Douluo Continent III Haotian Wulin

The standard test hammer felt strangely light in my hand.

Tang Wulin looked down at the hammer in his hand, then at the metal pillar in front of him that was specifically designed to withstand heavy blows, and his breath gradually rose in his chest.

He has tested his strength over the past three years.

But the power he had back then was pure power. Now it's different. Since merging with Jin Jun and truly stepping into the realm of Soul Master, he always felt that the power within him was no longer just hidden in his arms, but had sunk deeper into his spine and bones. It usually lay dormant, but when he exerted his power, it would push upwards inch by inch along the most central line of his body.

"Let's begin." Mang Tian stood to the side, his voice not loud. "Left hand first."

"Yes."

Tang Wulin responded, gripped the hammer handle tightly with his left hand, and slowly exhaled.

He didn't rush to strike. Instead, he first steadied himself, relaxed his shoulders and back, and allowed the weight of the standard hammer to gradually sink into his wrist bones. Then, he turned halfway to the side and, as if he were raising the hammer normally, twisted all the force of his body from his legs, waist, and back up.

The next moment, the hammer was already swung.

In that instant, he clearly felt a stream of heat suddenly surge out from deep within his tailbone, sweeping upwards along his spine—extremely short, yet incredibly bright. Immediately afterward, his entire left arm felt as if it had been gently pushed forward by something; the power that had been concentrated in one place was forcibly propelled forward by half an inch.

The hammer falls.

"Bang."

A loud bang suddenly erupted in the small testing room.

The slender scale at the back suddenly shot upwards, a silvery light shooting straight up so fast it was almost dazzling. Even the metal base trembled slightly, the echo bouncing back and forth among the walls a few times before slowly dissipating.

Tang Wulin himself was so shocked by the impact that his ears rang slightly and his left hand felt numb, but it wasn't pain; it was just the shock caused by an overwhelming force.

Immediately afterwards, a cold, electronic voice sounded:

"Strike force: 483 kilograms."

The room fell silent.

Tang Wulin was taken aback at first, while Mang Tian didn't say anything at all. He just turned his head slightly and looked at the scale that had just fallen back, his eyes gradually darkening.

483.

At this time last year, Tang Wulin's explosive power was just over two hundred. Now, in just one year, or more accurately, in just a few days after fusing with his soul spirit, his left arm has grown to this size in one go.

It didn't grow steadily; it suddenly jumped up a level.

Moreover, this is with the left hand.

Mang Tian took a slow breath, suppressing the fleeting glint of surprise in his eyes, and simply said:

"Right hand."

Tang Wulin handed the hammer to his right hand.

This time, his heart was beating noticeably faster than before.

It wasn't nervousness, but rather a desire to know just how heavy his right hand had become.

The hammer handle was pressed back into the palm of the hand.

He stood still, turned slightly to the side, lowered his shoulders, twisted his waist, and raised his arms.

The moment he exerted his strength, that familiar warm current returned. This time, however, it was faster and deeper than before. It was as if something had suddenly awakened at his tailbone, traveling up his spine and instantly dislocating all the joints in his body.

A faint popping sound could even be heard in the air.

The hammer slammed down in the next instant.

"boom."

This sound was deeper and louder than the previous one.

The entire strength testing machine vibrated, even the metal scale at the back trembled slightly. The slender liquid column shot up almost violently, surpassing the previous value in one go, and continued to rise.

Tang Wulin stood there, his right arm slightly numb, but he subconsciously softened his breathing.

The electronic voice quickly announced the result:

"Strike force: 543 kilograms."

When the numbers were displayed, even Tang Wulin himself was stunned.

Of course he knew he had become stronger.

But he didn't expect it to be this strong.

Five hundred kilograms is equivalent to a real force of a thousand pounds. Although this was an explosive force generated by the momentum of swinging the hammer, it doesn't mean that he could easily lift five hundred kilograms. Even so, it has far exceeded the limits that a nine-year-old child should have.

Mang Tian did not speak immediately this time.

He stood there, silent for a long while, before finally uttering a low voice:

"...Little monster."

Tang Wulin looked up at his teacher, a lingering shock still visible in his eyes.

"Teacher, can I... learn the Thousand Forging Technique now?"

Mang Tian then came to his senses.

He looked at his disciple with a complicated expression.

At the age of fifteen, with a soul power level of over twenty, he completed the Thousand Refinements for the first time. This was the proudest thing he did in his youth, and it was for this reason that he was known as a forging prodigy.

But the child in front of me is nine years old, a first-ring Soul Master, and his arms have an explosive force of over a thousand pounds.

If we only consider the strength itself, it's already enough to reach the threshold of a thousand refinements.

After a long pause, he finally nodded.

"Come with me."

……

By the time I returned to the forge, it was completely dark.

Only one work lamp was lit in the room, its light falling on the forging table and illuminating the edges of the metal until they shone brightly. Mang Tian did not let Tang Wulin start immediately, but instead took a piece of silvery-white metal from the metal rack next to him and placed it in the center of the forging table.

