"Elder Titan, you can't show yourself tomorrow. Your presence is too conspicuous. We can't let word slip. Fatty, you're coming with me tomorrow. Just the two of us."
Titan hesitated for a moment. "Young Master, there are dozens of Soul Masters over there. Isn't it too few, just the two of you?"
Tang San shook his head. "Two is more than enough. One to kill, one to set fires."
Aside from Xiao Wu, everyone present felt a chill run down their spine at his words. Tang San's placid expression suddenly seemed terrifying.
A day passed quickly. Tang San spent it in his room with Xiao Wu — when she slept, he cultivated. Oscar, Ning Rongrong, and Ma Hongjun spent the day strolling around Gengxin City.
The following evening, Silong arrived.
By then, Oscar and the others had not yet returned. In the inn, only Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Titan were present, along with two of Titan's clan disciples.
Tang San brought Xiao Wu to Titan's room to meet Silong.
Silong said, "The various metals have been mostly prepared. Since most of them are rare metals, I've practically cleared out the Guild's entire stockpile over the past two days. It took everything, but I've managed to gather it all. The only thing missing is a bit more Mysterious Iron, which will be delivered tomorrow morning."
Tang San smiled. "Then I must trouble the Guild Master."
Silong chuckled. "No trouble at all. I'm counting on you all to visit again in the future."
Titan asked, "What about that old fellow Lou Gao? What's he been doing these past two days?"
The moment Lou Gao was mentioned, Silong's face twisted into a helpless expression. "Vice President Titan, my Uncle Titan — what on earth did you give my master? For the past two days, he hasn't slept or rested. He hasn't even bothered to eat. He just stares at that diagram all day long, muttering to himself and fiddling around. He's completely obsessed."
Tang San and Titan exchanged a glance and couldn't help but laugh. Titan had looked exactly the same way when he first saw the Rainstorm Pear Needles diagrams. The difference was that Tang San had shown Titan the complete set of diagrams, which at least followed some logical progression, while what Lou Gao had received was only one-third of them. The mysteries within were profound, but even harder to comprehend.
Titan said, "It's fine, just let him look. We'll be leaving Gengxin City tomorrow, and we can just take him along then. Don't worry — I'll go remind him tonight and have him announce your succession as Guild Master first."
Silong still looked a bit worried. "Uncle Titan — I'll keep calling you that, if you don't mind. Honestly, I'm not at ease about my master leaving on his own." He was about to assume the title of Guild Master, which was why he no longer addressed Titan by his Vice President title.
Titan laughed. "What? You think we'd do something to him? Even if we tried to stop him from coming with us, he'd probably be crying and begging to go back to Tiandou City with us. I know exactly how tempting that thing is. Don't worry — Lou Gao will be perfectly safe with me. Who knows, in just a few years, our blacksmithing profession might flourish once more. When that time comes, you'll understand why Lou Gao insists on leaving with us."
A thoughtful look appeared in Silong's eyes. After a moment's consideration, he said, "I've discussed it with my fellow apprentices. Here's what we've agreed on — there are four of us. Two will go with you. Out of the four, only Sidi is still at the Master level; the rest of us have reached Grandmaster rank. I'll have Siyu and Sikai — both Grandmaster-level blacksmiths — accompany you to Tiandou City. That way, they can also look after the master. After all, he's getting on in years."
Upon hearing this, Tang San and Titan were both delighted. Grandmaster-level blacksmiths were extremely difficult to come by. Tang San had heard Titan say that once a blacksmith reached the Grandmaster level, they were only a single step away from the Divine Craftsman rank. The value of two Grandmaster-level blacksmiths to the Tang Sect was beyond what any amount of money could measure. Together with Lou Gao, these three people were, in Tang San's eyes, worth more than all the metals being purchased combined.
Tang San agreed without hesitation. "Then it's settled. Guild Master Silong, please rest assured — we will treat Senior Lou Gao and your two junior brothers with the utmost care. Elder Titan is right. Before long, the blacksmithing profession may very well flourish across the continent once more."
As they were speaking, Ning Rongrong's cheerful voice came from outside. "We're back!"
