Chapter 141 — The First Strike of a Titan Forge
The forge district of the Astral Forge Sect never truly slept.
Even in the deepest cycle of night, rivers of molten star-metal still flowed between suspended furnaces, glowing like fiery veins carved through the floating mountain. The clang of hammer on metal echoed faintly through the void-filled air, each strike carrying laws of heat, gravity, and form.
Lin stepped into the district for the first time since his reconstruction.
And immediately—
He felt it.
The weight.
Not just of gravity—but of craftsmanship refined through countless generations.
Each furnace carried its own law signature.
Each anvil was a convergence point of heat, pressure, and material will.
Each forged weapon resonated faintly with the Dao of its maker.
Lin exhaled slowly.
"So this is what a higher-realm forge feels like…"
Behind him, Elder Rowan's footsteps approached—not heavy, not hurried, but measured.
"You survived the pressure chamber," Rowan said flatly. "That earns you a forge slot. Nothing more."
Lin inclined his head respectfully.
"That's all I'm asking for."
Rowan's eyes lingered on him for a moment longer before he turned and gestured forward.
"Follow."
---
1. Law-Bound Materials
Rowan led Lin deep into the inner forge halls.
Here, the air itself shimmered with heat distortion and gravity compression. Massive slabs of metal rested upon suspended platforms, each restrained by layered formations.
Rowan stopped beside a dark, star-speckled ingot.
"Void-Stabilized Meteor Iron," he said.
"Absorbs heat without melting. Retains gravitational density. Standard practice material for Titan initiates."
Lin placed a hand lightly on its surface.
Instantly—
His Five-Element circulation responded.
Metal resonated with the ore's internal lattice
Fire aligned with the dormant heat locked inside
Earth stabilized the immense internal weight
Water diffused thermal backlash
Wind traced microscopic flow paths through the structure
To Lin—
The ingot wasn't dead.
It was a silent body waiting to be awakened.
Rowan observed his stillness.
"…You feel it?"
Lin nodded.
"It's… orderly."
Rowan's brow creased faintly.
"Good. Then you're ready to fail properly."
---
2. The Hammer Falls
Lin was assigned a basic Titan anvil—one formed from layered gravity stone reinforced with metal-law arrays.
No instructions were given.
No manuals offered.
Only the hammer.
Titan-forging was not learned by reading.
It was learned by breaking the wrong things first.
Lin raised the hammer.
The moment it descended—
BOOM
The impact detonated with a thunderous shockwave. Law-energy rippled outward. The anvil trembled violently. Cracks raced across the outer shell of the ingot.
Lin staggered back two steps.
Rowan did not move.
"You struck like a cultivator."
Lin caught his breath.
"And that's wrong?"
Rowan answered coldly.
"You treated the metal as an enemy. Forging is not battle. It is integration."
Lin closed his eyes.
For a moment, he forgot the Titan Realm.
Forgot competition.
Forgot Tian.
Forgot abyssal enemies.
He remembered his own Five-Element circulation.
Then—
He matched it to the metal.
---
3. Forging With the Five Elements
The second strike was different.
There was no explosion.
Only a deep, resounding gong that rang through the anvil like a bell struck beneath the world.
Fire did not burn—it persuaded
Metal did not fracture—it answered
Earth did not crush—it contained
Water did not flood—it moderated
Wind did not scatter—it guided
The cracked shell of the ingot smoothed.
The internal lattice rearranged itself under harmonic pressure instead of violent collapse.
Rowan's fingers twitched slightly.
"…Hmph."
The third strike fell.
Then the fourth.
Then the fifth.
Each impact sank deeper into material law instead of shattering it.
Sparks no longer flew.
Light folded inward.
The forge grew quiet.
Not silent—
Respectful.
---
4. The First Titan-Grade Creation
After eighty-one strikes—
The ingot transformed.
No longer crude slab.
No longer raw ore.
Before Lin now hovered a dark, star-threaded metal billet, its surface reflecting faint planetary light patterns.
Rowan stepped forward at last.
He extended two fingers.
A scanning formation flashed.
His eyes narrowed.
"…Low Titan Grade."
Lin blinked.
"That's… bad?"
Rowan stared at him.
"You forged Titan-grade material on your first attempt using only resonance alignment."
He turned slightly away.
"Do not assume that is normal."
Lin silently released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.
---
5. The Forge Observes Back
Around them, other forge disciples slowed their work.
Not openly.
But subtly.
The sound of strikes faltered.
Eyes shifted.
No one spoke.
Yet everyone felt it.
A newcomer had entered the forging path—
And the forge itself had responded.
Inside Lin's inner world, Aurora drifted above the rising metal platform.
> "He's not forging weapons yet," she murmured. "He's forging compatibility."
Saint Shengyuan nodded slowly.
> "And compatibility is far more terrifying than sharpness."
---
6. Rowan's Warning
When Lin finally stepped away from the anvil, sweat dampened his brow—not from heat or fatigue, but from sustained elemental synchronization.
Rowan spoke quietly:
"The moment Tian hears about this, your time will shorten."
Lin met his gaze.
"I expected that."
Rowan studied him for a long moment before speaking again.
"You are not ready to fight him."
"I know."
Rowan's eyes hardened.
"But you will be."
---
7. The Heavy Path Forward
As Lin left the inner forge sector, his arms felt heavier.
Not from exhaustion.
From potential.
For the first time since entering the Titan Realm—
He had not gained cultivation.
He had gained foundation that could shape gods.
He looked down at his hands again.
This time…
They felt ready to build weapons that could kill Demigods.