Mu Xi's Confusion

Eastsea Academy, Infirmary.

The air was thick with the fragrance of medicinal herbs. Tang Wulin felt as though his entire body had been smashed apart by a giant hammer and pieced back together. With a faint cough, he slowly opened his heavy eyelids.

His vision blurred for a moment before gradually coming into focus.

The first thing he saw was a face close to his own, its features caught between anxiety and sternness.

"Wulin! How do you feel? Has your Sea of Consciousness suffered any tremors? Is there any foreign energy left inside you?" Wu Changkong's voice was low and urgent, his usual icy mask already shattered. Rather than checking on Gu Yue, who had also just awakened beside them, he bent straight over Tang Wulin, gripping his shoulders so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

Standing at the foot of the bed was Eastsea Academy's director, Long Hengxu. The normally imposing Director Long had abandoned all concern for appearances. Bracing both hands against the edge of the bed, he stared intently at Tang Wulin's complexion, his brow furrowed into three deep lines.

Their classmates, Xie Xie, Wang Jinxi, and Zhang Yangzi, were also gathered around the bed, their faces filled with worry and fear.

Wu Changkong did not care why Tang Wulin had been able to unleash such a world-shattering move inside the Spirit Ascension Platform, one that had even carried a sinister aura. Only one thing mattered to him—Tang Wulin was his student, the pride of Eastsea Academy.

If that power came from some evil, demonic path and would corrupt his mind, then however reluctant he might be, Wu Changkong would personally purge his own ranks for the academy's sake and for the sake of this child's future!

Feeling the pressure on his shoulders and seeing the near-uncontrolled look in his teacher's eyes, Tang Wulin felt warmth well up in his heart. He shook his head weakly and tried to muster a smile. His voice was hoarse but firm. "Teacher... I'm fine. My Sea of Consciousness is stable. I'm just a little tired. There's nothing else."

At the words "I'm fine," Wu Changkong's taut body instantly relaxed. He released his grip and turned away, hiding the faint redness rising in his eyes. His voice regained some of its usual cold edge, though a barely perceptible tremor remained. "Good. When you get back, write me a ten-thousand-word self-criticism detailing everything that happened inside the Spirit Ascension Platform."

"Yes," Tang Wulin answered softly.

On the neighboring bed, Gu Yue slowly sat up as well. Seeing Tang Wulin safe and sound, she finally relaxed her tightly knitted brows, and a trace of relieved tenderness appeared in her purple eyes.

"Boss! You're awake! You scared us half to death!" Xie Xie darted over like a monkey, his eyes red-rimmed, and grabbed Tang Wulin's hand.

Tang Wulin looked at him in confusion, his voice weak. "Xie Xie? Why are you calling me boss too? Didn't you always insist you were going to compete for team captain?"

Xie Xie's expression instantly grew exaggerated. Patting his chest, he said with lingering fear, "Boss, that move was brutal! When that Azure Lotus exploded, every screen in the monitoring room went white! That kind of power... it's simply not something a human could unleash!"

He paused, awe and admiration showing in his eyes. "I used to think my speed was unmatched under heaven. Now I get it—there's a future in following a monster like you who can set off a Nuclear Bomb with his bare hands! From today on, you're my boss forever! Anyone who disagrees will have to answer to me!"

Wang Jinxi and Zhang Yangzi nodded along. Although neither spoke, the awe in their eyes was unmistakable.

Watching this, Director Long Hengxu allowed a rare hint of a smile onto his imposing face and gently shook his head. He stepped forward, his gaze passing over Tang Wulin and Gu Yue, and said gravely, "You did very well in this assessment, but you took far too great a risk. Especially you, Tang Wulin."

He paused, his tone turning stern. "If not for your unusual physique, that power would have reduced you to dust and ashes long ago. You must never be so reckless again."

"Yes, Director Long." Tang Wulin nodded respectfully.

Everyone was grateful.

Grateful that Tang Wulin was still alive.

After all, everyone knew that without Tang Wulin's heaven-defying Golden Dragon King physique, without the mysterious vitality inside him frantically repairing his body, any other Soul Master of his level would have been reduced to ashes at the center of an explosion like that.

Tang Wulin had gambled with his life.

And now, he had won.

Wu Changkong turned back to the noisy yet heartwarming scene in the ward. At last, the faintest of smiles appeared on his stern face, vanishing in an instant.

