Blue Pregnancy Copper

The Sky Sea Grand Competition's secondary profession venue was located on the east side of the stadium, a row of separate buildings.

After dinner, Yun Jingheng did not return to the hotel. He stood before the notice board at the entrance for a long time.

Ye Xinglan had gone back first. There was another competition tomorrow, and she needed rest.

Yun Jingheng was not tired, nor did he want to go back so early.

The notice board listed today's events: mecha crafting, design, repair, and forging.

He stared at those words for a while, then turned to Ya Li.

Ya Li stood beside him, looking at her communicator. He did not know whether she was replying to Yun Ming's messages or handling academy matters.

Yun Jingheng said nothing and simply looked at her.

Ya Li sensed it and turned to meet his gaze.

She said nothing, merely smiling at him.

Yun Jingheng said nothing either.

The two looked at each other for several seconds.

Ya Li kept smiling.

Yun Jingheng kept looking at her.

A few more seconds passed before Ya Li spoke. "I thought you were captivated by your mother's beauty."

Yun Jingheng's mouth twitched. "Mom, I want to watch the secondary profession competitions."

Ya Li laughed and reached out to ruffle his hair.

"Alright~ Let's go."

When the venue staff saw Ya Li, they froze for a moment before hurrying over.

"Your Eminence, what brings you here?" Ya Li smiled and said she had brought her child to have a look.

The staff immediately led the way, taking them to the seats with the best view.

Several people at the judges' table also rose and nodded to Ya Li in greeting.

Ya Li waved a hand, indicating that they should continue and not mind her.

Walking beside Ya Li, Yun Jingheng watched all those adults treat her with such reverence and suddenly thought of the big names at academic conferences in his previous life.

People made way for them wherever they went, and everyone nodded along to whatever they said.

He withdrew his gaze and followed Ya Li to their seats.

The first event was mecha crafting.

Several contestants stood before their workbenches, with piles of parts laid out in front of them.

The judge blew the whistle, and they began.

Yun Jingheng watched for a while, very attentively.

Then he no longer wanted to watch.

He could understand the mecha components they were making.

Not merely the kind of understanding where he roughly knew what something was, but true understanding, from the principles to the structure.

He could see everything, even where the designs were lacking and where they could be optimized.

He leaned back in his chair, losing interest.

Ya Li glanced at him. "Not interested anymore?"

"No. I can understand what they're making, and once I understand it, it's boring."

Ya Li said nothing, only smiled.

The second event was forging.

A new batch of contestants entered the venue. Ore and hammers were placed on the workbenches.

Yun Jingheng had already been preparing to leave, but as his gaze swept across the venue, he spotted someone.

Tang Wulin.

He stood at the workbench on the very edge, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, a forging hammer in hand.

His movements were not fast, but every strike was steady. The sound of hammer hitting ore was dull and powerful.

Yun Jingheng sat back down.

The ore before Tang Wulin gradually changed shape beneath the hammer blows. Layers of impurities were stripped from its surface, revealing the metal's true color beneath.

It was a piece of blue metal, dark in color, like the deepest part of the sea.

Blue Pregnancy Copper.

Yun Jingheng had read about this metal in books—its Soul Power conductivity was exceptional, making it a core supplementary material for Battle Armor.

He had searched through Shrek's storerooms but had not found any.

The piece in front of Tang Wulin was larger than any he had ever seen in books.

Tang Wulin's hammer moved faster and faster, every strike landing precisely in the same spot.

The impurities on the Blue Pregnancy Copper were completely stripped away, exposing an intact block of metal.

The blue gleamed beneath the lights, like a piece of solidified seawater.

Yun Jingheng stared at that piece of Blue Pregnancy Copper for a long time.

He turned to Ya Li.

"Mom, can I buy that piece of Blue Pregnancy Copper?"

Ya Li looked at him, then at Tang Wulin in the arena. "You want it?"

Yun Jingheng nodded. "I need it to make a Soul Tool."

Ya Li did not ask further.

She stood and walked toward the judges' table.

When the people at the judges' table saw her approach, they hurriedly rose.

Ya Li spoke to them quietly for a few moments. The judges were stunned, then nodded.

One of them walked to the edge of the arena and waited for the forging competition to end.

Tang Wulin delivered his final few blows. The Blue Pregnancy Copper was fully formed into a palm-sized metal ingot, its surface as smooth as a mirror.

The judge blew the whistle, signaling the end of the competition.

Several judges walked over to inspect the contestants' works.

Tang Wulin's piece was placed in the center. Several judges gathered around it, studying it for a long time and discussing something in low voices.

Finally, the head judge announced the result—Tang Wulin, first place.

Tang Wulin stood at the edge of the arena, sweat on his face, but his eyes shone brightly.

Watching him, Yun Jingheng suddenly recalled the day at the Spirit Ascension Platform. That person had been the same then—clearly nervous, yet not afraid in the slightest.

After announcing the results, the head judge walked to Tang Wulin's side and spoke to him quietly.

Tang Wulin froze for a moment, then turned to look toward the stands.

Yun Jingheng stood and walked down from the audience seats until he reached Tang Wulin.

"Hello," Yun Jingheng said.