Without even knocking, Ning Rongrong pushed the door open with a grin. When she noticed Silong was present, she toned down her expression a notch. Oscar and Ma Hongjun followed her into the room.
Silong smiled. "How did the three of you fare?"
Ning Rongrong giggled. "Not bad, not bad. A modest little haul." As she spoke, she flicked her wrist, and a flash of light from the Soul Guide bracelet appeared. A rock the size of a human head materialized on the table.
The moment they laid eyes on it, Tang San, Titan, and Silong all contracted their pupils simultaneously.
It was a somewhat cloudy crystal. Looking at the crystal alone, the quality appeared rather poor — not very translucent, and with a yellowish tinge that made the color impure.
But within this crystal, there existed a large patch of shimmering golden light.
"Slab Crystal Hair Gold," Tang San, Titan, and Silong all said almost in unison.
The three exchanged glances, their eyes filled with astonishment.
Ning Rongrong giggled. "This thing cost me a good amount. Third Brother, I remember you mentioning it before — I didn't buy the wrong thing, did I?"
Tang San was momentarily speechless. Compared to the Slab Crystal he had once been lucky enough to purchase from Flandre, this piece was even more pure, with an enormous quantity of Hair Gold inside. Though his supply of Dragon Whisker Needles was not critically low, for the future crafting of Peacock Plumes and other Hidden Weapons, the value of this Slab Crystal was immense.
"That's right, it's Slab Crystal. Rongrong, how much did you pay for it? Sell it to me."
Ning Rongrong burst out laughing, and Ma Hongjun couldn't resist chiming in from the side. "Sell it? Rongrong only paid one Gold Soul Coin! The shopkeeper even stared at us like we were idiots for ages."
"One Gold Soul Coin?" Silong exclaimed, his face a mask of bitter amusement. "How come I never run into deals like that? I'll offer a thousand Gold Soul Coins. Will you sell?"
Ning Rongrong giggled. "What a profit — a thousand times the price with just a flip! But you should ask Third Brother. The thing is his now."
Silong's gaze turned somewhat intense as he looked at Tang San, but he found himself meeting Tang San's blue eyes, deep and unfathomable as the ocean. Tang San apologized. "I'm sorry, Guild Master Silong. This Slab Crystal is equally important to me."
Silong looked thoughtful. "Are you planning to make it into an ornament?"
Tang San flipped his wrist, and without anyone noticing when it had appeared, a tiny gold bead no larger than a grain of rice sat between his fingers. "In my hands, it's not an ornament — it's a deadly weapon."
His words had barely faded when he flicked his finger. Every movement Tang San made was clearly visible to everyone, yet at the same time conveyed an incomprehensible speed.
Without a sound, a flash of gold shot out, and a golden thread embedded itself deep within the Slab Crystal.
Since first meeting Tang San, this was the first time Silong had witnessed his abilities firsthand. A chill rose from the depths of his heart. For reasons he couldn't explain, this young man before him suddenly radiated an aura of danger — even more oppressive than what Titan gave off.
"Third Brother, how did you do that? Teach me, please?" Ning Rongrong's beautiful eyes were wide with excitement as she looked at Tang San.
Tang San said with some exasperation, "If you want to learn this skill, you'd have to give up your Martial Soul. And you'd need to train for at least ten years. Does it really look that fun? Imagine what it feels like when it pierces into a human body."
Titan's eyes lit up. "So these are Dragon Whisker Needles."
Tang San nodded with a smile. "This piece of Slab Crystal should produce at least a thousand Dragon Whisker Needles."
Having witnessed Tang San's demonstration, Silong could no longer bring himself to ask about purchasing the Slab Crystal. In Tang San's hands, it was far more useful than it would ever be in his own.
Tang San turned to Ning Rongrong. "Rongrong, what other good finds did you make? It looks like you've really been on a roll!"
Ning Rongrong giggled. "I did pick up a few other things, but I'm not sure what they are."
As she spoke, she shook her bracelet several times, and a string of items appeared before everyone.
