Join my Patreon to be 30 chapters ahead of the webnovel releases:
patreon.com/ZeroMoney
I would appreciate your help if you could join my Patreon and support me because it would keep me motivated.
******
Huo Yuhao's expression showed sudden realization.
"So that's how it is?"
"Make a soul tool and let me see your skills," Su Yu said.
In reality, Su Yu was just giving Jing Hongchen a chance to observe. With Jing Hongchen present, Huo Yuhao's demonstration of soul tool crafting would give the most authentic display of his skills.
Su Yu hadn't seen it himself yet, but he thought it couldn't be too bad.
"Yuhao, Su Yu is actually being quite thoughtful," Skydream Ice silkworm whispered to Huo Yuhao, explaining the deeper meaning behind Su Yu's actions.
"Alright, Brother Su," Huo Yuhao replied, realizing that there was no turning back. Moreover, Su Yu's words weren't without merit. He could only accept his reality. Maybe, once he grew stronger, he could return to Shrek and visit his old friends.
"Is this really the soul skill of a ten-year soul ring?" Jing Hongchen looked as though his entire worldview was being questioned.
He glanced at Su Yu, hoping for confirmation.
No wonder Su Yu claimed that Huo Yuhao was a born soul engineer.
Just the mental detection sharing skill alone was god-tier for a soul engineer. Especially in soul tool crafting, it allowed every detail to be imprinted clearly in the mind. Jing Hongchen didn't even need to see Huo Yuhao's full soul tool-making capability. Even if his actual crafting skills weren't that great, he could at least serve as unparalleled support.
A god-level support, no less!
"His hands are steady, and every movement is precise," Jing Hongchen marveled more with every observation.
If Su Yu was a genius who discovered the optimal solutions through sheer intelligence and exploration, then Huo Yuhao was someone who relied purely on intuition, inscribing core formations with an effortless flow. Watching Huo Yuhao work gave a sense of natural grace.
Indeed, he was a born soul engineer.
Jing Hongchen felt that Sun-Moon Hall had truly found a treasure in Huo Yuhao. At the same time, he grew even more puzzled about why it had taken Huo Yuhao eight months to reach the level of a second-tier soul engineer.
After Huo Yuhao finished crafting the soul tool's core, Jing Hongchen began questioning him about what he had learned during those eight months.
Jing Hongchen fell silent.
"Completely inadequate," he muttered to himself.
Jing Hongchen personally arranged Huo Yuhao's enrollment, even though it was technically through the back door. But because Jing Hongchen himself handled it, and Huo Yuhao was now registered as a disciple of Mingde Hall, no one dared question it.
After all, fewer than ten current students held that prestigious title.
Once he entered the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, Huo Yuhao truly began to witness advanced soul tool technology for the first time.
He quickly became immersed in the study of soul tools, unable to pull himself away.
As for cultivating his soul power, he had herbal meals, medicinal baths, and high-grade elixirs to support him, making his progress even faster than it had been at Shrek.
"These elixirs are relatively mild in potency. As long as you carefully refine their energy after consumption, they won't cause any negative impact on your future cultivation," Ice Empress concluded after evaluating the medicine.
With this reassurance, Huo Yuhao felt more at ease.
His cultivation speed increased, giving him more time to research soul tools, and he grew stronger at an even faster pace.
Everything felt fulfilling, except for the occasional pang of guilt when he practiced the Mysterious Heaven Technique or Purple Demon Eyes.
Back when he joined the Tang Sect, he had vowed to abandon these techniques if he ever left.
"I need strength to avenge myself. Teacher Xiaoya, Senior Brother Beibei, I'm sorry," Huo Yuhao thought to himself.
"I'll just stop practicing the Mysterious Heaven Technique and Purple Demon Eyes in the future," he decided.
Upon returning to Mingdu, Su Yu received good news.
Kong Deming had returned.
"There's still a month until the Soul Dueling Competition. I'll go see the teacher and explain everything first."
With that, Su Yu took his identification token and headed deep into the imperial palace.
"Teacher," he called.
"Xiao Yu, you're here," Kong Deming said with a smile, setting aside his research.
"This Tang Sect hidden weapon really has some interesting qualities," he remarked. "However, it focuses too much on cleverness and neglects the difficulty of its construction. This particular hidden weapon is more than ten times more complex to make than a soul tool of the same level."
Kong Deming had managed to find one or two broken Tang Sect hidden weapons, and after analyzing their structure, he gleaned some useful insights.
"The useful parts of these weapons' design for soul tools can be thought of by anyone, as long as there are enough people working on it," Kong Deming concluded.
"I'll tell Jing to add a course at the academy that includes the structural techniques of soul tools," he added. With so many talented individuals at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, it would be a waste not to utilize their collective intelligence.
Perhaps individual intelligence has its limits, often leading to dead ends. But with more people involved, breakthroughs in design would surely come faster. The combined efforts of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy and the many soul engineers of Sun-Moon Hall would certainly not disappoint.
Su Yu was momentarily stunned, but then he nodded in agreement with his teacher's plan.
It made sense. This would be a good way to warm up for the future reforms. Individual research might yield results, but the time cost could be high. It would be better to divide non-core details into tasks and assign them to others, allowing multiple areas of technology to be explored simultaneously.
The development of battle armor was something that absolutely needed to be pursued. However, Su Yu didn't intend to fully replicate the battle armor from his knowledge of the future, ten thousand years ahead.
All that stuff about blacksmiths and the four forging levels—spirit forging, fusion forging, soul forging, and divine forging—was far too cumbersome.
Especially since the process divided the creation of battle armor into four separate professions, which seemed unnecessary.
Too many technologies involved? Then just don't bother developing the unnecessary ones.
What mattered most was not fully replicating the existing method. Only by breaking free from established techniques could they avoid being restricted.
Simple problems, when you already know the answer, may seem easy to solve, and convenient too. But for something as complex as battle armor, having an answer could instead be limiting. The answer wasn't important; the direction was.
The future lay in the integration of soul tools and armor, fusing completely with the soul master, complementing each other and enhancing their abilities in all aspects. That was the path forward.
"Teacher, in a month, the Soul Dueling Tournament will take place. I would like to invite you to oversee it," Su Yu said.
"Oh? The Soul Dueling Tournament? Is there anyone who dares to make trouble for the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy's team?" Kong Deming asked, somewhat surprised.
Su Yu nodded.
"There is. There are always shameless experts who might try."
"Teacher, if Shrek's Gluttonous Douluo is leading their team, I'm worried that if we break their millennia-long winning streak, he might lose it and lash out. I don't want to be slapped to death."
"Haha! You've got quite the confidence," Kong Deming laughed heartily.
The Sun Moon Empire had its own plans, especially regarding the Soul Dueling Tournament.
This year, they were aiming for first place, but even if they didn't succeed, it wouldn't be a problem, as their ace team members would still be eligible for the next tournament. That's when the Sun Moon Empire would go all out.
Everything was being prepared for the next Soul Dueling Tournament, and this one was merely a warm-up.
Yet here was Su Yu, displaying such confidence in front of Kong Deming, which pleased the elder greatly.
However, Kong Deming still gave Su Yu a gentle reminder.
"Every time Shrek Academy competes, they have at least one Soul Emperor-level participant. Winning won't be easy."
Su Yu nodded. He knew full well that it wouldn't be easy.
But wasn't there a golden opportunity to take advantage of this time?
It would be a shame not to seize it!
(End of Chapter)