Shi Feng's demonstration level was somewhat elevated, and on top of that, he was extremely demanding.
Shuang Keke and Youyu Weixiao both wore expressions of utmost seriousness.
Shi Feng's forging skills had clearly been honed through countless rounds of practice—far beyond what they, with their minimal forging experience, could hope to match. Still, they managed to pick up a few tricks here and there.
Afterward, the two walked over to their respective forging tables, picked up the materials, and sank into deep contemplation, as though something had clicked.
"As expected of future Master Blacksmiths," Shi Feng said with a slight smile as he watched them.
Most forging players nowadays simply couldn't get their hands on that many materials to practice with, let alone use rare materials to craft items.
But Shi Feng was different. Over ten years in the Divine Realm, he had encountered quite a few Master Blacksmiths, and these people loved nothing more than talking shop about forging. At their level, it could no longer be called a hobby—it was research. Shi Feng had absorbed a great deal from those conversations, and combined with the countless materials he had used for practice, he had naturally become highly skilled. When it came to raw talent, though, he couldn't hold a candle to the two women in front of him—he was a combat-oriented adventurer, after all.
All he could do was showcase the techniques he had picked up from those masters and the knowledge he had accumulated himself.
The help might not be enormous, but letting them see where they fell short was more than enough.
Most players nowadays, while crafting whetstones at a decent success rate, were lucky if they produced one out of every five attempts. In terms of raw percentage, that meant roughly a 40% success rate—two out of five materials, and if the technique was solid, three was not unheard of.
The Star Trace Trading Company's Forging Room, while not on par with the Blacksmith's Association's intermediate Forging Room, was still considerably better than a basic one. For crafting common items like whetstones, it provided a bonus of over 5%.
That was why Shi Feng had demanded they produce at least two whetstones from five sets of materials.
After a period of quiet reflection, the two finally began working.
Three minutes later, both had produced their first whetstone. Their faces lit up with delight as they handed them to Shi Feng for inspection.
"Defective product. This one too." Shi Feng checked the displayed data and shook his head—both whetstones were low-quality, with no usable effect whatsoever.
Shuang Keke and Youyu Weixiao both looked mildly crestfallen and sank back into thought. They knew full well that chances were running out. If they couldn't produce two whetstones from the remaining four sets of materials, they would be sent away.
After this first failure, they spent considerably more time deliberating. Over ten minutes passed before both of them did something that caught Shi Feng off guard.
They used all four sets of materials in a single go, and at a noticeably faster pace than before. Once they finished, the two exchanged smiles and set the completed whetstones on the table for Shi Feng to inspect.
"You two really are surprising—three successes out of four." Shi Feng glanced at the displayed data and couldn't help but look impressed. "Very well. From today onward, you are official members of the Horizon Alliance. Here's the contract—sign it if everything looks good."
"The Horizon Alliance?"
"Isn't it the Star Trace Trading Company?"