Young and Hot-Headed!

Su Yu did not care what King Daxia thought. At this moment, hardly anyone cared what King Daxia thought. …… In a courtyard farther away within the Great Xia Prefecture. Beside Long Wuyou, several dragons wore strange expressions. By now, they had assumed human form, and the white dragon was there as well. These dragons transmitted their voices: "What does Su Yu mean by this?" "What do you mean?" One dragon was confused, but another snapped via voice transmission, "Stupid! After what Foutuling said, he actually put away the Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus! You idiot, haven't you caught on yet?" "Caught on to what?" Some dragons were on the verge of losing their temper, cursing back via voice transmission, "You fool! It means Su Yu was swayed by Foutuling's words! He's weighing whether he should waste the Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus or trade it for things he needs! He isn't short on treasures, but he lacks specific ones that can't easily be traded for!" "Does he?" Some dragons still found it hard to believe. Would Su Yu really sell? "Even if he does sell, he wouldn't sell to us!" "Idiot! If he doesn't sell to us, who would he sell to? To the humans? Do the humans have treasures to give him? Do they have Eternal blood essence? Carriers? Even if they do, the humans wouldn't buy it! Buying a petal or two might make someone slightly stronger, but the humans are desperately short on those treasures—how could they possibly be willing to trade them away!" "But we're enemies..." "Fool! If we go to buy, he might not sell, but... don't forget the white dragon beside us! He's an ally of the human race! What if he buys it? And even if Su Yu refuses to sell to us, what about the neutral races? Like the Destiny race, the Spirit race, the Archaic Giant race..." Now, all the dragons understood! "He still has seven petals of the Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus!" The dragons' eyes gleamed with strange intensity. Seven petals was no small amount. "If an Eternal ninth-stage consumes them, perhaps... perhaps they could step into Dao Integration! If they achieve Dao Integration, that race will produce two Emperors!" "Our Dragon race suffered heavy losses last time, but if another Dragon Emperor emerges... any loss can be borne!" "The Grand Elder has great hope!" The Grand Elder was Long Wuyou's grandfather, the strongest figure of the Golden Dragon race, even stronger than the Golden Dragon Patriarch. He was an existence on par with the Demon race's Blood Fire Demon King. Right now, most of the dragons gathered around Long Wuyou belonged to the Golden Dragon branch. In an instant, all of them grew agitated! Long Wuyou, having overheard their discussion, furrowed his brow slightly and sent a voice transmission: "Be careful not to fall into a trap! Last time, Foutuling walked into a trap and was thoroughly swindled by the humans." "What?" They were unaware of this. Foutuling had rarely spoken of it to outsiders, and Long Wuyou had been placed under a gag order. They were all geniuses, after all, and possessed some measure of discretion. Now, facing their inquiries, Long Wuyou thought for a moment before saying, "Foutuling was deceived and cheated by Su Yu. Everyone, be cautious. Su Yu is extraordinarily crafty. Watch out for a scam!" A scam? The dragons grew pensive. That was a valid point, but... how easy would it be to scam someone on this? One dragon transmitted, "No matter. If he truly sells, the transaction will be conducted face-to-face and settled on the spot! The goods will be verified right before his eyes! A Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus cannot be faked—its shape, its aura, its dao patterns of time... they are all utterly unique!" Long Wuyou hesitated, then said, "He is a master armamentsmith!" "Your Highness is worried he might forge a fake to deceive us? That makes sense... We indeed must be careful with that. If we truly buy it... we must bring along a master armamentsmith to inspect the goods, or even a Heaven armamentsmith!" At these words, Long Wuyou fell silent. That was true enough! If something could fool a Heaven armamentsmith, it would have to be a top-tier Heaven armament or even a Divine armament. Would Su Yu use something like that just to run a scam? Then Su Yu would be an idiot! The value of a single petal might not even match a high-grade Heaven armament. It wasn't a complete lotus, after all; only a complete one could be traded for a Divine armament. At this moment, Su Yu's subtle actions and minor gestures had swiftly caught the attention of a wide circle of onlookers. An opportunity! Yes, everyone saw an opportunity. Although Su Yu had rejected Foutuling's words, he had stopped feeding the lotus. That was good news; it meant Su Yu was weighing the feasibility in his mind. …… At the same time. Foutuling's heart was pounding. *I... I think I've figured something out.* *And on top of that, I just played the shill for Su Yu.* It was only when Su Yu had looked at him earlier with that peculiar glint that he had realized. Right now, his heart thumped wildly. *It's over, huge trouble!* Su Yu seemed intent on running a scam! *Fuck!