First Meeting with Tang Wulin

A few days later.

Lin Jin had just finished forging and stepped out of his private Forging Room when he ran into someone head-on.

Cen Yue.

Lin Jin was already quite familiar with him.

He smiled and greeted him.

"Uncle Cen."

"Ah, A Jin."

Cen Yue beamed when he saw Lin Jin as well.

He had been present when Lin Jin forged First-Grade Thousand Refinement Cloud Titanium with a Five-Foot Spirit Glow.

Toward Lin Jin, he felt more than mere appreciation for a junior.

He also held the expectation that Lin Jin would one day surpass Zhen Hua.

"What are you off to do?"

Lin Jin asked curiously. Cen Yue seemed to be in quite a hurry.

Cen Yue smiled.

"A disciple of an old friend of mine has just arrived in Eastsea City. He asked me to look after him."

"Come to think of it, that old fellow isn't someone who accepts disciples easily."

"For someone to catch his eye and make him take things so seriously, that child must be exceptionally gifted."

"But compared to you, there's clearly still a huge gap."

Lin Jin's gaze shifted slightly at those words.

The disciple of Cen Yue's old friend...

Who else could it be?

It could only be Tang Wulin.

Thinking of this, he suddenly said,

"Uncle Cen, I'll go with you."

"Ha ha, all right."

Cen Yue paused, then laughed. Naturally, he would not refuse.

If Lin Jin had the chance to interact more with his old friend's disciple, that would be a good thing as well.

As they walked, Cen Yue said,

"Come to think of it, this child is also here to enroll at Eastsea Academy."

"You'll be in the same grade from now on."

"If you can, help him out more in the future!"

Lin Jin put on a look of surprise.

Then he teased,

"Maybe I'll need him to help me out more in the future?"

"Hahaha, you kid..."

Cen Yue laughed heartily.

Before long, the two arrived at the front desk.

With Lin Jin accompanying him, Cen Yue had not waited in the office.

Tang Wulin was dressed plainly. Standing in the bustling Blacksmith Association, he looked somewhat uneasy.

Yun Xiaoling stepped forward to greet them.

"Master Cen, Little Brother A Jin."

When Lin Jin had first arrived at the Association, she had been the one to bring him to meet Mu Chen.

Though the process had not been particularly pleasant.

Still, Yun Xiaoling could be considered Lin Jin's "guide."

As such, Lin Jin had a favorable impression of Yun Xiaoling. He usually called her sister, and the two had a good relationship.

"Sister Ling."

A smile appeared on Lin Jin's face.

Cen Yue's gaze fell upon Tang Wulin, and his brows unconsciously furrowed before quickly returning to normal.

With Lin Jin as an example before him, he truly could not underestimate these youngsters.

"You're Mang Tian's disciple?"

"Yes, Master Cen Yue. My name is Tang Wulin."

Tang Wulin immediately bowed, but his gaze could not help drifting toward Lin Jin.

For some reason, he sensed a faint yet indistinct feeling of threat from him.

Seeing Tang Wulin's gaze, Cen Yue smiled faintly.

"You have sharp eyes, child."

"This is Lin Jin, the president's disciple."

"He is the same age as you, though he should be a little older."

"And he studies at Eastsea Academy as well. In the future, whether in cultivation or forging, you should learn well from... him."

Clearly, although he still did not know what Tang Wulin's talent was like,

since he was his old friend's disciple,

Cen Yue had set aside his pride and directly began establishing connections for Tang Wulin.

However, when it came to how Tang Wulin should address Lin Jin, Cen Yue was evidently stumped.

Calling him senior would not work. The two were the same age and in the same grade.

Calling him senior brother was even less possible, since they did not share the same master.

Calling him brother seemed somewhat abrupt.

If they went by the Blacksmith Association's internal hierarchy...

Although Lin Jin was already a confirmed Level 4 Blacksmith Master, that matter was not suitable for publicizing.

At present, only four people knew.

They were Mu Chen's family of three, along with Cen Yue himself.

Left with no choice, he could only use "him" as a substitute.

Tang Wulin was clever as well. Hearing this, he immediately understood Cen Yue's meaning. After shooting him a grateful look, he clasped his fists toward Lin Jin.

"I'll have to trouble you, Brother Jin, from now on."

He did not think too much about it. Since Lin Jin was older than him, calling him brother was only natural.

Cen Yue looked toward Lin Jin at those words.

Lin Jin stepped forward and smiled as he patted Tang Wulin on the shoulder.

"We'll talk about the future when it comes."

A smile immediately appeared on Cen Yue's face, and he shot Lin Jin a grateful look.

Afterward, the group went upstairs again to conduct Tang Wulin's blacksmith rank assessment.

Along the way, they happened to run into Mu Xi, who had come looking for Lin Jin, adding another person to the group.

Not long afterward.

The assessment ended. Thousand-Refinement Deep Silver lay before them, and shock filled both Cen Yue's and Mu Xi's eyes.

Nine years old, Thousand Refinement, a Level 3 Blacksmith!

Though he was not as outrageous as Lin Jin's Half-Step Spirit Forging and peak Level 4 status.

It still could not change the fact that Tang Wulin was a forging prodigy.

And Divine Craftsman Zhen Hua's record had been broken once more.

Cen Yue drew a deep breath. At last, he understood why the prideful Mang Tian had accepted such a young disciple and valued him so highly.

After thinking it over, he had Tang Wulin return first.

Then he called Mang Tian, ending the call after a round of cordial greetings.

Immediately afterward, he called Mu Chen.

Mu Chen fell silent for a moment after learning what had happened.

Only after a long while did Cen Yue hear Mu Chen's voice through the receiver.

"Cen Yue, do you think perhaps we've really grown old?"

"Are youngsters these days really this unreasonable?"

Cen Yue fell silent as well.

A moment later, he unhesitatingly "stabbed" his old friend Mang Tian in the back.

"President, none of that is important."

"What matters is that, with that old fellow Mang Tian's ability, he simply cannot fully bring out Tang Wulin's talent."

"Although Tang Wulin's talent is not equal to Lin Jin's."

"He is still only inferior to Lin Jin."

Mu Chen's heart stirred at those words.

"What do you mean?"

Cen Yue said without hesitation,

"President, teaching one disciple is teaching, and teaching two is also teaching. Why not take Wulin in as well?"

Cen Yue actually understood Mang Tian's personality very well.

That was why he knew that Mang Tian had deliberately arranged for Tang Wulin to come here because he wanted Tang Wulin to become Mu Chen's disciple.

Otherwise, he would not have suddenly sprung such a surprise on him.

Mang Tian was arrogant, but he also knew his own limits.

At the same time, however, he was extremely stubborn.

Since that was the case, what did it matter if Cen Yue fulfilled his wish and bore the infamy of "betraying" him?

Mu Chen was not familiar with Mang Tian, but he knew Cen Yue's character all too well.

Thus, his expression became somewhat strange.

"Is that really all right?"

"And would he be willing?"

Cen Yue silently cursed the old fox, then said resolutely,

"Don't worry. Leave this matter to me."

"Even if I have to tie him up, I'll tie Wulin to the East Sea Blacksmith Association!"

Mu Chen let out a soft sigh.

"Ah, Cen Yue, you have given so much to the Blacksmith Association. It weighs heavily on my heart."

"These past years, nearly all the Association's affairs have been handled by you."

"How about this? I'll devote myself to teaching disciples, and you can take over as president of the Association."

Cen Yue froze, then suddenly cursed,

"Get lost!"