The Blacksmith Association's Famous Figure: Xiao Mu

Wei Xiaofeng widened his eyes, his gaze filled with confusion; he hadn't expected his boss to be so confident in himself.

Xiao Mu looked at Wei Xiaofeng, speechless. Did clearing a path always have to involve a fight?

He took half a step forward, raised his voice, and his clear tone cut through the surrounding noise: "Move aside, you're blocking the way."

The upperclassmen surrounding them turned their heads in unison. The blonde girl turned back, and upon seeing who it was, she raised an eyebrow: "Didn't you see we were blocking someone?"

Several senior students beside her immediately stepped forward, their expressions hostile: "Lowerclassmen don't know the rules. You'd better take a detour while you still can."

Everyone in this group knew Mu Xi's identity, so naturally, they felt compelled to stand up for her.

Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi quietly gathered their soul power, bracing themselves in case the other side suddenly attacked.

"These lackeys are such a nuisance."

Xiao Mu couldn't be bothered to argue further. He took a step forward, and the first soul ring beneath his feet suddenly lit up. An invisible force field instantly blanketed the entire open space.

"Trash, let me pass."

In an instant, the few upperclassmen who had been provoking them didn't even have time to react. Their bodies were suddenly lifted off the ground by an unseen force, spun several times in the air, and then slammed heavily into the green belt.

Mu Xi's expression remained indifferent; she knew these people were just looking for trouble.

"Xiao Mu, couldn't you have waited for me to finish posturing?" She was, of course, familiar with this frequent visitor of the Blacksmith Association. This guy had an absurdly high standard for the quality of his parts.

He wouldn't accept even a hair's breadth of deviation in precision.

The Blacksmith Association was famous for having too much money and too many demands.

He even spent his days cursing the Blacksmith Association for raising a bunch of useless people who couldn't even manufacture simple parts.

Unfortunately, in Xiao Mu's view, if they could make parts, weren't they just high-level fitters? If they couldn't do this or that, what use were they?

He was the client, after all.

Demanding a "colorful black" was only right and proper.

He had even been forced to become an eighth-level fitter himself—though he had self-proclaimed the "eighth-level" part, the fitter skills were real.

However, it seemed someone stubborn had recently accepted his parts commission.

It was a batch of precision gears, and the precision requirements were extremely high.

Xiao Mu looked at Mu Xi and said flatly: "No, absolutely not!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Tang Wulin, who was waiting to pick up materials nearby, looked confused and asked: "Who are you people?"

Mu Xi's lips curled into a playful smirk as she pointed at Xiao Mu: "This is the one who posted the parts commission you accepted."

"He has too much money and even more demands."

"His requirements for the precision of the parts are sky-high."

"I advise you to give up on that task quickly. Even a fourth-level blacksmith wouldn't dare take it; why do you think it's worth a hundred thousand?"

Tang Wulin turned to look at Xiao Mu, raised his hand in a flustered greeting, and worried inwardly: This is the boss who posted the task. I should be able to complete it, right?

Xiao Mu's gaze fell on Tang Wulin: "As long as you follow my specifications and complete it without a single error, I won't make things difficult for you."

He shifted his gaze toward Mu Xi: "What are you doing today? Showing off that blacksmithing of yours that can't even produce a decent part?!"

At these words, Mu Xi's face flushed red: "I can forge medium-sized parts on my own now. Things are different from how they used to be."

"Oh, the primary parts you forged for me were still substandard."

"I... I'm a second-level blacksmith now!"

"Not a single one of the primary parts you forged for me passed inspection."

"Can you say something else for once!"

Mu Xi was completely broken by Xiao Mu's words. Was this dark history never going to be buried? It sounded as if anyone in the Blacksmith Association had ever passed Xiao Mu's inspection on the first try.

"Tang Wulin can take my task, he's younger than you, and he's also a second-level blacksmith! Oh, wait, I'm also younger than you, and I'm a third-level blacksmith."

Xiao Mu changed his tune instantly, completely unbothered by Mu Xi's anger. He was nine years old now; he still had the "version advantage."