* None of these humans were any good! Last time, Liu Hong had tricked him with the Five Elements Divine Art. This time, that bastard Su Yu was even more ruthless—he actually wanted to scam people with a fake Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus! Given Su Yu's current position as an enemy to all races, pulling off a scam wouldn't be easy. Otherwise, back in the day, with Su Yu's temperament, he could have spun the myriad races in circles. A fake! That Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus was definitely a fake. Yet Foutuling hadn't been able to spot a single flaw! Though he hadn't inspected it up close, judging by its appearance, aura, ripples, and all its traits, the thing looked completely authentic. Was it real or fake? Or was that petal real, but Su Yu intended to sell fakes later? Foutuling's thoughts raced, but he dared not say much aloud. Beside him, an expert of the Earth Spirit race transmitted, "Foutuling, don't you think Su Yu wants to sell the Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus? He's probably hesitating. He wouldn't dare sell to the Gods, Demons, Immortals, or Dragons... but we don't hold any deep grudge against the humans! Foutuling, why don't you try approaching him later? He still has seven petals. Even though it's incomplete, if our patriarch consumes them, perhaps... he can step into Dao Integration and become the Five Elements Emperor of this era!" Foutuling felt utterly exhausted! *Holy shit!* *Why do all of you believe Su Yu would sell?* *How could he possibly sell?* Even the elder beside him thought this way, which meant the others almost certainly harbored the same thoughts. Su Yu was tempted! He had the desire to sell, but he was hesitating, considering, weighing his options, and even pondering whom to sell to! Foutuling cursed inwardly, yet replied via voice transmission, "Elder, don't be rash! Seven petals are far too valuable; it would be difficult for us to produce so many treasures..." "Then we can buy fewer petals!" Foutuling cursed again in his heart. *Buy my ass!* Just as he was thinking this, Su Yu's voice suddenly sounded by his ear: "You take the lead in buying! Once you buy it, I will secretly compensate you later. Otherwise... if everyone else buys and you don't, when you were the one who started it all, do you want to place the Five Elements race in mortal danger? Furthermore, purchases are limited. Don't worry, I'll only sell you one petal!" Foutuling's heart jolted! Beside him, the elder seemed to sense faint ripples of willpower transmission and hurriedly asked via voice transmission, "Foutuling, did Su Yu contact you?" Foutuling cursed inwardly, but upon careful thought, there was logic to it. *I was the first to speak up. If I don't buy, and later everyone else gets scammed while I don't... won't I be in massive trouble?* *The crucial question is, will this grandson Su Yu actually pay me back?* *If I get scammed here... it will be disastrous.* With these thoughts, he transmitted, "Elder, he did contact me. He asked if I'd buy one petal for three carriers, and whether I wanted it! Furthermore, there's a purchase limit—he'll only sell one petal, to prevent us from buying too many and enabling someone to reach Dao Integration!" "A purchase limit?" The elder's mind stirred. "Clever! Su Yu truly is a clever man! A purchase limit—one petal per race. Even an Eternal ninth-stage couldn't possibly achieve Dao Integration relying on a single petal of the Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus! That way, the overall effect is drastically curtailed!" Foutuling felt weary to his bones! Yes, Su Yu was very clever. So clever that he knew exactly how all of you thought. A purchase limit! He was selling counterfeit goods, yet he still imposed purchase limits to create artificial scarcity! Selling seven petals at once? Su Yu refused; he would only sell one! This way... it was all over. He might genuinely pull this scam off. Foutuling cursed inwardly and quickly said, "If it's only one petal, buying it doesn't hold much meaning..." Yet the elder immediately transmitted, "Stupid! If he sells one petal, we buy one petal! Then can't we find people from other races to help us buy more? With secret acquisitions, Su Yu probably won't make a huge fuss! When they're all pooled together in the end, who will know they were all bought by us?" Growing excited, the elder added via voice transmission, "We must report this upstairs immediately! Three carriers for one petal is too steep; an isolated petal... isn't worth that price! Also, nearby are the Dragon race, the Iron-Eater race, the Heavenly Horse race, and the Archaic Giant race, not to mention scouts from various other clans. Foutuling, we must report right away! Have the clan's experts exert their influence so other races swiftly dispatch envoys to the Human Realm to congratulate Su Yu's father on his fiftieth birthday!" The elder grew animated: "Yes, congratulate him! One doesn't strike a smiling face! Minor races will do fine, using the excuse of buying a petal to advance to Eternal! Having plenty of carriers doesn't guarantee attaining the Dao, but with a single petal of the Nine-Leaf Celestial Lotus, perhaps they can!" He was thrilled! Coming to congratulate Su Yu's father—these wouldn't be mighty races, just some small to medium clans looking to curry favor with Su Yu. It was completely normal; he was a hegemon, after all. Foutuling felt utterly spent! *It's over!