By the end of the noon break, everyone had returned to the smelting hall.
Master Zhong was now fully focused on forging the jade dagger's blade core. Senior Brother Liu assisted him at the side. At this stage, the process had entered the delicate phase of artifact crafting. The first-year helpers were no longer able to contribute much, so they simply gathered around the forging table, watching how a true artifact was made.
At some point, Elder Mo walked in from the inner courtyard again.
Seeing several layers of students crowding around the forging table, he frowned slightly.
"What are you all doing crowding there?"
He waved his hand.
"Disperse. Don't disturb Master Zhong. You won't be able to help anyway. Leave one or two people to observe if necessary."
The helpers quickly scattered.
Liu Jinfá turned to Lin Fei.
"Come on, brother. Since we're free now, I'll show you the other parts of the workshop."
Lin Fei nodded.
As his gaze swept the room, he noticed that Zhou Ping had been stopped by Senior Brother Liu and told to remain behind. Only Zhou Ping and another student were left near the forging table to assist Master Zhong and Senior Brother Liu.
The two walked out of the stone building.
Liu Jinfá led Lin Fei deeper north into the workshop area.
Lowering his voice deliberately, he asked,
"Brother, do you know why we're assigned helper duties every weekend?"
Lin Fei shook his head.
"I heard it from the senior students," Liu Jinfá said mysteriously. "Starting in second year, we'll have to choose a craft specialization."
Lin Fei looked curious.
"If you want to learn artifact forging or talisman crafting, you come to the Forging Workshop. If you want to study alchemy or medicine, you go to Clearbrook Valley. And if you want to learn beast taming, you go to the beast stables."
He grinned.
"These helper jobs are just to let us experience everything early, so we'll know what to choose later."
Lin Fei nodded in understanding.
"Then Zhou Ping…" he glanced back toward the forging hall. "He's already decided to study forging?"
"Probably," Liu Jinfá said. "He comes here every week. He knows more ores than most people."
Soon they reached the deepest part of the workshop grounds.
Before them stood a two-story stone pavilion built against the mountainside. A steep cliff rose directly behind it. Voices of teachers and students drifted out from within.
Lin Fei pushed open the door.
The smell of vermilion ink immediately filled the air.
Compared to the noisy forging hall, the interior here was quiet.
Several long tables were arranged in rows. On them lay stacks of talisman paper, writing brushes, and small dishes of cinnabar ink. More than a dozen students bent over their papers, carefully drawing runic patterns.
At the far end of the room sat an elderly man in a grand chair.
He was thin, dressed in a dark gray robe, with a gentle expression as he watched the students.
"That's Elder Di," Liu Jinfá whispered. "He runs the Talisman Pavilion. And there's also Senior Brother Huang—you've seen him before."
Lin Fei was about to ask something when a sudden argument broke out at one of the tables.
"Your finishing stroke is wrong."
A slender young man in a green robe stood beside the table.
Lin Fei immediately recognized him—Huang Su, the third-year student who had once helped him and Liu Jinfá.
"I copied it exactly the way you wrote it," one of the students replied impatiently.
Standing across the table were two similar-looking boys—Lu Zhenhuan and Lu Zhenyu.
Several freshly drawn talisman papers lay on the table before them, the cinnabar ink still wet.
Lu Zhenhuan frowned.
"Isn't this symbol identical to yours? It just doesn't look exactly the same."
Huang Su shook his head.
"The most important part of a talisman is the rune inscription. Even a slight distortion of a stroke will weaken the technique."
He pointed to the final stroke on the paper.
"Your finishing stroke is rushed. Mine extends smoothly—yours stops too abruptly."
Lu Zhenhuan's expression stiffened, but he still refused to concede.
"If a tiny difference affects the power, then what's the point of drawing these beginner talismans? I could just cast the technique directly instead of using a disposable talisman."
Huang Su looked at him calmly.
"Zhenhuan, you and your brother both have neutral spiritual power, don't you?"
The two brothers paused.
"So what if we do?" Lu Zhenhuan asked.