The metal was only a foot square, with neat edges and a warm, unassuming surface that exuded a serene quality.

"Sinking Silver," Mang Tian said.

Tang Wulin nodded.

Of course he recognizes it.

Over the past three years, he has handled quite a few metals, and he is no stranger to amber. However, what he usually sees are mostly cut pieces, and a whole piece of high-quality amber like the one in front of him is quite rare.

"This piece has already been purified," Mang Tian said. "It's of very good quality and perfect for trying the thousand-fold refining process."

As he spoke, he tapped the metal surface lightly with his fingers.

"Forging a thousand times doesn't simply mean striking the metal a thousand times. If it's just swinging a hammer a thousand times, that's called manual labor, not forging a thousand times."

"The so-called 'thousand-time forging' actually involves three things."

"Remove impurities, solidify, and elevate."

He spoke slowly and clearly.

"First, you force out the impurities from the metal little by little, then you tighten its structure, allowing the density to continue to decrease. When both of these steps are done to their fullest extent, the metal will undergo a true transformation. That transformation is not on the surface, but deep within. Only when you reach that stage can you call it a thousand-fold refinement and sublimation."

Tang Wulin listened quietly, but his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

The teacher had mentioned these things in bits and pieces before. But in the past, while he understood them, there was always a barrier between them and him. Because back then, he knew these words were still far removed from his own experience. Now, however, things were different. The deep silver was right in front of him, and the gate to the Thousand Refinements was truly at his feet.

Mang Tian glanced at him and then said:

"Take tungsten steel for example. After being forged a thousand times, the common result of sublimation is that it becomes heavier and harder. The volume is reduced and the structure is more compact, but the weight actually increases."

"Further sublimation will produce different characteristics. Soul power transmission will be smoother, extension will be more stable, or there will be a particularly significant enhancement in a certain aspect. The better the sublimation, the more valuable the metal will be."

"And the greatest advantage of Shenyin is its ability to conduct soul power."

Mang Tian's finger lightly traced the edge of the silvery-white metal, as if giving a reminder.

"But it has one problem: it's too heavy."

"The same volume of immersion silver weighs far more than ordinary metals. If it's just used to make ordinary components, it's too heavy and will slow down the overall process. But if it undergoes true refining and sublimation, it has the opportunity to turn this 'weight' back into an advantage."

He paused for a moment, his gaze falling on Tang Wulin.

"And right now, what you're least afraid of is weight."

Tang Wulin felt a slight warmth in his chest, but he didn't say anything; he simply clenched his fist.

Mang Tian then said:

"As for techniques, there aren't any."

Tang Wulin was slightly taken aback.

"No?" he couldn't help but ask.

"No." Mang Tian looked at him, his tone flat but firm. "Qian Duan doesn't have any techniques that can be memorized. If there are, they belong to others, not you. If you try to learn them by copying, you'll only learn the form, not the essence."

"What you need to do is talk to it."

"Treat it as if it were alive, and listen to the echo it gives you after each strike. You have to listen for yourself to hear where it's loose, where it's tight, where it's stubborn, and where it's nearing its limit."

"Thousand Refinements is also called Mind Forging. You're not forging the surface, but the internal texture."

After saying that, he fell silent.

The light fell on his profile, making his already cold and hard face appear even more somber, and making the entire forge even quieter.

Tang Wulin stood there, looking at Chen Yin on the stage, and suddenly felt his breathing slow down.

The teacher did not demonstrate.

They didn't strike him first, nor did they tell him where the first blow should land.

He left everything to himself.

This kind of delivery is not perfunctory, but based on trust.

Because one has reached the stage of "thousands of refinements," no matter how much others teach, they can only guide one to the door. To truly step inside, one must rely on oneself.

"Teacher," Tang Wulin said softly.

"Um?"

"I will succeed."

Mang Tian glanced at him, neither praising nor criticizing, and simply replied:

"Let's fight first and talk about it later."

Tang Wulin smiled.

The next moment, he reached out and pressed the switch on the forging table.

The slushy silver slowly slid into the furnace.

A red glow emanated from the furnace opening, first a deep, faint light, then gradually intensifying, slowly engulfing the silvery-white metal in its intense heat. Tang Wulin stood before the furnace, his gaze fixed on the increasingly reddening metal, his mind rapidly processing everything he knew about sunken silver.

It originates from a depth of thousands of meters in the deep sea.

It is extremely heavy.

It will only show its stretching after high temperature.

The transmission of soul power is excellent.

If you want to refine something a thousand times, you can't rush it.

He went through the list in his mind, and his breathing gradually calmed down.

When the silver in the forge began to glow with that soft red hue most suitable for hammering, Tang Wulin finally raised his hand.

A flash of silver light.

The sinking star hammer fell silently into his palm.

This time, he didn't go to get any other hammers.

Because at this point, it's exactly what he should be using.