Chapter 27 – Concentration of Forging
Tang Wulin picked up his Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers as he had recalled his knowledge about Heavy Silver.
The cold handles of his Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers’ invigorated him. At this moment, his depressed self disappeared. There was only two words in his mind: Thousand Refinements.
If you look closely, you would find that the Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers’ body had turned black. On the hammer one, could vaguely see a petal pattern that was unique to the Thousand Forgings.
After heating the Heavy Silver in the forging furnace for half an hour, it finally reached a suitable temperature for forging.
Tang Wulin took out the Heavy Silver. He then gripped his Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers and focused his vision. Raising the hammer in his right hand, he lightly tapped the Heavy Silver, producing a “ding” sound.
This test was called the testing hammer. Before blacksmiths began their work, they would do this to test the forging metal’s toughness.
Mang Tian nodded when he saw Tang Wulin’s look of complete focus. This child’s perception was exceptionally high, otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to lay down such an excellent foundation in three short years. He had a steady temperament while also being extremely clever. It was only fitting for Mang Tian to pass on his legacy to this child.
The Thousand Refinements he faced at the moment was undoubtedly a very important test for him. As Mang Tian stood at the back and observed Tang Wulin, he was convinced that Tang Wulin had the ability to pass this test. Above all else, his body wasn’t lacking in anything that could cause complications after Wulin’s recent growth in strength.
He was only nine years old this year. If he was actually able to complete this Thousand Refinements, then Mang Tian feared that Tang Wulin would have broken a record. The Blacksmith’s Association current record holder for Thousand Refinements was held by a Saint Craftsman level blacksmith at 13 years, 3 months and and 2 days!
Naturally, Tang Wulin was unaware of Mang Tian’s thoughts. He was currently concentrating all of his attention and spirit on the Heavy Silver in front of him.
He raised the hammer in his left hand then smashed it down on the edge of the Heavy Silver. Dang! Even as the entire chunk of Heavy Silver throbbed, the hammer in his right hand was already descending at lightning speed, pounding at the silver once again.
Although he hadn’t reached the realm of Thousand Refinements, he had already produced many Hundred Refined metal components before. Regardless of how the Thousand Refinements were, it had to start with a Hundred Refined metal! During the process of Hundred Refinements, he would come to understand its characteristics.
Tang Wulin wouldn’t usually forge with such an uncommon and high grade metal. This was his first time forging with Heavy Silver, so he had to understand its characteristics first.
The pair of hammers moved in harmony, continuously pounding the Heavy Silver. He wasn’t even using his full power, merely thirty to forty percent of his full power.
Sparks flew off in all directions in flashes. A rich tempo of pounding filled the room as it created a lively song of forging,
Soon after, the Hundred Refinements had been completed. Similar to Thousand Refinements, Hundred Refinements wasn’t as simple as pounding the metal a hundred times. Rather, the impurities within the metal had to be gotten rid of while preserving the integrity of the metal and increasing its density.
After the Hundred Refinements, Tang Wulin understood the valiance of the Heavy Silver. First of all, Heavy Silver’s hardness surpassed all the metals he had previously forged. Furthermore, it was exceptionally flexible. When struck, it would only vibrate for a moment, as if it were resisting Tang Wulin’s strength.
Fortunately, Tang Wulin hadn’t used his full strength to strike it, so he still had plenty of energy to control the casting hammer.
When faced with the Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers that weighed 40 kilograms, ordinary metals weighing 80 kilograms would have a cavity struck into them with only one strike. However, the Heavy Silver was only slightly deformed after one strike, even after being heated to a suitable forging temperature. This kind of uncommon and strong metal wouldn’t be Thousand Refined easily.
During these three years of tempering himself with forging, Tang Wulin had learned the value of patience long ago. He didn’t feel even a trace of anxiousness. For such an uncommon metal, even if he couldn’t finish the Thousand Refinements, he would at least purify it with the Hundred Refinements.
He treated it like his most precious treasure. His pounding force didn’t increase at all, rather, he restrained his strength a bit. Through his unceasing pounding, he had come to understand the Heavy Silver’s veins and characteristics. Little by little, he purified it completely.
Although Mang Tian was just as serious as any other day, he gradually began to reveal a smile. This child truly was clever. He hadn’t given Tang Wulin any tips at all, yet he was able to find his own rhythm.
This chunk of uncommon metal should be treated like one’s most beloved woman. One had to cherish it during the forging process rather than blindly pounding it. Although it seemed valiant on the outside, its inner viens would be met with destruction, causing all of its other characteristics to suffer too.
Although pounding it with a weaker strength would take much longer, it was undoubtedly the most dependable method, especially with an unfamiliar chunk of metal. Through a long process of forging it, he can also familiarize himself and feels its internal structure changing.
Tang Wulin became more and more concentrated in his forging as time went on until finally, he entered a fantastic state. To him, the only thing that existed was the Heavy Silver in front of him. His soul power enhanced his strength, thus increasing his stamina and focus even more.
In fact, after undergoing such pain and suffering, his spiritual power had definitely grown by a degree.
soul power below the realm of Spirit Opening didn’t seem useful at all, its effects, however, was actually present everywhere. It could improves one’s perception as well as support one’s persistence.
Tang Wulin was even more focused on his forging under the effects of his increased spiritual power. His three years of forging hadn’t definitely contributed to his spiritual power being assessed at level 38 by the Spirit Pagoda’s spiritual power machine.
An hour later, the Heavy Silver didn’t seem to have changed much, it was only slightly deformed.
Two hours later, the Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers began pounding the metal even more intensively.
Tang Wulin’s forehead was covered with sweat. After his unceasing forging, his body was already exhausted, but his spirit was still extremely stimulated. Two hours later yielded little results. In fact, the state of the Heavy Silver wasn’t too far off from when it was only Hundred Refined. However, he had managed to gradually communicate with this chunk of Heavy Silver in these two hours.
If someone looked closely at the surface of the Heavy Silver, they would find that each corner had a small circular depression. Tang Wulin didn’t know how many times he struck each of the corners with the Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammer.
Every time it was struck, its whole body would vibrate, giving Tang Wulin more insight into its characteristics.
Dang! This strike was clearly louder than the previous ones, raising the eyebrows of the nearby Mang Tian.
Tang Wulin finally started to use more strength! Afterwards, loud hammering noises resounded one after another.
After two hours of careful forging, he had already understood the character of this metal. Now it was time to truly begin forging it.
His whole body trembled each time he hammered the metal. Starting from his calves, his power then travelled to his waist, before moving onto his back, then arms, until finally, it descended down towards the Thousand Refined Tungsten Hammers. The power of each strike already exceeded 300 kilograms!
The button for controlling the furnace’s flames were underneath. With a light tap of his left foot, the furnace fire reached its maximum intensity. The orange flames that were sputtering out of the furnace’s ventilation holes had already heated the Heavy Silver into a bright red color.