Shrek Academy, Star Luo Branch.
In a spacious classroom, a woman stood in front of the podium. She looked to be about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, dressed in a teacher's uniform, and had long, dark red hair. This woman was Yan Feng.
There were a total of thirty-one students in the class. The newly enrolled students were divided into three classes, with an average of thirty students in each class. At this moment, all their eyes were fixed on Yan Feng.
Yan Feng glanced around at everyone present, then spoke.
"Starting today, you will begin your experience with a second career."
As soon as these words were spoken, the trainees below became interested, and their faces showed curiosity.
They had naturally learned about second jobs from Yan Feng, but that was only theoretical; they had never actually experienced it.
Yan Feng nodded slightly upon seeing everyone's expressions, and then spoke.
"Let's go, I'll take you to our first stop."
The students quickly got up and followed. The group followed Yan Feng through the academy's corridors, winding their way through the corridors until they arrived at a heavy metal door.
This is the forging room, which is even larger than a classroom. In addition to forging tables, there are many Forging Hammer and various rare metals.
Yan Feng stood before the crowd and cleared her throat.
"This is the forging workshop. A blacksmith is a profession that gives Life and soul to metal by hand-forging it and then processes it into top-notch equipment."
"Blacksmiths are divided into nine levels, from level one to level nine. The higher the level, the more powerful they are, and the more difficult it is to cultivate."
"Of all secondary professions, blacksmithing is the most difficult to master and requires the most time to accumulate experience. It not only demands sufficient strength and physique, but also a keen sense of metal and extraordinary focus on the forging process."
Upon hearing this, some trainees showed thoughtful expressions, while others appeared slightly confused, but most of them began to show interest in their eyes.
Yan Feng paused for a moment, then continued.
"It is precisely because the blacksmithing profession is so difficult to master that skilled individuals in this field are extremely scarce."
"However, precisely because of this scarcity, if any of you can become a blacksmith, it will be much easier to obtain Contribution Point from the academy in the future."
Upon hearing this, many trainees' eyes lit up.
They had personally witnessed the academy's extravagant spending, from the Mystic Water Pill to the rare ingredients—each item far exceeding their previous understanding.
These valuable items can be exchanged for Contribution Point. If you consume more of these items, your growth rate might increase.
Immediately, many people began to make plans in their minds.
Seeing the gleam in everyone's eyes, Yan Feng poured cold water on their enthusiasm.
"Given your current physical condition, it would be quite difficult for you to start forging directly. After all, most of you are not yet at a high Soul Power Level, and your physique is far from meeting the standards of a blacksmith."
"So the main reason I brought you here today is to give you a tour and show you what real forging is like. If you're interested later when your physical fitness has improved, you can decide what to do then."
After saying this, Yan Feng turned to the side and her gaze fell on a middle-aged man standing to the side.
The man appeared gentle and refined, with a calm and reserved demeanor in his eyes and brows. Just his presence gave people a sense of security.
Yan Feng gestured to the man, then introduced him to the crowd.
"This is Teacher Mu Chen."
"He is our Shrek Academy's forging instructor, and one of the most outstanding blacksmiths, an eight-star Saint Craftsman."
Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned. An eight-star Saint Craftsman? Wasn't that just one step away from reaching level nine?
Such an amazing person is actually their teacher, and he's even going to personally demonstrate forging techniques to these new students?
This is too extravagant! After hearing Yan Feng say that blacksmiths make a lot of money, they all realized one thing: if Mu Chen used the time he spent demonstrating blacksmithing to forge metal, he could probably earn tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coin in no time.
The students felt a strong sense of belonging to the Shrek Academy. They could feel that Shrek Academy genuinely wanted to nurture them into successful individuals, rather than simply throwing them aside after a superficial effort.
Everything they have now is something the entire Star Luo Empire cannot provide. In fact, the Star Luo Empire would not waste such top-tier resources on people with mediocre talent, or even talent at all.
After being briefly introduced by Yan Feng, Mu Chen walked to one of the forging tables, reached out and picked up a metal block, placing it on the anvil.
