Lin Mu listened carefully as the dwarf elders listed the various beasts.
Among them were the Realm Eater Worms, creatures known for their ability to consu space itself, leaving distortions in their wake.
There were also the Great Bulwark Beasts, whose bodies were said to possess near impenetrable defenses.
Another ntioned was the Chro Shelled Void Turtle, a creature whose shell was renowned for its spatial stability and resilience.
Several others were nad as well, each more exotic and powerful than the last.
Yet even among these, the elders admitted sothing important.
"The material you possess," one of them said, "still stands apart."
Lin Mu's gaze lowered slightly as he considered this.
The husk of Xukong.
Even among such legendary creatures, it held a presence that was difficult to match.
At that mont, a mory surfaced.
He recalled reading about the Realm Eater Worms in the moirs of the Lost Immortal, a figure who had studied countless beasts in pursuit of understanding. That knowledge had contributed to the creation of the naless technique Lin Mu now carried.
The connection was clear.
Everything was beginning to align.
Lin Mu looked back at the elders, his expression thoughtful.
This was only the beginning.
The true challenge of forging the husk had yet to begin.
The quiet intensity of the Ancestral Wisdom Library settled around them as Lin Mu turned his attention fully to the elders.
The glowing sphere at the center continued its slow, shifting radiance, casting faint prismatic reflections across the stone floor. It gave the entire chamber a feeling that was neither entirely chanical nor entirely alive, sothing in between that felt ancient and deliberate.
Lin Mu folded his hands behind his back and spoke.
"What thods did you find?" he asked.
The elders exchanged brief glances before one of the Rune Dwarves stepped forward. His beard was long and braided with thin strips of tal, each etched with tiny runes that shimred faintly.
"There are several thods recorded," he said. "Each tailored for different types of beast materials."
He gestured toward the floating sphere.
"So rely on suppressing the inherent energy of the material. Others focus on harmonizing with it. A few attempt to forcibly reshape it through multiple intense forging cycles."
Lin Mu listened carefully.
"But none of them are guaranteed to work for this husk," the elder continued. "Its properties are too unique. Too… stable in its current form."
Another elder spoke up, this one from the Mountain Dwarves.
"It resists change at a fundantal level," he said. "Even the examples we found are only loosely comparable."
Lin Mu nodded slowly.
"So you will have to derive a new thod," he said.
The elders gave a unified nod.
"A thod built from fragnts of existing knowledge," one of them confird. "Combined, refined, and tested through practice."
Lin Mu exhaled softly.
"So we learn from doing," he said.
"Exactly," the Fireforge elder replied, his voice deep and steady. "Theory will guide us, but the forge will decide."
Lin Mu's gaze sharpened slightly.
"And you ntioned a spatial cultivator is required," he said.
"Yes," the Rune Dwarf answered. "Without one, controlling the spatial energy within the material will be nearly impossible."
Lin Mu gave a faint smile.
"I will assist," he said without hesitation.
A low rumble of approval spread among the elders.
"That much we expected," one of them said with a grin.
Then another elder crossed his arms and looked at Lin Mu more critically.
"But tell us," he said, "how are your forging skills?"
Before Lin Mu could respond, Jing Wei stepped forward.
"I was the first to teach him properly," he said. "But that was long ago. I do not know how far he has progressed since."
All eyes turned to Lin Mu.
Lin Mu considered for a mont before answering honestly.
"I have improved," he said. "But I am far from your level."
He paused briefly.
"I have forged High Grade immortal tools," he added, "and created several spatial storage treasures."
There was a mont of silence.
Then the expressions of the dwarves shifted.
Not disappointnt.
Surprise.
Genuine surprise.
"You have done that much?" one elder said, his brows rising.
Lin Mu nodded.
The dwarves exchanged glances, their earlier curiosity now replaced with clear interest.
"We should test him," one of them said.
"Agreed," another replied.
They turned toward the Ancestral Wisdom Mind.
The glowing sphere pulsed slightly as one of the elders raised his hand and channeled a stream of qi into it. The light within the sphere shifted, patterns forming and dissolving rapidly as if it were processing vast amounts of information.
Monts later, a projection appeared in the air before Lin Mu.
Rows of questions that were complex and intricate.
"This will be a theoretical assessnt," the elder said. "Answer as best as you can."
Lin Mu stepped forward and focused.
The first set of questions dealt with material composition.
He read carefully.
One asked about the interaction between spatially active tals and high density earth aligned ores under fluctuating thermal conditions. Another required identifying the optimal ratio of three different alloy components to maintain structural integrity while allowing energy conduction.
Lin Mu closed his eyes briefly.
Then he began.
His mind moved quickly, recalling countless records he had studied. He analyzed the properties, visualized the reactions, and worked through the logic step by step. His understanding of materials, though not rooted in dwarven tradition, was broad and deeply inford by his experiences.
He answered.
Then moved to the next.
The second section focused on energy reactions.
Questions here were even more complex.
One scenario described a forging environnt where fire, tal, and spatial energies were present simultaneously, asking how to stabilize the interaction without causing collapse. Another explored the consequences of introducing external Qi during a high temperature refinent process.
Lin Mu's brows furrowed slightly.
He worked through each problem carefully.
His knowledge of Qi flow, elental balance, and spatial interaction gave him an advantage here. He may not have practiced these exact forging techniques, but he understood the principles behind them.
His answers reflected that.
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