Once he grew up, that advantage would be gone.

If he didn't use it now, when would he?

"Boss, that seems to be the young lady of the East Sea Blacksmith Association. Won't you be in trouble if you offend her?" Wei Xiaofeng asked hurriedly.

"No, I've already offended her several times!" Xiao Mu replied with a blank expression.

"Boss, you're a legend. With a personality like that, aren't you afraid you won't find a girlfriend in the future?" Wei Xiaofeng asked, puzzled.

"When I'm strong enough, fate will come knocking on its own. Why should I be afraid of anything?" Xiao Mu wasn't panicked in the slightest. If all else failed, he would just go practice the Heartless Path.

What if he actually succeeded?!

Wei Xiaofeng felt he had encountered a "holy body of bachelorhood" and decided to take a step back; after all, their friendship was already on the brink of collapse just from playing cards.

Just then, Mu Xi finally caught her breath. This Xiao Mu was truly infuriating.

Sooner or later, she would blacklist him from the Blacksmith Association. Were those tasks even meant for humans?

Even a god couldn't achieve that level of precision.

"Xiao Mu, you jerk." Her voice was huffy; she was clearly incensed.

"If there's nothing else, get going, or you'll end up just like your lackey." Xiao Mu hurried her along; he had no desire to visit the Intermediate Division's Academic Affairs Office to see that director, Long Hengxu.

If he went too often, people who didn't know better would think he was a delinquent.

"No, don't you know how to cherish the fairer sex?" Mu Xi said indignantly.

"Pfft, I'm only nine. What the hell do I need to know about cherishing the fairer sex for?" Xiao Mu scoffed, his expression languid.

He was currently at the cutting edge of the meta, and since it would be patched out soon, he might as well enjoy it while he could.

"I..." Mu Xi was completely speechless. She turned to Tang Wulin and said, "Remember, I'm going to challenge you to a forging match, and I will definitely defeat you."

"What if he's stronger than you?" Xiao Mu added casually. As the words left his lips, Mu Xi stumbled, nearly falling over.

Wei Xiaofeng, standing to the side, sighed to himself. Xiao Mu was truly a role model for their generation; not only were his fists and kicks fierce, but his sharp tongue was equally top-tier.

Tang Wulin composed himself and bowed in thanks. "Thank you. Without you guys, I wouldn't have known what to do."

"It's nothing. It was their fault to begin with." Xiao Mu didn't intend to dwell on the matter.

Mostly, it was because when enemies met, they were especially jealous.

The parts he had requested were off by 0.006 millimeters; that was a grudge he would remember forever.

Even though he had taken his revenge on the spot.

That didn't stop him from holding a grudge.

He carefully recalled the details, looked at Tang Wulin, and said, "Remember, the margin of error for my parts cannot exceed 0.005 millimeters."

Hearing this, Tang Wulin felt a flutter of panic. Although he had seen the spec sheet, this was indeed harsh.

The requirement was somewhat difficult and would require multiple passes to complete.

It might even require rework.

"I understand. I will definitely meet your requirements." Tang Wulin promised confidently, though he felt truly uncertain inside.

"With that promise, I can rest easy." Xiao Mu waved his hand and led the others away.

Na'er glanced at Tang Wulin before ignoring him entirely; she had already noticed that Gu Yue had been watching this spot the whole time.

As time passed, the Class Promotion Tournament, which had the entire academy's attention, began as scheduled. The arena was bustling with noise, with students from Class Five and Class Four crowding around to watch the matches.

Xiao Mu and his group of five had no interest in watching the battles and didn't show up at all. With that kind of time, they were better off going out for a stroll.

Na'er kept shaking Xiao Mu's arm. "Brother, let's go out and play. This competition isn't worth watching."

Xiao Mu nodded. "Let's go. Let's head out."

The two didn't linger and headed straight for the nearest Gourmet Street.

At the same time, a bald man on Gourmet Street had no idea he was about to face someone who was exceptionally reasonable and exceptionally virtuous.

The gun is reason, and the shell is virtue.