The next day, Zhang Ping made a special trip to the school library.

He first searched for the history of Mingzhu city but found no information on "Marts Lia" or "Be Skirt," suggesting these terms were not old place names.

Since they weren't place names, what could they be?

Zhang Ping returned to his dormitory, filling out his graduation application while continuously pondering the mystery.

"Could it be that these words have been scrambled?" he thought.

In the afternoon, Zhang Ping set down his pen, a new idea suddenly coming to him. He wrote the two words on a piece of paper:

Be Skirt

Marts Lia

Staring at them, Zhang Ping's eyes widened.

The puzzle wasn’t hard to solve. But it was clear that very few people knew the answer. Whoever left this message understood him very well!

Wait.

He should say, they understood the original owner very well.

Not far from the orphanage in Mingzhu city, there used to be a Brisket Noodle House.

If you rearrange "Brisket," it becomes "Be Skirt."

Behind the Brisket Noodle House was a small park, a paradise in the eyes of the orphans.

Before Zhang Ping entered Mingzhu Ability Academy, he often practiced martial arts alone in that park. ''Marts Lia'' means "Martial"!

As time passed, the Brisket Noodle House went bankrupt four years ago, and now the place had turned into an armor workshop. Skyborn Fox was unlikely to know this information, and those who knew Zhang Ping had trained there were very few.

From this, it could be inferred that the person who appeared behind him last night must have known the original owner!

Zhang Ping tore the paper with the words and threw it into the toilet before grabbing his graduation application and heading out.

Now that he had figured it out, he felt much more relaxed.

From the wording, the person must want him to meet at the small park behind the Brisket Noodle House on the 23rd.

The reason the number didn't need further breakdown was simple: no month has 32 days, so it had to be the 23rd.

His graduation application went smoothly.

After all, he was just an Awakener with an Ineffective Rank ability, a weakling, and not much of a priority.

In the evening, Zhang Ping packed his belongings and left the school.

When he arrived at Iron Soul, the shop was looking after Uncle Liu, and Snotty Qiang immediately smiled when he saw Zhang Ping with his luggage. He knew Zhang Ping had made his decision.

"Little buddy, you're just in time. Tomorrow, I’ve got a mission that will take about five days. I was worried no one would be able to look after Uncle Liu. Come, come, I'll show you upstairs."

The shop had three floors. The first was the shopfront, the second was living quarters, and the third was the workshop.

The second floor had many rooms, and after Zhang Ping placed his luggage in one, he followed Snotty Qiang downstairs. It was then he learned that Snotty Qiang’s real name was Qiu Qiang, but because of how the neighbors had always called him "Snotty Qiang," he didn’t mind the nickname.

Uncle Liu's name was Liu Tiefeng, 79 years old. He had a son named Liu Dashan, but he had disappeared recently.

Feeling a sense of foreboding, Liu Tiefeng’s mental state had been deteriorating. His reactions were slowing down, and he was becoming confused. So, Qiu Qiang hoped to find someone trustworthy to look after him.

He chose Zhang Ping mainly because Zhang Ping was a student and an orphan, not like the people from the streets who had complicated thoughts and relationships.

Also, Qiu Qiang himself would visit regularly, so he wasn’t worried about Zhang Ping getting any strange ideas.

Of course, Qiu Qiang didn’t say this directly—it was just Zhang Ping’s guess.

A student who wanted to be an Adventurer, and an orphan. It was easy to judge in Mingzhu city.

At night, Qiu Qiang, having some time, decided to teach Zhang Ping the basics of blacksmithing.

When he went on his mission, Zhang Ping could take care of Uncle Liu and also practice the basics, so he wouldn't have nothing to do.

The world of blacksmithing here was somewhat different from what Zhang Ping had imagined.

Before he started, Zhang Ping thought forging weapons was just about hammering heated metal and then tempering and polishing it. But in this world, the craft was much more complex.

"Ping, let me show you first, watch carefully." Qiu Qiang put on his fire-resistant gloves and spoke to Zhang Ping.

Zhang Ping nodded and focused, paying close attention to Qiu Qiang’s movements.

Qiu Qiang picked up several iron ingots and placed them on a wooden tray, saying, "These are refined iron, typically bought at iron mines or wholesale shops. A 10-pound iron ingot costs about 6,000 coins."

"That's so expensive!" Zhang Ping exclaimed.

Qiu Qiang placed several scales on the wooden tray and smiled, "You should know that Mingzhu city’s iron mines are in the wild. Going outside the city is like gambling with your life. Every ingot of refined iron might be stained with the blood of miners and Adventurers. Is 6,000 coins really expensive?"

"..."

Zhang Ping had no words to respond.

Then Qiu Qiang prepared the materials and said, "These scales are called Crimson Serpent Scales, from the Mutated Beast Crimson Serpent. When exposed to high temperatures, these scales melt and emit intense heat. There’s also a substance called ‘Crimson Grey’ that mixes with the refined iron, strengthening its hardness and toughness and giving it self-healing properties."

"Once you add the Crimson Serpent Scales, you must forge the weapon in one go. Otherwise, once it cools down, it will stay in whatever shape it has, and it’ll be hard to reforge."

With that, Qiu Qiang placed the refined iron and materials into the furnace and quickly stirred them with his hand, looking less like he was forging a weapon and more like kneading dough.

"Many of these materials need to be mixed by hand, so this forging technique is also called Doughsmithing Art."

Qiu Qiang didn’t mind the high temperature at all. His eyes were fixed on the flames as his hands kept stirring.