* Once this news spread, everyone would probably think along those lines. Even if the experts of the Immortals, Demons, and Gods couldn't come in person, it didn't matter—they could find proxies! Naturally, this wasn't Su Yu's first time tricking people, so even if they bought, everyone would exercise extreme caution and even bring experts to verify the goods. The crux was... could they detect it was a fake? Su Yu was brimming with confidence, having leaked the rumors long ago. Thinking back on those rumors, Foutuling realized Su Yu might have planned to peddle fakes since way back then! What a terrifying fellow! Thoughts swirled through Foutuling's mind, yet he dared not utter a word. *Fuck!* *Su Yu, you bastard.* If he succeeded this time, he was going to make another fortune. …… On Su Yu's side, he seemed to have completely forgotten what had just transpired. It was as if nothing had happened at all! Inside the research institute, the clatter of forging rang out. Su Yu didn't linger in conversation with King Dazhou, ducking swiftly back into the facility. At that moment, King Tianzhu was hammering away at a weapon—a whip-type armament being forged from dragon-entangling wood. There were no flashy flourishes! King Tianzhu's forging method was conventional and strictly by the book. When later generations imitated this conventional approach, it appeared mediocre, but when King Tianzhu forged in person, it carried an artistic grace. He was forging an Earth armament, not a Heaven armament. The dragon-entangling wood he used was not of top quality either. Su Yu frowned. "Senior King Tianzhu, use the good dragon-entangling wood to forge! Forge a Heaven armament! This kind of trash Earth armament is completely pointless and offers little reference value! If it's ruined, so be it; I have plenty of dragon-entangling wood, not lacking this little bit!" King Tianzhu cursed inwardly! *You filthy nouveau riche!* *Fine!* *You said it, right?* *Then don't blame me for not being polite!* He swiftly brought out a massive log of dragon-entangling wood and laughed. "Then I'll use this to forge!" Su Yu said calmly, "Go ahead. Using three to five logs at once is fine too!" To the side, Zhao Li couldn't help scolding, "Even a spendthrift doesn't squander like this!" Su Yu chuckled. "It's fine. I'm not short on money!" "..." *Get lost!* Zhao Li snorted. Having lived a few days in wealth, the kid had forgotten his own impoverished beginnings. Back then, he had anxiously begged for just a few dozen merit points, and now... heh! Indeed, once a person grew rich, they changed completely. An upstart! He cursed inwardly round after round! Yet as he cursed, he felt a strange satisfaction. Well, seeing King Tianzhu's pinched, deprived look, the man probably had never been so extravagant before. Forget it; since Su Yu had provided so much, and there was plenty left, let him forge! Soon, King Tianzhu began fashioning the massive log of dragon-entangling wood. Divine characters surfaced continuously, fire refining the void. Extraction, tempering, forging... Before long, King Tianzhu was drenched in sweat. Su Yu couldn't tell whether any bloodline power was present; very few people could discern such things, aside from the individual having some internal sensation. If you didn't reveal your bloodline signature... you could genuinely keep it hidden. An ordinary Dao Integration expert, lacking sufficient experience, might not be able to tell either. Not every Dao Integration expert hailed from ancient times. Su Yu transmitted a voice inquiry into his mind: "Senior Chui, can you sense anything?" "No feeling." No feeling! Su Yu furrowed his brow slightly. Was King Tianzhu not going all out, or did he truly possess no special bloodline power? …… Su Yu did not linger, exiting quickly and hovering in midair. Looking toward the several figures moving along the River of Time, who were devoting all their strength to laying out the formation! Su Yu continued his transmission: "Senior, what about now?" "Still no feeling... I know about King Daming, but the other three haven't exerted their full strength." Su Yu cursed inwardly! None of them were going all out? Fine. It seemed they hadn't reached their limits yet. He would wait a bit longer, and if that still didn't work, he would reassess. Pondering this, Su Yu abruptly increased the input of Origin Qi. Boundless Heaven Yuan Qi surged rapidly into the void. The experts forging the grand formation couldn't help saying, "No need to pump in more for now! Excessively dense Yuan Qi isn't a good thing; it can easily provoke a violent disturbance in the formation!" Su Yu frowned. "It feels too weak to me!" King Daming, who was presiding over the grand formation, couldn't help snapping, "Weak? This is only the beginning! If it were powerful right from the start, it wouldn't be a Heaven-tier formation, it would be a God-tier