"All right, quiet down. The patient needs rest," he said coldly. This time, however, his tone held less severity and more indulgence.

Sitting nearby, Gu Yue watched Tang Wulin surrounded by everyone, the corners of her lips lifting slightly. She knew that this man had once again created a legend at Eastsea Academy.

On the third day after his recovery, Tang Wulin chose not to rest. Instead, he headed straight to the Blacksmith Association in Eastsea City.

He pushed open the heavy doors, and the familiar scent of metal washed over him. Seeing the somewhat unusual badge on Tang Wulin's chest, the receptionist immediately offered a respectful smile.

"Tang Wulin, what level of assignment would you like to take this time?" the receptionist asked with easy familiarity.

Tang Wulin walked over to the assignment board, his gaze sweeping across row after row of requests before settling on the middle section. It listed the assessment assignments for Level Four Blacksmiths and the corresponding processing commissions.

"Let me see... this one, and this one too." Tang Wulin pointed to a few lines: commissions for "Thousand Refinement heavy silver" and "Thousand Refinement Fine Iron."

Just then, footsteps sounded from the second-floor gallery.

"Wulin? What brings you here?" Mu Chen had just finished handling a document and was about to head downstairs when he spotted the familiar figure. Seeing the assignment notices Tang Wulin was pointing at, he raised his brows slightly. "You want to take level-four assignments?"

Tang Wulin turned and bowed respectfully. "President Mu, I'd like to try."

Rather than agreeing immediately, Mu Chen walked over to the assignment counter and casually opened several records of assignments Tang Wulin had previously submitted. As he turned the pages, his gaze gradually grew serious.

"First-grade Thousand Refinement heavy silver... first-grade Thousand Refinement Fine Iron..." Mu Chen murmured, his gaze settling on the piece of metal Tang Wulin had just handed in.

It was a piece of Thousand Refinement Tungsten Steel, its surface patterned as finely as woven brocade, without a single impurity. Beneath the lights, a faint, gemlike luster even flowed across it. Most remarkable of all, the metal was extremely dense yet retained perfect toughness. Clearly, his control over the force of his blows during forging had reached a painstakingly precise level.

"Did you just make this?" Mu Chen picked up the Tungsten Steel and sensed the spirituality within it, a trace of surprise in his voice.

"Yes. It hasn't been out of the furnace long." Tang Wulin nodded and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Mu Chen set the metal down and gave Tang Wulin a long look, his eyes filled with admiration. "Good. Very good. Your forging skills have firmly settled at the peak of level four. Your control of strength and your choice of striking points along the metal's grain have both reached consummate mastery. Spend a little more time consolidating your skills and comprehending the metal's spirituality, and you can attempt to cross the threshold of a Level Five Blacksmith."

He patted Tang Wulin's shoulder and said earnestly, "For a Level Five Blacksmith, the key lies in 'spirit.' It's not merely Thousand Refinement—you must imbue the metal with spirituality. That is what we call 'Spirit Forging.' It requires tremendous spiritual power and a love of metal. Keep at it. I have faith in you."

"Yes! I'll work hard!" A determined light shone in Tang Wulin's eyes.

In the shadows of the staircase, however, Mu Xi stood silently. She still held a forging blueprint she had just completed, an exercise her father had specifically chosen for her yesterday to help consolidate her command of level-four forging.

Watching her father, Mu Chen, praise Tang Wulin so lavishly, his expression carrying admiration and expectation, Mu Xi felt a jumble of emotions churn within her.

Her father was actually very good to her.

Strict though he was, whenever she burned her hands after a failed forging attempt, he would silently hand her ointment. Whenever the hardship of training made her cry, he would say nothing, yet her favorite treats would always be waiting for her the next day.

But why?

Why had all the suffering and sweat she had endured since childhood, all the countless times she had nearly given up, earned her nothing more than "Not bad" or "Keep working hard" from her father?

Yet how long had this Tang Wulin even been at the association? Not only was he exceptionally gifted, but her father also regarded him differently and even placed great hopes in him!

She looked down at her thinly callused hands, then at Tang Wulin's hands, which were strong yet still fair-skinned. A fierce sense of resentment welled up inside her.

What had all her suffering been for? Was it merely to prove that someone else could reach her level, or even surpass her, through talent alone, without enduring any of those hardships?

"No wonder Divine Craftsman Zhen Hua took an interest in him..." Mu Xi bit her lip. Though she remained deeply unwilling to concede to Tang Wulin, the flawless piece of Thousand Refinement Tungsten Steel forced her to admit that he truly deserved it.

