The Sect’s organizational structure was incredibly complex. In Copper Heart and its three nearby satellite cities, law enforcement was handled by the Punishment Hall’s enforcement teams.

This was the core of the Sect and the most strictly regulated area. Ming Lin didn’t dare move his merchandise nearby; he went to the relatively close Life Stars instead.

With the help of the Teleportation Star Gate, a round trip only took a few days. Law enforcement there, however, was conducted by the Punishment Hall’s inspection teams.

"Having an official identity would make it much easier to cover things up."

Su Chen understood this principle and grew thoughtful.

"By the way, there’s one more thing." Ming Lin hesitated slightly before continuing, "I’ve been doing some digging recently, and I think I’ve figured out who’s secretly investigating me."

"Who?" Su Chen’s interest was piqued.

"Meng Shiyu," Ming Lin said gravely. "His family isn’t particularly prominent within the Sect, but they have deep roots in the inspection teams. I had to spend a lot of time with those guys before I could get the information out of them."

"He’s close to Qin Tianlin," Ming Lin added, his eyes showing a trace of worry.

"Meng Shiyu?" Su Chen’s expression turned odd, but he quickly composed himself. ’So it’s him. Then again, that’s not so surprising.’

"I understand. I’ll figure out a way to get you that inspection team identity."

Ming Lin nodded. They chatted for a while longer before he returned to the training room.

’The Punishment Hall... who should I approach?’ Su Chen wondered. He had only been in the Sect for a little over three months, and since he had spent most of his time in the core region, he wasn’t very familiar with the organizational structure of the outer areas.

As for the Punishment Hall, he didn’t know anyone there.

’I’ll have to find a third party to act as a go-between...’ He took out the wristband he’d put away earlier, preparing to message Wan Chen.

The moment he turned it on, he saw a message from Wei Zhenghong inviting him to a gathering and asking if he was free.

Su Chen looked at it. The message had been sent yesterday, and the gathering was scheduled for tomorrow.

Thinking of the matter with the inspection team, Su Chen replied, "I’ll be there."

After tidying up a bit, Su Chen left the Floating Island again, heading for Copper Heart and making a beeline for the Bronze Tower at its center.

Accessing a Holy Profession was no ordinary matter; it had to be done through the Bronze Tower.

Many people greeted him along the way, something Su Chen had grown accustomed to. When someone near the plaza caught sight of him, they couldn’t help but show a look of surprise.

"Su Chen? Why is he going to the Bronze Tower?" someone asked, staring at his retreating back. There weren’t many reasons to visit the Bronze Tower, so their surprise was understandable.

A voice nearby chimed in, "Probably to access a Holy Profession. I heard this Star Seed accessed one as soon as he arrived."

"It’s been over three months. The initial profession for a Holy Profession isn’t that difficult, so he should be about ready to qualify."

"A Holy Profession..."

The speaker’s eyes filled with longing. For members of the Holy Hall without a powerful background, only those who ranked in the top thirty were qualified to choose a Holy Profession.

"Sigh... why wasn’t I born a Star Seed?"

"No kidding. Who wouldn’t want to be a Star Seed?" someone next to him sneered. "Instead of daydreaming, you should just focus on developing your own professions."

"Hey, I was just saying," the person muttered, then couldn’t help but speculate.

"I heard this Su Xingzhong is already Tier Five, but he still hasn’t updated his leaderboard ranking. Do you think he could become the top expert of Tier Six?"

"What are you dreaming of?" another person laughed. "The Tier Six experts are all old-timers in their thirties and forties. Their special professions have practically formed complete systems, and some guys are even near the end of their Holy Profession Sequence. It’s not that simple."

The group continued their discussion as they walked off into the distance.

Su Chen knew his visit would inevitably cause a stir, but taking three months to qualify for an initial profession was well within the norm.

The tower doors closed, and the Copper Spirit’s voice sounded, "Star Seed Su Chen, how may I help you?"

"I wish to access the next profession in the Permanent Body line."

"Have you already qualified as a Tolerant?" the Copper Spirit asked.

"I have," Su Chen nodded.

"My apologies, but I must conduct a verification," the Copper Spirit responded.

Su Chen was a little curious. "How do you verify it?"

"A Tolerant’s ability is to draw upon their body’s potential for continued Physical Strength after their normal reserves are depleted. Please proceed to the second floor."

A staircase suddenly materialized against the silent, star-filled backdrop.

Su Chen stepped onto it and ascended. The second floor was a room resembling a challenge chamber. A pillar of light shone down on him as the Copper Spirit’s voice rang out, "You simply need to exhaust your Physical Strength."

’It can really detect that?’

Su Chen wondered to himself but was careful not to use his Holy Hand. He simply unleashed a continuous barrage of attacks on the training projection that appeared before him.

Waves of Energy surged. Going all out, he quickly used up most of his Physical Strength. As he gasped for breath, a warm current welled up from within his body.

"Verification complete. Ability signature is a match. Assessment: Passed. Congratulations on qualifying as a Tolerant."

Hearing the Copper Spirit’s voice, Su Chen understood. ’It seems this verification isn’t very thorough; it just makes a determination based on the body’s physical response.’

A virtual screen slowly unfolded before him, displaying the new special profession.

[Special Profession Discovered: Hundred Refinement Forger. May be undertaken upon completion of all requirements.]

[Requirement One: Qualify for at least four Physical Side professions, three of which must be Top-tier Professions.]

[Requirement Two: In an environment of no less than one thousand degrees, temper your body with a great hammer for no less than three hours a day, continuing for at least six months.]

[Requirement Three: Find the embers of a forge fire that has burned unceasingly for at least a century and fuse them into your body during the tempering process.]

[One’s will is like iron; it must be hammered a thousand times and refined a hundredfold. Though the Hundred Refinement Forger is resolute by nature, they are not witless. Out of reverence for the Great Venerable, Requirement Two has been lessened: tempering is only required for one hour each day.]

’Hundred Refinement Forger... The difficulty seems about standard. The only really troublesome part is the specific time commitment.’