"First Grade Thousand Refinement..." the evaluator murmured, his voice sounding a little faint.
"He's an eight-year-old kid taking his first rank assessment, and he's going straight for First Grade Thousand Refinement?"
"Can he pull it off?"
Tang Wulin hammered away with a steady clang, his mind fixed on nothing else.
He had lost count of how many times he had performed Thousand Refinement over the past year. For him, it was well in hand; it just took time.
The elevator doors on the third floor opened again.
A middle-aged man stepped out with a little girl.
The man was powerfully built and wore silver-gray clothes.
A badge was pinned to his chest, bearing a hammer surrounded by eight stars.
An Eight-Star Saint Craftsman. In all of Eastsea City, there was only one Eight-Star Saint Craftsman.
The president, Mu Chen.
The little girl following him looked to be eleven or twelve, a little taller than others her age. Her long golden hair was tied in a high ponytail, her features were delicate, and her large eyes were clear and bright.
The staff member at the front desk straightened up almost reflexively.
"President!"
Mu Chen nodded. "Open a forging assessment room for me. I've brought my daughter to take her blacksmith rank assessment."
The staff member froze for a moment, glanced at Mu Xi behind him, and hurriedly put on a broad smile. "Miss Mu Xi is taking her blacksmith assessment? As expected of the president's daughter. Her talent is even greater than yours."
Mu Xi gave a soft hum and said nothing, but the corners of her mouth lifted slightly.
She stole a glance at her father and muttered to herself,
Back then, you wouldn't even let me learn forging. You said girls weren't suited to working iron. Now you know what I can do, don't you?
Mu Chen was about to head down the corridor when he suddenly stopped.
He turned his head and frowned.
A succession of hammer blows rang out from the corridor.
The blows were steady and powerful, their rhythm distinct, one following another without pause.
Each blow was heavier than the last, yet each was controlled to perfection.
Mu Chen's frown deepened.
One listen was enough to tell him that this was definitely not a rhythm an ordinary blacksmith could produce.
Could it be the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer?
"Is someone taking a Fourth-Rank Blacksmith assessment?"
Mu Chen turned and asked the staff member.
The staff member hurriedly checked the record book. "No, President. There's only one assessment today. It's a brat who doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth, here to take the First-Rank Blacksmith assessment. His name is Tang Wulin."
"First rank?"
A glint flashed in Mu Chen's eyes.
Someone taking a First-Rank Blacksmith assessment was producing a hammering rhythm that even a Fourth-Rank Blacksmith might not be able to achieve?
Mu Xi heard the hammering too. Her golden ponytail swished as she pricked up her ears and listened.
Although she hadn't studied forging for long, she was exceptionally gifted, and with an Eight-Star Saint Craftsman like Mu Chen teaching her hand in hand, her ear had long since been trained.
After listening for a few seconds, a trace of puzzlement flashed through her large eyes as well.
Mu Chen didn't answer. He had already started toward the end of the corridor.
Mu Xi hurried after him.
According to the rules, outsiders weren't allowed in during an assessment, lest they interfere with the evaluator's scoring and the examinee's performance.
But Mu Chen was the president. He had made the rules, and if he wanted to go in, no one could stop him.
He reached the forging room and gently pushed the door open.
Inside, Cen Yue stood beside the anvil with his arms folded, staring fixedly at Tang Wulin as he forged.
The sound of the door opening brought Cen Yue back to his senses.
He turned, and his expression changed slightly. He hurriedly straightened up.
"President..."
Mu Chen raised his right hand and pressed his palm downward, signaling him to keep quiet.
Then he raised his left hand and pointed at Tang Wulin, who was forging.
Cen Yue immediately shut his mouth and obediently stepped aside.
Mu Chen's gaze fell on Tang Wulin, and he froze.
A boy who looked about eight years old stood before the anvil.
He gripped a pitch-black hammer in both hands. It looked extraordinarily heavy,
but in his hands, it swept through the air with a fierce wind.
With every blow, the heavy silver on the anvil gave a long, resonant ring. Golden patterns rippled across the silver-gray metal, growing clearer and more uniform.
Thousand Refinement.
Mu Chen's eyes went wide.
He had been forging for decades and was an Eight-Star Saint Craftsman. There were few things left on the entire Douluo Continent that could shock him.
But the sight before him truly did.
An eight-year-old child was performing Thousand Refinement.
And judging by the fluidity of his hammer technique and his control over the heat and force, he was clearly at a master's level.
Mu Xi stood behind her father, her large eyes opened wide, her expression identical to Mu Chen's.
This little brother looked several years younger than her, so how was his forging better than hers?
Mu Xi bit her lower lip.
Among the young blacksmiths in all of Eastsea City, she was already a recognized genius. Everyone said her talent surpassed her father's.
She had even sworn to surpass her father and become a Divine Craftsman.
She considered herself sufficiently talented and hardworking, but compared with this child, her talent and hard work weren't worth a penny.
Tang Wulin hadn't noticed the two people who had joined them at the door.
All his attention was focused on the heavy silver on the anvil.
When the final blow fell, the entire forging room shook with it.
"Boom-!"
The heavy silver gave a long, clear ring.
A palm-sized piece of metal lay on the anvil, silver-gray throughout, with fine, even golden patterns inside.
Tang Wulin put away the Clear Sky Hammer, let out a long breath, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
He turned to the side and only then noticed that two more people were in the room.
One was a powerfully built middle-aged man in silver-gray clothes, an eight-star badge pinned to his chest. He was staring fixedly at the heavy silver on the anvil.
Beside him stood a little girl of eleven or twelve, with a long golden ponytail. Her little mouth was slightly open, and her large eyes were wide and sparkling. Her expression even held a hint of admiration.
Tang Wulin paused and looked at Cen Yue.
"Grandmaster Cen, I've finished forging. Is that enough for sixty points? Can I get a First-Rank Blacksmith badge?"
The corner of Cen Yue's mouth twitched.
"Yes."
"You're already beyond the First-Rank Blacksmith level. You're almost at the level of a Fourth-Rank Blacksmith."
"As far as proficiency goes, you're entirely at the level of a Fourth-Rank Blacksmith, or even a Fifth-Rank Blacksmith."
"Unfortunately, your Soul Power can only sustain one Thousand Refinement. If it could sustain three, you could be rated a Fourth-Rank Blacksmith. Unfortunately, that's not possible."
Before Tang Wulin could speak,
Mu Chen spoke up.
"It is possible."
Tang Wulin turned to look at him.
Cen Yue hurriedly introduced him. "This is President Mu Chen, president of our Eastsea City Blacksmith Association and an Eight-Star Saint Craftsman."
Tang Wulin immediately bowed. "Greetings, President Mu."
Mu Chen nodded, his gaze settling on Tang Wulin.
"Thousand Refinement is only the first step."
"A piece of Thousand Refined metal can only be considered a true finished product once it has been shaped."
"If you can use this piece of heavy silver to forge a complete item, you won't have to wait until next time. I'll give you a fourth-rank badge today."