122: Chapter 122 The blank that Li Yuan forged

This "Seven Vajra Hammering Method" actually appeared somewhat clumsy from the outside.

One needed to first infuse it with force before using a hammer strike to detonate it.

The first four were for infusing force, while the last three were for guiding that force.

This "front four, back three" was clearly written in the technique manual.

But Li Yuan understood that "front four, back three" did not specifically refer to four or three hammer strikes.

Rather, it meant that when hammering the mineral, the energy spent should be divided into seven parts.

The first four parts were for infusing force.

The last three parts were for guiding the force to expel the Impurities within.

The craftsmen watching from the sidelines observed Li Yuan's operation for a quarter of an hour before shaking their heads.

It seemed they were quite disappointed in Li Yuan's performance.

Among the many people watching, some began to comment on Li Yuan.

Although their evaluations were not high, they still carried a hint of surprise.

Because in their expectations, Li Yuan was a Martial Artist who should have been completely ignorant of craftsmanship.

Yet to their surprise, Li Yuan actually knew how to do it.

Although his technique did not appear exquisite, he really did know it.

While observing, the City Lord of Liulin Pass and his companions suddenly felt they were seeing something different.

"This Li Yuan's technique seems to have an archaic style, very much like the habits of those craftsman Seniors from the past..."

The City Lord of Liulin Pass was knowledgeable and was the first to sense it.

Upon hearing this, the others around them seemed to notice it as well.

After looking closer, some of the techniques Li Yuan used were indeed outdated.

After so many years of development, craftsmanship had certainly progressed in some aspects.

It was just that these improvements were all minor details.

Regarding core techniques, such as the "Seven Vajra Hammering Method" used for forging blanks, there had not been much improvement.

Li Yuan had obtained the experience of several craftsman Great Masters, so he naturally knew this.

He simply felt it was meaningless and wouldn't save much energy.

So he decided to simply follow the experience of Senior Cui Dao entirely.

In the eyes of those around him, Li Yuan had just found some old-fashioned craftsman and learned a few basics.

After watching for a while longer, everyone's gaze drifted away from Li Yuan.

Meng Shanshi sat on the periphery, and for the latter half of the time, he simply closed his eyes to rest.

The craftsmanship Li Yuan displayed gave the impression that a few of his moves were actually quite impressive.

But these few moves were not enough to forge a usable blank.

Li Yuan paid no mind to the gazes of others.

He had come this time to win the championship and compete for first place.

It was not as they speculated, that he was here to befriend some craftsman.

Two hours passed, and this year's Liulin Pass Grand Competition neared its end.

Among the craftsmen participating alongside Li Yuan, there was another very formidable one.

During those two hours, most people's gazes had been fixed on him.

As for Li Yuan, everyone just treated him as a source of amusement.

The conflict between Li Yuan and Meng Shanshi was considered a side attraction of the Liulin Pass Grand Competition.

Everyone had finished forging their blanks.

After all, they were all elite craftsmen from various countries; there wasn't anyone who couldn't finish forging a blank within two hours.

This point was an exception for Li Yuan.

For a Martial Artist to want to complete the forging of a blank in two hours, the difficulty was extraordinary.

If he really had the ability, why would he bother inviting Meng Shanshi to participate?

Next was the inspection phase.

This was the final day, and all the craftsmen had completed their forging.

The results from today's inspection would ultimately determine who would win the championship.

Whether Meng Shanshi's Rank B-1 would directly take the crown, or if he would be surpassed by another top craftsman today.

Shang Chi, a Great Master craftsman from the Cang Kingdom.

Everyone was now looking at the blank in his hand.

Judging by its appearance, the item Shang Chi had forged was not inferior to Meng Shanshi's at all.

In everyone's predictions, it was Meng Shanshi and Shang Chi who would be vying for the championship.

The inspection had already begun, with the blanks being placed in one after another.

Rank B-3, Rank B-4...

It remained the same; the quality of the blanks forged by most craftsmen was only around Rank B-3 or Rank B-4.

Blanks of this quality were acceptable.

Rank B-2 would be considered outstanding.

As for Rank B-1, that was truly the limit for Silver Horn mineral.

Among the many Great Master craftsmen in the world, the limit they could reach when forging Silver Horn mineral was Rank B-1.

That was the maximum level of hardness and toughness they could achieve.

As the inspection continued, the anticipation of the onlookers grew greater and greater.

Everyone was waiting to see Shang Chi's results.

Amidst the gaze of the crowd, Shang Chi's blank was finally sent into the Magical Artifact for testing.

Soon, the Rank appeared.

Rank B-1!

This year's Liulin Pass Grand Competition, using Silver Horn mineral as the base, had actually produced two Rank B-1 blanks!

This final result was truly surprising.

In all the years of the Liulin Pass Grand Competition, such a clash of titans had rarely occurred.

Having just one person forge to the limit was already spectacular.

Since two people had achieved Rank B-1, they would now need to use a Magical Artifact to compare them.

The blanks forged by Meng Shanshi and Shang Chi were placed into the same specialized Magical Artifact.

The specialized Magical Artifact would determine which of the blanks was superior.

They had originally thought the champion for the day had already been decided, but it turned out there was still more to see.

The surrounding craftsmen were all feeling somewhat excited.

Seeing this result from Shang Chi, Meng Shanshi also cast an appreciative look his way.

After a moment of hesitation, Meng Shanshi turned his head to glance at Li Yuan.

He then spoke to Shang Chi, "Great Master Shang, regardless of who wins today, I hope you will not sell this Divine Weapon Materials to that young man from Da Shun named Li Yuan."

"I know that if you win, this Divine Weapon Materials should be yours to dispose of as you please."

"But I still wish to presumptuously make this request..."

Meng Shanshi's tone when speaking to Shang Chi was very polite, and he was extremely respectful toward him.

Shang Chi was quite pleased and, without much hesitation, nodded in agreement.

"Since Great Master Meng has said so, how could I refuse?"

"You and I are both craftsmen, so we should naturally help one another."

It seemed that in their conversation, they had already decided that Li Yuan's trip would be in vain.

Yet Li Yuan still only looked at the two of them coldly.

The inspection was not yet over, and the outcome had not been completely decided.

Behind Shang Chi, there were probably still over thirty blanks that had not yet been inspected.

However, for the craftsmen present, the position of champion would either be Meng Shanshi or Shang Chi.

The thirty-plus craftsmen remaining did not have that kind of potential.

It was visible to the naked eye that the onlookers were no longer as expectant for the subsequent inspections.

Soon, the inspection finally reached Li Yuan.

The people present did not hold much expectation for Li Yuan.

When the finished product he had forged was taken for inspection, it might only end up being a Rank D.

In the Liulin Pass Grand Competition, if the forged blank was lower than Rank B, the people around would inevitably chuckle when they saw it.

Li Yuan's performance today would likely create the lowest-ranked blank in history.

For someone who specialized in the Martial Dao, achieving such a result was actually not bad at all.