Chapter 29

The furnace fire was bright red, with flames dancing wildly.

The firelight reflected on Chen Zong's face, which was covered in sweat, each drop glistening red as it slowly slid down.

In his left hand, he held a pair of iron tongs, tightly gripping the thick iron that had been heated to a bright red, as steady as a mountain. With his right hand, he firmly grasped a fifty-pound hammer, lifting and striking it repeatedly, the bright sound of the hammering accompanied by countless sparks flying, echoing continuously in the casting room.

One strike, two strikes, three strikes!

Chen Zong did not stop, lifting and striking the hammer repeatedly, forging over and over again.

Ordinary iron blocks, used for casting ordinary iron weapons, are made from refined thick iron, which in turn is derived from iron ore. The iron ore is melted at high temperatures, and the impurities are separated to form thick iron.

The hammer strikes, sometimes light, sometimes heavy, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, the four essentials of forging constantly changing.

The thick iron still contains many impurities, which need to be burned at high temperatures and then repeatedly hammered to remove the impurities. Hammering is not a blind action; it requires skill. Otherwise, the thick iron will not only fail to become an ordinary iron block but will turn into useless slag.

It takes a normal martial artist about a month to initially master the four essentials of forging, but to apply them, one needs to repeatedly hammer and correct through comparisons, ultimately truly mastering them.

The originally large lump of thick iron, about the size of a person's head, gradually shrank under Chen Zong's repeated hammering.

After hammering for a while, the thick iron gradually cooled, increasing the difficulty of hammering. Chen Zong then placed the thick iron back into the furnace, pulled the bellows, and used intense fire to reheat it until it turned red and soft again.

"Truly arrogant, thinking he can master the four essentials of forging and create an ordinary iron block in just three days?" Outside the casting room, Chen Qi sneered with disdain.

"Who knows?" Chen Wu, with his honest and thick face, smiled slightly: "Maybe he can really succeed."

"Do you believe that yourself?" Chen Qi countered. Chen Wu smiled again but did not answer.

Believe it?

Definitely not.

Whether it was him or Chen Qi, it took them over a month to barely forge an ordinary iron block, which is why they were kept by Elder Lie.

In just three days, and with his first contact with forging, wanting to create an ordinary iron block is like a dream.

The thick iron was heated to a bright red again. Chen Zong took it out and hammered it repeatedly. Finally, with one strike, the thick iron cracked.

"Ruined..." Chen Zong couldn't help but shake his head. This was the third piece of thick iron he had damaged.

Putting down the hammer, Chen Zong carefully recalled the process of forging, thinking about where he had misjudged the timing, where he had applied the wrong force, and where he needed to improve.

His right arm was sore and numb, unsuitable for further forging, so Chen Zong tidied up and left.

After having a meal, he went to a corner of the training ground to practice sword techniques.

"Light Splitting Shadow!"

With one slash, two beams of sword light split and attacked the same spot simultaneously. After the sword light passed, the ground seemed to be split, leaving a sword mark over a meter long.

"Attacking a single target indeed increases the power, but if the two beams of sword light could be combined, the power would be even greater."

Unfortunately, this is a variation and an application. Currently, it does not help in the cultivation of Light Splitting Shadow, but it can enhance the power of Chen Zong's sword strikes to some extent.

"If I can cultivate Light Splitting Shadow to the minor success stage, I can split four beams of sword light, and at the major success stage, I can split eight beams of sword light..."

However, the difficulty of cultivating martial arts of this grade is many times greater than that of foundation-building martial arts. It took Chen Zong four days just to reach the initial stage, inspired by the four essentials of forging. To reach the minor success stage would not be easy.

After practicing the Light Splitting Sword Technique, Chen Zong also cultivated the other four foundation-building sword techniques, especially the True Sword Eight Forms.

Returning to his room, he cultivated the Fierce Tiger Technique, but the improvement in his cultivation was very slow.

"I had to refine my blood qi seven times to break through, and it's still so difficult to improve. Those who break through after refining their blood qi only three times must find it even harder to make progress," Chen Zong couldn't help but sigh at the difficulty of cultivation.

Even so, he must persist.

On the fourth day, after cultivating, Chen Zong went to the casting workshop to forge again.

He did not want to be driven away by Elder Lie after ten days.

The furnace fire was fierce, heating the thick iron. Chen Zong recalled the insights from the previous two days of forging. When the thick iron was heated to a bright red, he took it out and hammered it.

He failed again.

Elder Lie did not pay him any attention.

On the fifth day, Chen Zong continued as usual.

Drawing on the experience from his previous failures, combining the essence of the four essentials of forging with his own insights and control of force, he repeatedly hammered the thick iron, which gradually shrank and eventually turned into an irregular iron brick.

Putting down the hammer, he picked up the iron brick and examined it closely. The surface was uneven and somewhat rough, completely different from the flat and square ordinary iron blocks stacked in the corner of the casting room. But Chen Zong smiled.

No matter how ugly it was, it was still an ordinary iron block, proving that he had succeeded.