The metal block looked ordinary, but upon closer inspection, one could see a faint sheen on its surface.
"This is a metal called 'Sinking Silver,' which is considered a relatively basic material in forging. But even as a beginner, it has quite good basic properties."
As he spoke, he took a Forging Hammer from the wall, then calmed down and focused his gaze on the piece of Sinking Silver in front of him. His eyes became extremely focused, as if at this moment, his world consisted only of that piece of metal.
Following Mu Chen's gaze, everyone involuntarily focused their attention on the piece of Sinking Silver.
Then Mu Chen moved; he raised the Forging Hammer and then brought it down.
"Clang!"
A crisp sound rang out in the forging chamber.
The sound wasn't harsh; instead, it carried a peculiar rhythm, one beat at a time, neither hurried nor slow.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
The Forging Hammer in Mu Chen's hand fell continuously, each strike precise, and with Mu Chen strike, the Sinking Silver seemed to breathe.
"Boom!"
After a soft sound, the piece of Sinking Silver suddenly burst forth with a towering flame. The silvery-white light shot into the sky, carrying a vibrant Life force, as if the metal had truly come to life.
The light swirled and danced in the air before slowly receding and falling back into the piece of Sinking Silver.
All the trainees present were stunned, their minds blank. They truly understood what it meant for Spirit Refinement to imbue metal with Life force. They had initially thought it was an exaggeration, but they never imagined it could actually be done.
This was a world they had never seen before. They absorbed everything around them like sponges. Their original fate could be described as fading into obscurity among the masses. However, since joining Shrek Academy, they had decided that they too should shine, rather than remain unknown.
Seeing everyone's reaction, Yan Feng couldn't help but smile slightly. Then she clapped her hands, signaling everyone to look over.
"Alright, that concludes the demonstration. Now you can all come up and try it out yourselves."
"Each forging table has a Forging Hammer on it. You can try to pick it up and see if you can, or try tapping it a few times to get a feel for it."
Upon hearing this, the trainees immediately became interested and rushed to the forging table, eagerly reaching out to grab the Forging Hammer.
Then, very quickly, cries of pain rang out.
"It's so heavy! I can't lift it!"
A boy gripped the hammer handle with both hands, his face flushed, but the Forging Hammer remained motionless on the table.
A more robust student next to him picked it up, but after only two taps, his arm started to ache and weaken, and when he tapped it a third time, it was clearly off-target.
"This is so heavy... I only tapped it a few times and my arm already feels like it doesn't belong to me."
"This is the hammer a blacksmith uses? No wonder they say it requires a strong physique; just lifting it is strenuous enough."
The trainees complained incessantly, but there was no sign of frustration on their faces; instead, their eyes shone brightly.
After everyone had finished their experience, Yan Feng slowly spoke.
"Alright, put it down, all of you. Today is just for you to experience it, no need to rush."
"Forging is a skill that can't be rushed. You can try it when your physical condition improves."
Upon hearing this, everyone put down their Forging Hammer. Although their arms were sore, their faces showed great excitement.
"Alright, that concludes our experience as a blacksmith. Now, let's move on to the next profession."
"You will all have the opportunity to experience Soul Engineer, Mecha Designer, and several other specializations."
Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up again. There were other professions available, and perhaps they could find the one that best suited them. The future truly looked promising.
Soon, the day arrived when Tang San was released from prison.
"Teacher..."
Tang San looked at Yu Xiaogang, who had come out with him. Yu Xiaogang had also suffered a lot of torment during this period.
" San, let's go back and cultivate properly."
Yu Xiaogang said in a deep voice, "How dare that Shrek Academy humiliate me like this, saying that I'm just a freeloader? They should just get out of here with Tang San. I am a dignified Grandmaster!"
"Yes, I will avenge you, teacher, and also rescue my father and Teacher Liu Erlong."
Tang San nodded and spoke earnestly.
"Good boy, when we get back, I'll have Flender prioritize giving you the best resources."
Yu Xiaogang smiled as he looked at Tang San and said...