Zhang Ping swallowed. Although Qiu Qiang wore fireproof gloves, the flames were already licking up his arm, but he didn’t seem to care at all, and his arm didn’t even have a single hair singed.

"Watch closely, this step is crucial," Qiu Qiang said.

He pulled a lump of red 'dough' out of the fire, quickly rising and placing it into a nearby black rectangular mold. Then, he grabbed a massive hammer and began striking the raised part of the mold with intense force. Gradually, the bulging area flattened out.

"Help me bring the red oil from over there!" He took a breath and called to Zhang Ping.

Zhang Ping immediately grabbed a one-meter-tall oil barrel from the counter, struggling to carry it over to Qiu Qiang.

"Not bad, being able to carry Fire Oil shows you're in decent shape." Qiu Qiang said with a smile, secretly testing Zhang Ping's strength.

Although the Doughsmithing Art didn't require extraordinary strength, one still couldn't be completely weak.

Qiu Qiang opened the lid and poured a small amount of Fire Oil onto the mold. With a loud roar, steam erupted from the mold, and Qiu Qiang swiftly pulled a switch beside it. The mold slowly opened, revealing a dark, red-patterned knife in front of them.

"This is the most basic forging step. This knife is called the Pearl Blade. It’s the standard issue for weapons in Mingzhu City. All blacksmith apprentices start by forging this. Once you're familiar with how materials change, you may not need molds and can craft weapons as you please," Qiu Qiang explained, taking the knife out of the mold and walking to the test stand. He then spoke to Zhang Ping.

The next moment, he raised the knife and struck a stone on the test stand. The blade flashed, and the stone was instantly split in two, the cut smooth and clean.

"This is the most common knife in Mingzhu City!"

Zhang Ping felt his eyes widen with amazement. This was something that couldn’t be learned at Mingzhu Ability Academy, and it gave him an initial understanding of the weapons of Mingzhu City.

But soon, he snapped out of it. Even with weapons like these, Mingzhu City was still infiltrated by Skyborn Fox. There was no doubt that Skyborn Fox was far more terrifying and dangerous.

"Can this weapon damage an Intermediate Level Mutated Beast?" Zhang Ping thought for a moment and asked.

Qiu Qiang set the knife aside, hearing Zhang Ping’s question, and smiled. "It depends on the Mutated Beast. Some are strong defensively, some are incredibly agile, and some are good at attacking. There’s no absolute answer. However, the Pearl Blade is generally used only for Beginner Level Mutated Beasts, and even then, some Mutated Beasts with strong defenses can still withstand it."

Mutated Beasts were often stronger than humans, and the higher their level, the stronger they became. Even Mutated Beasts that didn't specialize in physical enhancement could have a body stronger than that of high-level Awakeners.

This was one of the disadvantages humans faced against Mutated Beasts.

"Alright, now it's your turn. Don’t be nervous, you'll have plenty of time to practice the basics," Qiu Qiang said, seeing Zhang Ping deep in thought. He took off his fireproof gloves, patted Zhang Ping on the shoulder, and added.

Zhang Ping nodded, took the gloves, and walked over to the furnace.

He had already memorized Qiu Qiang's methods. Now, all he had to do was follow the same steps to forge the Pearl Blade.

The first step: Prepare all the necessary materials.

The second step: Place the materials into the furnace to be heated by open flames.

Zhang Ping carefully placed the wooden tray into the furnace. As he did, the arm holding the tray, without fireproof gloves, immediately felt the heat. The burning materials also emitted heat, and a surge of warmth shot out from the furnace. His eyebrows instantly curled, and he could smell the faint scent of burning hair.

"Don’t step back. Feel the changes in the materials. Don’t let go, or the accelerants in the firewood will ruin everything," Qiu Qiang reminded.

Zhang Ping was about to step back but had to grit his teeth and hold on. As the wooden tray burned away, he immediately felt the lump of something heavy in his hands. This was the material that had mixed and burned together.

"It should be about time. The materials you're holding are uneven, so knead them slowly and feel the weight," Qiu Qiang said.

Zhang Ping nodded and slowly began kneading with both hands.

Although the fireproof gloves blocked direct contact, he could still feel the dough-like material in his hands. It was firmer than flour, and the texture varied in different areas.

At first, he thought it would be the same as kneading dough, but now, after experiencing it firsthand, he realized it required much more force. It was far more strenuous than kneading regular dough.

It was exhausting.

But he gritted his teeth and continued kneading.

"This step is crucial, but don’t do it too slowly. If you take too long, some of the material might burn away," Qiu Qiang said with a smile as he watched Zhang Ping sweat profusely.

Zhang Ping gritted his teeth and persevered. Gradually, he felt the 'dough' in his hands come together as one. He glanced at Qiu Qiang, who gave no indication of approval or disapproval but left it to him to decide.

"It should be ready!" Zhang Ping thought for a moment, then quickly pulled the glowing 'dough' out of the furnace. He swiftly placed it into the mold and closed it.

He bent down to grab the hammer, only to realize it was heavier than he had anticipated. He couldn't lift it with just one hand.

Struggling, he managed to pick it up with both hands and began hammering the mold.

With the sound of metal clanging, the raised parts of the mold slowly flattened.

Once he was certain he had done his best, he grabbed the Fire Oil and poured it onto the mold.

Boom!

A loud explosion rang out, and steam burst from the seams of the mold.

Zhang Ping set the Fire Oil down and didn’t rush to check the blade he had forged. Instead, he collapsed onto the ground, completely exhausted.