Meteor City, Blacksmith Association
This was just one branch of the Star Luo Continent's Blacksmith Association.
Changgong Yan served as the president of this branch.
When it came to forging-related matters, his authority far exceeded that of the three major families in Meteor City.
After all, he was a veritable Level Eight Saint Craftsman.
His travels across the continent had yielded some gains. Although he hadn't seen any hope for achieving divine forging, he had made significant progress in soul-forging, which ultimately stemmed from improvements in fusion-forging.
With advancements in fusion-forging techniques and higher-quality soul-infused alloys, better soul-forged works could be achieved.
Changgong Yan looked at his visibly troubled disciple and felt puzzled.
"Yuhan, what's wrong?" he asked with concern.
Lin Yuhan was his treasured disciple, someone he placed great hopes on. Among the current generation on the Star Luo Continent, she was the only one with the potential to become a divine blacksmith.
Of course, it was only a possibility.
The Star Luo Continent had never produced a divine blacksmith, and achieving such a feat through independent exploration would be even more difficult.
This so-called opportunity was exceedingly slim.
But regardless, Lin Yuhan would undoubtedly become a central figure in the Star Luo Continent's blacksmithing community in the future.
Upon hearing Changgong Yan's question, Lin Yuhan finally spoke.
"Teacher, do you remember Xu Yuan?"
"Xu Yuan?" Changgong Yan's eyes flickered.
He fell into deep thought, recalling his experiences in Tian Dou City.
Of course, he thought of much more than just his brief encounter in Tian Dou City.
He remembered rumors he had heard recently—his disciple seemed to have some connection with that young man. He also recalled recent information indicating that Yun Ming, the master of Shrek Academy's Sea God Pavilion, had appeared on the Star Luo Continent—and Yun Ming was Xu Yuan's teacher.
"What about him?"
"He needs a batch of Transforming Silver and approached me to propose a trade with our association," Lin Yuhan explained. Then, she added, "He said he's willing to offer a premium trade, using First-Grade Thousand-Refined Jade Silver."
"Oh?" Changgong Yan was surprised. "How much Transforming Silver does he need?"
Trading with Jade Silver, and at a premium, must mean a large quantity.
"Five tons."
"Five tons?!" Changgong Yan's eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Lin Yuhan.
What surprised him wasn't the amount of Transforming Silver Xu Yuan requested.
Five tons of Transforming Silver was substantial, but not excessive.
He could mentally prepare for even larger quantities. Given the rarity and specialized uses of Transforming Silver, it wouldn't be surprising if a blacksmith from the Federation wanted ten or twenty tons.
What shocked him was Xu Yuan's willingness to trade Jade Silver, at a premium, for five full tons of Transforming Silver.
How much Jade Silver would that require?
"Teacher, isn't five tons of Transforming Silver too much?" Lin Yuhan cautiously asked.
Changgong Yan burst into laughter.
"Not at all. Are you worried the higher-ups won't approve?"
Lin Yuhan nodded.
Changgong Yan waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry. Such a minor matter won't trouble your teacher."
Privately, he reasoned that with Master Yun Ming currently traveling through the Star Luo Continent, the royal family would likely approve the trade.
If the royal family didn't object, then the transaction itself wouldn't pose any real difficulty.
As for the loss?
From Changgong Yan's perspective, this trade would definitely not result in a loss.
A large quantity of First-Grade Thousand-Refined Jade Silver flowing into the Blacksmith Association could support up to three blacksmiths attempting to break through to soul-forging!
Even if only one succeeded, it would be a guaranteed profit.
And even if none succeeded, they would still accumulate invaluable experience.
In the end, whether a trade is profitable depends on whether both parties benefit.
Changgong Yan asked Lin Yuhan about the terms of the trade. Upon learning the conditions Xu Yuan offered, he gasped in astonishment, concluding that such a deal was absolutely worthwhile.
