My profession is too unique.

Chapter 116 Taking up a post as a military trainer at the Craftsman's Office

"I wonder how much benefit I can get for free from the Security Bureau..."

Su Chen went downstairs, opened the navigation map, and zoomed in repeatedly. "Career Analysis Department, let me see where it is. Found it..."

At noon, the sun was blazing and the temperature was quite high.

"We've already created an artificial sun, why bother with the changing seasons?" Following the map, Su Chen walked along the road, avoiding the sun, and arrived in front of a building.

There are many people coming and going here, including elderly judges and seed members who look very young and are in the training stage.

There are ten windows in the lobby on the first floor, but all of them are currently in queue. Su Chen hesitated for a moment, calculating which window had fewer people.

"Lord Su Chen?"

The woman in business attire recognized Su Chen at a glance. She smoothed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, took small steps forward, and asked in a gentle voice, "Do you need a career analysis?"

"Hmm, do you have some questions?" Su Chen nodded, glancing at her name tag—Shu Zichen.

“You’re a core seed, you don’t need to wait in line, come with me,” Shu Zichen said in a low voice.

"Uh..." Su Chen looked at the long lines and noticed that many people had noticed him and were looking at him frequently.

"Ok."

Su Chen followed Shu Zichen upstairs and heard some discussions below, but he didn't seem to mind.

"In my past life, someone would probably already have a cell phone..." Su Chen thought haphazardly. Shu Zichen, who was leading the way, asked in a low voice, "Are you inquiring about a specific job or a special job?"

“Special profession…” Su Chen replied.

Shu Zichen nodded and whispered a reminder: "You have a high level of authority. You can have your personal butler make an appointment in advance, and the information desk can send someone to your home."

This is one of the many privileges afforded to core seeds, but unless he specifically encounters it, he won't remember that such a privilege exists.

Shu Zichen led him to a lounge, poured him tea, and then respectfully left.

Not long after, two people walked in one after the other.

“My name is Li Zhe, a senior professional consultant in the courtroom…” The man walking in front was tall and straight, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, and pointed to the somewhat unkempt-looking guy next to him, with messy stubble.

"This is Ruan Yuntao, a senior career consultant."

"Your Excellency Su Chen, we will be at your service this time."

This was Su Chen's first time experiencing a so-called "career analysis," and she wasn't very familiar with the process.

Li Zhe sat down with practiced ease, took out his portable smart terminal, and asked, "What kind of requirements do you need to face now?"

The Occupational Analysis Department is essentially a supplement to the Translation Department. Occupations require translation, but the text itself can be interpreted in multiple ways.

The senior staff in the translation department are unlikely to lower themselves to serve ordinary professionals, so career analysts came into being.

“I need to refine raw metal materials,” Su Chen said.

“Refining metal raw materials…” Li Zhe’s eyes flashed, and he instantly entered work mode: “What types need to be refined? Are there any requirements on the value of the raw materials? To what extent does it need to be refined?”

"Is it necessary to do it personally, or can it be done using equipment?"

Hearing this series of questions, Su Chen fell silent for a moment.

Li Zhe explained, "Please rest assured, we are not inquiring about your profession. This information is related to your fulfillment of job requirements, which in turn affects your success rate in securing a job or promotion, and even the intensity of your employment..."

Su Chen simply remarked that everyone has their own expertise; he hadn't really thought about so many issues. The panel even had progress bars for the requirements, and nothing was more intuitive than a progress bar.

"These are the only requirements. As for the category, the level of refinement, and so on, I don't know either," Su Chen said, shaking his head.

"Are there any other requirements for this job?" Ruan Yuntao, who was standing next to me, suddenly asked.

Li Zhe frowned and said in a deep voice, "You're asking too many questions."

They can only ask questions based on the requirements of the service target; asking too many questions can easily arouse suspicion.

"Actually, I just wanted you to help me coordinate with the craftsmen's office to see if they could provide the materials and the environment..." Su Chen said.

The professional analysis department of the trial court has another important role: to coordinate with other agencies to expedite the completion of necessary professional requirements.

"Then I roughly know what your profession is, a military training officer, right?" Ruan Yuntao suddenly realized, "Then just contact the craftsmanship department directly, they have a fixed procedure."

