Rank-12 God-Slaying Soul Cannon Shells—the ultimate weapons of which the Douluo Federation had produced only three, rumored to be capable of slaying even gods.
An ancestor of a researcher from the Spirit Pagoda had once been invited to participate in the related research, giving the organization insight into some of the core technological concepts involved.
Di Tian had once mentioned the matter to Gu Yuena: the underlying principle was to extract the metal source, compress and purify it, and then arrange it in a specific sequence to unleash terrifying might.
However, because the manufacturing of those God-Slaying Soul Cannon Shells had consumed an enormous amount of rare metals, the technology for extracting metal sources had been sealed away.
She had never imagined that Huo Yuhao would independently develop a similar technique...
'As expected of Yuhao. If that research fanatic at headquarters ever learned of this, he would probably revere him as a god... It's just a shame that without those specific rare metals, no more God-Slaying Soul Cannon Shells can be made.'
Gu Yuena looked at Huo Yuhao with profound emotion, then asked, "I recall that the metals you initially inscribed arrays on were only simply purified, followed by Hundred Refinements, Thousand Refined, and now Spirit Refined metals. Were you trying to understand the properties of forged metals?"
"That's right." Huo Yuhao nodded.
Over the past three years, what he had steadily accumulated was an understanding of various forged metals, all to prepare for the future.
He had dubbed the technique for extracting the metal source the Siphon Inscription Soul Tool Array, derived from his study of Soul Skills and techniques such as Elemental Stripping, Soul Tool Energy Convergence Arrays, and the Soul Spirit Contract.
The core of the technique was directly tied to the Soul Spirit Contract.
Why could a Soul Spirit Contract feed back bloodlines and even cultivation?
During his research, Huo Yuhao had discovered that its mechanism resembled a siphoning effect, taking advantage of a property akin to water flowing downhill to transfer what one party possessed to the other—just as he had received feedback because he lacked the Silver Dragon King bloodline.
This soul tool array possessed a similar effect, only far more versatile.
This was a school of craft unique to him!
Huo Yuhao tapped the Spirit Refined Blue Gestational Copper with his finger. The originally resilient metal flattened instantly, having clearly lost its rare metal properties because its source had been drawn out.
"From the looks of it, with my current technique, only Spirit Refined metals can undergo full source extraction. First-grade Thousand Refined metal can only stir the source. And you should understand what having these sources means."
Gu Yuena nodded. "With this technique, a Forging Master can commune with the metal source. Before reaching Spirit Refinement, there will be no bottlenecks at all."
She had specifically read several books on forging before, so she understood the advantages of direct contact with a metal source. After all, the early stages of forging were a process of purifying that source, and in the eyes of a Forging Master, forging was fundamentally a conversation with the metal.
Could any method be faster than communing directly with the source itself?
If the Forging Master Association had Huo Yuhao's technique, their craftsmen could directly commune with and study these metal sources, advancing to the Spirit Refinement level at unprecedented speed!
Thinking back, the Federation could have ushered in a new era of forging long ago, but because the technology of extracting metal sources involved far too many complications, it had to be sealed away...
Pondering this, Gu Yuena asked, "What you want to tell me isn't just this, is it?"
She sensed there was more behind his words.
Huo Yuhao nodded. "Hundred Refinements and Thousand Refinement are about removing impurities, so there's no need to dwell on them. The essence of Spirit Refinement is the process of bestowing life upon metal. Soul Refinement is endowing that life with sapience. As for Heaven Refinement, once you reach that level, human strength alone is no longer enough. One must draw upon the power of heaven and earth—which means vast elemental power—to assist in forging the metal, and then have it withstand the corresponding elemental Lightning Tribulation to take shape."
"Think about these stages carefully. Can you do them?"
*Can I?*
Gu Yuena furrowed her brow, sinking into thought, before finally giving her answer: "Of course I can!"
Yes, she could do every single one.
Bestowing life, bestowing sapience—she was the bearer of the Creation Godhead. Many of the Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest had come into being because of her; she understood what it meant to create life far better than any human craftsman ever could!
Breathing life into a piece of metal was hardly insurmountable; at most, it would take a bit of research.
As for channeling elemental power for Heaven Refinement... how could she possibly fail at that?
She was the ruler of elements. It would be child's play!
In fact, she might even be able to turn the elemental Lightning Tribulations Huo Yuhao mentioned to her own use.
*Wait... thinking about it that way...*
Gu Yuena looked up at Huo Yuhao and met his complicated gaze. Both fell silent together.
"..."
Huo Yuhao sighed inwardly.
Indeed, Gu Yuena was an anomaly. As long as she chose to study forging... she practically had no bottlenecks!
Physical strength was her only relative weakness, and even then, only when compared to the Golden Dragon King.
Yet the most difficult hurdles of Spirit Refinement, Soul Refinement, and Heaven Refinement posed no challenge to her whatsoever. She possessed the natural aptitude for every one of them.
Huo Yuhao strongly suspected that the roles of the Silver Dragon King and the Golden Dragon King had actually been reversed—reversed in every sense of the word.
Looking at the metal in Huo Yuhao's hands, Gu Yuena pressed her lips together.
With his technique for extracting metal sources, she would encounter virtually no bottlenecks before Spirit Refinement, and after Spirit Refinement, she naturally had none... If she truly took up forging and the two of them collaborated, they would be a perfect match in every way.
"Knowing your own capabilities is important. If you still want to learn forging, I can help you," Huo Yuhao said. "Also, you could actually try forging without a hammer."
Recalling her earlier embarrassment, Gu Yuena felt a faint blush rise to her cheeks once more, though she managed to keep her composure and asked in confusion, "Without a forging hammer?"
"An ordinary Forging Master can strike a piece of metal tens of millions of times and still fail to achieve Spirit Refinement, yet Divine Craftsman Zhenhua can achieve Thousand Refinements, Spirit Refinement, or Soul Refinement in a single strike."
Huo Yuhao turned his gaze back to the metal in his hand. "That is because Zhenhua already knows every property of the metal like the back of his hand. He possesses a clearer, more fundamental understanding of how to extract and transform its source."
"The essence of forging is, after all, extracting the metal source and transforming it. Forging is merely a means; striking with a hammer is neither the goal nor a necessity!"
"As long as you can achieve the result, the method doesn't matter."
Gu Yuena pondered for a moment. "You mean... I can forge using elemental power?"
Elemental power was what she excelled at most.
Huo Yuhao nodded. "With your mastery over the elements, forging with elemental power is entirely feasible. Moreover, metal forged that way will be the most attuned to you."
Gu Yuena fell into deep contemplation.
Forging with the elements... it was indeed viable. With her control over the elements, she could condense them into giant hammers to strike the metal. The force might even exceed what she could produce with a physical forging hammer, and doing so would make communicating with the metal far more frequent and effortless.
After all, elemental power was an extension of her perception. Just like a craftsman's hammer, the elements could serve as her own.
Yet drawing upon the surrounding elements—the power of heaven and earth—to forge... didn't that essentially mean replacing all conventional forging methods with the principles of Heaven Refinement?
If she used the power of heaven and earth to carry out Hundred Refinements, Thousand Refinement, Spirit Refinement, Soul Refinement, and Heaven Refinement from start to finish, what kind of metal would she end up creating?
Chapter 45