"You're mistaken about one thing, Divine Smith," Su Wen smiled, looking calmly at Lou Gao, pointing at himself: "I'm here to teach you."
"Don't mix it up…"
"..."
Silence.
Lou Gao's mouth twitched, eyes wide in disbelief.
"You, teaching me?"
Strangest of all, the white-clad woman beside the man looked utterly calm—as if this was only natural.
"Hahaha… Good!"
"Let me see just how you'll become my teacher!"
He stepped aside, revealing a huge forge and an array of hammers and chisels.
"Go ahead—show me." Su Wen picked up Lou Gao's forged hammer and shook his head. "A craftsman's hammer is vital—this is lacking."
Lou Gao scowled and crossed his arms, too angry to speak—waiting to mock this "young master" when he inevitably failed.
Su Wen shook his head, gradually losing interest.
His smile faded.
Opening his palm, a pale-blue hammer covered in intricate patterns materialized. Gripping it, he stepped back, lowered his stance, and struck a piece of metal Lou Gao had already forged.
Bang! Bang! ...
True skill shows in the first strike.
Lou Gao, famed as the divine smith, had a sharp eye. The moment he saw that hammer, his eyes widened. Su Wen's explosive forging left him stunned.
"This is... Thousand-Refinement. Ordinary in method, yet the metal feels totally different! You're forging on top of a product I've finished?!!"
The more Lou Gao watched, the more shocked he became.
Forging on another smith's "finished" product was a show of skill—a gap between their ability. Lou Gao only did this for his apprentices.
But this guy...
Bang!!!
Sparks flew.
As Su Wen finished the last strike, he turned to Lou Gao, who was frozen in shock:
"Here. Have a look."
Qian Renxue hurried over, wiping nonexistent sweat from Su Wen's brow with a white handkerchief.
"This... what is this?!"
Lou Gao, nearly delirious, gingerly cradled the piece. His eyes burned with excitement.
He could tell—the metal now carried a mystical quality, vague but unmistakably real, as if imbued with spirit...
"Spirit Refining!" Su Wen announced.
Correct.
This era hadn't yet achieved Spirit Refinement. The so-called Thousand Refinement merely purified—at the very peak. Even Lou Gao only led the way in "purifying."
"May I learn this art?" Lou Gao asked, trembling.
"That's why I came—to teach it."
"Are you here for my life?"
"Or must I kill for you!?"
"Neither," Su Wen sighed. "I prefer your prideful self."
"Just pass on the craft—that's enough…"
Sea God Island.
Core Area.
"La la la, la la la, I'm a happy little shark…"
Su Wen masked his presence. Watching Bai Xiuxiu drift by in the distance, he was exasperated—how did he run into this silly girl here too?
"Turns out in your heart, I'm an idiot!"
Bai Xiuxiu's spirit surfaced:
"I've always thought that." Su Wen pressed her down again.
She pouted.
Watching Bai Xiuxiu float away, Su Wen's heart was complicated.
He remembered, thirty thousand years later, her whole clan would be wiped out, forcing her to come ashore for survival—only to end up in the hands of Tang San's descendant…
Truly, used up and discarded.
That Sea God... tsk tsk...
Inside the empty Sea God Hall,
Seven sacred pillars circled an empty space, representing the seven sacred pillars. At the center stood a pale-blue divine weapon.
The Sea God Trident.
In the original, Tang San only gained the Sea God's true approval after obtaining this weapon—its value was self-evident.
After countless years of divine energy nourishment from the previous Sea God, it achieved this level of strength.
If replaced, even if Tang San possessed the Sea God's divine power and raised the "fake" trident's status over decades, it could never compare to the true artifact.
And he wouldn't be the only one wielding its power.
Su Wen preferred to entrust it to Wang Dong'er.
By then, the scene would be: Farewell, my cowardice! It says it's ready...
Would Wang Dong'er forge the Sea God Trident into an axe, though? Surely not...
Su Wen stroked his chin, amused.
A caring father, a filial daughter.
Let fate take its course.
He certainly wouldn't instigate anything.
Su Wen placed his hand on the Sea God Trident. A ripple of energy spread out.
Moments later, Bo Saixi's form appeared in the hall. Not noticing anything amiss, she frowned, then left.
Unaware—the Sea God Trident she guarded had been swapped for a fake.
The true artifact had been switched by Su Wen via his Pokéball world...
"Trying to escape?"
Su Wen raised an eyebrow.
In his palm, the Sea God Trident vibrated and buzzed, releasing waves of divine energy as it tried to break the world's shackles—but was powerless.
The inner world's status improved with each pet beast's evolution.
Formerly, even a mere hundred-thousand-year soul beast could break free easily. But now...
Even gods would struggle to escape.
Let alone a divine weapon with only a remnant consciousness.
"Humm…"
It anxiously tried to spread its divine sense, seeking the Sea God, but Su Wen gripped it tightly—immobilizing it.
"No need to panic…" Su Wen smiled, gently stroking the trident as if it were a beloved pet.
A surge of familiar, vast divine power flowed in, slowly calming it.
The Trident was confused at first, then lulled as if soothed by a lullaby—quiet and peaceful.
"Sleep, now. Have a good rest…" Su Wen smiled.
"When you wake, you'll be a brand new you…"
The divine power he'd snatched from Tang San back then was truly useful.
Tang San, your artifact waited for your rescue till the last moment—oh, by the way, when I mention your name, it immediately stops struggling...