Li Zhe's brow twitched, and he forced a smile, "I'm sorry, that's just how my colleague is."

"It's nothing," Su Chen said nonchalantly.

Li Zhe breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I'll contact the craftsmanship department for you right away. If you go now, you should be able to start as soon as you get there."

"Wow, that's really efficient!" Su Chen exclaimed again. He didn't know how much time he would have wasted if he had to make the contact himself.

After seeing Su Chen off, Li Zhe angrily looked at Ruan Yuntao, "Old Ruan, we're all colleagues. If you're looking for trouble, don't drag me down with you!"

Ruan Yuntao picked his nose and said lazily, "He's not angry, is he? But you, you didn't personally take him to the crafting department this time. When that core seed came last time, didn't you personally take it to the engraving department?"

“Times have changed. Last time, the core seeds were still core seeds, but now, it’s hard to say.” Li Zhe couldn’t help but shake his head. “I don’t know what the chief was thinking. Everything was fine, but he had to make reforms.”

"It's because you people are too opportunistic. You fawn over any core seed you see, causing factions to spring up everywhere," Ruan Yuntao sneered.

"Now that there is uncertainty, they immediately change their tune."

“It’s not just because of the uncertainty.” Li Zhe wasn’t annoyed when he heard him say that. “It would be fine if it were other core seeds, but Su Chen and Chu Xuan haven’t been tested yet.”

"Speaking ill of others behind their backs, two-faced." Ruan Yuntao couldn't stand this person and turned to leave.

"Who's talking badly about people?" Li Zhe retorted angrily. "If your brother-in-law weren't a section chief, he would have been ousted long ago. And he's still pretending to be high and mighty!"

……

Unaware of the argument in the Career Analysis Department, Su Chen had already left the courtroom and headed to the Craftsmanship Department.

The professions related to crafting, engraving, and apothecary work are mainly auxiliary, all under the Resource Department, whose director is also a member of the Council of Elders.

These places are considered second-tier in Yingfeng. Although they are inferior to the Tribunal, the Security Bureau, and the Translation Office, they are still places that many people find difficult to enter.

The workshop was located in a somewhat remote area, and it took Su Chen some time to arrive. From afar, he could see rows of giant furnaces.

It looked like a steel behemoth lying on the ground, with white smoke constantly billowing out from the cooling tower behind it.

Next to it is the carved area, which looks quite tranquil, with only a large expanse of white buildings.

These two agencies can cooperate in many areas; to some extent, they can even be considered inseparable.

After verifying his identity, Su Chen stepped into the crafting area, where the temperature felt noticeably higher.

"Army trainer... There are quite a few of these professions in our crafts department. There are no specific requirements for the metal raw materials needed for refining; ordinary flaky gold ore will do."

The person in charge of the liaison was the head of the administrative section of the craftsmanship department, named Sun Zhiyu. He was already waiting at the gate. He was a very capable middle-aged man with light brown skin, as if he had been scorched by high temperatures for many years.

He led Su Chen inside, saying, "We have a process here that refines the raw materials to 90% before handing them to you, which saves a lot of time."

Thump!
Su Chen looked toward the testing ground on his left, where regular vibrations were emanating. A hammer-shaped impact device was conducting impact tests on the new armor, and the energy ripples generated by each impact were considerable.

Upon hearing this, he said, "Section Chief Sun, let's not use the old method anymore. I want to refine it myself, from raw materials to finished product."

Sun Zhiyu paused, quite taken aback. "Refining it yourself? If you're going to use traditional methods, refining those hundred tons of raw materials will take quite a while..."

"Perfect in every way." Su Chen smiled.

Sun Zhiyu didn't say anything, but that he would provide whatever Su Chen wanted within a certain range; he was just a little surprised just now.

The two continued deeper into the area, where the noise was deafening and the temperature gradually rose. Su Chen even felt himself sweating when they passed the furnace.

Buzz--
The shadows enveloped Su Chen. Looking up, he saw the dome of the warehouse next to him slowly opening, and magnetic levitation forklifts were transporting bundles of crystalline steel ingots to the finishing center. The cooling patterns on the surface of the steel ingots shimmered with a faint blue light.

