977 Landlady

The pauldron immediately glowed with a layer of faint white radiance after being rid of the mutated energy which had continually damaged it. The damaged gap began to close in a slow but steady manner.

Tang Wulin picked up the pauldron once again and walked over to Xu Weitao. "Uncle Xu, it should be fine now."

Xu Weitao had witnessed the entire process. His face was filled with shock at present. "How did you do it? This is not forging and that is the energy from the Centipede Demon King which is found on the hundred-and-first layer of the abyssal plane. You can dissolve it so easily? Its energy attacked my body earlier and it required a lot of energy to heal my injuries. I should've asked for your help if I'd known this earlier, then I could've recovered sooner, right?"

Tang Wulin said with a bitter smile, "I can't heal injuries because it doesn't work on life forms but only metals." The Golden Dragon Spear would immediately draw out a person's life force if it were to pierce into the person's body. He was afraid that he would do more harm than the Centipede Demon King's energy.

Xu Weitao nodded. There was a peculiar look in his eyes. He felt that this young man was even more outstanding the more he got to know him.

No wonder the Blood God Battalion was so quick in action. He would have taken action if he knew earlier without giving the Blood God Battalion any chance.

"I was prepared to make a new piece of this battle armor. Making a piece of soul-forged metal into a pauldron should cost at least twenty thousand merit points. I'll pay you that number," said Xu Weitao frankly.

Tang Wulin spoke hastily, "There's no need, Uncle Xu. Look, I haven't even exerted much strength. It's okay, there's no need to give me any merit points."

Xu Weitao spoke with a deep voice, "That won't do. A penny is a penny, so I'll pay for what needs to be paid. It's your talent to be able to do so without any effort, but I still have to pay. Otherwise, I'll come off as cheap, right? Alright, you don't have to be decorous with me. You don't have to prioritize helping me if I have other forging work in the future. Moreover, I still have a burning ambition to be a four-word battle armor master. Perhaps, you'll be a Divine Craftsman by then."

Xu Weitao insisted on transferring twenty thousand merit points to Tang Wulin before he left.

Long Yuxue did not leave yet. She looked at Tang Wulin with a peculiar expression.

Tang Wulin placed his Blood God Bracelet in front of her. "Here, take half. You can't use it to promote your military rank, but you can exchange it for something useful." The forging workshop was financed by Long Yuxue when they first started the business. They had agreed to split the profits between them. Finally, Long Yuxue understood that she had gotten extra profits at Tang Wulin's expense after witnessing Tang Wulin at work.

"There's no need to split the profits anymore. It's your talent. I…" Long Yuxue was about to continue speaking but said nothing.

Tang Wulin spoke smilingly, "What did Uncle Xu say earlier, a penny is a penny, so I'll pay what needs to be paid. How will I ever have the capability to come up with this forging workshop without your help? There's no need to oblige me. Come, landlady. It's time to split the money."

Long Yuxue's charming face blushed when she heard him calling her 'landlady', yet she did not stop him from transferring the points to her. She said, "Do let me know if you need any merit points in the future."

"Hmm. I'll be fine if I get a bigger place. Have you signed up for the Federal Star Dou Battle Network Challenge?"

Long Yuxue nodded. "I did. The majority of the people in the army who have a five-ring and above cultivation base and fulfill the requirements have already signed up. I suspect that most participants in the west division will come from our army. There are not that many cities in the entire west division."

Tang Wulin spoke with a bitter smile, "It seems like our west division is not an easy place huh!" It was no joke. There were about twenty thousand people in the Blood God Army. Hence, there were thousands of them who have five-ring and above cultivation bases and fulfilled the requirements. There were so many competitors and numerous masters.

Jiang Wuyue's cultivation base was already powerful. He would not be so easily defeated if not for Tang Wulin's bloodline suppression. He was but a lieutenant colonel. Tang Wulin was absolutely sure that there were many people in the army with a cultivation base that surpassed his but were yet to be three-word battle armor masters. He could never break through the intense competition of the army without putting up a desperate fight.

Tang Wulin did not feel dismal about the soul master battle because he was rather confident with his Dragon Core. What about the mecha battle? The mecha battle was not so easily dealt with.

The Blood God Army's mecha masters were trained to grapple with the abyssal creatures on an actual battlefield. They were absolutely first on the list of all the federal armies based on their true combat abilities. It was definitely not an easy task to break through the keen competition of the mecha army.

