaps because he was exerting too much force, Tang Wuyang felt his head swelling with pressure, but his hands did not stop moving. He clenched his teeth and persisted.

Tang Wulin was in even worse condition. As the number of strikes continued to rise, he could feel his consciousness steadily becoming blurred. His once-bright eyes had completely lost focus, and he was relying solely on muscle memory to repeat the motions of swinging and striking.

When Mang Tian finally called for them to stop, Tang Wuyang did not even know how many times he had swung his hammers. If Mang Tian had not supported him in time, he would have collapsed directly onto the floor.

Tang Wulin was even worse. The arm holding his metal hammer trembled slightly, and both hands suddenly lost all strength. With a clang, the twin hammers smashed onto the ground.

Seeing this, Mang Tian did not scold them. Instead, he settled them to the side first, then picked up the hammer Tang Wulin had dropped.

When Mang Tian took Tang Wuyang's hammer, his gaze swept across the two children's palms.

He clearly saw that the palms of both Tang Wuyang and Tang Wulin's hands had been rubbed raw by the recoil from the hammer handles, while their arms were swollen and red all around.

Upon seeing this, Mang Tian was finally moved.