“I won’t be able to make it in time…”
Hammering, just like pill forging, was a hands-on skill which could only be mastered through countless years of practice. Even with the Library of Heaven’s Path guiding him along, it would still be impossible for him to master the skill in time with only an hour left on the clock.
Just as Zhang Xuan was distressed as to what he should do next, a thought suddenly flashed across his mind, and his eyes lit up in excitement.
“Wait… Even though I can’t forge a sword or those of that sort, I can turn the iron lump into a hammer! That should be much easier than other weapons…”
There were many intricacies behind swords and sabers which made them extremely difficult to forge them, but that shouldn’t be the case for hammers!
With just a few hits on the metal lump, he should be able to create a hammer easily!
“Alright, it’s decided then!” With a smile on his lips, Zhang Xuan shouted, “I request to challenge the 6-star blacksmith examination!”
Weng!
The sight before Zhang Xuan changed once more, turning into an even larger hall.
Many ores and metals that would have been difficult to find in real life appeared before him.
After some contemplation, Zhang Xuan picked out a few dozen of them and brought them to the furnace.
Xiong xiong!
Tossing the ores and metals into the furnace, Zhang Xuan began with his smithing.
…
Meanwhile, Yuan Hong and a group of master teachers were standing outside the Ocean of Weapons, waiting for the results of the examination.
After all that had happened, it was already nearing midnight. However, it didn’t seem like anyone had the intention to leave.
That Zhang Xuan fellow had caused such a huge mess in the Blacksmith School, but not only did Vice School Head Yuan not punish him, he even escorted him to the Ocean of Weapons for him to take the blacksmith examination.
Everyone was curious to see what kind of legendary figure Zhang Xuan was for a 6-star pinnacle blacksmith to treat him with such respect.
“How far do you think he can advance in the Ocean of Weapons?”
“Do you even need to ask? With just four hours on the clock, he will only be able to clear the 1-star examination!”
“Even if he is a talented blacksmith who is capable of producing weapons at an unprecedented speed, he’ll only be able to clear the 2-star examination at the maximum. Anything beyond that is physically impossible!”
“Indeed. Just take the forging process for example, in order to hammer the alloy into the perfect shape, one would have to spend at least an hour or two on it. Even seasoned blacksmiths wouldn’t be able to go any faster than that!”
…
Everyone muttered with hushed voices.
Since that fellow declared that he would be challenging the 5-star blacksmith examination, he should possess the ability to smith a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon at the minimum. However, due to the time limit within the Ocean of Weapons, it would be difficult for him to reach 2-star.
Anything further than that would be plain impossible!
As such, there was no one here who really thought that he would be able to clear the 5-star blacksmith examination today.
Nevertheless, for a person who had never challenged the blacksmith examination before, clearing two stars simultaneously was still an incredible feat.
Just as everyone was waiting patiently for the results from the Ocean of Weapons, footsteps suddenly sounded. Turning their heads over, everyone saw a few elders walking over.
“Look, the school head is here!”
“No, it isn’t just the school head. The other vice school heads as well… Why are they all here?”
“They probably heard about the matter here and came over to take a look!”
The one who was leading the group was the head of the Blacksmith School, one of the Ten Great Master Teachers, Zhao Bingxu.
There were three elders walking behind him, and they were the remaining three vice school heads.
After conducting a Meridian and Bone Cleansing for Luo Qiqi and the others, they decided to head over here to see if the legendary student would be able to clear the 5-star blacksmith examination.
“School head!” As if having guessed that the school head would come, Yuan Hong didn’t seem surprised in the least. He clasped his fist and greeted the other party.
“How is it? Has he begun the 5-star blacksmith examination yet? Judging from the current time, he should be done soon!” Zhao Bingxu asked with a smile.
“5-star blacksmith examination… This…” Yuan Hong muttered awkwardly.
Bewildered by Yuan Hong’s reaction to his words, Zhao Bingxu asked doubtfully, “What’s wrong? Isn’t it Zhang shi who is undergoing the examination inside at the moment?”