The mecha master whom Tang Wulin encountered in the battle room earlier had a rather impressive ability. It would not have been so easy for him to defeat his opponent if not for his familiarity with his own abilities.

On the other hand, he would be fighting the mecha masters that were more powerful than the previous ones later on. It would definitely be tougher than the soul master battle because one would lose the moment one's mecha was damaged.

He was truly feeling troubled upon thinking about it.

"So, you're taking part as well?" asked Long Yuxue.

"Hmm, I've signed up too."

Long Yuxue spoke, "So what would you do if you encounter me in the competition?"

Tang Wulin was stunned for a moment. "I'll allow you to last for a little while longer?"

Feeling a little upset, Long Yuxue stamped her foot against his. "What do you mean by allowing me to last a little while longer? You should immediately yield!"

Tang Wulin felt a pang of pain in his heart. He said with a bitter smile, "What about the integrity and fairness of the competition?"

Long Yuxue spoke, "There'll be none of that. What's your nickname? Tell me."

Tang Wulin shook his head with a bitter expression. "I won't."

Long Yuxue spoke, "Are you going to tell me or not?" She squished her foot against Tang Wulin's.

Tang Wulin gave in helplessly. "My nickname is Little Tang."

Long Yuxue's lips cracked into a smile then. "My nickname is Little Xue. Hmm, you should know what to do if you encounter me, right?"

"I… I have a mission. It's the mission assigned by the Blood God Battalion. I'll be expelled from the Blood God Battalion if I don't win in the competition." Tang Wulin did not blink whenever he told a white lie.

Long Yuxue was caught off guard for a moment. "Really?"

Tang Wulin answered in all seriousness, "Of course, it's true."

Long Yuxue scoffed. "Don't let me encounter you then. Alright, I'm leaving. Are you going to stay here?"

Tang Wulin nodded. "I'll practice forging here for a bit."

Two days passed in the blink of an eye. Tang Wulin spent his days studying about mechas and completing some forging work, apart from working on his cultivation. A small number of people were aware that he was a Saint Craftsman. He only accepted soul-forging work now, so there were not that many people who sought his help in forging. Xu Weitao was quick to respond by finding him a new place the next day. He had a more private space now beside an exclusive warehouse where he had moved his fixtures.

For the past two days, Tang Wulin logged on to the Star Dou Battle Network each day. He was notified of his competition time after his registration was completed. He would then log on to the Battle Network within the stipulated time.

His competition was at eight o'clock tonight.

For some unknown reason, Tang Wulin felt more excited in participating in the Federal Star Dou Battle Network Challenge than when he participated in the competition back in Star Dou empire.

Perhaps, it was because he was participating in a federal-level competition. He would be fighting against the most powerful powerhouses, below Title Douluo ranks, of the entire federation. There was no doubt that Blood One encouraged him to participate in this competition, for it provided the best training for him.

Shrek Academy had been a strong advocate of developing one's potential since the beginning. The actual combat in this competition would give free rein for one to express one's abilities without worrying about injuring one's opponent.

"Star Dou Battle Network login successful. Welcome, Little Tang. There's still thirty minutes before your competition time. Please head to the soul master battle zone to wait for your turn."

Tang Wulin had entered the place on time where he was immediately notified by an electronic voice when he completed his login process.

This was his first west division's soul master challenge elimination tournament while tomorrow would be his first mecha challenge elimination tournament. The qualifying system was set up in such a way as to accommodate the contestants who registered for both types of competitions simultaneously. 

Earlier, Tang Wulin's estimation of the competition's duration had been too short. He reckoned it to be at least three months to complete the competition according to the timetable that was displayed.

Tang Wulin had already figured that he would apply for leave from Blood One to visit Gu Yuena if he entered the finals.

The competition had begun since noon. He could see people with white masks milling around the west division's stadium with names and numbers above their heads.

The number above Tang Wulin's head now was already 5-0.

He was rather selective in taking part in the competitions because he did not lack actual combat experience. Also, he was not inclined to spend too much money.

"Countdown to competition, one minute."

It was finally time for the competition. Tang Wulin took a deep breath. He had already prepared himself to his best ability before logging in to the Star Dou Battle Network.

A golden radiance flashed once as the surrounding space warped. In the next moment, he was already on the competition stage.