formation! Su Yu, don't assume you understand everything. Do you even know how to lay a formation?" Calling it weak was simply looking down on him! Su Yu smiled. "All right then, I'll watch a bit longer!" …… Su Yu continued to wait, and meanwhile, more and more experts arrived. The grand assembly was tomorrow, so today, experts from many great prefectures were arriving. Su Yu even spotted Zhu Tiandao and his group observing from afar across the distance. They did not approach! However, seeing multiple experts forging a formidable Heaven formation for Su Yu, everyone could see that Su Yu's prestige... and his financial power were truly immense! …… Su Yu paid them no heed. He continued watching silently, waiting patiently. Not using full strength in the early stages was understandable! In the later stages... if they still didn't exert their full strength and the armament or formation was ruined as a result, that would be unacceptable. He also had the mother ball keep a constant watch! Keeping an eye on these few fellows. These people were his primary suspects, and Su Yu had been steadily narrowing down the targets, even reviewing Ji Hong's files. The individuals Ji Hong had earmarked back then included King Fenhai, King Miecan, King Tianzhu, and King Jintian. All of Su Yu's suspects were among them! No, Junior King Zhou wasn't on that list, because he was rumored to be dead at the time, so Ji Hong hadn't investigated him. *All these people have overseen the Allhead Battlefield and had ample time to bribe those commanders!* *Zhu Tianfang's suspicion is rather low. He disappeared for far too long, absent from the human race, making it difficult for him to bribe commanders.* Unless King Daming cooperated! If it was King Daming... wait, Chui Bing had sensed King Daming's bloodline before. Recalling this, Su Yu hurriedly transmitted, "Senior Chui, I forgot to ask—whose bloodline does King Daming carry?" "It should be King Ming's bloodline. Back in ancient times, he was also a powerful Human King." King Ming? King Daming? Su Yu's mind stirred slightly. Now that was interesting! King Daxia carried King Zhan's bloodline, while King Daming carried King Ming's... Su Yu quickly transmitted, "Can you tell if King Dazhou and King Daqin have Human King bloodlines?" King Daqin had previously gone all out to slay an Invincible; back then, the fur ball family had also been in combat. Su Yu didn't know whether Chui Bing had sensed it. "King Daqin probably doesn't. Just pure human bloodline power..." "Hm?" Su Yu was surprised. King Daqin didn't have one? Thinking it over, he didn't dwell on it. That only proved King Daqin's natural talent was exceptionally terrifying. More than half of the Invincibles actually lacked a Human King bloodline; those who possessed one were a minority. "What about King Dazhou?" "Don't know. Didn't sense it. He doesn't seem to have fought with all his might, has he?" The mother ball didn't know either. For this sort of thing, if someone didn't exert full power and deliberately concealed it, it was very difficult to detect. They were all top-tier experts! You couldn't conduct an intrusive probe on them. Moreover, King Dazhou was the type whose aura never leaked outward, making him even harder to judge. Su Yu said nothing more. King Dazhou... King Dazhou's suspicion wasn't particularly high; if it truly were him, resolving certain matters would be exceedingly difficult. After another while, an overarching structure gradually took shape in the void, and Su Yu could discern a bit of its nature. It was a very peculiar formation, resembling a towering pagoda. Surrounding the tower were small portals. Countless doorways composed this high tower. Su Yu was no weakling himself, and his discernment was quite good. Examining it closely, he nodded slightly. This high tower formed of small portals possessed a suppressive effect, while the portals functioned more like individual sealing talismans. Upon each small portal clung the power of time. The temporal power was dense, and around the formation, black rifts appeared—a sign of the formation's sheer might, capable of severing the void. It could even slice into the River of Time! At this moment, King Daming barked, "We've reached the critical juncture! The Tower of Ten Thousand Gates—one gate, one array! Miecan, charge it! Jintian, reinforce the seals! Tianyuan, attach the temporal acceleration!" He shouted, "Tower of Ten Thousand Gates, ten thousand arrays into one! Consolidate them one by one, reinforce their seals one by one, and finally merge them into a complete grand formation! A single mistake could cause the entire formation to collapse! Everyone, give it your all—don't mess up!" "Understood!" "Rest assured!" "..." The experts barked in response. The next instant, the Tower of Ten Thousand Gates dispersed into literally ten thousand small portals hovering in midair, filling the entire expanse of the void in an orderly array—an extraordinarily spectacular sight. At this scene, several foreign experts watching from afar felt their vision blur with awe! The human race truly possessed capable experts! Even though this tide's upheaval had begun late and they had risen late, these