A moment later, a voice sounded in Mu Chen's ear. "It is truly rare for you to be the one to reach out to me."
The voice was filled with a hint of surprise. The person on the other end was none other than the Divine Craftsman, Zhen Hua.
Mu Chen gave his usual cold snort. "I also did not expect that a Divine Craftsman like you, who usually looks down on everyone, would secretly take in such a... talented disciple."
"Hmm?" Zhen Hua's voice was filled with clear astonishment. "You have already met Yuhao?"
However, his surprise quickly faded. "He is studying in Eastsea City right now. It makes sense that he would run into the President of the Blacksmith Association."
"Hahaha!" Zhen Hua's voice was now full of pride and joy as he asked, "Well? Does my disciple meet your high standards?"
Even though the two of them had been rivals for many years due to events in their past...
...facing the incredible talent Huo Yuhao had shown, Mu Chen could not bring himself to lie or insult the boy's skill.
After a moment of silence, Mu Chen spoke with a bit of reluctance, his tone sounding complex. "He is more than just 'not bad.' You really struck gold by finding a disciple like him."
Hearing this, Zhen Hua sounded even more triumphant. "What do you mean 'struck gold'? Yuhao came to my door and asked to be my apprentice himself before I accepted him."
He changed the subject and took a familiar jab at his old rival. "Besides, even though you are an Eight-Star Saint Craftsman, your reputation is still a bit lower than a Divine Craftsman like me."
Mu Chen's fist tightened, and his breathing became a bit faster.
He suddenly felt like he shouldn't have made this call just to be annoyed.
"Phew!"
He let out a long breath, pushing down the irritation in his heart.
"Speaking of which, it is a coincidence. I recently took on a new disciple as well, and he happens to be in the same class as Huo Yuhao."
"Right now... he is already a Level Four Blacksmith."
On the other end of the line, Zhen Hua was also surprised.
Huo Yuhao's classmate?
That meant they were around the same age, only about ten years old.
A ten-year-old Level Four Blacksmith was an incredible talent, enough to shock people in any era.
Mu Chen had actually found a piece of unpolished jade like that?
While Zhen Hua was thinking, Mu Chen's voice came through again. "Right now, your disciple is one step ahead, but the road is long, and no one knows what will happen."
"Maybe my disciple will be the first one to become the continent's... next Divine Craftsman."
Hearing this, Zhen Hua finally understood why Mu Chen had called him.
In the world of forging, it was a fact that Zhen Hua had always been one step ahead of Mu Chen.
Now, Mu Chen wanted their students to compete to see who was better!
However, these words also showed how much Mu Chen respected the talent of both Tang Wulin and Huo Yuhao.
He believed both boys had the potential to earn the title of Divine Craftsman in the future.
Zhen Hua let out a loud, happy laugh. "Hahaha! Good! Then let's wait and see!"
His laugh was full of confidence. "I don't think that day... will keep us waiting for very long."
After the call ended, Zhen Hua sat in another city with a satisfied smile on his face.
He whispered to himself, "The next Divine Craftsman..."
...A month passed by in the blink of an eye.
The Tianhai Alliance Grand Competition, a huge event held every three years for dozens of coastal cities, finally began.
As a major school in Eastsea City, Donghai Academy sent a team to compete in the youth and junior divisions.
Usually, because the students in Class Zero were only ten, they wouldn't have to join a competition this big yet.
However, their teacher Wu Changkong had requested that Class Zero enter the junior division's three-person team battle.
And their only goal was to win the championship.
After they arrived in Skysea City, the group stayed in a luxury hotel by the ocean.
The sea breeze smelled like salt, but it didn't calm the excitement and nerves the students felt.
The next morning, as the sun began to rise, Wu Changkong led the five members of Class Zero to join the rest of the Donghai Academy team, walking toward the main venue, Tianhai Stadium.
At eight o'clock, with loud music and bright fireworks, the opening ceremony officially started.
On the stage, high-ranking officials from the alliance cities took turns giving speeches.
They mostly said polite things about welcoming everyone and wishing them luck. The speeches were long and boring, making the young contestants feel sleepy and start whispering to each other.
Luckily, the opening didn't last too long, and it was followed by the phase where the matches were drawn.
The teachers went up to the stage one by one to find out who their first opponents would be.
Since the students weren't competing yet, they had nothing to do.
Just then, everyone noticed some movement in the middle of the stadium.
Staff members were busy putting together a square platform very quickly.
Tang Wulin leaned forward curiously to watch and asked, "What are they doing? Doesn't the competition start tomorrow?"
Beside him, Xie Xie looked up and explained, "You don't know? I heard some news! I heard the committee paid a lot of money to invite experts from Shrek Academy to come!"
"In a moment, there will be an exhibition match against the champions from the last competition! This is the big event!"
"Shrek Academy?!"
Tang Wulin and Xu Xiaoyan yelled at the same time, their voices full of excitement.
To them, Shrek Academy was a legend with twenty thousand years of history, the best school on the continent, and the dream goal for every Spirit Master.
Tang Wulin's eyes were full of hope. Being able to see Shrek Academy experts in person made the whole trip feel worth it.
His teacher, Wu Changkong, was from Shrek, and he was curious to see how strong these "monsters" actually were in a real fight.
Just then, a weak and tired voice came through the noisy crowd.
"Hungry... so hungry... does anyone... have food..."
Tang Wulin turned his head and saw a round little fatty who looked about their age walking aimlessly through the crowd.
Since Tang Wulin loved food, he reacted without thinking. A light flashed from his storage tool, and a piece of dried fish appeared in his hand.
He didn't hesitate and started to walk toward the little fatty.
But as he moved, someone gently grabbed his arm.
Tang Wulin looked back in confusion and saw that Huo Yuhao was holding him.
Huo Yuhao met his gaze and asked, "Where are you going?"
Tang Wulin pointed at the little fatty who was still searching for food and said, "He looks like he's starving. It's sad. I'm going to give him something to eat."
Huo Yuhao looked calmly at the little fatty nearby.
He often felt that while Tang Wulin was strong, he was also very naive, acting like a child who didn't think things through.
But then he remembered they were only ten years old.
It was only his own past life that made him feel so much older and more calculating.
Huo Yuhao didn't let go of Tang Wulin's arm, saying in a steady voice, "That little fatty is clearly a contestant. He has classmates and teachers with him, so how could he be starving? Don't worry about things that don't matter."
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