That Is Not My Sister But Bibi Dong?!

The appearance of the molten iron drew everyone's attention.

Xiao Shunzi, eager to win the bet, had long been ready with a basin of cold water.

Seeing that the crucible was almost full of molten iron, Xiao Shunzi immediately stepped forward and used tongs to place the crucible into the cold water for cooling.

With a "sizzle," the scorching molten iron rapidly cooled into a silvery-white iron block.

It fell out of the crucible and landed in the basin.

"Heh, whether this piece of iron meets the standard or not will be clear with a hammer strike," Xiao Shunzi mocked as he glanced at Ye Tian, holding the silvery iron block in his hand.

If the quality of the iron was subpar, the block would shatter like ice under the force of a hammer.

To Xiao Shunzi, there was no doubt that he would win this bet! After all, Ye Tian was just a commoner, probably never having left the coastal city of East Sea in his life. How could he possibly think he could gamble with Xiao Shunzi? He had no idea how outmatched he was!

Ye Tian, however, only gave Xiao Shunzi a cold glance, smiling faintly, "Then let Eunuch Shun test it."

"Heh, don't cry later!" Xiao Shunzi sneered, clutching the iron block in his hand.

He then walked towards the public forging platform in the square, placing the iron block on it and picking up a large hammer nearby.

Seeing this, Xiao Shunzi's colleagues began whispering to each other.

"Xiao Shunzi's definitely going to win!"

"Ye Tian is really foolish. Doesn't everyone know that refined iron requires countless hammer strikes? How could raising the height of the furnace alone produce refined iron?"

"Haha, Ye Tian's about to lose miserably."

"The bet is 100,000 gold coins. That's probably all his assets."

Standing at the front, Qian Renxue's beautiful eyes also fixed on Xiao Shunzi's actions, while observing Ye Tian's expression.

Despite the seemingly clear outcome, Ye Tian's face remained calm and composed, which surprised Qian Renxue. Such composure wasn't something just anyone could possess. If Ye Tian was a soul master, this kind of attitude would indicate great potential. But seeing it in a young commoner like Ye Tian was strange.

After all, Ye Tian couldn't be more than 20 years old, based on his appearance and bone development. At this age, most noble youths were still in school, playing tricks, teasing girls, and flirting. But here was Ye Tian, a successful businessman at such a young age, with enough wealth to make a wager this large. Qian Renxue found this remarkable.

Yet, Ye Tian wasn't a noble; he was a commoner. As the heir of the Angel family and having spent years undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire, Qian Renxue understood a harsh truth: on the Douluo Continent, commoners without soul master talents had virtually no chance of social mobility. They were always at the mercy of the nobility, with no rights to speak of. Sometimes, they could be beaten or even killed without consequence. The nobility didn't even need to fear punishment.

In short, commoners were the lowest class on the continent, with no hope of rising in society.

However, Ye Tian shattered Qian Renxue's preconceived notions. Not only had he managed to build a small fortune in such harsh times, but he had also established a school specifically to educate commoner students. From this perspective, Ye Tian was a man who remembered his roots, a rare quality for someone so successful.

"He does have some talent," Qian Renxue mused, resting her hand on her chin.

"Perhaps he tried to bribe Qian Gu Shizhen to gain entry into the noble class and change his humble background."

"A little talent, ambition, and a good attitude... not bad," Qian Renxue thought, making plans to recruit Ye Tian. Although he wasn't a soul master, he could still serve her purpose. By giving Ye Tian a position, she could send a message that even a commoner like him could earn a good job by her side, encouraging other talented individuals to join her.

Even if Ye Tian lost the bet, Qian Renxue wouldn't take his money. 100,000 gold coins meant nothing to her. Winning his loyalty for that price would be well worth it. Moreover, without any background, Ye Tian was easy to manipulate and use, especially given her upcoming plans to overthrow Emperor Xue Ye. Loyal, useful subordinates were exactly what she needed.

Lost in thought, Qian Renxue watched as Xiao Shunzi swung the hammer down hard. There was a loud bang, and the hammer bounced off, sending a shockwave through Xiao Shunzi's hands and head. As a three-ring Soul Elder, his strength was three times that of a regular person, so his strike should have been decisive.

Without even looking at the result, Xiao Shunzi sneered at Ye Tian, "Admit defeat?"

His confidence came from his deep knowledge of blacksmithing, as he came from a family of smiths. He was certain there was no way he could lose.

However, Ye Tian just gave him a contemptuous look, as if Xiao Shunzi were a fool. "Why don't you turn around and check the result before saying that?"

Stunned, Xiao Shunzi turned to look at the iron block on the platform—and his face froze.

The iron block hadn't shattered as he expected. It only had a slight indentation from the hammer, a sign of high purity and excellent malleability—the defining traits of refined iron!

"How is this possible…?"

Xiao Shunzi's eyes widened in disbelief, mumbling to himself. Could Ye Tian have swapped the iron? No, that was impossible. He had personally monitored the entire process, from the molten iron to cooling and forging. Ye Tian had never touched the iron.

Swallowing hard, Xiao Shunzi admitted reluctantly, "So raising the height of the furnace... really can produce refined iron…"

The crowd, seeing the unbroken iron block and Xiao Shunzi's dismayed expression, broke into murmurs.

"Could it be that this little block is really refined iron?"

"It's very likely. Look at that shine. Only true refined iron has that kind of pure silver color."

"Wow! Does raising the furnace height really improve the quality of the iron?"

"That's incredible!"

"If it's that simple, why didn't anyone discover it earlier?"

Shocked, everyone turned their eyes to Ye Tian. It turned out that everything Ye Tian had said was true. 

(End of chapter)

P.S

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