Invincibles all had impressive trump cards up their sleeves! King Daming was primarily responsible for stabilizing the entire formation, while the other three gathered rapidly, perfecting those small arrays one after another, sweating like rain, their blood and Qi soaring to the heavens! Every time a small portal was perfected, it burst with brilliant radiance! King Daming still had energy to spare, grumbling, "Su Yu, what you gave isn't enough! It sounds like a lot, but it doesn't even match what I've put in. This won't do..." Su Yu laughed. "Trivial matters! Your Majesty King Daming, just exert more effort. Setting other things aside, eight or ten carriers are well within my ability to provide! Even though I'm short on them too, I don't lack this pocket change!" King Daming's eyes lit up! With a low shout, his blood and Qi erupted, and his willpower solidified the surroundings as he bellowed, "You said it! This old man won't ask for much—for anyone in my Zhu family within five generations who attains the Dao, you provide all their carriers!" Su Yu chuckled. "Provided I live until then. If I survive that long, naturally there's no problem! If I die... it goes down the drain!" "That's not an issue!" King Daming was overjoyed! Now, he worked with even greater vigor! The auras of the experts grew steadily more potent. As portal after portal was successfully forged and modified, among the group, King Jintian was the weakest in combat strength. King Miecan was at the Eternal fifth-stage, Junior King Zhou possessed the strength of the Eternal sixth-stage, while King Jintian was only at the Eternal fourth-stage. At this moment, somewhat breathless, he shouted, "Slow down a little, give me a moment to rest!" He was giving his all, his blood and Qi robust, his willpower intensely formidable! At this point, Su Yu inquired again, and the mother ball transmitted, "I don't see any Human King bloodline power... Mainly, I don't know if he's hiding his true strength, unless you let me probe deeply!" That wouldn't do! A deep probe was a provocation; a forced probe was entirely unacceptable. The man was currently helping you work. If he was a traitor, fine, but if he wasn't... that would be awkward indeed! If word got out, his reputation would be ruined. No wonder King Dazhou had said it might not succeed. Once a top-tier expert concealed their strength, it was genuinely tricky to handle. Su Yu narrowed his eyes slightly. However, according to Xia Chen, during his lifetime, the traitor probably hadn't attained the Dao yet; Xia Chen had known everyone among the humans who attained the Dao back then. Xia Chen had been dead for over three hundred years! The culprit's attainment of the Dao shouldn't exceed three hundred years. How strong could they possibly be? Besides, the person had no idea Su Yu possessed the ability to examine bloodline power; if even a trace leaked out... that would be telling. He stopped watching here; this side still required time. He darted swiftly back into the research institute. By now, King Tianzhu was also sweating profusely, the clatter of forging deafeningly loud. He wasn't using a hammer to forge, but a peculiar flame to continuously bake the weapon blank. That flame was exceptionally potent! Su Yu frowned slightly. Suddenly, in a flash, he appeared right beside King Tianzhu. Startled, King Tianzhu nearly botched the forging and barked in fury, "What are you doing?" Popping out out of nowhere—who was he trying to scare? He was forging properly; why did this guy suddenly pop up? Su Yu frowned. "The forging isn't good!" "What?" King Tianzhu was enraged! You can belittle my strength, you can say I forge too slowly or too gently, but you must never, in my own domain, say my forging isn't good! Nearby, Zhao Li and Zhao Tianbing both frowned! He had gotten cocky! Even if they refused to defer to King Tianzhu, they wouldn't claim his forging was poor. This was the sole Heaven armamentsmith of the Human Realm; Su Yu truly had grown arrogant. Yet Su Yu said in a heavy voice, "I have read the ancient forging arts, studied the Zhao family's forging techniques, and also studied Senior King Tianzhu's forging method... You are not forging with your whole heart; you are holding back!" Su Yu snorted coldly. "I invited Senior to forge so that my teacher could learn, not simply to watch Senior go through the motions!" With that, a massive hammer appeared in Su Yu's hand! "I want a joint forge! Senior, if you are truly putting your heart into it, keep up with my rhythm. Otherwise... I can only ask Senior to leave. Does Senior truly think I, Su Yu, am so easily fooled?" "You..." King Tianzhu was furious. "Fine! You come, let me see how strong your forging is, Su Yu! This is the first time anyone has ever insulted my forging as inadequate!" The argument was extremely loud! Outside, King Dazhou, King Daxia, and the others heard it as well, but none entered, for this was a contest between armamentsmiths. Su Yu sneered, "Then let King Tianzhu see what it truly means to give everything in forging!" *Boom!