Thank you to our new Patrons: SilverWolf, Melon, Sam Olsen, Thomas Gill and P Tydd! Your support means the world to me <3 We are up to Chapter 180: Starting To Forge on Patreon!
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Yang Nianxia glanced at Xu Yuan.
In his mind, Xu Yuan's forging skills should have surpassed Tang Wulin's.
After all, during the class officer selection, although Tang Wulin had shown strength comparable to Xu Yuan as a Level Four Blacksmith, neither of them competed in forging. Instead, it was tacitly accepted that Xu Yuan would take on the role of Forging Committee member.
Now, Tang Wulin had successfully attempted Spirit Forging during this exchange match, clearly qualifying him for promotion to Level Five Blacksmith.
Yet, Xu Yuan still appeared to be at Level Four.
After visiting Xu Yuan's forging workshop, Yang Nianxia couldn't deny that Xu Yuan's forging skills were far beyond those of an ordinary Level Four Blacksmith. However, he also had to admit that Xu Yuan had no Spirit-Forged works to his name.
"Big Brother Xu, you let me take the lead this time," Tang Wulin said with a wide grin, cradling the titanium crystal that had been transformed into titanium gold through Spirit Forging. He returned to the preparation area and chuckled at Xu Yuan.
This was a titanium crystal, after all.
Titanium crystals were incredibly hard, and while brittle, they could be integrated into alloys, perfectly utilizing their hardness properties. Due to their unique structure, titanium crystals could seamlessly blend into almost any alloy as a material. This Spirit-Forged titanium gold held immense appeal for any battle armor master, as it could be incorporated into their battle armor alloys to significantly enhance its strength.
Because of the titanium crystal's properties, both the Federation and military strictly controlled this rare metal. Only Shrek Academy could afford to use titanium crystals as materials for students to experiment with in an exchange match.
As the winner, Tang Wulin had the right to take his work, so the Spirit-Forged titanium gold naturally belonged to him.
For this, Tang Wulin naturally thanked Xu Yuan for allowing him to compete.
Xu Yuan smiled, showing no trace of jealousy.
He himself was fully capable of attempting Spirit Forging, with a success rate exceeding fifty percent.
It was just that there was no pressing need for him to attempt it yet, so he had been delaying it.
As for titanium crystals, obtaining them wasn't difficult for him. With Divine-Level Craftsman Zhen Hua around, all it took was paying the price. The means of acquisition weren't something he needed to worry about.
"Next up is the mech manufacturing exchange. Xinglan, it's your turn."
In mech manufacturing, Ye Xinglan was already at Level Five—the highest level among Class One, Grade One students—so it was only natural for her to step onto the stage.
"Huh? Not Xiao Yuan?" Ya Li, watching from the audience, was momentarily surprised when she realized Xu Yuan still wasn't stepping up for the second match.
Was it Xinglan?
"Xiao Yuan truly has what it takes to be a leader."
After a moment, understanding Xu Yuan's intentions, Ya Li's gaze softened with admiration as she looked at Xu Yuan with satisfaction.
Giving his teammates opportunities to shine—and even placing pressure on them to push further—was exactly what a true leader should do.
A team couldn't thrive if one person overshadowed everyone else. If this exchange match became solely Xu Yuan's stage, people like Wu Siduo would feel left out, losing any sense of belonging to the team.
"Level Five again? Another Level Five? What's going on with this year's Class One, Grade One? Two secondary professions at Level Five, and they're only thirteen years old!"
The second-year students watching from the sidelines were mentally overwhelmed.
Those among them pursuing mech manufacturing hadn't even reached Level Five yet; most were still struggling between Levels Three and Four, specifically trying to break through from Level Three to Level Four.
Ye Xinglan's performance once again caused a series of shocks.
By comparison, the Level Four mech manufacturer sent by Class One, Grade Two didn't stand a chance against her and was completely overshadowed.
In the third match, Xu Yuan still didn't step up. This time, it was Gu Yue who took the stage.
Gu Yue—a hidden Level Five mech designer.
She had always referred to herself as a Level Four mech designer, but with her extraordinary mental power talent and dedication to this field, how could her mech design skills remain at Level Four?
Previously, Tang Wulin and Ye Xinglan had showcased Level Five secondary profession rankings, and now Xu Yuan had sent her up. If she only demonstrated Level Four abilities, wouldn't that make her seem inferior?
Moreover, Wu Siduo was also at Level Four in mech design, and after months of close collaboration with Xu Yuan, it was only logical for her to step up.
Driven by pride, she presented her complete Spirit-Forged Alloy One-Word Battle Armor design.
This was the battle armor design she had created for Tang Wulin.
The dense core arrays and intricate construction left the evaluating teacher astonished.
"Did you complete this design entirely on your own?"
"Yes," Gu Yue nodded proudly.
The evaluating teacher took a deep breath and declared, "With this design alone, you qualify as a Level Five mech designer."
There was no need to continue the exchange match.
Grade One had won.
After three consecutive victories, the momentum of Grade One was already overwhelming, exuding immense pressure.
Even without soul power fluctuations or mental energy suppression, the second-years felt suffocated.
Utterly suffocated.
All three matches in the secondary professions had been lost.
For the second-year students, who had trained three more years than their opponents, this was a devastating blow, leaving them humiliated.
The fourth match—the final secondary profession exchange.
Xu Yuan finally stepped onto the stage himself.
His appearance made his teammates realize his mech repair skills.
Given that the previous three matches had all been at Level Five, Xu Yuan likely wouldn't settle for competing at Level Four against the second-years, would he?
"The fourth exchange match: Mech Repair."
Representing Class One, Grade Two was Yuanen Yehui. This was Xu Yuan's first official encounter with her.
Like him, she possessed twin martial souls, both top-tier, giving her a natural advantage.
The bloodline of the Titan Ape martial soul had produced demigods as recently as her grandfather's generation—even without Four-Word Battle Armor, he had ascended to the rank of demigod through sheer cultivation!
The strength of this bloodline went without saying.
And paired with the Fallen Angel martial soul, which complemented the Titan Ape, her potential was off the charts.
"You may each select the mech or battle armor you wish to repair."
"I'll repair a damaged Yellow-Rank mech chest plate," Yuan'en Yehui stated confidently.
Her mech repair skills were at Level Four, so repairing a Yellow-Rank mech chest plate was well within her capabilities.
Victory?
If Xu Yuan was Level Five, there would be no chance for her. If he wasn't, then it would end in a draw.
"I'll repair a scrapped One-Word Battle Armor heart mirror."
Xu Yuan gave his answer.
The heart mirror was the energy core of the entire battle armor, responsible for managing the flow of energy throughout the armor and interacting with the soul master's soul power. Its importance was self-evident.
Repairing a One-Word Battle Armor heart mirror required mech repair skills at Level Five. While Level Three was technically possible, it depended heavily on the extent of the damage.
And Xu Yuan had chosen to repair a completely scrapped One-Word Battle Armor heart mirror.
Clearly, this was a task only a Level Five mech repairer could accomplish.
"Are you sure?"
Although the evaluating teacher had anticipated this, he still issued a reminder.
---
Author's Note: The secondary profession levels of various characters differ from the original story. However, these changes are a result of the protagonist's influence.
------------------------------------------------------
Support my writing journey: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow
40+ Chapters Ahead Guaranteed.