"Neutral spiritual power allows you to practice all Five Element Arts," Huang Su said. "But what about others?"
He pointed to another student nearby.
"Wenyuan's spiritual power is water-aligned. Right now he can only learn Water Arts and Metal Arts. If he encounters an enemy with earth-aligned power, both his techniques and spiritual power will be suppressed."
Huang Su tapped the talisman on the table.
"But if he carries a Wood Art talisman, wood overcomes earth. That allows him to counter the disadvantage."
He looked around the room.
"That is the purpose of talismans. They don't replace Lin Arts—they compensate for a cultivator's weaknesses."
Lu Zhenhuan opened his mouth to argue.
But Lu Zhenyu tugged at his sleeve and whispered something.
Lu Zhenhuan shook him off irritably, sat down again, and silently picked up his brush to rewrite the rune.
From the grand chair, Elder Di watched Huang Su's instruction and nodded slightly in approval. He calmly sipped his tea.
Huang Su then checked the other freshmen's talismans one by one.
After finishing his inspection and finding no further issues, he bowed respectfully to Elder Di and prepared to leave the pavilion.
As he stepped outside, he saw Lin Fei and Liu Jinfá standing by the window.
"Senior Brother Huang," Lin Fei said, stepping forward and cupping his fist respectfully. "We meet again. I never properly thanked you for what happened in the forest."
Huang Su glanced at him.
"No need."
"If you hadn't appeared that day," Lin Fei said seriously, "Liu Jinfá and I would have suffered badly. I won't forget that kindness."
Huang Su was silent for a moment.
Then the corner of his mouth moved slightly—not quite a smile.
"Didn't you also step forward because you saw injustice?" he said. "I simply did the same."
Lin Fei blinked in surprise.
Huang Su looked at him again, a trace of warmth in his eyes.
"You dared to fight three third-year students for this little fatty," he said. "I admire your courage."
Lin Fei scratched his head awkwardly.
Huang Su reached into his robe and pulled out three neatly folded talisman papers, handing them over.
"Take them."
Lin Fei was startled.
"These are…?"
"You possess pure wood spiritual power," Huang Su said. "Wood is suppressed by metal. If you encounter a metal-aligned opponent, you'll be at a disadvantage."
He pointed to the first talisman.
"This one is Fireball Technique. Beginner level. Inject spiritual power and it will activate."
Then the second.
"This one is Blazing Flame. A beginner-intermediate technique—stronger and with a wider range."
Finally he pointed to the third.
The rune on this paper was noticeably more complex.
"This one is Flame Cascade, a mid-level Fire Art. It can release three waves of flame. Do not use it unless absolutely necessary—one use will drain all your spiritual power at your current level."
Lin Fei stared at the talismans in his hands.
"Senior Brother Huang… these are too valuable…"
"It's nothing," Huang Su interrupted. "Just keep them."
"Consider it the start of a friendship."
He turned and walked toward the inner stairs.
After a few steps, he paused and spoke without looking back.
"If you run into trouble in the future… you can come find me."
Then he disappeared down the stairway.
Liu Jinfá leaned close and whispered,
"Brother… Senior Brother Huang treats you really well. I've come here so many times, and he's never given me anything."
Lin Fei lowered his head and carefully folded the three talismans before placing them inside his robe.
The two wandered around the pavilion for a while, watching other students draw talismans.
In the corner, Lu Zhenhuan and Lu Zhenyu were still practicing.
Lu Zhenhuan's expression remained unpleasant, but his brush strokes were now far more careful than before.
Lin Fei didn't join them to learn.
He only watched quietly from afar before leaving with Liu Jinfá.
Outside the Talisman Pavilion, Lin Fei turned back to look at the two-story stone building.
He touched the three talismans inside his robe.
He thought to himself that he should visit this place more often in the future—and get to know Senior Brother Huang better.
He also remembered Huang Su's words.
You stepped forward because you saw injustice.So did I.
The righteous path is never walked alone.
In this world, there are always things… worth standing up for.