Everyone returned to their usual routines.
Shi Fen continued working day and night to decipher the Basic Secret Patterns.
After seeing Deep Spring, Wei Wen threw himself into learning how to forge with even greater fervor. He moved straight into the break room of the Forging Room, and every day, whenever he caught someone at Three Stones, he pestered them with questions. He swung the hammer like a madman every day. His shoulders, arms, and palms swelled, but that did nothing to slow his forging.
Wei Wen had gone completely mad.
In his "Mad Demon" state, Wei Wen was like a giant sponge, frantically absorbing every bit of knowledge about forging. The speed of his progress left everyone at Three Stones trembling with disbelief.
Every day, Luo Feng practiced his blade techniques on the training ground in his villa, using Deep Spring to improve his coordination with it. At the same time, whenever no one was around, he secretly trained as a Spiritual Master.
They were all working frantically for their own futures.
August 1.
This was the day of the Martial Artist Combat Assessment.
Shi Fen knew Luo Feng would definitely come looking for him within the next couple of days, so he simply stayed home, deciphering Secret Patterns as he waited for Luo Feng's "good news."
Shi Fen had already deciphered 2,871 two-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns. He could now work through around 43 a day. At that rate, it would take him just over 200 days to finish all 10,081 Basic Secret Patterns.
Of course, that was unrealistic. Three-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns were far, far more difficult than their two-dimensional counterparts.
Shi Fen didn't dare entertain such fantasies.
His experience from his previous life told him that fantasies were useless when faced with a difficult problem. The only thing that worked was putting in the time and effort until he finally wore it down!
As Shi Fen frowned over a problem, the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.
He set down his pencil and took out his phone. Seeing that Luo Feng was calling, he glanced at the time on the screen and wondered aloud, "Why is he calling me before the assessment?"
Shi Fen couldn't imagine why.
Surely Luo Feng wasn't going to ask someone who wasn't even at the Quasi-Fighter level for advice about the assessment. Curious, Shi Fen answered.
The moment the call connected, he heard Luo Feng's anxious voice.
"Ah, bro, I think I may have gotten you into trouble."
Shi Fen immediately asked, "I'm not taking the combat assessment. How could you possibly get me into trouble?"
"It's about the knife you forged," Luo Feng said at once. "I was on my way to store my weapons and pick up the standard weapons for the assessment. A big shot from the Extreme Martial Arts Hall spotted Deep Spring and called me over to ask about it. I didn't dare hide anything, so I told him everything."
Even more curious, Shi Fen asked, "What's the big deal about forging Deep Spring?"
Hearing how unconcerned Shi Fen sounded, Luo Feng's tone changed. His words came tumbling out like popping beans. "The big shot from the Extreme Martial Arts Hall took Deep Spring, the two throwing knives, and the video I recorded, then flew off in a fighter jet. He said he'd return them in a few days, but he didn't tell me why. He just took them!"
Shi Fen's heart gave a lurch. In a flash, he understood what had happened. He couldn't help thinking, I overlooked something, despite all my precautions! If only I hadn't let Luo Feng record it.
Someone must have noticed Deep Spring's unusual qualities and sent it off for testing.
Before forging Deep Spring, Shi Fen had no experience working with Blue Gold, yet he had managed to forge a "perfect Deep Spring" in a single attempt. With nothing to compare it to, he had conservatively estimated that it was good enough for a high-level War General.
A guy who wasn't even a Quasi-Fighter had used Blue Gold to forge a blade fit for a high-level War General. The blade was covered in intricate, beautiful patterns, and, most importantly, he had forged Deep Spring perfectly on his first try.
After all, weapons made directly from Blue Gold were generally only suitable for Junior War Generals. Shi Fen had raised its quality by two whole levels and given it beautiful patterns, too.
On top of that, he had used the scraps to forge two throwing knives with flawless patterns.
What kind of world was this?
Anyone with a little expertise—not like Luo Feng, who knew nothing about the field—would realize that Shi Fen's astonishing forging skills were already on par with those of a top forging master.
Forging masters were prized treasures of the various major powers.
Shi Fen understood what was going on. He reassured Luo Feng, "I didn't expect that video you recorded to become 'evidence identifying the culprit.' Looks like your bro won't be able to keep a low profile anymore."
Luo Feng was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Shi Fen replied calmly, "My forging skills have been exposed. In a few days, people will come calling, hoping to recruit me into their organizations."
"Ah. I..." Luo Feng didn't know what to say. Like a child who'd done something wrong, he asked cautiously, "Bro... did I get you into trouble?"
"I wouldn't call it trouble. It just means we'll be neighbors again soon," Shi Fen said with a laugh.
"Huh? That's great!" Luo Feng said, surprised at first. Then he grinned and shamelessly added, "If I'd known, I should've carried Deep Spring around the Martial Arts Hall headquarters a few more times."
"Hmph. You've ruined my chances of keeping a low profile. When you get back from the assessment, you owe me a good meal!" Shi Fen pretended to be angry.
"Heh heh, sure thing. I'm off to take the assessment." Luo Feng ended the call with a grin. Now that his Spiritual Force had awakened, the combat assessment would be a piece of cake. He planned to use it as training!
