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Sun-Moon Hall.
This place symbolizes the pinnacle of soul tool craftsmanship in the entire Douluo Continent.
Receiving certification from Sun-Moon Hall is a source of pride for any soul master.
Under the guidance of Yang Chengyu, Su Yu arrived at the assessment area of Sun-Moon Hall and was quickly scheduled for his evaluation.
"Second-tier soul tool: soul-guided dagger."
This time, Su Yu was tasked with creating a relatively common second-tier soul tool—the soul-guided dagger.
He first tested the provided forging hammer, carving tools, and other equipment for the assessment.
Only after that did he begin the actual crafting process.
Forging.
After a month of practice, Su Yu's forging skills had reached a remarkable level, advancing from proficiency to mastery.
Carving.
Thanks to extensive practice, his carving skills had also progressed to mastery.
With these two processes completed, the skills of a soul master became apparent.
"Solid foundation," Jing Hongchen remarked as he observed Su Yu's operations on the screen.
It was hard to imagine that in just a month, Su Yu could hone these foundational skills to such a degree.
Receiving a "solid foundation" evaluation from someone like Jing Hongchen was no small feat.
Even Xiao Hongchen had faced multiple reprimands from Jing Hongchen for his lack of a solid foundation.
Aside from the core array engravings, one must not neglect forging and carving techniques.
Xiao Hongchen only realized the importance of these skills after encountering a bottleneck before advancing to a third-tier soul master.
Even though he had since broken through to third-tier, in Jing Hongchen's eyes, he still didn't have a solid foundation.
Su Yu receiving such an evaluation demonstrated his remarkable level of skill, especially considering he had only practiced for a month!
Jing Hongchen felt a strong appreciation for talent.
Su Yu finished carving the exterior of the soul-guided dagger and began crafting its true core.
He hammered the dark silver, refining its internal structure to make it denser.
Using the tools on the workbench, he polished the dark silver into a smooth metallic sphere. He then began to carve patterns onto the surface of the sphere, preparing it for the engraving of the core array later on.
Once everything was ready, he infused his soul power into the carving tool.
Each stroke meticulously outlined the core array.
Observation Room.
Jing Hongchen expressed admiration several times, clearly pleased with Su Yu's crafting process.
The supervising personnel nearby nodded in agreement, echoing Jing Hongchen's sentiments.
They could indeed tell that the boy currently being assessed had a high level of skill in soul tool crafting, even among second-tier soul masters.
While he might not have mastered as many types of soul tools as some seniors who had lingered in this realm for longer, he had refined his crafting techniques to an exceptional level.
The production process was completed swiftly.
It took only three hours from start to finish.
As Su Yu assembled the metallic sphere, which shimmered with a blue glow, with the exterior shell, the soul-guided dagger was finally completed.
Su Yu infused it with soul power, causing a sharp energy blade to materialize at the dagger's handle.
"Top-notch!"
Receiving this evaluation meant that Su Yu's craftsmanship was truly exceptional.
"Su Yu, this is the esteemed dean and also the head of Sun-Moon Hall, Jing Hongchen."
Before Su Yu was awarded the second-tier soul master badge, Yang Chengyu introduced him to Jing Hongchen, who would be presenting the badge.
"Student Su Yu, it's an honor to meet you, Dean."
"Su Yu, you've done exceptionally well!"
Jing Hongchen smiled as he handed the badge to Su Yu.
"From this moment on, you are officially a second-tier soul master. I hope you continue to work hard and soon become a ninth-tier soul master!"
A ninth-tier soul master!
This was Jing Hongchen's expectation for Su Yu.
The other soul masters present looked on with envy, admiring the high expectations placed on Su Yu by the hall master.
However, they had just witnessed Su Yu's process of crafting a second-tier soul tool, so they understood that he deserved this recognition.
He was a genius who had broken the record of the Sun-Moon Empire!
Su Yu calmly accepted the badge and pinned it to his chest.
Seeing Su Yu's demeanor, Jing Hongchen felt even more satisfied.
Prince's Manor.
"Your Highness, Su Yu has successfully been certified as a second-tier soul master!"
Xu Tianran sat in his wheelchair, eyes closed, listening to the report from his subordinate without showing any strong reaction.
At the moment Yang Chengyu tested Su Yu's potential, the prince had already realized that Su Yu had no fate with the prince's manor.
Even when Su Yu visited Yang Chengyu's office daily to seek advice on crafting soul tools, he didn't send anyone to recruit Su Yu in the meantime.
"Your Highness, Su Yu became a second-tier soul master in just two months, breaking the record of the Sun Moon Empire. Shouldn't we try to win him over?
Besides, he hasn't completely joined Jing Hongchen yet.
Also, Jing Hongchen already has a grandson, Xiao Hongchen."
A maid beside Xu Tianran reminded him.
However, Xu Tianran suddenly opened his eyes, and the cold glare made her fall silent.
"I beg your pardon, Your Highness." The maid quickly knelt on the ground.
Xu Tianran closed his eyes again.
"Brother, don't you understand why I gave up on Su Yu?"
Xu Kun nodded, admitting that he was indeed confused.
He waved his hand, signaling for the subordinate who brought the news to leave.
Xu Tianran continued, "We're not at the point of openly opposing Jing Hongchen yet. He controls the entire Mingde Hall; even I cannot afford to be at odds with him."
"But—" Xu Kun wanted to argue that as long as Su Yu hadn't joined Sun-Moon Hall, they hadn't completely severed ties with Jing Hongchen.
"Brother, don't forget, Sun-Moon Hall is not solely Jing Hongchen's domain."
While Jing Hongchen held sway over Sun-Moon Hall, it wasn't entirely under his control.
If one were to speak of true authority over Sun-Moon Hall, there was perhaps someone even more formidable.
"Are you referring to Old Kong?"
Xu Tianran and Xu Kun were speaking of Kong Deming.
He was the hall master of the Sun Moon Empire's worship hall, the closest individual to a tenth-tier soul master, and held the highest rank among all ninth-tier soul masters.
Kong Deming had a quarter of the royal bloodline of the Sun Moon Empire and was loyal only to the royal family.
It was precisely because of figures like him that the status of the Sun Moon Empire's royal family remained unshakeable.
Although Sun-Moon Hall was in the hands of Jing Hongchen, who wasn't a member of the royal family, the royal family still held no fear due to Kong Deming's presence.
Moreover, Jing Hongchen could even be considered a student of Kong Deming, having received guidance from him while learning about soul tools.
Kong Deming was always impartial, loyal only to the royal family.
If he were to speak out, even if the prince managed to recruit Su Yu, he would still have to give him up again.
But would Kong Deming speak out?
He would.
The prince was well aware of this.
Recently, as his actions became more frequent and the power struggle intensified, the prodigies emerging from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy had all been recruited by Jing Hongchen.
While Jing Hongchen's actions infuriated him, Xu Tianran understood his motives.
"Xiao, I heard your record has been broken."
News of Su Yu's accomplishments had spread widely.
In an instant, the whole of Sun-Moon seemed to be buzzing with this information.
As the previous record holder, Xiao Hongchen could no longer contain himself after hearing his sister's words.
"Meng, I'm going to challenge him!"
(End of Chapter)