“It’s indeed him who is inside, but… it appears that Zhang shi has never taken a blacksmith examination before, so he is currently challenging the 1-star examination,” Yuan Hong replied.
“He has never taken any blacksmith examination before?” Zhao Bingxu exclaimed.
The other three vice school heads behind him were also stunned by the revelation.
Since that fellow had never taken the 1-star examination before, why in the name of Kong shi was he attempting to challenge the 5-star examination?
“Yes.” Yuan Hong nodded. “His intention before entering the Ocean of Weapons seemed to be to challenge the 2-star examination after clearing the 1-star examination. I wonder if he will be able to succeed.”
Before entering the Ocean of Weapons, that fellow had asked if he could challenge the subsequent examinations as well, so he was probably preparing to do so. It would be difficult, but that fellow might just be able to pull it off.
“Are you curious? Actually, we can just take a peek at it!” Zhang Bingxu chuckled.
“Take a peek? But the Ocean of Weapons is still in operation, how do we take a look?” Yuan Hong was bewildered.
By right, as long as the Ocean of Weapons was still in operation, it was impossible to know the results of the test inside. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be waiting here.
“While it’s indeed impossible to see the results within the Ocean of Weapons, we can always try to apply for the emblem for him! If the emblem appears, it will mean that he has cleared the 1-star examination!” Zhao Bingxu said as he stroked his beard.
“That… Indeed! Why didn’t I think of that?” Yuan Hong slapped his thigh and chuckled.
The emblem would be dispatched outside after one cleared the examination in the Ocean of Weapons. As long as one had cleared the examination inside, the system would distribute an emblem when an application was sent in.
It was impossible to know the results of the blacksmith examination directly since Zhang Xuan wasn’t out yet, but they could use this method to know how far he was into the examination!
If they were to succeed in applying for the 1-star emblem, it would mean that he had already cleared the 1-star examination and was in the midst of challenging the 2-star examination…
Such a simple matter, but to think that it had slipped his mind!
“Alright, I shall give it a try!”
Yuan Hong stepped forward, placed his hand on a button on the gigantic doors of the Ocean of Weapons, and pressed it lightly.
There was a momentary burst of light before an emblem fell from an aperture below the button.
“Oh? He cleared the 1-star examination?” Yuan Hong muttered as he grabbed the falling emblem.
It was Zhang Xuan’s 1-star blacksmith emblem.
Since it was dispatched, it could only mean that Zhang Xuan had cleared the 1-star examination.
“Since he has cleared the 1-star examination, he should probably be in the midst of the 2-star examination at the moment…” Zhao Bingxu nodded.
“Hmm, it is about to be four hours soon. Let me give it a try to see if he has passed the 2-star examination yet…” Yuan Hong pondered for a moment before placing his palm back on the button.
Weng!
Another burst of light, and an emblem fell from the aperture once more.
“Th-this is the 2-star emblem? He has cleared the 2-star examination as well?” Yuan Hong froze for an instant before hurriedly reaching out to grab the falling emblem.
In his view, clearing an examination within four hours was already extremely difficult in itself. Even if there was some spare time after clearing the 1-star examination, the chances were that the examinee would already be exhausted by then, making it nearly impossible to clear the next one. Yet, this fellow actually cleared two examinations consecutively… Was this for real?
“He’s cleared the 2-star examination?” Zhao Bingxu was taken aback as well.
He walked up to Yuan Hong, took the emblem from him, and examined it carefully. Inscribed on it was Zhang Xuan’s name. There was no doubt about it… he had cleared the 2-star examination within the four-hour limit!
“But if he has cleared the 2-star examination, why isn’t he out yet? Could it be that… he is trying for the 3-star examination?” Yuan Hong widened his eyes at that thought.
If Zhang Xuan wasn’t out after clearing the 2-star examination, did that mean that he was attempting the subsequent 3-star examination?
