<strong>Chapter 323 - Dividing the First Grade</strong>


    “Among you, there are designers, makers, mechanics, and cksmiths,” Wu Zhangkong said, cold as usual. “Simply put, creating a mecha requires these four professions to work together. I’m sure you’re all curious about why the Academy is teaching you the basics of mecha making. In order to be a battle armor master, you first have to study the foundation of battle armor: mechas!


    “High-end mechas are just about as powerful as low-end battle armor. A cksmith forges the metal used to make the mecha, a designer drafts the mecha’s blueprint, a maker assembles the mecha, and a mechanic decides how long the mecha can be used. Battle armor is made in much the same way.


    “Now let’s discuss the fundamental principles of mechas...”


    Wu Zhangkong began his lecture. However, he didn’t cover the basics of mecha making alone. He also discussed how makers worked with cksmiths, designers, and mechanics. It was aprehensive lecture.


    By the time morning sses were over, Tang Wulin’s understanding of mechas had grown far more profound.


    After counting the students of each profession, this ss of 101 students discovered that it only had eight cksmiths. This was reportedly the highest number of cksmiths in a ss in recent years, not to mention cksmithing geniuses like Tang Wulin and Yang Nianxia.


    Mecha designers were the majority, tallying up to thirty-four in total. Mecha makers followed closely at thirty-one, and the remainder were mechanics. The three main professions were rtively bnced.


    “ss is over,” Shen Yi announced. “ss council members, stay behind.”


    Tang Wulin, Gu Yue, Wu Siduo, and Luo Guixing stayed in their seats.


    “Go to your respective associations and get their help with registering all of the people in your profession. Then discuss how to divide the ss into groups with an even bnce of each profession. We only have eight cksmiths. Excluding Tang Wulin, you need to distribute seven, so it would be best to create seven groups, one around each cksmith. Get familiar with the abilities of the students in your profession and divide them so that the groups are about equal in talent.”


    Tang Wulin nodded. The ss council received an allowance of contribution points, but it definitely wasn’t free!


    “Here are everyone’s school registration forms. The profession and rank of each student is recorded. Their martial soul and soul power rank are listed as well. You four will have to go over every single form and analyze the strengths of each student.”


    As thest of the other students trickled out of the ssroom, only Tang Wulin, Gu Yue, Wu Siduo, and Luo Guixing remained in the ssroom. The four of them flipped through the stack of papers in silence. It wasn’t unusual for Luo Guixing to keep quiet, but Tang Wulin asionally caught a glimpse of a rare, mysterious smile on his lips. Tang Wulin couldn’t even begin to guess what was going on in Luo Guixing’s mind.


    On the other hand, Wu Siduo crossed her arms and gave Tang Wulin a cold re.


    Gu Yue simply leaned back in her chair, an aura of serenity around her.


    “This is our first time working together, so I’ll say a few words.” Tang Wulin shed a radiant smile at them. As ss president, he couldn’t shirk his responsibilities. His position was lofty and his responsibilities were just as heavy. “ording to Teacher Shen’s instructions, we’ll be dividing everyone into groups centered around the profession with the lowest number of students. Aside from me, we have seven cksmiths, so we’ll have seven groups with one cksmith each. I have already skimmed through the papers and ascertained that we have one cksmith at the first rank, five at the second, and one at the third. There’s a gap between the second and third ranks, but it isn’t toorge. The difference between first and second ranks, however, is gigantic. In order to be fair, I will be troubling you three to help me ce stronger designers, mechanics, and makers in the first-rank cksmith’s group. After all, Teacher Shen was pretty clear about wanting the overall skill level of each group to be bnced.”


    Gu Yue nodded. “I have no problems with that. Designers make up a majority of the ss. With thirty-four of them, there’ll be six groups with five designers and one group with four. The third-rank cksmith’s group should have four designers. I’ll make sure the skill levels are bnced.”


    “I don’t have a problem with that either,” Luo Guixing gave Tang Wulin a friendly grin as he spoke. “It shouldn’t be too hard to distribute them fairly. I’ll get started. The sooner we finish, the sooner we get off.”


    Wu Siduo simply nodded silently.


    Making each group wasn’t too hard. It was impossible to make every group perfectly equal in ability, but they got as close as they could.


    After a while, the four of them finished up and Tang Wulin took the papers in his hands.