The only challenge lay with the authorities—namely, the Star Luo royal family.
Although Meteor City controlled the veins of rare metals, the royal family oversaw all rare metal veins across the continent, especially enforcing strict export restrictions to the Federation.
In the past, any blacksmith from the Federation requesting five tons of Transforming Silver would have been outright rejected.
But now…
"I'll submit the application immediately. The results should come within the next few days. In the meantime, you can exchange ideas with Xu Yuan. His forging skills are likely much higher than they were two years ago." Changgong Yan added, "I suspect these batches of Jade Silver might be products of his practice while improving his fusion-forging techniques. To have amassed so much Jade Silver, his insights into fusion-forging may surpass mine. It wouldn't hurt for you to learn from him."
Lin Yuhan nodded enthusiastically.
"How did it go?" Xu Yuan asked as Lin Yuhan returned to the room.
"It's settled. My teacher says there's no problem."
Though she still couldn't fully understand how this aligned with her knowledge of the empire's strict control over Transforming Silver, Changgong Yan's near-definitive assurance left her unconcerned.
She knew her teacher wasn't one to make empty promises.
"That's good. Thanks for your help," Xu Yuan said graciously, handing over the Jade Silver he had prepared earlier.
"This Jade Silver is yours now."
He handed her two storage rings.
Taking the rings, Lin Yuhan used her spiritual power to quickly scan their contents, and she was immediately astonished by what she found.
All Jade Silver.
Moreover, it gave off an impression of uniformity—not because the Jade Silver was mass-produced on an assembly line, but because its energy signatures were so consistent and the quantity so vast that it created that illusion.
At this moment, Lin Yuhan was certain that all this Jade Silver had been forged by Xu Yuan.
"Half a ton with a fusion rate of seventy percent, nearly a ton with eighty percent!" Lin Yuhan exclaimed in shock.
The majority of it was above eighty percent fusion rate.
Glancing at the ring specifically storing Jade Silver with fusion rates above eighty percent, she noticed how neatly it was arranged. She could preliminarily confirm that the first ten pieces were close to ninety percent fusion rate!
Not quite ninety, but certainly approaching it—perhaps even eighty-nine percent!
This exceeded her expectations for the premium trade.
Lin Yuhan added another descriptor to her impression of Xu Yuan:
Rich bastard.
"Do you trust me so easily?"
Lin Yuhan waved the two rings in her hand.
"Of course. We're friends, after all," Xu Yuan replied generously.
"And besides, there will be opportunities for more trades in the future."
Lin Yuhan remained noncommittal about Xu Yuan's attitude.
He didn't seem to care about money at all.
Naïve to the dangers of the world.
But then again, perhaps he didn't need to worry about such things.
Lin Yuhan sought Xu Yuan's advice on some forging techniques.
With nothing else to do, Xu Yuan was happy to share his knowledge.
Two and a half days later
Lin Yuhan brought good news.
"Your five tons of Transforming Silver are ready."
The application had been approved smoothly.
In fact, the Blacksmith Association had begun preparations two days ago.
Now that the approval had come through, the association handed over the five tons of Transforming Silver without delay.
"Thank you."
Xu Yuan accepted the storage ring Lin Yuhan handed over and exhaled in relief.
With the Transforming Silver secured, the base materials needed for his belt were complete.
Dark gold, though precious, was produced in the Federation. Xu Yuan had already collected a large amount through Zhenhua's channels long ago.
---
Douluo Continent
Ming Du
Federation Conference
"What is Yun Ming trying to do?!"
Yun Ming's appearance on the Star Luo Continent had lasted for three full months.
The Federation could no longer remain calm and convened an emergency meeting.
------------------------------------------------------
Welcome our new Patron: Kevin B! Your support means the world to me <3 We are up to 'Chapter 377: Fang Yuan's Transformation' on Patreon!
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)
Support my writing journey: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow
40+ Chapters Ahead Guaranteed.