Shi Fen put down the phone helplessly. He'd only said that to keep his friend from feeling guilty.
Well, whatever. I'll just be high-profile. With Consciousness Splitting, it won't affect my study of the Basic Secret Patterns too much. I just wonder which side will come first.
The changes he'd made to the original story had completely piqued Shi Fen's curiosity.
"The Extreme Martial Arts Hall, the government, the Thunder Martial Arts Hall, the HR Alliance... Who'll come visit me first?"
Shi Fen pondered it for a long time, but couldn't come up with an answer.
"Forget it. I'll just get back to deciphering the Secret Patterns."
Shi Fen returned to the tedious work of deciphering them.
August 2.
After Luo Feng returned, the four of them—Luo Feng, Wei Wen, Shi Tian, and Shi Fen—went to a nice restaurant and gave Luo Feng a proper "shakedown."
August 4.
A Martial Artist from the Extreme Martial Arts Hall personally delivered Luo Feng's three knives to his home.
Several days passed, but no one came looking for Shi Fen.
"Did I get it wrong?" Shi Fen could only reassure himself that way. If he could keep a low profile, he'd be perfectly happy to do so. But the wheels of fate were already turning. It was unrealistic to expect things to keep going according to Shi Fen's plans.
August 5, 2 p.m.
It was the hottest time of day.
The blazing sun overhead seemed intent on destroying the South Bank Residential District, scorching the concrete buildings with its fiery claws. The temperature indoors had reached a staggering 38 degrees. Being inside felt like sitting in a sauna.
The fan behind Shi Fen spun weakly, offering him the faintest hint of cool air.
Shi Fen's strength was already formidable enough that the outdoor temperature didn't bother him. His agitation came from his frustration. No physical method of cooling down would help.
Shi Fen had finished all 3,000 two-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns. He had officially begun studying three-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns. The first three were simple, each containing only two two-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns, and he could finish one in just over an hour. But the ones that followed were much harder.
Once he got down to it, Shi Fen ran into trouble.
First, his rate of deciphering had plummeted. He could now manage two or three a day at most, and when he hit a difficult one, he could get stuck and make no progress at all.
At this rate, he had no idea how long it would take to decipher all seven thousand-plus three-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns.
Second, although he had found a way to tackle them, putting it into practice was too difficult.
Shi Fen had bought a lot of modeling clay. Using his Spiritual Force, he shaped it into two-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns and made basic templates. Then he combined the templates and studied the patterns by comparing them with the models. This method sent his speed soaring; he could now decipher more than twenty a day.
But another problem soon arose. Three-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns combined two two-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns at first, then gradually increased to combinations of nine. Shi Fen's current mental computing ability could barely handle deciphering three-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns made from five two-dimensional ones.
He couldn't manage the rest.
That meant Shi Fen needed to obtain a cultivation method and become a Martial Artist, continually increasing his strength. As his abilities as a Spiritual Master improved, his mental computing capacity would naturally increase, too.
Then deciphering the remaining three-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns would no longer be a problem.
In the Inner World, Shi Fen could currently withstand a gravitational force 59 times normal. Under that gravity, he could run, jump, and move about without being affected.
He could clearly feel that his rate of improvement had begun to slow. Shi Fen figured the remaining energy from his earlier physical transformation had finally been used up.
He desperately needed to get stronger.
Shi Fen was secretly glad Luo Feng had exposed his forging skills. With those skills, there was no way the major powers wouldn't make him a key recruit.
If even one of them was generous enough, he could rocket straight to greater strength.
Shi Fen just needed to put in a little more effort: train every day in the Inner World under the strongest gravity he could endure, and learn the Five Hearts Toward Heaven Cultivation Method. His mental computing ability would surely skyrocket.
The remaining Secret Patterns would then be easy to decipher.
"Why hasn't anyone come yet?" Shi Fen switched off the old fan, which had been whirring away, then lay down on his bed and pondered his life.
The "fat sheep" he'd been counting on still hadn't shown up.
His forging skills had been exposed, and now he was counting on a major power to invest in him and send his strength soaring.
"If all else fails, I'll go straight to the Extreme Martial Arts Hall in a few days and reveal that I'm a Spiritual Master." Shi Fen steeled himself. If he was going to make a splash, he might as well go all the way!
Shi Fen lay on the bed, letting his thoughts wander. Before he knew it, he had drifted off to sleep and started snoring without realizing it.
Shi Fen was exhausted. He hadn't slept in over a month. He'd had to work nonstop to finish those 3,000 two-dimensional Basic Secret Patterns so quickly. Even though the Image World helped ease his mental strain, it couldn't restore the exhaustion deep in his soul.
He was already close to his limit.
Sure enough, it wasn't long after he lay down that Shi Fen fell asleep without meaning to.
That night, Shi Fen had a very strange dream.
He dreamed that all his family and friends from his previous life had gathered for a family reunion in a mysterious paradise filled with birdsong, flowers, and exotic plants.
He felt indescribably happy, filled with a joy that seemed to come from the depths of his soul. As he slept, a smile rested on his face, and tears glistened at the corners of his eyes...
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