    “Alright, looks like we’re done,” he said. “You guys can go home and rest. I’ll submit the groups to Teacher Shen.”


    “I’ll trouble ss president to do so then,” Luo Guixing said, and he stood up and left.


    A grim expression on her face, Wu Siduo stood up without saying a word and left as well.


    After the other two left, Gu Yue’s impassive expression thawed a bit as she shot a nce at Tang Wulin.


    “Wow, the president is so well respected,” she cooed. “Neither of them ept him yet.”


    “That’s to be expected,” Tang Wulin replied, giving her a wry smile. “Everyone at Shrek is a genius, so who wouldn’t be proud? I’ll just win them over slowly. In the future, if I no longer qualify for the position or someone betteres along, I wouldn’t want to be ss president anyway. Well, let’s get going. I’ll deliver these papers to Teacher Shen then go back and meditate.”


    Although food consumed arge chunk of his contribution points every day, Tang Wulin could clearly feel how beneficial it was for for his blood essence and the cultivation speed of the Mysterious Heaven Method. Regardless of the circumstances, increased growth in soul power was a good thing. Tang Wulin wasn’t far from reaching rank 30. He understood that gaining his third soul ring was currently his number one priority. He would then be able to spirit refine and his contribution point worries would vanish.


    It was possible to fail when making battle armor. In fact, the usage of higher quality materials increased the probability of failure. In light of this, every student in Shrek Academy, all of whom were prospective battle armor masters, was always on the prowl for spirit refined metal.


    Tang Wulin already had a sneak peek at the benefits of being a high-ranked cksmith. He knew that, once he firmly established himself in the fifth rank, he would have no problems obtaining anything he needed in exchange for his work.


    His current n was to reach rank 30 and perfect his spirit refining skills all while studying mechas and battle armor. He could pushbat practice and other things back untilter. Goldlight was a thousand-year spirit soul, so he didn’t have to worry about obtaining one for his third soul ring either.


    Once Tang Wulin arrived at the teacher’s office with Gu Yue, Shen Yi epted the papers from him. She quickly flipped through them before giving him a nod of approval. “Excellent. All of you have worked hard. Tang Wulin. As ss president, you will be burdened with many responsibilities in the future. Prepare yourself.”


    “Understood!” Tang Wulin knew that, as his responsibilities grew, he would learn even more.


    “Shrek Academy has always focused on nurturing well-rounded geniuses, but we also raise specialized geniuses. As a cksmith, you are blessed by the heavens, but that doesn’t mean you can rx just yet.” Shen Yi watched him carefully. “I heard you were abducted by Elder Feng the other day?”


    Tang Wulin forced out a bitter smile and nodded. “You don’t have to worry. I’m a member of Shrek’s cksmith’s Association now.”


    When it came for Feng Wuyu, Tang Wulin was at a loss. The man was a true entric, but fortunately for Tang Wulin, his teacher would arrive soon. At the very least, he was confident in his teacher when it came to cksmithing skill.


    “Who said my name?”


    At that moment, the zing-haired Feng Wuyu walked in.


    Upon seeing Tang Wulin, his eyes lit up and he roared withughter. “I was just looking for you! I sure am lucky to find you so soon. Wait to the side for a bit, kid. I have to talk to that girl Shen Yi about something.”


    “Hello, Elder Feng.” Shen Yi had long since stood up and given Feng Wuyu a respectful salute.


    Feng Wuyu waved his hand dismissively. “It’s fine, it’s fine. I just have a small matter to talk with you about. It’s about this kid actually. He’s a cksmithing genius blessed by the heavens, and I want to carefully nurture him, but he won’t ept me as his teacher. What do you think should be done here?”


    Shen Yi stared at him, dumbstruck. How am I supposed to know what you should do? Am I a cksmith? No! I can’t force him either!


    She sent a pleading look over to Wu Zhangkong who stood nearby.


    “Hello, Elder Feng,” Wu Zhangkong spoke up as he walked over. “As I’m sure you know, we only have the authority to make suggestions regarding our students’ professions. We can’t force anything upon them, and it’s up to them to decide. Could it be that you haven’t been able to persuade him?”


    Wu Zhangkong’s expression was as icy as usual, but his words were sharper than ever. He passed the ball right back into Feng Wuyu’s court.