[Sea God Trial Two: A Hundred Refinements]
[Description: As the successor to the Sea God Divine Position, one should possess a spirit as unyielding as tempered steel. Therefore, demonstrate this through the forging of iron!]
[Trial Content: You need to find a place suitable for forging to begin the trial. Once started, you will receive endless Soul Power and physical stamina support for a set duration. During this time, you must forge a piece of metal that meets the requirements to complete the trial.]
[Trial Reward: Martial Soul Evolution, one God-Bestowed Soul Ring.]
[Trial Hint: During the forging process, please attempt to fuse your own Soul Power into the metal being forged.]
Tang San: ?
It was strange, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.
However, Tang San quickly accepted it. After all, the trials for the residents of Sea God Island in the past were also varied and bizarre; a forging trial appearing as a Divine Trial wasn't entirely unheard of.
Moreover...
"Martial Soul Evolution..."
Tang San's eyes flickered. Since awakening his Martial Soul, he knew that the quality of this body's Martial Soul was far inferior to his quality ten thousand years ago.
His forging hammer Martial Soul went without saying—it was of common quality. Even his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul's strength was nowhere near that of his past self.
He could hardly resist the temptation of Martial Soul Evolution!
After a moment of contemplation, Tang San made his decision. He rose from the tub and wiped his body completely dry.
"Mmm... there's still a bit of medicinal power left; it can be used for Xiao Wu."
Feeling the residual medicinal strength in the bath, Tang San decided not to let it go to waste. He went to the adjacent room to find Xiao Wu, who was cultivating, and had her enter the tub to absorb the remaining power.
"Xiao Wu, this is a medicinal bath I specially prepared for you. It's beneficial for your cultivation. Absorb it well. I have matters to attend to and might not return for a few days, or even a month or two. Stay here and don't go out, understood?"
"Okay, Third Brother, I understand!"
Xiao Wu nodded obediently. Perhaps because his Martial Soul was the Soft-Boned Rabbit, his skin had become increasingly fair and his features softened; he looked much better than the dirty little beggar he once was.
Tang San's gaze softened as he gently patted Xiao Wu's head, then left resolutely.
Though I am a God King, my current strength is too weak. In the end, I still cannot protect Xiao Wu... The Divine Trial must be completed!
A certain person's emotional power was silently influencing the Lord God King through the connection between the Sea God Divine Position and the Sea God Trials, yet Tang San was entirely unaware. Of course, even if Huo Yuhao knew, he wouldn't care—he might even turn up the intensity.
After all, this was merely karmic retribution.
...
A short while later, at a modest blacksmith shop in Shrek City.
Spending a few Gold Soul Coins, Tang San rented a private forging room for one month. If he didn't emerge after a month, a portion of his deposit would be deducted to extend the lease for another month.
This was a necessary precaution, as he wasn't sure how long this trial would take, especially since the goal was somewhat vague. He wasn't certain what level of "satisfactory" metal was required, but he figured it wouldn't defeat him.
He summoned his forging hammer Martial Soul, picked up a piece of Deep Sea Silver from the side, and finally touched the Divine Trial in his consciousness, selecting "Start."
In an instant, Tang San felt an endless torrent of Soul Power surge through his body! Furthermore, pale blue energy wrapped around him, temporarily boosting his physical constitution while restoring his stamina at an incredible rate!
Tang San's eyes sparkled. As expected of his Sea God Divine Position; only such formidable power was worthy of his status!
It was a pity his Trident was missing. If it were here, completing the first trial would have allowed him to wield a portion of the Divine Position's power. While he wouldn't dare hope to face a Titled Douluo yet, he believed he could stand his ground against any Soul Douluo!
After all, that was the power of a God!
A flash of regret crossed his eyes, but Tang San no longer hesitated. Following the hint in the trial, he wrapped his forging hammer in Soul Power, executed the Disorderly Splitting Wind Hammer Method, and slammed it down onto the Deep Sea Silver!
Soon, a rhythmic clink-clank echoed through the forging room.
...
On the other side, within the headquarters of the Spirit Transmission Pagoda, Huo Yuhao was holding Skydream's small, jade-like feet in his hands to keep the sulking Skydream from causing trouble. Meanwhile, he diverted a portion of his mental energy to record Tang San's hammer technique and the metal being repeatedly forged.
Question: Why did Huo Yuhao set Tang San's second trial to be forging metal?
Answer: For two reasons.
First, his conversation with Kong Deming had sparked a deep interest in Acquired Spiritual Metal. He naturally began to wonder: How can I rapidly produce Acquired Spiritual Metal?
Huo Yuhao naturally thought of forging.
The Sun Moon Empire and the Three Empires of Douluo were different. Currently, most special metal alloy processing in Sun Moon relied on Soul Tool machinery rather than manual forging. Conversely, in the Three Empires, the purification and tempering of metals relied almost entirely on manual labor.
In his previous life, after joining Shrek's Soul Tool department, Huo Yuhao had also mastered the art of forging.
Based on Kong Deming's feat of nurturing metal with his own Soul Power, Huo Yuhao hypothesized: Could forging be used to "hammer" Soul Power into metal, bypassing the long nurturing process to directly obtain Acquired Spiritual Metal?
Adhering to the truth that practice brings knowledge, Huo Yuhao decided to grab a "tool" to test it out.
Thus, Tang San naturally became his target.
With sufficient Soul Power support, a tireless body, and Tang San's decent forging skills—wasn't he the perfect "Pal" of destiny for labor?!
Huo Yuhao had already decided that regardless of success, he would make Tang San strike iron for three consecutive months to accumulate enough experimental data for future research! Since Huo Yuhao was providing the Life Force enhancement, he wouldn't die.
And if he can't be worked to death, then work him to the brink of it!
Besides, after he completes the trial and collects the reward, he'll even have to thank us.
But was that all?
Naturally not. How could Huo Yuhao let Tang San off so easily? His second objective was hidden right inside the trial completion reward!
Tang San was growing too slowly. Huo Yuhao's future projects, like Man-made Soul Bones, required high-grade subjects for experimentation.
However, Tang San's natural talent was eyesore-inducing. So, how could the kind-hearted Huo Yuhao let the Lord God King suffer such distress?
While his research into Tang Ya's devouring Life Force ability was still incomplete, Huo Yuhao could manage to replicate about thirty to forty percent of it. Turning Tang San into an Evil Soul Master... would be more than enough!
Didn't he claim to be "pure and noble"? Huo Yuhao intended to rip that mask off in front of everyone!
It was the perfect way to slowly crush that disgusting "Shrek's Glory" right along with Tang San.