"We're here. This is the preliminary processing area..." Sun Zhiyu led him into the work area. As soon as the heavy steel door opened, a wave of heat hit them.

The heat was intense, spreading to the tracks of the central furnace, which were covered with raw metal ore that had been burned to a bright red. Hydraulic forging hammers around the furnace worked in sync, their clanging sounds filling the air, and splattered oxide scales flew like shooting stars.

The Craftsmanship Department has many subordinate agencies, but large-scale standard weapons are not manufactured here. It is more like a small refinery and weapons laboratory.

After passing through the work area, Su Chen arrived at the independent studio at the back. Through the heavy glass windows, he could vaguely see someone inside holding a sledgehammer, seemingly also working.

Sun Zhiyu opened an empty room and explained to him: "Many prototype weapons could only be made by hand at the beginning. Only after a variety of tests could the mold be made."

Inside the room, there was a small forging table, and in the corner were metal hammers of various shapes, along with several pieces of black metal ore mixed with pale gold.

"Hmm..." Su Chen thought for a moment and asked, "Can I refine it in another place?"

"Where would you like to go, sir?" Sun Zhiyu asked, slightly taken aback.

"My living quarters are in the courtroom," Su Chen said. Refining materials would obviously take a lot of time, and he also wanted to train at the same time.

It's quite far from the courtroom, and there's no place to exercise.

“Hmm…” Sun Zhiyu frowned slightly. “Although refining brittle gold ore does not require an overly harsh environment, I need to consult with my superiors about this matter. Please forgive me.”

He left in a hurry to find his superiors, while Su Chen went into the workshop and started the forging table. The plasma flame nozzle in the middle suddenly spat out a dazzling tongue of fire.

Su Chen placed the brick-sized piece of flaky gold ore on it, then went to a row of metal hammers in the corner and weighed it in his hand.

【Red Steel Forging Hammer (Tier 2): Made of high-strength red steel alloy.】

"They're all tiered items..." Su Chen was quite surprised. He picked one that suited him and tentatively threw it onto the reddish-brown molten gold ore.

Ding!
Amidst the crisp clanging sound, Su Chen felt a recoil force travel along the sledgehammer, causing some crimson particles to fly out and quickly oxidize into black in mid-air—these were the impurities.

"Brother Su?" A voice called from the doorway. Su Chen paused, looked up, and asked, "Jiang Xi?"

"It really is you..." Jiang Xi was even more surprised and walked up excitedly. "I heard from my colleagues that a core seed has arrived. It sounds like you. Is this you?"

"Oh, to fulfill a job requirement, I need to refine some materials," Su Chen explained.

"You've never worked as a blacksmith before, have you?" Jiang Xi asked, looking as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

"That's true..." Su Chen didn't mince words, "Do you have any tips to teach me?"

Seeing Su Chen's humble attitude, Jiang Xi quickly waved her hand, "It's nothing special. Every type of metal has different properties, and your flame temperature is a bit low..."

Jiang Xi could tell the approximate temperature of the flames with the naked eye, and adjusted the pressure upwards for him. "And..."

He had studied this area and taught Su Chen some tips to improve efficiency.

Ding!Ding!Ding!
The crisp clanging sounds gradually became rhythmic, and soon... the piece of flaky gold ore was almost refined, shrinking by nearly half to the size of a fist.

After glancing at the panel and seeing the requirements for refining metal raw materials, a progress indicator of 0.01% appeared.

"From this perspective, refining it to this level is sufficient," Su Chen estimated.

"...Lord Su Chen..."

After refining his skills, Sun Zhiyu returned. He glanced at Jiang Xi standing to the side with surprise and said, "It's been approved from above. We can move a small forge over there and return it after it's finished."

This is not a big deal, and approval is inevitable. Su Chen was not surprised. He pondered and said, "There are too many raw materials. I probably can't handle them all at once. Let's send them over in batches."

"Just let him deliver it."

Su Chen pointed to Jiang Xi next to him.

Sun Zhiyu seemed to understand.

Su Chen and Sun Zhiyu further confirmed the size of the small forging furnace and found that it could barely fit into the gravity training room.

Sun Zhiyu guessed Su Chen's thoughts and couldn't help but say, "You really are hardworking. Under five times the gravity, the small forge should be able to operate with difficulty."

