197 Blacksmiths

Skysea City was situated in an area surrounded by much more mountains thanEastsea City and many buildings were built into the slopes, adding to theirhigh-low appearance. Some skyscrapers even seemed to pierce right through theclouds.

The official delegation from Eastsea City had already been in contact with therepresentatives from Skysea City.

The four students of class zero were the youngest amongst the competitors fromEastsea City and naturally weren’t too attentive to their surroundings, simplyfollowing the group.

They were led to a luxurious hotel that was rather special; half of it waswithin the ocean and each room had a breathtaking view that truly emphasized toall the guests that they were by the ocean.

Tang Wulin and Xie Xie shared a room while Gu Yue and Xu Xiaoyan were placedin another room.

Tomorrow was the opening ceremony of the tournament and lots to decide thematches would be drawn. Wu Zhangkong had given the bare minimum explanationwhich had lacked any sort of warnings or advice.

The doorbell rang.

Tang Wulin quickly opened the door, revealing the charming Mu Xi.

“Come with me!” Mu Xi grabbed his hand and dragged him out.

Tang Wulin just barely managed to look back and shout, “Xie Xie, I’m going outwith my senior disciple sister first. I’ll be back later.”

“Go, just go already.” Xie Xie was already laying on his bed resting with hiseyes closed. He hadn’t had a moment of reprieve from Wu Zhangkong’s glacialaura and the glares of the surrounding women during the entire trip whilstsitting next to his teacher. Now that he was free from that tormentingenvironment, fatigue drained his energy while sleep overwhelmed hisconsciousness.

“Senior disciple sister, slow down. Just what are we doing?” Tang Wulinpleaded.

“We have a meeting.” Mu Xi’s short reply left no room for debate. She turned acorner and, seeing that there weren’t many people around, Mu Xi quickly pinchedTang Wulin’s delicate cheeks.

“Senior disciple sister!” Tang Wulin waved his arms in protest.

“Pinching you means that I respect you. Your cheeks are nice to pinch. Okay,we’re here.” Mu Xi pushed Tang Wulin into a room as she spoke.

Over a dozen people were present in the room, each wearing the familiar badgeof a blacksmith.

The leader of the delegation from the Blacksmith’s Association was someoneTang Wulin knew—Cen Yue. Aside from Cen Yue, the others were unfamiliar facesthat ranged from their late teens to their early twenties.  

Cen Yue’s stern expression transformed into a beaming smile the moment TangWulin and Mu Xi walked in.

“You’re here, Wulin? Come, I’ll introduce you to the other outstandingblacksmiths of your generation.”

There were a couple people that stood out to Tang Wulin—a youth aroundeighteen years old named Zheng Tianlin and a young man a little over twentynamed Tang Wenhao.  

They both had their own peculiarities. Zheng Tianlin had a pair ofextraordinarily long arms that reached just past his knees and wore a thirdrank blacksmith badge while Tang Wenhao wore a fourth rank badge. They were themost skilled individuals in the room after Cen Yue.

Although Mu Xi was extremely talented, she was still only a second rankblacksmith. Mu Chen’s strict attitude toward her had meant that he refused topass her as a third rank blacksmith until her Thousand Refinements stabilized.

“Now that everyone is present, I’ll begin. I believe you’re all aware thatalthough Eastsea City hasn’t achieved any exemplary results in the SkyseaAlliance Tournaments of late, our Eastsea Blacksmith’s Association is anexception to that. We managed to attain third place in the junior division, andfirst in the youth division last year. Wenhao, do your best this time to bringus glory in the adult division.”

Tang Wenhao had an average appearance and a sturdy body. A calm light twinkledin his eyes as he said, “Yes, teacher.”

It was only then that Tang Wulin realized Tang Wenhao was Cen Yue’s directdisciple.

A satisfied smile formed on Cen Yue’s lips. “You will definitely receiveexcellent results as long as you perform your usual best”

Cen Yue then turned to Zheng Tianlin. “Tianlin, you’ve made a lot of progressin these last two years and have stabilized your foundation. If you’re able toforge at your personal best, then you should do well too. I hope you’llbreakthrough soon and reach fourth rank.”