* A hammer struck down upon the weapon blank—a strike carrying a full 270 vibrations! The concussive force rippled across the entire blank! The void cracked open! In an instant, a golden pattern appeared upon the whip. King Tianzhu roared in fury, "You're using brute concussive force... Do you think—" Ignoring him, the fire of the five elements erupted from Su Yu, cleansed by the Fire of Inheritance. He struck down with another concussive hammer blow, water and fire blending: "Senior, keep up before you talk!" King Tianzhu snorted coldly, his own flames erupting in a roiling surge! *Rumble!* The concussive force rattled the flames, making King Tianzhu's fire tremble. He was forced to increase his power output, gritting his teeth in fury as he rapidly quenched the metal. One golden pattern after another surfaced on the whip. King Tianzhu snapped, "Doing it this way is far too dangerous! One slip and the weapon is ruined!" Su Yu said indifferently, "I'm not short on money! Forging this way makes the weapon stronger! What I want is strength, not saving materials! With the same materials, I can forge 120 golden patterns with perhaps a seventy percent failure rate, whereas you, Senior King Tianzhu, have a thirty percent failure rate, but the finished product might only have 118 golden patterns!" King Tianzhu fumed, "Armament forging naturally prioritizes stability!" "Wrong! Weapons pursue ultimate strength! If materials are ruined, they can be gathered again. But settling for 118 golden patterns on something clearly capable of reaching 120 because of excessive conservatism—that is true waste!" This was a clash born of differing philosophies and disparate wealth! Though enraged, King Tianzhu did not argue further, sneering, "Fine, Su Yu, I'll forge alongside you! I'd like to see if you still have the nerve to claim your forging is mighty after you fail multiple times and waste a mountain of materials!" "Then let's test it!" *Rumble!* The thunderous din of forging echoed across the Great Xia Prefecture. The shockwaves even caused heaven and earth to tremble. At the sheer might Su Yu displayed, everyone outside sucked in a breath of cold air! This fellow was truly growing more terrifying by the day! The immense concussive force made King Tianzhu's entire body shudder, blue veins bulging along his arms. Yet he gritted his teeth, matching Su Yu's rhythm as he rapidly quenched and forged. *I refuse to accept this!* *You think being rich makes you amazing?* *I want to see what arrogance you have left after you forge ten times, fail every single one, and squander countless treasures!* As for Su Yu, he simply stripped off his outer robes, baring his lean, muscular arms, clad only in shorts as he swung his hammer down with crushing weight. The concussive force grew increasingly formidable, causing the entire research institute to shake! Golden patterns accumulated one after another! King Tianzhu couldn't help panting as he cursed, "Ease up on the brute force! If you keep this up, I won't be able to keep pace, and the weapon will be destroyed!" Su Yu said coolly, "To a professional armamentsmith, if a Heaven armamentsmith cannot keep pace with an Earth armamentsmith, then he is merely an impostor basking in unearned fame!" "I..." King Tianzhu was so angry he wanted to kill someone! *It's not that I can't keep pace—it's that your brute force is utterly absurd!* He was incensed! Was this a question of technique? This was a question of raw power! That damned bastard! He was practically blowing his top! *Boom! Boom!* King Tianzhu pushed on. Suddenly, blood vessels burst on his arm. Over to the side, Zhao Li barked, "Su Yu, slow down!" Yet King Tianzhu was truly provoked now. "Faster! Su Yu, whoever slips first today is a useless piece of trash! I'm a Heaven armamentsmith—you think I can't outlast an Earth armamentsmith like you?" This was a direct refutation of his professional standing! He was the sole Heaven armamentsmith of the human race! If he slipped before Su Yu today, he wouldn't have the face to go on living! That damned bastard—he was going to slap Su Yu's face until it was swollen! No matter how great your brute force, you were still just an Earth armamentsmith. Did you think you were invincible? *I've eaten more salt in my life than you've eaten rice!* Su Yu had locked horns with him as well, sneering, "Senior, don't cry later. Don't worry, if you get hurt, at worst I'll gift you some precious medicines. Let's see who slips first!" Two top-tier master armamentsmiths... yes, Su Yu was one as well. He had personally forged the civilization chronicle; he naturally counted as top-tier! Perhaps he was still lacking when it came to forging Heaven armaments, but didn't he have King Tianzhu to serve as a safety net? *Rumble!* More and more golden patterns manifested. Outside, many experts were sweating with anxiety, wishing desperately they could barge in to watch. Good grief, what was happening in there? It seemed Su Yu and King Tianzhu were having a duel of armamentsmithing skill! To armamentsmiths, this was... it was like countless naked beauties waiting for you, yet you were barred from approaching! That surge of fury, anxiety, urgency, and anticipation was enough to drive a person mad! In the void above, the phantom image of the weapon began to materialize! By now, ninety-nine golden patterns had formed upon the whip! The speed at which the patterns appeared was terrifyingly swift! Two powerhouses possessing Invincible-level strength were pouring in everything, sparing no expense to forge. Forging an Earth armament was far too easy for them! At this moment, Su Yu continued to show off, ratcheting up the difficulty. *Boom!