The small forge of the workshop, along with the first batch of flaky gold ore, returned to the courthouse almost immediately after him.

After the small forge was placed in the gravity training room, he could only move around in about a third of the area, barely enough to swing the sledgehammer.

"You're really planning to train and forge iron at the same time?" Jiang Xi was moving gold ore when she saw Su Chen gesturing in the training room and couldn't help but gasp in surprise.

Being a core seed isn't easy.

“Save time and increase efficiency…” Su Chen replied casually.

The essence of exercise is to enhance physical strength through consumption and recovery. The difference between physical training and swinging a sledgehammer lies only in their efficiency.

"The essence of the Thunderclap Body Tempering Method is to stimulate the body's cells with electromagnetic energy. Even without the accompanying exercises, it should still be effective..."

Su Chen pondered how to completely combine swinging the sledgehammer with physical exercise.

He picked up the steel sledgehammer, which became incredibly heavy under five times the normal gravity. It took Su Chen a while to get used to it before he could slowly swing it.

The electric arcs shooting across his skin altered his movements, making him feel very uncomfortable, but Su Chen still tried little by little.

Fortunately, the Thunderclap Body Tempering Method is only at the E-level, and it is not so complicated that changing one part affects the whole body.

The core idea is to use electromagnetic stimulation to stimulate the body. The fixed swinging motion of the sledgehammer weakens the stimulation effect, but it allows him to exercise and forge iron at the same time.

“That’s perfect…” Su Chen tried it for a moment and then stopped, and began to let Jiang Xi adjust the small forge for him. After all, it was working in a gravity environment, so both the intensity and stability of the flame would fluctuate.

Jiang Xi was only a Tier 1 professional, so it was difficult for her to work in a Tier 5 gravity environment. She could only remotely command Su Chen, and it took her more than half an hour to get the small forge almost working and achieve the same effect as in a normal environment.

"Luckily, it's just brittle gold ore, and the refining temperature isn't high, otherwise we really wouldn't have been able to handle it." Jiang Xi wiped the sweat from her forehead and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you for your help." Su Chen saw him out, and Jiang Xi shook his head repeatedly, "It's just a small favor, not a trouble at all."

After seeing Jiang Xi off, Su Chen returned to the gravity chamber, poured the potion into his mouth, and picked up the sledgehammer.

Ding!Ding!Ding!
A faint, crisp collision sound emanated from the gravity chamber.

As night fell, another villa not far from here remained brightly lit.

The first floor has been transformed into a banquet hall, filled with melodious music. The seeds in the inner courtyard gather in twos and threes, chatting with each other.

On the second floor, He Kang's eyebrows furrowed even more, his face contorted in a "囧" expression, and he said with a wry smile, "Su Chen didn't come."

There were only five people in the room, including Chu Xuan, while Wei Yufan in the center looked somewhat grim upon hearing this.

Someone nearby complained, "He Kang, what exactly did you say? Brother Wei invited him, and Chu Xuan even came. He won't even give him this much face?"

"Liu Chen, I've delivered the message, but whether he comes or not is beyond my control," He Kang said helplessly. "He probably has something urgent to attend to."

Liu Chen scoffed: "Chu Xuan has been preparing to advance to a top-tier profession recently, and he's already here."

Chu Xuan, standing beside him, appeared increasingly composed and remained silent.

"And that Su Chen, he went to the translation department in the morning and the craftsmanship department in the afternoon, he hasn't stopped, why is he going tonight?" He knew Su Chen's whereabouts very well.

"After he advances to the third rank, I'll let Chu Xuan beat him up, and then I'll go and take him down. I'll also try what it's like to be a core seed."

“It’s not that easy.” He Kang shook his head. “Everyone knows what happened when Su Chen took the assessment. Even though Tier 3 is only a high-level profession, his performance was still quite impressive.”

Chu Xuan's face turned cold as he recalled the scene from the assessment.

"So what if he's not bad? Second tier isn't third tier, and he definitely lacks experience. It's just a matter of who can take him down faster." Liu Chen said dismissively.

"However, he hasn't started seeking promotion yet. Not long after joining the court, he chose a profession, but he hasn't contacted the career analysis department to prepare." Another person looked puzzled. "He did go there this afternoon, but it seemed like he was asking about special professions."