To still have the strength to attempt subsequent examinations after clearing the 2-star examination… What was that fellow made of?
“That should be the case. However, given the limited amount of time, it is impossible for him to clear the 3-star examination…” Yuan Hong shook his head.
As a 6-star pinnacle blacksmith, he knew how difficult smithing was.
Even with his current skills, he would only be able to smith Phantom low-tier weapons within four hours at best. Anything more than that was impossible!
To clear the 1-star and 2-star examination, Zhang Xuan would have to smith at least two weapons. However, no matter how proficient he was in smithing, he couldn’t possibly be faster than a 6-star pinnacle blacksmith. As such, how could he possibly be able to smith the third weapon?
“Let’s just try giving it a press…” Zhao Bingxu interjected as he walked up to the door and pressed on the button.
Weng!
Yet another flash of light and emblem.
“This… a 3-star emblem?”
Not only did Yuan Hong leap in shock, even Zhao Bingxu was stunned.
To smith three weapons within four hours, advancing from an apprentice to a 3-star blacksmith… This speed was insane!
“Could it be possible that…”
The duo glanced at one another, only to see the shock in each other’s eyes. Unable to stand the curiosity any longer, Yuan Hong pressed the button once more.
Huala!
Again, another flash of light and another emblem.
Yuan Hong swallowed his saliva and uttered hoarsely, “4-star… He is actually trying to clear up to the 5-star blacksmith examination within four hours…”
When that fellow said that he would challenge the 5-star blacksmith examination, Yuan Hong had regarded it as nothing more than a joke. After all, how could anyone advance from an apprentice to a 5-star blacksmith within a single day? But who could have thought that he would actually succeed!
Since the 4-star emblem had appeared, it could only mean that he was currently attempting for the 5-star blacksmith examination.
To smith four weapons within four hours, and not to mention, all four of them had to reach the required quality in order to clear the examination… How in the world was that fellow doing it?
Xiong Bing, who had been watching the scene, couldn’t help but ask, “Do you think that it’s possible that… he might have cleared the 5-star examination?”
“That’s impossible!” Hearing those words, Yuan Hong immediately shook his head in denial. “If he had cleared the 5-star examination, he would have been out by now. Why would he still be inside?”
But despite the words Yuan Hong was speaking, his hand still stretched out to press that button once again.
Huala!
And yet again, another emblem fell from the aperture.
Grabbing it hurriedly, Yuan Hong rubbed his eyes and stared at the name and rank inscribed on the emblem, and his body began shaking intensely.
“A 5-star emblem… H-h-h-h-he has even cleared the 5-star blacksmith examination as well? T-t-t-then… what examination is he taking at the moment?”
Yuan Hong felt as if everything he had known about the world was crumbling before his eyes, and tears threatened to spill down his cheeks.
If they could apply for the 5-star emblem but that fellow wasn’t out yet, didn’t that mean that the fellow was attempting the 6-star blacksmith examination?
But how could that be possible?!
Even if he had sufficient time to attempt it… his cultivation was too low to clear the examination!
In order to become a 6-star blacksmith, one must be able to smith a Spirit pinnacle weapon at the minimum, and in order to do so, the minimum cultivation one must possess was Transcendent Mortal 9-dan Chrysalis realm!
This was a well-known fact amongst blacksmiths. Until one had achieved a Seamless Body at Transcendent Mortal 9-dan Chrysalis realm, the inadvertent leakage of zhenqi would result in imperfections in the smithing process, making it impossible to smith a Spirit pinnacle weapon.
For a weapon to reach Spirit pinnacle, it had to be rich in spirit and nearly impeccable. If one couldn’t even control one’s body perfectly, how could one possibly forge such a weapon?
Weng!
In the midst of his shock, Yuan Hong subconsciously reached out to press the button once more, and with a flash of light, another emblem fell from the aperture again.
“6-star…”
As if statues, everyone froze in place, and silence loomed before the Ocean of Weapons.