The first thing Tang San noticed was a chunk of pitch-black ore. Its surface radiated a faint chill, and at first glance it looked like an ordinary dark iron deposit. It was the largest of all the items Ning Rongrong had produced — roughly a meter in diameter — but its weight was astonishingly immense. When it hit the floor, the entire level of the building trembled.
Tang San, Titan, and Silong — the three who knew their materials — were once again stunned. Titan was the first to move, striding over to the black ore and pressing his palm against its surface. "The temperature is wrong. This isn't ordinary iron ore."
Silong's eyes gleamed with an unusual light, and he looked at Ning Rongrong with what was almost a pleading expression. "Miss Ning, might I appraise this ore to determine what it is?"
Ning Rongrong smiled. "Of course. I picked this one out from a place that sells iron ore. It was priced at refined iron rates, calculated by volume. I think it was also one Gold Soul Coin."
Oscar chimed in. "Less than one Gold Soul Coin, actually. It came as a bonus with this other piece, which is heavy too." He pointed to a rock beside the black ore — about one-third its size, entirely gray, with a faint metallic sheen on its surface. It looked more like an ordinary stone.
Silong slowly raised his right hand. A golden point of light first appeared in the center of his palm, then with a flash of gold, a small pure-gold chisel materialized out of thin air. One white, two yellow, three purple, and one black — seven Soul Rings floated quietly around the chisel, all noticeably smaller than those of any Soul Master they had encountered before.
Judging by the Soul Ring configuration, Silong's rings were far from ideal. For a Soul Saint, he had only a single ten-thousand-year Soul Ring. However, his unusual Martial Soul quickly captured everyone's attention.
Titan said in a low voice, "Silong's Martial Soul is the Diamond Chisel. Its specialty is the identification of various ores and the crafting of intricate objects. He's inherited at least eighty percent of Lou Gao's true skills. His status in the forging world is extremely high."
Though Silong was a Soul Saint with absolutely no talent for combat — even Miles, who ranked lower than him, could bully him — the moment his Diamond Chisel appeared in his hand, his entire bearing underwent a complete transformation.
In that instant, Tang San felt that the Silong before him possessed the same intensity of focus as Yang Wudi wielding his Soul-Breaking Spear.
With a flash of gold, so fast that no one could even see which Soul Ring on the Diamond Chisel had activated, the chisel's tip touched the surface of the black ore.
With a crisp "ding," the black ore erupted in a series of sharp cracking sounds. A point of golden light spread from the contact point to envelop the entire ore. Like a web, golden radiance wrapped around the rock and seeped inward. Yes — seeped inward.
Cracking sounds continued to ring out as wisps of smoke rose from the ore's surface. Under the Diamond Chisel's light tap, the outer layer of the ore fractured evenly apart, and a thick wave of frigid air surged outward. The temperature in the entire room plummeted.
Titan swept his hand forward, and dense Soul Power brushed the shattered outer layer aside, revealing the metal ore within — also black.
Though it was equally black, it was black without a single impurity. Through his Purple Extreme Demon Eye, Tang San could clearly see that the density of this metal ore was extraordinary. Even at his Perceptive Insight level, he could barely find a single gap within it. It was as deep and vast as the void itself — even someone who knew nothing about metals could tell at a glance that this ore was far more than simple iron.
The golden light faded as Silong recalled his Martial Soul. His gaze had become somewhat dazed, and in a hoarse, strangled voice he murmured, "Cold Heart Iron Essence… it really is Cold Heart Iron Essence. And this much of it…"
Ning Rongrong blinked her large, innocent-looking eyes. "Guild Master Silong, this one seems pretty good too, doesn't it? Aren't you going to make an offer?"
Silong's gaze toward Ning Rongrong turned rather peculiar. "Miss Ning, Cold Heart Iron Essence is the hardest metal on the continent. It's not that I don't want to buy it — I simply can't afford it. Its price is ten times that of Mysterious Iron. Even if I searched all of Gengxin City, I couldn't find more than five kilograms of it. This piece you have must weigh several hundred kilograms. The value is astronomical."
He paused, then murmured, "Miss Ning… can you tell me — how exactly did you find all of these?"