"Is he trying to escape?" Liu Chen couldn't help but wonder.

He Kang exchanged a few words with Su Chen and concluded that Su Chen was not the type to run away from things. "No, he wouldn't give up on a promotion just because he might be challenged."

Liu Chen's eyes flickered: "Who cares? If you want to be a troublemaker and stay out of trouble, you should at least see if you have the means to do so."

Wei Yufan glanced over and said calmly, "Watch your step."

.........

The battle among the four core seeds became increasingly intense. As time passed, some of the inner court seeds, who had been suppressed for many years, finally made their move after observing several battles.

Two months after the challenge ranking system was introduced, Liang Jingcheng, the third-ranked core seed, was narrowly defeated by Feng Zi, an inner seed.

This caused a huge sensation, as he was the first person to successfully challenge the Core Seed with the Inner Court Seed.

Chongjing Tiandu personally appeared at the scene to congratulate him on becoming the new core seed, and Su Chendu went out to take a look.

The others finally realized that the core seed was really unstable; even after seven or eight years, it was still eliminated today.

Feng Zi was also once a member of Liang Jingcheng's camp. It can be said that the infighting caused quite a stir within the small group, and Liang Jingcheng's staunch supporters left, which can be said to have severely damaged the group.

The ascension of the "new king" further ignited the desires of many potential candidates within the inner court.

What followed was an even more pressing challenge. Several truly powerful inner court talents made their moves, and Minglin and his two companions fought several difficult battles, nearly suffering defeats.

But in the end, they managed to defend their position.

Faced with the resilience of the veteran seeds, many people have turned their attention to the two young and inexperienced seeds. Many are waiting for them to advance to the third tier and dethrone them!
Su Chen didn't care about the outside turmoil. Every day seemed to be the same: forging iron... resting, resting... forging iron.

On that day, a hammer blow struck, and the crimson gold ore emitted a crisp sound.

Su Chen was startled, and his mental energy surged out uncontrollably, causing the dark brown particles that splashed onto the floor to tremble uncontrollably.

[Upgraded the Burning Heart Meditation Technique to Master level, gaining the ability -- Burning Chant and Boiling Fire: Ability derived from mental power imbued with fire elemental properties.]

However, his meditation technique had been upgraded to the master level. Su Chen breathed a sigh of relief and restrained his increased mental power.

I glanced at the panel again—
[Wind and Thunder Envoy: 70%]

[Mystic Master: 85%]

[E-Rank Thunderous Body Tempering Technique - Mastery: 60%]

My progress in the Mystic Arts is almost maxed out, but because I've been busy forging iron lately, my progress in Body Tempering has fallen behind.

"It's time to try a new meditation method..."

Su Chen stopped what he was doing, turned off the gravity field first, and then took out the bracelet from the storage space and brought up the data.

With his current privileges, he can access the E-level training method at will.

The meditation method he chose this time is called the "Cloud Breath Meditation Method," which can enhance mental acuity.

By carefully holding one's breath and meditating, one's mental energy spreads like clouds and mist, becoming omnipresent.

After waiting for the entry requirements to be met, Su Chen continued to swing the sledgehammer. The completion rate of refining materials had reached 98%, and it would be completed as early as tonight or as late as tomorrow morning.

Perhaps because the target was so close, he moved much faster. Just after midnight, Su Chen tossed the lapis lazuli hammer aside.

"Finally...it's over."

Su Chen took a deep breath, feeling a sense of relief.

He didn't find blacksmithing fun at all. After nearly a month of it, he found it too tedious. If it weren't for the military training division keeping him engaged, he would have given it up long ago.

"Take up your post!"

Su Chen couldn't wait any longer. In an instant, he felt as if his head had been struck by a heavy blow, and a massive amount of knowledge was forced into his head: the properties of various metal materials, temperature control, the angle of the hammer, and so on...

The requirement for him to learn knowledge was removed, and now it is being forcibly instilled in him.

[Upon completion of the Military Training Master position, you will gain the ability - Military Training Technique: This allows you to nurture weapons and consume double the materials required to transform them.]

Note: (The number of weapons one can nurture depends on one's spiritual profession rank.)

