Recruiting the Divine Craftsman

"Master Divine Craftsman, what if I told you that I could help you take your forging skills to the next level?"

Leng Hanyuan's calm words were like a massive boulder dropped into a tranquil lake, making it impossible for Zhen Hua to maintain his composure.

The next level?

Having reached the level of Heavenly Forging, Zhen Hua already felt that his potential had been completely exhausted.

He feared that even if he spent his entire life, he would struggle to make any further progress.

To be honest, Zhen Hua's first reaction was indeed excitement.

But he quickly calmed down again.

A bitter smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he shook his head.

"Your Excellency Mystic Phoenix may not know this, but as unwilling as I am to admit it, I must."

"After reaching Heavenly Forging, my potential has likely reached its limit."

"No matter how much I have studied forging over these years, I have made almost no progress."

"It is nearly impossible to go any further."

As he said this, Zhen Hua's expression was clearly tinged with desolation.

For someone who had spent an entire lifetime chasing a single path, realizing that he had already reached the very end was a truly tragic thing.

Although Zhen Hua was a Divine Craftsman.

He was still far from reaching the end of the path of forging.

Even with Heavenly Forging, and with the help of the Ascension Platform, his success rate was only one in ten.

However, for him personally, this was the end of the road.

Perhaps a successor with better forging talent might go further in the future, but that person would not be him.

However.

"This Seat never speaks empty words." Facing Zhen Hua's denial, Leng Hanyuan simply uttered this sentence indifferently.

Looking at Leng Hanyuan's expression, which was so confident that it seemed as if everything was under his control, Zhen Hua's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

A flame of hope began to burn within him.

He recalled the many secrets hidden within the person before him.

Could it be...

"Master Divine Craftsman, what are the factors that determine forging?"

Zhen Hua answered subconsciously, "Naturally, it is the understanding of the metal, the external environment, and one's own ability."

"Then where do you think the shackles lie that prevent your forging attainments from advancing further?"

Zhen Hua was silent for a moment, then looked at his own palms.

"My own ability."

Indeed, what limited Zhen Hua most in his forging today was his own ability.

He had studied forging for many years, and his comprehension of metals had long since reached an impeccable level.

As for the external environment...

He had spent an astronomical amount of resources to build the Ascension Platform, solely to provide the best forging environment and increase the success rate of Heavenly Forging.

But why, even so, was his success rate for Heavenly Forging still only one in ten?

The biggest problem was his own ability.

Low-level forging might not have been an issue.

But at the level of Heavenly Forging, completing a full Heavenly Forging required enduring a lightning tribulation!

And this lightning tribulation had to be borne by the blacksmith themselves.

Although Zhen Hua was a Title Douluo.

His talent in his martial soul was actually very limited.

His cultivation had been forcibly pushed up with the help of numerous medicinal drugs.

His foundation was far inferior to other Title Douluos who had cultivated step by step.

His combat power was also significantly weaker than a normal Title Douluo.

The Zhen Hua of the past had dismissed this.

After all, his goal from the beginning was not to become a powerful soul master, but to become a master blacksmith.

But it wasn't until he stepped into the level of Heavenly Forging that Zhen Hua realized how ridiculous his thoughts had been at the time.

The top-tier blacksmith must also be a powerful soul master!

But by the time he realized this, it was already too late.

Because his early reliance on medicinal drugs to increase his cultivation had long since exhausted whatever limited talent he had possessed.

His strength had already reached a point where further growth was nearly impossible.

This also meant that his success rate for heavenly forging could not be improved no matter what.

It was impossible for him to take another step forward in the field of forging.

"And what if This Seat were to say that This Seat could help you solve this problem, Divine General?"

Leng Hanyuan said softly.

"This..."

"It is not that I do not trust Your Excellency, but the potential of my body has long since been exhausted."

"Over the years, I have sought many methods to improve my physique, but none have had any substantial effect," Zhen Hua explained.

"Then what if I were to speak of Immortal Herbs?"

Immortal Herbs?

Zhen Hua was stunned.

Beside him, Mu Ye seemed to have realized something, his expression becoming extremely agitated.

"Does Your Excellency Mystic Phoenix speak of the Immortal Herbs that the ancestor Tang San and his companions once consumed?"

Mu Ye recalled some records found in the ancient texts of the Body Sect.

The Shrek Seven Devils from twenty thousand years ago had once consumed a special type of miraculous medicine, which seemed to be called Immortal Herbs.

However, the relevant records were extremely limited, mentioning them only in passing.

If it weren't for the fact that Mu Ye paid special attention to anything that could potentially be used as an ingredient, he might not have remembered the existence of these Immortal Herbs at all.

"Correct."

"Immortal Herbs are treasures of heaven and earth that seize the fortune of creation."

"They possess the power to wash away one's marrow and cut the bones, solidifying the foundation and building up the essence."

"The reason the first generation of Shrek Seven Devils were all able to step into the God Realm was, to a large extent, dependent on the help of these Immortal Herbs," Leng Hanyuan recounted indifferently.

Listening to his words, Zhen Hua began to realize what a precious treasure the Immortal Herbs mentioned by Leng Hanyuan truly were.

Washing away the marrow and cutting the bones!

Solidifying the foundation and building up the essence!

Was this not exactly the treasure he needed to resolve the unstable foundation caused by his previous reliance on medicine?

"Does Your Excellency Mystic Phoenix mean that you possess those legendary Immortal Herbs?"

Zhen Hua's eyes were slightly bloodshot from overwhelming excitement.

"Precisely."

Leng Hanyuan nodded.

The Immortal Herbs in the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well were considered essential treasures for every transmigrator.

Leng Hanyuan was no exception.

Throughout the entire era of the second installment, he had only accomplished a few major tasks.

He had obtained the inheritance of Electrolux through a special transaction, intercepted the Two Emperors of Ice and Snow, and brought the entire Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well under his control.

That's right!

The entire Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well!

Back then, besides consuming some of the Immortal Herbs himself, Leng Hanyuan had essentially scoured the entire Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well clean.

He now possessed a vast quantity of these herbs.

These Immortal Herbs were stored by him using Ultimate Ice, ensuring that not a single bit of their medicinal efficacy was lost.

Leng Hanyuan felt not a shred of guilt for doing all of this.

After all, if he hadn't done it, the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well would sooner or later have fallen into the hands of the Tang Sect under the manipulation of the Tang God King.

Therefore, he had harvested all the Immortal Herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well without any psychological hesitation.

In a way, he had even done a good deed.

At the very least, Huo Yuhao would not have to go to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well to torture himself under the fabricated requirements of the Tang God King, as he did in the original story.

As for Bei Bei and the others from Shrek Academy losing the help of the Immortal Herbs because of this, what did that have to do with Leng Hanyuan?

Even if those people had consumed the Immortal Herbs, they would not have succeeded in stepping into the God Realm in the end, eventually turning into nothing more than a handful of dust.

It was better for him to bring them to ten thousand years later and let them realize their greatest value.