Tang Wulin stood where he was, looking at the handsome boy before him, his thoughts in disarray.

He knew him. A year ago, at the Spirit Ascension Platform, he had burst out of the forest while being chased by a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, looking utterly bedraggled.

At the time, Tang Wulin had thought he was merely an unlucky Soul Master who had caught the bear's attention. Nothing more.

Later, he heard that the bear had been split apart with a single sword strike.

He did not know who had done it.

That morning, he had sat in the resting area and watched this person stand in the arena, three Soul Rings floating behind him—two purple and one black.

His Moon Blades had sealed off every one of Zhang Yangzi's attack routes. His second Soul Skill had interrupted Wang Jinxi and Zhang Yangzi's focused assault. His third Soul Skill had passed through the Dark Eagle Dragon's body like moonlight through clouds.

Then, working with Ye Xinglan, he had pierced the Dark Eagle Dragon's bone armor with a single sword strike.

Tang Wulin had sat in the stands with his hands clenched around the railing, his knuckles white.

He had looked at that silver-white back and thought, So it was him.

Now, that person stood before him and greeted him.

Tang Wulin opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but it felt as though something had lodged in his throat.

He knew Yun Jingheng, but Yun Jingheng might not know him.

At the Spirit Ascension Platform, they had merely passed by each other. They had not even exchanged more than a few words.

"You..."

Tang Wulin spoke, his voice slightly hoarse. "You know me?"

Yun Jingheng looked at him. "During the Spirit Ascension Platform riot, you were with four other people."

Tang Wulin froze.

He remembered.

A year ago, when the Spirit Ascension Platform had gone into chaos, Zero Class encountered Xu Xiaoyu, and then the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear came after them.

Then this boy had rushed out of the forest, running from the bear.

He remembered that scene. It had been quite pitiful.

But the person standing before him now looked nothing like that.

"You were... chased by the bear back then," Tang Wulin said.

Yun Jingheng smiled and nodded. "Yeah."

Tang Wulin looked at him and suddenly did not know what to say.

The boy who had once run from a bear was now a three-ringed Soul Elder with two purple rings and one black ring, someone who had split a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear apart with a single sword strike.

And he was still struggling desperately at two rings.

Yun Jingheng did not notice the change in Tang Wulin's expression.

His gaze fell on the piece of Blue Pregnancy Copper in Tang Wulin's hand.

"Could you sell me the Blue Pregnancy Copper you just forged?"

Tang Wulin lowered his head to look at the metal ingot in his hand.

He had spent an entire hour forging it, from selecting the ore to hammering and purification. He had been extremely meticulous at every step.

He was somewhat reluctant, but the competition rules stated that forged metal could not be taken away. He raised his head and looked at Yun Jingheng.

Those black eyes were very bright, as bright as they had been during the competition, as steady as they had been when Wang Jinxi focused his attacks on him in the arena.

"What do you need it for?" Tang Wulin asked.

"To make a Soul Tool."

Yun Jingheng said, "Blue Pregnancy Copper has the best Soul Power conductivity. The core's efficiency can be thirty percent higher."

Tang Wulin did not know much about Soul Tools, but he understood "thirty percent higher."

He hesitated for a moment. "You couldn't find any at Shrek?"

Yun Jingheng shook his head.

"Shrek has some, but yours is high quality. It's better than anything I could find elsewhere."

Tang Wulin looked at the Blue Pregnancy Copper in his hand, then at Yun Jingheng.

He handed it over. "Just take it."

Yun Jingheng shook his head. "That wouldn't be appropriate. Technically, this belongs to the event organizers. Even if they've agreed, I should still ask you."

Tang Wulin scratched his head. "Then... give me whatever you think is fair?"

Yun Jingheng displayed his communicator number.

Tang Wulin froze for a moment, then added him as a friend. The money arrived—one hundred thousand.

Tang Wulin stood there, wanting to say something, but Yun Jingheng had already left. He even turned back and waved at him.

The head judge walked over and patted his shoulder. "Kid, you're pretty lucky."

Tang Wulin froze. "What?"

The head judge smiled without answering and walked away.

Tang Wulin looked down at the "cold" one hundred thousand in his hand, then in the direction Yun Jingheng had left.

He suddenly remembered Xu Xiaoyan after that morning's match. She had leaned over the railing, her face flushed and her eyes bright.

Xie Xie had asked what was wrong, and she said she was hot.

But Tang Wulin did not think it was because of the heat.

Then he thought of Gu Yue. She had sat in the very back with a cup of water in her hands, her expression calm, yet she had stared toward the entrance passage for a long time.

He lowered his head and slipped the Soul Guidance Communicator into his pocket.

Yun Jingheng returned to the audience seats, raised the Blue Pregnancy Copper in his hand, and examined it beneath the lights.

The blue metal gave off a faint glow under the light. Its internal structure was extremely pure, with almost no impurities visible.

Its quality truly was excellent.

He put it into his Storage Soul Tool, patted it, and felt very satisfied.

Ya Li watched him from the side. "Satisfied now?"

Yun Jingheng nodded. "Yeah."

Ya Li smiled. "Let's go back and rest. There's another competition tomorrow."