“Double the materials…” Su Chen rubbed his temples. He was right. According to the relevant information from the Translation Department, upgrading weapons through the Armed Forces Training Division would require at least three to four times the amount of additional materials.

But he only needs to consume twice the amount now, probably because of the key issue of "doing it himself".

Perhaps... it's not that no one has noticed this problem, but even with hundreds of tons of raw materials and handcrafting it by hand, it would take him half a year or even longer to complete it using his method.

Many people would probably be unwilling to waste this time.

[Triggering an extra reward halves the material cost for upgrading the Troop Training Technique.]

The text reappeared on the panel, and Su Chen's eyes lit up. "I almost forgot, there's this extra reward too."

"The upgrade cost has been halved again, which means that upgrading my weapon costs less than a weaponsmith using forging methods?"

Upgrading weapons through casting normally consumes about 1.2 to 1.5 times the materials theoretically required due to various losses, plus labor costs.

"This actually saved a lot of resources and energy." Su Chen was in a good mood, and his efforts over the past few days had not been in vain.

“Let’s give it a try… this so-called nurturing…” Su Chen took out the Azure Rope from his storage space. “It’s said that it takes a while to fully nurture a weapon… Hmm?”

He was startled, a series of thoughts flashing through his mind—
"...Forged from a steel alloy, the upgrade should ideally use refined gold as the primary material, supplemented with spirit-infused fibers..."

"This... it's already fully nurtured?" Su Chen was taken aback.

His eyes flickered; he understood.

"Nurturing and upgrading can be simply understood as a kind of magic activated through mental power. The essence of nurturing is to thoroughly immerse the weapon with mental power, thereby understanding its characteristics..."

"But I have long since turned them into secret tools, which are highly compatible with my spiritual power, allowing me to skip the nurturing step directly."

"Tsk, what an amazing collaboration." Su Chen's mood improved, and this saved him a lot of time.

“These materials aren’t particularly valuable…” Su Chen estimated, “However, to upgrade them to the third tier, my mental profession also needs to be at the third tier.”

"There's no rush. It's already very close. Let the Gu family make preparations first."

"Let's move this forge out first, then we can finally train properly."

As his gaze fell upon the forge, Su Chen recalled his previous experience refining materials. "Hmm... I used too much force, and the intervals could be extended a bit. The flaky gold ore is..."

As he thought about it, Su Chen's face darkened. "What the hell? I'm not going to be a blacksmith."

The knowledge that came with the training of soldiers made him subconsciously recall his previous mistakes and oversights.

"Jiang Xi doesn't need to send any more materials. I guess the craftsmen's office will just think I'm impatient to continue and won't think much of it."

Not long before dawn, Su Chen took a shower and asked Zero to prepare a hearty breakfast, as he was genuinely hungry.

While eating, Su Chen listened to the news compiled by Zero.

"Minglin was almost defeated too?" Su Chen raised an eyebrow. "There are truly hidden talents among the inner court's seeds."

To this day, the top seed remains undecided, while the positions of several core seeds are precarious.

After we finished eating, an unexpected visitor arrived.

"Du Yu?"

Su Chen was quite surprised and invited him in; the two hadn't seen each other for a while.

"Brother Su, you should go out and get together more often. It's not good to keep exercising like this all the time." Du Yu was familiar with Su Chen's situation. He, Zhang Hengyu, and the others from Nanfeng often got together.

"I'm used to it." Su Chen asked, "You...do you have work at the courtroom?"

The officials from the Ministry of Supervision were not allowed into the courtroom without permission.

"No, Vice Minister Cheng gave me the authority to come see you and deliver a message." Du Yu sat on the sofa, pressing his palm against the cushion.
"Cheng Lang?" Su Chen then remembered the other party's previous recruitment.

The clanging and banging noises were so loud they almost made him forget about it. He muttered to himself before Du Yu said, "He invited you to the translation office."

"Okay, I understand." Su Chen nodded. He figured his secret energy crystal and lightning core would probably end up with Cheng Lang.

Du Yu felt envious. Vice Minister Cheng was considered a big shot in the Ministry of Supervision, and even in Ying Feng's household.

Even after personally inviting him, all he could get from Su Chen was a bland "I know".

(End of this chapter)