With a cold snort, she turned and strode away, her high heels striking the floor in rapid beats that vented her hurt and confusion.

Mu Chen seemed to notice something. He glanced back at the empty staircase and shook his head, then turned his gaze to Tang Wulin again, his eyes full of hope. "Go on. Practice well. Spirit Forging isn't something you can master overnight, but with your talent, that day won't be far off."

The sunset's lingering glow spilled across Eastsea City's streets, stretching their shadows long. Tang Wulin had just left the Blacksmith Association and was about to return to Eastsea Academy when Mu Xi's voice sounded behind him.

"Hey, Tang Wulin."

Tang Wulin looked back to see Mu Xi approaching briskly with her hands behind her back, looking a little awkward. "I'm heading back to the academy anyway. It's on the way, so let's walk together."

Tang Wulin nodded. "Sure, Sister Mu Xi."

They walked side by side in silence. Tang Wulin could sense that something was on Mu Xi's mind, however. Several times, she turned to look at him, her words stopping before they left her lips.

Finally, as they passed a quiet stretch beside a lake, Mu Xi stopped. She turned to face Tang Wulin, her gaze complicated, her eyes holding a trace of frustration and bewilderment.

"Tang Wulin, let me ask you something." Mu Xi bit her lower lip and finally voiced the question that had been gnawing at her. "Why is your talent for forging so strong?"

She paused, disbelief creeping into her voice. "You're younger than me, and I've spent several more years training. Why does the metal you forge now leave even me so far behind that I can only gaze at the dust in your wake? Do you have some special trick? Or has Teacher Zhen Hua taught you some secret technique in private?"

To Mu Xi, the gap in their ages should have been her advantage. Instead, it had become a sharp blade stabbing at her.

Tang Wulin scratched his head, a reminiscent look appearing on his face. Rather than answering directly, he asked, "Sister Mu Xi, do you remember what I told you before? My grandfather used to forge metal too."

"Hm?" Mu Xi blinked, not expecting him to bring that up.

"Grandpa only taught me some old-fashioned forging methods—just plain hammering." Tang Wulin smiled, his eyes brightening. "Later, my sister helped me find Divine Craftsman Zhen Hua as a teacher. As I gradually learned from Teacher Zhen Hua, I realized forging wasn't actually that difficult."

He lifted his head toward the shimmering lake, his tone becoming light and sincere. "On the contrary, it's really fun."

"Fun?" Mu Xi repeated, her brow tightly furrowed.

"That's right." Tang Wulin turned to her and said earnestly, "With every strike, you can feel the metal breathing. With every Thousand Refinement, you can see it grow tougher. Isn't that like talking to a friend who can't speak? Watching it become perfect in your hands gives you a sense of accomplishment. It's not about completing an assignment or avoiding a scolding. It's joy that comes straight from your heart."

Mu Xi froze.

Looking into Tang Wulin's clear, vibrant eyes, seeing his pure love of forging, she felt as though something had struck her heart hard.

So that was it.

She finally understood.

All this time, she had regarded forging as a responsibility she had to fulfill, a form of hard labor she had to endure to prove herself and surpass others. With every swing of her hammer, she weighed gains against losses and worried about failure.

But Tang Wulin...

He had never treated forging as an ordeal he had to suffer through. He carried no heavy burden, felt no pressure to surpass anyone. He simply regarded metal as a friend and forging as an entertaining game, sensing it with his heart and striking it with love.

No wonder his metal possessed spirituality.

It was a resonance he had earned through sincerity.

"Treat forging as a friend..." Mu Xi murmured, confusion and contemplation appearing in her eyes for the first time.

The effort and perseverance she had always taken pride in suddenly seemed so pale and heavy before Tang Wulin's pure love.

Seeing her lost in thought, Tang Wulin smiled and patted her shoulder. "Sister Mu Xi, you can do it too. Forging is supposed to be something joyful."

With that, he stepped forward first and continued toward the academy.

Mu Xi remained where she was, watching the boy's carefree figure as the sunset stretched his shadow long.

She lowered her head to look at her thinly callused hands, Tang Wulin's words, "It's really fun," echoing in her mind.

Perhaps the answer she had always sought was truly that simple.

One behind the other, they walked home. The evening breeze seemed to carry a new hint of something called "understanding."