* The one-hundredth golden pattern materialized in an instant. Not only that, the character "Su" took shape within it—transforming a golden pattern into a character! King Tianzhu was incensed. *Who are you looking down on?* Shortly after, the 101st golden pattern appeared, outdoing Su Yu's display by forming the characters "Tian Zhu"! "Hiss!" Many onlookers drew sharp breaths. Top-tier armamentsmiths indeed! Forming characters from golden patterns! This was a rare spectacle indeed. Mainly, it was pointless in ordinary times; even King Tianzhu wouldn't bother doing it. It was a waste of effort, and the pattern didn't gain any extra power from it, so why bother? Yet when Su Yu showed off, if King Tianzhu didn't match him, wouldn't he look weak? Hmph! …… Inside, Su Yu continued to hammer away, giving his all, veins bulging across his skin. Nearby, Zhao Li and Zhao Tianbing observed with rapt attention. Zhao Tianbing couldn't help transmitting, "This adopted student of yours is a bit too arrogant. From pure craftsmanship alone, he's inferior to King Tianzhu. From what I see, he's trying to overwhelm King Tianzhu with physical might. The concussive force is too fierce; if this continues and King Tianzhu is severely injured, even if Su Yu wins, it won't be an honorable victory!" *We're comparing forging, not martial prowess!* Su Yu was... lacking sportsmanship! Winning a professional contest through non-professional means was thoroughly unsporting! Zhao Li also frowned slightly, transmitting back, "He's too young and a bit impetuous. I'll scold him later! He hasn't suffered any major setbacks, so this kid... is indeed somewhat arrogant!" He too was displeased. Even if Su Yu won with such methods, he found it improper! Armamentsmiths comparing raw strength instead of technique—dammit, how humiliating! It humiliated the entire profession! Yet King Tianzhu gritted his teeth in sheer rage. *Comparing strength? I'm not afraid of you either, Su Yu!* *Boom!* His blood and Qi erupted once more, surging with greater ferocity. Not only that, divine characters surfaced one after another to stabilize the space, intensely formidable, harmonizing water and fire! Su Yu's concussive force caused King Tianzhu's physical body to shake incessantly. By the end, King Tianzhu ground his teeth, and his past, present, and future incarnations abruptly separated! A River of Time materialized, the power of past and future surging forth rapidly as he sneered, "Come on then!" *If I don't tame you today, Su Yu, I'm not King Tianzhu!* 108 golden patterns! In the sky above, tribulation clouds were already beginning to gather. It was unclear whether a reward would descend if a Heaven armament was forged! Just as the 109th golden pattern was on the verge of forming, Su Yu gritted his teeth, striking down with a heavy blow, followed immediately by hundreds of rapid strikes... King Tianzhu roared in fury, "You'll destroy this weapon..." "I won't! I'm confident!" "Confident my ass!" *Boom!* At that exact instant, a tremendous force swept through the entire research institute. The long whip abruptly erupted with violent, unstable ripples of Yuan Qi. King Tianzhu was exasperated! Su Yu's reckless hammering had triggered a disaster! It was going to explode! Yet this was Heaven armament material, on the verge of becoming a Heaven armament—how could he bear to watch it blow apart? "You absolute bastard!" King Tianzhu finally couldn't hold back his curses. Seeing that Su Yu was still defiant and about to strike again, he kicked Su Yu flying with a furious bellow! Blood and Qi soared to the skies, willpower boiled over, and blood vessels ruptured across his body. With a deafening boom, a towering pillar of flame surged forth, forcibly suppressing the berserk Yuan Qi! In an instant, he quelled the weapon's violent disturbance! "Suppress!" "Calm!" "Extinguish!" "..." With shout after shout, rumbling clouds gathered in the sky above. King Tianzhu spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, letting out a long, ragged exhale. His face was pale as paper as he looked at Su Yu and snorted coldly, "Who won?" *I won!* *You nearly caused the weapon to detonate! I told you we couldn't be so reckless!* *It was I who turned the tide and preserved the weapon—I won!* *You arrogant brat, who do you think you are?* *Did you really think you could beat me in my own domain?* *What a joke!