Chapter 490: An Excited Kong Deming
"Grandmaster Kong, Dean, Teacher Xuan, my forging skills have successfully broken through," Huo Yuhao said, turning to look at the three men behind him.
Immediately, the three of them stepped forward, their gazes fixed on the metallic sphere that continued to rub affectionately against Huo Yuhao. Unable to contain his curiosity, Xuan Ziwen reached out, attempting to touch the metal sphere.
However, because the sphere was spiritually connected to Huo Yuhao's life force, it displayed a strong attachment to him and a clear resistance to strangers. It swiftly dodged Xuan Ziwen's hand, then floated onto Huo Yuhao's shoulder, continuing to affectionately nuzzle against his neck.
Huo Yuhao felt ticklish and instinctively grabbed the metallic sphere, which offered no resistance.
Watching this, Xuan Ziwen wasn't annoyed. On the contrary, his face lit up with excitement. "Yuhao, this isn't just any ordinary piece of metal. It's so lively, almost like a small creature! I really want to touch it. Can you try talking to it and convincing it to let me feel it? Just once!"
As a passionate researcher of soul tools, Xuan Ziwen believed that a metal with such lifelike characteristics would be an exceptional material for crafting humanoid soul tools.
Of course, Huo Yuhao's Blade of Life Guardian was another fascinating material Huo Yuhao had once explained that it was forged from a metal called Living Gold. While Xuan Ziwen found that incredibly intriguing, he had no intention of coveting his student's belongings. However, he did regret that despite extensive mineral exploration, Sun Moon Empire had never discovered another source of Living Gold.
Huo Yuhao sighed, somewhat helpless. "Teacher Xuan, it's not that intelligent. It simply has life force and an instinct to stay close to its forger, but it doesn't possess high level thought. I can't exactly talk to it. But if you want to touch it, I can help."
Saying this, he grabbed the metal sphere and extended it toward Xuan Ziwen. To prevent it from resisting, he didn't completely let go, instead shifting his fingers downward to leave room for Xuan Ziwen to grasp it.
Xuan Ziwen immediately took hold of the sphere, rubbing it back and forth. A smooth, warm sensation spread from his palm to his mind.
"So this is what it feels like…" he murmured, amazed.
However, he could also sense the sphere's subtle trembling, as if resisting his touch.
Satisfied after indulging in his curiosity, Xuan Ziwen withdrew his hand, his eyes burning with enthusiasm. "Yuhao, can you give us a brief explanation of this metal's properties? We can sense its powerful life force, but we don't fully understand it."
At this, Kong Deming and Jing Hongchen also turned their full attention to Huo Yuhao, eagerly awaiting his answer.
Clearing his throat, Huo Yuhao explained, "This is spirit forged metal. Spirit forging is a process that imbues metal with life, allowing it to fuse with its forger."
"Fuse with its forger?" Xuan Ziwen's brow furrowed in confusion, not fully grasping Huo Yuhao's words. The same perplexed expression appeared on Kong Deming and Jing Hongchen they had no idea what "fusing with the forger" truly meant.
Huo Yuhao chuckled and patiently elaborated, "The phrase is quite literal. In a moment, I'll infuse this spirit forged metal into my forging hammers, upgrading them from thousand refined with spirit to spirit forged level.
Once that happens, I'll be able to store them inside my body and summon them at will."
His gaze sharpened.
"Moreover, soul tools crafted from spirit forged metal can even enhance martial souls and fuse with them."
Boom!
Huo Yuhao's words struck them like a thunderbolt, sending a shockwave through their minds.
Instantly, all three men widened their eyes, their expressions turning into sheer disbelief.
But despite their shock, they did not doubt his words Huo Yuhao had already performed too many miracles and contributed immeasurably to the Sun Moon Empire. If he said it was possible, it had to be true.
Xuan Ziwen sighed in awe. "Yuhao… if spirit forged metal is this powerful, its introduction will revolutionize soul tool development. The Sun Moon Empire will grow even stronger because of it."
Jing Hongchen, meanwhile, felt like his worldview was collapsing.
He began reevaluating everything Xuan Ziwen had said earlier about him not understanding the mind of a true genius.
Looking back, Xuan Ziwen's words had been completely accurate.
He had underestimated the difficulty of technological breakthroughs, but more importantly, he had underestimated Huo Yuhao's monstrous talent.
For a true genius, problems weren't obstacles they were puzzles meant to be solved quickly.
Off to the side, Kong Deming watched Huo Yuhao with deep admiration.
The more he observed this disciple grandson of his, the more satisfied he felt.
In his heart, he thought, The greatest achievement my student Xuan Ziwen has ever made… is taking in Huo Yuhao as a disciple.
Even someone as experienced as Kong Deming, who had seen countless advancements in his lifetime, could barely contain his excitement.
Spirit forged metal was too powerful.
And the best part about forging?
It could be mass produced.
If spirit forged metal was applied to soul tool manufacturing, the results would be astounding.
Countless soul engineers would benefit from it, and their combat strength would skyrocket.
Even his own Silver Moon Divine Light Shield could be reforged using spirit forged materials, significantly boosting its defensive power perhaps even allowing him to reach new heights in strength.
Huo Yuhao observed their stunned expressions and couldn't help but chuckle.
Their reactions were understandable.
After all, the forging techniques he introduced came from Douluo Dalu 3: The Legend of the Dragon King.
Bringing advanced forging from a thousand years in the future back to Douluo Dalu 2 was essentially a one sided technological domination.
Who could possibly withstand the shock of such a leap?
"Next, I'll be teaching you all how to forge spirit forged metal," Huo Yuhao continued. "I'll also be writing a specialized textbook detailing everything I've mastered about forging so far.
The leap from thousand refined to spirit forged is enormous, and if we can train more blacksmiths proficient in spirit forging, it will greatly benefit soul tool development."
In truth, many Mingde Hall researchers and some soul engineers in the Spirit Pagoda had already begun learning blacksmithing.
Since hundred refinement and thousand refinement were relatively simple, Huo Yuhao hadn't needed to write a textbook instead, he had trained a few disciples to pass down his techniques.
But spirit forging was different.
It was significantly more difficult, and he wanted to make it as accessible as possible.
His ultimate goal?
To increase the number of people forging spirit forged metal… and in doing so, expand his influence and accumulate more faith energy.
Jing Hongchen's eyes lit up. "Yuhao, have you decided on a name for this textbook?"
Huo Yuhao smiled.
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