"But, it's not enough yet," Chen Zong thought to himself. After a short rest, he began to put the second piece of thick iron into the furnace, wanting to capture the feeling of successfully forging an ordinary iron block and solidify it.

After some time, the second ordinary iron block was forged, which was clearly better than the first.

"Let's stop here for today. I'll come back tomorrow," Chen Zong smiled, tidied up, and left.

Sixth day!

Seventh day!

Eighth day!

Ninth day!

Tenth day!

Every day, Chen Zong made progress, not only in cultivation and sword techniques but also in forging.

"Elder Lie, this is the ordinary iron block I forged. Please take a look," Chen Zong held the ordinary iron block he had forged and handed it to Elder Lie, who had entered the casting room.

"Why are you still here?" Elder Lie glanced at Chen Zong, took a moment to recognize him, and then said harshly, "Let me see."

"I hate the most those who cheat and deceive," Elder Lie said, taking the ordinary iron block and immediately exploding in anger. A terrifying aura erupted from him like a volcano, his eyes blazing as if they could burn Chen Zong to ashes. The momentum made Chen Zong's face change, and he retreated several steps.

The other two martial artists who were operating the bellows for Elder Lie trembled all over.

This was the aura of a powerful martial artist surpassing the Blood Qi Realm. Even a ninth-layer Blood Qi Realm martial artist would find it difficult to withstand.

"Can you say that this is what you forged?" Elder Lie's hand tightened, and the ordinary iron block creaked, twisting under the pressure. Chen Zong was shocked; how much strength must it take to do that? If it were bones, they would turn to powder instantly.

"If you don't believe me, I'll forge one right now," Chen Zong said, his voice trembling. The aura of an angry Elder Lie was truly terrifying.

"Fine, let's see what you can do," Elder Lie, though angry, did not lose his reason. He was surprised that a mere fourth-layer Blood Qi Realm martial artist could remain standing and speak fluently under his aura, and decided to give Chen Zong a chance.

Chen Zong exhaled, feeling a bit weak.

He started the fire and operated the bellows, his movements smooth and fluid, making Elder Lie's eyes brighten slightly.

An outsider might see the excitement, but an insider could see the skill. Elder Lie couldn't help but feel a bit of anticipation.

As Chen Zong placed the thick iron into the furnace, heated it until it was red, and then steadily placed it on the anvil, he raised his right hand with the hammer. The movement was as if he had practiced it hundreds or thousands of times, making Elder Lie's eyes even brighter.

Chen Wu and Chen Qi, who had just entered, also stared in amazement at Chen Zong's every move, wondering if they were seeing things.

Every action was more proficient and perfect than theirs.

The hammer fell!

The first sound was exceptionally bright, making Chen Wu and Chen Qi shiver.

Elder Lie's eyes brightened even more. In that strike, he saw a unique charm, which required a certain level of mastery of the four essentials of forging.

"Could I have discovered a genius?" Elder Lie shouted inwardly.

One strike, two strikes, three strikes!

Repeated hammering, countless sparks flying, dazzling.

The changes in force and angle, though not yet perfect, had many areas that needed improvement. But in just ten days, Chen Wu and Chen Qi, who had been practicing for three to four months, had not reached this level.

Under the watchful eyes of Elder Lie and others, Chen Zong forged an ordinary iron block, both in shape and quality, identical to the square ordinary iron blocks stacked in the corner.

"Good, good, good." Elder Lie was extremely excited, his curly beard standing straight.

"From now on, you are my disciple." Elder Lie pointed at Chen Zong and declared.

Chen Wu, Chen Qi, and the two martial artists operating the bellows in the casting room trembled with envy.

There were five elders in the clan hall, and Elder Lie was one of them. Being taken as a disciple by an elder was a dream for many clan hall descendants, a great honor.

"Elder, can you teach me sword techniques?" Chen Zong did not show the expected excitement but asked calmly.

"I don't practice sword techniques, how can I teach you?" Elder Lie said excitedly: "But I can teach you sword forging, making you a weapon smith."

"Sorry, Elder, I came to the casting workshop just to earn contribution points." Chen Zong shook his head. Practicing sword techniques already took up much of his time and energy. If not for the contribution points, he wouldn't have come here.

After all, forging ordinary iron blocks every day took up a lot of his time.

"Are you refusing me? How foolish, you have the talent to be a weapon smith, why waste it on sword techniques?" Elder Lie was so angry he stomped his feet: "Do you know how many people want to be my disciples, and I don't even consider them? Now that I've chosen you, you're refusing me?"

Chen Zong remained silent, and Elder Lie was both anxious and angry, but he couldn't do anything to Chen Zong.

This made Chen Wu and others even more envious and jealous.

"Angry enough to kill me." Elder Lie stomped his foot, and the casting room echoed with a loud boom.

Watching Elder Lie leave in a huff, Chen Zong couldn't help but smile bitterly. What was going on?

Could he still stay in the casting workshop to earn contribution points?

He decided not to think about it and would see what happened the next day.