Wu Mo took a few steps forward to the judging table and immediately handed in his basketball-sized armor prototype.

Elder Ai Bo took it and was about to put it into the machine for testing.

However, he was slightly shocked when he subconsciously glanced at it.

The armor prototype that had been cast by this young man not only had a perfect structure, but its weight was also somewhat different from that of the other blacksmiths’ prototypes. Its surface was full of potholes as if it had not been polished at the last step.

Lian Chun yawned at the side. He did not notice this piece of work that was comparable to something made by an experienced blacksmith.

“Let’s take a look at the data first.”

Even though he felt that this prototype was better than all the previous ones, he still had to test it according to the process.

Right then, the other 12 people looked over. They wanted to see the level of this guy who made them unhappy.

“Don’t worry, he’s definitely not my match.”

Jiang Zhou, who was standing at the side, smiled and spoke in a nonchalant tone.

Beep, beep, beep, beep. [Inspection complete.

[Armor Prototype – Hardness: 90, Toughness: 83, Degree of Energy Passage: 94

[Overall Score: 88]

The moment the results appeared, Lian Chun, who was sitting in the judging seat, suddenly widened his eyes in disbelief.

“Oh, this… is really unbelievable,” Lian Chun unwittingly said upon seeing such excellent results.

Elder Ai Bo was also surprised. He felt that this young man had to be the disciple of a master. Otherwise, he would not have such strong abilities.

The two of them had been in the capital’s Blacksmith Guild for several decades. Although they had seen many geniuses, it was still very rare for someone to have such a good foundation and be able to purify materials to such a degree.

Whether it was the Ice Pistil Flower, the Iron Bone Leaf, or the current alloy frame, they were all very well made.

His work was so clean and neat that it could even be compared to a Five-elements blacksmith.

It did not seem like something a young man in his twenties could do.

In short, it was amazing, and the two elders felt like they had found a treasure.

But Wu Mo did not find it too outrageous.

He only found it rare.

At this moment, the young blacksmiths from the noble research institute were so surprised by Wu Mo’s test results that they did not know what to say for a moment.

They had originally thought that Wu Mo was just a low-level blacksmith with a solid foundation. Without improved talent, he could only practice his basic knowledge over and over again.

However, they now realized that they had been wrong about him.

Even Jiang Zhou, who was the strongest among them, had only gotten 79 points.

Meanwhile, Wu Mo’s score was 88. The difference was enough to explain the problem.

Not only did that fellow have a solid foundation, but he also had the ability to deal a blow to them in other areas of forging.

They could not imagine how Wu Mo had managed to achieve a hardness of more than 90%.

The toughness and the coverage of the energy meridian had exceeded their knowledge.

Right then, even the ever-confident Jiang Zhou had a bad look on his face.

He felt that Wu Mo had taken all the glory from him.

He seemed mediocre in comparison.

The entire testing area was filled with tension.

Many of the people who had been contemptuous and even disgusted with Wu Mo now felt their faces burning, especially that pretty girl who had previously been sarcastic to Wu Mo.

The skills that Wu Mo displayed were far beyond their realm of knowledge.

Now, she wished that she could find a crack and hide in it.

The blacksmiths who had mocked Wu Mo for being a low-realm blacksmith were all ashamed.

All of them had their heads lowered, and there was no longer any trace of their previous arrogance.

“Alright, it’s about time. Let’s start the four-star ranking test.”

Seeing that the young students had stopped talking, Ai Bo immediately spoke.

He never stopped them from competing in the dark because he knew that the young man whom everyone from the noble academy regarded as an opponent was powerful.

He would not be affected by their words. If the situation got a little more serious, Lian Chun would definitely stop them even if he did not do anything.

In the testing area, all the blacksmiths who were taking part in the test immediately returned to their original positions after hearing Elder Ai Bo’s instructions.

They waited in silence as the elder announced the rules of the four-star test.

While they were waiting for the test, the two invigilators had already distributed the relevant materials. The four-star ranking test posed many questions, and the results could only be obtained after a comprehensive evaluation.

The relative difficulty of the test would also increase by a lot.

“The rules of the four-star ranking test are as follows: We will judge who is better based on the various aspects.

“Please produce the final product within 25 minutes based on the prototype weapon and related materials provided.

“Condition 1: The finished weapon must be at least of Rare grade.

“Condition 2: Please add at least one magic circle or rune effect to the weapon.

“Condition 3: Successfully embed the designated gem and achieve a sharpness of more than 60.

“Only by fulfilling the above conditions and obtaining the approval of the two elders will it be considered complete.”

After they heard the conditions that Elder Ai Bo presented, most of the people present looked reluctant.

They knew that the test for the four-star ranking would be more difficult.

However, they did not expect there to be so many conditions.

Forging Rare equipment was not considered difficult for newly-graduated blacksmiths.

The effects of magic arrays and runes, on the other hand, were more complicated, and not everyone could easily learn them.

It was especially true for Tier 2 runes and arrays. The books related to them were like heavenly books, obscure and difficult to understand.

The degree of sharpness would also test their skills in forging and sharpening. Once these two skills were integrated to a certain extent, they could forge a sharp weapon that would not break easily.

However, everyone felt that it was even more difficult to gain the approval of the two elders.

The two elders were both ranked six stars and had seen countless Divine weapons in the Blacksmith Guild. It would not be easy for the weapons they forged to be recognized.

They had to handle most parts well for their work to be recognized, but there was so little time that it was almost impossible to polish the details.

If they were delayed in certain areas, they could have a problem finishing their work.

As such, many people felt that they would not be able to pass the assessment even before it started.

Even Jiang Zhou, the strongest from the aristocratic academy, fell into deep thought.

He had to regain the glory he had lost in this test. He would not allow anyone of the same age to surpass him, so he had to exert 120% this time to forge a perfect weapon and completely trample over the other guy.

Thinking of this, Jiang Zhou’s heart immediately lit up with battle intent, and the anger in his chest began to build.