“Yes, Master Cen.” Zheng Tianlin nodded but not only was his attitudedisrespectful, it was filled with disdain and arrogance.

Finally, Cen Yue turned to Tang Wulin and Mu Xi. “Last of all are the two ofyou. If you were to ask me who I was most confident in with regards to theadult, youth, and juvenile division, I would definitely have said it would beyou two brats. I don’t think I need to give either of you any advice. Justperform as you always do and you’ll surely bring back the title of champion.I’ll be waiting to celebrate.”

Everyone in the room eyed the two at these words. They could accept it if ithad only been directed to Mu Xi, but Tang Wulin was an unknown face.

The matter of Tang Wulin becoming President Mu Chen’s disciple had been keptconfidential and the only ones who knew this were Mu Chen himself, Cen Yue, andMu Xi. It was for this reason that none of the other blacksmiths recognized him.

Tang Wenhao was shocked that his teacher had praised this newcomer. He glancedat Tang Wulin and gave him a nod of acknowledgment. Tang Wulin hastilyreciprocated.

Zheng Tianlin smiled. “Junior sister Mu Xi is quickly approaching third rankso the junior division should be no problem for her. The champion’s prize isalmost already hers.”

Mu Xi would have accepted such praise before having met Tang Wulin since shetruly was one of the greatest of her generation. Now, however, a little monsterstood beside her. How could she accept such praise knowing full well the gapbetween her and Tang Wulin? He was already a fourth rank blacksmith despitebeing four years younger than her.

“Don’t say such nonsense. There’s no way I can become the champion,” Mu Xiquickly said.

Zheng Tianlin thought she was being modest and laughed. “How could you not?Being able to reach the second rank is already amazing for your age, not tomention approaching third rank.” He hadn’t even thought of acknowledging TangWulin since the beginning.

Although Tang Wulin was taller than his peers, at most, he could only beconsidered a thirteen-year-old child. Apart from Tang Wenhao who noted CenYue’s expectant gaze towards Tang Wulin, everyone else held the sameassumptions as Zheng Tianlin. They thought Tang Wulin was merely present tocreate a contrast for Mu Xi’s brilliance.

Tang Wulin didn’t mind this assessment at all; in fact, he wasn’t concerned atall. Mang Tian had repeatedly warned him to stay low-key within theBlacksmith’s Association as it was only then would he be able to progressfurther.

He trusted Mang Tian’s advice, and Mu Chen’s lectures had only served tofurther reinforce this idea. It was for this reason that he truly intended togive Mu Xi the championship in this competition. He would be rewarded with boththe second and first place prizes anyway. What reason did he have to decline?

Cen Yue didn’t try to allay their assumptions since his primary goal was TangWulin’s safety. B Mu Chen had explained to Tang Wulin before their departurethat if it wasn’t for his insane improvement speed and connection with theworld of blacksmiths, Mu Chen would not have let him compete.

What Tang Wulin wasn’t aware of was that there was a limited number of spotsfor participating in high-level competitions and having reached fourth rank,Tang Wulin qualified for them.

Cen Yue said, “Now I’ll explain how the competition will be run this time.Let’s start with the junior division. You can leave after hearing theinformation relevant to you.” He still prioritized Tang Wulin in the end. Ofcourse, in the eyes of the other blacksmiths, it was simply Cen Yue showingconsideration for Mu Xi.

“The three divisions aren’t that different; it’s just that the junior divisionfocuses on blacksmithing fundamentals. The first round disqualifies contestantswho cannot hundred refine. No one knows what metal you will be asked to forge.The top sixty-four participants from the first round will then compete in thesecond round where you freely display your ability with the same metal frombefore. You will be awarded points based on the grade of the final product. Asfor the third round, you will be shaping the metal you forged in the secondround. That’s it. There are only three rounds. To secure a good position,however, you will need to surprise everyone. When that time comes, just do youbest and you should be fine. The association will grant you an additional awardif you place within the top eight, and an amazing award if it’s the top three.You’ll even have the opportunity to participate in other blacksmithingcompetitions. I hope you’ll keep this in mind and do you best because the spotsfor other competitions isn’t up to me. If you place in the top three, the medalawarded will be your ticket into the upper levels of the world ofblacksmithing, understand?”