While the Douluo Era 1 Bai Chen was handing the soul spirit ritual to the soul beast race and helping Tianmeng Ice Silkworm successfully advance to a million-year soul beast, the Douluo Era 3 Bai Chen had finally returned to shore.
Not long after getting off the ship, they found Bai Jiaming waiting to receive them.
After everyone got into the car, Bai Chen noticed that besides his father, there was also an elderly man with white hair seated inside.
Although the old man looked aged, his spirit was extremely vigorous.
There was no sign of frailty about him.
Instead, he radiated the presence of someone in the prime of life.
An invisible aura of authority surrounded him—clearly someone of high status.
After everyone got in, Bai Jiaming took the initiative to introduce him.
"Xiao Chen, this is Duan Xuan, the president of the Tianhai Blacksmith Association."
"Greetings, Elder Duan."
Bai Chen's mind worked quickly. He immediately bowed slightly in greeting.
Duan Xuan waved his hand with a smile.
"No need for formalities. I've heard that Young Master Bai possesses the extremely rare innate Level 20 soul power. A genius like you willing to join the Blacksmith Association makes me very happy."
"You flatter me."
Bai Jiaming laughed lightly and continued the conversation.
"When you teach him later, if he makes any mistakes, please correct him immediately. Don't hesitate just because he's young."
"Haha, naturally."
Duan Xuan replied with a warm smile.
Bai Chen kept a polite smile on his face, but his thoughts had already drifted elsewhere.
If this old man truly was the president of the Tianhai Blacksmith Association, then his identity was far from ordinary.
The name Duan Xuan sounded vaguely familiar.
But once he remembered the title Tianhai Blacksmith Association President, Bai Chen immediately recalled something.
Isn't this… the teacher of Saint Blacksmith Mu Chen?
Just like Mu Chen, Duan Xuan himself was also a Saint Blacksmith.
Being able to invite him meant his father had clearly gone through considerable effort.
But in Bai Chen's eyes, Duan Xuan's identity itself wasn't the most important part.
What truly interested him was one of Duan Xuan's disciples.
Divine Blacksmith Zhen Hua.
According to the setting of the third era, Zhen Hua and Mu Chen shared the same teacher.
Which meant—
Zhen Hua was also a disciple of the very old man sitting before him.
The concept of a Divine Blacksmith had been revised several times in the story, but no matter the version, it was always an extremely prestigious title.
If Bai Chen could establish even a small connection with Zhen Hua, his path in blacksmithing would become much smoother.
Of course, whether such a connection could be built depended entirely on whether he could impress the old man before him.
After dropping Xu Xiaoyan and the others off at the Bai family villa, Bai Jiaming brought Bai Chen and Duan Xuan to the Tianhai Blacksmith Association.
As the largest city on the eastern coast, Tianhai City ranked among the top-tier cities on the entire continent.
Naturally, the Blacksmith Association here was far from small.
As soon as Bai Chen entered the building, he was stunned by the bustling scene.
Almost no one in sight was idle.
Everyone was busy working on something.
The entire place radiated an atmosphere of intense productivity.
Once inside, Duan Xuan naturally took the lead.
He guided Bai Chen and Bai Jiaming into an elevator and brought them to the top floor.
Opening the innermost door in the corridor, he led them inside.
"This is my personal forging workshop," Duan Xuan said.
"For the next two hours, I will personally demonstrate what forging truly is and also test your talent as a blacksmith."
"Yes."
Bai Chen nodded respectfully.
Bai Jiaming quietly walked to a corner of the room and pulled up a chair.
Today's session was essentially an aptitude test.
If Bai Chen truly had talent, Bai Jiaming would let him continue studying here.
Otherwise, he wouldn't force his son down this path.
After all, he was an extremely busy man and had only made time today to help fulfill his son's wish.
Duan Xuan seemed satisfied with Bai Chen's attitude.
He walked toward the forging table and raised his hand.
A flash of light came from the bracelet on his wrist.
Two dark golden forging hammers appeared in his hands.
The moment the hammers appeared, his entire presence changed.
He suddenly felt much more steady and imposing.
Then he began forging.
He did not choose an easy task simply because Bai Chen was a beginner.
In fact, he did the opposite.
The process he demonstrated was something only Saint Blacksmiths could achieve—
Soul Forging.
After all, Bai Chen currently knew nothing about forging.
Even if Duan Xuan explained the details, Bai Chen probably wouldn't understand them yet.
So Duan Xuan chose a simpler method:
A magnificent demonstration to ignite Bai Chen's passion for the profession.
And the method worked.
As the rhythmic clang-clang of hammer strikes echoed through the room, Bai Chen's expression slowly changed.
The sound of the metal being struck wasn't harsh.
Instead, it felt like music.
Before he realized it, Bai Chen had become completely absorbed.
Finally—
When Duan Xuan delivered the final strike, Bai Chen let out a long breath, as if he had just remembered how to breathe.
Duan Xuan turned and looked at him.
"Well? Would you like to try?"
"Yes!"
Seeing Bai Chen's eager expression, Duan Xuan raised an eyebrow.
It seemed they might have truly discovered a good talent this time.
Smiling slightly, he extended his hands and handed the forging hammers to Bai Chen.
"If you want to try, then give it a shot."
"Your task today is simple—strike a piece of metal one thousand times."
"Alright."
Bai Chen accepted the hammers without hesitation and stepped up to the forging table.
A trace of surprise flashed through Duan Xuan's eyes.
The curiosity in his gaze grew stronger.
As a Saint Blacksmith, the forging hammers he used were obviously not ordinary tools.
Their weight alone would normally make them impossible for ordinary soul masters to handle so easily.
So this child's martial soul must enhance physical strength, Duan Xuan thought.
A strength-type martial soul.
He silently made his first evaluation.
Bai Chen had no idea Duan Xuan was already assessing him.
After witnessing the dazzling forging demonstration earlier, his heart was already filled with excitement.
After being reborn into this world, he wanted to pursue everything that interested him.
Now the profession of blacksmith had genuinely sparked his passion.
Not simply because of its prestigious status.
Taking a deep breath, Bai Chen raised the forging hammer high.
Then he brought it down with force—
Delivering the first strike of his life as a blacksmith.
"Clang!"
The crisp sound echoed through the workshop.
Duan Xuan nodded slightly.
Just as he had expected—
That strength had clearly surpassed the level of an ordinary Great Soul Master.
At least in terms of physical power, Bai Chen had already passed the first requirement to become a blacksmith.