* Meanwhile, Su Yu furrowed his brow slightly and rose into the air. Catching the whip in one hand, he swept the civilization chronicle across it to settle the residual disturbance, casually picking up a tiny trace of blood. Soon, a voice sounded in his mind: "Not him. His bloodline is ordinary!" Su Yu breathed a sigh of relief. A look of helpless resignation washed over his face as he lowered the whip, cupping his fists. "I lost. Senior, forgive me—I was too eager for quick success. As expected, my forging skills are still lacking... Senior, my apologies. From now on, all forging arrangements will follow Senior's instructions! As for the results of the forging, Senior will take thirty percent..." King Tianzhu had been fuming, but hearing this, eighty percent of his anger vanished instantly. He snorted, "At least you can accept defeat! You are still young, and youth is hot-blooded and impulsive—I can understand that. But remember: in the human race, when it comes to armament forging, this old man is number one!" Su Yu nodded and sighed. "This junior understands." With that, he cupped his hands toward Zhao Li and the others, sighing, "Teacher, I've brought shame upon the Zhao family's forging art! After this, until I become a Heaven armamentsmith, I will never forge in public again!" Zhao Li hesitated, then said in a deep voice, "Failure is nothing to fear; do not let victory breed pride or defeat breed despair! The path of armament forging doesn't strictly have to prioritize safety and stability!" "Your fierce forging method—I think it was quite good!" Earlier, he had wanted to scold Su Yu, but seeing the youth downcast, he glanced at King Tianzhu and snorted inwardly. Suddenly turning to Zhao Tianbing, he gritted his teeth: "Senior Brother, you go up! Use the fierce method to experience Senior King Tianzhu's Dao! Our Zhao family's forging art is inferior to none!" Zhao Tianbing nodded as well, looking at King Tianzhu with a smile. "Senior, Su Yu is a junior and doesn't understand the true essence of our Zhao family's forging art. Since this weapon isn't finished yet, how about I coordinate with Senior for a round?" King Tianzhu sneered disdainfully. "Come ahead! If Su Yu couldn't do it, you, Zhao Tianbing, won't be able to either!" With those words, Zhao Tianbing soared into the air, manifesting a massive hammer. He intended to continue forging alongside King Tianzhu, testing which school of forging was truly superior! *I can discipline my own family's kid!* *But for you, King Tianzhu, to boast shamelessly that your forging art reigns supreme—the Zhao family refuses to accept that!* *Rumble!* The forging resumed! As for Su Yu... he couldn't be bothered anymore. He hadn't been forging for the sake of forging in the first place. Seriously, did they really have to lock horns like this? Fine, lock horns all you want; I'm done playing. Bye-bye, I'm heading out to test the others! King Tianzhu lacked the Prison King's bloodline. That meant the primary suspect was King Jintian, followed by King Miecan. Su Yu swiftly withdrew. …… Outside, King Daxia chuckled. "Suffered a loss? For youngsters, taking a beating does them good!" *Taught a lesson by reality, weren't you!* This fellow had been far too arrogant, picking a fight with King Tianzhu—and now he had paid the price! Su Yu said calmly, "I'm still young, only twenty years old. In a few years, when I forge Divine armaments, victory and defeat will be plain for all to see!" King Daxia sighed inwardly. *Not beaten hard enough; still arrogant!* King Dazhou, watching Su Yu gaze toward King Daming's group, felt his mind stir slightly. *Tianzhu has no problems?* Su Yu truly had plenty of petty tricks up his sleeve. Still, if King Tianzhu was confirmed clean... to King Dazhou, that was fantastic news. Among the human Invincibles, nearly everyone who wielded weapons used armaments forged by King Tianzhu. If King Tianzhu had turned traitor... the fallout would be catastrophic! As for the others, the problem wouldn't be quite so severe. This was truly the best news of the day! King Dazhou beamed, his smile exceptionally radiant. By his ear, King Daxia's voice sounded: "Don't make your schadenfreude so obvious. The boy is young and petty! I can see he's in a bad mood; if you smile so broadly, he's going to hold a grudge!" King Dazhou smiled even more broadly! To the side, seeing this, Su Yu offered a faint smile as well, nodding toward King Dazhou with a pleasant expression. A tacit understanding! King Daxia watched for a moment and sighed inwardly. *Sure enough, he's holding a grudge. This fellow... still isn't steady enough. Even if you hold a grudge, don't make it so obvious—the assembly hasn't even begun!* *Smiling like that now, even a fool would know you're plotting revenge!* "Hehehe!" Su Yu kept smiling, while beside him, King Dazhou also smiled and nodded, looking for all the world like good friends who wished each other the very best. King Daxia drew a sharp breath. Both of them were grinning—it was downright eerie! They weren't about to start fighting, were they? "Ahem!" King Daxia gave a light cough and stepped between them, chuckling, "Look, the formation is progressing quite smoothly. Old Zhu's methods truly are formidable!" *I'll just play the peacemaker!* *Simmer down, both of you!* Su Yu paused briefly, then broke into a genuine laugh! What was King Daxia doing? King Dazhou smiled as well, letting out a chuckle. *Old Xia... sigh, a warrior!* *What a pity!* Warriors were warriors, always fond of self-righteous assumptions. King Dazhou couldn't be bothered to explain. *Go on then; we'll just watch your performance!*